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    Creative Ideas Cafe

    4.6 (79 reviews)
    ModerateColombian, Mexican, Cafes
    Closed 8:30 am - 3:00 pm
    Updated 2 months ago

    Order Creative Ideas Cafe Takeout or Delivery

    Creative Ideas Cafe Photos

    Business Info

    CREATIVE IDEAS CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Outdoor seating
    Dogs allowed
    Happy hour specials

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    03.29.25 storefront
    May A.

    Colombian|Mexican Eats [San Francisco CA] I thought the name was a little odd for a restaurant and at first we couldn't find the name of the establishment while looking for it until we parked across the street and it was written on the top part of the awning. They are actually a full-service catering business serving Colombian Mexican dishes. They have a small outdoor patio seating under the awning and a couple of small tables inside the cozy interior. Came and picked up an order today -- grilled chicken with rice and black beans. Tortillas were wrapped in foil. Plentiful serving, definitely shareable. The meat was flavorful with the two types of salsa sauces they included with the order. Friendly customer service. No complaints. This was a takeout order. Review #3742

    Lunch for 2!
    Louisa D.

    They were out of the pozole so they recommended (and I'm so glad they did) the Ajiaco instead. It was so hearty and reminded me of home. Service was friendly, with a couple of check ins to make sure we were doing ok. I asked for my soup to be heated up some more and it was promptly accommodated with no hesitation. The other food was the corn arepa, plantain chicharone and fresh avocado. Everything we tried was fresh and delicious. The ambiance is vibrant and lively. Felt cheered up after what had been a crappy morning. So glad I came here and can't wait to come back. :)

    Hot cheese arepa. Flaky outside, gooey, cheesy inside. Comes with two dipping sauces.
    Katherine J.

    The first thing you notice is how good the place smells! Your mouth starts watering before you reach the door. Second, is how friendly the staff is. The food selection is phenominal but the flavors are even better. It's a neighborhood jewel that really shines. I'm already planning my next visit.

    Lindsay M.

    This meal was delightful! The service was friendly, helpful (we needed suggestions), and attentive. We ordered the breakfast plate and the breakfast arepa with chorizo. Our food was out quickly - thankfully, as we were oh-so-hungry. And the food? Oh my gahhhhd. The food was flavorful and filling. We were especially fond of the breakfast arepa. *drool*

    Empanadas with black beans and rice (the empanadas were different flavors but all very good).
    Darcy B.

    This place is WONDERFUL!! Everything I've ordered has been delicious!!! My new go to spot while I'm here, as I've been ordering here for once a week for tue past three weeks through to good to go!! Also, the people working here are friendly. All around A++++ and I've tried many foods I wouldn't have otherwise tried!! The empanadas, pozole, and the chicken quesadillas have been so good!! I will be back next week and the week after (my stomach is a happy cam

    2023-11-10 Pulled Pork Arepa - 5 stars. Tasty meat, crisp yet soft arepa, this really hit the spot!
    Ziyan C.

    We were surprised to come upon this lively spot! It was a Friday in November, they were open late (til 9pm) on the night of the Visitacion Valley Light Festival, and there were tons of people hanging out and eating outside of Creative Ideas. Our friends live in the neighborhood and had already recommended this place, and we just had to go. Plus, I've been looking for an arepa spot on this side of the city! * Pulled Pork Arepa - 5 stars Tasty meat, crisp yet soft arepa, this really hit the spot! * Fish Tacos - 4 stars Confusingly, the menu says "fish tacos, $12 for 2", but when my partner said "I'd like the fish taco", he was given (and charged for) just one. When my friends ordered, they specifically asked, do you want 1 or 2? But they didn't ask us that for some reason. Anyway, the sauce and flavors were great! These are not battered/fried FYI, I found the fish slightly overcooked, but overall tasty.

    Restaurant week menu.
    lesi w.

    Delicious food from a cute hole in the wall. Had restaurant week special, empanadas were really good. Had the burritos with carne asada was delicious. Salsa delicious too. The bandeja paisa was recommended but was only ok, would not get it again. Friendly staff but may been a wait food is made fresh.

    Arepa
    Connie W.

    My friend and I found this place on our trek thr the Crosstown Trai. We sat outside at the nice tables to enjoy our Latin breakfast. There we got to view the pretty tile works and the big wall mural across the street. What a great neighborhood. Arepa - corn cake stuffed with cheese, eggs, tomato, and onion. Cafe de Olla was good tasting coffee, not bitter, not sour.

