We went here for our team's Christmas party and had a blast. From the presentation of the food to the ambience, we loved the time here. We were a large group so we called a week ahead. For the price being only $28/adult, it was a lot lot lot of food. Children 12 and under are 50% off and babies are free! The kamayan feast comes with fruits, pork belly, pork bbq stick (i opted for chicken as I don't eat pork), shrimp, bangus fish, tilapia fish, mussels, squid, okra, eggplant, atsara, shrimp crackers, turon, and UNLIMITED garlic fried rice. There were also garnishes and sauces given to each person. Most specially considering we were a big group, we truly appreciated their patience with us. The service was very hospitable. Excited to come back! read more

Kabalen - Kamayan spread on banana leaves - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Enjoyed this kamayan feast with family for valentines dinner. There was a lot of food for sure but everything was so delicious! It was a bit busy since it was valentines but the service was still good. The floor upstairs had a big window that overlooks the street in front. Highly recommended to anyone who has or hasn't tried a filipino kamayan meal!! read more

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This restaurant has dine in and take-out options. There's a hot table to choose fresh offerings made in the morning. They have a bbq station outside where they are making pork bbq sticks, lechon manok (roasted chicken). We order 4 pork bbq sticks $3 / stick. The bbq has a nice char exterior, and meat is juicy and tender. I did find several pieces of pure fat. I would appreciate it if the restaurant would not use the fat pieces on the bbq sticks. Service was friendly but we did have to wait about 20-25 minutes for our bbq. I'm ok as your order is cooked fresh. We also ordered one pork sisig with garlic rice. The sisig did not have the crunchy pork skin but mainly meaty pieces. Taste was on point nice citrus and savoury seasoning. I like this dish if it was served on a sizzling plate with egg on top. Overall, I would come back as the bbq sticks were definitely good value. Compared to neighboring restaurants they have the cheapest bbq sticks! They also offer party trays if you're looking to cater your party or event. read more

Kabalen - Pork bbq skewers $3 per stick - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

If you're looking for big value when it comes to food, or cheap & economical meals with large volume of food (that's also tasty and high quality), Kabalen is the place to be. It serves authentic homestyle-cooked Filipino dishes - everything from grilled fish and seafood, to rice and vegetable dishes. One of their signature offerings is the kamayan / boodle fight. ** PARKING ** The restaurant is located in a small plaza. There is free parking for customers in front of the restaurant, but parking spots fill up quickly (especially on weekends and around peak meal times), and the area is quite small, so parking space can be quite tight. There are other outdoor parking lots and street parking nearby, if the plaza parking lot happens to be full. ** RESTAURANT LAYOUT & HOW IT WORKS ** Just like a lot of other Filipino restaurants in the neighbourhood, they do the grilling / most of the cooking in front of the restaurant (so you can smell the delicious food being cooked before you even step inside!). The first floor is the area where they serve hot food ready to go. There is quite a large selection of dishes, as well as some traditional Filipino snacks and desserts. Snacks / desserts selection includes puto, sapin sapin, kutsinta, biko (various steamed rice / tapioca cakes in different flavours and varieties), as well as 'cold' desserts such as the coconut shreds with fruits & jellies in refreshing coconut milk. The first floor is also where you can pick up your catering or take-out orders. If you order directly from the hot food bar downstairs, you can take the food to eat upstairs or get them in containers for to go. There are washrooms on both the 1st and 2nd floors. The washroom on the second floor only has 1 stall, but it's quite spacious and clean. **SERVICE & AMBIENCE ** The second floor is the dining area. Service is almost non-existent as it operates more like a self-serve cafeteria (i.e. you seat yourself, bring your own tray of food upstairs, get napkins yourself from downstairs, pour yourself water from the water station). Sometimes there is staff to help bring your tray of food upstairs, but you just have to do most things yourself. So don't come expecting a typical dine-in service where the waiter / waitress will take your order and get you things. The ambience in the dining room upstairs is very casual and laid-back. There are TV screens around the room, with music playing (with a bit of the Filipino-style karaoke vibe). ** THE FOOD ** Lots of people seem to come for take-out / pick-up / catering orders. Most of the other patrons in the dining room order food from downstairs and bring it upstairs to eat. We came for the kamayan feast (boodle fight) for 4 people. (Note: You need to pre-order and pre-pay ahead of time.) It came in a large box, and was served on banana leaves. Portion size was huge (as expected). They gave so much rice, it probably could've fed 8 people. There was a large amount of fish and seafood on top of the rice (including 1 grilled tilapia, 1 fried bangus / milkfish, 1 whole grilled squid, large shrimps, and mussels). I really liked the vegetables, fruits, and salads that came with the kamayan: grilled okra, eggplant slices, atsara (pickled green papaya & onion slaw), cherry tomatoes, diced mango, and grilled pineapple. It was a very satisfying and excellent value meal. The best part of kamayan feast is eating with your hands from a common big spread of food on the banana leaves. (Kamayan is a Filipino word that means "eating with hands"). It gives a communal feeling. They provide plastic gloves, styrofoam plates, and plastic utensils if you need them (optional), but it's a lot more fun eating with the hands! read more

