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This Prubechu Review is one of our many San Francisco posts and restaurant reviews. If you're keen on trying little known cuisines, this review is for you, as Prubechu is (to our knowledge) the only San Francisco restaurant serving Chamorro food (from Guam and the Mariana Islands).
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Prubechu Location and Hours
Prubechu is located at 2224 Mission Street between 18th and 19th Streets, in San Francisco's Mission District. It's open Wednesdays-Saturdays for lunch from 12 noon-3pm, and for dinner 5-9pm, and on Sundays for brunch from 11am-3pm. We particularly recommend reservations for dinner (via Resy), as it tends to be busy for peak dinner hours 6-8pm, especially on weekends. We liked that there was outdoor dining under a tent, with heat lamps to keep things cozy.
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Prubechu Menu and Food
Chamorro cuisine reflects the Mariana Islands' history, with plenty of Spanish dishes from the islands' centuries as a Spanish possession, as well as Japanese and Filipino influences. The menu held many tempting options, making it difficult for us to decide what to order.
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We shared everything family style, which we highly recommend so as to taste as many different dishes as possible. First to arrive were the Lechen Birenghenas, barbecued eggplant that had been marinated in coconut milk, then finished with lemon, scallions, cherry tomato and caramelized soy sauce. Delicious, although for over $16, we'd have expected a more generous portion of a couple eggplants, not just one.
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The Mushroom and Cheese Empanada was very good, and plenty cheesy with its freshly grated parmesan.
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The BBQ Pork Ribs were excellent, and one of my favorite dishes that we ordered. The nicely charred, marinated exterior contrasted well with the tender meat by the bone.
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My other favorite dish was the Tinaktak, coconut braised beef over handmade egg noodles with mushrooms and cherry tomatoes. Excellent comfort food, although we'd have liked to have seen a slightly more generous serving given its $28 price.
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Our final dish was a Tamale Gisu steamed in banana leaf, with a spicy red cornmeal side and rice-based non-spicy white side, topped with a fried egg. While it was quite filling and I'm glad to have tried it, I'd try other dishes next time.
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The Verdict
Prubechu fills a unique niche in San Francisco and greater Bay Area; after all, when was the last time (if ever) that you sampled Chamorro cuisine? Highlights for us were the Tinaktak (coconut braised beef with egg noodles), BBQ pork ribs and Lechen Birenghenas (eggplant). We did find everything pricier than we were expecting for the serving size; if servings were about a third larger than they were, we'd be far more inclined to go back.
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