The Hall

MIT Connection Bay Area hosted an MIT alumni gathering in this venue. It is an interesting venue with a variety of restaurants combined in a single location providing different cuisines and food. While the concept is intriguing, the food is not particularly high-​quality or tasty. The Hall is also located in a rather unsafe area of San Francisco, near Tenderloin. Walking back from The Hall to where I parked my car was literally leaving me feeling anxious due to the high number of homeless people around. I would say this location is probably an interesting and divey place for youngsters during the day. However, I, for one, would not come back again as it is not worth the risk for some mediocre food or experience.

Really liked the space with open benches and food stands all along the side. There’s also a tall projector screen that was playing the game when we arrived. We went for dinner, so 2 of the stands were closed. The mexican, pasta and meat stands were open. Unfortunately the menus are pretty limited and some items were sold out already. We ended up ordering the lamb gyro and burger from the meat stand. The meat was good, but my lamb gyro was very messy to eat.

In my eyes, this is a Hipster-​esque cafeteria. Healthy food options and communal tables located along Market. The food is «meh» in price but it is still a cool spot to go and meet people for your lunch break. Mexican spot in there has some pretty good pozole (verde) for $ 10, which is perfect on a cold day. Haven’t tried any of the other spots yet, but they all range somewhere in the $ 10 and up area. Not an everyday type of spot for me, but it was pretty cool.
P. S. there’s a bar inside!

The Hall is essentially a hipster/​trendy food court with a bar on one side and little food stands on the other. The interior is really cute because there’s twinkling lights all across the ceiling and long wooden picnic benches to eat on. I was overly ambitious and got the cheese/​charcuterie plate for myself, but it could have easily fed 4 – 5 people (for only $ 20!!) My friend got fish tacos and nachos and said they were really good as well. I’ll definitely be back for more cheese :)

Dragons live forever but not so little boys
Painted wings and giant strings make way for other toys.
One sad night it happened, Jackie Paper came no more
And Puff that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar …
Why must it be that the highlights of our life are fleeting experiences? When we consider the times of our lives so often what we contemplate on is something that’s happened, someplace that is no longer, somebody that has come and gone.
Enjoy what you have today; it might not be here tomorrow.
The article celebrating the arrival of The Hall back in September 2014 says they plan on being in this (sweet) space for only as long as their two-​year lease. That gives us five more months to enjoy, then off they go like the circus and there we’ll be waving handkerchiefs tears rolling down our cheeks wishing there was some way we could go away too but we can’t.
The Hall reminded me of the more enduring many-​stalls-​in-​a-​space places I’ve had the good fortune to sample, Reading Terminal Market in Philly being perhaps my favorite followed very closely by Grand Central in LA. Those spaces are so totally occupied by the ghosts of their own years passed and I wondered how it could be that The Hall just 18 months old could feel itself haunted in a similar way and then I realized that perhaps the presence I felt was the ghosts of the space itself seeping down through the rafters from the memory of Hollywood Billiards above or Salome and her veils around you left by the dancers downstairs.
There aren’t but a handful of businesses inside and I tried but two. I had me a scrumptious gyro that was just enough food and offered with a genuine smile and chanced upon Happy Hour at the bar for a four buck pint of a pilsner, again with a smile that had me just want to belly up and set a spell but I couldn’t so there’s but one thing to do.
I will come back. Until September. When I’ll just sing:
Cat on a tin roof, dogs in a pile,
Nothin’ left to do but smile, smile, smile!

This place could be so cool if it was executed properly.
The standard for food vendors is pretty low — canned chicken thrown onto my taco salad with little else. Which I waited 40 minutes to receive. My brother’s salad completely missing the carnitas he ordered. Bartenders are also not thrilled to serve — to get a drink took another 20 minutes at the un-​crowded bar.
Bottom line, would not go back and don’t recommend it.

