YUM! Filipino food! Definitely craved it after not eating it for months since I'm a college student and don't have the time to cook at home. I ate here with my family and my mom's friends and had a delicious meal for dinner. Sisig, lechon, sinigang, garlic rice, ... and some other dishes I can't quite remember the name of. All I know is I was too full to eat anymore and immediately had food coma afterwards! The atmosphere is pretty nicely decorated and the setting seemed really fancy. The only thing was that the service could have been a bit better. I was so confused when one of the employees (not our waiter) had asked us what else we had ordered and made us name all of the dishes. On top of that, he said our kare-kare was going to be coming out shortly. But, we didn't order kare-kare? Shouldn't you ask our waiter to confirm our order and let us dine/enjoy our meal? Also, when being seated I noticed it was extremely cold inside the restaurant. Everyone had their jackets on, etc. (Or is it because I'm not used to the cold weather anymore after living in East Bay during the year?) The heater kicked in maybe after 3/4 of our dishes came out, so I was shivering for a good 20-30 minutes. Maybe it's also because I was seated next to the doorway, so whenever people came in and out.. the cold breeze wasn't very pleasant. Overall, goooood food. LOOOVE LOOOOVE LOOOVEE the lechon. Quality service by the waiter, despite that one incident with the random employee. Definitely would recommend this place! read more

Not sure why the average rating is a 3 because this place was good and so was the service. Very polite and attentive. They really make you feel at home. We ordered the sampler and crispy dinuguan. Let's get straight to the dinuguan. This was the best ever. Not sure anything comes close so give it a try yourself. read more

Tastebuds - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

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This place is phenomenal came here for lunch and I have never had Filipino food before ever and the staff was so nice the food is delicious I will definitely come back and our waitress forte was the absolute best love love this place read more

Delicious. I have been here only once, but I am coming back for sure. My mom eats here frequently, and she kept talking about this place and now I can see why. I finally tried it, and I loved everything that we ordered. I would highly recommend the Bistik, the Lechon, the sisig and the lumpia shanghai. So delicious. I am definitely coming back for seconds...Probably one of the best Filipino restaurants out there. This place is nothing fancy, it's a no frills restaurant (like many Filipino restuarants), but it is great for a casual lunch or dinner. read more

Lechon - check Sauce - bleh Service - waiters are clueless about customer service We came here because I suggested and had the inkling to eat roast pig. We had their lechon when we had a big party for my nieces and nephews. We ordered the eggplant omellete, kabocha squash and string beans cooked in coconut milk and of course the lechon. My mom was hungry and had the squash first, since it was the first thing that got to our table. Lo and behold, it was undercooked. The eggplant came next and I didn't check it first. The roast pig was taking so long, and the one guy at the chopping station was just taking his sweet time. That's the only thing he has to do, is to chop up some meat and he can't do it fast enough. When we followed up, we were told that it would take a couple more minutes. I timed how long we waited for him to get chopping and it took 15:43 minutes. So I went ahead and started with the eggplant. It was undercooked as well. Some of the eggwhites were still slimy and the eggplant was so soggy. I sent it back. I timed it again and it took 12:35 minutes to get to our table. I can cook this in under 5 minutes. When the new one came back it was still slightly undercooked. I don't understand the rave this place is getting with Filipinos. Either the customers have eaten really bad Filipino food and got used to it, that they end up liking something a little more saltier than what they are accustomed to. I suggest, go home to the Philippines and seek out the hole in the wall restaurants that you only hear in hushtones. The ones that serves Filipino food that really would intrigue your 'tastebuds' (pun intended). Servings size were ok, however, everything is overpriced. PS, I took a picture of the eggplant. Filipinos are just naturally polite, that's why sending back food is near impossible to happen. For me however, I have no qualms in regards to that. I am paying for the food, I have the right to get it to my table right. I was still nice though. (Sorry for starting off sentences in prepositions). read more

Tastebuds - The undercooked eggplant omellete. - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

The latch on the wasn't that great the skin was not crunchy and so that's what we came there for and so I was disappointed.

