Tao Yin Restaurant

3.0 star rating
110 reviews Rating Details

Categories: Sushi Bars, Chinese, Japanese  [Edit]

3515 20th St
(between Mission St & San Carlos St)
San Francisco, CA 94110
Neighborhood: Mission
(415) 285-4926
Price Range:
$
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Street
Attire:
Casual
Good for Groups:
Yes
Good for Kids:
Yes
Takes Reservations:
No
Delivery:
Yes
Take-out:
Yes
Waiter Service:
Yes
Outdoor Seating:
No
Good For:
Dinner
Alcohol:
No
Noise Level:
Average
Wheelchair Accessible:
Yes

Review Highlights   

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"...I'd get the duck and Jim would get a spicy tuna hand roll." (in 2 reviews)
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"...order takeout from here AT least once a week if not more." (in 3 reviews)
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"...because I knew there would be at least one happy lunch box." (in 4 reviews)
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110 reviews in English

  • Review from Jason H.

    •  
    • 9 friends
    • 11 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    10/14/2011

    This review is for delivery only. The food I have received is always good middle-of-the-road sushi. It arrives fresh (or hot), and is good enough to keep me coming back for more. Though ordering can be an ordeal over the phone, so I recommend ordering online.

    The prices are average for a sushi place, and the proportions seem reasonable. I really don't have any rants or raves about this place. It's always good, though there have been a few occasions when they mixed up my order or forgot an item. I've had better, and I've had worse, but this place keeps me coming back because I know what I'll be getting.

    Delivery time - 3 stars
    Food quality - 4 stars
    Service - 2 stars
    Prices - 3 stars

  • Review from Mina L.

    •  
    • 0 friends
    • 6 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    Updated - 11/22/2011

    I will never order from them again. Keep in mind, i was a LOYAL customer, ordering in at least once a week for the family, if not occasionally more. We order the same thing everytime, and they even became to know us and our order when I call in and give my address.

    I called in to order the same as usual, and they sent me beef chow fun instead of beef fried rice. When I called in to explain they sent me the wrong order, he went on to say I did not order fried rice, i ordered chow fun. Keep in mind, I never even knew what chow fun was until they sent me this order, so how could I have accidentally ordered this? I told him i'm a loyal customer and always order the same thing, but he kept on insisting that I did not order that, and if i wanted that resent, I would have to pay for it.

    I've never been disrespected more in my life. I told him I would simply dispute the charge on my card if the replacement wasn't sent to me free of charge. Of course when it came to his money, he said fine, and hung up on me. 30 mins later the rice came and they took the chow fun.

    I will NEVER order from them again in my life.

    Was this review …?

    1 Previous Review: Show all »

    • 1.0 star rating
      10/8/2010

      I called in today (just a few minutes ago) to request an order for delivery. He put me on hold and… Read more »

  • Review from Dina G.

    •  
    • 13 friends
    • 148 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    2.0 star rating
    Updated - 9/19/2011

    Sorry, but Tao Yin has really gone downhill. They were always my go-to place for cheap, fast sushi, but every time it takes longer and longer. Today, it took 1 hr and 35 minutes!!! That is absolutely unacceptable! And on top of that, they gave me the wrong item.

    The whole reason I use grubhub is to avoid misunderstandings and having to talk on the phone. So, grudgingly, I call to get them to send me the correct item. But they won't send me my actual order, because their driver is unavailable.

    Oh, and they won't give me a credit to my account, either, because.... I really don't know why. He suggested I just remind them the next time I order that they owe me. Orly? That'll work. I told him to please send me the right order or charge back my credit card. "Maybe tomorrow," he replied.

    I'd even given more than a 20% tip, too. :-(

    Sorry, Tao Yin. Your sushi is definitely not good enough to warrant this hassle. No more tries for you.

    I leave an extra star because, despite the average-ness of the sushi, the price and FORMERLY speedy delivery USED  to be worth it. It is my star of hope. For the love of god get another driver! And double-check your orders! Sheesh.

