A place to add to Tenderloin recs - Mekong Restaurant

[emery_jc]

I work in the Civic Center part of the Tenderloin and know how limited dining options are. So I am very happy to report that my coworkers and I have found a great place. Its called Mekong and its located near the corner of O'Farrell and Larkin.

Mekong prides itself on offering an extensive selection of vegan dishes. But it differs from Golden Era in that you can get real chicken, beef, prawns, and even duck items, rather than just meat flavored soy alternatives (although these are available as well). The waiter/host is extremely proud of his house made sauces and salad dressings. For instance, the sauce that accompanies the spring roll appetizer is a pineapple based sauce that tastes similar to the sauce normally served with this dish, but its made in house and is vegetarian.

So far I've had the crispy tofu with sauteed vegetables and peanut sauce and the sauteed eggplant with tofu, bell pepper, garlic, soy bean paste and sweet Thai basil. The tofu in both dishes is a nice size - not too small, and not too big and unwieldy. I'm not a huge fan of tofu (even though I ordered tofu dishes both times, it was because I was trying to be healthy and knew I'd be having a heavier meat-based dish for dinner later), but this tofu has a subtle taste and crispy crust that is easy for a non-vegetarian like myself to enjoy.

With both dishes, the vegetables were expertly prepared. The broccoli in the peanut sauce dish was crisp tender and bright in color. The eggplant in the second dish was fantastic - not bitter, not greasy, just extremely tasty. And I'm not a devout eggplant fan, so this is definitely a nice way for me to get my veggies. One of my co-workers who had the same eggplant dish raved about the fragrance and taste of the Thai basil. I found it a tad overwhelming for my taste, but she loves sweet basil and thus greatly enjoyed its presence in this dish.

The servings are generously sized. We've had steammed brown rice both times.

Hope to see fellow Chowhounders there for lunch!

www.mekong.us
415-928-2772

Open Monday-Saturday
11am - 11pm

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Mekong Restaurant
791 Ofarrell St, San Francisco, CA 94109

[Dave MP]

Glad to hear other positive reports on Mekong! Here's a link to a report I wrote after eating there for the first time last year:

http://www.chowhound.com/topics/319089

I have eaten there a few times since, and I've always enjoyed it. It's a good choice for Thai when dining with vegetarians, and their special tea that they serve is excellent (very fragrant jasmine green).

Still, I think that the best meat dishes at Thai House Express beat out anything at Mekong, so I think Mekong still might come in a (close) second for favorite Thai in the Tenderloin (and in the city, for that matter).

I'm sure there are a lot of people who would love to join you there for lunch sometime....if you aren't already a member, join the SF Chowdown group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sfchowdown

Dave MP

[rworange]

Thanks for the update. Hope you share some of your other regular eats in that area.

Previous Mekong reports:
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/46492
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/319089

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Mekong Restaurant
791 Ofarrell St, San Francisco, CA 94109

[dolcetto]

I work in that neighborhood as well and have yet to hit Mekong. Tend to gravitate to the tried and true (turtle tower, bodega, lee sandwiches, saigon). A co-worker (who is Thai) tells me he really likes their rendition of papaya salad so it is definitely on my list. let me know if you plan on a chowhound lunch.

[mchan02]

Glad to see another rec for this place. It's one of my "go-to" spots. Consistently good, and the owner is wonderful!

My absolute favorite dish at Mekong is the Yellow Pumpkin Curry with Tofu- I think it's his best-seller, and you'll know why when you try it. There have been a couple misses- the stuffed chicken wings were only ok, and the Pad See Ew (sp?) with vegan beef was bland, and in general I would advise against ordering the vegan beef here. The vegan duck, on the other had, is fantastic! The Vegan Chicken Satay appetizer is very good, and the Vegan Duck Basil is delectable.

An item that's not on the menu, but that they always have, is Vegan Fish Green Curry. The curry itself is very flavorful, and the vegan fish doesnt really pretend to be fish, but is really tasty.

They also serve amazing tea, like Dave MP said, and they also have fresh lime water. A number of time I've been there I've had dessert on the house, as well. He's very good at remembering repeat customers.