Eliza's is absolutely BOSS. Some of the best Chinese food I've had in the city (& the check will remind you when it comes...they's expensive!). But this review is more about the DECOR of the place. It's like you're eating on set for 'Lethal Weapon' or something. They've got the same polite but quiet waitstaff, very modern decor, & those fascinating giant fish tanks. You can almost envision members the Chinese Mafia sitting around in a darkened back room wearing $5,000 suits & counting neat stacks of crisp $100 bills. An older gentleman sits behind a desk. He's the man in charge. A much younger man with a scar across his cheek stands smoking an unfiltered cigarette off to the side. He is flanked by two much larger burly men, who only accentuate his badassity. This man is dangerous, & clearly not to be fucked with. It will take one, or perhaps TWO extraordinary cops to take down this operation. If I had the money to eat here every night, I'd wait around for two gentlemen resembling Mel Gibson & Danny Glover to walk in. It's bound to happen one of these days... What I'm getting at is this: Eliza's would be The Perfect Restaurant to film a Shootout scene in a Buddy Cop Flick. So eat there at your own risk. Plus the food is really good, which is an added bonus. read more

Get it to go. Love the Hunan Beef. Love the sesame chicken. Love the garlic chicken, although I don't taste any garlic. Buddha's delight is a good vegetable dish although I wish it had less tofu and more *actual* vegetables. Love all this mixed with, yes, plain white rice. And a beer or white wine. Not a big fan of the soups though. Sizzling rice soup was big on broth but short on the foodstuffs. Don't like the Ocean Party soup either, though I'm not a big seafood person. read more

I had a most satisfying meal at Eliza's last night -- something worthy of comment, because I have noted before about the very brusque, borderline-rude service I have experienced here in the past. The food was excellent, as usual - wonderful noodles, loaded with fresh, interesting veggies, and a most unusual Mongolian Beef, complemented with a fine Tsing Tao beer - very enjoyable! But, even more pleasant, and worthy of note, the service was attentive and friendly (even during a very busy evening.) There was no sense that I was being rushed along, or that they were trying to free up tables for the next set of customers (something I distinctly felt in the past.) Could it be that Eliza's actually do read their Yelp reviews? Optimistically, I hope that's the case. Whatever the reason, things have improved here, in my experience, and Eliza's is now one of the better Chinese dinner destinations in the City. read more

We had this as takeout over a friend's house this weekend. Yum! Even after a bit the egg rolls (vegetarian) were still crunchy and not oily at all. What we had: Green beans - very good and well cooked but still crunchy Kung Pao Tofu - this was the break out winner for the night. Everyone (but me) was surprised at how good this was Eggplant - this was my least fave as it was battered and fried. I like it sauteed in brown sauce. Mongolian beef - I don't know but everyone else loved it. I can tell you that the jalapenos in it were hot though! Sesame chicken - my son loved this! Sweet and sour soup - What I expected Vegetarian egg rolls - great crunch, not oily and yummy insides:) brown rice - a note here, I was surprised! I was a sceptic but my friend had my try the steamed brown rice with my food. I loved it! The flavor of the brown rice totally works with Chinese food. I don't live in this neighborhood but would totally go back if I did! I understand that it's a really small place so not too many people can sit there. They do a terrific take out business. read more

THIS IS THE PLACE TO GO FOR CHINESE FOOD IN PAC HEIGHTS! I was skeptical when I was first brought here. Probably because I was being brought to Pacific Heights to get Chinese food (Why am I coming here for Chinese food???), but when I lived in the area this did become the place to go for good, fresh, and tasty Chinese food. Very Tasty Tasty: Pot Stickers Hot and Sour Soup Hunan Lamb Eliza's Spicy Eggplant Sea Bass Honestly, I have never had anything bad here. Easy seating, so-so on the parking, and very reasonable prices. read more

