I'm not a big fan of Vietnamese food, but it is refreshing to eat it once in a while, especially if…read moreyou want something light yet filling at the same time. Old Quarter is only the second Vietnamese restaurant in Marikina, as far as I know, and I'm really glad they decided to set up shop along Lilac Street! They are a small establishment sure, but their dishes are big in flavor! My boyfriend and I went on a rainy, chilly night, so we had an extra reason to order pho, and we chose beef. Ahhhh where do I begin? It's fragrance alone made my mouth water! The broth is light and doesn't have any "umay" flavor unlike other noodle dishes. And when I added the chili? Ah, divine! :) We also tried their pork BBQ banh mi, which is longer and bigger compared to another Marikina Vietnamese restaurant's. The pork was okay tasting, but I find it a bit tough to chew, so maybe the pork could be sliced first before being sandwiched. In addition, the baguette's even tougher than the meat; in the other Marikina Viet resto, the baguette they use is soft and nice to chew, so it's really difficult not to compare. You can ask for the actual banh mi to be sliced for easier consumption, though. For our sides, we tried their fresh spring rolls and spicy wings. We liked them both, though we think the spring rolls aren't as fresh as they ought to be as they were kind of dry BUT the dipping sauce made it much better. The wings, on the other hand, weren't that spicy, but were still flavorful. For drinks, I recommend you try their canned tamarind Vietnamese drink! Sarap! :) They have Vietnamese coffee, as well, but I am not patient for it to drip, so yeah, I'd pick their ready-to-drink beverages anytime.

I'm only giving it 3 stars because I haven't tried everything on the menu yet!…read more That being said, Me Love You Long Time is one of the more interesting food spots at the Z. I love the homage to Stanley Kubrick painted on the wall (Full Metal Jacket is one of my favorite films!), and I find myself mentally replaying the scene where The Joker and Rafterman are having afternoon beers while the Vietnamese prostitute saunters over and delivers her now immortalized spiel, to the tune of Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made For Walkin'." The only food I've tried on the menu is their Pad Thai (which isn't Vietnamese, BTW), which for less than 150 pesos is an excellent plate of vegetarian pad thai. I prefer my pad thai to balance the umami of patis with lots of citrus and maybe a dab of sweetness. Me Love You Long Time's pad thai has a great recipe for it, and trust that I always make a bee line for MLYLT whenever I'm at the Z Compound (if I'm not lining up for Meshwe instead!).

Won't you satay with me, 'cause you're all I need?…read more I admit I got horribly punny while eating at the al fresco dining area of Me Love You Long Time. It was our anniversary night and we decided to go adventuring along Maginhawa and because of budget constraints, we ended up sourcing food from the different establishments in Malingap's Z Compound. One of these was Me Love You Long Time, and despite my lobster nodding conspiratorially at the name and insisting that it's from Full Metal Jacket, nothing clicked. I stopped caring when the food arrived, though. I had pho ("pho you!" I chuckled, as the waitress glared at me disapprovingly) while my Bicolano lobster had the spicier Thai chicken curry and chicken satay. The food was hot in more ways than one, so I balanced it out with their delicious Thai milk tea (if it's a Thai place, should I just call it milk tea?) We capped off the meal with their highly-recommended (by another Yelp scout, no less) langka ice cream. The owners make it themselves, and it was langka-mazing.

Fun fact: Me Love You Long Time is apparently a reference to the war film Full Metal Jacket, where…read morea Vietnamese hooker uses this line to pick up American GIs. Well, the more you know... Whether you're having recurring cravings after your Southeast Asian food trip or in search of one without having to hop on a plane, this pop-up stall tucked in the back corner of StrEat has got to be one of your stops. Ever since I had chicken satay on the streets of Kuala Lumpur, I've fallen head over heels for them and I'm proud to report that the ones here did not disappoint. The chicken was so tender and flavorful from the curry marinade, making me wish they were a little bigger and topped with more peanut sauce. I also had their Thai iced tea, which I'm glad wasn't drowned in milk and still tasted like tea. I'll be back soon for another adventure with their pad thai and spring rolls, because me love MLYLT long time for sure.

I went back to MLYLT2 for the first time in a long time. I was utterly disappointed because of the…read morequality of the food. The chicken satay was flat, dry and bland, and simply just not as flavorful as before. What ruined the meal, though, was the nasi goreng, which I have tried for the first time. My idea of nasi goreng is fried rice soaking with kecap manis. The oilier, the better. Theirs is a soggy attempt at nasi kuning, which is yellow Javanese rice. The turmeric was just so overpowering, it made the dish very bitter and inedible. And to think that the dish is P160. I just wasn't happy with the meal. I broke the P300 mark but it wasnt even good. In fact, it was pretty bad. Makes one wonder what happened to my old favorite...

My friend wanted to treat everyone to a birthday dinner, and most of us had never tried Ba Noi's,…read moreso we went. This branch is a lot smaller and more cramped than the one in UP Town Center (which I had gone to with my boyfriend and his family months later). They don't have a dining area for smokers, and getting in and out of your seat can be challenging because of the limited space. I tried their rice noodles though I wasn't really a fan; unfortunately they failed to convert me. However, everything else we ate was REALLY DELICIOUS. The catfish in their catfish salad is fried to a crunch; the Suon Nong Xa (fried pork riblets) lean on the salty side but are therefore a special treat to salt lovers; the Ga Nuong was standard, delicious grilled chicken--nothing special but nonetheless yummy; and the star of the show was the Bo Luc Lac, which is simply some VERY well-seasoned beef cubes. The servers here aren't particularly cheerful or nice, but they do their jobs well enough, so there's nothing to complain about. In conclusion, the place is often packed for a reason--good Vietnamese food--but I wouldn't bring kids there. They would cause a riot in the tiny space, and nothing in the menu is really kid-friendly.

