Laundromat Owners Reflect on Four Years on Balboa Street

Small Businesses Laundromat Owners Reflect on Four Years on Balboa Street By San Francisco Richmond ReView on November 13, 2026 • ( Leave a comment ) By Aliya Ingram While the name may seem misleading, The Laundromat S.F. – located on Balboa Street in the Outer Richmond – is not the place to drop off your laundry. However, if you are craving well crafted bagels, pizza – and the star of the show, smash burgers every Wednesday night – it is the perfect place. Kevin Rodgers and Jenna O’Connell opened the restaurant four years ago, in November of 2022. They partnered with Jaimi Holker and Adam Bergeron – the owners of CinemaSF, who are responsible for the Balboa Theater – to bring the vision to life. Previously, the restaurant’s building was home to an actual laundromat. “Prior to construction we had yet to decide on an official name. …our business paperwork was due, and we needed to decide on a name by the end of day. So we just chose to keep it The Laundromat. We figured we would make it ours with our own dynamic vibe, food and the physical space. I think it worked out, but we were definitely shooting off the hip,” Rodgers said. Every Wednesday night, starting at 5 p.m., locals are lined up outside the busy restaurant waiting to try the smashburger. It is well worth the wait, as the burger consists of a potato bun, double patties, American cheese, pickles, lettuce, burger sauce and onions and served with a side of cold herby potatoes that compliment the burger perfectly, offering a fresh light aspect to the rich tasting burger. While delicious for the customers, the smash burger allows restaurants to produce a higher volume of food easily because of its consistency during the cooking process. “Unlike most traditional burgers being cooked to different temperatures (rare, medium rare, etc.) the smash burger offers execution in a simple and streamline way,” Rodgers said. “This means we can service quite a high volume of people fairly easily.” The Laundromat’s patties are cooked specially using a process called the maillard reaction, which is a chemical reaction between amino acids (the building blocks of proteins) and sugars like glucose, which result in the golden brown color, crispy outside and distinctive flavor. Rodgers says the genesis of the smash burger was to create a neighborhood night while at the same time addressing the consistently slow business on Wednesdays. “I had done some Smash burger pop ups in Santa Cruz, Calif. in 2020-2021 and had some success, so we figured we would give it a shot,” he said. The atmosphere in and outside the restaurant is busy and lively, however the tightly organized management ensures the lines move quickly and people are not waiting for the experience for too long. Many view the staff as friendly and attentive, creating a positive atmosphere and mood amongst the patrons. In an otherwise sleepy part of San Francisco, The Laundromat offers a vibrant place for locals to gather with their friends and enjoy dinner. While the burgers are a standout, the restaurant also serves pizza and bagels on Wednesdays through Sundays, offering up dynamic takes on classic flavors like their pepperoni pizza with spicy pepperoni. Its traditionally flavored bagels served with a variety of cream cheese flavors also makes The Laundromat worth a visit for your breakfast cravings. This immense success however came to the surprise of owner Rodgers. “We definitely never expected this much traffic or popularity,” he said. “The restaurant industry can be extremely difficult and volatile. I think our love of food and community has allowed us to cultivate a sincere and great vibe for our space. We are extremely grateful to all our staff who blend this love and interaction to create such a great space. The work has been really difficult but rewarding. We couldn’t be happier to be a part of the Balboa village. I believe restaurants are timeless anchors of social interaction, creativity and sharing time together for communities.” The Laundromat is located at 3725 Balboa St., near 38th Avenue. Find more information at thelaundromatsf.com. Share this: Share on X (Opens in new window) X Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Like this: Like Loading… Related Categories: Small Businesses Tagged as: Food , Laudromat S.F. , Richmond District , Richmond Review , small business