My review is for the pamonha only I didn’t order any other food so I will not review them for the other food. Their pamonha is good but they are nothing like the ones we have in Brasil. I personally didn’t like the fact that they add jalapeños to one of the pamonhas, not original at all. The original pamonha is suppose to be a dessert, much sweeter than the ones they make there. So I would not say that this is an original pamonha, but it was good. I think they are trying to make it more like a tamale. The staff is nice, but the place need a little bit more character, it smelled like an old building, It didn’t smell food just cooked like when mom is cooking at home.
Tiffany W.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Alameda, CA
I love pamonhas. Never had it before, but it was amazing. You can’t go wrong with sweet corn and melted cheese.
Alex C.
Rating des Ortes: 4 San Francisco, CA
I came here just recently this April as I had always wanted to check out a local Brazilian food joint. I have heard people and friends int he past tell me that churrascurias and feijoada are amazing culinary dishes but have never really tried Brazilian myself. I would say overall, this restaurant may be local and a hole-in-the wall but after trying the linguica and cheese pamonha, I think the food is quite good and also, the prices are pretty darn fair. The pamonhas actually cost about $ 5 but are really delicious and for tea-time, it will fill-u-up for sure! I ordered the savory type with linguice and queso which definiitely tasted great and the texture was not dry like Mexican tamales. The service was definitely attentive so I wouldn’t know how to agree to the world terrible. The waitress was nice and friendly and as I’ve been to even certain high-end restaurants and after all even those can give bad service at strange times, as anywhere staff service can be bad. It’s just that people might have went at off times. I think overall, the restaurant is good. They probably should get another waiter to help serve guests while the waitress takes orders and that would help tremendously not to mention attract more customers as it eases the efficiency of the restaurant and puts less stress on only one or two persons. The food such as Pamonhas were great and I love them yet I guess it wouldn’t hurt to provide some vinagrette dressng for the salad. Other than that, pretty good so far, good luck guys.
Luiza l.
Rating des Ortes: 5 San Francisco, CA
Majority of people that rated low just don’t know how to appreciate small restaurants with delicious home cooked food. Yes its not meant to an amazing atmosphere, its small and blend like any other south american, large portion, grandma style restaurant. Its those hole in the wall places that the TV shows of food network are about. For the girl that said that it’s not typical Brazilian BBQ, are you Brazilian? I don’ think so, that is typical Brazilian BBQ. Once again, This place is Great.
Brett W.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Pinole, CA
I’ve been passing this place by for a few weeks. I see«Brazilian Tamales» written across the front window. I love tamales. So, yesterday, I went in to try them out. Unfortunately, someone had already bought the days freshly cooked tamales for a party.(Note to owner: start making some more when this happens.) Fortunately, the beef w/onions and the red beans w/rice is really good. We did have the sweet tamale w/cheese. It was the only kind they had left. They were really good too. I will be back to try some of the other menu items and hopefully some Brazilian tamales.
Theresa D.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Daly City, CA
Ordered take out from here one day and they did not have the items I wanted, so I basically asked what they did have. I ended up with their grilled beef, with rice, beans, and some crunchy salty side dish. The portion was huge and more than enough for two people. Also, service is a bit slow.
Amanda E.
Rating des Ortes: 1 San Francisco, CA
I have tried eating at this place many times with no success. It’s always been a problem guessing whether they will close earlier than their regular business hours or stop delivering earlier. Their menu is never available, I have tried ordering ordering pamonhas for about a month and it was never available, I wonder why the place is called Pamonha’s hehehehe At least be respectful to you clientele, and answer the phone during business hours! Just go out of business, you guys are not prepared for it just yet.
Earl G.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Burlingame, CA
Best things to ever come out of Brazil… –Brazilian wax’s –Caipirinihas –Churrascos aka Brazilian BBQ’s and –Pamonhas — aka Brazilian tamales. They’re bigger than Mexican tamales and since they’re made with milk along with corn paste, it’s more moist. Pretty good.( ) * Pamonha a moda $ 4.50 — came with bits of chorizo, green onions, and a queso that’s similar to mozzarella. Pretty unique.( ) All the food tasted homemade, especially their corn and chicken soup which would be perfect for a cold day. $ 4.50( ) If you’re feeling really hungry they have filling daily specials. Try the Bife Acebolado — grilled beef w/onions over garlic rice. A ton of food for $ 11 and the steak was pretty tender..( ) Inside, I felt like I was in Brazil; colorful yellow and green walls, Brazilian people speaking Portuguese, and a TV with Brazilian tv shows — everything except for the caipirinihas. Be sure to ask for the Brazilian hot sauce! Brazilian budget hole in the wall eats. I’ll be back to get more pamonhas.
Lauren B.
