The Tenderloin. Everyone knows it for the mayak*, the World War Z situation, le dudu on the magnastrada... But few realize that the TL is also a cuisine Mecca, a deluge of flavors from every corner of Earth. Case in point, Mongol Cafe, visible from the windows of the 38. I've ordered take out lunches multiple times from here. The brownish burgundy gulyash came with an egg, and had a too-rich flavor in the form of sourness in the sauce, just like my previous Mongolian gulyash experience elsewhere. Not my thing. The Tsuivan is hearty, not noodles the way you'd think, but more like the starchy toothpicks you get when you grate a doughball. Well flavored with the fat of the meats it was cooked with. Very rustic. Very stick to your ribs. The buuz was good. And authentic, filled using chopped meat rather than regular ground meat. Bigger than a typical dumpling. Smaller than a bao. Another basic but hearty dish. Maybe you'll find the flavor bland, but you'll notice it. The huitsai is currently my favorite item from here so far. Having a subtle but hearty flavor profile like the other dishes, you can tell this is a Mongolian soup. The carrots, the fried potatoes, and the sliced beef are nice, but the hot soup with the meatballs made it for me. No buns came with the soup, but the noodles were a really nice and filling surprise. Huurshuur - imagine the Cantonese dim sum 咸水角 AKA fried mochi dumpling, but stuffed with the filling used for buuz. And flattened. The coleslaw is a no-go for me though. By American standards, the chop was too rough and thus the texture too hard. You know what's an item that I didn't think I'd see at a Mongolian restaurant though? Mongolian beef. We Cantonese made that dish but I guess the community asked for it or maybe Mongols do have a similar dish. I didn't ask. Potatoes and carrots instead of onions and pepper. Good but I like the huitsai more. You might notice that the restaurant has a cell phone number. You can and should order your lunch ahead by texting her. She does her best, but it's a one-woman show, and English isn't her first language. The prices on the website are definitely out of date though. Don't be discouraged if the door is locked though. She's there. This is the TL after all. Just give her a minute and you'll get to check out the display case full of Mongolian things. * Translate to Korean. read more

If you like real Mongolian foods, this is the place. I have been in search for 15 years. The Tsuvian is perfect and the huurshuur is wonderful. The owner is super delightful. I don't what people are saying the place is clean and wonderful. Having had such a good meal since my time in UB. Is it super fancy, no. Which is why it's go good. read more

Very quaint homey restaurant Old fashioned 1990s Got beef hot pockets homemade Acai with toppings..fresh quaint ..worth trying near Geary 2 drinks Nice experience read more

Mongol Cafe - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

See all

I've been here twice and I love it! It is one of my favorite restaurants the lady that works there is great and I've had almost everything on the menu and loved it! She cooks everything on the spot and the restaurant is quiet, clean, well and maintained! Will definitely continue to go here! read more

I don't understand why this place has bad reviews. I think some people just don't appreciate cultural food, especially when it comes from far away. This is such a cozy spot with truly homemade food - the owner makes everything herself! She's very welcoming and friendly, by the way. The food reminds me of home, and every time I come here, I know it's going to be amazing. Highly recommend the khuushuur and mongol tea! read more

I'm so happy in lunch for Mongol cafe so delicious tea and buuz Nice clean area and relaxing music thank you Mongol cafe read more

Delicious and authentic mongolian food! Owner very friendly and welcoming! Love this place!

I ordered the chicken rice lunch special (which says is $9 on the menu) but was charged for $13 and the chicken meat is poor quality- similar to school cafeteria. Extremely dry and very salty. Overpriced. Never again. read more

Mongol Cafe - Chicken and rice lunch special - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

If you're looking for an authentic Mongolian guanz (small restaurant) experience, you'll get that here. It is real Mongolian food made by a woman who was born in Mongolia. It is not the mislabeled Mongolian BBQ that is actually Chinese. I love the Tsuivan (Mongolian Noodles with Meat and Vegetables)! read more