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First time trying the Kamayan Feast! The colors are eye-catching and it's a grilled heaven. They serve fish, shrimps, squid, and mussels. They also have BBQ skewers and different kinds of vegetables. Everything tastes so delicious and is grilled perfectly. Nothing is overcooked, except the fish, which is a bit too salty for us. But they serve a generous amount of rice and when you eat it with rice, it's fine. Moreover, when mixed with the shrimp paste, I couldn't stop myself from eating a lot of rice. It's indeed perfect for a party or a family meal. read more

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We're from SoCal and our turo-turo places can't compare. Service, ambiance, and food was amazing. Only complaint is that their pork adobo and vinegar dipping sauce is a little too sweet, but that's subjective! read more

Kabalen - a variety of food items on a table - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Since the beginning of the pandemic, it was quite some time I enjoyed a Boodle Fight / Kamayan Feast with my friends and family. Nothing will beat the camaraderie of eating with our sanitized hands while enjoying laughs and great conversations. At Kabalen , you can enjoy a traditional Boodle Fight from the comfort of your own home with their Super Kamayan Feast! On a bed of steamed Jasmine Rice, it's a dream surf and turf combo in however you enjoy a boodle fight. There's Lechon Kawali (Pork Belly or Siu Yuk for my Cantonese friends), grilled squid , shrimp, mussels, chicken skewers , mussels. For the vegans and vegetarians, there's perfectly grilled eggplant, okra, pineapple, and atsara (pickled green papaya). For the head to feet connoisseurs, you definitely need to try their Sisig. My friend @iam_rainyrain was not kidding, this simple but classic dish made from pig heads and minced pork is best enjoyed with a bite of rice! I wouldn't mind just getting an order of sisig straight up! As we get through these times, if you're looking for a feast to lift up your spirits, be sure to visit Kabalen for home-cooked meals at reasonable prices. You'll definitely would want to go back for more. read more

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OVERALL: Overall cool Filipino spot, a great Kamayan dinner VENUE: The restaurant looks like a takeout joint downstairs but has a great seating area upstairs for a sit in dinner. FOOD: We had 6 people and ordered the Kamayan style dinner. The amount of food was insane! Generous amounts of seafood (fish, calamari), meats (beef, pork, chicken), veggies and rice. Overall the food was tasty. The dinner was also served with soup which was very refreshing (tasted like pho soup, so probably a beef soup). SERVICE: Good service. The set up the food infront of you which is a cool experience. read more

Kabalen - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

I was truly DISAPPOINTED by the food we ordered. The daing na bangus looked nothing like the picture on the site, with just two tiny pieces and none of the mango-onion salsa promised. The fish tasted rotten, as if it had been marinated for weeks. Even the bilo-bilo had undercooked taro and sweet potatoes. The vegetable spring rolls seemed like cheap frozen ones from a grocery store. Despite claims of deliciousness, Kabalen's food was far from it. The biggest letdown was the fish, as I had been craving daing na bangus, only to be served something unrecognizable. It felt like being fooled and scammed, nowhere near the advertised picture. I suspect they use frozen marinated fish from grocery stores, but even those taste better than what Kabalen served. read more

