Mochica — Restaurant in San Francisco

Update: My boss gave me another food rec, which was Mochica. I hadn’t been here since they moved from Soma, so I figured it was time to try them again. Plus, it was Restaurant Week (RW), so it was the perfect time to try their menu.

The three-course menu was $55 and the portions were large! I started off with ceviche. It was delightfully citrusy and with nice contrasting textures between the fish, sweet potato, and yucca chip. I wish there were more chips because I love a good crunch. My friend and I both started with that, and we probably could’ve shared it. But tbh, it was so delicious that I’m glad we each got our own.

We added the Mac and cheese as an extra to our RW dinner. It was rich and cheesy with the right amount of truffle oil. I’m not sure where the aji amarillo sofrito was, but it was still good. I wish it had breadcrumbs on top, but I love texture so that’s just me. I would totally order this again.

Next up was the arroz con mariscos, which was savory and comforting. It had a lot of seafood, from mussels to squid to fish. They did not skimp out. They unfortunately ran out of flan, so I got panna cotta. It was tart from the passion fruit, but was calmed by the coconut. Though I would’ve loved to try the flan, ending the meal with a light dessert after a heavy entree balanced the dining experience.

The restaurant is divided into two spaces and we sat at the left space (if you’re facing the restaurant). Not sure about the right space, but the left space can get really loud. The ceilings are tall and conversations get amplified. But that’s part of the vibe - food with bold flavors to experience with friends. Also, the Pinot noir I ordered was delicious! Def check out their wine list.

Service was good. I had some questions about the RW menu and the waitress was super helpful. One thing I’d comment is to make sure you address your allergies. I put mine and my friend’s allergies on the OpenTable reservation, but unfortunately the dessert she ordered had an ingredient she couldn’t eat which wasn’t listed as one on the menu. Some restaurants do go over what’s listed on OpenTable, but just be sure to state any allergies in the beginning.

Parking is difficult so take other means of transport or allot some time to find a spot.

I would totally come back here for the ceviche alone.

Review from 2014: I heard this place is closed, but will reopen when they find a new location. I really, really loved the Nikkei ceviche which is an Asian inspired dish. The several tapas I ordered were delicious as well, especially the tequenos. The tequenos are ham and cheese in a wonton-like wrapper and fried, topped with syrup.

Because they're closed, you should be on the lookout for the Sanguchon food truck, which is operated by the same owner. I hope they open their new...

My husband and I along with our kids came last Sunday after having a Father's Day brunch on the Hornblower, which i may say, wasn't the same as it used to be. Whenever we're in SF, my husband and I love to eat Peruvian food. My husband is Mexican and I'm Peruvian. I always expect a lot from a Peruvian restaurant, especially in the middle of SF. I didn't want to assume anything by the esthetics of the outside of the building, but they could improve the look a little. The portions of the food, along with the prices for the dishes, didn't match the quality and taste. Even less expensive Peruvian restaurants serve more. If you're going to overprice a dish, I expect it to be delicious, but it also needs to be a good portion. I don't care how fancy other restaurants are. Peruvian food should be based on quality AND quantity because there's no other food like it. Every bite counts, and I want to have more than a bird size portion to enjoy my appetizers and main dishes. The ceviche we ordered was just a handful and the only rightfully tasteful dish. The Tacu-Tacu was terrible. Minature beans in any Peruvian dish are unacceptable. The Lomo Saltado was not that good, and the chicha needed some ice or to be chilled, and with a little less sugar. I'm not interested in Peruvian restaurants that try to act fancy with their overly priced small portions. The restaurant was also pretty empty at 4 o'clock and we felt neglected. They could probably see my disappointment because I will not hide it. I expected the best and this was not it. This was a true...

Generally, most of the food had a good taste. It was expensive though, and in many cases, did not feel appropriately priced. Some of the tapas sauces were did not have strong flavors as it felt a.bit flat and bland. I rate the food as a 4 all in all. Service 1 or 2. When we were at the restaurant it was quite slow the bartender was not busy or serving drinks in any capacity I ordered a beer and expected to server to come right back with it instead I saw him socializing others workers did it seem to have communicated to the bartender and didn't bring a beer it was more than 10 minutes before a beer came. Later in the evening I asked for a water at our table to be refilled is it gone empty and nobody seemed to care again more than 10 minutes went by I repeated asked for more water and finally confronted and told him that my daughters needed the water now as their mouths were burning from the dinner I don't know what background the server had but there's an expectation that beverages come quickly especially when a restaurant is moderately busy it was very clear after I had to escalate twice to the server that I was indeed possible to get a beer or water order filled by the bartender instantly as again he was not busy the server is lack of professionalism or care generally strained our evening and gave me a bad taste I did not enjoy our dinner as much as I should have especially when you consider how...