Wa Li Bakery & Cafe

Wa Li Bakery has a «bargain» table in front. «$ 1» says the lady watching the goods. probably day old bakes (5 fer seems like a deal), not just breads, some boxed pastries too.
typical middle range baked buns, sub $ 2. coffee (1.35) for 6 oz.
eats: «sandwich» bun (1.25)
–sliced ham, fried egg, tomato siice, lettuce, slight mayo
–mostly bland but fresh.
–bun texture the same as other buns.
crumbs:
–not a bun fan, just eat enough to ward off hunger pangs/​ulcer…
–all pastry hops looked slow sunday, the 17^th.

There aren’t many affordable options in North Beach. Sometimes, ya just want a no frills pastry and a coffee but not break the bank. This is where Wa Li Bakery steps in.
For a whopping $ 0.85, you can get a massive bbq pork bun, chicken bun, corn bun or a hot dog with cilantro bun (note: these are the only ones ive had). All are huge, packed with flavor and come in at just under a buck. Trying to get a budget lunch? Huge sandwiches for $ 1.25… suck on that, subway!
The interior isn’t fancy and the service is, well, there but who cares at prices like this?
My only complaint is that they don’t warm up the buns, they come cold/​room temp. cold bbq pork isn’t the business. I tend to bring them back to my office to microwave them, definitely better.
Also, shout out to the lady slangin’ zongzi at the door. The hustle is real.

Stumbled upon this bakery and so happy we did! We went in to find all the tables occupied with people enjoying a bun. I liked how all the buns were on display and not on trays out of view. The prices were cheap compared to what we would pay back home! There were moon cakes for $ 3.50 (or $ 3.75). The smaller buns were 4/​$ 1.75, what a great deal! Or if you want a big bun, it’s less than a dollar. That’s a cheap breakfast or snack! A few would keep you full for hours.
We ordered a variety of the small buns including BBQ pork and wiener buns, and a vareity of moon cakes to bring home. We had a full box or two and it was just over $ 20! The buns were fresh and tasty. Only regret is I didn’t get an egg tart. There were a few people coming in and out when we were in there, so that’s a good sign.
Would love to come back to this bakery!

It’s a nondescript bakery along Stockton but Wa Li is a reliable spot to grab some fresh baked buns in the morning on the way to work. And they’re a steal too!
For a grab and go breakfast, I typically get a ham & egg bun. They recently raised their prices so the buns are now an «exorbitant» 85 cents — It’s breakfast on the cheap! Other dependable buns include a garlicky chicken, bbq pork, and pork floss. All at 85 cents as well! You can also get miniature buns and I believe they are 4 for $ 1.70. Heard the egg tarts are pretty legit too.
Not much English spoken here but fear not as most everything is clearly labeled in English too. The ladies behind the counter are pretty nice folks. Nothing fancy but Wa Li more than makes up with its consistency and low prices.

Good price for mooncakes compared to other bakeries around the Chinatown area. The sesame balls are also yummy.

A lot of variety and for such low prices and they are translated to english (unlike other places in the area) well some of them which makes it easy to pick what you want.
That being sad the pastries themselves were ok. Some were good some weren’t. The lemon swiss roll cake is really refreshing, soft and absolutely delicious. The pineapple and the custard bun are really good too. The dried pork pastry wasn’t that good. The flavors were a bit off. Overall it is a good enough place.

This review is strictly for the zongzi, aka Chinese tamale aka sticky rice. I’ve actually never stepped foot into Wa Li, though have had their sticky rice plenty of times. My family discovered this place about a year or two years ago, and it has been their go to spot to pick up some zongzi whenever they’re in the SF area.
I’m a huge fan of sticky rice — could eat the stuff for days — though I’m not sure if my body could handle globs of dense, glutinous rice in high quantities.
Anyway, I’m giving this place 4 stars as their zongzi is very solid. I believe it comes in at least two types — peanut or yellow bean. The amount of peanuts or yellow bean they put in is good, and they mix it up with Chinese sausage and fatty pork. Portion size is great — they don’t try to jip you on anything. The best part? They only charge $ 1.30ish each. It used to be cheaper, but they’ve slowly crept up the price marginally over the past year or two. Still, it’s a super deal. Pick up 10 of these bad boys and dinner for the family is set for the day. Grab 20 and freeze the rest. These things are convenient, easy, and good to eat!

Bamboo leaves boiling
delicious scent filling house
zongzi at lunchtime.
It was the scent that use to wake me up. The scent of bamboo leaves. My mom would wake up before sunrise to fill up the biggest pot I’d ever seen with zongzi and cook them till lunch time. I wouldn’t eat anything till they were ready to save room for the delicious zongzi. It was worth it for that delicious sticky rice imbued with the flavor of bamboo leaf and filled with peanuts, Chinese sausage, and fatty pork. The glorious lunch time feasts ended with the death of my mom. In the years since I have found lots of sticky rice but no zongzi like my mom’s. I never gave up the search though and it led me to Wa Li bakery.
I had a good feeling about this place when I saw a Chinese lady out front with zongzi. There was steam rising into the air and the scent of bamboo leaves. I bought one for $ 1.20 and it was excellent. The flavors from the rice, peanuts, fatty pork, and Chinese sausage were much like my mom’s. :-)
It’s best to buy them early in the morning when the zongzi are steaming hot. At the end of the day they are not as good and need reheating in a boiling pot of water. Sometimes the lady isn’t out front and you have to ask at the counter and they get fresh ones from the back.
I also tried a huge almond cookie which was crunchy and crumbled apart in my mouth. Delicious flavor of almond. The lotus cake had a flaky pastry shell and sweet lotus seed center. Flavor was very good.

