I’ve been dying to come here for the last few months, especially since I found out they have an ahi tuna poke bowl. They’re only open for lunch, and are closed on Sundays – explains why I’ve always missed them. I had the ahi tuna bowl and it was amazeballs. The tuna was just melt-in-your-mouth amazing, so you know it’s the best. The black rice I chose with it was different than anything I’ve ever had, but with the flavors of the sauce and how everything else was composed in the dish – it worked. There’s also a communal table within the restaurant it’s located in where patrons can sit at. But if it’s a nice day out on the Embarcadero, I recommend taking your food to-go and eat somewhere on the Embarcadero to enjoy the view. —- TL;DR: Melt-in-your-mouth ahi tuna! Just make sure you come around lunchtime(but not on Sundays – they’re closed).
Vee T.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 San Pablo, CA
Yummmmmmm! I just came back from Hawaii last week & I’ve been CRAVING some good poke. I work nearby Butterfly/Sammy’s Aloha so I decided to get some to go. Really didn’t feel like having s salad or rice with it, just want my poke! I ordered: a large side of poke $ 9.great portion, a small macaroni salad $ 4 rich & delicious, and the spammy tots(forgot the price). I tried everything individually: yum. then decided to mix everything together lol sounds gross I know but DELICIOUS. Will come back. Yum yum yum
Karen A.
Évaluation du lieu : 1 SoMa, San Francisco, CA
We really wants some poke. We got some poke bowls but sadly, we did not enjoy them. The poke did not have a lot of flavor and was very oily. Sammy’s is o my for to-go but there are a few high top tables out back on the dock where you can sit. It restaurant is attached to Butterfly where you can get sushi. Perhaps that would have been a better option. But we really wanted poke.
Julie T.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 San Francisco, CA
Definitely great food here! It’s like a small little reminder of all the foods in Hawaii. I would have wanted way more gravy on the Loco Moco — it was a bummer that it came with so little. Other than that, the rice cake tots were delicious — the flavors were amazing and all the garnish meshed so well together. The Poke Rice bowl was good, too, but it also lacked sauce. I was hoping for a bit more of a punch in flavor. And the Spicy Pork Bao was okay — we could have gone with out it — the bun itself was so super fluffy though(I would definitely want a bunch of the buns themselves without the meat). I’d definitely be back to try more!
Annie T.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 San Francisco, CA
Mm ahi tuna… came here after someone suggested it and I love love love it now! It’s located at pier 33, walking distance to pier 39 attractions. They offer sandwiches, salads and bowls. We ordered an ahi tuna bowl with black sticky rice and a kalua pig bao. We headed out through the back doors and found some tables next to the water. What a beautiful and peaceful place to enjoy our lunch. The combination of the avacado, black sticky rice and ahi tuna was divine! I have never had the sticky rice other than with a Vietnamese dessert/snack. But this is genius! The bao was so good we went back 5 minutes before they closed to order some to go! The bun reminds me of a Chinese pork bun I used to have as a child before school. The pork was sweet, a tad spicy where your tongue is just tingly. Definitely going back! Oh, I will have to try the Vietnamese fusion items…
Abhi M.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 SOMA, San Francisco, CA
Gem of a place in Pier 33. Rob is the man! Get the tuna poke bowl with black rice with egg on top — best thing Ive had in a long time. Super fresh ingredients. The leechi lemonade is amazing!
Jess C.
Évaluation du lieu : 3 San Francisco, CA
Sammy’s is a cute poke restaurant offering take out poke bowls, salads and noodles from the back entrance of Butterfly. The quality, taste, and portion size is better than Blue Hawaiis, but I was a bit underwhelmed. Sammys offers several bowls, I ordered the poke and pork belly — how can you go wrong? The menu combinations sounded much better than they tasted. The black forbidden rice was too hard and even the pork belly was just ok but better than the poke. Must: order poached egg! I may visit again but not for the poke — Pacific Catch is still the best Hawaiian poke I’ve found in SF. Pro-tip: they have outdoor patio seating!
Polina T.
Évaluation du lieu : 3 Rockville, MD
The cashier had a soured look on her face the whole time and was really impatient, which made ordering kind of uncomfortable. I had the ahi tuna poke bowl. They give you a decent amount of tuna for the price, but like another reviewer commented, it was way overseasoned. Even though there was a sizable amount of tuna, all I could taste was salt, other seasoning and green onions. I’ve made better poke at home. If you’re coming here just for the poke, I’d say just go to Mitsuwa, get some fish and make your own. My vegetarian friend really enjoyed the sweet potato curry. Some reviewers said that the location was hard to find because it’s attached to another restaurant. We had no problems finding it as there was a pretty big sign outside. This is mostly a take-out restaurant. They have 3 – 4 small tables on a patio behind the restaurant, overlooking the water. It’s usually full and the patio is a little confusing to find, but the waitstaff of the attached restaurant(Butterfly) were actually really nice and showed us the way. It was clean and the view was nice.
Zoe H.
