Top-tier Chinese takeout spot. Got the tomato & beef chow mein and mixed vegetables (stirfry) with chicken. Both highly flavorful but well balanced. Portions are also a good value. Really hit the spot! The auntie who took my order was very sweet. She even gave me free fortune cookies, bags of candies, and 2 free sodas! The free hot sauce is also fantastic and it seems to be a fried chili & garlic concoction of their own creation . Prices are also still very reasonable despite the current high inflation. Highly recommend this place! read more

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My partner and I just moved around the corner from J & A about a week ago. We have gotten take out twice and so far we absolutely love the chicken chow mein and fried rice. Both plates were full of flavor! Most of the time I find the fried rice in other restaurants to be quite bland. When my partner went ahead and place an order the first time, he placed the order and was told by an elderly auntie to, "sit down I'll cook for you, 20 minutes." He was charmed and when I showed up 10 minutes later, we chatted a bit. I wish I could speak Cantonese, so I could communicate with her better. We are going to make it a thing to grab food from this place once a week! Love old school mom and pop type places. It is cash only and more of a to go type of place, which works out for us since we live so close by. Oh, the treats are super cute too! I got some sour patch kids today! read more

I came with my dad and aunt for lunch for the first time since my aunt lives across the street. It looks like a basement inside that turned into a restaurant. No frills but very homey. It's cash only, but price is good. The lady is very friendly and talkative with excellent service and gave us complimentary tea. She told us a lot of her travel stories after I asked her about the camel pic in Cantonese. We ordered beef chow fun, and a cod fillet and bok choy rice plate to share for three people. They use disposable plates and utensils, and served the food in takeout boxes. The food was good and yummy even though presentation isn't the best. She gave us fortune cookies at the end. I would've prefer ceramic rice bowls and chopsticks but they're an elderly couple family business and only the 2 of them working. They were up front and said they mainly do takeout business even though they have restaurant tables and chairs and did a lot more business before the pandemic. I would come back again since I enjoyed her service and company! read more

J & A Restaurant - Cod fillet and bok choy with rice plate leftovers after lunch - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Good food and good personal care and very nice people good service I love this place. This is my lovely place

Shout out to this spot. Still my go to after 15 years. Mom and pop feel with bomb food.

Nice flavor and good portion. Cute elderly couple owner were talkative, especially if you break out Canto with them. read more

J & A Restaurant - Shrimp scrambled egg over rice - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Was craving Chinese food around my area. Decided to give this place a try. It did not disappoint. Fast service as well. Cash only. (Left to right: Sweet and sour pork, Mongolian beef over rice, shrimp fried rice) read more

J & A Restaurant - Sweet and sour pork, Mongolian beef over rice, shrimp fried rice - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Mongolian beef over fried rice spicy with vegetables is one of my favorites been around for years. Owners is good people.

It doesn't look like a restaurant inside. The lady was rude and seems like to be in a hurry.

Their hours aren't very convenient and I think they're cash-only but I think they make the best Singapore curry noodles I've had anywhere. If you like Singapore curry noodles, you owe it to yourself to try theirs. Also warning: I don't know if it's actually on their menu anywhere, but if you ask for it they'll know what you mean. read more

So happy they are still open during this challenging time. The couple was always so friendly when we dined in and they recognized us when we called in our first order. We have ordered every week, Black bean beef chow fun and pork fried rice for the past few months. The chili sauce they make is pure crack sauce. I use it on everything! The mini dessert they include in the bag is thoughtful as well. Support your local favorites! read more

J & A Restaurant - a variety of asian food - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

This is still my favorite Chinese food spot. A hole in the wall spot, mom and pop spot, good greasy Chinese food spot. Prices may have gone up since the shelter in place but the taste of the food is still the same! If you go, you HAVE to get the combination fried rice. It is THE BEST FRIED RICE EVER. No other fried rice will compare. I swear I could eat the fried rice by itself and it would hit the spot every time. Other go-to foods that I go for on the regular: Fried squid Broccoli beef Wonton soup Chow mein So if you're craving Chinese food during this shelter in place, call them for take out! Or even when this is all over, support their business because that fried rice is so good! Now I'll say it one more time, fried rice. read more

J & A Restaurant - Combination fried rice, just the BEST FRIED RICE EVERRR - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Haven't been here in years. I was walking by and decided to get scratched eggs and beef over rice. Oh man walking in there was like walking back into time. Food is still great and the service and hospitality hasn't changed. read more

Great experience and quick service. I hadn't been here in awhile and had to stop by. I happened to be craving some Mongolian beef and this place did not disappoint. Not sure if they're doing dine in right now so I went with the takeout order. The wait for my food was not long and the meal was to perfection. Just an overall good meal. The Mongolian beef was exactly as I expected with good flavor and not too overwhelming. Parking might be an issue for some as the business is on a busy street and parking can be hard to find. I'll be back soon. #BeefIsGood read more

Simple but good food, good portions. Just around the corner from me but I usually end up going elsewhere. Usually my mistake.

