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Noriega Cafe

3.9 (176 reviews)
ModerateChinese, Seafood, Noodles
Closed 11:00 am - 9:30 pm
Updated 3 weeks ago

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Noriega Cafe Photos

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NORIEGA CAFE ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Moderate noise
Casual

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Recommended Reviews - Noriega Cafe

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Reviews With Photos

Anna C.

Very authentic Cantonese style restaurant with super friendly "auntie" staff. You feel right at home once you walk in. Every dish we ordered is delicious and with so much "wok hey", you don't see this often anymore. They have a special now for ordering over $80 and get a free half of chicken dish, which makes this place even more homey!

Beef & Preserved Pickle Pan Fried Noodles
Tiffany C.

My family and I used to come here all the time! We love the food here! The last two times that I came, I felt like the food was quite flavorless. Four stars because the waitress is super super sweet! One of the nicest waitresses that you could ever encounter!

Photo 1: Montage of images from Noriega Cafe
Ed U.

This was a swing and a miss for me. I'm not a Sunset resident, so I'm not in the market for an all-purpose Chinese restaurant close to my home to satisfy periodic hankerings for familiar dishes like beef chow fun and mapo tofu. I came here specifically to try just one of their signature dishes, the $16.95 Steamed Half Chicken with Ginger, because I'm always on the hunt for the most delicious version. It's a small place, and I was just one of three customers when I arrived after the lunch hour. Their menu was quite extensive, and frankly, if I was part of a big group, I would've welcomed trying their traditional slate of Cantonese dishes. As a solitary diner, I knew it would be challenging to order a dish for one, and I was right. The platter of chicken was huge and laid out in spatchcock fashion (Photo 6). It was laminated in what I believe was sesame oil, but the texture just wasn't right. Although the dark meat was fine, the white meat was just a little too chewy to satisfy. For variety, I definitely needed the $2 bowl of white rice (Photo 8) and the complimentary house soup (Photo 7). I'm not sure I'd come back for the steamed chicken, but there are plenty of other choices to consider if I was so inclined. FOOD - 3 stars...steamed chicken not quite executed properly AMBIANCE - 3 stars...a bit closed-in where I was seating SERVICE - 3.5 stars...efficient, not ignored TOTAL - 3 stars...need to try something else if I'm in the area RELATED - Exploring the Sunset? Here's a collection of places l've visited and reviewed: https://yelp.to/02wYmHE0BT

Sue F.

Oh my goodness! Talk about great value for large family sized portions! Came by for dinner and scored a table for 4 at about 6:30pm. While their restaurant is not huge, it is clean and has a clean restroom too. We ordered the following: Sampan porridge (L)- good flavor and def enough to feed a family of 4. I was expecting a med sized bowl but boy was I wrong! It was loaded with plenty of protein and we had leftovers Chinese donut- perfect flavor and texture Mixed vegetables- loved the amount of veggies given and their tofu was delicious! House special thin noodles- This came as a free item and kiddo loved it!! Seafood pan fried noodles- loaded with plenty of protein and crispy texture Beef stew wonton noodle- A lot of meat given and about 6 wontons. This was a solid dish! Pork chops- Was supposed to be salt and pepper but I opted for them to omit the pepper for my kids' sake. A great dish! I loved that their food was not overly salty and tasted good. The one employee working was amazingly fast, efficient, and made sure every table was taken care of. So miss this type of hidden gems!

Lilian Z.

Stopped by on a Sunday morning just in time for their lunch special. I came after the gym so I was absolutely starving and wanted some home-y, filling Chinese food. The nicest lady was working the front trying her best to get to everyone balancing takeout, dine in, and assisting the kitchen while handling incoming phone calls. Seems like a lot of people order takeout with some even placing orders for party trays of food. I got the lunch special with tofu and cod fillet. At the low price of $14.99, I thought it was quite a steal! I also got a string beans to fulfill my veggies for the meal. Overall the tofu and fish could use more flavoring and the green beans can be cooked a bit longer but both I felt were pretty good in general! I would definitely come back

Anna N.

