Deep within San Francisco's Mission District, an area known for its Latin American population, lies a small establishment called Sun Rise Restaurant.
While most of the restaurants in the Mission are Mexican, Sun Rise is a combination of Mexican, El Salvadorian, and American foods.
My friend Aiza and I decided to make the trek down there for brunch, as we read positive reviews on Yelp.
Having done a lot of walking that morning, and not having breakfast, our stomachs were primed for a large meal.
Two bus rides and a short walk later, we finally arrived at the restaurant. Inside Sun Rise, the atmosphere is cozy. There are few tables, and the decor consists of cheery yellow walls covered with socially-conscious artwork from local artists.
Aiza and I both ordered chilaquiles, which are a Mexican breakfast specialty. Essentially, the dish consists of day-old corn tortillas or tortilla chips, simmered in a spicy salsa, mixed with scrambled eggs, and topped with queso fresco (a crumbly, white Mexican cheese similar to feta) and sour cream. These chilaquiles also had chorizo, a soft yet spicy Mexican sausage.
There was even the option to get the chilaquiles with soyrizo, a great alternative for vegetarians such as Aiza.
Alongside the chilaquiles, we split an order of platanos fritos--or, fried plantains.
The platanos weren't greasy at all. They were fried to perfection, and had just the right amount of natural sweetness.
To round everything off, I had a hot beverage called atole de elote. It's a hot, thick, sweetened cornmeal drink mixed with milk.
All of our dishes were delicious. That, combined with upbeat Latin American music in the background and friendly service, made this a perfect meal to round off the decade.