PSA: To keep its customers safe, please note that J & A is only accepting To-Go orders until further notice. read more

I've been going to this joint for more than 15 years. It's amazing. The food is always delicious and the people are always so friendly. They have the best beef wonton soup. Everytime I pass in SF, I always want to go there! It's a nice friendly place and the plates are very reasonably priced. Fresh food--delicious food and great people. I will keep going there! read more

Found on Yelp and decided to try it out. Had combination chow fun and potstickers. Really good. Biggest potstickers I've ever seen. Tasted really good. read more

This mom and pops spot is definitely what you want from a Chinese restaurant. It's gritty and old school. Cash only, mom definitely in the kitchen grinding away on the pots and woks. Their chicken wings are a bit greasy but pretty good. All the noodle dishes are a little greasy but once again good in taste. If you like old school tasty greasy Chinese food you need to come here and get your fix. I like to pick up from this place as often as I can. Being from NY originally this spot makes me feel right at home. read more

More at 3.5 stars but rounding it up to 4 for being somewhat one of a kind. I honestly don't think J & A is a 5-star "as good as it gets" type of place. Maybe I ordered the wrong dishes or maybe this place has 5 stars for being the best around the area? The food is good though, just not the best ever! I'd still come back to try more dishes. I came here because my sister had been bugging me, telling me this is her favorite spot because it's so cheap (YES it is cheap and FYI - CASH ONLY)! J & A Restaurant is a straight up mom&pop/hole-in-the-wall type of place. The boyfriend joined me for lunch. We were greeted by a sweet Chinese lady and her husband - very friendly service. The table setting is something I'll definately remember about this place lol - "Mexican Fiesta" place mats and paper plates...say what!? It was like we were at a fast food restaurant but not. We ended up ordering the Combination Family Dinner A: - Wonton Soup (pretty good) - Egg Rolls (kind of oily but loved the crunch; came with sweet & sour packets) - BBQ Pork Fried Rice (dry and burnt looking; not really my favorite) - Sweet & Sour Pork (good and crunchy) - Beef with Oyster Sauce (needs a little more flavor) - Dessert: sweet oranges, fortune cookie, and mini snickers I think we would've enjoyed it more if we ate our dishes with plain white rice instead of fried rice. read more

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I'm a total fan of this place. It's like a mom and pop restaurant. The owners are super nice (especially the lady) - My family have made it a regular coming here. I'm finally writing my review because I'm sure this place is where to go when you have that certain Chinese food craving. -Great and comfortable to take family here - very chillaxing environment. You Can dress like crap and still get great service :) So the first time I came here it felt like Hong Kong to me; maybe like an old time feeling like back in the days like maybe long ago feeling- i'm not sure just a nostalgic feeling - A bit cleaner version of parts of Hong Kong. Food is great, u can request no MSG ;). The price is still right even though they raised maybe $1 on everything. I mean for under 20 bucks for a 3 person full fatty meal is PRETTY GOOD!!! She's so nice always giving candies and fortune cookies for happy endings too :) Tip: Their hot sauce is like homemade or mixed and it's very good- the one in the tall container not the shorter one. There's a few dishes that are popular; they are good. Ask her what it is when you order and she'll tell u recommendations :) I always feel like I made the right choice after eating here and leaving from this restaurant. The owner is so GENUINE and down to earth- no fake smile or fake talk. that's how i like it. read more

As much as I wanted to really like this place, it was just a mediocre overall experience. Firstly, the owner lady is really nice and friendly. I liked her a lot. She is like your older Chinese aunty (the nice one) that is quite charming and nice. Thing is I was a bit turned off my the paper plates and cups. Not only is it not environmentally friendly, it's really low class for a sit down restaurant, even for a hole in the wall. The food was tasty but salty, however, I did like the freshness of the ingredients. I would give this place another chance to try some other dishes, but for to go orders if I am in the area. I would say, I would like to continue and support this local business. Good people, good ingredients. Just keep your expectations low and you may be surprised. read more