As other reviews have mentioned, this is a community style, multi-​vendor eating establishment with a bar. I love the concept, and places like this are springing up all over the country, which is great. BUT, I have mixed feelings about the location of The Hall. It seems to be in a rather hairy, shady-​like part of town. The kind of area that is characterized by shirtless, strung-​out types and police officers on heavy patrol. That being said, maybe this kind of establishment is what the area needs.
Our experience of The Hall was on a weekday afternoon for lunch & a drink. I ordered a Vegan Reuben Sandwich, and he ordered enchiladas. We sat down at the bar to order a drink while we waited for our food, and we were surrounded by a very chatty man that would not relent on trying to know everything about us, and a very drunk man who thought he owned the bar & demanded that the bartender give him a Budweiser (of which there were none). It was entertaining in a this-​is-​kind-​of-​awkward-​and-​anything-​could-​happen-​next sort of way.
My sandwich was decent, but I’d probably order something different if there was ever a next time for us at The Hall, and my boyfriend said his enchiladas were phenomenal. Our bartender was also a very friendly fellow, and even let me borrow a little Japanese hand fan so I could cool off (It was fairly hot inside the building).

The brother in law treated us to a sampling of items. This is in a wacky part of town, but it was great to have a nice place to sit and do some people options with lots of food options that were tasty and somewhat healthy. Everyone was nice and welcoming. If I lived in the area, I’d love to sit at the bar and do some serious people watching.

Came here on two occasions.
First time was to a grab a drink with a friend after work. On one side there’s several food vendors and the other side a bar. In the middle of the room are communal tables, benches, and small tables.
The second time, I was there for an exclusive event held on a Sunday afternoon. My friends and I arrived early so I got to play Sous Chef and help prep for the event. There’s so much work that goes into planning for an event but with patience and good organization skills from the Chef, I have a better understanding and appreciation for what goes on in the kitchen.
The space is perfect for small/​large parties. Outside is a little sketchy but other than that, good food, good service.

I came here for a networking event that probably exceeded the maximum capacity for The Hall. Nevertheless, this place is enjoyable with such a large group of people, especially because it’s a food court with many different culinary options. My first stop was the bar, where I picked a tasty IPA out of the long list of beer and wine. Later I had a Bloody Mary that was SPICY! To be fair, the bartender warned me.
For dinner, I visited the pasta station and shared some gnocchi with pesto sauce with my friend. We found it weird that they charge for the pasta and sauce separately. The other stations looked good too, so I’ll be attending more of these networking events and give them a try. Beautiful and fun space with plenty of places to sit and eat or stand and chat.

I really like this concept of a pop-​up restaurant food court + bar. You can pick from a variety of food or go splitsies with a bunch of friends and try everything there.
The main reason I wanted to check out The Hall was because of El Pipila, a La Cocina startup. The story of the owner of El Pipila was very inspiring and wanted to check out her dishes and to help support a local, minority business. My friends and I tried some chicken sopes (her signature dish) with the green and red salsas and they were so delicious! I’ve never had sopes before, but I’m in love with the thicker corn tortilla, topped with seasoned chicken, retried beans, lettuce, sour cream, and queso fresco. We will definitely be coming back and having some more sopes.
We also split a lamb burger from The Whole Beast and it didn’t disappoint. Well seasoned ground lamb, with just the right amount of lettuce, tomato, pickled red onion, tomato, and tziki sauce on an acne bun. One of the best lamb burgers I’ve had in SF!

I like the concept of different vendors selling meat/​seafood, salads, Mexican, vegan, one bar and people sitting with each other.
We went during the week and thankfully it wasn’t packed like all the other places in the area because of an event at Moscone Center.
We had El Pipila’s tostadas, salad, and spinach & pineapple juice. It was pretty good! Staff was lovely!
We’ll come back to The Hall to try Citizen Fox’s other joint!

