Solid food truck. They come to todos santos plaza at the Tuesday farmers market(10-2) and I've gotten their lamb shawarma, empanadas, and loaded fries and they were all delicious! If they aren't busy the food comes out very quickly and even when they're packed it doesn't take longer than 10 minutes. read more

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I love the idea of Filipino and Middle Eastern eats in one food truck! I used to frequent this yummy food truck/tent when they used to come to the Kaiser Vallejo and Oakland farmers markets pre-pandemic. Their truck/tent was always colorful and inviting with friendly workers. My favorite and go-to was the shawarma wrap, which was huge, flavorful and delicious. I also liked their lumpia as a side dish. I just tried them again at the Spring Brews Fest in Todos Santos Plaza today and had to get my OG chicken shawarma wrap- it's literally been years since I had it. The wait was pretty long but expected at peak hours of the event. Although it was still good with the flavorful chicken, fresh produce, and tasty sauces, the wrap was smaller than I remembered and more expensive by a few bucks. The staff was working pretty hard cranking out all the orders so I gotta give them credit for surviving during the pandemic and economic crisis. The menu has some other tempting items like my people's pancit, adobo - I'll have to try their combos and the shawarma fries next time I see them in town! read more

Cabalen Sweet & Savory - Menu - Filipino Near Me - Oakland, California

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Visited their food truck at the Vallejo Farmers Market on Georgia St. As with most food trucks, the food was a bit overpriced (one empanada $7). Will probably not go back, when I got home to eat, the empanada container had a hair in it. Looked up their last food inspection report from Contra Costa County, it was listed that they had a minor violation regarding hand washing, glove wearing, and/or minimizing bare hand handling of food. read more

Cabalen Sweet & Savory - One single hair was underneath the other empanada that was moved to a plate. - Filipino Near Me - Oakland, California

They gave me the wrong order and refused to correct it when I asked. Bad customer service and won't be coming back. Charged me 17 dollars for shwarma fries that I didn't want. read more

Let me start off by saying that I love Filipino food. And I love Middle Eastern food. I am certainly not an expert on both cuisines but I know enough to know that there really isn't any overlap in these two so I don't really know why a food truck would try and serve both and expect to pull it off successfully. I came across this truck at my local farmer's market and decided to give it a try. Just so everyone knows, this truck doesn't serve a "fusion" menu. They literally have a Filipino menu and a Middle Eastern menu. I got the Pancit/lumpia/adobo combo. It was very average. I've had plenty better at most other Filipino restaurants. I also got the falafel and shawarma combo. Again, just average. I've had better at most other Middle Eastern restaurants. Beyond just the mediocre food, I just didn't get the point of serving both cuisines at this one truck and not even fusion-style. I feel like this truck would do much better to focus on one of the two and offer more options and better quality OR create an entirely new fusion menu. Overall, not my type of food truck and won't be back. read more

Encountered them at the Civic Center Friday market. Was kinda strange they were selling Middle Eastern and Filipino food together. Not in any sort of fusion dish, just an either/or. I opted for the Filipino and was satisfied, hence the A-OK 3-star. Nothing innovative or fancy, simply a good way to filled up outdoors. Lumpia: Very long and very thin. This must be what Lumpia Shanghai looks like before they typically cut into thumb-size pieces. It was fine for a crispy taste of lumpia without having to commit to a whole appetizer. Pancit: Thin noodles soaked with tons of flavor. Also, loaded with meat (chicken?). Way better than the bland pancit you'd get at a mall stand. Adobo: Nothing fancy, just kinda like home cooking. The chicken was tender, the vinegar accent tangy and just enough soy for a salty finish. Got a drumstick and a thigh, so not a bad portion for a street stand. read more

Cabalen Sweet & Savory - Lumpia, Pancit, Adobo Combo - Filipino Near Me - Oakland, California

I couldn't decide from their Filipino food so I took the combo which had everything and I was not disappointed!!! The chicken Adobo was so tender and full of flavor and came with rice. I wish I had more of the amazing sauce over the rice. A good portion of Pancit which tasted amazing! The vermicelli had a great texture. The lumpia was a little dry but still really good. I hope to encounter their food truck more often in the future! read more

