The Tastiest Salvadoran in San Francisco

Frisco Flavor

★★★★☆ 4 (11)

"Don't write this off as another taqueria. This is a new casual El Salvadorian and Mexican restaurant just off of 24th Street Bart, which is exactly how my hungry self accidentally found this place. This is new as in 'three months old' and likely a place I will visit again. Tacos and burritos, yes. But, if you come here, you are missing out if you don't try the El Salvadorian or Oaxacan tamales. Oh. My. God. Their pupusas are also stars, here, as is ... hold for it, their *housemade mole*! You read that correctly. If you've ever made mole from scratch, you know the work and ingredient list this entails. Even the tomatillo and chipotle sauces are housemade. Oh, I was happy and full when I left this place. I wish I had taken more photos before I devoured my El Salvadorian tamale. Chicken, potatoes, masa in a banana leaf... oh this is my love language."

Mateos

★★★★☆ 4 (7)

"The sweet lady who cooks pupusas, burritos, and more out of a little red truck in the parking lot across from the Hall of Justice is awesome. Pupusas are $2.50 each and come with coleslaw. Burritos are fresh and delicious. That's all there is to it. Bring cash."

Los Reyes Restaurant

★★★★☆ 4 (89) • $$

"I wanted to try the torta. I asked for an al pastor torta. The girl didn't understand what I said and asked if I wanted a burrito. She got another lady to ask what I want and i said I would like a al pastor torta. The other lady also asked if I wanted a burrito. I gave up and said I'll have an al pastor burrito, just to make it easier. The al pastor meat was very good. It had a lot of spice and well browned. It was a nice sized burrito and was quite tasty. This restaurant is near the Cow Palace."

Pupuseria la Casita

★★★★★ 5 (6)

"Yummy, good value food truck for lunch! The papusas are so tasty, best I've ever had! Hope to return to try more. Nice staff, quick service. It's a good truck so it's mostly "to go" but the flavors are worth the wait!!"

Las Brisas de Acapulco

★★★★☆ 3.7 (71) • $

"I have fallen in love with this place and their oysters. They have a very nice host. She is always so nice and knows my order at this point she even gives me two salsa with my chips now cause she knows how much I like it . Need your vaccination card. Best to get to go but make sure you get extra salsa with your chips"

Manitas Cafe

★★★★★ 4.5 (211) • $$

"Amazing food. My friend and I visited for breakfast on two occasions, since it's close by to us. Now it's one of our favorite places for breakfast or lunch. They have a wide variety of Latin dishes and a really nicely decorated indoor and outdoor setup. There is Hispanic art displayed and if you love Latin culture and food, it's a great atmosphere overall. I recommend the aqua fresca and the breakfast burrito is delicious"

Comalito

★★★★★ 4.8 (53)

"Came for dinner and were super happy we did! Party of 3. We had revueltas and calabazas pupusas, yucca fries, and 1 ensalada. The ensalada was packed with fruit and was amazing. The pupusas were loaded up and delicious, and the yucca fries were great. The server was super kind and attentive. Can't wait to come back and try more."

La Paz Restaurant Pupuseria

★★★★☆ 4.2 (146) • $

"I can't believe that I have not yet reviewed La Paz Restaurant Pupuseria! This is a small, local Mexican restaurant right across from San Francisco General Hospital on Potrero Avenue. My colleagues and I have been coming here for our lunch for many years. This is the perfect place to get tasty, and authentic Mexican food. It's convenient, fast, and with outstanding service and delicious meals. Pupusas are freshly made upon your order. The traditional beef soup is incredibly yummy which is served with fresh vegetables. Street tacos are great too. I highly recommend it."

The Pupuseria

★★★★☆ 4.2 (27)

"Now these are pupusas done right! They're filled with savory, cheesy, gooey goodness and cooked to perfection. I ordered the party pack which by default, comes with half meat & cheese, and cheese only pupusas, but you can choose however many you'd like of each if you want more or less of the two. Menu is simple, ordering online was a breeze, and pickup was just as easy. Highly recommend if you're in the area and craving some pupusas! This is where it's at!"

