Dang. This place has really great Filipino food. We ordered a Lechon (a whole pig) and a tray of BBQ Chicken for a party and they were a hit! The meats were cooked just right. Nothing was too tough, bland, oversalted... it was just perfect. They have pretty reasonable prices for the huge portions they give, so I'm going to have to say that they provided me with a 5 star experience. The only reason why anyone would be unhappy with this place is because they don't have many vegetable dishes. Good thing we're carnivores, as we didn't mind at all. =) read more

Tastebuds is one of many growing Filipino restaurants in the area that is providing all you can eat, Filipino food during the weekend. Tastebuds buffet is only served during Saturday and Sunday from 8-11am. On Sunday I was told, a roasted pig is available. During their normal "non-buffet" hours, they do serve a full menu of Filipino cuisine including the famous Philippine dessert called "Halo-Halo (mix of tropical fruits with milk and shaved ice). Service here was very attentive, and their breakfast buffet is priced at $11.99 per person. Like most buffet, drinks are charged separately. Do note that parking is limited, however; there are plenty off street parking. Until then, be kind to one another and Cheers! ~ :p read more

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mMm...lechon! where else can you find an entire pig, sitting on the table nightly, ready to be craved into?!? I'd admit, I come here mainly for their lechon and that sauce, man, that sauce of theirs goes great w/ the already moist meat. However, on some occasions, especially the weekends, they do run out. Don't always assume that just because you still see the shining pig, it's still available to you. They get a lot of pre-orders so be sure to ask before getting seated. Aside from their lechon, dishes like their palabok, kare kare, appetizer sampler, silogs, and their desserts are worth sticking around and trying. Portions are a good size and their service is always warm + friendly. Parking can be a bit tough around the area as it is alongside a busy street. They do have a small lot off to the side, but it's cramped and narrow. You can try you luck at some of the residential side streets near by. read more

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When cooked right, I love food from the homeland! This place does it right. APPEAL Nice little quaint restaurant on San Bruno Ave. There's like 3 stalls to park, so you just have to cross your fingers I guess. We werent expecting it to be so nice on the inside. FOOD Awesome! But I came here for the lechon and they told me "Wala na". Damn! I think the big party before us go the last of it, because I swear I saw half the pig left when I got there. So get there early if you want what they're known for. We ended up getting the lumpia, beef mechado, mongo, and pinakbet. All really good, almost on par with mom's cooking. Sarap! SERVICE I am by no means fluent in Tagalog, and maybe I didnt help myself by answering some simple questions in Tagalog. Like, hindi, or isa lang, or tubig po. haha, so I guess they assumed I was fluent. Then they busted out the complex Tagalog and I was like um........ I digress. Service is decent but i felt like I needed to flag them down more than I had wanted. VALUE Very good value. We actually ended up with 2 nights worth of leftovers, so they give a lot of food! It's good stuff folks, give these guys a try when you're in the area. read more

Tastebuds - Ahhh - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

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Parking can be a hassle. They have a very small parking lot which was full when we got there so we had to find street parking across the street. Service was ok but can be improved. When we got there no one greeted us and we were just standing there infused if someone was supposed to seat us or we seat ourselves. The food was pretty good. Ordered sisig wasn't too salty. One they serve it to you the soy sauce is in the bottom so you have to mix it yourself. Ordered pancit which was pretty good as well. They serve lechon only on certain days as well but you can order a whole pig for parties. read more