We tried the chicken shawarma and a lamb shawarma at the San Francisco Farmers market. I thought the lamb was really tasty, very moist, with good flavor. The only thing I would want is for it to be more spicy. The chicken one tasted good also though not moist enough for my boyfriend. I would definitely go back and try more! read more

Cabalen Sweet & Savory - Lamb Schwarma. Tasty - Filipino Near Me - Oakland, California

So they have filipino and middle eastern food but it's not like a fusion thing. It's more like you can get a shawarma wrap with some lumpia on the side. What if they ::galaxy brain:: put the lumpia into the wrap like some sort of mandy-ish psychedelic filipino california burrito shawarma wrap. That would be sick. Anyways, the shawarma and lumpia were both fine. Neither was mind blowing. read more

I found this place at the Todos Santos farmers market on a Tuesday. I bought the buko pandas pandesal.. oh wow this was really really good. You can taste the pandan from the pastry part and inside is like a bit of creamy pandan. It's now seriously one of my favorite things. I also tried the red bean which is also good but not as good as the pandan pandesal. I'm giving them 5 stars because the buko pandan pandesal was that good. read more

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This has great chicken adobo. Great portions chicken with good adobo flavor. They usually at the Uptown Farmers Market on Wednesday at noon. read more

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Food is pretty good but it can be hit or miss. Friendly owners. * I've had chicken soup a few times 4/5 * Pastrami Sandwich. - First time: 5/5. Delicious. Super fresh bread, small things slices of homemade pastrami - Second time: 2/5 dry bread, tough thick pastrami. * Baked goods 4/5 read more

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Cabalen takes over a vietnamese eatery spot. baked goods on display. some seating available for eat-in. menu: all day Filipino breakfast, heros/sammies, soups, baked goods, appetitzers, etc. eats: longsilog breakfast(5.5) -flavorless rice, tomato slice w/piece of lettuce -2 eggs over easy, 2 homemade sausages, not greasy, no disctinct taste just ok comped small filipino sponge cake. -very tasty. crumbs: -a Filipina was literally swooning orgasmaticly after eating fresh baked filipino pastry didn't think to get a piece myself. maybe it was the sponge cake. -impression bakery goods much better than other eats here. read more

My first time here. I was informed by the friendly lady that works the counter, that her sister and her set up shop here, after looking for a place with a commercial kitchen. Her sister is a graduate of a culinary school, too. One downfall is the service. Very slow and they hide in the kitchen. Their baked goods are made in house. I had a combination breakfast. Tapa, chicken longanisa, and corned beef. I thought the corned beef was a tad salty, but the tapa was well seasoned. The chicken longanisa was good, but I have to get used to the lean consistency, as opposed to a traditional pork longanisa. It's not my cup of tea. I did not try their chicken adobo, which they have everyday. They don't use pork, as I was told. Read between the lines. It's against their religion. Anyway I'm glad for the Filipino cuisine in a sea of taquerias, but I don't like the slight street element. Well, it's on International Blvd. It can't be helped. read more

Cabalen Sweet & Savory - Combination silog breakfast. Tapa, chicken longanisa and corned beef. - Filipino Near Me - Oakland, California

I had my weekly rice craving while at work and luckily it was a Wednesday and the Uptown farmers market aka hump day market was going on. The adobo and rice satisfied my craving, they give you two legs, two thighs and a nice serving of rice with some sauce on top. I've never been a fan of the large peppercorns that traditional adobo has and this one doesn't have the large peppercorns. read more