I think of this place as a dont ask, dont tell kinda establishment. How the heck is a pork bun 75 cents? I aint asking, it’s just freaking good!

Great prices! CA$H ONLY
5 for $ 1.60 of mini buns– you can mix and match
.80c Pineapple buns
.80c Egg tarts
I really liked Wa Li’s egg tarts. They are light and tasty. Like everyone else, I was in search of Golden Gate bakery and they were on vacay. According to Unilocal,this was my next best bet for egg tarts. Thank you fellow Unilocalers!
Since some other Unilocalers mentioned the pineapple buns, I ordered one and some of the minis. I wasn’t that impressed with them, because they were lacking in filling. It was like all bread. Little disappointing since this was really hyped up. Maybe I came on a bad day and they were low on filling supplies? I’ll try again another day.

Good bakery goods eggtarts just as good. Might not be golden gate bakery like but it’s just a different but also great tasting. Good ppl work here too

I knew this was too good to be true when we got like 15 pastries for 10 bucks. The sesame balls were sooooooooooo oily. It soaked through the box almost immediately. Gross.
Not a huge fan of this place. We had to come here because golden gate bakery was closed on vacation.
Cash money only!

Another one if Chinatown’s bakeries that have their own versions of Chinese baked goods and this location doesn’t disappoint. Most if their baked goods were pretty good and their egg tarts I would say are on par with Golden Gate without the lines or the hefty price tag for each eggy goodness.
They have a take outside for quick pick ups like grandma cakes, napoleons and this simple cookie made with mainly flour and water. The prices aren’t listed so you’ll have to talk to the lady out front for prices.

This was one of places I came to today in search of egg custards for a highly informal and unscientific taste test performed by my family and me. Almost didn’t stop by this place, which towards the northern limit of Chinatown on Stockton. But what’s a couple more blocks for such an important pursuit?
The verdict: this was the palest in color of all the tarts that we sampled today. However, looks can be deceiving. The crust was just the right flakiness; at first you think it’s going to have a bland flavor but it finishes strong. The custard is smooth and creamy, perhaps just a smidge too sweet but it’s balanced well by the crust. This was our second-​favorite (a close second)
I also tried their BBQ pork bun. The bun was sweet and moist. The pork has a good texture. It is sweet with a hint of onion that distinguishes it from the other pork buns I’ve had recently.
Overall, this place was a winner for us. It’s just a little longer walk to get there.

I’ve come here for one thing and one thing only: the pineapple buns. They’re so delicious, especially if you can get them while they’re still warm. And you can’t beat the price… three for $ 1.60. Are you kidding me?

I know Golden Gate Bakery is the resident celebrity for egg tarts in Chinatown, but seriously, Wa Li Bakery & Café actually serves up a really mean «don tot» themselves. I made it my mission to do bakery-​hopping while in SF for a good egg tart. Since Golden Gate was closed, we wandered a few streets over until we saw Wa Li.
It is just like any other Chinese bakery establishment — not very large and not meant for sit-​down. They’re able to get their customers in and out very quickly and it’s extremely cheap to buy these products.
I got an egg tart to go (I think it was less than $ 1 — but this review is 6+ months overdue) and had it at least an hour later. Of the 3 I purchased from SF’s Chinatown, I voted Wa Li as my preferred :).

mini buns are super good and cheap! i also got egg tart, taro cake, pumpkin puff and sweet potato buns.
egg tart is flaky, but a bit too sweet. it’s just as good as lung fun bakery, both are a lot better than golden gate bakery.
taro cake weighs heavy, only $ 0.60, you can feel stuffed.
pumpkin puff is too sweet, i wouldn’t recommend it.
My favorite bakery in Chinatown: AA Bakery, Napoleon, Eastern Bakery and Wa Li.

Love getting my Chinese pastry fix here when I’m in SF. You can’t find better prices elsewhere. I have looked. I love getting a whole box of the mini pastries. 5 for $ 1.60 is a steal and it’s not even mini. I love getting the green onion bun, the custard, the hotdog buns, and any other mini pastry they are offering at that time. So good. The price is fantastic compared to other bakeries especially in the South Bay. Everything we have in the South Bay is over a $ 1 and some about the same size as this places mini.
This place is definitely a must if you like super inexpensive Chinese pastries. Only item I would go elsewhere for is the egg custard. You must go to Golden Gate Bakery for that. It’s pricey, but oh so good.

Ok, I got three of my beloved egg custard tarts and five mini (wtf those are mini???) custard buns for under $ 5. If I lived here I would weigh 409 lbs because I would be here everyday. I would also be broke. Wish I had come here on my first day so I could have stocked up for the whole trip.

Ok, 5 mini custard buns for $ 1.60? Get out of town. I’ll take 15 please. Plus 2 mini red bean buns, and 6 egg tarts (.90 cents each). So I ended up with a box full of goodies for less than $ 11. HOLLER.
I prefer the custard buns from L’epi D’or Bakery in Cupertino, but those egg tarts though, were derricious. Next time, I’ll just get a box of those. One of the best egg tarts I’ve ever had, and I loved how they had a generous amount of filling. Came around 11:30am on a Friday and there were plenty of goodies available. Wish we had a Chinatown in San Jose. Sigh.