Frontera Fresco

I can’t believe this place closed, but it was pretty good while it was open. I remember having the quesadilla which a little hard to eat, since the sauce/​chili was on top from what I remember. It was definitely delicious though, probably not authentically mexican but it’s a satisfying meal.
One particular thing I remember and will probably never forget, is the SALAD from this place ironically. I HATE salads so much, because I simply do not like greens/​vegetables as I find them typically tasting repulsive. So when you throw a bunch of them together and call them a salad, it’s a fancy name but I’m still not buying it! The salad came as a side and it literally look like garden weeds thrown together, but when I took a bite, I was blown away. It was literally the best salad I have EVER had and I could literally eat it regularly, because it was that good. They had an avocado lime vinegrette in it!!! It was slightly sweet, and it was just so good. I even ate my brother’s salad as well since he wasn’t a particular fan (he doesn’t like intense flavours). This place has won a permanent place in my heart just because of that seriously amazing salad.
I ordered an Iced Lemon Tea I believe, and that didn’t taste very good. Not sweet, and tasted really grassy. That was kind of a disappointment, but DAT SALAD DOE!!!

Rick Bayless does it again! Yes, a department store food court is not the best location for a celebrity chef fast food joint, but hey, this is San Francisco. I’ve seen stranger things on Market Street. I usually order the cochinita pibil. It is marinated and spiced to perfection. I have ordered the cochinita pibil torta and tacos, and they both are delicious. The tacos are not street tacos, and use the larger corn tortillas. They also melt cheese between the tortillas, making them extra rich. Splurge for the guacamole and a tecate, and enjoy Mexican food in the most random location ever.

Their tacos are delicious! Seriously! And on top of that, they are never a sloppy mess to eat. They somehow hold together really nicely, with the double tortilla and cheese, and filling. The salsas here are yummy and the guacamole and chips are delicious too and they give you a large basket with two containers of guac and both kinds of salsa. A great app to share with a friend when you take a break from shopping.
It’s in the Macy’s «cellar» /​food court but really don’t let that deter you. They really do serve up some delicious food here. I even come here when I’m not shopping at Macy’s just to get their tacos for lunch!
Only gripe is that sometimes the orders come out way too slow or the people mess up the orders. One time I asked for chicken and I got steak but I was too hungry to send it back and wait. They are also inconsistent. Sometimes I get both types of salsas. Other times I get one. There’s no rhyme or reason. If you want a particular salsa (your order comes with your choice of salsa), make sure you tell them when you order.

I’ve tried the other tortas here, and they’re all pretty good! But I still really like the Cubana torta and all the salsas that it comes with it. I’m not really interested in the other items on the menu, but maybe I’ll give them a chance another day.
I can’t remember what day it is for chips & salsa, but there is a dollar day for chips & salsa. It’s a better deal than the usual price of about $ 3. I really like the salsas. My fav. =)

My best place for tacos since I came to San Francisco I tried so many tacos in Mexican restaurants, really this is my fav place to eat chicken and the grilled beef tacos with some coke. Well seasoned and delicious yummy yummy. all the flavours get well together. I love this place

No bueno!
The food was overpriced and under seasoned. The corn chowder was good, just a little watery though!

I love Rick Bayless– having moved from Chicago and been a Top Chef Masters follower the man can do no wrong in my eyes. That being said he’s pretty far removed from the casual chains of Frontera Fresco. I’ve been here a number of times the one consistent theme is that service is extremely slow, it took 22 minutes for my torta sandwich and there was no line when I placed my order. In terms of food, the ingredients seem fresh and their proteins have a leg up over Chipotle. Some of my favorites:
Grilled Steak Taco
Green Chile Tamale– the goat cheese/​ricotta filling makes it
Roasted Corn and Green Chile Chowder
Chipotle Chicken Quesadilla (although it’s not a lot of food)
I really wanted to love the tortilla soup but the batch I tried had an oil slick on the top. Also not a fan of the shrimp and chicken tacos as they are saucy and end up mush by the time I get back to my desk. It’s too bad that they don’t have a salsa bar as the one container I get never goes far enough and more than anything else I wish they could improve on the wait time. Not a good place to go if you have limited time to eat.

The tortilla soup was incredible! I loved the spicy, smokey rich broth. It just needed to a bit more avocado (mine came with literally one tiny cube). It was the perfect quick refuel in between holiday shopping. I also tried a bite of my sisters tamal. You The outer part of the tamal was light, fluffy and sweet, which I really enjoyed since a lot of tamales can be greasy and dense. I just wish the filling had a bit more flavor and I wasn’t too keen on the salsa that they put on top. It was a bit sour.
The best part of it all, was the prices. It was super cheap. If you’re looking for a quick, cheap pick-​me-​up, and not necessarily a big filling meal, this place is perfect.