Not bad at all. Pretty basic Filipino food. They have great lechon. I didbn'tg et to try the paksiw, but had the kawali and it was pretty darn good. Their bbq is pretty good as well. Something in their sauce made it soo delicious. Lunch specials are pretty cheap! You get rice, soup, and a choice of two items for 9 bucks! read more

Filipino food here is so salty! And it wasn't just one dish that was extremely salt infused, it was every dish. And we were here with a party of 20 for my co-workers going away, so we had at least 15 dishes. Wait is very long if you don't come early. Probably won't come back. Kuya's in San Bruno is better. read more

I attended the brunch buffet last Saturday. The food was cold. At 9:30AM. And they were missing longonisa! What's a Filipino breakfast without it? A waiter would come by with the check even at a buffet, right? Not this time. I had to get up and walk to the counter to pay, and it took longer than it should have because I had to wait for the employees to finish their conversation before I could be helped. The only wow factor is the daily lechon specials, but even those aren't that great. read more

Oh well, we came here with my lifelong friends and we had a blast! Service is great I may say but the food is really just OK. My husband's cooking is way better. I guess my expectations we're high as they were recommended by Pinoy Communities. Nothing really special just a regular restaurant for me. Maybe we will come back maybe not, really not impressed with the food :( read more

Just when you think there was an overage of Filipino restaurants out there, here comes Tastebuds! Their specialty is the lechon, which I'm not ashamed to say I don't like. Personally, if I want pork, I get pork chops. Their silogs are pretty hearty. The Silog Royale has everything except the kitchen sink, pretty much. It has your garlic rice, tapa, tocino, sunny-side up egg, atchara...and this purplish-red shell-dyed egg that was cut in half with the shell still on. Giving it a taste, sorry to say but I spit that sh*t out. They call it the "Salty Egg." In tagalog, I forget, but anyway I'm sure there's a lot of folks who appreciate that in their silogs. The rest of the food there was slightly above average. Sisig is always a welcome treat, but I can't say it knocked me down. Bistek was also amazingly ordinary. I'm not saying the food isn't good, but just that Tastebuds didn't do anything revolutionary with their menu besides the silogs. If you want to try a new filipino restaurant or if you want to buy some lechon by the pound, this is the place to go! read more

Dropped in for lunch on a referral from a Filipino friend and after reading some reviews. First, the menu prices you see on Yelp are outdated. Everything is about $5 more than what is posted as of 7/24/15. Ordered the Bangus Sisig per most Yelpers' positive reviews. It now costs $15.95 as an a la carte dish and rice costs extra. As I am new to Filipino cuisine, I really didn't know what to expect. So I was surprised to find it is actually a whole milk fish, deboned and minced with peppers and onions then sautéed and placed back on a half side of the fish, whose skin has been seared semi crispy. Initially I though it was too salty but blended with the rice well. Overall a hearty fish dish. Will be back to try their weekend brunch buffet, as it appears to be a good way to sample a variety of dishes. read more

Tastebuds - Bangus Sisig and side order of rice, about $17.75 plus tax and gratuity - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

I came here for the Breakfast buffet at 8:30 am, so my comments are based solely for that item. Went there today for the first time and I think $14.99 breakfast buffet is worth it. The place is clean. Ambiance is nice, very Filipino, of course. It's funny that they still have the star lights hanging for Christmas decorations, but it's cute. The variety of food are good enough for typical Filipino breakfast. From the entrance, they have cold tea, water, coffee for beverages. The coffee and tea tasted good. There's an option for regular evaporated milk (which I preferred for coffee) or powdered creamer in packets. Next are choices of warm delicious choices of Champorado ( in this one) Arozcaldo (just ok, a bit salty for me but the consistency is perfect), Bilo-bilo (more small sago than the bilo-bilo), and Sotanghon. Now there's the mix of more carbs, regular white rice, garlic fried rice (), adobo fried rice (), Miki noodles. Then now for the main dishes: Scrambled egg with sauteed onion and tomato, Tocino, Chicken Adobo, Lechon paksiw, Sauteed Chayote (I think), Tokwa't Baboy, deep fried Milk Fish (my favorite) and another fried dried fish (not sure what it is but it's perfect with the Champorado). There were a few more items that I forgot to mention here, but I was satisfied with what I ate - Garlic Fried Rice, Adobo Fried rice, Tocino, Fried Milk fish, scrambled egg, tokwa't baboy, Champorado (2 servings ), Arozcaldo, Bilo-Bilo, Coffee and tea. It's unlimited from 8:00 - 11:00 am. The ladies that cleans the table were very nice. They always change your used plate so that you can have a clean space on your table when you go back to get more food. They were also very presentable wearing uniforms. read more

