El Pipila

Popular Pop-Up El Pípila Opens Permanent Restaurant in SoMa | Eater SF

"At 879 Brannan Street, chef Guadalupe Guerrero—along with her two daughters, Brenda and Alejandra—has opened El Pípila to serve the cuisine of Guanajuato, Mexico. Guerrero, who came to the U.S. in 1998, worked for years in the Bay Area (including at a Berkeley taqueria) and developed her business through La Cocina; after six years vending at pop-ups like Off the Grid and Picnic at the Presidio, she launched her first permanent restaurant in the ground floor of a condo in San Francisco’s Design District. The menu centers on larger plates—most notably Guerrero’s extremely popular pozole verde—along with enchiladas, carnitas, chile rellenos, tacos, salads, and sides; there’s no alcohol at the moment, but agua frescas are recommended. Despite community support, it took five years to open, and the physical restaurant was realized through a collaboration with La Cocina, developer Equity Residential, various contractors, pro bono services from Schwartz and Architecture, and donations from suppliers such as Fox Marble, Ceramic Tile Design, Ann Sachs, One Workplace, Delta Millworks, The Culinary Edge, Design is Play and Pritchard Peck Lighting. El Pípila is now open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with extended hours planned in 2019 to operate seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m." - Ellen Fort