Where's the Mongolian Beef? The food is very tasty, but the portions can be a bit skimpy. My real complaint? Service. Mr. Short Term Memory was our waiter. When we walked in, Mr. S.T. M. looked into the back for a table for us. Then he walked away. Minutes pass. Finally, the boss walked up and welcomed us. We asked him for a table, which he took us to right away. Clearly, Mr. S.T.M. never did anything about seating us after walking away. Then I asked Mr. S.T.M. what the people behind us ordered. He said, Mongolian Lamb. OK, we ordered that. Later we learned the eye-tempting dish was actually Mongolian Beef. Lamb, beef? Same diff. Then at the end of the meal, I felt a little hungry (see note about the food above), so I ordered that delicious-looking Mongolian Beef (I don't eat a lot usually, so I just planned to take most of it to work for lunch the next day.). I told Mr. S.T.M., and he walked away. Twenty minutes passed. I asked Mr. S. T. M. when the Mongolian beef would be ready. "Oh, you want to order Mongolian Beef?" Me: Argh!!! I spoke to him firmly, and said, "Look I ordered this, but I am now too tired of waiting so don't place an order now. " Then I repeated myself, "I'm confirming that I do not want that beef dish now." Sheeesh. I nibbled on some cheese when we got home and drank a glass of wine. All better. I suppose you can work around this by just looking for the boss whenever you want something done. Oh, lots of kids in the restaurant that night for some reason. Messy kids and fried rice are an unappealing sight. read more

Eliza's a great place to stop by for lunch. Lunch specials are under $6 and you get to choose your entree, a side of rice and soup of the day. My usual is the mango chicken with brown rice. This is definitely not authentic Chinese food, but rather "americanized fancy" Chinese food. The restaurant is clean and service is fast and efficient but like most Chinese restaurants, the wait staff aren't the friendliest. They just want to get you in and out which works great when you're just grabbing a quick bite. 3.5stars read more

Absolutely fantastic food. Love the chicken chow menu and mango beef. The gentleman who works the pickup stuff is fabulous. Great customer service and very nice. read more

I have a friend who swears by Elizas so 99% of the time I'm going with him when he comes to visit me in SF. Eliza's is good but to me there is nothing great about it. The food and service are good. The location is a bit out there from the main areas so its a bit of a hike. The owner is always there so I think Eliza's success is in big part due to his hard work. My favorite thing at Eliza's is the hot and sour soup. As common as it is, most Chinese restaurants don't ever get this right. Eliza's hot and sour is one of the best I've had. I usually order the Mongolian beef or kung pao chicken and both are delicious. If you are fan of Chinese, you definitely should check this place out! read more

I've eaten a lot of Chinese food in my day and Eliza's ranks in the top 3, right next to Tommy's Wok in Carmel CA. Everything is delicious. The food is fresh, clean, crisp and healthy. Not a lot of deep frying like other Chinese restaurants. Lunch special can not be beat for $6 and with soup is the perfect amount of food. I recommend the garlic prawns, chow mein, cashew and broccoli beef, and the hot and sour soup read more

I would have given 5 points easily based on the food and taste but gave 4 because of its' not so great service. The place is strange -- almost like a cave shape. But when you go inside the decor is very modern and elegant -- the walls are adorned with Chinese candles and there is a small neat garden with Asian artifacts that you can see from inside. The food is great -- it can be called as a Chinese restaurant with a twist. Almost fusion Chinese!! The portion size is really good and the prices are very reasonable. You won't be disappointed. We wouldn't mind going back again and again!! The only drawback is the parking and service -- the parking is no big deal if you are used to the city! The service could be slightly better in terms of customer relationship, otherwise it is quick!! read more

This restaurant has the worse service ever! My friend invited me to have dinner at this restaurant. The food is so so. From soup to entree, i was waiting for about 15 minutes. Then the server rushed us to leave because there were people waiting for table. Alright, I asked for the bill and ready to go, that was another 10 minutes wait. Sorry! I will highly recommend my friends and family do NOT go. read more

Somewhat better than average Americanized Chinese food but not worth the extra price.Service was not friendly at all