This is actually for. 2.5 stars to be fair. Why? The service is fast enough and the place clean. Main gripe is the price. $14.95 for a main dish that's only average tasting. Your Regular Lechon you're suppose to be famous for is lacking in taste and flavor. Again $14.95 a pound? Including your watered down lechon sauce. Guys there are other Pinoy resto around. No need for seconds here. To the owners: Do market research, taste the food of your competitors. Find the best tasting similar to your menu. You can do better. read more

I love their Lechon and weekly brunch. Place is clean and service is nice. Sometimes the taste of their food is not consistent but for the most part it is. my second favorite Filipino restaurant read more

This was our 1st time at TasteBuds,we ordered to-go bc there was a group party going on at the restaurant and it was packed and loud. We went during early dinners hours (645ish) and were disappointed to find out that there was no more Lechon left. I have heard so much about their 'to die for' lechon and couldnt believe that they were out so early during dinner hours knowing that they are supposedly 'known' for their Lechon. So we ordered my favorite filipino dish - KareKare! Wasnt so impressed! Although the oxtail was very tender and fell off the bone, the veggies were fresh and not overcooked, the tripe was good-not too chewy, the dish itself was very bland! The sauce was runny, not thick and creamy from what I'm used to. Upside was that we took it home, so I was able to tweek the dish to our liking! I will probably give this place another try, for the lechon! read more

Had food delivered before closing. It did come quick but the taste of the items weren't great. The Mechado wasn't a tomato base i am used to and a lot of fat on the beef and tough to chew. the Sinigang was okay, not as sour but good. Lumpia and garlic rice was delish. read more

This place is really good. I don't remember the names of the 6 dishes we got but all of them were satisfying. read more

Tastebuds - Toron toron toron toron - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

Had their Longonisa breakfast and my boyfriend has their Silog Royal. Longonisa and tosino had no taste. Their tapa was nasty and salty. The only thing good was their garlic rice and cute decor, hence their two stars I've given. Nothing like my Mama's cooking, that's forsure! read more

Yummy authentic Filipino food. I come in here when friends visit from out of town and want to try something different. Definitely try the Lechon. ~12$ /Lb. Rice dishes are good, unique drink choices. Portion sizes are large, so only order a few ( family style). Price is moderate, good homestyle cooking. Staff is pretty friendly. I suggest going with a Filipino, or someone that speaks Tagalog to help with item selection. They also do catering. read more

The adobong pusit not palatable very blunt!!! The meat they use in pinakbet not good, and the portion is very small for the price they charge. Servers are good! Chef not good cook! read more

1st time here. Came with a group of 12. Easy seating. Nice servers, good ambience, lots of food choices

I give this restaurant 10 stars. I came here for brunch and they have all you can eat buffet from 8:30 to 11:30 am on Saturday and Sunday. The food is laid out all you can really eat which was mind blowing. So many options. My favorite in particular was the champorado for breakfast and mixed with a brunch menu of adobo, paksiw na lechon, pancit, and tocino, which is my kids favorite. I love Tastebuds so convenient off the 280 freeway and plenty of parking. A must taste for your pallet. read more

Went to their AM buffet. I expected the Filipino favorites: longunisa, beef tapas, spam, some variety...what a disappointment. All the food was cold/warm, carb heavy (3 types of rices), and flavorless or unappetizing in appearance. The tocino was decent, but for $15 a person, I'd suggest another Filipino restaurant. read more

They didnt have mais con yelo or buko juice when i went! Those were pretty much the onky things i wanted and then they lay this shiz on me?! But their chicharon bulaklak is pretty dope lol. read more

Awesome! Great customer service. Been eating for about 30 minutes. Wonder when any servers will ask if our party of 7 needs anything to drink? Maybe some water.... Coffee? Meats are hard, short of bowls.... Sigh You get what you pay for. Can't recommend this place. PS parking is f$&@ing horrible. Hard to tolerate places like these. read more

A renewed perspective on this restaurant. I am very satisfied with the most recent dining experience. Lechon at its best. read more

I ordered pancit bihon yesterday for our Christmas party. Since I have no time to cook, I decided to try tastebuds. After I paid the cashier showed me the tray. And I told her is there meat and veggies there? Coz looks like all noodles. And she told me underneath. So I went to our Xmas party and told my coworkers to mixed the bihon. And you can see in the picture there's little meat and no veggies. NEVER AGAIN! it's embarrassing that you paid just for noodles! read more

