Rise and Shine

Anthony Pidgeon

The New New Thing: Clever Nuevo Latino food lights up La Luna, a charming, lively bistro in the heart of the Mission District.

Anthony Pidgeon

The New New Thing: Clever Nuevo Latino food lights up La Luna, a charming, lively bistro in the heart of the Mission District.

Location Info

Map

La Luna Restaurant

3126 24th St.
San Francisco, CA 94110-4012

Category: Restaurant > American

Region: Mission/ Bernal Heights

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Details

Empanadas -- $7
Seafood tamals -- $8
Hearts of palm and orange salad -- $8.50
Carne asada -- $13.50
Salmon with coconut rice -- $14
Flan Extravaganza -- $6
Medrano Estates malbec -- $5/glass

Open for lunch Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., for dinner Tuesday through Sunday from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. (till 11:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday), and for brunch from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday

Closed Monday

Reservations accepted

Wheelchair accessible

Parking: moderately difficult

Muni: 12, 48, 67

BART

Noise level: moderate to loud

3126 24th St. (at Folsom), 282-7110

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Among them, count an entree that many will consider an old friend: carne asada. At its worst, carne asada can be as dry as grilled rawhide. At the other end of the spectrum, you get La Luna's version -- a sheet of juicy, tender, flavorful top sirloin served with rich, smoky black beans and crunchy tortilla strips. Here, the Nuevo Latino touch was light; atop the asada sat a classic roasted tomato salsa and a dusky ancho chile aioli. A nudge was all it took to elevate the familiar to the extraordinary.

Normally, you get three dessert choices at La Luna, but if 21 people order just before you do, you may get only one. It happened to us, but things worked out just fine: The remaining option, sol y luna, consisted of a dense, moist crescent of bittersweet chocolate cake topped with a dab of sultry dulce de leche and one of the shortbread and caramel cookies known as alfajores, the whole accompanied by fresh raspberries, raspberry sauce, and slices of tart kiwi. It was so good that I went back the following night to try another dessert -- Flan Extravaganza. As the name implies, this ain't your mother's flan. A firm, creamy custard rested on a sol y luna- esque bittersweet chocolate cake capped with whipped cream and chocolate and raspberry sauces. According to Odette, the chocolate cake overlap will soon be remedied, but it didn't bother me one bit. After all, offering two versions of the same excellent pastry is better than serving 10 different mediocre ones, and it would take more than a little repetition on the dessert menu to eclipse an operation as promising as this.