Maria Gallo

Maria Gallo Review

By day it offers nifty comida corrida: set-priced, three-course menus that change daily. For about five bucks you get a pitcher of freshly made aqua fresca, a starter (usually soup or salad), and a choice of half a dozen main courses. Chef-owner Memo Wulff studied at San Francisco's California Culinary Institute, and although his dishes are Mexican, they are not quite business as usual. Recent dishes included calamari in a spicy red sauce (al diablo, which means "to the devil"), char-grilled carne asada, and pork shank burritos, most served with rice, a puddle of refried black beans, and your choice of rolls or tortillas. After 7 pm the menu switches to antojitos: tacos, tostadas, flautas, and other snacking dishes. The ambience is casual, the music is lively and Latino, and the walls are decorated with handmade art projects.