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First off, something has changed about this restaurant. Possibly management. But this is no longer your typical Filipino restaurant where the food is laid out in front and you pick the Adobo, Tocino, etc. like you see in some of the older photos. You now order from a menu that isn't even consistently popular Filipino food. I mean, I saw Wonton soup, Falafels, and Hotdog sandwiches on the menu. But that's besides the point. The food was very ordinary and bland (I had the Tocilog Plate, large size... if you've had good Tocilog before, you'll know what I mean). But what angered me was the service. Conveniently placed by the counter is a coffee machine, with cups, half & half, sugar, etc. We thought this was free, but hey, might as well check, right? We asked the server if we could have some coffee. She said yes. We asked if it was free. She said yes. When we found out there was no coffee in the machine, she said she can get some from behind the counter. When we paid the bill, it came out to be $21 for two people. Considering how cheap this was compared to other restaurants, we didn't bother to check the receipt but once we did, we noticed a charge for 2 coffees: $3. Maybe it was our fault we didn't check the receipt, but we told the lady that we heard the coffee was free. The lady said no she didn't say that, she told us that she said "yes" to "if we can have some coffee". But clearly I asked 2 questions, and she said yes to both, including "Is the coffee free?". I demanded a refund, just for coffee, and she refused. The manager came out and also refused to give a refund. Seriously man, it's coffee... better the refund than lose ratings and word of mouth right? And why, why, why put the machine outside, with cups and the coffee, if it costs money? And then fail to refund us when it was your wrongdoing when answering our question? Eventually they said they refunded us, but I guess we'll have to take their word and wait for the bank statement to come in. I mean, $3 in bills would have been fine too. In the end, it was bland food (find better ones in Daly City), terrible service over wrong information, and not your ordinary Filipino restaurant. Save your money, there's better. (to the complainers about my review, this is not free loading, it's called customer experience. I didn't intend on getting coffee but because I asked and the lady said yes, I wanted to try their coffee) read more

Pancit was too salty and oily, and barely any vegetables. Plenty of chicken, good for salty meat eaters. read more

Cabalen Sweet & Savory - Filipino Near Me - Oakland, California

Growing up with Filipino food and after moving into the bay area, I'm always in the search of good Filipino food. Sadly, after trying Cabalen, this is one restaurant I will try avoiding. I went here on a rainy day and was hoping to try the food here because it had fairly good ratings. I ended up getting sinigang soup w/ Salmon and it honestly wasn't as good. I would give the food a 1/5 because I felt like there was nothing particular special about the food. The broth was okay but you get about 3 slices of eggplant. 1-2 bokchoy leaves, and a bunch of salmon... BONES that is. I understand that maybe the bone was used to make the broth tastier however what I didn't like was that the salmon tasted... old/funky? Looking at the salmon I can see it looked old. I can tell because I did research on how "bad/old" salmon looked like prior to writing this review. I ended up not finishing my food in the end, leaving half of my food uneaten. Service wasn't as great as well. I would give it a 2/5. What I didn't like was that there was no one there to serve. A man ( who I assumed is the owner) and the server were all in the back talking to cooks and other workers. When we wanted something, we had to stand in front of the register, hoping someone would come out. In the end, I'm giving this restaurant a 2/5. I don't see why theres a lot of great reviews in this place. Maybe it's because I had better Filipino food? But if you're looking for good Filipino food, I'll stir away from this place. read more

I LOVE this place! Food - 5 stars, affordable and delicious Service - 5 Stars You're not going to go here for a super romantic dinner date with amazing ambiance, but this place serves authentic, home-cooked food made with love. Whoever you are, you owe it to yourself to go here. You won't regret it. read more

This place is a hidden gem. It has a humble storefront and a bare interior. I'm almost glad that they downplay it so much because it means that i can go anytime and not have to deal with lines. The first time I went in I expected it to be fast food but I wanted to try something new. I tried the Nilaga (boiled beef stew). I was blown away! The broth was clear and really flavorful and the beef was beautifully cooked and so tender it was almost flaky. I went up afterwards and asked the owner/cook about the food. She told me that they believe that good food shouldn't have to be crazy expensive. They make their broth (and most things there) from scratch. They don't use MSG. You have to try it! read more

Giving this place only 4 stars just because of the location and when I walked in, I was intimidated. It kind of looked like a donut shop. The other photos on Yelp were misleading. But, I loved the food! I had fried fish with mungo-beans. And side order of chicken adobo. As soon as I tasted the chicken adobo, I knew the cook as legit. Because it tastes like mine, LOL! But the mungo-bean, was also good. The meal I had seemed like I went to one of my families house. It was good! I proceeded to order Shanghai Lumpia to go and spoke to the ladies working. One is the owner and the other is the sister. The sister mentioned the owner is her sister who went to culinary school in New York. I had asked where they were from I the Philippines. Let's just say, culinary capital of Angeles City, Pampanga. Where my family is from. So that explains why the food was good. Lol! The place doesn't cook anything with pork. Because the husband is from Egypt and Muslim. I can respect that a lot. When I asked about their tocino and Lumpia on the menu, she mentioned only chicken or beef. What's interesting about this place is in the Fruitvale area. Which consist of majority of Latin community. That may also explain why they sell Shawarma and Sandwiches. She mentioned that she makes her own corn beef and pastrami. This was good news. So I think I will be coming back to try other things on the menu. Like the chicken longanisa. Which is a Filipino sausage made with pork and pork casing. BRB......#SOLitFood read more

