Yip on Andale
Andale * 2150 Chestnut St bt Sutter/Pierce * San Francisco, CA 94123 * (415) 749-0506
Cuisine: Mexican
Neighborhood: Marina
The Scene
Comfortable. Casual. They have a nice patio which you can enjoy day or night. It is flanked by an indoor-outdoor fireplace which I appreciate for both warmth and ambiance.
The Service
It is a bit more "fast-food" than the casual dining, as you order at the counter rather than getting table service. They do deliver your food via a table number system.
The Menu
Overall a good amount of traditional Mexican flair, with kind of a healthy twist. Meaning this is not heavily greasy which you sometimes find in more authentic Mexican joints vs. the Calif/Tex-Mex at Andale.
The Food
I ordered a mesquite chicken salad which consisted of romaine lettuce topped with chicken, goat cheese, avocado, tomato, and instead of the roasted garlic vinaigrette, I topped the salad off with deliciously fresh pico de gallo. A friend of mine ordered the same and then also got a side of rice, beans and tortillas to make a healthy tacos which I thought was just superb. They also have a self-service salsa bar, like most Mexican joints. And even though I recognize this to be an industry standard, I think it is pretty unsanitary and gross. One thing I LOVE about this place, which I learned on my most recent visit and wish I knew the numerous times before, is that they offer FREE REFILLS on the aquas frescas. This is unheard of!! So delish, I had 3 glasses of the fresh cantaloupe juice (usually I go for the watermelon, but decided to switch it up), and I would have had more if I was not going to a movie directly after and didn't want to be visiting the ladies room several times over the next two hours mid-flick. Note that restaurants don't get any accolades for free refills on sodas. I actually despise places that don't offer free refills on fountain soda - the ice costs them more than a second serving of the soda! But aquas frescas is an entirely different ballgame altogether!
The Bathroom
Not too much to mention, except that if you find yourself here on a bad date, there was a window in the bathroom that could be used as an alternate escape route. I wish more places offered this kind of insurance policy.
************
In a spoonful, this place is good but by all means a lot of places do it better. It's a nice "healthy" option if you find yourself in the Marina looking for some Mexican delights. I would consider visiting here instead of Starbucks for an afternoon refreshment of bottomless aquas frescas. Now, if only they had wireless internet, I could blog all my city eats there ...
Yip gives it 3.5 spoons.
Cuisine: Mexican
Neighborhood: Marina
The Scene
Comfortable. Casual. They have a nice patio which you can enjoy day or night. It is flanked by an indoor-outdoor fireplace which I appreciate for both warmth and ambiance.
The Service
It is a bit more "fast-food" than the casual dining, as you order at the counter rather than getting table service. They do deliver your food via a table number system.
The Menu
Overall a good amount of traditional Mexican flair, with kind of a healthy twist. Meaning this is not heavily greasy which you sometimes find in more authentic Mexican joints vs. the Calif/Tex-Mex at Andale.
The Food
I ordered a mesquite chicken salad which consisted of romaine lettuce topped with chicken, goat cheese, avocado, tomato, and instead of the roasted garlic vinaigrette, I topped the salad off with deliciously fresh pico de gallo. A friend of mine ordered the same and then also got a side of rice, beans and tortillas to make a healthy tacos which I thought was just superb. They also have a self-service salsa bar, like most Mexican joints. And even though I recognize this to be an industry standard, I think it is pretty unsanitary and gross. One thing I LOVE about this place, which I learned on my most recent visit and wish I knew the numerous times before, is that they offer FREE REFILLS on the aquas frescas. This is unheard of!! So delish, I had 3 glasses of the fresh cantaloupe juice (usually I go for the watermelon, but decided to switch it up), and I would have had more if I was not going to a movie directly after and didn't want to be visiting the ladies room several times over the next two hours mid-flick. Note that restaurants don't get any accolades for free refills on sodas. I actually despise places that don't offer free refills on fountain soda - the ice costs them more than a second serving of the soda! But aquas frescas is an entirely different ballgame altogether!
The Bathroom
Not too much to mention, except that if you find yourself here on a bad date, there was a window in the bathroom that could be used as an alternate escape route. I wish more places offered this kind of insurance policy.
************
In a spoonful, this place is good but by all means a lot of places do it better. It's a nice "healthy" option if you find yourself in the Marina looking for some Mexican delights. I would consider visiting here instead of Starbucks for an afternoon refreshment of bottomless aquas frescas. Now, if only they had wireless internet, I could blog all my city eats there ...
Yip gives it 3.5 spoons.
posted by SoCalATA at 10:05 PM
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