Top 5 Specialty Food in San Mateo County

2216 S El Camino Real, San Mateo, CA 94403, United States

“Update 2023: intense pleasure I experienced here made me suspect that maybe drugs were in my food lol How can it be so delicious from just food? Wifey laughed, but I'm seriously not sure because of how tasty it was - like a kind of foodgasm that I've never experienced in my life despite travelling in South East Asia for months and eating some seriously delicious food there. But then this? In San Mateo? Best food in the world 🌎. No kidding. Pho Beef ball soup 🍲 and 5 spice vermicelli chicken 🍗 were amazing!”

2055 Gellert Blvd #5, Daly City, CA 94015, United States

“My family frequents this restaurant because of their chicharon bulaklak!! It was the girst thing ordered before we sat down and another order before we left!! So good!! Service is patient and respectful and kind. The food is always amazing. …”

2928 Middlefield Rd, Redwood City, CA 94063, United States

“A cute lil taqueria with minimal seating but with very distinctive and easily recognized exterior. The worker was on feet, courteous and joyful. It's always a good sight to hear a kitchen full of cheerful coworkers at a restaurant 💞💞💞 I got the Torta Cubana and I have to say half of one is so filling (and I have a big appetite). I would say "inflation where?" after one bite because every bite was so decadently filled with well seasoned sausages, meat, peppers and onions. The hibiscus agua de fresca is amazing too! Overall, would come back!”

3955 S El Camino Real, San Mateo, CA 94403, United States

“Yumi Yogurt is a Peninsula staple. I’ve been coming to this place since my teen years. They have a good variety of flavours and also inclusive for those with sugar restrictions”

313 S San Mateo Dr, San Mateo, CA 94401, United States

“As a Vietnamese, I usually do not have high expectations for Viet food in the US in general. However, this one is better than expected. Pho is good with southern Vietnamese taste. The other dishes such as Bun Cha are quite decent too. I would recommend this place for people who want to try authentic Viet food in the US.”

98 E 3rd Ave, San Mateo, CA 94401, United States

“Very good Chongqing hot pot. It’s a great place to spend dinner time with family, friends or colleagues. The seating areas are spacious. The staff are quick and attentive, but some of them only speak Mandarin, so don’t be surprised or upset if they can’t understand you. They will find another waiter who speaks English to get back to you. They have a fruit, snack and sauce bar where you can help yourself if you pay $3.5 per person. The food is very delicious, especially the broth base. We ordered different broths each time. My favorite is mushroom broth, my husband loves the chicken broth while my sister adores the spicy one. As I said, this is Chongqing hot pot, so the level of spiciness is crazy. We ordered their medium spicy once, and can’t finish the meal because we drank 3 glasses of water. If you can’t handle spicy food, don’t try it.”

1143 San Carlos Ave, San Carlos, CA 94070, United States

“First time dining at this location. The ambiance is pretty nice. A modern touch for sure. Limited drinks menu. The general Tso cauliflower was good. The jafrani kofta was ok. The kofta were dry , the gravy was creamy and nice. Dal makani was good. Dum biryani was ok too . The cheese naan was good but not great . Roomali roti was dry and wouldn’t recommend. The bread selection in general was not great. Have had better and fresher tasting breads at other Indian restaurants for sure. The service was prompt. The reason for 3/5 is mostly food given the price and average tasting food. We celebrated my brothers birthday and they gave us complimentary gulab Jamun with a candle . That was a nice gesture.”

359 Grand Ave, South San Francisco, CA 94080, United States

“This is a family tradition dim sum place for every weekend brunch. The staffs even recognize their usual customers faces and their orders. We love everyone is so friendly here and the food is always good that worth your money. They have more seats upstairs too so even you are in a long line, you will be seated within 30 mins most of the time.”

118 Old County Rd, Brisbane, CA 94005, United States

“Delicious sushi, served fast with exceptional service. I might have found my new favorite sushi place in the area. It's fairly good value too. The rock and roll (eel roll) was very good even though that was the lowest cost item we ordered.”