    Arroz con pollo & Empanadas De Carne/ Beef Empanadas

    Incredible food! Great service! Very quick and a lot of options! If your thinking of going go!

    Breakfast and lunch menu.

    Breakfast arepa was authentic and delicious. There are so many vegetarian and vegan options. The staff are friendly, also. There are a few tables inside and a table outside if you prefer to eat outside. There is music and they also have some cute columbian and mexican items for sale on the side.

    Menu
    Vivian Y.

    Food - 4.5 stars Had the chicken bowl that came with cilantro rice, black beans, well-seasoned chicken, and 3 tortillas. I enjoyed the roasted (red) salsa with these items. Good taste and value! Service - 5 stars Staff was very friendly and courteous. Ambiance - 4.5 stars This is a small restaurant in a not-so busy neighborhood. While I was waiting for my food, I saw many people leisurely wait for their food and eat at the tables outside. I love the chill and friendly neighborhood vibe here.

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    1 year ago

    Delicious food, dank vegan options, the service is amazing the people are so sweet, and the vibe is very chill and warm.

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    Super good food. I had the carnitas arepa and the cafe de olla. Good service. Cute seating outside. I'll be back!

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    Amazing , delicious food. Great gluten free options. I always get empanadas for my kids

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    Creative Ideas Cafe Reviews in Other Languages

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    Colombians Food Factory

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    Colombians Food Factory - Sweet corn arepa filled with fresh cheese. - Arepa de maíz dulce rellena con queso fresco

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    Bocadito

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    Delicious! I've never had a fresh version of this cookie before. Reminded me of a Stroopwafel. I…read morewas curious and ordered: Dulce de Leche (classic): So good! The outside is so fresh with crunchy and the caramel in the inside was incredible. It was very sweet but balanced out nicely with the outside crust. The filling was so milky and delicious. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Overall, very delicious dessert. It would pair amazingly with coffee which I didn't have. Will try their kit next time which is $10 for 3!

    My Colombian friend brought us here to enjoy obleas and pandebono. I've had the little wrapped…read moreobleas, but these were a whole different level of amazing gesture/taste. The wafer is light and crisp. The dulce de leche is drool worthy and perfectly sweet. When paired with the cafe, it is perfection. The pandebono is also delicious! The one I had was untoasted, but I highly recommend roasting it. There is a light cheese flavor and the texture is really nice. It is also gluten-free which worked out well for my other friend. I also had a sip of my friend's coffee and it was fantastic. Not bitter and very smooth. Reminded me that while I don't drink coffee, it is still very delicious treat. There was no line when we arrived, but people started coming by once we were in line. The staff are so kind and generous. I don't go into SF often, but I look forward to visiting Bocadito again soon!

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    Chao Pescao - Tostones, empanadas, cuban sandwich, ajiaco, pozole & arroz con dulce de leche

    Chao Pescao

    4.3(353 reviews)
    4.8 miCivic Center
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    Large group friendly
    Gluten-free friendly

    I'll keep it short and simple. I've been here many times and have never been disappointed with the…read morefood! The tostones are my go to app and it's a must to order for the table. I would add some photos of the food, but I always eat it all before I remember to take pics! Alfajores for dessert.

    I came here for a work lunch and it was decent overall with a festive vibe, but the service was a…read morelittl euneven that day. I normally cut a lot of slack when a restaurant is serving a group, but it seemed like there were problems with the kitchen. That said, the server/manager-type guy was very warm and welcoming; he checked in a few times apologizing for the delays. We received our food a bit more than 45 minutes later, so had to rush through the eating part. I got the Tajin Fried Chicken which was nicely cooked. The plantains were excellent and everything was very fresh. It was good chicken, but honestly I didn't notice Tajin in the chicken or the sauce. I almost wondered if they forgot it? The fried brussels sprouts were awesome though and I'd definitely get it again. In conclusion, I think they just had an off day, but it has all the right pieces to be a good restaurant.