Los Planes De Renderos Pupuseria

★★★★☆ 4 (168) • $

"**November 2022: Saturday Evening Visit**This is VERY hard to find. My friend and I drove around the area 3 times until we decided to just park and walk around. Eventually we found it and hopped in to enjoy some authentic Salvadorian food. I can't say I'm a connoisseur as I've only had pupusas a handful of times but do enjoy this cuisine.The restaurant is two floors with the main first floor as the kitchen and host table. Since we wanted to dine in we were directed to the second floor and given menus. We ordered the followingDinnerPlata de Fritos Con Cream Y Fritos (Fried plantain served with refried beans and sour cream): This was fantastic. I would not have thought to pair these things together but the textures and flavor profile all worked really well together. Definitely a hit!Atol De Elote: Sweet Corn Soup - this was a nice hot dessert option that I gobbled up. Pupusas: pork, beans, and cheese - this was okay. They are handmade, but I felt it wasn't fried enough for me and was a tad doughy.Overall it was a nice authentic experience! Also - Cash only!"

Rinconcito Salvadoreno

★★★☆☆ 3 (65) • $$

"Good Salvadorian place to come and eat. The food was good. The service was ok. Will come back. Gallo pinto was our go plate. Good coffee as well"

El Zocalo Restaurant

★★★☆☆ 2.8 (462) • $$

"I missed coming here with my family. This place always makes me happy.I got the pupusa and soup combo and the food never disappoints. The menudo is always good here and the service was amazing. The ambiance is like a cozy kitchen feel to it"

Elsy's Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.7 (139) • $

"While visiting friends in San Francisco I was craving some Salvadorian food and what better food then pupusa's? I came here over the weekend and it was pretty packed but still comfortable enough to have some space. There was even a mariachi band playing inside the restaurant. The decor was all about El Salvador with pictures from the owners beautiful country. Lets get down to the food...I decided to order 3 pupusas platter which was Revuelto. That's pork, beans and cheese. It was amazing and I loved how fresh it was. Everything was made to order to don't expect your food to be out real fast. It takes some time but trust me, it's great! The flavor of the pork and beans were perfectly matched with the cheese that they used. The horchata was good as well. It wasn't your typical "sweet" hotchata that you find at Mexican restaurants, this horchata was from El Salvador and they don't make it sweet at all. It's really different and much healthier but that's just my 2 cents. All in all, if you're looking for a nice cheap place for some authentic Salvadorian food or some amazing pupusas then give this restaurant a try."

Balompie Cafe

★★★★☆ 4 (765) • $$

"This place is great. They're probably one of the best pupusa restaurants in San Francisco. I always order from them on uber eats--I get 3 cheese pupusas. The wait time isn't too long, they're pretty quick with the food. And my food has never been delivered cold! You should go in person too, which I've done before as well. Parking might be a little hard to find so unless you live close by I'd recommend uber or lyft. It kind of reminds me of your classic neighborhood sports bar as they have a giant TV in the corner that normally plays soccer. The staff is really great too!"

Restaurante Familiar

★★★★☆ 3.9 (52) • $

"This place tasted familiar..so familiar that I thought I was in El Salvador again! Ordered 28 pupusas for that sad 49ers game and all my friends loved it! Also, I called in and the pupusas were ready in 20 minutes. I'm a big panchitas fan, but these are pretty stellar and one of the best in the city. The cortido and sauce were also really good and complimented the pupusas. I also loved that the pupusas were not too doughy or cheesy and they stayed solid even when you added all the sauce and cortido. The lady at the counter was also really nice and organized. I highly recommend going here for a quick bite or event! 3.50 for pupusas with different varieties? Can't wait to order from here again."