Tastebuds - Sisig - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

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Came here on Sunday with the family to get dinner. We got in around 7:00 pm which was perfect because this place wasn't too busy. The parking could be a bit tricky here because it is off to the side and limited. You can't miss this place because there is a big marquee in front of the restaurant with the name on it. The seating inside is small. I would say that there are roughly 13 to 15 tables available inside. From my understanding this place typically gets busy during lunch hours because of the buffet that they serve. Unfortunately, when I came it was only the menu options which was fine as well. Just like other Filipino restaurants they have a lot of the same items on their menu. I primarily look for consistency in taste as opposed to new unfamiliar items that I can try. I prefer to go with items that I am familiar with rather than going into uncharted territory for the sake of saying I tried and didn't like it, at least when it comes to Filipino food. I have tried every dish there is anyway and when I go out and try it these same food it is either a huge disappointment or just terrible. Hence, picking the safe choices at least guarantees me I know that a lot Filipino restaurants in the Bay Area want to proclaim themselves as being authentic but lets get real. The only authentic food I have had has always been cooked at home by either ma, tita, or lola. AM I RIGHT!! Sorry to digress but this just needed to be stated. Anyway, I come to find out that the Bangus Sisig is one of the few selection dishes that this place is known for. So, of course a plate had to be ordered for me to further assess this point. It turned out to be alright. No one of the greatest of OK. The service and the food was good. The wait for the food was average and all the dishes came out around the same time. I would compare Tastebuds to Max's in that the service and food menu are almost identical but I would say that Max's may have the edge just based on popularity. Coming back in the future is definitely an option, especially for the buffet! I mean it is a BUFFET. It was a cool Sunday dinner out with the family and everyone enjoyed their meal, can't beat that. #salamat read more

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Tastebuds serves up THE BEST FILIPINO FOOD IN THE ENTIRE BAY AREA! They have a handful of specialty dishes that I will outline in my review below. First of all, Tastebuds is known for its lechon. They serve lechon starting around lunchtime (around 11-11:30am) and they sell it by the pound (about $8-9 per pound). Their lechon is absolutely amazing - best I've ever had. It is extremely juicy, never dry, and the skin is always so crispy. Also, Tastebuds makes its own lechon sauce, which is wayyyy better than Mang Tomas. You can order whole lechon from Tastebuds, but you should order at least a week in advance. They have 3 sizes - Small (40-45lbs), Medium (50-55lbs), and Large (60-65lbs). Prices are very reasonable and can serve large parties. If you go to Tastebuds on Saturday or Sunday, they have a breakfast buffet for under $10!!! It is an absolutely delicious assortment of various Filipino dishes from the more popular breakfast dishes like tocino, longanisa, fried bangus, dills, etc. and they also serve about 10-12 other main dishes, including sinigang, bopis, dinakdakan, adobo, pancit, etc. The food is always fresh and they change it out frequently. My recommendation if you want to come for the buffet though - come early because it gets packed in there and it is limited seating. Now, if you go for dinner, there are some great dishes to order a la carte. Let me list them here: 1) Bangus sisig - best I've ever had in my life!! 2) Lumpia shanghai - crunchy and tasty egg rolls!! 3) Filipino version of "chow mein" - a different take on chow mein (more like a pancit bihon) 4) Pork sisig - served with fresh jalapeño, onions, with vinegar sauce in it 5) Crispy dinuguan - normally not an entree of choice, but the crispiness of the dinuguan made it worth it! 6) Leche flan - best dessert on the menu! Texture of the leche flan is amazing! 7) Buko pandan - another great dessert on the menu... refreshing and coconut-y! So, I really don't have any complaints about this place except for the parking situation. It is always pretty tough to find parking there, and there aren't many tables in the restaurant, so the waits can be a little long if you go at the wrong time. Also, did I mention that my wife's uncle owns this place? He also owns 2 other restaurants in San Bruno - Patio Filipino and Karilagan, both of which are awesome, but Tastebuds is my personal favorite. Stick with my suggestions above and you'll be set!! This place is definitely another one of my rare 5-stars in the Bay Area. read more

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Delicious!! Ordered pansit, lumpia, adobo and sitaw kalabasa for a party this past Sunday. Food was ready when i showed up, they helped load into ny car. Food was delicious. read more

