Picaro Cafe

Bright Mission tapas house slings small plates with style.. The large, cheery yellow room of this self-proclaimed first tapas restaurant in San Francisco is often jam packed with bar hoppers and neighborhood locals digging into Spanish-style eats and swilling huge pitchers of fruit-packed sangria. Attentive servers bustle by with traditional small plates like spicy potatoes or mussels in garlic sauce and mains like the seafood paella. The short but selective wine list focuses on Spanish whites and reds. While larger parties push tables together to gab over their grub, a more intimate experience, and far better people watching, can be found at the few tables on the patio that spills into busy 16th Street. And there's always a spot at the bar for those who just come for the sangria.

High Marks
"They had the sangria flowing the whole time, food came out quickly, and prices were excellent." (yinnie919, Citysearch user)

"If you want the kind of tapas that came before "small plates" were all the rage, Picaro is your place." (FoodLusty, Citysearch user)

"Great atmosphere, wonderful tapas and sangria! Would gladly go back and perfect for large groups!" (daisy14, Citysearch user)

Low Marks
"I love the Tortilla de Patatas and Sangria, but be prepared for major Garlic breath well into the next day." (frepter, Citysearch user)

"This place had very little light towards the end of the restaurant and since we were seated there, I could hardly see what was on my plate." (lizahazarika, Citysearch user)

"Paella came out extremely dry, not surprising since it takes 30 minutes to make..." (clui, Citysearch user)…

WORST service, okay food. We went here because the wait at Andalu was 2 hours and we were starving. We were seated by a nice hostess, and within 1 minute, our waitress came over to see if we were ready. Of course we werent, but we quickly ordered a few small tapas plates. We then ordered drinks, and within about 4 minutes we ordered the paella, which said that it would take at least 30 min. Our server, after taking our order, NEVER appeared agian. We got the tapas right away. The busser was great, but NOBODY checked on us, not even once. About 50 minutes after we had FINISHED our tapas and our plates were cleared, we were stil waiting on our paella. I had to flag down the hostess to get served! I even had to walk up to the front to go and get my check and sign it. They even made us pack our own leftovers! WORST SERVICE EVER!…

Sangria and Garlic, Yum!. I first tried Picaro when I saw the big Sangria sign in the window while waiting in line at the Roxie. I love the Tortilla de Patatas and Sangria, but be prepared for major Garlic breath well into the next day. This is a great place to take visitors on the weekend so they can get a taste of the Mission. The service is always very good and I have never had to wait for a table. The place is huge and can be very noisy. It looks like a good place for groups, but I've always gone with four or less.…