J & A Restaurant - Pineapple spare ribs - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

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The banner is faded now and the tree may block your view when trying to locate with GPS. This place is located next to a house. Upon entering it is an in law turned into a small restaurant. It has a homey feel to it. The owners are very friendly and remind me of my grandparents. The lady was very attentive and friendly. I do not mind the paper plate (it's the heavy duty Dixie kind). You just gotta think about that this is their dream and they have to cut cost somewhere. You can not pay for a homey hospitality. The food is good and very generous. Place is small and pretty much is an in law remodeled to be a restaurant. It is only the two of them pretty much running the place. No more delivery because her kids were the ones driving. Menu has updated prices. (For those who are nit picky let me remind you that it cost money to constantly update menus so don't gripe about it being updated in writing). Fried calamari Combination soup Egg scramble with Chinese bacon over rice Beef and oyster sauce over rice Did I mention the food is amazing?!? Hahaha I guess you can call this place a greasy spoon place I mean what chinese restaurant isn't? read more

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Very cheap Chinese food. Don't expect too much coming here. Actually, the further you lower your standards the better your experience will be because this place is totally no frills, just cheap hearty Chinese food. I recommend ordering the Mongolian Beef over rice. That seems to be their best dish, and everything else is just below average. When we visited, we told the owner that we heard abt the place through yelp, so she didn't want to disappoint and steered us to ordering the Mongolian Beef instead of anything else. I was craving the egg drop soup with chicken, which was disappointing. The soup had mixed vegetables in it and mushrooms!? WTH? Egg drop soup isn't suppose to have mushrooms and peas in it!! However, my dining partner loved his Mongo Beef. The price point is very reasonable and super affordable, so I shouldn't complain for what we were paying. But I wouldn't go out of my way for this place. read more

J & A Restaurant - Bill for 2 orders of Mongolian Beef over rice!! You can't beat that price. But w this price, I got lipstick stains on my cup! Ew - Chinese Near Me - San Francisco, California

Nice little local Chinese food. We always get the Mongolian beef over rice and Mongolian beef chow mein. This is their specialty and has been for years. We just found out they do Mongolian beef over pan fried Noodles for an additional charge. The rest of the menu is average Chinese food but the Mongolian beef is the 5 star choice from this restaurant. Prices are creeping up with all of the ingredient prices going up but if your looking for a great Mongolian beef give them a try. Remember cash only no charging credit cards here. But will be worth it. read more

I've been going to this mom n pop shop since I was little and I love them. Yes, the food is a little on the oily side but what can you do? You need your food fix, and they fix it good. read more

Like others have mentioned, it's a hole in the wall Chinese restaurant. Went to get Sunday dinner: chicken wings, shrimp fried rice, & chicken chow mein. The lady taking the order speaks in a rough manner, even when I told her I found the restaurant on Yelp and the reviews were good. The chicken chow mein was good. The chicken wings passed. Instead of shrimp I got chicken fried rice. Did not enjoy the brown clumps of rice, bland fried rice. That's it and that's all! read more

my family and i have been coming here for over a decade, and before i was born. ever since i was little, i've always enjoyed coming here. the food comes in big portions and always tastes great! we call the owner "manang" since we're super close to her, and she never fails to ask about family members when they don't come! we always come here for celebratory family dinners or when we want some simple takeout. hopefully we'll continue to be able to come here! read more

Good restaurant. I am not a huge fan of paper plates and disposable wear they use, but the food is good. Their sweet and sour chicken and mongolian beef are excellent! The service is great and the portions are huge. I would recommend this place. read more

This place offers mediocre Chinese food. I was really hungry and ordered take-out....Sweet and Sour pork over rice, fried wonton and pot stickers, $36 cash. Even as hungry as I was, the food was meh. On a good note, the lady/owner is very nice and likes dogs. read more

I LOVE this place. I walked here from my house because we live really close and I am never disappointed. You don't to come here for a fancy meal but if you want authentic Chinese food this is the place to come. The chow fun and the hot sauce are the highlight read more

Beef Chow Fun is my favorite. I've been coming here, off and on for about 15 years. Get the chili oil. Super friendly owners! Cash only.

