DTF has some of the best soup dumplings ever! Very convenient to have a location in the mall. We…read morewere seated right away despite it being pretty busy. The restaurant was full and the service was quick. It got pretty loud, but that was expected. Totally recommend if you're craving something tasty!

02/15/25 - SM Mega Mall we decided to have a quick bite to tide us over until dinner. What a joke…read morethis is dinner. P

This place caught me by surprise. I came in with no expectations and I came out quite satisfied. I…read morethought that no one could top Mien San's Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup, but apparently this place can give Mien San a run for its money. I apologize in advance to Mien San die hards but sometimes their soup is a bit runny and/or oily. At Taione, the beef soup is really tasty. Not oily at all. I didn't get a headache afterwards which probably means that the soup was made from bones and not MSG. I ordered the Beef Brisket and the beef was soft and came apart easily. Everything tasted so clean. For dessert, I had the taho with pearls and black syrup. Absolutely loved it. The pearls were especially chewy. I didn't think anything else would be good but the server recommended their tofu dish and it was also quite impressive. Definitely worth a try.

I must say that hands down, as far as I am concerned, Shi Lin has the best tasting congee dishes…read morethis side of town. Congee is typically not that flavorful--it derives its umami from the ingredients that are added on to it. It takes culinary skill to make it stand out. I have felt such a craving for congee while visiting that I ordered from two different places at different times, before the day we ended up in Shi Lin. Shi Lin's only has a variety of two kinds: Congee with Century Egg and Congee with Prawn Ball and Ginger; however, as this Yelper has discovered, this is all they need. I was impressed from the first spoonful to the last. The serving is generous. My husband was able to share my dish. Unfortunately, we were only able to enjoy two dishes on our first and last visit to this place, while visiting the Philippines. Hence, the 4 stars. The other dish we ordered is the freshly made Truffle and Pork Xiao Long Bao. A bit pricey but good. I was eyeing the crab fat kind for my next visit! On a Sunday at 1:30 PM, Shi Lin is busy, considering there's a host of dining places in this mall, all vying for one's indulgence. The table turnover was quick, while the service remained attentive and courteous. I definitely recommend hitting this place up for your shopping break. They have other items on the menu that look really savory!

Lunchtime dining in the Ortigas area can prove a bit of an effort if you go at the regular time, as…read morethe many restaurants in the area still manage to fill up quickly. Establishments in Podium have less lines than most, although some waiting is typically still required. Shi Lin is no exception, although the necessary time is most definitely worth it if you're craving good Chinese food at an acceptable price. Dinner here is a different proposition altogether. No lines should be expected on regular occasions, although payday Fridays can cause a little difficulty for large groups. A meal at Shi Lin wouldn't be complete without the Xiao Long Bao. It's pretty tasty (although perhaps not at the Crystal Jade level). The jellyfish is also an excellent, albeit slippery, starter. I had the braised beef noodles, and they were good, but not exceptionally so. The interior has little to set it apart from the typical upscale Chinese restaurant. Service is straightforward and pretty efficient, although your order may take a while to arrive if the place is packed. Being inside the mall means that there is no smoking area available.

We were immediately seated upon arrival. The service was good and the food portion sizes were not…read morebad. We got shao long bao, machang, chicken feet and siomai for dimsum and century egg congee. Everything tasted great. I loved how the chicken feet were fat. For dessert, we tried the mango pudding with ice cream. It was amazing!

Xlb, steamed vegetable dumpling and DF porkchops are a staple Taiwanese fan fare dishes. Its quite…read moredelicious in comparison to other restaurants in the city. I decided to try the steam chicken with ginger and scallions and bitter melon with salted egg. An excellent addition to the above three. Kudos to the chef!!

Had our first date here! Very good ambiance and the food was delicious! Ordered the xiao long bao…read morewith xo sauce and I think that's my favorite. Will definitely try again!

Good food but a little pricey for Manila. The salted egg prawn is a must try. Good ambiance. 3 to 4…read morestar service.