Kabalen - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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I've ordered from here several times now and each time has been a great experience! The pork bbq skewers reminds me of the ones I grew up with at weekend family get togethers! Their kamayan is visually gorgeous, and tastes very good too. The lechon is OK, but some parts were over cooked and very hard to chew while others were overly greasy. My family loves their pancit bihon/canton mix and their palabok it also tasty. The lumpia shanghai is really tasty too, but pretty comparable to other ones you can get. My best suggestion is to try and order stuff that gets made-to-order in the kitchen rather than things that are made and put at their hot bar read more

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Me and my wife went in Kabalen , Wilson? Bathurst area to eat some Sinigang na Fish Nov 5 2023 dinner time. Since its not included in the bundle coz its a biz cozy they say but its ok, I order it with rice of course. My wife order her food. I was surprise when I got my order. Its just fish bones and just a very little meat on it....like very little at all. Full of hot pepper, a bit of vegetables and soup. I was so disappointed and lost my appetite. My wife's drink was so sweet and needs to add more ice but still sweet. Never go back again there. read more

Came here during the Taste of Manila festival. I ordered pork sisig which is a Kapampangan dish (a place part of Philippines) which is made from parts of pork head, chicken liver usually seasoned with Calamansi , onions and chilli pepper. read more

Kabalen - Sisig - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Called in the morning to place an order for the Super Kamayan Feast. Portion is super generous as my family of 6 had difficulty finishing it. Probably could use a bit of reheating by the time we got home, but other than that, no complaints. Would definitely order from here again for a special occasion! read more

Kabalen - Super Kamayan Feast - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

What is good: Their kare-kare, Adobo pork knuckles, Fried tilapia when less than an hour old! Kaldereta Chicken inasal Pancit mixed Pancit palabok Bad: Pork siopao Lechon kawali -not crispy at all and hard Giniling Dinuguan with offals Kakanins Ginataang Bilo-bilo. Binagoongan na baboy - Pork meat was of low quality; not worth the $4.99, small, price tag. This is supposed to be binagoongan na baboy! It did NOT taste like it at all. No coconut milk nor shrimp paste in it. read more

Kabalen - Pork meat was of low quality; not worth the $4.99, small, price tag. - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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I set-up a reservation two weeks before our event in this location. Everything was fine and I told them that I'd do a downpayment, one week before our event. One week before our event, I called to do a downpayment for our event, and suddenly the person I called said they can't accommodate us anymore because someone 'apparently' booked for 50 people and they'd have to do the set-up at the time we reserved. I tried to tell them that I reserved first, and the person said that the person who booked me 'overlooked' the booking for the 50 people, thus they can't accommodate us anymore. They need to be more systemized about this and arrange their booking system. Very bad customer service. Instead of offering us something to accommodate us, they said they'd do a $28 per head to accommodate us, which is pricier than the price they originally offer ($65 for 3-4 people = $16 per person supposedly). We had to cancel our reservation, find a new restaurant, and inform everyone we invited to our event about the location change which was so much hassle. read more

This place was super busy when I went but I really appreciate the effort they put in to get my order to me as quick as possible. The super kamayan feast I had was amazing. Such a great assortment of food, definitely would recommend! read more

Kabalen - Super kamayan feast - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

This place is a typical cantina style Filipino restaurant which serves dishes cafeteria style. You would just come in, point to what you like, they'll gladly scoop it up and pack/prep it for you on a plate. My boyfriend and I were trying to find a place to order party trays for Christmas and decided to do some testing first and ate there first before making a decision. We ordered crispy pata and adobo and yes we were convinced it was good enough. For our Christmas family party. we ordered chop suey (veggies w/ quail egg), lumpia, lechon kawali, pork skewers, and pancit bihon canton. All were super delicious, greasy, but delicious goodness. The pork skewers were nice and sweet and savory because of the banana ketchup, the lechon was crispy to the taste and everything else was decent. These were all fairly safe choices of dishes to order and it all came up to around 2 something bills. Just to let you guys know, they do fiesta ham here as well but we only knew that once we had got there to pick up our order. On the second floor they had Red Ribbon products, dessert items like buko pandan, ube etc all ready to buy with cash only. It was a first come first serve kind of basis for those items. Honestly, I really like this place more than Sampuguita Village, despite some recommendations there. I just find the food more flavorful here and not only that, they had expanded their location to a pastry shop on the other side of the street. Must be a sign they are doing well! Anyways, really recommend ordering here for party trays or just to visit and have easy, casual Filipino lunch. read more