Évaluation du lieu : 2 San Francisco Bay Area, CA
Never have I ever. been so thoroughly disappointed with a poke bowl. Over-marinated ahi tuna, all I taste are green onions and soy sauce in my poke bowl with poached egg. Poached egg was icy cold, for sure pre-made, but I don’t even want to think how long that poached egg was sitting in the fridge before I got it now. Even the rice tasted shoddy. I’ve given this place two tries, and two times have they wasted my money. Despite being so close to my office, I won’t be coming here for work lunch ever again.
Adam B.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 San Francisco, CA
An oasis of take-away food in an otherwise desolate stretch between the more bustling Ferry Building & Fisherman’s Wharf. It feels like Mixed Plate meets BiBimBap where the main attraction, the bowls, have a whole lot more going on than simlply meat, rice and macaroni salad. Also, feels a tad bougier than traditional Mixed Plate. There are actually a few 2-seater bar tables outside in the back on the pier, so you can dig in immediately if wish. Ahi Poke: Got the small side and it felt like quite a bargain! Tons of chunky raw tuna; an equivalent amount at a sushi joint would cost 2x-4x more. I really liked the sautéed/roasted garlic cutting through the soy base. It was pretty subtle otherwise; I might have preferred more zing. A few cubes tasted a little«fishy», but the rest seemed to be good quality. Spammy Tots: The whole«tot» idea was interesting since it was rice clumped together and then deep fried. The Spam was shaved over like pulled pork. The Rice-to-Spam ratio was a bit high… who’d thought I’d be craving me Spam? Loco Moco Bowl: MASSIVE! A bunch of pulled pork(which doesn’t really taste like it was cooked in an imu) with a well-done dense burger on top. And, for an extra $ 1, a poached egg to ooze all over the black rice. A little bit of macaroni salad to whet your appetite; it was actually really good. My only complaint would be that there was no loco moco gravy, just a light teriyaki glaze. Very filling for the price.
Dara S.
Évaluation du lieu : 3 Daly City, CA
Finally, the day had arrived where I could stop by and check this spot out. I didn’t know this was attached to the Butterfly restaurant. My friend and I have had this place bookmarked since 2014 so this has been long awaited. We ordered the Ahi Tuna Poke bowl, Loco Moco bowl, Loco Moco fries, and the Ahi Tune Poke salad. Everything was pretty delicious. The poke was fresh, I just wished there was more gravy on my loco moco. The cashier wasn’t very welcoming or friendly. And the schedule for this place is a little inconvenient. Minus a star for both of those.
Myan M.
Évaluation du lieu : 1 South San Francisco, CA
Ahi Poke Bowl: NOT even close to what you get in Hawaii. More like Ahi TuNOT bowl. No Ikura and LACKS any flavor. Why are there Jalapeños in this thing!!! WTH. Bao: tasted more like Bao-tthole…what’s that all aBAO?! Meat wrapped in large hard-ass dough. Boooo!!! DONTBELIEVETHEHYPE.
Inge C.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 San Francisco, CA
AHIPOKEBOWLIS A MUSTGET! Their Ahi Poke is well seasoned and taste best when its fresh! I love the black rice a lot more than the white rice for some reason. They also give you big chunks of avocados so this $ 10 bowl is totes worth the price. The dont have seating area, it’s just a small shop on the side of SF Pier 33. But there is a public seating area right behind the Pier, because that’s where people wait for the ferries. Cheers!
Vira P.
Évaluation du lieu : 2 San Francisco, CA
I’ve been wanting to try Sammy’s for awhile, so after reading a good sample of Unilocal reviews, I decided to go and try the ahi with black rice. I was actually disappointed with the ahi poke. The fish had no acidity, and relied on the dressing for flavor. I’m assuming it had wasabi in it because it was spicy and green. I also added an egg to it, and it was good with the rice. The only redeeming quality was that there was a lot of ahi, and for around $ 13 there should be. I know I’m not going to get the ahi poke like I’ve had in Hawaii, but I was hoping this would be close. I would like to go back and try a sandwich and Spam tots.
Steph D.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 San Francisco, CA
POKE. WOW. I was starving and some fresh poke and black sticky rice was exactly what I needed. Wish there was some additional sauce to kick up the flavor, but still good overall. My coworkers got the Loco Moco bowl and they were also pleased– that sucker weighed a ton too so I don’t think you could eat that and still be hungry. The place is very small but there’s(secret) seating out back– just go take a right at the bar and go through the black door. Its next to the water so it was chilly but still a nice view! About 4 tables. I would definitely call my order in next time, as we were 2nd in line but still waited for about 10 mins.
Jeannie L.
