Urban Picnic

Friendly people working there. Nice looking place. I’m not even the insufferable sort of Unilocaler. But how do you make a Vietnamese style sandwich taste so bland? And at that price? Won’t be returning. But hey, a Jones Soda fountain. That’s kinda cool, and if they had green apple I’d stop by now and again just for that. The soda fountain shouldn’t be the most exciting thing in an eatery, unless you are Burger King. Step up the flavor.

Decent service, relatively clean, and right downtown.
The soup, their signature dish, is a nice warm meal to eat in chilly San Francisco. Other side dishes though aren’t really good, and it’s maybe a bit overpriced.

I should have known by the lack of customers during the lunch rush that this place was no good. I came in and got the Siracha Lime Chicken sandwich which was filling I’ll give them that but the chicken was dry and tasteless it wasn’t put together properly and to top it off I don’t feel as if I got my money’s worth. The sandwich was 8.50 $ but it had the flavor of a day old 5 $ sandwich. And the customer service is non existent. True, it only took them a few minutes to make (probably why it tasted old, it must have been sitting out) but the woman who rang me up acted like I was bothering her like she had better things to do. I probably won’t be coming back unless every resurant and food establishment within a 10 block radius closes and even then I’ll settle for leftovers from home.

You pay 12 dollars for tiny bowl of phở that taste barely better than home made.
The chicken taste old. And the mints are old and withered.

Ate here for lunch and went with the 5-​spice chicken bowl with quinoa. I loved the flavor but wished they mixed the bowl for me. But it was good overall and it’s in a convenient location to my office, i might go there every now and then but not on a regular basis.

Don’t order the 5 spice chicken sandwich. The chicken tastes like it’s boiled. They probably made broth out of the meat. Then took the meat out and threw some spices on it and put it into my sandwich. It definitely was not good.

I came here twice this past week and had the same dish– phở with extra topping of 5 spice chicken.
The first time was good– good enough that I had it again on June 4.
Big mistake.
I had food poisoning after lunch which resulted in a fever, chills, vomiting and diarrhea all last night.
Never again

I should’ve seen the warning signs — the «California Vietmanese» label, the non-​Asian clientele, and the expensive prices. But I was desperate for some phở and against my better judgment, I paid a visit to Urban Picnic. The beef phở I ordered was actually chicken soup base with poorly cooked noodles and some beef on top. The flavor was completely off and using chicken broth is an unacceptable shortcut.
While the food was terrible, at least Urban Picnic is beautifully decorated, food comes out quickly, and there’s plenty of nice outdoor seating. Even though the restaurant is in the same building that I work in, I will never go back.

Urban disappointment. Pack your own picnic lunch instead, you’ll be much more pleased with the results.
The Five Spiced Chicken was a large container that consisted mostly of sprouts and brown/​gray chicken, what a huge let down, given that better lunch options are needed in this section of town.

Beef phở review
Chicken broth was ok.
Beef was meh.
Noodles undercooked
Broth was not hot enough-​had to microwave 2 mins.
11.00…sorry only when I really really really need phở while at work.

I’m eating my Tofu Sriracha bahn mi while writing this. Overall, it’s just OK. The bread is too hard but it could be that I went to ‘lunch’ at 2:30 p.m. — if they get bread fresh daily.
The unsettling thing is the wrapped sandwich had a horrible, musty, dish rag like smell. I didn’t realize until I was back at the office that it was my sandwich. It seemed to just be the outside wrap. The inside paper and the sandwich didn’t smell of it.
Maybe just don’t put dish cloths on or near the sandwich paper.
I’ll try again some day around the real lunch time and see if the bread is any better.

Like many other reviewers, I feel slightly underwhelmed — it was ok, but not great. I’d come back if I’m desperate for something super quick & close.
Chicken Phở — $ 10 (incl tax)
Pros: quick service, broth was OK (could use a pinch more salt to help the flavors come out a bit more), portions are decent, fresh ingredients, you can grab as many/​few limes + jalapeño peppers as you’d like, super close (I work in the same building)
Cons: noodles were either too thick or there were too many of them — I feel like they made the soup more bland, too much pepper on the chicken, not your traditional phở, more expensive than traditional phở
Overall I probably wouldn’t go here again, but I’m warm and my belly is full. I’m not a fan of the extra green onion and (I think) dried onions they put in with the chicken and noodles. If I get a craving for soup again, I’ll probably walk to Soup Freaks or Wise Sons. And there’s no way I’d pay $ 10 for a bahn mi when DragonEats has $ 6 ones down the street (and they’re delicious!).
Maybe I’ll try their breakfast so I’m not comparing them to more traditional Vietnamese places or my other soup favorites.

