Balboa Produce Market

Love this little neighborhood store! One time, I came for one avocado and didn’t have any cash. As the staff knows my face, they just said to come back later with cash. Yay!

Stopped in after a phở-​run to get some produce. After all, they are called Balboa Produce.
One of the things I love about this place is that it’s pretty much this small old little neighborhood market selling convenience items and a very small inventory of grocery stuff, but their produce is actually a nice quality. I mean, I was able to snag a bartlett pear that was NOT green, but instead a nice even yellow, ready for eating and lacking in bruises.
I like that.
I like it a lot.
You don’t really find to many tiny neighborhood convenience markets that have good produce in LA, and it’s so cool to be able to find that in San Francisco.
And I just read that this place sells some tamales.
…Yeah, I may be making another stop.

i lurve this place! the best cilantro and con una sonrisa!

Tamales sold in a warmer at the counter, plus an array of homemade salsas make this grocery a hit. The chicken tamales were fantastic and the salsa was not for the faint of heart.
Also features a decent selection of produce and the usual SF corner store munchies.

Love this little market! They have almost everything I need without having to get in my car and going to the grocery store. Good quality foods, great salsa, and AWESOME TAMALES! You must try the tamales from the crock pot at the register!

This place is great! They have lovely produce at reasonable prices. The people who work there are helpful and nice.

Being out in the outer Richmond, this is the last of the produce trucks stops and the selection proves it. Most of the produce is not so fresh.
Would shop here if too lazy to go to Safeway or to the shops around Geary.

I needed a couple of produce items and didn’t feel like dealing with the lines and noise at safeway so I stopped here. Very pleased with the overall quality, selection and value. They make great use of every bit of space in the relatively small store. I wish I’d tried the tamales, and I for sure will next time! Good vibes here.
Just to update, I tried the chicken tamale, it was $ 1.99 and tasted good but didn’t really have that much chicken.
The grapes were priced lower than safeway and sweeter, so there you go. The produce here has always been high quality with good prices.

I Unilocaled for tamales a few weeks ago and this location came up for the outer richmond. I grew up in this neighborhood and I never came into this produce store before. When I read someone Unilocal review I decided to drop by. I bought 4 tamales, pico de gayo and the more pureed salsa. Everything was really good. The salsa is pretty spicy so be cautious. They use mainly dark meat in the tamales I got. I’m not sure if they switch it up every so often so I’m not sure if that’s standard. I’m planning to pick some up in a bit for dinner. I hope they didn’t run out… I definitely recommend this place. Reasonably priced and great tamales and salsa.

the other day, i was barely alive
b/​c my emotions had taken a nose dive.
but a grin i’d induce
b/​c at balboa produce,
tamales are a buck seventy five!

This is a great little place for when you need something in a pinch or want some good, fresh fruit (hello, figs!). I love that they stock Berkeley Farms cottage cheese and sour cream, and other organic dairy products. And I love that the prices aren’t too high to send me driving to the regular supermarket for things since I can walk here from my house. But what I really love are the fresh, homemade tamales that are in the crock pot on the counter! YUM!

Finally, there is STORE SIGN.
Yay!!!
It’s a pretty good sign too.
I am glad this is still my produce market.
But,
I’m still run into a boozed old lady smells sweat and sour sometimes.
Ugh!
…
There is STORE SIGN, Finally.

Balboa Produce is a cute, small neighborhood market with some convenience items. I think they only recently put up a store sign, but I assume they’ve been around for awhile. The selection here is decent: seasonal fruits (HUGE strawberries), vegetables, soymilk, bread, etc. I was impressed to see that they even stock Hint water, Popchips, and DAGOBA Chocolate.
Prices for produce are somewhat cheap; other convenience items are a little pricier, but that’s the price to pay when you’re not in the mood to go on a huge grocery run at Trader Joe’s or Safeway.
I’m under the impression that Balboa Produce is cash only, but I could be wrong. The owners of the place have always been very kind to me, so the service is definitely another plus. This place is definitely a good piece of the Balboa neighborhood.

The convince of a corner store with the freshness of a farmers market. This place is super tiny, yet packs a big punch. You can find everything from Munster Cheese to organic veggies to frosted flakes.
Minus 1 star for not having hummus.

It’s convenient having this around the corner from my house since I can stock up on meats, seafood and bread every now and then, and buy fresh produce here every night before cooking dinner. The selection isn’t overwhelming by any stretch of the imagination, but the produce is good quality, and for the most part it fulfills my cooking needs.
Their selection of canned/​boxed foods ain’t bad either.

Our friends who live in the area call it «Diegos’s» place. I guess the guy who helped us was Diego. Very friendly. Stopped there on our way to a cook out and a pre-​cookout stop at Hockey Haven. Great tamales.

Nice little neighborhood store, fair, clean, well stocked, honest and family run I’m pretty sure. We always say «Adiós» and «Nada» and «Gracias» and they are helpful and fast. I get my milk, and OJ, and soft drinks here, and the fresh produce is high quality. They aren’t a big place for plastics and laundry detergent, but if you need the chips and cookies, and canned this or that, its very quick and convenient.

Chicken tamales in the Outer Richmond? Yup yup yup yup yup. Even the taqueria up the street recommends you go to this produce stand for their tamales. Not bad for $ 1.50 each. They have them in a little cooker by the register, nice. Pick up their fresh made pico de gallo to eat with them, pretty yummy. Another plus I like is that they sell the apple bananas here too, perfect size for a snack.

Totally agree about the produce here. I would much rather pick up what I need for dinner from the local Balboa Produce rather than Safeway (or god forbid Cala). I love the little family that runs the place, and really… have you tasted their homemade salsa and pico de gallo? Youch! Not to mention the homemade tamales. Every once in awhile you can find a huge bunch of fresh thyme for about a buck and change if I remember correctly. Fresher, cheaper, better. Do it!

i love coming down to this place for the fresh vegetables. i’d rather walk down here than get produce from Safeway or Albertons which is mostly tasteless and goes bad within a few days.
there’s not so much organic stuff but it all tastes fresh. the owners are all very cool and i get to catch up on latest in telemundo when i visit. they also serve some homemade tamales at the checkout counter.