Back to Gallery The best meals in the Inner Richmond for under $20 9 1 of 9 Photo: Mason Trinca, Special to The Chronicle 2 of 9 Photo: Mason Trinca, Special to The Chronicle 3 of 9 Photo: Mason Trinca, Special to The Chronicle 4 of 9 Photo: John Storey, Special to the Chronicle 5 of 9 Photo: John Storey, Special to the Chronicle 6 of 9 Photo: Gabrielle Lurie, The Chronicle 7 of 9 Photo: Gabrielle Lurie, The Chronicle 8 of 9 Photo: Esther Mobley 9 of 9 Photo: Esther Mobley

















Welcome to the 2017 edition of Bargain Chronicles, wherein we explore some of San Francisco's most delicious neighborhoods and choose our favorite meals that can be enjoyed for $20 and under. See also: The Mission's 24th Street, Chinatown, the Bayview, the Tenderloin and Bernal Heights.

Kimchi tofu soup at My Tofu House

What: Kimchi soft tofu with pork ($14.96)

When: 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Sun.-Fri.; 5-9:30 p.m. Sat.

Not that you'd be disappointed with a plate of bulgoki here. But you come to My Tofu House for the soft tofu soups — especially for the kimchi version, made with mushrooms and either pork or beef, adding an aromatic kick of heat to the already-spicy base broth. Crack the raw egg into the soup as soon as it arrives and let it scramble up; the sizzling liquid needs to cool down anyway. Munch in the meantime on the customary banchan — mung bean sprouts, cucumbers, tiny whole croaker fish — and look forward, once you're done slurping that silky, slippery tofu, to the rice soup that you can spoon out of the tea-filled stone pot on your table.

4627 Geary Blvd. (at 10th Avenue); (415) 750-1818.

Pork buns at Clement BBQ

What: Barbecue pork buns, both steamed ($2.50 for 3) and baked ($1.50)

When: 9 a.m.-6 p.m. daily.

Dim sum is a competitive market on Clement Street in the Inner Richmond, especially among the many excellent takeout spots (see also: Good Luck, Wing Lee and Gourmet). Each has its specialties, and Clement BBQ's is char siu bao — steamed or baked buns, filled with juicy strips of pork dripping in sweet barbecue sauce — which, for those who keep track of such things, have much more satisfying bao-meat ratios than the versions at many neighborhood rivals. One or two bao can be lunch, but you might as well get a pink doughnut box's worth, and throw in a light, challah-like taro bun for dessert. Forget the pricey brunch at Hong Kong Lounge II; you couldn't spend $20 here if you tried.

617 Clement St. (at Seventh Avenue); (415) 752-9520.

Turkey sandwich at Arguello

What: Hot roasted turkey sandwich ($7.99), add cheddar ($1)

When: 7:30 a.m.-8 p.m. daily.

Arguello’s turkey sandwich is famous for a reason. The beloved neighborhood grocery didn’t invent putting turkey between slices of bread, but it may have perfected it. The thick-carved poultry — white and dark meat — gives so much more than your typical thin-shaved deli rendition. They’ll ask what kind of bread you want, but it’s a trick — you have to get Dutch crunch. Loaded with crunchy lettuce, smears of mayo and mustard, sharp red onion, tomato and (crucially) pickle slices, it’s complete on its own, but made better with a slice of cheddar cheese.

782 Arguello Blvd. (at Cabrillo); (415) 751-5121.

Russian breakfast at Cinderella Bakery

What: Pelmeni ($10) or potato varenki ($8) or blenchiki with sweet cheese ($6)

When: 7 a.m.-7 p.m. daily.

The Richmond is a dumpling paradise, and that doesn’t only apply to bao and har gow: Cinderella Bakery’s pelmeni, tender little dough spheres filled with succulent pork, will satisfy the most dire Sunday-morning dim sum craving. Or opt for the potato vareniki, pierogi-like, or the blenchiki — a rolled-up crepe, which can be filled with sweet cheese and dipped in jam, or with mushrooms or meat. All respond well when smeared with sour cream. The possibilities at Cinderella, which draws a sizable line on weekends, are nearly endless: the irresistible fried piroshki pocket with beef; the decadent, flaky, cream-filled strawberry turnover. Pity the unadventurous patron in line ahead of you who’s ordering the turkey and avocado sandwich. (For that, go to Arguello.)

436 Balboa St. (at Sixth Avenue); (415) 751-9690.

Sichuan chicken at Chili House

What: Chicken with explosive chili pepper ($13.95)

When: Wed.-Mon. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., until 11 p.m. Fri-Sat

You could ball out at Chili House, where chef Tong Gang Wang offers 16-course Beijing banquets verging on fine art. But there’s another way to do Chili House: stopping in for a casual weeknight meal of old-school, satisfying Sichuan food. (I can’t promise you won’t salivate while watching Peking duck carved table side for the more indulgent guests at the table next to yours, but save that for a special occasion.) A heaping pile of chicken nuggets, drowned in shiny red slivers of chiles and scallions, looks more mouth-numbing than it is: The oily little chiles add more flavor than heat, and the crisp cubes of meat rival any fried chicken dish in town.