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    Ropa Vieja (opted for no rice)

    Chao Pescao - Tajin Fried Chicken: hree-pieces free-range local poultry, mexican spices, lime, hot sauce - served with black beans, rice & plantains

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    Macondo Colombian Fusion

    Macondo Colombian Fusion

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    We wanted a quick, casual bite at the awkward late Saturday afternoon time. We'd always wanted to…read moretry this spot. We stopped by -- and it was spectacular. It packed the flavor punch of homestlye cooking and would rival more expensive sit-down restaurants. What a gem! We ordered the Venezuelan arepa, birria empanada, mushroom empanada, side Macondo salad, and passion fruit juice. Every dish was fantastic, and I'd easily recommend any of the above. Venezuelan arepa -- the was ridiculously yummy. The perfect balance of creamy, rich avocado sauce with chicken. It was hearty, balanced, and perfectly seasoned. Birria empanada -- this was delicious, rich, and perfect for the particularly chilly late afternoon. Birria on point. If you're craving birria in a delectable, crispy empanada format, you'll be quite happy. Mushroom empanada -- yummy. We love mushroom empanadas and they executed this one well. Macondo side salad -- surprisingly fantastic! Did not expect it to be so tasty. It was only a side dish for the combo, but it held its own among the baked goods. That's how yummy it was. Passion fruit juice -- sweet and relatively thick. They definitely didn't water it down! If you're a fan of passion fruit juice, you'll must try this one. Environment was fast casual. Only drawback was althe comfort level of a few of the dining chairs, which sloped backwards in an awkward way. The bench actually felt more comfortable, so we opted for that. Take out seems easy and common here, so we'll like try that as well in the future. Located on a busy street, but you can almost always find free parking down one of the perpendicular side streets. Looking forward to coming back for a delicious, casual bite!

    It was my first time ordering from here, so I was excited and decided to get a little bit of…read moreeverything for our family to try. We ordered the Venezuelan, Colombian, and Pulled Pork BBQ arepas, the birria empanadas, pandebono with dulce de leche, and the chocolo arepa. Unfortunately, we couldn't finish most of the food. The birria empanadas and all three arepas were way too salty. I'm not sure if they went a little overboard with the salt today, but it was overwhelming and made it hard to enjoy anything. The pandebono with dulce de leche was also disappointing. It's described as being filled with dulce de leche, but it was actually just a plain pandebono with a small side of dulce de leche. The texture was also a bit too chewy for my liking. The only item I truly enjoyed and was able to eat was the chocolo arepa that one was actually decent. Overall, I was pretty disappointed because I really enjoy arepas and was excited to find a new spot. I may give them another try in the future in case it was just an off day, but this first experience didn't live up to my expectations.

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    Parche - EMPANADITAS BRAVAS yuca masa, pulled pork & tamarind, housemade hogao

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    4.4(610 reviews)
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    Wonderful food, service, lively and vibrantly decorated space at Parche in Uptown Oakland. Offering…read moredelicious modern Columbian food and introduced during Oakland Restaurant Week. Ordered a variety of items to share (family style) and dishes all presented beautifully and flavors on point. From the salad del Norte with lots of textures and flavor, corn arepas with melty cheese, crispy, flavorful brussel sprouts and savory, nicely seasoned empanadas, everything was delicious with no complaints Our server, Celia was friendly, efficient and engaging...great service which made the dining experience really enjoyable! I'd definitely return as soon as many items to try (ceviche!) and repeat as the first visit had me wanting more! Metered street parking

    My husband and I came here on a date night. It happened to be Oakland Restaurant Week, so there was…read morethe option to do the restaurant week Prix Fixe menu or their regular menu. We opted for the regular menu since I wanted to try the whole Brazino. The table next to us ordered the rest week menu, so we got to peek at their food. It all looked really good as well. We even lucky with the tapas platter from the restaurant instead of just empanadas because they kept mixing up our table with the one next to us. The ceviche was really yummy. It was a treat to be able to try a varity of small plate items with the tapas platter they brought to our table by accident. The Brazino was really cool, and tasted fine but it wasn't amazing. There were a few birthday celebrations when we were there. They bring your drink out in this elephant head statue to wish you a happy birthday. Overall, I woudl recommend giving this place a try. I would go again, but not sure that I would rush back soon.

