Restaurants

The crouton makes it magic!

El Toreador in one sentence: Bright, cheery, always busy “sit down Mexican” place in West Portal, with bottomless bowls of chips, generous pitchers of Margaritas and big platters of comfort food.

Who you’ll see there: College students, families, couples before going to the movies.

Make sure to try: the sopa, the tasty tomato broth soup with one giant, yummy crouton floating in it. Also, the enchiladas will warm you up on the coldest, foggiest San Francisco night. Definitely go for the pitcher over the individual glasses of margaritas.

It’s okay to skip: the crispy taco plate. It’s a lot of fried, and they heat up the plate with the lettuce on it — not my favorite.

Service: The place is always busy, so they keep things moving. You’ll never have an empty plate sitting in front of you, and your water or soda will be refilled without you asking.

Average meal price:  Two people are in and out for $30 without booze, $45 if you get a pitcher.

Logistics:

• Be prepared for a line, you put your name on a list and wait
• No reservations
• It will be loud – it will not be romantic
• Kinda cramped, but in a friendly way
• Yes to credit cards

Parking:

On the street, can be tough to find, the smart move is to drop someone off to put your name on the list while you look for a spot

Location:

West Portal
50 W Portal Ave
(between Claremont Blvd & Portola Dr)
San Francisco, CA 94127
(415) 566-8104

Photos: Cat Lincoln

Window seat @ Hamano Sushi

Every neighborhood in San Francisco seems to have its anchor sushi restaurant, and in Noe Valley it sure seems like Hamano Sushi is THE place.  We often stop in for an easy delicious healthy dinner any day of the week.  Their daily specials are in front.  They often have space at their counter by the window, at least when you show up at 5:30. Add in their convenient location, along with fresh sushi and you will see why they are often crowded once the dinner hour gets going.  If you can’t arrive early, I suggest calling for table reservations especially on weekends. Read More »

Gino's Blackened Chicken Fettucine

Better than any spaghetti western is this great Italian restaurant on the border of Salinas.  Gino’s Fine Italian Food has been cooking up delicious Italian food more than twenty years now on the fringe of town.

The location is just on the edge of town on your way to or from and MontereyCarmel.  We love coming here for big family events because they have great service and huge tables, perfect for groups.

We were here this time for a graduation event and once again they didn’t disappoint.  We had blackened chicken fettucine and their house special 16 ounce rib eye steak, both were amazing.  Dinners come with soup or salad, and if you like anchovies, their cesar is killer.  Otherwise, you can have a wedge of Salinas Iceberg lettuce that will start your meal off right too.

My mother had the chicken picatta with mashed potato while my father had the shrimp with penne.  We all shared their bruschetta with its fresh diced tomato and basil on toasted bread. And they made sure it had exactly eight pieces, since my family will fight over delicious food.

Cozy Interiors @ Gino's

For a group of eight they were fast with their service and did not make a mistake with our meal.

Gino's Chicken Picatta

Gino’s is a great lunch or dinner spot for families traveling on Highway 1 as they have a lot of dishes that kids love – like their famous calamari strips – and they have a large parking lot. We also enjoy sitting outdoors when we come for lunch.  For this end of town where you only have mostly fast food chains, you won’t be disappointed stopping by the next time you are in the area.

Gino’s Fine Italian Food Restaurant
1410 S. Main St.
Salinas, California 93908
Tel: 831.422.1814
www.ginospasta.com

LUNCH: Mon-Fri, 11 am – 3 pm
DINNER: Mon-Thurs, 5 pm – 9 pm; Fri, 5 pm – 10pm; Sat, 4 – 10pm

Tad's Steaks

Cheap steaks are like treasure, it is always a surprise when you discover they still exist in today’s world. When you walk into Tad’s Steakhouse in downtown San Francisco, you are reminded that cheap steaks (that come with salad, garlic bread and a baked potato) do still exist in this expensive city of ours.

The dinner menu at Tad’s is on the opposite spectrum as John’s Grill around the corner, or my across town favorite Harris’ Restaurant but this Powell Street steakhouse is a safe place to direct that foreign student who stops you on Union Square or the occasional tourist family with the hungry kids. They all can enjoy a non-burrito and non-fast food place for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

My husband and I do like to eat at downtown hole-in-the-walls that only a non-local would go to once in a while. It reminds us of our first time in cities like Paris, Vienna, London, Tokyo et al. Eating at Tad’s also reminds us of being college students with cast iron stomachs.