My family and I's go to spot for yummy Chinese food for dinner! There food isn't oily/heavy which is why we like it. The one and only waitress there is super sweet and attentive. We always love getting their clay pots and fried fish or fried pork chops. If you order over $80, you can choose an item that is less than $16? and have it for free! We always get their chicken as it's always cooked perfectly and the soy sauce they have it in is super good & savory.

Fancypants X.

3.5 stars. Cozy mom-and-pop shop with an extensive menu of Chinese favorites. We ordered BBQ Pork Fried Rice which was flavorful enough that it didn't need soy sauce; Pan Fried Noodles topped with chicken, carrots, & bok choy; & Chongqing Deep Fried Chicken with a breading that was a little thick but had a good, spicy flavor. They use quality meat, as well. First time here & I didn't feel that immediate affinity for their specific flavors; however, I'm open to returning, perhaps with a bigger party -- all the better to sample more from Noriega Cafe. Friendly service from the sweet lady helping us. They seem to fill a lot of to-go orders, but she also kept her attention on the few parties dining in.

Sesame chicken
Kathy L.

My first visit and I'm surprised that I never came here sooner. They've been here for almost 5 years. All tables were taken when we arrived at dinner time & it was a short wait for a table. There was a stream of pick up orders, so it definitely must be good. It's a small place, less than 10 tables and 2 of the 10 are for larger parties. It's brightly lit and our server was super friendly and really engaging in conversation. We ordered family style and got sesame chicken, black pepper beef and spicy pork and string beans. The portions were large, we had leftovers to take home. The sesame chicken was crispy and the sauce wasn't overly sweet. The spicy pork & string beans was my favorite dish--while it was noted be spicy, it wasn't at all. The beef was tender and flavorful. This will definitely be my new family favorite.

Singapore pan fried noodles with shredded pork and sautéed shrimp
Richard H.

Chose this small place searching for some Cantonese food for lunch and was pleasantly surprised at the generous amount of what I ordered along with the complimentary soup and hot tea. Total for everything was $14.95 before tip. Service was quick and was in and out in 50 minutes.

Oyster sauce Chinese broccoli
Carolyn T.

Don't know how I've never eaten here before . Read all previous 4/5 star reviews and I say ditto !! Large quantity. Delicious meal. Friendly server . The place does soooo much take out too. Few tables so go non busy meal times ! Wish I lived closer .

Sweet & Sour Pork
Tiffany W.

Cute and cozy restaurant on Noriega with an extensive menu and friendly service. We tried the salted fish & chicken fried rice and sweet & sour pork--both dishes were ready very quickly, quite tasty with generous portion size. Overall 3.5 stars--solid option in the Outer Sunset neighborhood!

Pumpkin w/ Mashed Salted Egg
Pear N.

I really wanted to like this place because of the number of good reviews and the very sweet waitress. However, everything didn't meet my expectations. The fried rice was bland despite having salted fish in it. The walnut shrimp wasn't crispy, and I didn't like the bed of styrofoam-looking noodles. The chicken was also not good or crispy. The pumpkin was crispy and had a strong salty flavor, which is an acquired taste for sure. It was still good when reheated in the air fryer.