One of my all-time favorite restaurants in San Francisco. I couldn't have asked for a better tasting Kung Pao Tofu! Although I don't live in the city anymore, I make it a point to visit Eliza's when I am in the area. read more

Eliza's is where I go. when I crave Americanized Chinese food. The hot and sour soup is really good. Come for their lunch. Any of their specials are good- cashew chicken, mapo. Service is always so pleasant here unlike a lot of the rushed service in Chinatown or clement street. Good place to have a family dinner with kids or friends. May not be a date place ... Unless it's a second date :) read more

Just ok. I was really excited to try this place, but I was disappointed. The food here isn't authentic. It honestly doesn't even taste like Chinese food. For the chowmein, you mix the noodles with some kind of sauce that tastes like a microwaveable chowmein box you see at the grocery store. The quality isn't like a microwaveable dinner, but it has the same taste as one of those. The interior is nice, but it has the feel of what contemporary meant in the 90s. I also tried a special duck dish. I love duck, but again, the flavor of the dish just didn't taste right. Americanized Chinese food. Don't get me wrong, I can like some non-authentic Chinese food like how I sometimes crave Chipotle over a taqueria (when it comes down to a specific taste you like, you just like it), but when it just tastes like a microwaveable take on Chinese food, no thanks. Service was good, but don't think I'd go back. read more

This is my favorite Chinese food in the city. Not because it's the overall SF champion (although it could compete for the city championship) but because I've been getting it 1x month for the past 10 years and it has NEVER failed. Elizas produces arguably the best pot sticker in SF. Super meaty and just pops with juice and flavor. I'd also recommend the fried rice, Eliza's spicy chicken, hoisen green bean, moo shoo pork, and mango beef. The hot n sour soup never fails and the yellow chicken curry is delicious. The problem is they don't deliver but I cannot dock them a star based on that. It's just a minor inconvenience as that I would order them 4x if they did. They are however located close to a couple of bars so it's nice to grab a few beers watching a Giants game, call it in, and pick it up after 2 beers. If you haven't tried Eliza's, make sure you do, it will not fail. read more

SERVICE: To all of you who say the service sucks, you just don't get it. Eliza's is not about the service. DECOR: To all of you who say the decor is tacky have 0 sense of humor and need to feel cool by 'things'/places rather than on the inside. Eliza's is not about the decor. PRICE: Affordable...fantastic for the amount of food. FOOD: Ah ha...here we go. The Eliza's cakes, the Eliza's Chicken, The Mongolian Beef, The Princess Prawns, The hoision string beans... My mouth is watering. Best Chinese food I have ever tasted. Anyone who knocks Eliza's is shallow or simply prefers to have their ass kissed. read more

I've have been a customer at Eliza's since the early/mid 90s. Their food is always first rate. my favorites are absolutely consistent every time. I take locals and out-of-towners there all the time. Anything any newbie has ordered has been excellent. it's all good. i've never had anything bad there. Take-out was lightning fast, orders always correct. Honey walnut prawns, mango beef, sesame chicken, pot stickers, shanghai chicken, spring rolls .... all tasty, every single time. The platoon service is perfect for me, quick to order, quick to get served. all very efficient. a side note, I am not a fan of the chatty waiter who feels compelled to tell me their life story. Eliza's gets a bum rap by others here and recently by the SF Chronicle. I keep hearing about someone thinks there is better Chinese food at (insert restaurant name here). I try them and am not impressed. I was unhappy when the convenient (to me) Portrero Hill location closed. so now the only complaint I have is that I have to drive across town to have Eliza's instead of it being 5 minutes away. read more

The service in this restaurant is cold and lifeless. Two friends went in the other night about 8pm. The host said the kitchen would be closing soon so we'd need to hurry up. This as a table of ten was being seated next to us. The food was decent. The candied walnuts and shrimp slathered in mayo was killer. Very tasty. While the table of ten was finishing their meal, the host placed the check on our table. Two minutes later he walked by and tapped his finger on the check, essentially saying "pay up boys." If it was a pickled female bartender it would have been charming. The food here is good, not great, and the service has the warmth of an interoffice envelope. read more