Rincon Latino

★★★★☆ 4 (57) • $$

"We have been coming here for years for pupusas which are always great but I wanted to try something diff so I chose Botana regular for my son and I. He got an elote thinking it was just Mex street corn. When it came as soup we laughed but when we tasted it omg. It was amazing!!! It's only I think 6.00 and the flavor was perfect warm creamy with cinnamon sticks. Just perfect. The Botana came and there was just one problem lol it was too good! We should have gotten the bigger size and been pigs. Lol. (Next time we'll bring one more person) the shrimp was grilled perfectly. The guac was thick and the steak was also perfect. The dish came out beautifully as well! Ty!!!"

Antojitos Salvadorenos Aminta

★★★☆☆ 3 (1)

"Came by for breakfast. The guy was nice that worked there. Seemed like a few local families eating breakfast there but I got mine to go. Plate had beans cream and cheese. $14"

Los Trinos

★★★★☆ 4.3 (44) • $

"31/03/23-16:30-Excellent food. Friendly service. Good English spoken but Spanish speaking is much appreciated. I had the Camarones Empanizados(deep fried shrimp with chips). My first time having Papusas. A type of tortilla. Very yummy. I'm not a fan of judías(beans), but it's very yummy here. Rice is tasty too. Staff very friendly and attentive. Fair prices by San Francisco standards. Highly recommended! Outer Mission area."

America's House

★★★★☆ 3.6 (165) • $$

"Food was great had the steak and eggs also the inside was nice had a big tv for me to watch while I eat also the owner is real cool would come here again"

Montecristo Restaurant

★★★☆☆ 3.1 (63) • $

"Customer service: Stopped by for lunch. Upon walking in, none of the 3 ladies working behind the counter acknowledged me. Okay, cool. I walked up behind a lady ordering to-go. Still no type of acknowledgement. I noticed the stack of menus, grabbed one, said "hello!", and seated myself. Still, no acknowledgement. I ended up ordering the camarones a la plancha to-go after having to walk up to the counter and make someone acknowledge me! Waited about 10-15 minutes for my meal.Food: My to-go container was full, fragrant, and came with some handmade tortillas. The grilled shrimp was very salty and dry. Salad was decent. Fries were perfect. Rice was bland. Haven't tried the tortillas, but they look and smell delightful.Overall: Wouldn't return *shrugs*"

Sarita’s Grill & Beer

★★★★★ 4.9 (46)

"One of my choices to go to is which my friend decided. Went here for the first time. Love the place. A lot better than the restaurant that it used to be.Love their menu selections. Reasonable price. Was not sure of their pupusas and I have to say they are very good. Not messy and not greasy. Impressed and went in the afternoon. Would like to come back here again."

Express Pupuseria

★★★★★ 4.5 (213) • $

"Living in the mission it's hard to believe that pupusas elsewhere can be anywhere near as good as what I have nearby. This place is super unassuming but the people are nice and they have some of the best pupusas around! And they give you basically unlimited curtido and salsa!!Also, I know it's a "pupuseria" but definitely don't sleep on the tamales. The masa is super well seasoned and flavorful that it's tasty regardless of what filling is inside."

Marias Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.7 (105) • $$

"This place looks very modest both outside and inside but wow does the food quality deliver. A Salvadorian friend of mine told me about this place. The Sopa de Pata had an amazing amount of flavor. It could definitely win an Umami award. The Pork Bean and Cheese Pupusa was my favorite. The Pupusas were some of the softest and best I've had. Easy parking in the shopping center parking lot. I will definitely come back here again."

Garcia's Salvadorean Kitchen

★★★★☆ 4.3 (4)

"Hard working kind guy working the food truck. Service is great, everything is clean and nice. Unfortunately the mixed pupusas (revueltas) weren't good. They were fresh and hand made but the flavor just wasn't there and there wasn't much meat either. The food truck is convenient if you're hanging out at the park but I drove there thinking these might be amazing, but I was let down. The horchata wasn't great either. Nothing is bad... everything is just okay."