Rating des Ortes: 3 San Francisco, CA
Food wasnt bad but wasnt exactly spectacular either. Pamonha was huge and decent. Bife Acebollado came with a whole bunch of side dishes I wasnt expecting since it wasnt listed on the menu but a decent huge meal for $ 10.99. May possibly return.
Clarence A.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Daly City, CA
4 solid stars for bife acebolado = grilled beef wit onions over rice and there signature pamonha’s which is somewhat of yellow corn tamale semi sweet with slice of sausage, cheese, parsley and blended corn. I read the other reviews I unfortunately don’t agree I am no expert on brazillian food I think I have maybe tried around 10 places all have there own perks some were all you can eat the other half were similar to this place offering the primary dishes of bife acebolado I have to say this place out of all the others I have ordered from makes it best, portion wise man food, sides of white rice not the stick rice more lil starchy kind not quite jasmine but close, 3 – 4 slices of deep fried plantains, corn and a decently sized steak I do agree it is a lil oilier but I have to admit it was still good, also they offer beans and salad when ordering one of the main dishes for $ 10.99 The Pamonha’s we sampled was not the fried it was the Pamonha A Moda the ingridents state queijo, linguica, cheiro verde(corn flake salted w/cheese sausage and green onions) every bite did not expect a semi sweet taste, i’m use to a lil bit more saltier taste like when eating tamales, this is in no way the same in any way definitely something you have to try if you come by food **** price $$ lil over 10 service ***** excellent service, friendly, they recommend what they make best, there is an alternate submenu for dinner ambiance ***** super lime green inside so bright, I imagine lots of places in brazil would be as colorful as this place. I will definitely be back for there dinner menu
Surfer S.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Daly City, CA
After seeing the ratings of this place in Unilocal,I was quite excited and I thought this place will knock me off just like the Brazilian food I tried when I was in Disney World in Orlando … but unfortunately, it ends there… The place is like a hole in a wall. The service although a bit friendly was insufficient. We actually had to ask for each little things we supposed to have in the first place(e.g. dressings for our salad). There is nothing really good about the food. In fact the only thing I remember is that the food was pretty bland and nothing really to talked about. I am not a cook but I think I could do better than this…
Chris C.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Daly City, CA
The food certainly doesn’t match up to the bright décor and the bare bones setting gives one a sense of emptiness. I’ve no complaints about the side dishes(nicely cooked rice, corn and beans and a pedestrian tomato and lettuce salad) yet my Bife de frango(marinated grilled chicken w/sauteed onions) and my sis’ Bife de vaca(marinated grilled steak w/onions – reminded me of Filipino bistek) were BOTH dry. not really anticipating greatness from these dishes anyway, I ordered a side of their specialty – the pamonha – and realised I got ripped off. it was a larger version of a tamale yet just as flavorful and with perfectly cooked texture. the sausage tucked inside was just icing on the cake. I envision a return visit just to try it again but next time – without the side of marinated chicken.
Renee S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 San Francisco, CA
freakin amazing!!! every brazilian place ive been to is delish but super expensive. this place was just as good as the other overpriced places-for a quarter of the price. its like going to your brazilian grandmothers house for a sunday meal-hearty and soooo good. yeah the place isnt super fancy and the people arent serving you hand and foot-but F it. if you want someone to say hello to you, go call a friend. if you want to sit in a swanky place, go hang out at a hotel lounge. if you just want some good and reasonably priced food, come here.
Maya S.
Rating des Ortes: 1 San Francisco, CA
I stopped at Pamonha’s on a random weeknight hoping that it would be an amazing meal as this Brazilian restaurant opened fairly recently. While it wasn’t horrible, it was nothing special either. I really value walking into a restaurant and immediately hearing a hello or some kind of welcoming/acknowledgement. At Pamonha’s, I walked in with my sister and while there were no other customers in the restaurant, the three people at the front counter kept chatting it up until I said hi and stood there somewhat awkwardly. We picked a seat and my sister and I looked through the menu. We decided on the Grilled beef w/onions and the Milanese fish plate. Our waitress was actually quite sweet and helpful in explaining the different menu items. However, when she asked what we wanted to drink, we asked for water. The waitress told us that the tap water tastes funny, is bad, yadda yadda and they don’t recommend their customers to order tap. She instead offered mineral water which of course living in the Bay Area, I never order bottled water at restaurants because our water source provides perfectly fine tap water… sales pitch perhaps?! I’m not sure if they just had bad plumbing but we just opted to not order any drinks. Back to the food, our dishes came out with steamed garlic rice, beans, farofa(manioc flour stuff fried in butter), veggies of the day and house special salad. The grilled beef w/onions was good but something I definitely could have cooked at home. The Milanese fish was a deep fried white fish that was also good but again, something that I could have cooked at home. The steamed garlic rice had no essence of garlic at all and tasted like it was cooked with a stick of butter. The farofa had bacon bits it in it but I felt like I was eating bread crumbs or something of that nature. The veggies of the day were corn, green beans, and carrots which were in that not-so-fresh soggy state, hinting at the frozen package they came from. The house special salad was made up of largely torn lettuce leaves and several slices of tomatoes. Not very special. Our waitress didn’t even bother to give us two separate salads, instead she gave us one bowl to share. The only item I really liked on my plate was the beans. They were tasty and had that simmered homey flavor. Overall, I felt really disappointed with the quality of the food here and the so-so customer service. I don’t plan on returning to this restaurant but for those of you interested, the menu also has pamonhas, soups. burgers, and appetizers. I hope that Pamonha’s gets their water fixed or at least provides bottled water free of charge.