We ordered a whole roasted lechon for a party. What a mistake getting it from this place. Not only was the pig incredibly skimpy, but they overcooked the hell out of this thing. The skin was almost like dried cardboard. It didn't have that golden brown color. It was more like tobacco brown. Almost black in some places. The meat was so dry that it was almost impossible to swallow without a drink or some type of moisture added. Usually when you start cutting into one of these, the juices leak everywhere almost saturating the box it came in. I tell you now that there was not a single drop anywhere. The box was bone dry. The foil that the pig was laying on was practically dry too. The bones hardly showed any signs of moisture as we removed them. It was like cutting into that turkey from National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. We called them back to let them know and the lady we spoke with was not willing to help or compensate in any way. Just fed us one b.s. excuse and dodge after another. Terrible food and terrible service. Save your $350 and get one from a place that knows what they're doing. It's bad enough to serve poor quality, but at least have the dignity and respect for your customers to own up to your mistakes and make up for them. read more

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Pork sinigang and the lumpia were both delicious. Service was great and friendly. They are only open for to go orders. Dine in still not available. read more

Our go to place for some bomb Filipino food! We pretty much get the same items (see photos posted) and they never disappoint. Of course we all have hungry eyes and order way more than we can finish! The restaurant is small but I never have trouble getting reservations the day of. Wish they had more selections on their drinks section though. My coworkers get the left overs and they don't complain! read more

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So...on yelp they post the hours of operation but no one answers the phone! Then I got a call back and I said I just wanted to place an order and got hung up on, wtf!!!!! The lady at the register had no personality what so ever and when I explained that I tried calling in my order, she said well we're too busy! Too busy for new customers, too busy to get an answering machine, too busy to apologize and welcome a customer who decided to still patronize your restaurant???? Yeah whatever, I tried supporting our neighborhood business and being Filipino myself....you folks truly don't represent our culture! read more

We made reservations here after picking up a friend from SFO Airport. This was her first visit to the US so we wanted to make an impression by finding an available Filipino restaurant that had a good review here on Yelp. (Sorry Isla Restaurant, I do not want to talk to your answering machine for reservations!!) We got there shortly before 8pm and the parking lot was completely full. Parking is on the left side of the building when facing the front next to Hensley Ave. Has enough space for about 12 cars or so lots of luck looking for parking down Hensley as all the residents on that road park all over the place. (Looks like over-crowding housing to me). Streets are very narrow as well. We were lucky to find parking across the street next to San Bruno Catholic Church. Our reserved tables were waiting for us in the front corner of the restaurant near the register. It awfully took a long time for us just to get even a glass of water and even ordering food as the restaurant was really busy. When the waiter came along to take our order, he informed us that the Lechon was completely gone (popular item here), so we order a crispy pata, bicol express, laing, steam rice, calamansi and coconut juice and then finish off with a Buko Pandan. The atmosphere is very simple and the food was ok. The only complaint I had was the Kalabasa or squash in the Bicol Express was rock hard as if though not fully cooked. That was weird! Overall, food was not bad but the service could be slightly better. read more

Tastebuds - Welcome to Tastebuds!! - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

We got a lot of food from Tastebuds for Noche Buena and it was all outstanding. The lechon de leche was especially amazing; even after a 25-minute drive from San Bruno to Palo Alto and 10 minutes more getting food on the table, the meat was hot, moist and delicious and the skin was incredibly crunchy. The rellenong bangus, lumpia and dinuguan were also great. The prices were really good as well. As much as we loved the food, however, I have to say the service we got from Michelle and her family might even have been more amazing. I had to alter my order and change my pickup time twice -- no problem at all, done with cheer and grace. When I arrived to pick up my food, I felt like I was being welcomed like a member of the family. Which reminds me: I love the fact that Tastebuds is clearly a family affair with her husband and daughter helping out. This place really deserves to have a lot of loyal customers -- I know it has one more now. read more