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Came for kamayan with a family of 21. They were very accommodating. Food was great and portions were large! The price per head was also very reasonable. I've been to other places for kamayan and many felt quite expensive for what they offered. Special thanks to Victor & Chris for being top notch with their service! read more

Kabalen - Boodle fight! Shrimp, mussels, bangus, squid, okra, pork BBQ! - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Sisig is always spoiled everytime we go there and the lumpia. Food is way overpriced. Never again Kabalen!

So... I almost never put any reviews but this one will be an exception. MUST READ! I was planning to go to food trip, which was across from Kabalen, but they were closed. I was tired, and hungry. All I wanted to have was a good meal. So my girlfriend suggested Kabalen. She said she's been there before and they were okay. Food looked a little old but given the fact it was late night was understandable... not that I would agree with that. I mean damn. If I'm going to own a restaurant I would make sure food is fresh, or at least looks fresh. I knew what I wanted and one of the items was bbq on a stick. I saw about 10 pieces and I was thinking to myself "I hope nobody orders all the bbq" as there was a little bit of a line up. We were almost next and the people in front of us had ordered some but luckily about six or seven pieces left. As we started to place our order I saw one of the employees take four pieces away and wrapped it into tin foil. It didn't look like it was for a customer as they had just placed it on the table behind them. Two pieces were left! I had asked the person to take the last two but she hesitated and asked her co worker if those were hers -_-.... she said it was, and then they said there was no more... I can't even begin to express the amount of rage that was building up. Not even at the fact that I wouldn't be able to get my bbq, but because they had practically taken the food FROM CUSTOMERS. The fact that they were so easy going about it made me even more upset. I really hope the owner knows about this and will take matters accordingly. Totally unprofessional. NO I will not be going back and yes I will tell people about my experience there. Aside from all this. The food wasn't great and it was a little overpriced for what I got. Also portioning was stupid. I saw the bowl they were going to put my side dish in and I thought "wow, I think we'll be getting a decent amount". But no... filled just over half way. Another thing that gets on my nerves is how small the portion of rice was. Any Filipino knows how much we eat and love rice. It's very inexpensive and for the price that we paid, I felt like I got robbed. Overall bad experience. I would not go there again. Thank you for reading and I hope you don't have the same experience I had. read more

I used to love this place with consistently good food. Today we ordered bopis and kaldereta. Bopis was too sour and Kaldereta was overly sweet. I was so disappointed I don't think I'll be back. read more

The food here is always delicious. Warm, familiar and also interesting. I think it is the consensus of everyone living in the area that this is the best place to go for Filipino food. Well deserved 5 stars. read more

The Puto/Kutsinta wasn't taste good. The taste is awful. When you look at the puto and kutsinta it seems so yummy but when you tried to eat it. Omg, it's awful. I paid $6 for the puto and $6 for kutsinta. The kutsinta is hard. The side is soft but the middle part is hard. The puto when you eat it specially the purple colour, leaves a rough taste in your mouth. This is the first time i came there and I wouldn't recommend or buy anything specially their dessert. I wouldn't recommend you buy this and waste your money. The owner should try this dessert before they sell it. read more

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I always come here to dine, and I was satisfied with the grilled servings. But one day I came for halo halo and I was not satisfied. It was so commercial, the ice cream toppings , it's like less half teaspoon only, and the sweet beans, as if tinipid ng tinipid. It was more shaved ice than sweets. We are in Canada, give a serving that we deserve. For Halo Halo , I may say Sampaguita Village serves the best. I hope you improve your Halo Halo. And the servers should smile at customers, some of them were a little snobbish. read more