I haven't had exposure to a lot of Mongolian food so when I happened to cross Mongol Café a couple of days ago I decided to check it out. It is located on Geary and Larkin which technically speaking is in Nob Hill but for all practical purposes is in SF's hood (Tenderloin). Upon walking in on a Saturday afternoon, I saw about 2 tables with patrons partaking in what looked like soup noodles. I walked over to the counter to find it completely empty. There was another gentlemen who was waiting there and unfortunately I mistook him to be someone working in the restaurant something he quickly set straight. Well there was nothing more to do than just wait for the host/hostess to show up; which he did after almost 5 minutes. During this time a third patron walked in and then out after about a minute or so. Anyway, I asked for the menu and found a couple of things that looked familiar like Borsh and Goulash but what did not sound familiar and had a nice ring to was Buuz ($10.25) so I decided to go with that. As per their site its steam cooked bun, filled with ground beef and garnished with 2 small salad servings. Julienne cut carrots seasoned with garlic and dressed in mayonnaise. After ordering to my surprise I could pay with a card and then it was a short 10-minute wait and I was on my way. I got a decent sized container with about 10 steamed dumplings and a small salad on the side. The dumpling was big and had a thick outer layer (like har gow) and had a beef based filling. It was clear that these had been frozen or at-least refrigerated before because they had not fully thawed before being steamed. Unfortunately, the Buuz that I got was not the good type. As already mentioned I don't know a lot about Mongolian food so I can't say if they like their dumplings this way "back home" but what I can say is I did not. Price-wise I thought it was a little expensive for just dumplings but I guess the specialty food tag justifies it. I think I should have gotten the soup that the other patrons in the restaurant were having which is what I guess I plan to do during my next visit. But given what I had I'm in no hurry to do that. Generous 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 is how I'd rate this place. read more

Mongol Cafe - Buuz ($10.25) - steamed dumplings with ground beef - did not give me a good Buzz. Average! - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

Nice little hole in the wall spot. The fresh juices caught my eye so I ordered a squeeze of apple, beets, and celery. They were out of kale, cucumber, and spinach doesn't juice well with their juicer (so she said.) My juice came out beet pink and delicious. I was actually surprised. Sign with the special of the day: 1 coffee, danish or croissant for $3 Has an atm but they take card. Pretty cool for a bite or drink. read more

See all

I'm not that familiar with authentic Mongolian food (BBQ & Hot Pot don't count), so was pleased this tiny little cafe sold a few specialties. Kind of like at those Vietnamese-owned doughnut shops where you can usually sneak a bowl of pho. The food was novel to me (which is rare nowadays) so left a very positive impression. Since I'm not that familiar with Mongolian cuisine, I can't truly compare against any benchmark. Huushur: These are very hearty! Kind of like a dumpling wrapper shaped into large empanada, but still filled with dumpling meat. It was really enjoyable how the exterior was deep fried crispy but the inside still had some soft dough like you'd find on a steamed dumpling. After eating one, the friedness was getting to me and I could have used a nice dipping sauce (with vinegar and/or citrus) to complement it. The carrot salad on the side wasn't that exciting, unfortunately. Tsuivan: The noodles seemed like shredded up dumpling wrappers. A lot thicker than regular noodles. Despite all the thick carbs, it felt kind of light. Not drenched in any soy-based sauces. The beef had a subtly that worked well against all the scallions. read more

Mongol Cafe - Huushur (half order) - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

See all

I've never had Mongolian food before, so I was really excited to give Mongol Cafe a try! I was honestly a little intimidated - I grew up eating pan-Asian cuisine, so it felt a little unnerving to go into a restaurant where I didn't know what things on the menu actually were (much less how to pronounce them). Going off of the Yelp reviews, I decided to order the buuz and huushur to split with a friend. The owner kindly let me know they were out of huushur, but offered us some piroshki instead. I've had Russian piroshki before, so I figured they'd be worth a try - and I'm glad I did! For one, I was impressed by the portion sizes - the 3 piroshki (a HALF order) were as big as an entire dinner plate. They tasted like Chinese beef dumplings, but inside piroshki dough. It was a really interesting fusion of cultures - which makes sense, since Mongolia is in between Russia and China. While we were waiting for the buuz, the owner gave us a free beef bun too! He explained that it has the same filling as the piroshki, but steamed instead of fried. I liked the bun even more - while I'm always a fan of fried things, steaming the dough really brought out the heartiness of the beef. The buuz were delicious as well - very similar to the piroshki and bun, but with a thick dumpling wrapper. I loved how meaty and soupy they were. I feel like dumplings I've had in the past are lighter (usually mixed with vegetables or seafood), but these are very hearty and filling. We ended up taking half of the buuz to go. I'd definitely come back to try more Mongolian food! read more