By far my favorite Chinese food in the Bay Area. It's delicious, the potstickers are phenomenal and big, and the presentation of the dishes is delightful and whimsical. You will also find dishes and ingredients and flavor combinations that you can't find anywhere else in the city. Highly recommend this place. Favorites: - Potstickers - Mandarin Eggplant - Eliza's Spicy Chicken - Shanghai Chicken - Hoisin String Beans - Sunflower Beef The staples are also good: - Chow mein - Mongolian Beef - Chow Fun read more

OK I KNOW that crab rangoons are NOT Chinese food but they are so damn good and irresistible to Americans. YUM. The Chinese could kill off all the Americans with heart disease, just from these addictive little fat puffs with hot mustard. Speaking of not Chinese food, I'm pretty aware that this is not Chinese food. BUT it is what it is and my meal was quite tasty. The hot and sour soup can be ordered by the cup and it was perfect. Thank the heavens for that rarity. Don't you hate places where you have to get a HUGE punch bowl of soup? The specials were very interesting and unique. I had the Chow Fun with seafood and it was great. The tea was also very fragrant and served in a very fancy little cup and pot. The decor is very quirky and colorful but I like it a lot. The service was amiable and fast. Servers wear jeans and white shirts, ties for men. Hmm jeans and ties? Cute. Almost everyone in there looked like Pac Heights Folk. Certainly no Chinese customers. I saw more than one customer ask for things in rather annoying ways. I could see why the staff there may get a little testy. Oh the metallic looking chopsticks were awesome. YES! I'll be back. Don't come here on a date or to hang out... as others say, they are efficient and seem to get uneasy when you are not progressing with your meal and your exit. read more

We had a delicious meal here! We were exhausted from a crazy work week, spirits a little depleted and ended up here on a whim. Eliza's lifted us up! The decor is a funky mix of zen, bamboo and fishes! We liked it! At 7:30pm the friendly staff greeted us right away. Our meal was awesome. Crab rangoon was rich, creamy, crispy wontons that were a tasty reward for a hard week. Not something we'd order all the time, but I think they are a little addicting. We also ordered two specials, the spicy eggplant with prawns was super. They lightly tempura the eggplant in a way you've never had before and the combo with the prawns and sauce was just perfect. Our other special entree was their fillet Mignon and that was just incredible! The meat was tender, and it comes with little shreds of lettuce and green onions. It wow'd us for sure! We also got the special chow mien and some brown rice. We had way to much food. It was hard to stop eating the specials but we did bring food home that we can't wait to have as leftovers. I would call this place more of a fusion restaurant then strictly Chinese, and we loved it! read more

My Gf seems to friggin love this place, but to me it's not at all authentic. She's likes the fact that it's 'Americanized', I don't. It's good for what it is, and the prices for a PacH restaurant are normal. If you want americanized chinese- go here If you want authentic... avoid this place... Also, avoid the shortest female waitress, she's mean. ask for the chubby guy. read more

Non-greasy but tasty Chinese food served in a clean restaurant---now that's a novelty. Yes, the reviews are right---the wait staff is down right rude (don't even try to go here anytime near closing), but the Mango Beef and Eliza's Spicy Chicken more than make up for a staff of truly bitter waitresses. read more

They don't deliver which sucks- BUT it's probably one of the tastiest and most reasonably affordable Chinese restaurants outside of downtown. No sugar/flour saturated gelatinous sauces, or bizarre cuts of meat. The flavors are great and make for yummy leftovers. Plus- after being inside you can tell that your food is handled in a clean environment- which is also very nice to dine in. Check out the soups- mmm! read more

Great food. Ingredients were fresh and took it to a level above standard Chinese fare. Space kinda shlubby. read more

Eliza's - Appropriately named Drums of Heaven - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