Hidden in the basement of Macy’s as to what looks like an ordinary food court restaurant was this little gem.
We visited Frontera Fresco per my boyfriend’s sister’s suggestion and we were quite surprised. We order cochinita pibil tacos — amazing! and a chicken huarache — also amazing. The chips and guacamole were excellent, too!

I came here over two years ago and gave only a two star review due to the food being mediocre, not large in size, and the service being slow.
Service is still relatively slow, but in their defense, it was very busy when we came for lunch (it was a struggle to find seats in the small area allocated to the restaurant). We ordered the mushroom tacos and one of the salads. There was definitely a lot more food than I was expecting this time around and I couldn’t finish everything I had.
Decent and fresh feeling food compared to your standard taqueria.

Enjoyed a fresh, interesting, spicy, crunchy shrimp salad here. Wonderful dressing.
Some true Mexican touches – nopales cactus, marinated onions, radish slices. Fast service to your table. If you’re shopping in Macy’s and hunger overtakes you, it’s a good place to try.

*Tip: It’s located on the basement level of Macy’s!
Came here on a Sunday for a late lunch with hubs.
FOOD:
Veggie Torta– delicious! stuffed with fresh vegetables and warm melted cheese, i wish i had gotten this instead
Chicken Taco– so tiny! and i don’t like the double corn tortilla concept
Shrimp Taco– not bad but the sauce is weak
*I’d come back for the torta
AMBIENCE:
Enough seating to take a quick break from shopping.
SERVICE:
Order with the cashier. Grab a number. Weirdly though, they try to hard core try to upsell EVERY SINGLE SOLITARY THING. drink? coconut bar? this? that? NO just give me my food!
–Hungry Hungry Pongy

The food is good and «different» mexican but the prices are kind of high and the most important thing to me is that the charge A WHOLE lot of their chips and salsa. I don’t need that much but I also don’t need to pay over $ 2 for it.
It’s a bit disappointing but hits the spot if you want a mexican sandwhich that is basically like a panini.

Is Frontera Fresco the same calibre food as Frontera Grill in Chicago? No. Don’t go there thinking Rick Bayless will be cooking away in the basement of a Macy’s and personally present his creations to you … though you’d be in for disappointment if you went to Frontera Grill with the same expectations.
Regardless, there’s quite a bit of selection and I had some trouble picking what I wanted because several dishes sounded really good. What’s holding it back from a 4-​star rating is that the food wasn’t as flavorful as I expected it would be. I had the Roasted Garlic Mushroom Tacos; while the first bite was quite tasty, it was all one-​note after a while. They needed more crunch or fresh cilantro or acid to make the dish work.
On a positive note, they have Dos XX Lager. An XX and a taco is a pretty good way of refueling for more holiday shopping.

We were shopping downtown & wanted to avoid the after work rush hour on Muni so we needed to find a place for dinner. Seeing how our friends have been checking in here so frequently, we though it was worth a try.
The Boyfriend wanted a Steak tortas but they were out of steak. But by some miracle, there was steak for his Steak quesadilla. I got myself a Chicken taqueria salad which I later overhead was the last one since there wasn’t any chicken left. By the way, this was about 5:30pm. We then order some chips with salsa & guacamole but the server wasn’t sure if there was any. Luckily, there way. But they came in plastic containers that were leaking and dirty. Our favorite part of the meal was the classic Lime agua fresca which was nice & tart.
The actual food was decent but it really was not worth the price or the Rick Bayless name.

Yeah man I eat in the Macy’s cellar what of it?
I was strutting around looking for something that was on a friend’s wedding registry when I felt them hunger pangs and I was drawn to the Frontera Fresco. Maybe it as the way it was entirely empty, maybe I recognized Richard Bayless’ name, dunno.
Well I got this chipotle chicken sandwich and was quick to devour it’s goodness down into my belly.
It was a real good sandwich and it gave me the energy to get the blender my friends want to receive for their wedding. Spicy and hearty would be the two words I would use. The prickly pear, raspberry agua fresca was rather sweet but I was thirsty so it did me good. this little meal cost about $ 13
When I left the small restaurant was about full, this place isn’t a secret is it?

Rick Bayliss’ fast food restaurant in Macy’s Cellar… Pretty cool find down here. Didn’t know what to expect, since I’ve never been to any of his full blown restaurants before. I must admit, I didn’t expect too much coming from the bottom of a shopping mall, but was pleasantly surprised at the nice blends of flavors his dishes provide.
I was actually hungry for a mid-​day snack and decided to grab a few bites to share with my wife. Ordered up the sweet corn and green chile tamales with ricotta cheese (freshly steamed in a corn husk — creamy, sweet, and cheesy), and two of the cochinta pibil tacos (pulled pork with pickled red onions were a bit greasy, but topped off with the habanero sauce — it hit the spot).
Lots of bottled Mexican beers, and sodas to choose from. Nice place to grab a quick gourmet bite when you’re shopping in Union Square.