304. Salt & Pepper Spareribs
Allena C.

Noriega cafe is on our regular rotation of restaurants! We don't come here for bbq meat, because that's not their specialty. Only restaurants that have ducks hanging at the window are where you should order bbq items. We've been coming here for over a year and the food is consistent! The ladies here who take orders and serve are nice and accommodating. The place isn't huge, but we always get a table. They mainly have take-out orders rather than people who dine in. Our latest dinner was delicious and hit the spot for me to update my review. ***OUR PICKS*** SALT AND PEPPER SPARERIBS ~ one of the best we've had in a long while! Crispy batter and tons on the plate. Lots of flavorful without being too salty. And bf loves the jalapenos in this one! 5/5 JAPANESE STYLE BEEF CUBES WITH EGG TOFU & PEA SPROUTS ~ love this dish and we order this frequently. Sometimes the beef isn't as tender and the pea sprouts can be tough, but both were good and tender tonight. But it's one of the pricier items on the menu. 4/5 SALTED FISH CHICKEN FRIED RICE ~ Good fried rice if you like salted fish. It's not something everyone likes, but we liked it. Though it can be a bit salty. 4/5 COMBINATION MEAT TOFU CLAY POT ~ Nice medley of vegetables, tofu, BBQ pork, shrimp, and fish. Tasty dish! 5/5 STEAMED CHICKEN WITH GINGER AND GREEN ONIONS (HALF) ~ If you order $80 worth of food, you get an item for free! And this was the dish we chose. It's healthier than most and pretty good. 4/5 Every time we come here, we expect a lot of leftovers for the next few days! Like always, we had boxes of yummy leftovers tonight, so it gives us a break at home! Perfect!

Pumpkin & Shrimp w/ Mashed Salted Egg. Photo by @martiwantsmore

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4 months ago

Amazing service with great food The mongolian beef, fried rice, and the chow mein are my go to! the lady is ALWAYS THE SWEETEST

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Noriega Cafe Reviews in Other Languages

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Sobakatsu - Tenzaru Soba: Shrimp + Veggie Tempura w/ chilled soba noodles | $19.25

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Mensho Tokyo - Tori Paitan Ramen

Mensho Tokyo

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We visited Mensho Tokyo SF for our Mother's Day celebration after hearing so many great things…read moreabout the ramen, and we were genuinely excited to try it for the first time. We were a large group of 15, including several kids, and we completely understand that the restaurant is small and accommodating a group our size can be challenging. We waited in line for almost an hour with around 6 children. During the wait, a staff member named Sue came outside, asked how many people were in our group, and handed us menus. Since it was our first visit, we were naturally asking questions and trying to understand the menu. Unfortunately, throughout the interaction, her body language and expressions felt impatient and unwelcoming. There was visible frustration and eye-rolling, which made us feel uncomfortable rather than welcomed. Even after we were seated, the experience continued to feel tense. One of the toddlers in our group started crying briefly -- something fairly common with young children -- and we were told to "keep it low out of respect." While we absolutely respect other diners, the way it was communicated felt lacking in empathy, especially on a busy Mother's Day with families dining out. A small gesture of kindness or understanding could have gone a long way. Instead, my friend felt compelled to take the child outside, which was disappointing. Additionally, after being seated, we had to remind the staff multiple times to come take our orders. What makes this especially unfortunate is that the ramen itself was truly delicious and lived up to the hype. The food was excellent, which is why this experience was so disappointing overall. I hope management takes this feedback seriously because customer service and hospitality matter just as much as the food experience. Unfortunately, this was not the ideal way to end our Mother's Day celebration.

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Taniku Izakaya - Spicy beef ramen

Taniku Izakaya

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Mashita Galbi Jjim - Tender Galbi Jjim!

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4.6(160 reviews)
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We came to Mashita Galbi Jim on a Sunday and were the first in line. We were anticipating long wait…read moretimes after having tried to eat here a few times before. If you're not able to squeeze into the first wave, the wait is upwards of 2 hours! FOOD: We ordered one galbi jim with extra noodles and rice cakes and a separate garlic noodles for a party of 5. While we initially thought we could finish two galbi jims, our server cautioned us against it, referencing the healthy portion size. We were glad we took her advice because everyone was stuffed by the end of our meal. Their galbi jim was flavorful, with extremely tender beef and chewy rice cakes. We ordered the lowest level of spiciness and while there was still a kick, it was extremely manageable. SERVICE: We were the first to be seated and our galbi jim took almost 20 minutes to come out while others waited even longer. However, they comped our garlic noodles and apologized for turning waits. Overall, I'd definitely return if I'm able to get into the first wave of seating.

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