Roccos Cafe is currently closed due to a major street construction project and will fully reopen in January 2026. However, they will open every 4th Thursday of the month for pop up dinner experiences, so follow them on social media for more info. The restaurant is also accepting donations to support staff and renovation work during the shut down.
For 93 years, legacy spot Rocco’s Cafe has served homemade Italian fare to generations of hungry patrons.
The restaurant was originally established as “Rocco’s Fine Food” in 1932 by Rocco Coscarelli at 4581 Mission Street in the Excelsior District. Coscarelli, an Italian immigrant, fulfilled his dream of opening his own restaurant in this historic Italian enclave after several years of working for other Italian restaurants.
Demetrios “Jimmy” Simotas began working under Coscarelli at a young age, eventually taking over the restaurant after his passing in 1962. After retiring decades later, Simotas passed the ownership of the restaurant to Rocco’s grandson, Donald “Don” Dial, in 1990. However, Dial’s age ruffled the landlord, who did not want to extend a lease to a 25-year-old. Dial decided to start anew in the SOMA neighborhood, and relocated the restaurant to its present location at 1131 Folsom Street.
After doing extensive renovations at the rundown SOMA space, Dial opened the restaurant in 1991, adding “Cafe” to the name to reflect the addition of breakfast to Coscarelli’s iconic Italian dinner recipes.
Customers seek out Rocco’s for a hearty meal: shrimp omelets and fried zeppole (Italian donuts) for breakfast, french dips and meatball subs for lunch, and spaghetti and meatballs and chicken marsala for dinner. Fixings like minestrone soup, house salad, and garlic bread with whipped ricotta all compliment the restaurant’s Italian homestyle cuisine.
And in a relatively sleepy city where late dining destinations are few and far between, Rocco’s recently expanded their hours to late night and early morning—8 am to 11 pm Thursdays through Saturdays—to ensure the community continues to have a reliable place to eat. Rocco’s also remains one of the few sit down breakfast and lunch spots in the neighborhood.
For over 30 years Rocco’s has participated in community life in SOMA, where it has provided a
welcome environment to all. For example, the restaurant has a presence each year during the Folsom Street Fair, the state’s third largest street event which celebrates the neighborhood’s unique and rich LGBTQ+ and leather community history (see our upcoming post!). Although they closed for renovations starting in the summer of 2025, tradition did not stop them from opening for this year’s Fair.
Dial officially retired on December 31, 2023, and new business partners Michael Rotella, Scott Beck, and Mitch Penning took over on January 1, 2024 (Dial was able to purchase Rocco’s building in 2000 and retains building ownership). They are retaining the restaurant’s long legacy to ensure that the business continues to thrive—through SOMA’s tech boom and bust to skyrocketing restaurant costs, the restaurant has endured and remains the oldest in the neighborhood.
Longtime customers can still find the unique features that have defined Rocco’s over the years, including its historic 1945 “Rocco’s Cafe” neon sign. Inside its lively restaurant space, historic photos of restaurant life past and present line the walls, and a historic “Welcome to San Francisco” sign from 1962 sends guests on their way.
Rocco’s was added to the Legacy Business Registry in 2024 in recognition of its long history and contributions to the city’s culinary and cultural landscape. Below, enjoy a video of Dial from 2011 making Rocco’s famous Chicken Marsala. Mangia!