    Was this review …?

    1 Previous Review: Show all »

    • 4.0 star rating
      4/21/2009

      I swear they give me an entire fish each time I order sashimi delivered. Two orders of saba and it's… Read more »

  • Review from Celina G.

    •  
    • 0 friends
    • 1 review

    SOMA, San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    1/3/2012

    PLEASE whatever you do , do  NOT i mean NOT go eat here. I used to love coming to this place thinking it was nice and clean and good food unitl this past Sunday. My friend and i are about to finish our dinner when we see a cat walking underneath our talbe. WTF is that??? Dude they had their pet cat in the restaurant walking in and out the damn kitchen and through the restaurant. Sniffing on the food on the tables. Thats just some sick crapp.The waitress saw it and did absolutly NOTHING about it.  I'm  extemly allergic to cats over that. I swear it pisses me off to have seen that. Health inspectors on their ass ASAP!!!!!! Man i swear im not trying to hate but that was just not right at ALL!!!!
    DO NOT EAT HERE!!!!!!!

  • Review from Lyz L.

    •  
    • 82 friends
    • 39 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    1/10/2012

    I ordered from them on Christmas and NYE.  The food was always excellent.  The service polite and efficient.  AND they took a last minute order for my staff on NYE and delivered enough food for 40 people in a short span of time.  Really came through big time.  Definitely making them my go-to Chinese food spot.

  • Review from Jack H.

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    • 1 friend
    • 7 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    1/9/2012

    Great food. Great prices. Great service.

  • Review from Nicole M.

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    • 0 friends
    • 14 reviews

    Oakland, CA

    2.0 star rating
    12/6/2011

    I've gone here many time and food is marginal at best.  If you ask for no MSG it's flavorless and flabby.

    Last time I went there I saw a cat roaming around freely in the kitchen.  That's concerning.

  • Review from Chelsea M.

    •  
    • 8 friends
    • 37 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    7/13/2011

    Absolutely HORRIBLE. I received a flyer in the mail and was excited - looked like a great menu and was only 2 miles away. My boyfriend and I called to order $60 worth of food (lots!)

    I was /barked/ at on the phone. They did not take my name - just my phone number, address, and credit card number. They hung up on me as I asked how long the wait would be. My concern grew.

    45 minutes ticked by. I called and asked how much longer. He yelled that the driver was on the way and hung up on me. He did not ask for my address or phone number - I'm pretty sure he would have shouted this answer to anyone who called.

    I look at my credit card statement online at this point and note that they have already charged my order.

    15 more minutes and I call again. He says he'll call the driver and call me back - then hangs up.

    15 MORE minutes and my boyfriend calls. They tell him the food is 10 minutes away. 10 more minutes and the driver calls to be let into the building. His cell had terribad reception.

    We finally got the food and (are we really surprised at this point?) the order was wrong. Cashew chicken was cashew shrimp, pork egg rolls were veggie egg rolls, and there was no white rice. The food was bland and mushy - like it had been sitting for the hour and a half it had.

    What. The. Fuck.

    Absolutely terrible experience - will never order from there again.

  • Review from Priyan P.

    •  
    • 39 friends
    • 41 reviews

    San Jose, CA

    3.0 star rating
    5/17/2011

    Running a low fever, and having walked home from the BART station in the pouring rain (all the while slowly losing the will to live) i ascended the stairs to my apartment. I was greeted by the usual assortment of mail - bills, netflix, other junk.. among them a over-colored-multipage menu that reminded me of a grade-schooler's mail-order book catalog.  

    Immediately i was confused as the front page displayed sushi, yet most of the inner pages were Chinese dishes.  I dropped the menu on the coffee table, along with my laptop bag and picked up an umbrella.  I took two steps down the hollow wooden stairwell before I recognized that any sense of temerity in bounding through the Mission in search of dinner tonite had vanished for the evening.  I scaled the two steps back to my living room and staggered onto the sofa, staring blankly into space for a time before picking up the menu/catalog.  