Mongol Cafe - Piroshki(?) - they were out of huushur when I went, but they offered these instead! Like a bun, but fried - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

See all

We ordered: 3 pc Huushur: deep fried beef dumplings. These were massive battered dumplings. Dumpling skin was lightly crisped, with a bit of chew. Inside was a seasoned layer of ground beef. Anything deep fried is tasty. Very homey tasting, made with love. However, those that are light hearted in consuming greasy foods, you'll likely only have one. Guliash - beef stew served with steamed rice and egg. Again very homey. The tomato sauce of the beef stew reminded me of a Chinese dish my mom would make at home. The other homey factor is that all the ingredients tasted like they were from Costco. The beef had the same taste/ texture/ size as Costco beef (precut, made for stewing). The egg also tasted like Costco's large 24-pack eggs. All this is hilarious to think about because that's how often we shop at Costco, enough to identify a Costco "grocery taste". The food is very homey and more or less comes as the photos appear. Some differences we noticed were the small sides. The photo showed beets and carrot salad, instead we got potato salad or two slices of tomato. The potato salad also tasted like the Costco brand. No big deal. I've never been to Mongolia, so I can't speak to how authentic this food is. The only qualm I had about the food is in regards to it's freshness. Of course the dumplings and the eggs were fried on the spot, however the rice and the beef stew appeared to have come out of a Tupperware and microwaved (we saw this happen and could hear it!). You can also tell because the plate comes out hot. For all we know, it could have been made fresh a few hours ahead of time and simply put into the fridge. Or it could have been made a few days ago and also put into the fridge. Either way, it was interesting to try once. read more

They never confirmed my online order! I won't ever order from here again!If Mongol Cafe you don't want to offer the meal, then you shouldn't partner with the ordering app, OK??? You're wasting my time!!! read more

It aright. All the dumplings are beef. Not very flavorful. I haven't eaten anything but dumplings. It's is what it is. Maybe try something else. read more

My husband and I love lamb and so we decided to try the lamb stew. If you love starch (potatoes and white rice) you're in for a treat. Otherwise, you'll have delicious, fatty and tender lamb with a few large chunks of carrots and lots of baby potatoes on top of white rice. Two eggs on the side for added protein. On this particular Saturday, they ran out of mixed salad and without asking us, gave us mashed potatoes instead. The stew was delicious, but the whole meal starch heavy. I supposed if we were really on the steppes of Mongolia, the starch would have helped our stamina and our defense against the cold, but we would have preferred another veggie like carrots on the side. Meat and potato fans, this place is for you. Easy walking distance from the Motel 6. read more

Mongol Cafe - Lamb stew for takeout. - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

Horrible place. I really don't want to write this but feel like I have to. First of all, food tastes horrible and bland. I ordered tsuivan last time and huushuur recently. Both times I wonder how someone cooks this tasteless food. Huushuur didn't even come with any sides. I was so hungry but couldn't even finish 2 pieces of huushuur. Plus one of the huushuur tasted like something chemical thing touched it. I spit it out right away. If anyone thinking of trying Mongolian food, I'm sorry but you should pass on this place. Instead go to the one in Richmond, CA. I personally will never go to this place again. Plus owner is rude and greedy. read more

In true Korean(?*) fashion, owners' family is chillin taking up tables. Grandpa gave grandkid a face massage too - how much for one of those? I got the HUUSHUR as in huush ur mouth these fried beef pancakes are the bomdigi. Portion sizes are no effing joke either. Some dishes have a half size option. Remember that. *Yeah I know the resto / food is Mongolian, but listen to what the workers are speaking to each other. read more

See all

Good place for freshly handmade and homestyle cooked breakfast. The omelette and bagel sandwich we ordered came out quick and tasted good. It's a mom and pop shop, and even though she was there by herself in the morning, the lady was able to quickly make an order of huushuur to go while we were eating too. I recommend this place for the local vibe and freshly made food. read more