1st Time Eating Here ...... Place Looks Clean Mega Mall…read moreFood Court | and Mandaluyong .... TASTE GREAT FRESH ! no doubt about it. But the taste is Fusion like BON CHON type Chicken Taste but then again it's not bad. Can't really taste the OIL at first but once you have it on your plate with RICE or Ketchup you won't be able to see the OIL at first. I had a lot of left overs and after warming it up in the microwave oven OMG ... you can see the drip and the drip and the drip of OIL in every bite. This will definitely ummmm well I'll let you be the judge of it. :) Looks like the oil wasn't hot enough to cook it right or when you noticed the chicken inside it's brown and thin like medium tender soft yet tight chew really. But all in all it's a great 1st time trying this HOT STAR CHICKEN 1. Price - eh ! dooable not so expensive X Large P210 pesos less than P250 2. Price - Small is about P100 plus give or take 3. Healthy? yes and NO .. 4. Got High Blood - Not Recommended 100% 5. Got Thick Blood - Totally Not Recommended 100% 6. Stroke Survivors - Totally Not Recommended 100% :( 7. Teenagers - :) YES !!! Gotta Try It :) I heard this was a popular place to eat from friends and co-workers. I work at the City Hall and I think from what I heard ... this will be my 1st and last actually. I can't have that intake of oil in my body for sure. But never the less it's tasty indeed, when it's fresh, but when you warm it up for the 2nd time this is what you'll actually get in the picture :( I give it a 2 star Minus 1 - OIL Minus 1 - How it was cooked I wanted it cut in half but the guy said no we can't cut it in half due to it's freshness daw. But I'm thinking they don't want all the oil to drip LOL Minus 1 - Over all Experience " didn't seem friendly " just quiet no energy maybe they were all tired. This was like around 1pm or so .... Thanks HOT STAR CHICKEN ... OK Experience. I usually go in detail but I'm a bit tired actually and my reviews are about 3,000 letters or more. From the introduction to the paid and then eating. After that details on the food | taste | Context of the food | Prepping Of The Food | lastly Freshness if it was from sitting there under the light or if it was freshly cooked. I believe mine was from under the light my opinion no fact. I'm guessing really. Well there you have it. HOT STAR it's famous at Megal Mall and they have a great location in Mandaluyong. Try it ! It won't kill you ...

I had lunch here more than three hours ago and I am still so full from that large fried chicken…read more And boy do they maximize the meaning of the word "large." Hot Star's XXL fillet really was (almost) as big as my face. Wow. I got the crispy meal (HS2 on the menu), which already came with rice and drink at an affordable price. It reminded me of BonChon's chops ricebox, but this was a whole lot bigger with crunchier skin and juicier meat. I really liked the spice mix they used for the batter because it gave the chicken that distinct Chinese-y flavor and aroma, like if you were in the streets of Taiwan itself. The chicken-to-rice ratio was off though; I ran out of rice halfway through the chicken and needed to order another. Despite that, I finished everything on my plate and it was all so good. Oh, and you have to try their almond and black gulaman soft serve ice cream before you leave! It may look like any normal swirl at first, but it's waaay more interesting than the ol' vanilla and chocolate combo. Clearly, when it comes to crazy good ideas like this, Hot Star shines.

If you've been following my posts, you would have stumbled upon my review on Chickenzilla - the…read morefood spot at Worldwide Corporate Center. It's the resto that serves large chicken fillets with various types of flavors. But I was surprised (just last night, actually!) that there is actually a chicken place that serves large, breaded, flavored chicken in Taiwan! And it was only recently brought here to the Philippines. At 500 Shaw, to be exact! Hot Star Large Chicken is like fast food resto that serves extra large servings! We tried out their original large chicken with rice and their original large fish fillet. Both were equally satisfying in taste and in serving size. Their original flavor tastes very oriental - salty with a kick of spice as an aftertaste. They've also got a special gravy that comes with the meal. Nothing really fancy about it though. And besides, I feel like you can eat their chicken and fish sans the gravy. Overall, Hot Star is a pretty cool alternative to your usual fast food chicken craving. Check it out when you can!

A local branch of the famous Taiwan milk tea store. They really tried to make the place look very…read moresimilar to the joints in Taiwan where different kinds of tea and tea paraphernalia are sold. There are also bar stools and tables in the store and outside of it where you can hang out. In terms of the milk tea itself, I had the green milk tea and it actually tastes like the ones found in Taiwan. I have yet to try the rest but it's a good start.

Ten Ren's Tea is the largest tea manufacturer in the Far East with over 2000 stores worldwide. This…read moreis their very first store in the Philippines and they are opening 5 more branches int he next few months in key malls around the Metro. BGC please! Were privileged to have been invited to the media launch last Friday, June 10, 2016, we had the chance to sample their best sellers and we surely think you'll love them as much as we do. Green Tea Mango Slush (140 PHP) a must have! Refreshing on so many levels, this drink is made from natural ingredients and they proudly showcase it by topping the drink with mango bits. Awesome! The store has limited seating, but treat it like a club, as you'll be dancing with satisfaction with a cup of their high quality tea based drinks. Yes, they also have milk tea drinks. They use REAL TARO for those who love taros so much.