Évaluation du lieu : 3 San Francisco, CA
I saw really good reviews and I had some time to take a long lunch from work. It’s located at Pier 33 on the side of Butterfly. The only sign you really see is right above the door. Butterfly totally takes signage domination. It’s a take out only spot. There are no tables, no counters, no frills. You place your order and you wait until they call your name. I ordered the poke bowl($ 10) with the black thai sticky rice along with a bacon, mushroom, truffle bao($ 3). Unfortunately, they were having issues with their bao so they offered to replace it with a pork belly bao, sandwich style. I said ok. The poke bowl had the black thai sticky rice, radish, cucumber, jalapeño slices, salmon roe, poke, green onion. It was pretty good. The rice wasn’t proportional to the poke I received, which seems to be typical among poke bowls in the city. That said, I had rice left over with no more poke to eat with. Besides the salmon roe, I didn’t find it to be particularly special. Bristol Farms or Blue Hawaii Acai Café can give it a fair comparison, if not a better bowl. The bao was stinking cheap for the size. I wasn’t really expecting something so large for $ 3. It was really good. The pork belly was pulled and it was delicious. All that food was too much for one day, so I actually saved the bao for the next day. All in all, I’d come back to try the bao. If I can get that pork belly bao again, I would. Order two and you’ll have a meal.
Arron E.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 Vallejo, CA
It’s a nice change of pace on the pier! Everyone just wants to sell u crabs, chowders, calamari, etc… With that said, this place is delicious and the service is speedy. –The poke has a lot of flavor and the bowls also come with salmon eggs, avocado and also jalapeños — Also had the Poke Salad, I feel like u get more poke with the salad. Parking is a little tough to get around here since it’s pretty close to the wharf. And I wish that you get a little more poke with the bowls. But if it’s your first time trying it here, maybe ask to add for more poke? P. S. You probably won’t see the sign that says Aloha, so look for a sign that says butterfly! Great if your trying to surprise someone cause they’ll never know.
Kathy V.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 San Francisco, CA
Oooh baby I like it raw Yeah baby I like it rawww Oooh baby I like it raw… Got Poke? Nothing but totally freshness What’s Poke? bite size pieces of raw fish doused in seasonings. Poke is the Hawaiian version of the elegant Japanese sashimi. Located inside a hidden Gem, easily missed by driving along the Embarcadero, be aware its right inside towards the side of the restaurant Butterfly. Poke is not only served in this joint but fresh sammiches that include onolicious pork, bbq chicken, fried fish, cheeseburgers and as well as rice bowls. I ended up with a Poke salad-Worth every bite
Patrick L.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 Zürich, Schweiz
Sehr versteckt gelegen über der Tür steht Butterfly take-out. Wir waren da für take away, leider wurde die Bestellung falsch verstanden. Wir wollen Porky Boy umd bekamen Pork Hanoi. Zuerst war ich enttäuscht, aber die Enttäuschung war mit dem ersten Bissen weg. Das Essen ist wirklich super zu einem sehr guten Preis. Man muß aber mit einer Wartezeit bis zum Bestellen und Erhalten des Essens rechnen.
Rosie W.
Évaluation du lieu : 5 Oakland, CA
Sammy’s is the antidote to my chronic ailment, known by the scientific name lunchingatPier39itis. It’s a real disease. Look it up. Enter Sammy’s Aloha. ALOHATOYOU, sir! The lip-smacking Hawaiian-inspired fare includes salads, sandwiches(on milk buns), noodles and rice bowls starring yummy hero ingredients like curried potatoes, teriyaki beef, ahi tuna and the like. There are also few creative sides like a milk bun stuffed with bananas and coconut. All this yumminess comes out of a walk up window out of a side door at Butterfly(and right next to the Alcatraz port). Sammy’s takes a long time. For me, waiting is not good. Waiting hungry makes me a danger to society. But I deduct no stars for the slowness because: a) it’s not their fault they have to repeatedly explain their menu in detail to tourists who have never had Asian food before, and b) there is a solution: it’s called calling ahead. It’s pretty much changed my life. So thank you, Sammy. You are the cure for what ails us up in this culinary wasteland. Also, never leave us. We will stalk you.
Rodney H.
Évaluation du lieu : 4 San Francisco, CA
I consider Sammy’s Aloha to be an nice upgrade to Pan Grill Sandwich Shop when they used the take-out space provided by Butterfly. The food is somewhat similar, but instead of just Asian fusion sandwiches, they upgraded the menu with the inclusion of Rice Bowls and Bao Stuffed Buns. Here’s what I ordered: Bao Stuffed Bun with Kalua style pork spicy gochujang – I know my pic isn’t the prettiest, but the pork inside the bun was really tender and flavorful. I could see myself scarfing down a bunch of these! Ahi Poke Bowl with Egg – I basically ordered the Ahi Poke Bowl mainly because it seems to be their most popular menu item based on all the Unilocal pics of it. So why not order a bowl? I’m not an Ahi Poke expert, but this was pretty good, especially with the runny egg added to it. Had a good balance of flavor with the avocado and roe and the best part was that I didn’t have a fish aftertaste lingering in my mouth after finishing. Their menu is pretty solid and I would come back again to try their other menu items, especially looking forward to trying their Spammy Fries! Give Sammy’s a try if you’re ever walking along the Embaracdero.