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    Arepas En Bici - arepa de pabellon

    Arepas En Bici

    4.7(47 reviews)
    5.2 miLower Nob Hill

    Thank you Victor for hosting the Yelp event the weekend of Oct 17. We picked up our meal on Sunday…read moreand was quite pleased. I had been following you since you opened at the beginning of COVID and have been mightily impressed with your fortitude to start and grow a business. Articles here: Eater SF https://sf.eater.com/2020/4/22/21230298/arepas-en-bici-venezuelan-bicycle-delivery-san-francisco Good Morning America: https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/food/story/make-chef-victor-aguileras-delicious-home-chicken-avocado-71755150 Hoodline: https://hoodline.com/2020/07/unemployed-sf-restaurant-workers-pivot-to-home-based-pop-ups I thought for are I would like the beef sandwich better, but it was the chicken and cheese that stole my heart. ALSO loved the cheese sticks, and the guava pastry.

    HEADS UP- this is NOT a restaurant‼there is one chef who sets up a "pop-up" in various locations…read more We were not aware of this at first so we walked to two different locations before finding the right one, which was at Mayes Oyster House on Polk St. Finally came across the correct location on his Instagram story at @arepasenbici. Now we know to also check his website at arepasenbici.com *WAIT TIME- our party of 3 arrived right around 7 pm. We were a bit confused upon arrival since there were no other customers, only a bartender on FaceTime and a DJ jamming out by himself in the corner. We were worried that we went to the wrong place again, but it turns out that majority of the chef's customers just orders ahead online then picks up to-go. After asking the bartender if this was the right place to find arepas, she told us to walk towards the back and meet the chef in the kitchen. Then the chef handed us barcodes to scan and we did not have to wait extremely long for our orders but it also wasn't super fast since he had other orders to take care of. *AMBIANCE- fun, loud, "going-out" type of vibes at this specific location since it is also karaoke night on Wednesdays starting at 7 pm. *QUALITY- great! This was our first time trying our Venezuelan food and definitely won't be our last. Although we have no other arepas to compare it to, we can confidently say that it was prepped with great care and skill. Love how there's also a vegan option, which is the Dom arepa! *CUSTOMER SERVICE- great! The chef is friendly and highly personable, which definitely plays a role in us wanting to support him even more! He even surprised our friend with 2 pastellitos after finding out she didn't order some when both my fiancé and I did, which was very nice and inclusive of him. *RESTROOM- bathroom available inside at this specific location. *OUTDOOR SEATING- available, but no outdoor heaters. *PARKING- no private lot available, best bet would be metered street parking on streets surrounding Polk like Bush St which is free after 6 pm!

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    Cocina Milonga - Apple Almond

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    4.8(155 reviews)
    4.9 mi
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    Why 5 stars? Because despite a few non-ideal circumstances, it was very worth the visit…read more --- --- --- After eating lunch nearby, I had one final stop to make here for coffee and dessert, before I headed to SFO. The issue is that I was definitely pushing it on time if I planned on making my flight. As I was driving here, I had the thought that if there was an annoying parking situation or a line, I would just have to pivot and forego patronizing. But as it turns out, there was one spot available right next to the front door and no one inside. But then when I requested a nitro, the owner (I assume?) was extremely apologetic that their coffee machine broke. I asked for a few alternate types of coffee, but it turned out said machine controlled it all. So we shifted to the pastries. I read on the website that they had something with guava, so I asked for two of those: one for me, one for the wife. He even offered to heat mine up, which I will say yes to 100% of the time. I then jumped back in the car and was back into "don't' miss your flight mode." Of course, when you're in a hurry, you manage to hit every red light along the way, so I was doing a lot of yelling at electricity and God. But then I figured I might as well take the time to try the pastry that I'd originally planned on eating on the plane. As it turns out, it brought me into a nearly immersive experience of zen. The only bad thing is that I devoured it within seconds and then it was merely a thing of the past. My wife is fortunate that I have the amount of integrity that I do because I am sitting on the plane as I write this and I could easily inhale that 2nd pastry with her being none the wiser. If you're reading this, wife, remember that you hit the spousal lottery.

    Great empanadas! They toast them up to a temp that results in a perfectly hot n toasted, fresh…read moretasting empanada! I tried their beef as well as mushroom. Both are repeats for me! Don't forget to ask for their chimichurri sauce. I also love the vibes of the spot. Felt like I traveled to Argentina for a brief moment.

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    Cocina Milonga - Decor & merch

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    Creative Ideas Cafe - colombian - Updated May 2026

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