It was my lolo's birthday and when I asked my mom earlier in the week what we should do, she came up with the idea to attend church on Sunday followed by lunch at a filipino venue. She lives in San Francisco as did my lolo when he was alive and so we attended the church he frequented and so naturally we decided to eat somewhere near SF as I live in San Jose. My mom and I have tried several filipino restaurants and wanted to try a new place. Which is how we landed at Tastebuds. My mom made a reservation for 1:30 to give us enough time to get from downtown SF to San Bruno. There was my family of 4, my mom, my sister and my brother. We ordered a la carte even though we made it in time for their 1-3PM weekend buffet. We ordered the following: 1. An order of chicharon bulaklak and crispy calamare as an appetizer; 2. 2 order of kare kare 3. 2 lbs of lechon 4. 1 large order of bulalo 5. 1 order of pancit miki bihon (because we saw it being served at the table next to us and we were on the fence between pancit miki bihon and pancit palabok; 6. 1 order of lechon binagoongan 7. Halo halo. The food was delicious and if when I Yelped it was strictly according to the food it would have received 5 stars hands down BUT the venue is small and tables are quite close to each other, they seemed a little understaffed for the weekend and they ran out of lechon *shock face*. I am on the fence when it comes to restaurants that run out of their feature item (s). It can be taken as "yeah, their feature items is so good it sells out" or "it's ridiculous that your establishment would run out of your feature item. You know it's a big seller, why not make an over abundance". I mean it's lechon..and you are a filipino restaurant you know dang well lechon will NEVER go to waste! In any case, isn't that what lechon paksiw was invented...for leftover lechon? If you follow me you know I won't give 5 stars at first visit. I don't think any establishment is worth a 5 star rating out the gate...I want consistency at at the very least 3 visits in and THEN I'll increase my star rating. This place was worth the drive and enjoyed our spread. My lolo would have approved. read more

Tastebuds - Halo halo, chicharon bulaklak, kare kare, pancit, lechon binagoongan directly underneath was my plate & then of course lechon w/ sawsawan. - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

I knew Tastebuds sold the best lechon but not the one they gave us when we ordered for our family's Thanksgiving celebration. They only gave us 1 32oz sauce instead of 2. The skin wasn't crispy and the pig was all bone not that much meat. read more

Tastebuds - Very thin lechon - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

The most delicious Bangus Sisig I ever had !! Fresh, every bite is better then the one before, makes you want to eat more and more ! Can't recommend this place enough!! Please you have to try it ! read more

Just bought a medium lechon last saturday but sad to say it's not worthy,they should value the money that the customer paid,lechon was so skinny. read more

I frequently pick up catering trays for office functions / family parties. This past Sunday we had the pleasure of dining IN for dinner @ Tastebuds. With reservations made for our party of 7, we were seated immediately upon arrival. Note: Tastebuds is located directly across the street from St. Bruno's Catholic Church on San Bruno Ave, so time your arrival accordingly or anticipate waiting for a table if you come after mass lets out. A carving station featuring their famous Whole Lechon (roast pork) is available Tuesday thru Sunday (Tastebuds is closed Monday's). The variations of lechon, served by the pound, alternates daily. * LECHON WARAY | $14.95/LB.: Roasted pig stuffed with onions, garlic, and bay leaves. | TUES & THUR, DINNER ONLY. * LECHON CEBU | $14.95/LB.: Roasted pig stuffed with lemongrass, green onions and tamarind. | WED, FRI: dinner only; SAT: all day; SUN: lunch only. ** Highly Recommend: ** CRISPY BINAGOONGAN | $14.95: Crispy wok-fried cubes of pork belly, tossed in shrimp paste and served with tomatoes & mangoes, plated atop a roasted eggplant. Pork heaven. SITAW KALABASA | : $11.75 Crunchy blanched green beans and tender cubes of kaboche squash, sautéed with garlic and tender strips of side pork, then simmered in rich coconut milk and topped with perfectly cooked shrimp. SINIGANG | $12.25 to $15.50: Tamarind-based soup, akin to Tom Yum minus the heat. The sour broth is brought to a slow boil with daikon, eggplant, tomatoes, and whole jalapeños. Available protein options: pork, beef, shrimp, milkfish (bangus belly), or seafood "fiesta" (milkfish, mussels, and shrimp medley). PANCIT PALABOK | $11.50: thin rice noodles in a savory shrimp gravy, topped with smoked fish flakes and ground chicharon, garnished with hard boiled eggs, toasted garlic, and succulent shrimp. Sunday Dinner was definitely a splurge meal. We had so much food left over that we hardly made a dent in the platter of palabok. Our server took notice and without being asked, she brought out a quart-sized to-go container filled to the brim with extra sauce for what we'd inevitably have to take home. All the staff we've encountered go above and beyond our expectations, all the while displaying genuine smiles. Portions are extremely generous, flavors are on point, and menu offerings are comparably priced with the plethora of neighboring Filipino restaurants. Can't say enough good things about our experiences at Tastebuds. read more