One of the best "turo turo" filipino restaurants we've been to, if not THE BEST!! Kapangpangan know how to do it right!! They have combo deals, pick 1 dish with rice and a drink for $7.99 or pick 2 dish with rice and a drink for $9.99. We originally ordered 2 combo #2's but after trying our meal, we got 2 more combos, palabok and torons TO GO! You have to try their Kare Kare, Lechong Sisig, and Beef Kalderata! Its A MUST! They also have hella good torons for dessert. They have an awesome set up, an upstairs eating lounge with SPACE. If youve been to other filipino restaurants in the city, you know how tight the spaces can get. Great for a party lounge! Will definitely be back to try more of their menu! read more

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Typical turo turo restaurant. You point at what you want,careful though you might get carried away . I like the Kamayan option. Just hope there's more meat coz with the price, I know another place that can get you better. Overall, it's okay. read more

Kabalen - Kamayan for 2, $15/person - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Been buying food here due to food is very delicious, Im giving 2star because I found hair on my bbq ,pls pls advice your staffs to wear hair net,this is very important, sanitation is very important. Definitely not my hair,I have long thin hair. read more

Kabalen - Filipino Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

This place is trash. They hire a bunch of underage incompetent kids who lie to the customers. They don't even have prices listed so they charge you as they wish. Greedy Filipinos. The food is overpriced. They are rude and charge you for extra sauce. read more

This is essentially the filipino version of manchuwok where they have dishes served hot and you pick what you want through the glass and they serve it to you. Ive never really had traditional filipino cuisine before so dont have much to reference too. But you can order combos...like 1 rice/noodle and 2 items. I ordered pancit, adobo, and some minced beef with quail eggs in some tomatoe sauce. Generous portions for cheap. But greasy.....so greasy..that when I got home..I napped for 3hrs after lunch. Flavours were decent, but nothing bursting with flavours. Food is heavy and oily. Would come back if Im in the area and try other items but would probably only get 1 rice and 1 item read more

Came for my friend's birthday for the kamayan group dinner. I've had it before at tinuno and loved it so I was expecting a similar experience. And it simply exceeded my expectations! The concept is family style dinner with items laid on top of a bed of rice on a banana leaf. Food items include bbq skewers, grilled chicken, seafood (crab, squid, shrimp, mussels), pancit, lechon, mango salad. That's a lot of food!! There was also unlimited iced tea or ginger ale. The food was amazing, we were all so stuffed we couldn't finish it all and ended taking the rest home. For dessert, I don't know who ordered it but they brought out a halo halo birthday cake and it looked and tasted delicious. Definitely got the seal of approval from my filipino friends too. The staff there are just so friendly and attentive, it was such a great experience. Standouts for the food included the skewers, the pancit, and the lechon! Drooling just thinking about it again! read more

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Everything is excellent including the service but please improve on your turon. It's like I'm eating cardboard. I have given it many chances. It's the same disappointment everytime. read more

I ordered food from Kabalen for a family party, and I was extremely disappointed. i tried their food from previous events & it was good, but this time, not sure what happened. I ordered 7 trays of food and I was not happy. Caldereta has more gravy than meat... seriously?? Half the tray was gravy! It taste like a cup of sugar was added into it, so sweet!! chop seuy with seafood was the same thing, half the tray was gravy! Looks like it was vegetable soup! Noodles was too oily, i was so embarrassed to my guests, I had to send an apology and promise to invite them again with better food. Never again I will order catered food. they also set a pick up time & they were so late, waited 20 mins. I would not recommend this place for catering. read more

I love this place!! It's a hidden gem in North York providing amazing Filipino cuisine and bbq!! ! If you haven't heard of this place, you must go and try it! It's worth the trip, although not too far from downtown Toronto - I usually get the kamayan feast which translates to 'eatwithyourhands' and that I do! The 'mini feast' is huge and although they say it feeds 1-2, it's BIG. It comes with a whole tilapia, mussles, milkfish, prawns, squid bbqchicken and a selection of veggies including okra, eggplant and salad PLUS heaps of tasty rice! It's all atop of banana leaves used as your utensil. It's delicious! There's just something so great about simple authentic food done right! I gave it a 4/5 as I've found the veggies to be a bit underdone and not as well seasoned/prepared as the other components (grilled/bbq'd veggies would be great!), and I could use some more heat!! Overall, it's a great place, and it's always packed when I go there which speaks volumes! Give it a try! read more