100 S B St, San Mateo, CA 94401, United States

“We came specifically for the owner’s son. Funny experience. When we were waiting for the new Malatang store, we met a friendly and nice little boy in front of the restaurant. We played the throwing bean bag games together and he was humorous. We first thought he was also a customer waiting like us, but after some chitchat, he introduced he’s from Old Town Sushi restaurant, and recommended us. So, a few days after, here we are. The store is well decorated and spacious. The staff are very friendly and quick. We ordered some dishes and it was served shortly after. Too bad that the fresh oysters have run out. The sashimi and sushi are good and fresh. The frilled squid is very delicious. The only reason I gave it 4 stars is because of the udon. It wasn’t like the typical udon that I know. Depends on what you order but an udon dish usually consists of seaweed, chopped scallions, tempura fritters, a type of meat you choose and udon noodles. The broth contains dashi, soy sauce and mirin. I was kind of disappointed when there’s cabbage and carrots in the soup, and the broth tasted differently. They even leave the shrimp tempura in the soup, which made it less crispy. Less delicious.”

1776 El Camino Real, San Bruno, CA 94066, United States

“Mid East Market is a good place to eat as it's different from other restaurants. You get to see and treat your family and friends how Eastern people have their meal. Good place to eat and I like it.”

213 2nd Ave, San Mateo, CA 94401, United States

“This is def a place ive been wanting to try for so long! We arrived on a weekend a but earlier and there was no line. The food and service were terrific and I loved everything I ordered. The seating is very comfortable it’s a very nice vibe, playing lots of kpop lol”

827 Santa Cruz Ave #4609, Menlo Park, CA 94025, United States

“Everything about my lunch here was amazing; the ambiance, service, and extensive menu options. The complimentary bread with dipping oil was so good! The falafel wrap and gyro platter exceeded my expectations! Will definitely be a regular here, can’t wait to try more of the menu.”

2080 CA-1, Pescadero, CA 94060, United States

“Found this really cool place on the way from Santa Cruz to San Francisco while making a stop for a “u pick” farm for berry picking. They didn’t have “ u pick “ but we tried their small blue-berry and lemon pie. They had run out of the smaller strawberry tarts and people were taking away their large fruit pies. Non-profit farm.”

202 Grand Ave, South San Francisco, CA 94080, United States

“Exceptionally good food. Outstanding service too. If you are near this restaurant you MUST treat yourself here and leave room for dessert you won't regret it.”

884 Portola Rd, Portola Valley, CA 94028, United States

“An excellent restaurant near the Woodside area with some outdoor seating arrangements under the redwoods. It is better to make a reservation as I did not see an empty table until about 8:15 pm. The food was delicious and sufficient, but the service was a little bit slow. But we thoroughly enjoyed the evening under the tall trees.”

3258, 450 Dondee Way # 6, Pacifica, CA 94044, United States

“Super cute spot! Great coffee options. True Italian style coffees as well as chain style adaptations. Good was limited but were very tasty. Local suggestions as well. Staff was super nice and thoughtful.”

99 Skyline Plaza, Daly City, CA 94015, United States

“Came in for a brunch on a Sunday afternoon. The restaurant has a good crowd. We had live lobsters, steamed fresh fish, pea sprout with tofu, roasted pork, steamed chicken, steak with mushrooms, and some other dishes. The seafood were really fresh. The beef was tender. Overall, yummy food at good prices.”

455 Broadway, Millbrae, CA 94030, United States

“The sweet snd sour chicken is incredible. The chicken fried rice is bland and the chicken came out raw. We sent it back to get cooked further and it was still raw. The potstickers were undercooked and soggy. The shanghai soup pork dumplings were alright, not really authentic. They are clearly frozen.”

840 Willow Rd, Menlo Park, CA 94025, United States

“Quaint restaurant in Menlo Park. We ordered vada, dosa, chana bhatura, butter chicken with rice, kale pakora, gobi manchurian, carrot halwa. The food was tasty. The dosas were nice and crispy, bhatura fluffy. The sauces had a little more heat but it was not harsh. Service was nice and attentive.”