Weird Fish

Closed!!! Ahhhhhhh!!! I should have written this review earlier.
This place was awesome, amazing, delicious, vegetarian, local foods, and oh so tiny. If it opens up somewhere bigger make sure you go there. They have excellent food.
Those vegetarian buffalo wings and fish and chips drove me nuts!

A great find for vegetarians. I tried the buffalo girls (seitan with buffalo wing sauce), yo yos (fried pickles), and the seitan and chips. All were great. The texture of the seitan was perfect.
The seitan was supposed to be «fish,» but I thought it just tasted like normal seitan. I didn’t notice any nori in it or anything else fish-​like. It was very good. They get all their veg from their Roshambo farm, which many of the restaurant employees work at as well. Everything was fresh and high quality.
It is a tad pricey, but you’re getting high-​quality food so it is definitely worth it.
The space is tiny, reservations are accepted for parties of four or more.

Weird Fish just sounds kinda 80’s, doesn’t it… like «Weird Science» or like when Daniel Stern played that nouveau rich yuppie in «Hannah and Her Sisters» who kept describing all the big art he was shopping for as «weird». Weird, man. Well, the name fits this place since it kinda feels a little retro and yes, a bit weird. It’s also not very good, which is a shame since you would expect the flavor to be the saving grace here. It’s not, and considering the praise that preceded it, I was disappointed.
Tables are tightly packed together, and it’s darkly lit — a typical Mission combination but just more off-​putting in this case. Jamie W. and I were lucky we got seated so quickly since a wait ensued for everyone who came after us. The service was on the unctuous side, as the waitress praised everything on the menu without much distinction. Jamie started off with the $ 7 «Famous Clam Chowda», which we both thought was on the watery side (see photo). Perhaps that makes it more authentic, but it still wasn’t too satisfying even with the addition of two small slices of sourdough toast. We shared a $ 4 bowl of Home Fries, which was hardly a bowl and kinda meh as fries go (see photo).
I decided to throw caution to the wind and ordered the Suspicious Fish Dish. On this evening, it was a $ 15 plate of swordfish, quite overcooked, with a sweet chile sauce on top that just wouldn’t mesh with the fish. Reflecting the originality of a school cafeteria menu on Fridays, it came with vegetables and rice as the sides, and honestly was one of the most unmemorable seafood dishes I’ve experienced at a fish house (see photo). A bit of salvation came with the $ 3 glass of iced tea mixed with a ginger lemonade, the combination of which was called the Greg Norman (see photo).
FOOD — 2 stars… rather disappointed considering the advance praise (but I noticed fellow Unilocalers have been experiencing similar disappointment)
AMBIANCE — 2.5 stars… dark, crowded and rather loud even by Mission standards
SERVICE — 2.5 stars… friendly but rather unctuous
TOTAL — 2 stars… sorry, I’ve got other fish to fry

OMEGA-​3 FATTY ACIDS + HEART HEALTH + TASTY + NICE SPACE = 4 solid stars from me!
I’ve been consciously trying to replace red meats with fish over the last few weeks, and it’s been working well — to the point where I’m eating fish about 3−4x times a week.
So, I was very glad when my friend suggested Weird Fish for lunch the other day. We arrived here around 12:30pm on a weekday, and there was no wait. The place was really comfortable and bright. Great atmosphere. I was very pleasantly surprised by how nice the whole food experience was.
PLEASANT SURPRISES FTW!
I ordered the blackened catfish and my foodmate ordered the steelhead salmon. For $ 12, you get a generous portion of fish, some bombass rice (apparently, it’s cilantro jasmine rice; whatever it was, it was damn tasty!), and another side of your choice (either salad, tortilla soup, or chowder).
My catfish was perfectly cooked, tender, and it had a nice smokey taste on the outside. It came with mango-​salsa, which was a beautiful touch as well as a nice flavor complement. My green salad that came as a side was alright; nothing too spectacular, but it was most certainly beautiful. Like I mentioned before, I was most surprised by how good the rice was, especially since it was just a side, and I was glad it was also aesthetically-​pleasing (for pic-​taking purposes). Altogether, the dish was gorgeous, and I spent a good minute or so taking pictures of this beautiful thing.
I also tried my friend’s salmon, which was also delicious. Tender to the bite, and the pesto sauce was good too.
It’s a bit pricey for lunch, I think I paid around $ 20 after tax (including the SF health tax) + tip. It’s worth it, though. Plus, it’s fish, and it’s sustainably farmed, so I think that justifies the cost. The service is also very pleasant; our waitress was very friendly and helpful.
The only reason this place doesn’t get 5 stars is because I have to be totally blown away to do that. I’m not gonna generously throw around 5 stars unless the food was so damn good that I’m running around, telling everyone and their momma ’bout what I just ate.
But yeah, otherwise, I got no complaints. The meal was very satisfying, healthy, and just very.. .right. Good eats, as Alton Brown would say.

Weird Fish pushes for sustainability through its grub. How can I not check this place out?
Small joint with nautical décor — service was friendly. Lady and I went on a Monday at 1:30PM so the crowds were gone and parking was easy (I can’t believe $ 0.25 in SF buys you only 10 freakin’ minutes).
We ordered:
*Edamame with noodles
–flavorful noodles with edamame (this was yummy)
*Yo-​yos
–fried pickles, literally (hella salty but what did you expect?)
*Buffalo girls
–who woulda’ thought seitan would taste good with buffalo sauce and
vegan ranch?
*Hell fish
–tasted like its veggies, very fresh
*Blackened catfish with mango salsa, with red beans and plantains
–grilled flavor throughout fish
–salsa and red beans were very fresh (retained shape, not bruised and
full of flavor)
–Plantains = orgasmic
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Pros:
*Restaurant principles — wish more joints had ideals of sustainability like this one, eh?
*Food tastes really fresh
*Seitan is good here, even for meat eaters
Cons:
*Small place, probably not good for groups
*Parking could be a beyaaaaaa if I came during more ‘regular’ hours

I have been to this restaurant a few times and I am finally writing my review. It is a very small place that is pretty hidden on 18^th and mission. There is a small sign outside the restaurant. The environment is very cute and they have great decorations. They are very environmentally conscious with their menu and services. Their fish is sustainably caught and some produce is from their farm. Reusable bandana napkins which is always a trendy plus. Vegetarian and vegan options easily available. Customer service was also very friendly and helpful.
The food is great! My friend and I started with an order of the fried pickles ($ 7) which were so tasty! Watch out they are super hot (temperature wise) so I wouldn’t attack as soon as the plate hits the table. I also got the Seitan and Chips ($ 13) which is a vegan play off of fish and chips. Delicious! I am always craving this meal! Next time I plan on trying their Spicy Tomato Soup because it sounds amazing.
Remember to pull out some cash before you come in because they are cash only. There is an ATM across the street in front of the smoke shop but it’s easier to just have cash on you already. I will definitely be going back soon! =)