    As I also began to feel tired and increasingly unsociable, i noticed that the menu for Tao Yin had Free Delivery and Online ordering. good enough - done & done.  I bungled through registration and ordering on my iphone and 1hr 05mins later (-1 star) i was eating fairly decent Chicken and Cream Corn soup, Mongolian Lamb with rice on a otherwise miserable day.

  • Review from Tony H.

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    • 5 friends
    • 17 reviews

    San Diego, CA

    5.0 star rating
    10/14/2011

    5 stars! I read some unflattering reviews about this place.. But  i was hungry one night.. Back from san diego forthe weekend and had no idea what to eat.. Thought back of the times i use to grub at the restairant and decided to see how bad the deliveryservice was. It took 20 min max! I just got out of the shower and the doorbell rang. Food bomb as always with more meat than i was expecting. Tao Yin.. Stay classy. I will order again when i am back.

  • Review from Marcus M.

    •  
    • 23 friends
    • 62 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    10/28/2011

    Solid in-restaurant food. I got the platter plus some sweet-and-sour. There was tea, of course. Nothing gourmet here, but definitely the sort of place I'd go when I arrive way too early for my social call.

  • Review from Javin L.

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    • 2 friends
    • 4 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    11/10/2011

    Not superb food.  I ordered the sashimi + teriyaki chicken + california roll bento box.  Everything tasted fine, but you can sort of tell the quality is weak.  You might as well spend a few dollars more and visit one of the many great Japanese places around SF.

    I don't really plan on coming back; there are so many other great restaurants around the Mission to go to.

  • Review from Jim F.

    •  
    • 6 friends
    • 2 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    7/2/2011

    Cheap, delicious and they deliver!!! Being broke had hampered my sushi itch until I found this little gem, and now I wouldn't bother going to a more expensive place even when i do have the bucks!

    Their 49'er  roll is the fkn BOMB!!

    They also have a reasonable lunch special with miso soup included and they give you a free CA roll with purchase of $20.

  • Review from Eric G.

    •  
    • 42 friends
    • 13 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    1/8/2011 9 Check-ins Here

    Cheap. Reliable. Quick. Greasy.

    Most of the business is takeout / delivery, but it's a perfectly nice place to sit down and have your meal as well.

    I get takeout from here at least twice a month and I'm usually served tea while I'm waiting. Plus one star just for that.

    The menu has both Chinese and Japanese basics, which usually means that I don't trust either, but Tao Yin does both reasonably well.

    Note that the sign over the street is not lit and you won't notice it.

  • Review from Clifford L.

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    • 62 friends
    • 196 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    10/18/2010

    It's categorized as pre-vintage '80's semi-hole in the wall, now neighborhood, not greasy spoon restaurant, past on the verge. . .

    It was bad legs day, so calling for delivery and order by heart because I cannot find the menu:  partially in Chinese.  .  .

    Mongolian 3 Combo, with the little chili pepper in the margin
    Asparagus Chicken [not on the menu]
    Seafood Hong Kong style noodles (also not on the menu)
    BBQ Pork soft Omelette (not on the menu)
    Curried Lamb, omit tofu.
    Free Potstickers.

    GOOD-2-GO !  And, must have been chicken clearance day, or my Chinese was particularly impressive over the phone.  Big slabs of chicken dominated two of the dishes.  -and gobbs -0- beef, lamb, and about 6 eggs in the omelette.  U better brush up on your Chinese!

    enuff 4 7.5 re-heats, mixxen match, all for me,

    C

  • Review from Cindy T.

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    • 0 friends
    • 2 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    9/19/2011

    The best place for a authentic meal. Owners are amazing and creative with their dishes. Definitely one of my favorite places to go. Dining in is the way to go. Beautifully decorated and has a cozy feel. The food is awesome and cheap!

  • Review from Ali H.

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    • 4 friends
    • 6 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    9/17/2011

    My good was 20 minutes late; the miso soup was cold.  I won't order from this restaurant again.

  • Review from Joline R.