This is the sort of community house our country needs more of. I like the idea of the Hall traveling from place to place as a sort of nomadic wonderland of good food and tasty imbibements. But it’d also be cool if it stayed in one place so I could visit it again and again.
The hall consists of several long tables (think: community dining), surrounded on one side by a long bar offering a decent selection of wine, beer, and other spirits (plus, a help-​yourself water jug); along the other side of the tables were around five small food booths.
Though there are definitely meaty offerings at these booths, they were very veg-​heavy (hooray!).
I felt completely at ease, taking my time with my salad while knitting away at one of my scarves. Yeah, it’s one of those places.
Added bonus: there was some outdoor seating available, offering a lively Market Street view.

As I longingly await The Oates opening next door, this shall suffice for now. Nicely-​enough done-​up space with a number of food stalls + bar + a ffffin plant shop bc San Francisco. :p
Rows of communal tables, unless you’re me and take over the whole bar. #holla Btw put your #gamefaceon at the bar bc black bartenderbro is ready to showdown on da mystery of chessboxin. (PS He’s a knight guy — exploit that.)

Night two at The Warfield, had Tu LAN yesterday so we opted for The Hall.
There was some type of appreciation night but couldn’t tell what was really going on, believe they were giving tours but wasn’t paying attention.
Since there’s several new places, the hubs and I decided to try a sampling of the different food options.
From the lumpia place they offer different lumpia options, sign said $ 6 for 4 which I thought was a bit expensive given their size. Ordered two cheeseburger lumpias & 2 pastrami lumpias, was really disappointed when we got 2 lumpia’s cut in half for $ 6?!
Next door is a sandwich place, opted for the French dip after finding out they were out of rye bread for the pastrami on rye. Sandwich was grilled on a Panini press and had caramelized onions. Decent size sandwich but my half only had meat in half if it. Meat is no Whole Pig which I’m happy to report is still there.
Skipped the new salad place and went to the Mexican (El Pipila) place which is still there. Got two carnita tacos that were tasty but oily and no Salsa. For $ 8 for two taco’s, I’ll be heading to taqueria Cancun across the street for my taco fix.
We rounded out our spread with 2 Happy Hour beers that were $ 6 each which to me is not that happy.
All in all nothing bad but then for the price nothing exceptional either. Definitely lot’s of cheaper options nearby but the place does have a cool Indy vibe.

A coworker and I were seeing a show nearby. I suggested we try The Hall for dinner and drinks since I’ve had it bookmarked for some time. We went right after work on Monday, August 24^th. Got here around 5:45pm and made it just in time for happy hour. Their HH ends at 6pm.
I believe there are only HH specials at the bar. I got the Happy hour red ($ 6) which was a pinot noir. A nice smooth table red. Went well with what I ordered for dinner.
There were about 4 or 5 options when it came to food. Both my coworker and I gravitated towards The Whole Beast. She got the Ham & brie sandwich: thin sliced ham with mustard, arugula, pickles on a rosemary roll ($ 8). I’m not the hugest fan of ham, but I tried it. The roll was soft and crusty, the brie delicious and melty. The arugula, mustard and pickles completed the tasty sandwich.
I’d read about a Charcuterie Plate, but didn’t see it on the menu, so I asked. They said they would make me one. Yay! It was $ 19. Came with four meats, four cheeses, olives, pickled onion and pickles, pumpkin seeds, stonefruit, drizzles of balsamic and slices of toasty baguette. This was a very hefty portion for me as I couldn’t finish it. Even with help from my coworker and her boyfriend! They didn’t explain any of the meats and cheeses to me, but I loved the cheese that reminded me of blue cheese and the meat that was slightly spicy.
The space is open with some four tops and larger tables with communal seating. We went while they were having an event, so all the communal tables were reserved. Luckily we found a party of one who was willing to share her four top. She finished her meal fairly quickly and afterwards we had the table to ourselves.
Not sure if I’d come back to try the other vendors, but it’s worth it to drop by for HH and to try The Whole Beast.