While I was in Estancia Mall, I wanted to try a restaurant that I haven't tried before. Ba Noi's…read morelooked quite cozy and the lights were bright enough for me to work in my laptop. I had Bun Ga Noung Xa, and Beef Noodle Soup - one with dry noodles, the other one was noodles with soup. Bun Ga Noung Xa was great! I loved how flavorful and tender the chicken was. The dish came with lots of herbs, and peanut sauce. As for the beef noodle soup, the noodles were perfectly cooked, and the soup was amazing! The herbs and spices really stepped up the game. I can't wait to come back to try the rest of the dishes!

I'm Vietnamese from Bolsa area in Orange County, southern California, the largest Vietnamese…read morecommunity outside Viet Nam. We have the best pho there so I might be more critical than an average reviewer. I immediately recognize the brand "pho Hoa" since it was once a popular brand in California. Walking in the restaurant, I was surprise that I didn't smell the pho aroma, not a good sign. Since the pictures on the wall are about Viet Nam and there are Vietnamese on the menu, I tried to push my luck speaking Vietnamese to the waiter. Only Tagalog! We ordered pho special, vegi pho and the crispy chow mein. Neither the pho broth closely resembles pho. No aroma at all. Maybe the local Filipinos like the pho that way. The crispy chow mein is average. The service is OK.

We had the spring rolls, banh mi, pho & vermicelli bowl...all were pretty good considering where…read morewe're at. We're always comparing food places out here to how close they are in taste, to places we have in California, and this was not bad at all. The pork BBQ banh mi had too much liver spread for my taste and was missing cilantro (just asked for a side and added it myself). The spring rolls were spring rolls lol. The pho had just enough flavor in the broth which usually gets masked by the hoisin and Siracha in my case anyway. I just remember there was a good amount of meat to noodle and broth ratio. They kindly split a large into two bowls for us. The vermicelli bowl was what surprised us, it was a lot and the dressing was really good. It wasn't too fishy or sweet, it was perfect. Overall I got my pho fix

I thought it was very good though the amount of actual beef in the pho was small. Good flavor! The…read moreSummer rolls were very good too! I ate at a second store and it was just as good! I'd recommend them!

Been eating Phat Pho forever at the Serendra (and even Cebu) branch and it's brought the same…read moreconsistent, flavourful, and ultimately satisfying dishes to Rockwell. The place is a bit small, so it can be hard to get a table, but drop by anyway because y'all NEED to try that angus beef satay and com chien combo.

Did an online delivery, this time for Bawai's. Unfortunately, this time the order took longer, it…read morewas a bit late. Good thing my husband also was late, they both arrive at the same time. So technically they were still on time :). But the wait was worth it, their Pho Ga (Noodles Soup with slices of chicken topped with herbs and spices) has a subtle and light flavor that is refreshing and clean-tasting. Even with its light flavor, you can taste the flavor of the chicken broth. Their highly recommended Com Suon Cha did not disappoint. Tender pork belly with crispy skin with a juicy and sweet full-rounded flavor from the caramel-lemongrass marinade. It comes with mushroom egg pie. The down-side of this juicy flavorful meat is the oil that oozes from it. Why is it the most juicy, delicious meat comes with a free cholesterol laden oil (the sad part of being a foodie). While a bit pricey, the food delivers its worth.

The original Bawai's is located in Silang, on your way to Tagaytay. There the Bawai's family has a…read morehouse where they opened up their living room for guest to dine. Even though this place has no sign, it caught on like wild fire and soon they had to expand. This Bawai's also has that vibe as if you are eating in somebody's home. There is a nice view on the back and if the weather allows it's one of the few places in manila where you can enjoy a bit of greenery and quite outdoor dinner. They have all the recipes you expect from a vietnamese place and they use very fresh ingredients and herbs. I just find their dessert menu a bit lacking.

*Note: This is a 3.5 Star Review…read more There are not many restaurants to choose from in Estancia Mall. So, when I was craving for noodle soup for lunch, I wasn't expecting much from Ba Noi's. I thought that, for the prices, it would be just another "Estancia" restaurant. But, I was pleasantly surprised with the dishes that I have tried here. I like the following dishes: Pomelo & Shrimp Salad, Bun Cha Gio Thit Nuong (Fried Spring Rolls, Grilled Pork Patties with Rice Noodles), Pho Bo (Beef Noodle Soup), and Pho Bo Kho (Beef Stew Noodle Soup). I almost always order the Fresh Sugarcane Juice to go with my food. The dishes are actually good for two hungry people. Also, the service was fast and the servers were friendly. One thing you will love with Vietnamese food, your dish will always be served fresh and tasty!

This place is probably my current favorite Vietnamese restaurant joint. Say what you will about Pho…read moreHoa, Phobobo or any of the Phontastic Phons around Manila, but to me, this place just seems to get it oh so right. The bowls of Pho are indeed very generous in size, while the broth is savory and flavorful no matter what type of meat you order. Add chunks of juicy beef and supremely chewy rice noodles and it's just the perfect pick-me-up after a long day's work. If the weather's too hot for some steaming bowls of noodle soup, Ba Noi's also serves other delicious dishes such as their lemon grass chicken bowl topped with noodles. And did I mention their Vietnamese coffee? It comes in this fancy shmancy Vietnamese coffee pot-thing that makes the experience so magical and sweet. And I mean literally sweet, because of the condensed milk. Ba Noi's? More like Ba Nice lol amirite? Anyone? Zzzzzzzz