Mongol Cafe - Breakfast at Mongol Cafe - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

For the love of God, if you value your health, you will NOT come here. I came here because of the large sign outside advertising their bubble tea, i.e. my weakness, so why not! Walked in and should've been alarmed by the large number of flies hovering in my face, but ....you know, bubble tea was calling my name. The friendly gentleman gave me his quick 4 option bubble tea menu. I paid the whopping $4.75 for my coconut boba and walked out happy until I took a sip and almost died from sheer disgust. The actual balls were hard as f, crumby and stale. I might throw up out of remembrance if I keep talking, but know that the beverage was offered to a homeless man instead. If you happen to pass this place, do yourself a favor and keep walking. read more

This little gem is worth the visit. It's a very hole-in-the-wall, small mom and pop shop in the Tenderloin area of Geary Blvd, and parking was not a problem for me on a Friday night around 6pm. The man serving/ behind the register was very sweet, did not judge when I couldn't pronounce what I wanted to order (ha). I tried the buuz (steamed meat dumpling) and the huushur (fried beef pocket) and they were both made to order and simply delicious. Their buuz is not unlike the Chinese xiao long bao, just different in flavor, and twice the size. The filling is a slightly fatty meat mix, more minced than ground so you get more texture. The wrapping also has slightly more of a chew to it-- scrumptious. Careful of the soup that spills out when you take a bite or invert the dumpling as I did to fully inspect my food (yes I'm weird). The huushur was the perfect indulgence for fried yumminess. The filling is a ground beef mixture, super flavorful, wrapped with a crispy chewy fried dough that went perfectly with the sriracha that I drowned everything in. Served piping hot! I tried the Mongolian milk tea, as I was curious about it. Served hot, smelling creamy and heavenly, I was taken aback by the first sip. It's salty. Yes, it's supposed to be. I asked. I couldn't finish it, it's not my cup of tea (harhar). The server didn't bill me for it when he noticed I wasn't accustomed to the way they prepare the tea, which was very sweet of him. I only wish the tea were as sweet (harharhar), because the flavor was actually very good. I'll definitely be coming back, especially to try their lamb ribs! read more

Mongol Cafe - Huushur, served with veggies. Delicious. Ask for sriracha!! ~$10 - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

See all

Found this gem walking by Geary street visiting SF from New York and happy to say this was real authentic Mongolian cuisine! The tsuivan and tea were phenomenal, i would highly recommend it! I wish I had more room in my stomach to eat some huushur and buuz. read more

I walked in last week, only two people quietly eating. I immediately smelled an odor redolent of a stale, full baby diaper. There was a middle aged lady with a very sour expression on her face who looked at me, then quickly glanced away without even greeting me. Usually, when I do not get a "hello" or at least a smile when I walk into a business, especially when business is very slow, I walk right out the door and spend my money with businesses that have better customer service skills, but I ventured forth out of morbid curiousity for that bizarre odor (was it Durian fruit or perhaps a corpse flower??) & asked Miss Sour Face how much a boba tea cost. Her flat, somewhat annoyed countenance never changed as she dryly replied, "5.00". Hmm, lemme see, $5.00 for a boba tea in an odiferous cafe served by an unfriendly counter woman, surrounded by super friendly, nice smelling businesses that offer boba tea at much more competitive rates? Gee, that's a tough one! read more

Amazing hole in the wall ready underrated. Went there for lunch and had the huushur(fried meat pie) and guliash (beef stew with rice). Both were amazingly good, and the prices are very reasonable. The meat was juicy and soft full of flavor, and the meat pie was actually amazing. read more

Mongol Cafe - Mongolian Near Me - San Francisco, California

Giant portions of rustic, meaty Mongolian food. My order of buuz consisted of 10 nearly fist sized beef dumplings. Buuz take at least 20 minutes to make so call in ahead of time if you're in a rush. I did take out and the dumplings were still juicy and tender after 20 minutes. Very sweet couple run the place. read more

