Papito Hayes

Papito serves up authentic Mexican flavors with a modern twist! From their flavorful tacos to their enormous burritos, every dish is a fiesta for the taste buds! Amazing staff and service

I wanted to like this place because there's really no good Mexican food in Hayes Valley, but I really don't understand the hype here. The food is bland (besides salt), not authentic, and is overpriced for the quality you're getting. If you want authentic, flavorful Mexican food, walk a couple blocks down to the Mission instead. If you want something that's a nicer sit down, there's a spot in Lower Haight and another Mexican restaurant closer to Divisadero.

Oh man, this place was popping off. The inside is small but they have a good amount of outdoor seating. We ended up waiting around 20min which wasn't bad at all. Our waiter Giovanna was the best! For as busy as it was, she gave us her full attention & made sure to check in on us.

Now onto the food, out of the 3 starters the guac & ceviche were our favorite. The salsa on the wet burrito was very flavorful but was missing a whole lot of spice, perhaps that's just me though, the chicken mole was good but I felt it lacked some seasoning. The churros are a must, that whipped cream on the side, drizzled with the chocolate really hit the spot.

Would I be back? Sure, the service was great & they have a lot of items on the menu that I'd be down to try ... So if you're in the area & don't mind a bit if wait, check this place out

Before I forget, Giovanna did share with us a small bottle of habanero sauce that was to die for!! Apparently they sell it by the bottle, they didn't have any when we went but hopefully they will have some for sale next time I stop by. That sauce was spicy, just the way I like it with lots of flavor!!

Service was extremely accommodating and attentive given that we stopped by 15 minutes to closing.
Tacos were fresh, delicious and came out in record time. Well decorated and the name is fun to say !

If on healthy diet, they can help accommodate the food. Great place to eat. We had salmon dish, chicken tacos plate, and enchiladas. All delicious and quick to eat them up.

The food as great, very tasty! The portions were generous, and tasted delicious. The outdoor dining area was really nice for a warm day in the city

It's always pretty crowded on Friday and Saturday nights. The mango salsa on the side is one of my favorite in SF. The wet burritos are massive and really filling. I've been here a bunch of times, but I will say sometimes it is a hit or miss. Sometimes the food is a little too salty, but most of the time it's really good.

The pitchers are also good bang for your buck!

Either retrain or replace the staff--abominable!
We are long-time fans of Papito, mostly in Potrero Hill, but have also had success in the past with Hayes Valley, too.
After leaving SF nearly two years ago, we were looking forward to Papito as one of the highlights of our trip back to the City. We went to the Hayes Valley location around 3:30 on Saturday, and it was mostly empty. The staff seemed more interested in their social life than seating us and sorting us out with menus.

One of our favorite dishes in PH is platanos maduros, which is outstanding. It's not on the menu in Hayes Valley, but they said that had it off-menu. Happy to order it, we got a plate of fried bananas with condensed milk for dipping sauce--not platanos with black beans and queso fresco. Wanted tortilla soup, but they don't have it in Hayes Valley. No fish tacos either.

But our biggest gripe is that it took more than 40 minutes for our food not to come--again with a nearly-empty restaurant. We asked the waitress three times and even told her we were running short of time. She said, "your food will be up in two minutes." Five minutes later, we got up to leave and she said "your food just came out." I hope she enjoyed eating it, as we didn't.

We know the owners and have been customers in Potrero Hill since the day they opened. They were always outstanding, both the food and the service. My counsel to you is to retrain the Hayes Valley staff and if they can't cut it, replace them. And please have the same menu at both locations. Such a shame that a restaurant as good as yours should be ruined by terrible service.

I have always been a big fan of papito, but I ordered esquite for delivery and it tasted almost chlorinated and was inedible. My partner and I each took a bite and then we tossed it out because it did not taste good. Very disappointed and unsure if I'll return to papito.

This place seemed promising for a quick dessert but it was an unfortunate experience. The churros we got were too hard and crunchy. The ice cream was okay. They told us they gave us two churros but cut them in many pieces so it looks like we got a lot which sucks. Another thing is that the water cups were dirty and had things floating in them.

Another thing is that the server was kind of passive aggressive and gave us a bit of attitude. She didn't explain things well and just treated us like insignificant people. She counted money in front of us which I felt was rude as to say that she didn't trust us to count the cash. She also wasn't patient as we were four girls splitting and when she saw us making the cash pot she wanted to leave and come back a later time when it was a quick thing. Anyways, I don't think I will be returning. If the basic stuff (churros) are messed up then I don't trust the mains.

Good luck.