01/26/09

Best muscles in town

by smithy11

If you like spicy, delicious chiorizo sauce and an out of this world "Cohito" you must go to Fresca! I love the lively atmosphere and the special lobster risotto was excellent. Fun, friendly place to have a great, flavorful meal!

• Pros: Very good food and awesome drinks!

08/13/08

Great, but Screwed Up too

by JaneRW

Fresca is a really fun and lively place to go, with noise and crowds and a great atmosphere. The ceviche is wonderful and you have got to have a pisco sour (or 2). BUT as another reviewer noted, their service is kind of lacking in that it can be slow and they can indeed be forgetful. I've been there several times and have to say I still recommend it in spite of one time when they forgot to put our dessert order in and it took 30min to get it. Great fun to go with a group but dont expect to be able to hear each other over the noise. By the way, desserts are mediocre but the rest of the menu is tasty stuff, especially the appetizers. I like the ceviche mixto, but the 4, 5 or 6 ceviche sampler is a great way to go. There is one with black squid/octopus ink that is extremely good.

My boyfriend adds: "It's true that the food is great, especially the ceviche, but the real draw is the crowded, noisy, fun ambiance. However, it's fairly expensive (easy to spend $100+ for a couple incl drinks) and you should know that high quality, Peruvian food of almost the same quality can be had for a fraction of the price at dive Peruvian restaurants throughout the Mission. WARNING: the pisco sours have a delayed reaction...WALK home."

• Pros: Pisco sours, Ceviche, Raucous Atmosphere
• Cons: Price, Forgetful Service

05/16/08

unbelieveable cheviche

by oneofakind864

Fresca is one of my favorite places to eat. I adore cheviche and they have the largest selection of choices I have ever seen. It is FABULOUS. They also do a great peruvian specialty of fish with tomatoes that;s the national specialty. I'm from a seafood town and it's HARD to impress me and my freinds with seafood. fresca managed to do so in SPADES. The only drawback is the parking which can be a little sticky to find and it IS expensive. But for a special treat it is well worth the price.

• Pros: fabulous food, nice place, neat & different drinks and food to try
• Cons: parking, price

01/05/08

Terrible service

by isathea

We had a first great experience with fresca and their ceviche. But the second time we went there, it was horrible. I ordered a ceviche and my husband ordered something else so that he could share a bit with our 2 years old daughter. They had at that time a take out order for 10 people and they forgot about us (I would say did not care). I had my ceviche but my husband and daughter nothing. We had to ask several times, asking them for bread for our daughter. The food of my husband and daughter arrived more than an hour after my ceviche!! The weird thing is that some people arrived after us and they had their food before us. We were really angry. With the bill, they gave us a card to give our opinion... They never contacted us though.

12/12/07

Don't get the hype

by lyss61

I'm not sure what all the rave is about here. we went there for a weekend brunch and had really poor service (and a waitress whose cleavage was so inappropriate i could barely concentrate) and average food. we didn't try the ceviche, but i would be willing to go back to give that a shot. nothing special. next time i'm in pac heights i'm going to la med down the street. much better food there.

• Pros: beautiful interior, good date spot
• Cons: average food

07/03/07

If you love ceviche then come here!

by food_diva

Fresca is wonderful. Exotic variations of ceviche abound on their menu. While a bit pricey, each preparation of ceviche is fresh and a wonder of flavors. For my entree, I chose the Causa Andina which comes with smoked salmon and tuna tartar, deliciously complimentary sauces and decadent creamy garlic mashed potatoes. We also tried the rotisserie chicken which was a tad on the dry side, but still seasoned well and served with crunchy and satisfying french fries.

I love this place and despite multiple locations popping up all over the city, Fresca has maintained a fresh and delightful take on Peruvian fare.

• Pros: menu offerings, ambiance
• Cons: pricey

05/27/07

Terrible Service. NEVER AGAIN.

by sparky714

My boyfriend and I stumbled upon the 24th Street location for a late lunch on a Sunday afternoon. Although there were tables in the front and at the bar, we were seated at a table in the back, next to the restrooms. Upon 10 seconds of taking our seats, we became aware of the steady flow of people brushing up against us on their way to the bathrooms, as there was practically no walking space between us and adjacent tables. We requested to be moved to another table across the room and were told that it was "reserved," though it was unoccupied during our entire 1+ hour lunch. We also quickly became aware of the table of about 12 next to us -- a bridal shower. Now, I completely understand that there is certain amount of rambunctiousness associated with such a celebration, but these women (in addition to the understandable yelling, clapping, lingerie throwing, etc.) were constantly getting up to mingle with one another. Bear in mind that there was practically no space between our table and the bridal shower table, so my boyfriend and I were constantly staring at these womens' rear ends (and I know this isn't politically correct, but they weren't exactly centerfolds) which were just inches away from our faces, and enduring the rear ends brushing up against us throughout our entire lunch. At one point, one woman stood so close to me that she grabbed onto my chair and began shaking it amidst of a fit of laughter. When I turned around, she said "oh, we're just being obnoxious, you should request a different table," and proceeded to re-stick her butt in my face. This ENTIRE time, there were other tables available, and none of the servers ever came by to check on us, or much less, display some degree of attention or empathy for our situation.

• Pros: Ambience, Neighborhood
• Cons: Service

05/13/07

Tasty Peruvian Cuisine in Noe Valley

by damian_esq

Somewhat pricey, but delicious. Despite reviews to the contrary, we were seated right at the time of our reservations. Service was friendly and efficient. The cocktails were unique, flavorful and colorful. The crab cakes were amazing. We had shared 3 entres (Peruvian Paella, fish, and lamb) and all were perfect. Dessert was also right on the mark. While it was $200 for 3 people, we paid for 2 appetizers, 3 entres, 2 desserts, 6 drinks and tip. The halibut ceviche was the only blah dish, other than that everything sparkled. We ran into a family of Peruvians while we were there, always a good sign.

Maybe the Fillmore and West Portal locations don't have their service and cooking together, but our experience at the Noe Valley branch was just great.

• Pros: Tasty Food, Creative Cocktails
• Cons: Loud, Small

03/29/07

Terrible Service

by sf_delight

I recommend going to the one in Fillmore. Their space is tiny but their service is a lot better and the atmosphere is nicer. I live in the neighborhood so I end up going to this place a lot because my boyfriend loves ceviche and they do have a nice ceviche bar/selection. However, everytime we go, I swear that I'm never coming back because of the lousy service. The waiters are not attentive at all, and they're downright rude. They all have this attitude like, 'I can't be bothered by you.' Well gee- last time I checked, you work at this restaurant and it's your job to cater to diners. I once waited 20 minutes before I got a single glass of water. The rest of the food isn't bad but tends to be very, very salty. If it wasn't for the good ceviche and the fact that my boyfriend loves it, I wouldn't come near this place again.

01/08/07

Good food, terrible service

by frosting100

It's a good thing I enjoyed the food and my friend's company because the Fresca staff really tried to ruin our night! Fresca lost our reservation, and from the moment we showed up we were treated as if we were mistaken and a nuisance. The hostess implied we had called the wrong location, but we confirmed we were correct by looking at our cell phone history. She wrinkled her face many times, and servers shooed us away as we tried to identify tables we could be seated at. We waited 45 minutes to be seated, and service throughout the dinner was incredibly slow. Luckily, we did get seated with a great server who helped to improve the experience. I would not choose to go here again.

• Pros: Ceviche
• Cons: Service