I went here with a group of coworkers and were full of excitement and hope for a phở place in our building, especially given that this part of SoMa practically lacks any phở place to go to.
Unfortunately, the lack of other phở places around doesn’t forgive the misgivings of this place. Price and quality. Yes this is SoMa, but $ 10 for phở? Let alone the bahn mi sandwiches and bowls are also in the $ 9 – 10 range, comparatively places like DragonEats which is a block away is $ 6 for banh mi or bowl.
Now a high price like this could be justified if the phở was exceptional. Unfortunately it isn’t that great. Our group consisting of asians, whoo love asian food, can definitely attest that the lack of authenticity (beef phở using chicken broth?) and flavor (tasted like chicken soup with overcooked beef) just didn’t justify the price despite where it is.
For positives I can say that this place is clean, fast, and efficient. While it might not satisfy those of us accustomed to authentic phở, it at least brings some variety to this part of soma.

Unfortunately, the pros do not outweigh the cons with this place.
Banh mi sandwich. I’ve had MANY of them at MANY establishments. I’m pretty much a banh mi aficionado. UP’s was literally the smallest one I’ve ever been served. It’s pretty much the size of a hot dog. The bread WAS really good… but it’s small. AND — inside, the ratio of pork-​to-​filling was definitely scrimpy. Very little pork, especially when compared to the amount of bun. I will give them props for an interesting nice-​tasting «slaw» under the pork. But really — that’s what I was mostly tasting… the bread and the slaw. The pork was fine… shredded and cooked nicely… just not nearly enough of it.
Combine this with a pretty long wait to order the sandwich, AND a pretty long wait to receive the sandwich. AND — it was $ 9.52, for just a sandwich.
I had been looking forward to incorporating this place into my lunch rotation, but I see no reason to go back… especially when practically next door is a Lee’s Deli, that will make an acceptable banh mi for under $ 6… plus there’s the food truck park just a block south that often has delicious banh mi that’s worth the $.
Just disappointed, dangit.

I am loving this place! So glad it opened. The phở is really tasty and the sauce that comes with the tofu rolls is delicious and with a spicy kick! The 5 spice chicken sandwich is good but mine could have used more sauce. This is more of a note to myself because they have extra sauces on the tables and by the soda fountain. The people who work here are friendly which is also a plus!

This review is for the online pickup/​delivery service.
I placed a pickup order at 6pm through Unilocal (which is apparently partnering with
). The restaurant was listed as OPEN and I received a confirmation email for my order. My confirmation email did not have a time for pickup (it just said pickup ASAP), so I called the provided phone number for
.
The
representative was friendly, but not very helpful. Tired of waiting by the phone, I walked to the restaurant to only find it CLOSED.

I came here for lunch and had the 5-​spice chicken bowl with rice noodles and added the chicken broth. I love Vietnamese food and am somewhat used to the MSG flavor commonly found in phở, so I wasn’t sure what to expect from an MSG-​free broth. Fortunately for me, the chicken bowl turned out great, especially with a touch of sriracha! I also didn’t feel semi-​lethargic as I sometimes do after eating a big bowl of msg phở. Urban Picnic may just make an msg-​free convert out of me yet.
I also ordered the Vietnamese coffee, which was good. Slightly less sweet than I’m used to, but still flavorful. I like that UP is aiming to provide good eats + healthy eats. First encounter was solid, will definitely be back again.
Other likes:
–Friendly staff
–Clean area
–Prompt service

I came here with the whole office on a workday lunch.
Fast service
Good prices
Clean restaurant
Food was plentiful, fresh, tasty.
I had the Phở. It was legit. Others had the Bahn Mi sandwiches, salads and noodle bowls. The place was a hit, I think it’s going into heavy rotation.

If your looking msg, gluteen or vegan this is the right spot! Food is awesome! I got the beef phở in chicken broth and it was awesome! Will come back again! Yum!

I had beef phở, banh mi sandwich and Turkey avocado sandwich. Ha! Sooo goooood!
Fast service, clean, the staff crew are friendly, descent food.