    •  
    • 29 friends
    • 177 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    2/23/2011

    I came here twice & its because of the convenience of it being around the corner from my mobile provider.  The price is reasonable.  They have both Chinese & Japanese food.  

    The last time I came in, I placed my order to go, went to AT&T & came back.  My food was still not ready.  I ordered a combo of shrimp, chicken & beef.  There were about 3 pieces of shrimp & tons of veggies.  Then I found hair!  The end of my meal.

  • Review from A K.

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    • 32 friends
    • 184 reviews

    Brooklyn, NY

    3.0 star rating
    7/29/2010

    The chinese food here gets the job done. It tastes good, is cheap, and they deliver.

    But do not, I repeat do not, order the sushi. There is one thing I can't seem to learn about cheap sushi - it's cheap! I didn't even finish my order.

    So Chinese - yes, Sushi -no.

  • Review from Veronica S.

    •  
    • 2 friends
    • 3 reviews

    Daly City, CA

    1.0 star rating
    1/19/2011

    Worst delivery experience ever.
    It took nearly 2 hours for our food to arrive and every time we called to see where they were, the only answer we got was "its on the way". Mind you, we called at the 40 minute mark so that means our food was "on the way" for an hour. No apology for being late... nothing.
    The rice was cold and rock hard, I am guessing it was made yesterday, and the miso soup was awful... not just kinda bad... absolutely awful.
    I am severely disappointed and will never use this place again.
    If you like bad food that takes forever to get then this is your place.

  • Review from Trisha L.

    •  
    • 3 friends
    • 35 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    9/16/2010

    For what you pay for this is as good as it gets. They deliver for free and you can order online so that's a winner in itself. Not to mention if you spend $20 or more they give you free food. Who doesn't love free food?!

    The sashimi wasn't bad but it's hard to get that wrong (I had 7 peices for $7). The walnut prawns were good but pretty fishy, it was plentiful and around $9. I ordered the chow fun, which was probably the worst of the dishes but edible. I could just be my preferences but I didn't like the texture so for only $7, try it yourself.  And that all came with a free box of california rolls that were not bad at all. You'd think with the free food they'd get frugle, but that wasn't the case.

    But I have to say when the delivery guy came, he called me down to get my food and he was down right rudely yelling at me to come down. I should be pretty bothered but sadly for cheap chinese take-out, you take the abuse.

  • Review from Andrew K.

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    • 504 friends
    • 2457 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    9/2/2010

    I thought it was barely edible.
    The tea was room temperature.
    The restaurant was stuffy (it was a rare hot day in SF and they had no AC) and smelled foul.
    Flies were buzzing around everywhere
    The cashew chicken was not white meat, even though I asked for it. And the cut was awful - ligamenty as Hell.
    Awful.

  • Review from C. M.

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    • 6 friends
    • 21 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    8/5/2011

    Wow seems like all the others on here have had similar experiences.  We ordered from them on eat 24 hours (great site once they heard about this screw up they refunded my money and apologized it wasnt even their fault !  great service!!!!)   however these are the laziest people ever got the order wrong called when it was delivered way of an hour later and they said sorry we will get you food tomorrow.  i want the food i paid for over 50 bucks not boxes of rice....WTF...boxes of f----ing rice how do you screw that up we paid for dinners and got nothing but rice wow horrible.

  • Review from Rohan D.

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    9/9/2010 1 Check-in Here

    Cheap chinese food that delivers and gets you a free order of fried rice of $20. What else is there to ask for? Order rice separately (such a rip).

    The chicken was good, not too greasy and just the right bite down and it split aparts and tastes delicious in your mouth feel that I love with my chicken.

    The restaurant was nice, quiet, and right across from Mission Comics (the reason why I went).

  • Review from Cora L.

    Seattle, WA

    4.0 star rating
    7/18/2010

    This place gets the job done.  I've only ever ordered for delivery, but I can tell you that I've never gotten sick, they consistently deliver in LESS time than they quote, and they always get the orders right.  Yeah, the food shows up warm too.