I have been banned from this restaurant more times than I can count (due to no fault of my own- they do not like the local high schoolers, and I was once one of those local high schoolers). Yet, I still continue to return. It is a shame that the Potrero location is closed because it was closer to my house and the people who worked there were nicer. Yes, there are a ton of negatives to Eliza's, but enough positives to keep me coming back and happy. Postitive #1: Speedy service (occasionally too speedy- I had hardly touched the soup that came with my lunch special when my meal arrived) Postitive #2: Hot and sour soup. Need to clear your sinus or just want to eat something delicious? Order this. Positive #3: Mongolian beef. The quality of their beef is unparalleled. I won't order this dish anywhere else. Positive #4: Lunch specials. Great price. Lots of food. In general I really like the sauces they have, and I really haven't found a dish I didn't like. I tend to order take-out to cut down on the number of interactions I have with the staff here, but the occasional sit-down meal is nice. I like that the bathroom is decorated as an undersea adventure. I would like my bathroom made in the same fashion. K, thanks. read more

Absolutely one of my favorite Chinese restaurants in the City. This is definitely not "authentic" Chinese food, and leans more towards the P.F. Chang's version of Chinese food. If you want authentic, go to Chinatown. If you want a nice non-traditional atmosphere with California fusion type food, then Eliza's is for you. On the upside, all the dishes are wonderful, you can't go wrong with anything. Particularly good is the hot and sour soup and vegetarian chow mein, but I am also partial to the mango beef. Also, the interior of the restaurant has some really cool sheet metal work and blown glass everywhere that is eye-catching. On the downside, don't expect first class service. The service is efficient, but don't expect to engage in a conversation about the new exhibit at MOMA with your server. read more

Love this place. Great Chinese food. I have been going here for over 13 years and this place is still great and has not changed. Favorites include pot stickers, mu shu pork, hot and sour soup and Mongolian beef. On Friday and Saturdays they have the peeking duck which is delicious. read more

We were recommended to try this restaurant by a local. She advised us not to eat anything from Chinatown because they have a lot of problems with rats and unless you ordered in Chinese you never know what you were going to get. This place is in a good neighborhood and appeared to be very clean on the outside. On the inside is also clean and newer. It was very hard trying to order, the service did not speak English very well but we ordered the sizzling rice soup and it was fabulous. We ordered the chop Suey and it was very different than what we were used to. We also ordered a combination seafood plate which we did not like very well. Ending with the eggplant plate which tasted pretty good but again but very different than what we were used to. Overall the restaurant was clean but the service needs to be worked on a bit. read more

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Elizas The whole family enjoys Eliza's. Good Chinese food that is fresh and tasty, service is quick (we mostly do take out so cranky servers aren't an issue) and best of all it's in the neighborhood. Our favorites are Shanghai Chicken - mildly spicy and sooo good Broccoli with shrimp and beef - yummy Sunflower beef- a must try dish Eliiza chowmein - a family favorite Spicy string beans If you're in Pacific Heights and in the mood for Chinese food give Elizas a try, but be warned parking can be difficult. read more

This is quite possibly the best Chinese restaurant in the city. I come regularly for lunch and have never had a bad experience. The staff is attentive, the food is delicious, and the price is right. Looking forward to my next visit. read more

Reliably tasty, not-too-greasy, all round good Chinese food. The place doesn't exactly have an authentic "cultural" feel, but it's quite pretty and makes you feel like you're going someplace nice--which is useful when you're in the mood for this AND Chinese food at the same time (instead of Chinese food with vinyl chairs). I was also really impressed with the speed of their takeout service. [Review is for California St location]. read more

Food here is alright, but customer service is terrible! My boyfriend loves this place and i wanted to take him there for his birthday, so I called and asked if they were open Memorial day and the guy on the other end of the phone gave a very annoyed "yes". Yeesh. read more