My family frequently buys from here, usually good quality food. However I noticed that every-time I've bought food here myself, I have always gotten burnt meat. This has happened 5-6 times, probably because I don't look filipino, however my full filipino family members get not burnt meat. I am very frustrated with this and i definitely do not recommend for anyone who is non-filipino to buy from here. read more

Food doesn't taste authentic, workers are slow and customer service skills are very low. Hindi masarap at panget yung atmosphere. #HonestReview both dine in + take out is very long wait yet the workers are impatient lol. Don't bother reserving it's not worth the wait. 1 STAR FOR EFFORT. :) read more

My sister and I was there during the dinner time rush last night. I love Filipino food especially home cooked from my grandmother, mom and aunts/uncles. The restaurant is clean, organized, modern and the atmosphere was inviting. Taking a peek from outside this is what drew me inside and wanted to see what the line up was all about. I studied the prices which I thought were high for the ratio of food but I don't mind paying for authentic ethnic food. I like supporting small local businesses. The staff is friendly, polite and takes their time to spend their service on you. I like that I wasn't rushed and he was very accommodating. I decided to do take out for my family. First, I saw the desserts. They look so yummy! I picked up the pandan mousse and the macaroons. Then I moved along to select the main dishes. The dishes LOOKED hot, delicious and fresh. Being Filipino born in Canada, I wasn't quite familiar with all the dishes. This is where I got confused. The labels didn't align with the dishes and not all dishes were labeled. I chose three of the most appealing dishes (a chicken dish, a beef dish, and pork dish) with steam rice. I was very excited and very hungry. Once home, we opened the tubs. There was soooo much oil that settled to the top. All dishes were very oily. We proceeded because it smelled delicious. The pork dish was too salty. I like salt on my food but this would drive a blood pressure thru the roof! I couldn't let my mom eat it. The chicken dish was too greasy which left a film on the tongue...more white rice helped. The beef was dry but the oily (quite salty) sauce softened the texture. The white rice was fresh and was the best part of the dinner. We had to throw out the dishes. It was more oil than actual dish anyway. Way too salty and oily for my mom to fix. However, we saved the best for last! DESSERT! This was delicious. I savored and enjoyed each bite. It was my first time at this Filipino restaurant. We may have been disappointed with the outcome of the main dishes but I really would like to go back for the other desserts (ie. Sans Rival cake). Most likely, I will also give the other main dishes another try (ie, Fried Tilapia). They have good reviews so perhaps I picked the wrong dishes this time around. read more

Food is good. Just too overprized. I was there today and the lady in the cash register was on the phone speaking to her friend which i find it rude when she should be focusing on her costumer and realized that one of the item wasn't billed. and made me do another payment transaction as if it was my fault and literally want us to take home the food that we bought without lids. Like really. read more

I threw up after eating here at Kabalen. I ordered pansit and pork steak. The meat they gave me are all fats, only one piece of lean pork. The sauce is so greasy that the fatty meat is like soaked in a cup of oil. Their pancit is also very greasy. Very unhealthy food. read more

I like going to Kabalen because food and prices are not bad but because of 3 incidents involving my phone orders, I have to give them a lower rating. About August 2017, I ordered a tray of lechon sisig and when I got there, my order was not available even if I had pre-paid for my order. I just let that slide that time and opted for a refund. Fast forward to December 23, 2017, I phoned in an order for another tray of lechon sisig but when I got there, they did not have my order but instead gave me an order with somebody else's name. Then last January 5, 2018, I ordered plain sisig on the phone a day prior but when we got there, our order was again not there and we ended up agreeing to having them take the order from the tray that was on their steam table. Another problem was that, the very next day, the left overs spoiled right away despite careful food handling practice and refrigeration. Seems like with their growing popularity, they are not able to cope with the growing business as to maintaining the good quality of their food and service. read more

The halo halo is pretty good here, Its just that the price keeps going up each year. its about 15 min wait for the drink