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Ordered two tocilog plates for pick up and the majority of the meat was dry and hard as if they were sitting under a warmer for a long long time. There were only a few good pieces; it enough to get full. Never ordering from here again. read more

Tastebuds - We picked out most of the dry and hard pieces. Look at the piece to the right! - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

Ok, so the lady isn't the picture perfect example of customer service but SO WHAT. The adobo was a little greasy but the rest of the food made up for that. Pork sisig was amazing, nice and tangy and tender with a good smoky flavor. The chicharrones with vinegar are a MUST. And their lumpia were delicious. Fried to perfection and over 20 pieces (they are bite size ones). read more

Tastebuds - Pork sisig - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

Honestly? I have no words to say. It's my first time taste their Buds. Wish they don't say a word the lechon taste like a Cebu Lechon. I don't think so" no way. read more

This restaurant's food and prices deserve at least 3 stars, but my family and I experienced horrendous service this past Mother's Day. We walked into the restaurant at about 12:30pm. Unfortunately, our group of 5 arrived just behind another large party, and we had to wait to be seated. After a few minutes of standing around, a waitress asked if it was okay if our group was split into 2 tables. We reluctantly said yes, but suggested if we could have the tables put together so our family wouldn't get separated. The reply was that it would be difficult to serve the food, I'm guessing because of the limited space. My mom asked how we would share the dishes, and the waitress gave a motion of passing the food over her shoulder. So at that point, the irritation began. Still, we sat down at our back to back tables and browsed at the menus. To contribute to my annoyance, when placing our orders, we requested to have the orders split onto two plates so we wouldn't look like fools moving the dishes back and forth. Somehow, this could not be done. Strike 1. The waitress then failed to walk the 2 steps to my table to ask what drinks we wanted. Strike 2. And finally, when the drinks came, she handed them each to my brother, who turned to serve the drinks to us himself. Strike 3. I was fuming. The food was fine, but the whole reason we chose to eat at Tastebuds was to have some of the lechon that they're known for. My mom chose the restaurant so she could enjoy some fine roasted pig, and yet, we traveled all the way from the East Bay to find that they had run out. I can probably go on, but long story short, I spent Mother's Day back to back with my mom, conversing with her and my siblings over my shoulder due to the poor service at Tastebuds. Luckily, my mom has a better temperament than me and wasn't too upset. Luckily, there are lots of other options for Filipino cuisine in the San Bruno area. read more

Tastebuds - Tortang talong - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

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This review is for their buffet only. My family and I wanted to take my dad here for Fathers Day because he has been wanting to try out their buffet. We arrived around 10:30am, we were greeted and got a table. But after that, the service was literally NON EXISTENT. I already had an iffy feeling for some reason.. Now lemme tell you about the buffet... it SUCKS. Im very sorry to say this but it just wasnt good at all. The food was cold, it looked like a bunch of leftovers thrown together. I wish I took pictures so u guys can see for yourself. It was bad and looked unappetizing. The best item there was the scrambled eggs. They offer soups like arroz caldo which tastes ok. But the main items they served werent good. They had tocino, lechon sisig, pork adobo, adobo rice, and fried fish. Unfortunately we didnt enjoy our meal. The table next to us was complaining about how bad the food was too :( For four people it came out to about $70 with tip. For that price i feel like the foood shouldve been way better. Not coming back. Wish we chose a different spot to celebrate Fathers Day. read more

Delivery was prompt if not early! We ordered chicharon bulaklak, pancit palabok, Shanghai lumpia, bistek and pinakbet. Favorite is pinakbet, all the veggies expected specifically the bitter melon and eggplant- tasty and not overcooked. The least favorite is the bulaklak which was inconsistent and had tough to chew pieces- disappointing The sauce on the pancit was rich and heavy though the 2 half egg slices were okay. Bistek tasty - not bad though portion should have been the same and not smaller than pinakbet. Lumpia - "meh" At least we tried them. read more