I’m glad this place exists in Mid-​Market — it’s a nice option for a big group so that everyone can select what they want to eat from a variety of vendors. The area around here is a bit on the gritty side, but it’s not too bad, and pretty close to both Civic Center and Union Square (about 10 minutes from each location). It’s a nice alternative to the food court at the Westfield, slightly cheaper (but not much) than Market on Market, with more places to sit for a larger group. It’s almost like Soma StrEat Food Park (11^th and Bryant), but with slightly healthier options and warmer, since it’s indoors.
It seems that the vendors in here rotate every so often, but on a most recent visit (August 2015), there was a Mexican place (El Pipila), salad, Whole Beast (sandwiches), Vietnamese, Moroccan-​Peruvian, Indian, and a succulent shop. They also have a nice variety of beer and wine.
A meal here will run you $ 10 – 12, which is pretty standard for San Francisco. If you want a cheaper lunch, hop on over to Flying Falafel across the street.
This is a great place to come for lunch, but closes at 8 pm, so if you want to come for dinner, come early. On a Friday, we had a party of 6, came at 12:30 pm and we were able to find a table inside to sit down. On the weekends, it’s pretty empty.
I don’t think the food selection here (other than Whole Beast) is quite as good as Soma StrEat Food Park, or other options in FiDi, but I do appreciate that you can get healthier selections than most food trucks and they have a decent variety of food.

I know I’m not supposed to like these «epitome of gentrification» type places that keep popping up in our fair city, but I can’t help it. The Hall is a great option before a show at the Warfield or a performance at the Orpheum. The wait for the bar can be kind of hellish during the 5−6pm happy hour rush, but I was surprised that even with it being crazy busy we were able to score a seat at one of the tables. The bartender was super friendly and they get major bonus points for having one of my favorite Almanac sour beers. We were there on a chilly day but they also seem to have outdoor seating.
I enjoyed my turkey burger from Whole Beast and a thai ice tea from Little Green Cyclo. Plus it’s nice when you’re with a group and everyone prefers a different cuisine.
Truly this is the fancy-​pants version of the Emeryville food market… and i like it.

I’m a fan of The Hall’s location, layout, and atmosphere. It’s near Bart (albeit in a more sketchy area, but hey– deal with it), and there’s plenty of open seating both inside and outside. I’ve been here for meet ups, post-​work drinks, and weekday lunches. It’s a casual place that serves a variety of food and beverages. And you can reserve this place for special events.
As for the food, there’s different options. I’ve tried Cassia (Moroccan food). I got their meatball tangine– basically, 3 large meatballs in sauce. Comes with a side of harissa. The meat wasn’t very flavorful, but I liked the harissa sauce. I also tried the sweet potato salad side and kale/​beet/​goat cheese salad. I like the sweet potatoes, and the salad tasted as expected. The meatballs were $ 6, and sides are $ 5. I actually asked for a ½ side order of sweet potatoes salad and kale salad, so I could sample more for $ 5. Overall, I thought the food was okay but not worth $ 11. Eh, that’s SF food prices for ya…

Okay so seriously, I love The Hall. It may be one of my favorite little places in San Fran Tenderloin area! You can enjoy a nice breeze coming through the doors, with a hint of music as you enjoy some food and a nice little drink. You really can’t get much better.
This place is seriously charming to me. Old doors adorn the wall with tables and chairs spread out to accommodate a medium crowd.
With several food spots (street food style, but indoors) I went with a Smoke Chicken Gumbo from Vietnamese street food cart, Crab Shack. Omg, it was so delightful, being from New Orleans I’m always hesitant about trying gumbos, but I definitely had the right choice this time around!
Great location for a nice afternoon date or even meeting up with friends. While there I actually saw groups as well as people studying. I went there for a mixer, which also worked out well in this mixed space.
The location is pretty accessible for public transportation; I do not remember seeing much in the way of parking though.