    The Japanese food here is WAY better than some other delivery places I've tried, but not better than any bland, cheap sushi that you'd pick up at an inexpensive restaurant or Japanese market.  

    The Chinese food is pretty good.  When I order the Hong Kong panfried noodles, I can tell that they make an effort to keep at least half of the noodles from getting soggy.  It works.  I'm totally gratetful.

  • Review from Susan H.

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    • 13 friends
    • 7 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    3/6/2010

    Tao Yin IS "as good as it gets" when it comes to no-frills chinese takeout when you are lazy on the weekday, weekend, buzzed OR hungover.  they are fast, cheap and very tasty!  My roommate and I live only a couple blocks away and order takeout from here AT least once a week if not more....

    It's not fancy schmancy so I often walk here in my pjs.  Don't judge!

    Go to Dishes that never disappoint:
    Braised Noodle with Hot Sauce
    - I never stray from this dish cuz it is the best spicy noodles ever!
    Hot & Spicy Chicken
    - my roommate's favorite dish.  she goes there so often they have given her random free stuff and has been given a nickname by the cantonese cook along the lines of "well-endowed"  HA!

    Best Chinese Cheap Eats EVER!

  • Review from Pedro C.

    •  
    • 0 friends
    • 6 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    7/30/2011 25 Check-ins Here

    Good food, especially the california rolls

  • Review from Matt H.

    •  
    • 340 friends
    • 69 reviews

    Berkeley, CA

    1.0 star rating
    4/25/2009

    "So how's it look?"

    "I'm not sure what I'm looking at."

    "That means bad."

    She bites into the complimentary eggroll.

    "Oh my god, honey, I actually heard the grease squirt out into your mouth. Are you ok?"

    "Uh, yeah.  It's... an eggroll.  Um, maybe I'll try my dish."

    She opens a "Mandarin Chicken" which looks identical to a plate of IHOP Buffalo Wings but smells much much worse.

    "My garlic chicken tastes like someone froze it two or three times this week.  It smells like fish and chicken and pork and maybe a little sweat.  I'm going to skip it.  Thank god I got the Chicken Fried Rice... something impossible to fuck up."

    I open the container and I am sideswiped into a memory of my Jr. High School locker room.

    "This smells like socks.  Old socks soaked in sugar."

    "Should I throw this stuff away?"

    "Since you don't have an incinerator, yes, that's going to have to do."

  • Review from Laura W.

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    • 246 friends
    • 173 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    7/26/2009

    No way... I thought this place would have GREAT Yelp reviews!  I've never been to the actual restaurant, so this review is based on delivery only.

    They have Japanese and Chinese sides to their menu, which is great when you want some of both.  I work in Potrero Hill and often have to order delivery just to survive my shift.  Tao Yin is the only menu we have that has a $12 delivery minimum (and free delivery).  At most places you have to order $15 or $20 worth of food at least.

    The people who answer the phones are a little annoying, they rush you and often hang up before I can ask how long the wait will be.  But they've always gotten my order right - the food arrives within about 40 minutes very reliably, it's still very hot, and the delivery guys are always quiet but friendly.  

    I've basically enjoyed everything I've tried from here.  Granted, it's nothing fancy, but it's tasty.  I've had their tempura (shrimp & vegetables), chow mein, General Tao's chicken, some duck thing, dumplings, Happy Lunch Box A (chicken terriaki, rice, salad, CA roll, + tempura), and also Kung Pow chicken (which I didn't like - but, it was my first time trying that dish so I have nothing with which to compare it)...

    P.S. I don't know if this says anything, but my boyfriend is Chinese and he loves it too.  He doesn't order the General Tao's crap like I do; he orders the authentic stuff and says it's great.

  • Review from mynameisdavid m.

    •  
    • 9 friends
    • 49 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    1.0 star rating
    5/25/2007

    There is a place on Mission, somewhere around 18th, that an impecunious friend and i call "cheap chinese" because they sell what looks like week-old leftovers from other chinese restaurants for about $0.99 per entree--that's a whole takeout box packed full of whetever beastly looking pile of offal you choose, for a buck.  And i used to think eating that stuff was dodgy...