Seriously it is a bit of a tourist trap but I am kind of impressed that Tad’s has survived all these years across from fancier restaurants. The longevity of Tad’s could be its relationship to Ruth’s Chris but if it is, the better quality steaks I’ve had a Ruth’s Chris Steak House are not at Tad’s Steakhouse.

120 Powell St
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 982-1718
www.tadssteaks-sf.com

Mon-Sun. 7:00 a.m. – 11:30 p.m.

Cheerful Welcome

I grew up with Saturday night as “bath night”, to get scrubbed before Sunday church. In college we had movies around town offering “dollar night” every Tuesday. Today my neighborhood with its many kids and parents has introduced me to a new one called “Burrito Monday”, which happens at my local Mexican grill.

I’ve written about Mexican food places in the past, like La Corneta in the Mission District of San Francisco and Lisa’s Mexican Restaurant in Daly City – because I love Mexican food and eat it every week. And actually I may also write about my favorite taco trucks around the city very soon – another great San Francisco secret.

Casa Mexicana is a wonderful Mexican grill in the middle of Noe Valley on 24th Street. It has all the classic menu items such as soft tacos, quesadilla, enchilada, chili relleno and burritos, all made to order with eight different kinds of meat, three kinds of beans, two kinds of rice and three kinds of salsa. They are clean and fast with lots of tables to choose from, including booster seats and high chairs.

Clean and ready for the crowds

However maybe because they understand their young customers better than others they also offer green and red tortillas – yes, I am speaking of the kids.  In my neighborhood, kids rule the sidewalks, the parks and the menus and Casa Mexicana is no exception. I’ve gone and stood in line where a seven year old ahead of me, turned their head and gave a shout out to a dozen other kids that they knew (okay it seemed like that many but probably it was closer to five kids in line and coming in the door).

If you want to be the best aunt/uncle or babysitter in Noe Valley come to Casa Mexicana for Burrito Mondays and watch the magic happen. You’ll be rewarded with a happy child and a stomach full of delicious food prepared just the way you like it.

3917 24th St
(between Noe St & Sanchez St)
San Francisco, CA 94114
(415) 648-0477

Toast on 24th Street

I am a huge believer in eating a good breakfast in the morning. It is the most important meal of the day whether you are young or old. In San Francisco, we have a great eatery called Toast in the Noe Valley neighborhood.

They are so popular and successful that the owners of Toast took over an old breakfast spot on 24th Street called Herb’s Fine Foods and turned it into a second Toast location.

With several schools and parks in the neighborhood there are lots of families with children living near both great breakfast spots.

Besides the convoy of strollers, often you see little dogs waiting patiently outside of Toast for their owner to return, hopefully with a little treat as a reward for said patience.

Both locations offer mostly street and metered parking. These spaces are at a premium – especially if you want to come for a weekend brunch. Weekends bring a lot of people out in this neighborhood. The Saturday Farmer’s Market on 24th Street near Church brings many to the area, and the Noe Valley Bakery is a very popular destination for its cakes, breads and yummy cupcakes.

Fast Counter Service

Unless you can walk here or ride a bike, I suggest public transportation. Their original location is on Church Street with easy access from the J Church trolley line. This location also offers outside seating.

If you find yourself spending extra time looking for parking, the food and friendly wait staff, besides great coffee – or a champagne mimosa – helps take the edge off.

Toast’s menu includes lunch dishes but I believe their breakfasts are the reason to eat here. There are dozens of great items to choose from including a classic Eggs Benedict, corned beef hash, croissant french toast, pancakes, chicken fried steak or one of a variety of egg scrambles.

When I am really hungry my favorite is the Toast Combo: 2 eggs, 2 pieces of French toast, Niman Ranch ham and hash browns. Otherwise they make the best breakfast sandwich – outside the golden arches – with Niman Ranch ham or bacon, cheese, egg on an English muffin. Yum and yum!

Toast Combo: A Favorite!

1748 Church St
(between 29th St & Day St)
San Francisco, CA 94131
(415) 282-4328

3991 24th St
San Francisco, CA 94114
(415) 642-6328

www.toasteatery.com

Mon-Fri. 7:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun. 7:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Photo credits to sfcphotography