A Mexican restaurant in North Beach

In San Francisco, the neighborhood of North Beach is known for it's authentic Italian restaurants. If you want a quality Italian meal, it's where you go. When you want good Mexican food, you go to a neighborhood like the Mission. Earlier this week I discovered the exception to this rule. We went to Don Pisto's (510 Union Street) in North Beach and it was an amazing experience. The restaurant may be a little hard to find, as there's no sign on the exterior, but once you walk into the brick building, it is bustling and filled with enticing aromas. The interior is brick with rustic heavy wood furniture. This fits with their Mexican street food offerings, infused with a little Baja peninsula style. To the right when you walk in, is the bar, offering tasty, unique spins on sangria and margaritas. Don Pisto's doesn't have a liquor license, which may be an issue for other Mexican restaurants (who doesn't love their tequila), but not Don Pisto's. They make their margaritas with wine, which makes them really refreshing and less harsh on the head the next morning.

Right when you get seated at a table, a fresh order of chips and salsa are brought to the table. I love their green salsa, as it's heavy on the cilantro and jalapeno (two of my favorite ingredients!). We ordered a side of guacamole to go with the chips, which didn't disappoint. Other appetizers we sampled included the ahi-style tuna, which was fresh and flavorful. We ordered the whole lobster, which comes with all the fixings to make mini lobster burritos. The butter sauce it comes with is dangerously good. We also ordered a plate of the oysters. Now, before I lived in California, I wasn't an oyster fan but since being here I have changed my mind. All the oysters I've had recently, included Don Pisto's, are succulent and go down smooth. There's not a hint of sand of grittiness, which can be found in cheaper oysters. For the "main course" (which I say with amusement because by this point I'm already stuffed full), we sampled the majority of their tacos. We had the carne asada, carnitas, pescado and al pastor tacos. I'm always a fan of carnitas tacos and they were all good, but I think my favorite was the al pastor. The grilled rib chop is diced up with grilled pineapple, creating the perfect sweet and savory balance. I will definitely be eating at Don Pisto's again. I heard that they are actually know for their hamburguesa, which seems like an odd choice to order at a Mexican restaurant, but it's suppose to be amazing.