Asiento — Restaurant in San Francisco

i've been going to bars and small venues in sf for over 2 decades, this is definitely one of the best little hidden gems i've been to! the atmosphere was delightful, sound quality was great given the small space (i always wear earplugs but you could actually get by without maybe, and you can still carry on a conversation while jamming to the music). the staff was SO FRIENDLY and welcoming, by far the most impressive feature to me. it was very clear the staff was dedicated to making sure everyone in their space was having a good time. if you come here and have a bad time, idk i think it's kind of on you/your circumstances. multiple water stations, very attentive bartenders, staff was on top of bussing, just a clean, safe, fun environment.

when leaving, the bouncer was even kind enough to make sure we got all our things and closed our tabs- a very simple but nice gesture which i really appreciated. another big plus for me, bathrooms were super clean and well stocked. the food was also way better than i would expect for a late night bar snack; the chicken tinga was my favorite!

definitely coming back here again

Everything was great at Asiento— besides the food. The good: We didn’t have a reservation, but were seated very quickly, despite it being a Friday night, which we were very grateful for! The staff was incredibly friendly and tipped us off that we should eat the queso fundido quickly before it cooled down. The DJ was great, and we especially liked that any server could help us because they were all plugged into the same system that had our tab running. Everything came out promptly, and the atmosphere was lovely.

The bad: Unfortunately, the food was mediocre (though the ingredients were clearly fresh). The Thai meatballs were overcooked to the point that it was a chore to chew them. The sauce they came in was boring and unimpressive. The carnitas bocadillo was dry and bland. The best part of the crab cake was the fresh spinach on the side. The queso fundido was okay, not spectacular (glad we ate it while it was hot, like our server suggested), and the guacamole was pretty good (but $10 for guac hurt a little bit). The drinks were average (not too sweet, which we appreciated).

We’d love to WANT to come back... but the food just...

I came with a group of 6 friends on a wednesday night. We were looking for a place where some of us could eat, some of us could drink, and all of us could talk and hear each other (gosh I sound old!). After going to Trick dog for a rowdy three minutes, we thankfully found Asiento around the corner. The bartender was cute, there was live music playing at the perfect volume, there were board games you can use, and lots of clusters of friend groups like our own just having a great time. I had the tinga de pollo tostadas which were yum and only $8. Friends had the beet salad, albondigas, and patatas bravas. We all had cocktails which were unique and flavorful. My only ish is that they dont have straws. I know it's SF and we all should be green conscious, but sometimes a girl likes a straw in her drink. Solution? The bartender handed me a piece of red licorice to use as a makeshift straw. haha. creative, but not the same, and totally changed the taste of my beverage. I would totally go back though, straws...