Ivy V.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Portland, OR
This place gives Brazil a good name, just like the country soccer team!!! I kinda like Brazil, but still won’t get a Brazilian wax… anytime soon. Ouch! Oh, Kelly Clarkson!!!(yelling in pain) LOL.
Pamonha’s Brazilian Cuisine is great, and fun. Like the country, it’s the only one in a sea of tacquerias and burrito places. Suprising as well, both are near or on a place named Amazon. Odd. I know. Almoco– lunch is served from 10:30 to 3.00PM. Dinner is 3.00 to 10.00PM. Appetizers cost more than the meal. Yes, weird.(11.90 to 9.90) Picanha Na Chapa(grilled beef cuts with onions), Linguica Caipra Frita(Brazilian sausage deep friend) and Franco a Passarinho(Brazilian style chicken deep fried) are examples. Every day plates($ 9.90) are served with steam garlic rice, beans, vegetable of the day, house special salad and farofa(manioc flour fried in butter). The choices of meat are Bife acebolado(grilled beef w/onions), Bife de frango(grilled chicken breast), Picanhs na chapa(top sirloin grilled) and Peixe a milanesa.(Milanese fish). Yes, I can’t pronouned them either. I’m like a blonde that thinks Brazilian is the number over trillion. How much is a Brazilian? I have no clue, what a Milanese fish is, but it taste like. Side Orders are Rice/beans(3.99) meat/chicken(4.50) Day Specials read like this… Monday– Frango ao molho/c angu e quiabo(chicken turmeric sauce, okra and Brazilian polenta) Tuesday– Carne de Panela(beef stew) Wednesday– Frango assado c/bacon(Chicken Breast wrapped in bacon) Thursday– Costelinha de porco frita c/mandioca(pork ribs w/yuca) Friday– Strogonoff(warning: way different than the German type) Saturday– Feijoada completa(black beans w/smoked pork, steam rice, orange and kale) Sunday– Galinhada e lasanha(in short some type of lasagna) The best thing to get is the Pamonhas(corn cakes)($ 3.99 to $ 4.50) Pamonhas are served from 10AM to 10PM. Choices are sweet, salted, meat, salted & A moda fried) this is their best item ‘supposely’. Others treats are Soups(3.99) like Caldo De Feijao(Brazilian bean Soup), Caldo De Peixe(Brazilian fish soup), Sio De Milho Com Franco(corn and chicken soup) there is only one salad and it’s Caesar.($ 4.50) you have to be a stiff to get this, with all the selection of exotic food. It’s like going to a topless beach in Brazil and looking at the ocean. There also served X-Salada(in other words: burgers for $ 450 to $ 7.99) selection are cheese, ham, fried egg, sausage, ham, bacon, onions, pineapple, corn) Desserts($ 3.50) mostly Flan, but has Passion Fruit Mousse. They have the normal drinks, but also check this out: Guarana. At less try it out once. The location is brand new, or looks new. Kinda wish they had more Brazilian decors to lighten the mood. The wall is cover with green. Hmm… Are you saying something there? No checks accepted, but major credit cards accepted here. No worries, the food feels like a carnival in your mouth Overall: food good, place so so, worth trying. CARNIVAL!!!(flash my chest) I want my beads!!! Just joking.
Tiff W.
Rating des Ortes: 2 San Francisco, CA
Food was okay, not like the typically brazilian BBQ, but cost less, flickering lights in restaurant made me nauseous. Very oily, the thing i don’t understand is, why is the main dish $ 10 but a side order of white rice is 3.99. We’re talking about cheap eats here. i wish I could rate this place higher but I did not have a good experience.
J H.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Palo Alto, CA
Wow! I had never had a pamohna before and they are wonderful! Great service, big portions and very reasonably priced for great food. We had the top sirloin plate which was deliciously prepared with onions, plantains, and rice and beans. It also came with a salad. For the pamonhas we tried the sweet, salted and one with sausage and vegetables. We liked the sweet and the sausage ones the best. We learned that they make the sausage themselves. Will definitely return again.