I don't know about the people that left negative reviews on here but let me tell you, I'm a Mongolian and this is the place where you can get a real authentic taste of the nomads. I especially loved the huitsaa which is a meatball soup with glass noodles and veggies - it was exactly what I needed after walking around in chilly San Francisco all day. You can tell they prepare their food with love because the meat was ground by hand in the dumplings. Overall, I highly recommend this place and I wish I had an easier access to taste of home in San Diego like this one. read more

I ordered 5 piece huushur: deep fried beef dumplings. The dumplings came with salad. The dumplings were very delicious and fresh. Tsend, Sacramento. read more

AWFUL EXPERIENCE!!! Owners/employees are EXTREMELY rude! I was practically thrown out of the restaurant because I was carrying a water bottle, apparently in violation of their "no outside food or drink" notice. Didn't even have an opportunity to try the food. read more

There are soo few places for real Mongolian food (1 of 2) but it's a great treat for me. The Cafe is unassuming and kinda easy to miss, it looks like a 'bagel/donut shop' and parking is very tricky (like the rest of SF), however it is well worth it. I can't speak for the non Mongolian food, but the Mongolian food is fresh and tasty. read more

I love come here because of great Mongolian tsuivan. Also I love they decorated bringing Mongolian yurt style. This interior is amazing.

Five stars is a really good rating. Don't get me wrong, it was good. But, it gets the high rating because it was really interesting, cheap and great service in a neighborhood that could really use something like that. I got the food for takeout to eat at Edinburgh Castle. It is a block away and what I got travelled well. The empanada like things were incredible. I don't know what spices were in the meat. But, it is incredibly good on a cold day. The noodles were also really interesting. I have definitely not had anything like this anywhere. read more

If you want real authentic mongolian food this is the spot. Their huushur is really good and also beef dumplings are fire. read more

The best example of legitimate Mongolian food I've had outside of Mongolia (the other "Mongolian" stuff you see elsewhere, i.e. Mongolian BBQ, Mongolian Hot Pot, Mongolian Beef is Mongol in name only and not s real representation of Mongolian food). This restaurant has the real deal: great Buuz, Huushur, Tsoivan (all heavy meat and dumpling-type dishes), and the suitei tsai (milk tea) are absolutely fantastic. I'll certainly be coming back here again. read more

I do not recommend this cafe!! Let's start off with service. When we arrived, no one paid any attention to us until we had to come up to the cashier bar and asked for menu even though the cafe was rather slow. We ordered spaghetti and beef stew rice plate. Spaghetti was ok, nothing special. Beef was dried and the amount of food was NOT worth $12. After the meal, my friend and I both have stomachache later that night. read more

Rumor has is - Tenderloin has the best food. Very true about this place. Great food, giant portions, affordable prices, owners are very nice. Food is a mix of Mongolian and a bit Russian. read more

This place offers a wide , er, diverse selection of both American food (breakfast;smoothies bagel sandwiches French toast) representing on the menu more than the "mongol" cuisine items. The service was a bit obnoxious (the woman working spent her WHOLE time speaking to a customer/friend in a foreign language, and loud.] She even forgot my chocolate croissant in the microwave 15 , and had I not reminder her I prob would never have gotten it....which wouldn't have been fine by me since it was SO STALE. THEN my taro milk tea with boba [the drinks that originally caught my.eye] tasted like.the.most.watered down version of all the taro milk tea ive had in my life with like hardly any boba. A couple pluses was the place opened up at 7:30 and had a little.table for outdoor seating. The lox and bagel sandwich was OK. There were lots of outlets and seating. However there's nothing that would make a return customer. read more

Let's see, they tried to steal a dollar (gave it back when caught) served the Mongolian guy who came after me first and serve frozen dumplings in frozen broth with some fat and gristle. Too bad, I was rooting for you. read more

Is it one those days when you're trying to decide what to eat? Same old thing sushi, Mexican, and pizza? Well then try this place. Authentic Mongolian food. Bet most of you haven't tried it. It's definitely worth your money and time. The service can be something to be desired from time to time. That's probably because lack of English maybe on their part. But if you're just looking for a good food and not a 5 star service then definitely try this place people. read more

Great hole in the wall that serves authentic Mongolian food. I highly recommend the buuz, which are steamed meat dumplings. Order them on the phone to avoid waiting the 25 minutes required to prepare it fresh for you! Also ask for sour cream! read more