TLDR: A quaint location to get some filipino food. If you want the lechon dinner, get there early before 7pm. Food: Pinakbet $14.00 Crispy Pata 2 Pieces $18.95 Lechon Kawali $13.95 I originally went for their lechon dinner. However, when I got there at 7pm, I was told they were sold out by 6PM. The waitress was really kind though and offered other suggestions. She told us the best alternatives were the crispy pata and the lechon kawali. We ordered two pieces of the crispy pata and the servings were huge! The meat was a little salty but came off the bone and the skin was crispy. For the lechon kawali, the skin was also very crispy and fatty. I definitely satisfied my pork cravings and want to go back for the actual lechon dinner. The pinakbet also came in a large portion. The pork flavor permeated all of the vegetables and blended well with the shrimp. I normally do not like bitter melon but the pork and shrimp subdued the vegetable's strong flavor. Ambiance: The restaurant looks like your average family run place. Not fancy but clean. Most tables are meant for at least four people. They have long tables for large families. read more

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My husband bought a lechon .. he was not able to make a choice .. which part he wants .. the lady made some excuses she gave us the old part . Hard meat end up wasting the food and time to go to that place not satisfied... I will not recommend this place Won't buy there anymore .wasting money read more

Tastebuds - Unhappy customer - Filipino Near Me - San Bruno, California

Best lechon in the Bay Area. Order early Sunday's to guarantee your craving. You won't regret it.

Great place for Filipino food. Food very tasty. Nice people. The only bad thing is no dine in

We came here a few months ago but still remember how bad this place tasted. The fried food was overly fried and everything else was pretty much oily, bland. Please don't waste your time. read more

After recommendations from James G and Ron L, I thought I'd drag the family along to try these guys out! I'm a big fan of roasted pig, and Tastebuds did not disappoint! Their Lechon did remind me of that popular and unique taste from Cebu. But the winner here was their Crispy Diniguan. Crunchy pieces of pork belly with skin (lechon kawali) mixed in with their savory pork blood stew was incredible! Texture and taste were both supreme. Out of all the dishes we've had, my family and I still talk about that specialty dish. The other dishes (Kare Kare, Bicol Express, Pancit Bam-i) were just okay for us. Parking and seating were tight...very tight. Tables were so close together, I was bumping arms with the person sitting at the table next to ours. Considering a packed house on a Sunday, service was better than average. I have my eye on their Crispy Binagoongan and Adobo rice dishes. So I will return....just not on a busy weekend. read more

Look at my profile. I'm auditioning for Tony Bourdain's job, so let me start by quoting him from his trip to the Philippines last season. Best pig I've ever had. I went to Tastebud with pretty low expectations. I mean a roast pork is a roast pork. Crispy skin, juicy meat, crunchy ears. The sauce is usually the differentiator, but not this time. I didn't even let my morsels of succulent swine get close to the sauce for fear of me missing out on this perfectly seasoned critter. The pieces that are cut close from the cavity is where you can really taste the seasoning of this lechon cooked Cebu style. I've never had lemongrass seasoned lechon, and now I don't think I can ever appreciate lechon without it. The bangus sisig was also recommended, and it too was a hit. A bit on the pricey side, but very, very good. The crispy chunks added another dimension to the dish that I've never had before. Kare kare (ox tail stew) was just mediocre, but it did have my favorite chunks of tripe. Don't miss the lechon, and remember to skip the sauce. read more