I can't get over how nice the lady is here! When I was getting ready to pay, the total was a few cents over $20 (for 3 dishes! = great prices). I only had two twenty dollar bills which I was hoping to break so that I could give tip and the lady just took one twenty, smiled and said, "see you next time." I insisted that we get change but she said it was no problem for her. I was able to find a couple of dollars and I still gave it to her anyway. I could see that she didn't even care about the tip and was just happy cooking and serving food to people. With that, our service was great and this restaurant is definitely one of your hole in the wall Chinese restaurants. I tried the special chow mein, salt & pepper spare ribs, and the salt & pepper fish over rice. Chow mein was soft and salty just enough and wasn't extremely greasy. Both salt & pepper dishes were served with onions, bell peppers and jalapenos which is not very typical of salt & pepper dishes since they usually just come with jalapenos and green onion. Yet the onions were cooked perfectly where they were still sweet and still had a great crunch to them. The spare ribs were very yummy and although the fish was also good, the were cut into big pieces that reminded me of the fish that comes with fish & chips. Both dishes also could have been a bit spicier but overall, very good food! P.S. - cash only. read more

I got fooled by the yelp reviews into coming to this place for Chinese take-out. I called in to place my order and a friendly Chinese lady picked up and took my order. I ordered fried squid, hot and sour soup, Mongolian beef over rice, sing chow rice noodle, and a combination wonton noodle soup. She said it'll take about 30-40 mins and I was excited because knowing they have to make everything from scratch and it would be fresh! When I got to this place, it definitely looked like a hole-in-the-wall. But that didn't bother me, I was looking forward to trying the food! Boy, was I disappointed. The squid was decent since it was fried. Fried food in general is good. The hot and sour soup was different from what I had at many other restaurants. It tasted ok overall. They did not separate the wonton and noodles from the soup. They just stuffed it all into a clear container which soaked everything in there... No good. The Mongolian beef wasn't spicy at all when they specifically asked if I wanted it spicy. The texture of the sauce had a bit too much cornstarch and the rice was overcooked where it was mushy. I pretty much picked out the beef and just ate that. Sing Chow rice noodle was probably the most decent entree out of all I've ordered. It was still very greasy. I really tried to give this place a better rating and I had much higher expectations due to the highly rated reviews. The mom and pop are nice tho. read more

Do you ever notice that many Chinese restaurants have signs or menus touting "excellent Chinese cuisine"? In general, most of them should be charged with false advertising. J & A has a rag tag outdoor sign (see Google maps) and a menu with pasted on prices. Their to go menu advertises free delivery, however, since it is just a ma and pa shop, that is not correct. They have long hours and are open 7 days a week. When our luncheon with a neighborhood couple fell through, my wife surprised me and took me here. We have been looking for a replacement Cantonese cuisine ever since the "old" Kams on Balboa went out of business. J & A is not quite there, but it is certainly a lot better than many that we have tried. Driving on Mission Street, you won't even notice the place unless you are actively looking for it. It looks like a converted residence. The interior is narrow and rather grimy with stained walls, linoleum floors, and formica tables. Seating is limited and the waitress is the ma while the cook is the pa. Payment is cash only. She was very friendly and when we placed our order, she immediately brought us some complimentary soup of the day. Many Chinese restaurants soup of the day consisted of a thin broth with a piece of floating vegetables or some fatty meat. However, this one had chunks of corn, tofu, carrots, green onions and eggs. It was very tasty. We ordered sizzling rice soup ($6), mongolian beef over rice ($5.50), beef with broccoli ($6.50), and J&A special chow mein ($6). Our meals came on regular porcelain plates and bowls, but our we were handed paper plates with well-worn silverware to eat from. The sizzling rice soup arrived and our waitress dropped the hot rice onto to the bowl of soup. We knew that we had ordered too much and didn't finish the soup, but ate most of the sizzling rice since it gets too soggy the next day. The soup had chunks of beef, bbq pork, zucchini, carrots, green onions, broccoli, etc. It was tasty, not like the old Kams, but still good. The mongolian beef was good, but not as spicy as we expected. It had chunks of bell peppers, and hot red peppers poured over a bed of rice. The beef and broccoli was also good, but then what could go wrong with this dish? Our chow mein noodles were similar to what I have made. The dish had chunks of beef, pork, shrimp, cabbage, onions, etc. These 3 dishes were very well prepared and not too salty. Of course, if you are trying to impress a first date, expecting white table cloths and stuffy waiters, this is not the place go. But if you are interested in excellent food and can tolerate the decorative issues, then this is the place to eat. We will be back. read more