726 Clement St. (at Eighth Avenue); (415) 387-2658.

Soup dumplings at Xiao Long Bao

What: Xiao long bao ($4.50 for 6)

When: 9 a.m.-6 p.m. daily.

Granted, soup dumplings don't seem like the most takeout-friendly fare. Half the fun of ordering them in a restaurant is opening the bamboo steamer at your table, releasing their aromas into the room, carefully seizing them with tongs and placing them on your ceramic spoon. But the xiao long bao at Xiao Long Bao are so good, you won't care that the pork- and broth-filled dumplings come in individual aluminum cups inside a plastic takeout container. (Yes, the black vinegar is included.) Just make sure to eat them while they're warm. The bao are sold in orders of six, which is a good start, but think of it like ordering oysters: If you're being honest with yourself, you want a dozen.

625 Clement St. (at Seventh Avenue); (415) 666-3998.

Noodles at Mandalay

What: Mandalay special noodle ($14)

When: 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 5-9:30 p.m. Mon. and Wed.-Thurs.; and until 10 p.m. Fri.; open continuously 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Sat.-Sun.

If only those patient hordes of San Franciscans who wait in line for hours at Burma Superstar knew that a short walk to California Street would bring them to Mandalay, where the lines are invariably shorter, the Burmese fare just as soulful and the decor — fountains, pendant ornaments, lots of gold — much more entertaining. The tea leaf salad, tasty as it is, doesn’t constitute a full meal, but the Mandalay special noodle offers the same thrill of table-side preparation. The dish’s broad rice noodles swim in a shallow pool of light, tangy curry broth with tender chicken and crunchy fried noodles on top. It’s cilantro, it’s coconut, it’s lime. It’s a little funky, in a good way. You may think you can share it, but you won’t want to.

4348 California St. (at Sixth Avenue); (415) 386-3895.

Banh mi at Café Bunn Mi

What: Pork belly sandwich ($7.50)

When: 9 a.m.-9 p.m. daily.

The classic combination pork banh mi is a fine choice at this laid-back Vietnamese cafe, with its rich head cheese terrine, liver pate and pork loaf (that’s “fancy pork” to you). The colorful pork belly sandwich, however, is what Bunn Mi does best: crisp and fatty, smeared with aioli and vinaigrette, with cole slaw, cilantro and hard-boiled egg heaped inside crunchy French bread. Bunn Mi is hardly the only banh mi shop on this stretch of Clement Street, and may not be able to match the $4 sandwich prices of nearby Eternal Springs. But trust me: It’s the best.

417 Clement St. (at Sixth Avenue); (415) 668-8908.

Ramen at Kaiju Eats

What: Karaage ramen ($13)

When: Daily lunch (11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri. and noon-3 p.m. Sat.-Sun.) and dinner (5-10 p.m.).

Ramen purists may balk at Kaiju’s over-the-top fried chicken creation, with its garlic soy broth, cubes of karaage and drizzles of curry aioli. Fine. Try it and get back to us. The chicken is perfect, its crisp exterior yielding to moist dark meat, and the soup includes not a half, but a whole egg. (Isn’t that the best part of ramen?) A warning, though: It’s garlicky enough that first dates might want to steer clear. Bold flavors like these are what Kaiju does best, whether it’s their messy sweet potato satsuma fries, the K.O. tonkatsu (a meat lovers’ paradise with baby back ribs, meatballs and chashu) or the ponzu-loaded tuna tataki sizzling on a bed of soccorat-crusted rice. This is not food for the flavor-averse.

3409 Geary Blvd. (at Beaumont); (415) 742-4309.

Breakfast sandwich at The Richfield

What: Brekkie sandwich ($7) plus matcha latte ($4.75)

When: 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Tue.-Fri. and 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun.

More likely than not, you’ll miss the Richfield, which nestles into the island where California and Cornwall streets form a triangle with Fifth Avenue. But the diminutive coffee shop, which draws a yoga-pants-and-tiny-dogs crowd, is good for more than just an overpriced slab of avocado toast: It’s also got a disarmingly tasty breakfast sandwich that somehow manages to satisfy a greasy-bodega craving. Two slices of sweet King’s Hawaiian toast frame a fluffy omelet, crunchy bacon and a generous helping of melted orange cheddar cheese, with a sweet “house special sauce” that will make you forget you ever wanted Sriracha on your eggs. Add a matcha latte — unsweetened — even if you’re not wearing yoga pants.

195 Fifth Ave. (at California).