Chicago is a beautiful beautiful city, but honestly, the food is mediocre. After four years there, I realized that we only had one big name chef «celebrity», Rick Bayless. So after leaving Chicago, I was pleasantly surprised to see this Rick Bayless restaurant branch in San Francisco!
His food has a very distinct taste – definitely winner of iron chef worthy. I ordered a Roasted vegetable salad with deliciously seasoned Cajun chicken and creamy goat cheese. What Rick Bayless does is put together incredible combinations of mexican food. Let me tell you, I don’t even like mexican food, but I loved the dishes I had here. The combinations makes it appeal to more than just the mexican food lover. It’s nothing too special, but especially given my love for Chicago, I highly recommend this place for a good, decently priced meal.

I stopped by today while shopping at Macy*s because I’m the process of planning a Chicago trip and I read about Bayless’s restaurants being top notch. I ordered a pulled pork taco ($ 3.75), a chicken tamale ($ 4), and an «aguatea» which is basically iced tea mixed with your choice of limeade ($ 2). (I chose the mango limeade.)
After you order, they give you a number to put on your table. I found that most tables weren’t wiped off, but I managed to find one clean looking one. (Minus one star for the cleanliness)
I tried my drink while waiting for my food. I read Cindy B.‘s review (re: too tart mango limeade) and expected the iced tea to make it more refreshing. I was wrong. It really was too tart, even with the iced tea. I am a fan of tart drinks, but it really did taste kind of salty. It was anything but refreshing.
My food came out a couple minutes later. I tried the tamale first. There was not enough chicken filling in it, and I found it just okay. I wouldn’t order it again. My taco, on the other hand, was extremely flavorful. The tortilla was slightly crispy, the meat was juicy and seasoned well, and I was impressed by the size and the amount of fresh avocado they added. As soon as I picked it up, I noticed a small puddle of grease, and more grease would fall with each bite. This didn’t really bother me, but I can see it being a problem for others. Maybe they just need to drain the pulled pork a little bit before they put it in the taco.
I am usually against buying food in Union Square while I’m out and about because I find most establishments too expensive for what you get. I would probably come here again but only order the taco.

For those with high hopes that Rick Bayless has arrived with a West Coast version of his famous Frontera Grill, let me dash those dreams with one big wet tortilla. In fact, let me hit you with the tortilla until you start crying like a little señorita with a lame burro. There is next to no evidence of the bold, authentic flavors to be found in Bayless’ Chicago colorful eatery. Instead, you get a fast-​food variation that seems to have only part of the name in common.
For those of you who don’t know, Rick Bayless is a renowned chef who has been a staple on PBS for the past 15 years with his Mexican cooking shows. He possesses the same geek factor that Rick Steves has, only Bayless’ scratchy voice sounds like a violin played by a cat in heat. And don’t get me started on his annoying daughter. But there is no doubt in my mind that he is expert at upscale Mexican cuisine. That’s why I’m kinda bummed that the food is so meh at this Macy’s outpost.
Jamie W. and I went there on a whim just as it appeared they were closing since they were cordoning off seating sections. He went for the $ 7.95 Cubana Torta, which was a panini-​style sandwich with roast pork, Chihuahua cheese, applewood smoked bacon, black beans, cilantro crema, chipotle mustard, and avocado (see photo). Sounds good, doesn’t it? It was utterly bland, a crime of heresy in Mexican cuisine. Mine looked more promising, the $ 7.95 Grilled Steak Huarache, which was a cornmeal flatbread shaped like a sandal an then covered with small chunks of steak and topped with lettuce, black beans, chipotle sauce and Cotija cheese (see photo).
Yawn. Couldn’t even finish it, even after dousing the thing in green salsa. I’m unlikely to come back here again. I’d rather save my pennies and fly to Chicago to try Bayless’ real restaurants. Or just go across the bay to El Huarache Azteca in Oakland to get closer to the real deal. Either way, it’s better than watching the hyper-​aggressive Kitchen Aid saleswoman pushing her mixers hard on young couples with their wedding registers in hand. Run, kids!
FOOD — 2.5 stars… would Rick Bayless eat here?
AMBIANCE — 2.5 stars… it’s Macy’s after all
SERVICE — 2 stars… kinda forlorn and sloppy with long wait times for the food
TOTAL — 2.5 stars… rounding down this time since the description for a two-​star rating contains the academic term «Meh»