I struggled with the rating for this one...good thing I can explain here! On the plus side -- cool decor, good prices for lunch special, a nice big helping of brown rice with the lunch special at no extra charge. on the neutral side -- food was fine, but nothing too special to me. I had the house special prawns; the prawns themselves tasted fresh and well cooked, but the sauce was too sweet and needed a little more spice for my taste, and the veggies in the dish varied from overcooked to undercooked. on the minus side -- prices for dinner seemed too high (good thing we were there for lunch), and the service was brusque. If I just considered for lunch, I would probably have gone 4 stars, and would go back. But I don't think I would go back for dinner at those prices. read more

If a 3.5 rating was possible, that's what I'd give. Food 4 stars (pretty damn tasty, and I'm not a huge fan of Chinese food) Price 4.5 stars (4 dishes + appetizer for $50 = 4 very stuffed adults w/ leftovers) Service 3 stars (very fast, not super friendly) Ambiance 3.5 stars (not bad, not great, it was very clean) I wouldn't make a huge effort to go to Eliza's, but it was a pleasant experience overall. read more

Sometimes I am of the thinking that dubious preparation=authenticity, and I am all about it. (See: taquerias, "dog" tacos on streets of Mexico, Chinatown, etc.) But sometimes, I do not want to test my body to see if I really do have IBS or if it is all in my head, and I prefer a fresh, delicious prep in a slightly snotty neighborhood. That is Eliza's, for fresh, Californicated Chinese food. Or as I like to think their regular idiots call it, "Chinoise." read more

I would consider Eliza's more Chinese fusion than authentic Chinese. I'm not saying the food is bad. It was pretty good. Just not authentic Chinese cuisine. We finally ate here at a friend's recommendation, who was of course present to guide us through our experience. We were all hungry so we went all out: combination appetizer platter (crab rangoon, potstickers, fried chicken drumstick, spring rolls, shrimp chips), sizzling rice soup, special prawn, hunan beef, sesame chicken, and szechuan broccoli. The appetizer platter was okay. The spring roll was standard. I tasted a bit of the chicken drumstick with an interesting seasoning. It almost seemed to be fried in panko bread crumbs. The crab rangoon was weird - fried wonton filled with a lot of cream cheese and hardly any crab. Definitely my least favorite item of the evening. The sizzling rice soup was good: chock full of scallop, shrimp, water chestnut, fried rice, chicken. Our friend thinks the sesame chicken is the best dish served at Eliza's. It was definitely the most interesting dish: the chicken is cut in strips and on a bed of julienned carrot, celery, green onion, zucchini and sprinkled with sesame and black sesame seeds. This was a tasty Chinese fusion dish. The hunan beef was very tasty but essentially mostly deep fried batter in sauce with snow peas. The flavor and texture were good but there was very little actual meat. The szechuan broccoli was disappointing. Regular broccoli with szechuan sauce on top. I ordered it thinking it would be chinese broccoli. The special prawn dish was okay. The prawn was stir-fried with sugar snap peas in a red sweet and sour sauce. Two of us had brown rice and one had regular steamed white rice. Our friend who ordered the white rice complained that it was like Uncle Ben's - not sticky and soft like true Asian rice. Service was efficient though somewhat impersonal. All in all, I'm glad I ate here. I enjoyed the meal overall but would not eat here if I had a hankering for authentic Chinese food. read more

Eliza's could easily rate 5 stars in my book, but since they don't deliver, I can't give them the full rating. I mean, what chinese restaurant doesn't deliver? That being said, this chinese restaurant is nothing like you'd find in chinatown, which is definitely why I like eliza's so much. The place is clean and the food is always fresh. Service has been ok on the occasions I've dined in the restaurant, but for the most part we prefer to do take out. Another knock off the 5-star rating is for the prices. It's pricey! Favorite dishes so far are the honey walnut prawns, mongolian beef, and the curry chicken. Clearly, we like our sweets. The string beans w/ bean curd is another favorite (not sweet). I'm not a fan of the steamed dumplings as there is too much ginger for my taste, but B really likes them - especially in the won ton soup. There are so many more dishes to try, but we tend to stick to our usual order. Now that we're moving and will be even closer to Eliza's, I'm certain we will end up trying everything on the menu. Stay tuned for a future update... read more