    Last night I ordered from Tao Yin.  Now, i will eat just about anything, and if it's cheap, all the better.  I would never expect "good" food from a Chinese/Japanase delivery place.  But for 8 bucks, i would expect the General Tso's chicken not to look and taste worse than the festering refuse i could get for 99 cents on Mission.  I threw most of it away.  And just as an aside, this was the first time i had ever seen zucchini in general tso's chicken.  brown, soggy zucchini.  i mean, really?  find some zucchini sitting around the kitchen going putrid and just toss it in?

    I also ordered the combination appetizer platter to meet the $12 minimum.  I am certain beyond any doubt that the bits of fried odds and ends had in fact been sitting around for at least a couple of days.  They were disgusting, but i did eat them all.  When i'm hungry, i am not a picky eater.

    The person i ordered from over the phone was about as personable as a dying warthog, the food took an hour and twenty-five minutes, instead of the forty-five i was told, and did not come with any napkins, utensils, condiments, or the rice that i ordered and paid for.

  • Review from b h.

    •  
    • 175 friends
    • 134 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    1/19/2007

    I've called Tao Yin for years- ten plus to be exact.  They have been a staple for me and past roomates as a pretty reasonable place for Americanized-Chinese take out.  Yes It may not be all authentic, but for my taste it suits fine call it "Chinese food for white people" as the cliched term we've become all too familiar with on Yelp.  

    They have a take out menu with Chinese entrees and on the reverse side Japanese food.  So here's my weird story. Delivery requires a $12 minimum order, I decided I'd call in an order and pick it up myself,  my order fell a couple bucks under the minimum and I didn't want to force myself to over order any food.  The total came to about $9.25 so I went in picked up my food, signed my receipt leaving the tip amount blank since I figured I was servicing myself by picking it up.    I checked my bank records on-line and see that the total charge was bumped up to $11.10 hmmmm? I didn't recall reading that on the receipt so I figured that they must have wrote the tip in themselves before processing the transaction.  

    This made me think, yes I always tip for delivery, and eating in, but what about calling in and picking it up for yourself? I mean you don't tip the drive thru or the counter guy at KFC, this is no fancy smanczy establishment it's basically Chinese fast food.  It's not a big deal that I'm out a buck eighty five.  It's the principal that they wrote it in  themselves...just wrong!  It feels like the whole ass outta you and me scenario. I think I learned my lesson in not leaving that Field "blank" for someone else to fill in.

    UPDATE: Restaurant charges on credit cards automatically authorize for a percentage over the food charge.  In this case, it looks like 20%.   Final charges on the card were $9.25. So the tip WAS NOT written in...my apologies for the above rant...  I wasn't aware of the whole "pending" amount figures...learn something new every day I tell ya! Special thanks to Joan S. for informing me of this.

  • Review from Janell Y.

    •  
    • 39 friends
    • 91 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    10/16/2008

    This place is VERY convenient when it's late and you're craving sushi soooo bad you don't know what to do.

    I can't really rate the Chinese food they serve because I have yet to order it but it's not like you can expect it to be THE SHIT and by THE SHIT you know I mean 5 star restaurant quality. Well that doesn't really make sense but I mean c'mon, the place delivers late AND they deliver sushi. There's just no room to complain about it.

    I ordered the dragon roll and I've had better but it was good enough for me. My co-eaters ordered the sashimi combo and prawns in black bean sauce. From what I heard from them, the sashimi combo was delish and the prawns in black bean sauce we're okay. They said they take 45 mins to deliver and they live up to their word.

    As I type right now, my roommate and I just ordered a Bento with a california roll, chicken katsu and tempura, sashimi combo and spicy tuna roll and a crunchy roll. I can't wait..

    They told us 45 mins but they fucken came in 15-- B-E-A-UTIFUL.
    Time to eat! YESSSSSSSS!

