Smells good, tastes better
Pakwan seems to be shaping up as a local chain, with locations in the Tenderloin and the Financial District. The recipe for success is cheap, good food with an utter absence of ambience. This is one of many order-at-counter, wipe-silverware Indian dives in the Tenderloin -- possibly the best, based on its willingness to use white-meat chicken when rivals like Na'an & Curry are tossing in drumsticks. The default spicing is hot but stops short of causing flames to spurt from your eustachian tubes. Our frequent orders are dal chana (Pakistani comfort food), tandoori fish, and chicken chana masala. If you get take-out and have left over chana masala sauce, it vastly improves mundane items such as canned bean soup. Stock up on naan: it's only about the size of a dinner plate and very addictive. Dessert options are limited, and the one mass-produced ice cream-like confection we tried wasn't memorable. But at the Tenderloin location (501 O'Farrell St.), the laundromat next door doubles as an ice cream parlor. Only in San Francisco.
Recommended: dal chana, tandoori fish
Food: 10
Service: 8
Ambiance: 2
Overall: 10