El Mansour — Restaurant in San Francisco

El Mansour is a Richmond neighborhood secret. The exterior is not noticeable as I have walked by it a million times not acknowledging it was a restaurant. But when I finally made it inside, I discovered a whole new world! The interior is in a form of a giant tent, big open space with small round tables, cushion seating and stools along the walls. Groups get to sit together and face each other, provide for a warm and intimate feel.

The staffs are very attentive and nice. Ordering is easy too – just have to make up your mind for a preferred meat dish, or if with a big group, can ask for a variety plate to try everything! All meals come with spicy lentil bean soup, combo salad plate with tomatoes, eggplant, carrots & cucumbers, puff pastry filled with chicken, main entrée, fried banana for desert, and finally, mint tea. There’s A LOT of very delicious and flavorful food, so come hungry!! We have been to El Mansour many times and absolutely loved everything we have tried! Okay, maybe not the rabbit….but it’s not El Mansour, it’s just the thought of eating a bunny. Moroccans often eat with their hands and use bread as a utensil. So before the first dish and after the last dish, you get to wash your hands at the table. It’s a pretty neat experience!! Of course you can ask for fork/knives too. Oh...El Mansour serves the most amazing soft bread throughout the meal. It’s so good I often get too crazy with the bread and fill up way before the main dish gets served.

Wait, did I mention belly dancer?? On top of all the good food, there’s entertainment too!! Belly dancer usually perform around 7:30 and 9:00. She moves freely around the tent so every seat is a good seat. Almost always, she invites audiences to participate and dance. Children, adults, men, women, good, bad dancers….it’s a lot of fun to watch.

El Mansour is a really delicious and fun restaurant, great for special occasions, celebrations, or just...

Omg how do i thank you guys????? I came across this restaurant on yelp, emailed and got my questions answered, made reservations. A day before i called and the guy on the phone said don’t worry we will take care of u. They literally took care of us, omg I am just so stunned by this beautiful service you guys provided. It was my best friend's birthday and I couldn't have done anything better for her than this. To all who are reading this and have not been here, look no further, just plan your night here, and you will not regret it. They start off by washing your hands, then you get the soup and salad, the soup is out of this world. Even the salad was so yummy, I never thought I'd love the taste of eggplant. The chicken pie was next which was also really good, I loved the mixture of sweet and salty. Then the main dish, guys I ordered chicken kabobs, I am not kidding when I say it was the best kabobs ever. I did make a mistake of ordering some additional side dishes but now I know not to because the food itself was a lot. They also bring you dessert and mint tea. Lastly, they will wash your hands and give u this scented rose water which you apply on your hands. Now to the main part, there is a belly dancing show included, the performer is the sweetest person. She greeted everyone so nicely and her dance was just amazing. Do tip them coz they totally deserve that. I had asked her to bring my friend on the floor and she so nicely did that. My words can't describe the happiness I feel from last night. This restaurant has become my favorite places and I hope it becomes favourites of many people who read this.

To the management of this restaurant once again thank you so much for making us a part of your night. Everyone working here is absolutely amazing. Hope to see u guys...

If you're coming here for a belly dancing show, just know that the shows are arbitrary. Don't schedule a reservation past 8pm, if at all. Let me explain.

We drove 30 minutes to the restaurant – and called ahead to say we would be late – and got there at 8pm and the belly dancing show was over.

We were then told it would be the only show of the night, even though reviews had said there were two shows a night.

The manager/owner said there weren't enough customers for a second show. (I don't think this restaurant will be in business for another year, to be honest. It was a Friday night and half empty.)

The worst part was that he was unapologetic and rude. If he had just said, "I'm sorry about this" or "how about I give you a free appetizer" – I would've refused the offer, but the gesture and sentiment would've been a nice one and all forgiven.

Instead, he was like, you should read the fine print and you shouldn't be late. I couldn't argue the fine print, because I wasn't sure if it did say anything about show times. But I did argue that when we called to say we were going to be late, he could've told us to hurry up, as the show would be ending by 8pm.

He didn't, and we were literally in no rush, as my GF was doing makeup in the car a little while longer after parking. If he had, I would've told her to do it later, so we could catch 10 min of the show.

Also, I went back to read the fine print and there is no mention that there is only one show a night and that you must confirm what time the show is at. Check for yourself.

Anyhow, we left, as it's one thing to not have a belly dancing show, but another thing altogether to have a rude manager scolding you...