A-1 Restaurant
A-1 Restaurant
two plates of food on a table
a plate of noodles on a table
Interior of the restaurant.
the front of a restaurant
A-1 Restaurant
I dropped by bags and went straight to the food
Entrance to returaunt
Outside
Interior
Menu
outside
Chicken and mushroom clay pot with veggies.
Menu and outside sign
Dining area
Interior
Sesame Beef with Fried Tofu
Shrimp Dumplings (3)
Beef Clay Pot
Clay pot rice and Chinese Broccoli with garlic
Siu Mai
Mushroom chicken clay pot
Donna F.
Oct 12, 2024
Food had no flavor.Cook acted disgusted when we asked for soy sauce. He threw sauce packets at us. Only one each! Door stayed open even though it was freezing.Smokers outside filled the restaurant with smoke. We tried to send the soup back and the cook yelled really loud at us "no! You pay!!!" It was embarrassing.
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Mary Linda A.
Oct 12, 2024
Service was awful , he threw the menus on table so funny ! Food had no flavor , barely any service !! Don't go here !! I was sick all nite
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Lucas C.
Jul 4, 2024
This place is a nice establishment. I went here about 3 years ago as I traveled through San Francisco, and I happened to find myself back in the city. Took the time out of my way to come back specifically here, that's how good the food is. Come try it out, you'll enjoy. It's definitely a new experience for some, so come open minded. I Recommend.
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Ruby T.
Jan 16, 2023
It's a one man show. One man who is the server, cook, cashier, and custodian! Authentic claypot meals taste just like it's made in Asia. The flavors are cooked into the rice and it gets toasty with the layer of rice on the bottom. Stir it up for a toasty, gently crispy rice experience. I normally don't eat the rice in the bottom because it's usually too hard for me to chew but this is done perfectly and each bite is tasty yumminess!
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Eileen C.
Sep 12, 2023
Sometimes the food is not the most amazing you've had, but the hominess of the restaurant just gives you an emotional dining experience. When we went, the restaurant was run by just one elderly Chinese man. He took our order, cooked our food, and cleaned the other tables. When others offered to get the bill from him or pour their own tea so he doesn't have to walk across the restaurant, he was super gracious and told them to sit and wait for him to come over. Sitting right on Clay street, you feel the history and love of the area as you eat hot, yummy food.
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Megan Belle M.
Mar 9, 2024
They are very short-staffed - one server, one cook. My party of 4 came during a Chinese New Year event, so it was hectic. It took about an hour for us to be seated. We were served raw shu mai, and dishes were visibly piled up in the restaurant. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt since it was just two workers on a busy night. I hope they hire more people like a dishwasher or another cook to help speed up the service and make the establishment more hygienic. Ambiance was ok.
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Jared E.
Feb 29, 2024
Had the mushroom and chicken clay pot. Most of the chicken had bones in it, even though it had been chopped into small pieces. It made for an awkward dining experience, frequently picking bones out of my bites of food.
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Thu N.
Feb 4, 2022
This has to be a little hidden gem in SF's Chinatown! My friends and I loved the food and drinks here, and the ambiance was so cozy. The fish and tofu clay pot was our favorite dish here. It was piping hot and came with oh-so-savory pieces of shiitake mushroom and silky tofu. My other personal favorite was the beef clay pot (if you're seeing a trend here). Green beans were also a really solid side dish. My party arrived closer to 7pm, and while it was fairly empty at first, the tables quickly filled up. Even though it really does appear that only one man runs this entire restaurant, I was so pleasantly surprised to find that our service was super quick, and we (as well as all the other tables, it seemed) got our food in a really timely manner. HUGE props to the owner for this level of multitasking!This place is cash-only, so plan ahead before arriving! We would definitely come back to try his other dishes. :)
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Shannon M.
Sep 15, 2024
What I miss about living in SF is the hole in the wall Chinese restaurants serving delicious food. We stumbled upon A1 looking for a spot that was open later and I'm so glad we did. The elderly gentleman is the chef, server, and cleaner. When we ordered our food he disappeared and we heard the sizzling sounds of the seasoned wok. The food was so delicious and comforting, and we will definitely be back again on our next visit!
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E R.
Nov 1, 2024
The food was authentically Chinese and had great flavor. They have both dim sum and regular dishes. It is a small Chinese restaurant, I assume family owned. If you want Michelin star dining ambience this isn't that. What you will find is flavorful OG Chinese food at reasonable prices, and for that it gets five stars.
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