  • Review from Daniel S.

    •  
    • 52 friends
    • 41 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    10/19/2009

    UPDATE: I ordered delivery from Tao Yin for the first time last night and can not recommend it - so slow some of the food was cold. I'll continue to eat here on a regular basis, but only takeout and dine-in.

    --
    Count me among the 46% of Yelp reviewers who are fans of Tao Yin.  For those who gave this place 1 or 2 stars, what were you expecting?!

    My boss and I get takeout from Tao Yin at least once a week, and sometimes as often as three times.  It's cheap (lunch specials are $5.95-6.50) and tasty.  I've dined in before, and while service can be a bit slow, they are friendly and the place is clean.

    My favorite dishes: Kung Pao Prawns/Chicken, Mongolian Three Combo, Basil Chicken/Beef, Spicy Garlic Fried Rice, and Happy Lunch Box B (Cal Roll, Salmon Teriyaki and Tempura).

  • Review from lawrence N.

    •  
    • 0 friends
    • 3 reviews

    Pittsburg, CA

    5.0 star rating
    10/24/2011

    Good Comfort food for a good price, plus they have good specials

  • Review from Dani D.

    •  
    • 133 friends
    • 524 reviews

    Northern, CA

    3.0 star rating
    8/1/2007

    I give this place 3 stars for having a large menu.I mean have you seen it?

    I thought this place was ok,nothing special.Since the menu is rather large you can try many things out.I will try it again,even though I  wasn't too pleased before.

    Food was ok.I think I will order something different.

  • Review from Taylor S.

    •  
    • 55 friends
    • 118 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    3.0 star rating
    7/20/2009

    I think you are the archetypal Chinese take-out restaurant.

    You are greasy, salty, usually at the wrong temperature and probably loaded with MSG, but I can count on you to give me my take-out fix every time. Oh yeah, and you throw in free chow mein or fried rice when I spend over $20.

  • Review from ameer n.

    •  
    • 34 friends
    • 792 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    5.0 star rating
    3/21/2011 1 photo

    best chinese food in the mission. i cannot comment on the japanese portion of the menu.

    coming from the sunset, and an abundance of chinese restaurants, i've been looking for a mission equivalent. i've found it.

    it's not "cool" to eat at tao yin, which makes this place all the more better to me.

  • Review from Vincent L.

    •  
    • 119 friends
    • 115 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    10/19/2006

    Yeah, the food isn't that great, but it is cheap chinese takeout/delivery - which there doesn't seem to be many of around the mission district.

    Grab a full dinner for two for less then $20.

    On taste: 2-3 starts
    On price: 4 stars
    On selection: 5 stars

  • Review from Brandi C.

    •  
    • 2 friends
    • 46 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    2.0 star rating
    10/1/2011

    Never again! Should have heeded the other yelp reviewer's warnings... delivery took almost 2 HOURS. We got Chinese and Sushi- my husband said the Chinese food was good (which is why they get 2 stars instead of 1), but the sushi was terrible. I don't think they even made sushi rice, it seemed like it was just steamed rice stuck to some seaweed. It fell off at the slightest touch, and had no flavor. Had to eat my food with my hands because I couldn't use chopsticks! And the fish was questionable. I threw away most of my food. Still hungry, after waiting almost 2 hours for my dinner. Lame. Money wasted.

  • Review from goolie g.

    •  
    • 84 friends
    • 46 reviews

    San Francisco, CA

    4.0 star rating
    12/3/2007

    I work about 3 blocks away from Tao Yin and eat lunch here once or twice a week, for that past 3 years.  So i know it pretty well.

    The sushi is OK; not great, but it's not horrible either, and as others have said it's cheap.  

    For lunch, I usually get the Mongolian 3 combo, which is lamb, chicken, and shrimp with a spicy brown sauce.  I think it's delicious.  Other regular dishes I get that I like:  chicken chow mein, black bean fish.  I've had the general's chicken and think it's decent.  

    I've found the service to be very friendly and responsive.

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