Tastebuds - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

We drove from Fresno and typically find and review Filiipino restaurants everytime we are in the San Francisco bay area. (Only 1 Filipino restaurant in Fresno.) Our initial plan was to order "take-out" and then come back for dinner. For the "take-out", we ordered Kari-Kari and Lechon Cebu (3 pounds of it.) The atmosphere inside of the restaurant was relaxed and comfortable. It was relatively small and only had a few customers (early everning/just opened) After ordering our food, we sat and waited. We found that wait to be a bit long for (22 minutes) for only two dishes. The Lechon (pig) was prominently displayed...so it shouldn't have taken much time to cut it. It may have been because of the Kari-Kari. We discovered Tastebuds on TV (Adobo Nation) and looked forward to tasting their lechon. For the weekend, the specialty was Lechon Cebu. They have different lechon depending on the day of the week. Negative points: The lechon was tasteless and dry...except for the few pieces fo dark meat. We had kindly asked if they can include a few pieces of the crispy skin (Favorites of Filipinos) and discovered there were only a few pieces of the skin...and they were rubbery. Worse, the dipping sauce that came with the lechon was simply...watery. Positive points: The Kari-Kari was absolutely wonderful. Everyone who tasted it said that it was simply one fo the best Kari-Kari they have ever tasted. The redolent smell and amazing taste of the peanut butter brought back memories for my 80 year old mother. The dipping sauce (bagoong) was also great. A nice surprise for everyone. We gave this restaurant only a 3-star because of our disappointment with the taste of Lechon Cebu, the owner not honoring our request for the crispy skin, and lastly...the relatively long wait. read more

With my strict diet of no flour, soy etc. I ended up eating a crispy pork leg and it was very crispy and moist in the middle, so good!

I had dinner here with my husband and a close friend a couple of weeks ago because Tribu was too crowded. We thought it was worth a try because we've heard they're famous for their lechon. We ordered the kaldereta , rellenong bangus, the Tastebud appetizer platter, and of course the lechon. The appetizer consisted of chicharon bulaklak, chicken empanadas, and lumpiang shanghai. It was a good way to start a meal, each one being equally delicious. Then came the rest of the dishes we ordered w/ the exception of the lechon because the server FORGOT to order it for us so we had to remind her. Anyway, the rellenong bangus was good, but the kaldereta was a little bit too sweet and almost didn't taste the way it was supposed to. Regardless, the beef was tender. We didn't have room for dessert, but it was overall a pleasant dining experience. We would go back there, but maybe not go out of our way to go back there..maybe for the lechon. =) read more

Excellent Lechon !!! The best we have ever tasted !!! ... Plus EXCELLENT customer service !!! I will definitely be back to order more !!! read more

BEWARE! Food is masked in so much salt! My cousin from San Diego was craving Filipino food so this place was recommended by friends. We decided to try it and ordered the Shrimp Sinagang, a few of the breakfast plates, and the sampler, which consisted of lumpia, empanada, and chicharone ---- All were beautifully presented, but the food was totally salty and the salt masked the flavors...I left the restaurant very thirsty and bloated. The service was okay. I think they need to get new servers --- our server was somewhat unenthused and totally uninterested. She was not helpful or nice at all. When asked if we could order a side of spam, she acted as if we were from Mars. All in all, okay. At least this place is clean and sanitary inside. Much cleaner than Sinugba or Ongpin. read more

Mediocre filipino food at its best. Out of the 5 dishes we ordered, only the bangus sisig was good. Maybe we should've ordered some lechon, which is what the place is known for, because everything else was a FAIL. The fiesta sinigang.... if I can describe it in one word....NASTY! The chicken BBQ and some other dish was mediocre as well. To top it off, even the steam rice was bad. Come on now, how can you go wrong with steam rice!!! I was not expecting 5-star service at a FIlipino restaurant, and I'm glad I didn't because service was horrible. read more

It's hard to critique a Filipino Restaurant when you have a family who already cooks amazing Filipino food! But I have to hand it to them, that we drive 45 min. - 1 hr. just to order their lechon if we don't already order one for parties at home or at family gatherings. This spot is really small, so if you're willing to wait then go for it. They should expand this place because they always have a line of customers waiting and there isn't really a waiting area since the place is already small, not to mention waiting outside in the front where it can get chilly. Parking will be tough if they're busy and they have a really small lot on the side of their building, so carpool with your friends/family if you're going here. My family/friends and I order Lechon (so good, best part is the rib/side of the pig), crispy binagoongan (fried pork cooked in shrimp paste place over an eggplant topped with green onions, mango, and tomato cubes), kare-kare (peanut butter oxtail soup), bicol express (coconut flavored soup with different vegetables mixed), and adobo rice (pork adobo made like fried rice). I would recommend coming here if your family does not cook filipino food, or if your family is in the mood to go out and buy some instead of making your own at home. read more