Balompie Cafe No 3

★★★★☆ 4.1 (477) • $$

"Really enjoyed my meal! Overall, I would give this place a 9.2/10!1. Taste: 9.4 I ordered the pupusas with cheese and Loroco. Both of the pupusas were evenly cooked. The soft comforting doughy masses went well with the salsa and curtido. The salsa could have been a little bit more flavorful (I mostly only tasted tomatoes) but overall, i can't ask more from the pupusas themselves!I got mine with rice and beans. The rice was nothing too special, but did the job. The beans, on the other hand, were super flavorful and added a creamy texture to the chewiness of the pupusas. 1. Customer service: 10/10The customer service was great! I was sat immediately and had a glass full of water before I even ordered. The preparation did take about 25 minutes, but I think it was well worth it considering how good they were. 1. Appearance: 9/10The restaurant is a cute little place. It's somewhere that feels local and welcoming. It's a great place for a casual lunch or get together. 1. Value: 8.5Everything was well priced. With just the two pupusas and side of rice and beans, I felt pretty full. I definitely think it's worth the money."

Estrellita’s Snacks

★★★★★ 4.7 (15)

"Since the shelter orders took place, I haven't been able to visit farmer's market at UN Plaza on Wednesdays. So I was ecstatic to find out that they're available 5 days a week!They're located at the new La Cocina Municipal Marketplace. This food hall is only taking take-out orders. So you can order online for pick up. I was surprised that the prices are similar, if not the same, as their stand at farmer's market. But there are plates available. I got the plato de pupusas, which comes with 2 pupusas of your choice, rice/beans, plantains, crema, salsa, and curtido. At farmer's market, you have the option of getting a spicier salsa, but not at this location. Also, the amount of curtido you get is smaller than the farmer's market location. I think it's the perfect amount for me, but I know some curtido lovers out there that would need the small bag they give out at farmers market. For $18 total (including tip), it was a big meal for me. I powered through the 2 pupusas, but I couldn't finish the rice and plantains. They're gonna be a good snack later. The quality of food is the same as their stand, which is unsurprising because after years of getting pupusas from them, not one has disappointed me. I got the mushroom and cheese (my favorite) and the revuelta (pork and cheese). Both were delicious. I've never had the rice before, and it was good too. I love plantains, so it was like a nice dessert. SF Restaurant Week starts tomorrow (April 9, 2021), and they are participating. So if you haven't had their pupusas, then this would be a good time to check them out. I'm definitely coming back here again!"

Sabores Latinos

★★☆☆☆ 2 (4)

"Wonderful new addition to the area. Loved their pupusas and caldo de res."

La Flor De Izote

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (25)

"I came here about 4 years ago with friends and absolutely loved it. I have thought about the pupusas a couple times since. Tonight we went on a mission (pun intended) to find the place without knowing the name or knowing where it was. We drove up and down Mission for awhile and then had a friend send us a picture from when we were there last. These pupusas lived up to my memories I had, they are delicious and fresh. The rice and beans are also absolutely amazing. Service is super friendly and everyone seems to know each other. Highly highly recommend!"

La Santaneca De La Mission

★★★★☆ 4.1 (449) • $$

"As I said in my older review, the pupusas are great here, but I recently tried their carne asada which is one of my favorite meals, and also very good. I got carne asada, rice, beans, and a generous helping of tortillas."

Los Panchos

★★★★☆ 3.9 (425) • $$

"Came here back here in October. Service was practically non-existent. There was no one to seat us and our waitress didn't even bother bringing us the check even though we asked for it. After waiting for at least ten minutes, we ended up waiting at the cash register and lining up to pay. Note there is a credit card transaction fee which was made known beforehand.Food-wise, the revueltas were very good but the lorocco pupusa and the sopa de pollo were quite bland. The ambiance was festive and vibrant. Just wish the service had been more attentive."

