Lao Table
Financial District/South Beach, San Francisco
Restaurant in San Francisco, United States
Book with PearlThe Read
Price
$30–50per person
Dress
Casual
Why go
Lao Table is worth considering when downtown convenience matters more than a destination-style meal. Use it for a practical SoMa lunch, early dinner, or simple pickup plan; for delivery, check the live menu first and choose travel-friendly dishes rather than treating it as a blind splurge.
About Lao Table
Lao Table is a San Francisco restaurant best evaluated on its schedule and casual dress code. It is open for weekday lunch and dinner, with dinner-only hours on Saturday and no Sunday service. Beyond that, details about menu, service style, pricing, takeout, delivery, awards, chef, or seating are not available.
That makes the safest planning lens direct. Consider Lao Table when its San Francisco location and hours fit your day, especially for a weekday meal or an early dinner. If you need a specific dish, price point, service format, or dietary accommodation, confirm those details directly before making plans.
Use it for San Francisco convenience, not a trophy meal
The right expectation is a practical San Francisco restaurant choice rather than an awards-driven booking. Major awards, chef details, price tier, dish list, or seating details are not available, so the decision should come down to timing and whether the restaurant fits your plans. Diners building a wider plan can cross-check other options in our full San Francisco restaurants guide, then pair the meal with planning from our full San Francisco bars guide, our full San Francisco hotels guide, our full San Francisco wineries guide, or our full San Francisco experiences guide.
For diners comparing simple restaurant choices, Lao Table is best judged against other San Francisco dining by practical factors: hours, location, and whether you can verify the details that matter for your meal before you go.
Plan around the hours
Lao Table's hours are Monday through Friday from 11 AM to 2:30 PM and 5 PM to 8:30 PM, Saturday from 5 PM to 8:30 PM, and Sunday closed. The dress code is casual. Use those facts as the foundation for planning, and avoid assuming details such as takeout, delivery, bar seating, group capacity, menu format, or specific dishes without checking directly.
Planning details
- Location
- 149 2nd St, San Francisco, CA 94105
- Reservations
- Book on OpenTable
- Website
- laotablesf.com
- Phone
- +14152789991
The take
The Take
The Vibe
Lao Table lands in SoMa as a quietly assured entrant to the city’s tasting-menu circuit, trading familiar reference points for a focused study of Lao flavors. The restaurant leans into an elevated, reservation-driven approach that reads as sophisticated: it sits comfortably alongside the ingredient-obsessed and format-conscious peers that define the neighborhood. Rather than repackage well-known Southeast Asian tropes, the kitchen foregrounds Lao staples—fermented fish pastes, sticky rice and herb-forward preparations—so the overall impression is deliberate and refined, with a sense of discovery that rewards diners who are willing to engage with flavors outside the usual canon.
Best For
Lao Table is best encountered at dinner, when SoMa’s tasting-menu sensibility is most pronounced and the restaurant’s reservation-driven format comes into play. It suits business dinners and date nights that favor adventurous, well-paced meals, and it also accommodates groups looking to explore shared plates and bold regional flavors. Because the menu highlights an underrepresented cuisine in a higher-end dining context, it’s well suited for special occasions or anyone seeking a more formal, thoughtfully curated evening—reservations are advised given the restaurant’s placement within the neighborhood’s concentrated dining cluster.
Ordering Tips
Approach the menu with curiosity and ask the staff for guidance: the description emphasizes a relationship between what arrives at the table and how it’s guided, so servers can help navigate unfamiliar dishes and heat profiles. Look for signature items—Tom-Zaab Beef, Pad Mee Lao, Larb Duck Pakxe, Crispy Garlic Wings, Crying Tiger Steak and Mango Sticky Rice—to sample a range of Lao techniques and staples like sticky rice and fermented fish pastes. Given the tasting-menu context and reservation-driven format, plan your visit for dinner and be prepared to lean into shared plates and bold, herb-forward flavors.
Venue details
Ambiance
Contemporary and trendy with pleasant, attractive decor and food presentation; conversational noise level with young clientele; easy to talk to neighbors without excessive noise.
Tags
Vibe
Best For
Experience
Accessibility
At the Table
- Dress Code
- Casual
- Noise Level
- Conversational
- Service Style
- Upscale Casual
- Meal Pacing
- Standard
- Capacity
- Medium
- Kitchen
- Fusion
- Menu Format
- A la carte, Family style
- Wine Program
- Standard
- Drinks Focus
- Specialty cocktails, Happy hour drinks
- Dietary
- Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten-free options
- Private Dining
- Available
Signature Dishes
- Tom-Zaab Beef
- Pad Mee Lao
- Larb Duck Pakxe
- Crispy Garlic Wings
- Mango Sticky Rice
- Crying Tiger Steak
Know before you go
Know Before You Go
- Getting there
- 149 2nd St, San Francisco, CA 94105
Planning details
Location
Also consider
Also Consider
- Super Prime Steakhouse, Notable alternative
- Superprime Steakhouse, Steakhouse, Steakhouse
- North India, Notable alternative
- Tandoori Mahal, Notable alternative
- The Bird, Notable alternative
Restaurant context
How it compares for a practical San Francisco booking
Lao Table is the easier, more convenience-led choice if the meal needs to happen around SoMa rather than become the night's main event. Super Prime Steakhouse and Superprime Steakhouse are better fits for diners who want a steakhouse occasion, a heavier room, and a more deliberate dinner plan. Choose Lao Table when speed and location matter; choose the steakhouse options when ambiance and a higher-commitment meal matter more.
North India and Tandoori Mahal are stronger cross-shops if the priority is a familiar Indian restaurant format with clear group-ordering logic. They are likely safer for mixed groups who want shareable ordering without overthinking the table. Lao Table makes more sense for diners specifically looking near Second Street or wanting an alternative to the usual downtown lunch-and-dinner rotation.
The Bird is the better pick when the brief is fast, casual, and low-risk. Lao Table is more of a sit-down decision and should be booked or chosen when the group wants a fuller restaurant setting. If booking ease is the deciding factor, Lao Table and The Bird are the lowest-friction choices in this set; for a higher-spend dinner, look to the steakhouse peers instead.
Around this place
Discover more on Pearl
Unlock the full Lao Table guide in Pearl, including awards, comparisons, FAQs, planning details, and nearby places.
Compare Lao Table
| Venue | Location | Cuisine | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lao Table | San Francisco | , | No published awards |
| Super Prime Steakhouse | San Francisco | , | No published awards |
| Superprime Steakhouse | San Francisco | Steakhouse | No published awards |
| North India | San Francisco | , | No published awards |
| Tandoori Mahal | San Francisco | , | No published awards |
| The Bird | San Francisco | , | No published awards |
How Lao Table San Francisco: Hours and Planning Basics compares with similar nearby venues.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I eat at the bar at Lao Table?
Bar seating information is not available. Lao Table is in San Francisco, and its hours are Mon–Fri 11 AM–2:30 PM and 5–8:30 PM, Sat 5–8:30 PM, and Sun closed. Confirm seating details directly before you go.
How far ahead should I book Lao Table?
Booking lead time information is not available. Plan around the published hours: weekday lunch and dinner, Saturday dinner only, and Sunday closed.
Can Lao Table accommodate groups?
Group capacity information is not available. If you are planning for more than a small casual meal, confirm availability directly with Lao Table before making plans.
What is Lao Table known for?
Information available covers Lao Table's San Francisco location, casual dress code, and published hours. Details regarding specific dishes, cuisine, awards, prices, and service formats are not available.