Parking SUCKS Small place so expect a wait, especially on holiday weekends. Waited about an hour and a half for a table during Mother's Day. This place is OK priced but I've been to other places that are cheaper than this with better tasting food. One good thing about this place is their crispy binagoongan. SO GOOD yet so bad for you. Service SUCKS too! We didn't get to leave until 20 minutes after we've paid. We kept calling the waiter over to ask for take out boxes, eventually waited behind the "pick up food" people to get take out boxes. Our water glasses were empty like the whole time and had a hard time trying to get their attention to ask for water! The 3 stars is really for the food read more

Alright, this place hands down got the frikken best sinigang E-V-E-R!! I don't know how they do it, but damn. I can swim in a pool of that sexy ass soup!! The restaurant itself is really nice and clean. The decor is nice and simple, it looks very nice with the pretty flowers and painted walls. I can really appreciate when a restaurant really puts in the effort to jazz up the place a bit. The service is great, they are very friendly, fast, and efficient. Every time we go in they're always welcoming our fam bam with open arms. Seems genuine and nice or they could be really good kiss asses for tips then talk shit about us behind our backs. Haha. I doubt it, but wouldn't put it past anyone (after all, I used to work in the restaurant biz!!) The only reason why I removed a star is because for one they close in the middle of the day. What's the point of that?? Seriously?? WTF are you a Japanese sushi restaurant?? No you aint, so quit trying to copy them. Plus, I don't even like it when Japanese sushi places close in the middle of the day. My ass is hungry okay so open up for business and make some money. We have no cesta (mid day nap in many European countries) here so wake the hell up and serve me some good food!! Another reason why I decided to remove a star is because their sisig sucks. I'm a huge sisig fan and this place def. doesn't cut it. I think they need to go to Ongpin to take a lesson in sisig dishes!! Over all a good time.. Damn, now I'm wanting some for din din tomorrow... read more

Just visited Tastebuds again last week with my family and my aunt who lives in the area. There were six of us and we order about six items. We ordered the following: Lechon Lechon kawali Kare-kare Bangus sisig Bistig Bicol express (vegetables) Of all the above items the only palatable dish was the lechon...just the lechon and not the sauce. We should have done what was suggested and that is to bring in our own sauce. The sauce as was before was too livery/minerally tasting and too much vinegar. Instead of complimenting the nicely roasted lechon it over powered. Who ever was in the kitchen doing the lechon kawali it seems that they were not paying attention. It came out to our table fried as hard as a charcoal briquette. PAY ATTENTION MAN. As for the other dishes they did not fare any better. The disappointment here is that the the lack of effort and attention to the food/menu is obvious. Its a shame for a kitchen to put out bad tasting food. My aunt was so very upset that she even recommended the restaurant and at the table vowed to never return again. What a shame. As for myself, I will return and will purchase the lechon (the only item worth spending money on) to go so I can enjoy it with my own home made sauce. Again, I repeat....PAY ATTENTION! read more

I had lunch at Tastebuds with a large group of about 18 people on a Friday for lunch. We called ahead to make reservations and had no issues being seated-our tables were ready. We ordered a ton of food! Lechon kawali, bangus sisig, bangus bistek, fried chicken, kare kare, pinakbet and a few other dishes. 2 orders of each was plenty for everyone and we still had leftovers. They give huge portions. Everything was really good. My husband and I aren't really big on Filipino food, but we really enjoyed it. My parents thought their food was much better than other Filipino restaurants in the area. The only downside was their fried chicken was dry and they don't serve regular lechon for lunch. Only the lechon kawali. The restaurant is clean and def not a hole in the wall. Their dishes are really well priced. Service were great and food came out fast. For our large group we only spent about $200 and that included tip. Will definitely be back! read more

We had reservations for 7pm and we were seated at 735pm!! This was NOT a good start. Then I even pre-ordered our food while we were waiting, so that when we were eventually seated it would be quick. Most of the food came out right away, except for 2 dishes that I had to ask for twice. Food was good though!! read more