Restaurante San Vicente

★★★☆☆ 3.3 (42) • $$

"Would I come back: I would if someone else wanted to go. Food:Tamales de pollo: 3/5 - This was the first time I've had tamales and it was pretty good. Just wish the ratio of meat to starch was better. It was quite starchy.Pupusa de queso: 3/5 - I can't say that I was a super fan. I think possibly cause the base is very doughy. Again I think it probably can be a little thinner to offset the starch.Carne Desilada: 4/5 - Now this I would order again. I liked the flavor on the meat and eggs. Truly tasty in my mind. Also a big plantain person so I'd say yes to this dish again.Service: 3.5/5 - The waitstaff were nice. I didn't get the right dishes...perhaps my Spanish is that bad...thankfully the ones I did get were tasty. I'd also say that the service is slow so be sure you are patient with how long it takes to get the food.Ambiance: 3/5 - It's very casual place. Plenty of tables though you may be sitting communally if in the center."

El Santaneco

★★★★☆ 4.1 (139) • $$

"Great service and great pupusas. The meal plate was ok. It is a classic Salvadorian restaurant with decor and table setup resembling that vibe. It is generally pretty empty except for workers eating and drinking at the bar top."

Estrelitta's Snacks

★★★★★ 4.6 (48) • $

"Best pupusas in the city for the best price! When I get that pupusa craving, I go to Estrelitta's at the Heart of the City Farmers Market at UN Plaza. The line/wait can be long, to time your lunch accordingly. I heard you can call it in, but it's best to order in person. And order in cash. They do take credit cards for a fee though.I've had just about every pupusa, minus the beef ones. My two favorites are the mushroom and cheese, and the spinach and cheese. The mushroom pupusa has a really that earthy, savory taste, and the spinach one is cooked perfectly. Sometimes cooked spinach has a weird taste, at least to me, but not in this pupusa. There is a choice of mild or spicy salsa.There is limited seating at this farmers market, so it's best to get your order to go."

Restaurant Pupuseria Ilobasco

★★★★☆ 3.6 (79) • $$

"I would like to address two things in this review. The first is the quality of the pupusas (bean and cheese, to be specific). To state it simply, they were phenomenal, simultaneously nicely crisped and fluffy dough with salty cheese that went perfectly with the accompanying salsa. It came with slaw, too, as is common with pupusas. But I didn't eat the slaw. I never eat the slaw.Thus ends my review of the food. The second thing I would like to address is the restaurant itself, which was uncanny and incongruous. It looked normal at a glance, but as we began to absorb the details, it just got stranger and stranger. There were banners of rival soccer teams next to each other on the wall framing a painting of a bar scene with Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, and possibly two characters from Seinfeld, aged and dusty bottles of wine of the kind you might pick up at Target on the shelves (next to miniature toy machine guns and hand grenades), and guys playing arcade games in the back. It was like extraterrestrials wanted to set up a base of operations made to look like a divey Latin restaurant, but their scientists didn't fully understand the nuances of human civilization so they got the details wrong. Anyway, it was weird. But extraterrestrial or not, they made some damn fine pupusas."

Pupuseria Metapan

★★★☆☆ 3.2 (191) • $

"I will start by saying how much I like pupusas. My first entry into Pupuseria Metapan was on a whim. So many restaurants are nearby there that have similar menus, but varying prices. I ordered (en Espanol) two different types. I got to practice speaking Spanish. The server spoke very limited English. No big deal or major challenge. My two choices were yummy and affordable. Both costing less than $5. First choice was Revuelta, has beans, fried pork, and cheese inside. Freshly made and piping hot. Second choice was made with Maiz Morado/purple corn. With cheese and zucchini inside. They were large too. Quite filling. I enjoy the tasty pickled slaw and bag of hot sauce that accompany each order. Next time I will try their fried plantains. Another dish I adore."