Lucky Food

Lunch at San Francisco’s Lucky Food Is Tremendous and Costs Less Than $10 | Eater SF

"Opened in December 2024 on Clement Street (445 Clement Street), this spot joins a string of restaurants offering accessible breakfasts and lunches. The folks working here are "kind as can be," and the menu is an outrageous display of just what the dim sum doctor ordered: fried chicken wings, chow fun, and marinated ribs. For breakfast, any three dim sum items go for $3.50. There are familiar stalwart silver trays of steam-table options on the veggie side — broccoli and mushrooms, steamed cabbage, and stuffed eggplant — plus a slew of porridges (fish fillet, beef ball, shrimp) listed at $8.99 before the discount, salt-and-pepper shrimp, sesame balls, and plentiful seating ideal for working through a platter. Currently, everything is 20 percent off in honor of the grand opening; "With just a $10 bill, you can order a big plate of rice, two items, and a couple of sesame balls — with money still to tip your server." It’s cash only. The menu also advertises a $20 all-you-can-eat option. The piece frames the aggressive pricing as smart business amid strong neighborhood competition and broader history, noting that "Chinese cuisine has the bad luck of being labelled as something cheap," food writer and researcher Fuchsia Dunlop told the publication Mint Lounge." - Paolo Bicchieri