Spent 14$ on a lamb shawarma salad and got some lettuce with nasty stringy meat. Really felt like I got ripped off. If I had seen the food up front, I would not have paid 5$ for it. read more

Damn. This is the spot for Filipino food and bakery! This place is: good, authentic, affordable, hospitable and did I mention HELLA BOMB! The owner came over and gave us two FRESH BAKED pandesal...and holy hell!!! Sooooo good. Needless to say, we took home more pandesal, the coconut bread thing and Spanish bread. All freshly baked and likely to not even make it home because we'll eat it on the way home. Yes, this is the only Filipino bakery in Oakland. read more

Very nice cafe, friendly staff and both owners are hostess. Has a homey feeling, best part is that the food are just like home. read more

Cabalen Sweet & Savory - Chicken Mami - Filipino Near Me - Oakland, California

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Lovely couple runs the place. Great food. But it could use some upkeep, the chairs, tables, counter, food display, menu, all look like 3rd hand. More lights, fresh paint. This could well easily be a family restaurant for modest family gatherings if it wanted to (think birthday lunches), but with its present condition it's more like an eat n run place. Did I say food is great, but the place and the plates remind me of a pansitan in binondo. Again, wonderful people running it, authentic ingredients and food (we had grilled fish jaw / panga, kaldereta, pansit). If you're entertaining, I would consider taking out from this place. read more

Chicken shawarma with saffron rice for $10 at the Vallejo farmers market every Saturday. So delicious!

Our son LOVES the lumpia, so we do our best to visit their booth at the Vallejo Farmer's Market. The food is consistently good and feels good on a cold morning. read more

I love the staff, they're so friendly and nice! They gave us free pancit which tasted sooo good. I got really full easily. Their chicken curry is awesome and chicken poppers! After finishing our meal, the owner gave us oranges, fresh from the farmer's market! Love the place and will definitely come back! read more

I love this place. Their prices and portions are great. I go here often for take out or a quick bite for lunch

Came in looking for some ube ice cream (which they did have). Ended up getting a bowl of Nilaga. It was soooooo good and huge! Bringing some home for lunch tomorrow. I'll be back for sure! read more

The chef here is very nice and accommodating. The food is fresh and some of the vegetables are purchased at the local farmers market! The prices are great and the pan de coco, coconut bread is YUMMY especially when served warm. This is one of my new favorite restaurants read more

I really appreciate this Filipino restaurant and bakery in the heart of the Fruitvale! It's right around the corner from the Fruitvale Bart Station. The food is like home cooking! From Breakfast to dinner, this place has you covered. The two ladies that run the place are really sweet. I look forward to trying things out from the menu. read more

Best little find for fresh out of the oven bakery items and Filipino food. Fresh, delicious and authentic! Customer service is amazing.

Love this place since they open I never go to the other place I work in the neighborhood and I'm very happy that we have this kind of restaurant they have everything from sandwiches, steam table (everyday different dishes) and fresh bake goods, all are healthy options no msg and lots of veggies on their wraps dress with home made dressing and they make their own deli product too! read more

Owners Jenny and Emmy are super nice and everything I've had thus far is really good, including their kare-kare, tocilog, lumpia, fried chicken and halo halo. Good portions. Their prices are very reasonable. Can't wait to try their other offerings. The only downside is because it's on International Blvd., right in the middle of the Fruitvale district, parking can be a bit of a challenge at times....but it's worth the challenge to eat here ! read more

Love love love this place always fresh and just prepared not like the typical filipino restaurant the food is ready and sitting at the steam table all day the chef here knows what shes doing they have everything, i believe because of the location fruitvale not a lot of filipino in the neighborhood so they cater for every body. They very generous and accomodating, thanks guys for the yummy food love the salmon collar sinagang! Come from farmers market love to support local read more