J & A is one of the most affordable, yet delicious Chinese restaurants in outer Mission/Excelsior district of San Francisco. The owners/operators Mr. And Mrs. Wong have been opening and closing the doors to their successful business for the past 26 years and counting. They got to be doing something right, like making sure customers are :) She always starts my meal w/ piping hot tea, a cup of hot & sour or corn soup b4 my entree arrives. While having my meal, I usually request an extra bowl of steamed white rice on the side which she never adds any additional cost to my check for this request even tho she has every right to do so. For this reason, I always leave a bit extra to show my appreciation for her kindness and generosity. After I'm done with my meal, she offers several slices of orange, a fortune cookie, and a piece of chocolate w/ the check. For $8-9 plus a buck or two for tips, I can get a huge plate of Mongolian beef over steamed or fried rice, or I might order Kung Pao Chicken over chow mien, but my favorite dish would have to be filets of fish w/ fresh vegetables stir fried in garlic oil. I've been eating here for about only 1.5 years, and I've notice 100% inspection card hanging on the wall from Day 1 so they do run a neat & tidy ship here FASHO!! The phone rings nonstop usually, and a good amount of their business must be for pickup since they don't deliver. They can also prepare large trays of food for special occasions but require at least two days notice in advance. They will even let u park in their driveway if u can't find parking nearby. Since they owned the building as well as the business, they can afford to be more generous than the competition b/c they are not faced w/ a huge overhead that comes w/ commercial leases. When I'm on a budget, or I just want to grab some food really quick and easy, J & A Restaurant opens 7 days a week even on holidays. read more

Don't let the inside fool you. I admit, I was a little weirded out when I first ate here. It's sort of like walking into your grandparent's house for a family event and having them serve you food that they have been preparing for hours. Paper plates and all. The owners are this nice old couple; husband in the kitchen, and the wife taking orders, serving customers, and handing out candy. Sounds strange, but this place is now one of my all-time favorites. Order the shrimp fried rice. It's hot, fresh, and always has a nice crispness to it. Most places drown their fried rice in soy sauce, but this is actually browned on the grill. No nasty frozen peas in this stuff! Just good ingredients, and always consistent. The hot sauce is great, too. Eat here! If the inside doesn't suit your taste, the grab take-out. read more

Great 'dive' Chinese food. Dive by setting, not by menu. Handmade by mama on the spot. Literally. She comes out, talks to you, you can see into the kitchen (big plus) and the food is fantastic for budget, no any, american style chinese food. Don't expect Peking Duck, Dim Sum or Shark Fin soup here. The place is a little dingy and yes they serve dishes on 'real' plates but give you paper plates for your own. We asked Mama and she said she was too old to be washing too many dishes, her hands hurt. Yup. If you in the neighborhood it is definitely worth the stop. Oh and Cash Only. read more

BEST little mom & pop place in San Francisco. I'm so upset I found this place so late when it's literally down the street from my place (I could walk here!). They close at 9 & I came in at around 8:30. The owner-lady asked if we were doing take-out or dine-in & she asked if we could do take-out because they were getting ready to close (not a big deal since we were planning on taking it home anyways). The best part? she felt bad and was apologizing for having us do take-out instead. She is just the sweetest little thing (reminds me of my mom!). Also when we had to go grab cash (it's cash only) she felt so bad and said next time she'll put a bigger sign LOL I would really love to try dining in here someday. I think their service will probably be one of the best for a chinese restaurant. The food was sooooooooo good. The little chili sauce she has (and recommends) for the entrees were the best little compliment for them. I think that was what made the entrees so good (we got mongolian beef & a chicken dish I can't seem to remember the name!!!!) also instead of fortune cookies, we get chocolate, +1 for them!!!! read more

There's not a whole lot to say about this place that hasn't been said already multiple times by other yelpers. Yep, it's a hole in the wall and you feel like your eating in someone's kitchen. The portions are large, prices are decent and the food is good but not mind-blowing. The one caveat I will mention is that if you're someone who is grossed out by sticky tables, sticky menus and "greasy spoons" then this might not be the best place for you. But it's definitely an experience that's different from the norm in San Francisco. read more