Old Pier Hong Kong BBQ - Chinese BBQ, San Francisco

1033 Taraval St, San Francisco, CA 94116
(415) 702-6378
Parking: street parking
Hours: Daily 10:30am-9pm, Closed Tuesdays

Last Visited: July 7, 2024

Food: 3 stars

Atmosphere: 3 stars

Service: 1 star

Price: $$ to $$$

I first went to Old Pier when they initially opened a couple of years ago.  I tried some of their takeout Chinese BBQ and found their bbq to be ok.  Nothing standout, but not half bad either.  

Fast forward a couple of years later, and we were dining in this time.  The decor is modern with booths and built in induction stovetops in the tables for hot pot (Chinese fondue).  We were promptly greeted and told to pick any seat.  The waitress brought us tea quickly, but after the initial dish was brought out from the kitchen, the waitress couldn't do much more, and well, it goes downhill from there.

They have set a menu, starting with meals for 2-3 people, which offer choices of entrees, sides, and come with rice, and a plate of vegetables.  With only two of us, we decided to order a Chinese bbq roast pork and duck over rice and a tofu dish.

- Braised Tofu with Vegetable - This dish comes from the kitchen, freshly cooked upon order.  While it took about ten minutes, that was a reasonable amount of time to get the hot braised tofu served with carrots, bok choy, and button mushrooms.  It was fresh and had a bit of gravy.  Good. $13.95

The tofu would have been a great pairing with our order of bbq items that came with rice, but forty minutes after ordering, we still didn't have our bbq items.  We overheard the waitress check on our order and tell the bbq chef that we had already received the rest of our order, but to no avail.  We asked her to check again at the 30 minute mark, and she did, but nothing.  At forty minutes, I went up front and asked for the bill.  The bbq chef told me he could cut it in just a few minutes, but I had no hope at that point.  I saw that all of the people in the takeout line had come and gone, and even orders submitted after ours were fulfilled.  I paid and left.  

From this experience, I would recommend that if you must eat here, order items from the kitchen to make things go a bit faster.  If you insist on eating bbq, get in the takeout line.  This wasn't a matter of a missing order, but the chef's choice to fulfill take out orders before dine-in.  No apology came from the chef about the wait.  Completely disappointing.