YOU WIN, TASTEBUDS. Sara P. and I tried to take a field trip down to San Bruno for some more Russian food, but apparently on weekends they only take reservations. Discouraged and lost, like two sad little puppies, we hit up Yelp and saw that Tastebuds was literally across the street. We arrived a little after 7, and there was a table for us within minutes. Since the lechon was almost all gone, we decided to go for the pork sisig and the bangus sisig (milkfish with jalapenos and onions), along with a side of garlic rice. I loved the texture of the pork, but it was a little too salty for me. It was cut into small cubes and served with onions and jalapenos on the side, and I think regular white rice would've been better to balance out the savoriness. We both loved the flavor of the milkfish, as it was spicy, tender, and had a bit of crunch from the onions. Since we'd been planning on gorging ourselves on Russian food and couldn't, we decided that we were going to order dessert. They had halo halo, different ice cream flavors, and some other traditional Filipino desserts. We opted for the bobo cha-cha, which was basically cubes of yam and gelatin with vanilla ice cream and a coconut milk cream. So. Amazing. Sara P. said she wouldn't be able to finish one by herself, but I probably could've, since I'm a major fatty when it comes to good food. For the two of us, it came to about $21 for the two main dishes, garlic rice, and dessert, plus tax and tip. Not bad for being completely stuffed and having a lot left over - the portions are big. Such a good place. You can totally tell it's meant for families and larger groups because there were no tables for just 2 people. Also, it seems like a VERY Filipino place, as there was maybe just one non-Filipino besides the two of us. Luckily I can pass for one, so I looked authentic. Score. read more

My friends and I had Saturday (11/23/2019) buffet brunch. The food was delicious! I especially love the champorado paired with fried fish (jeproks). The champorado was so creamy, chocolaty and oh so sweet! It perfectly paired with the crispy fried fish! I'm drooling. There were arrozcaldo, daing na bangus, lechon paksiw, igado, pancit canton, mungo, ginitang bilo-bilo and more! All cooked perfectly well, except the pancit canton can use more flavor. Service was warm and friendly. The lady server was patient and hardworking. She served everyone with a warm smile. Place was clean and the buffet table was put together well, clean and constantly filled. Can't wait to go back! read more

BREAKFAST BUFFET (4 stars) (WO)MAN vs FOOD. And the Food won. Besides church... SUNDAYS ARE FAT DAYS!!! Food coma!!! Was sadden that my favorite booshie Filipino restaurant closed and was craving bangus sisig. Heard they do it right at Tastebuds so was treated here to get my fixing. Although Tastebuds isn't booshie, it'll do just fine!!! Let me be the first to expose this because nobody has yet talked about it but alot of people go (mostly families). They have a Breakfast Buffet for $15 per person from 10AM - 2PM of all you can eat adobo fried rice, garlic fried rice, eggs, spam, longanisa, arroz caldo, champorado, toyo, tapa, and tocino. HEFFER-STYLE STATUS. We did both (buffet and ordered bangus sisig) BUFFET (~$15 / person) - is it worth it for all the typical Filipino breakfasts you can eat. You can cook this stuff at home but YES it is worth it. You can sit there all you want and eat, they won't bother you. There's a little wait to be seated but the wait is worth it. BANGUS SISIG (~$10) - okay, i thought i was going to be disappointed but it's just as good as intramuros. maybe even better. servings twice as much and cheaper. I'm a big fan of the bangus sisig here. HELLA GOOD! Will I be back? I don't think I can eat like this on a regular. I'll explode. But an occasional dip in the heaviness is necessary. I'll be back!! I will need to try: - lechon - crispy dinaguan Until the next review.... read more

Friday night. Didn't want to go on a date... My best friend and I decide to go redbox and grab food... What else gets better than that? Oh yeah, with Filipino food! We get to tastebuds and I ordered the tastebud sampler (chicken employees empanadas, lumpia Shanghai, lechon) and pork sisig. The sampler: soooo good, usually I don't buy lumpia Shanghai because it's so easy to make my own version at home but tastebuds was pretty good! Solid A. The chicken empanadas were my favorite by far, very flavorful and juicy chicken with the perfect amount of sweetness and savory flavors. The lechon was perfect amount of crispness and dipped in vinegar...*heaven is real* the size of their sampler of was pretty big my bestfriend and I couldn't finish it. SISIG: everyone's favorite Filipino dish. Juicy, soaked and saucy with a little bit of spiciness. Cooked where it isn't too tender, but ... All I gotta say is that if a Filipino restaurant fails their sisig they lack flavor. Haha. Not at tastebuds. Good prices too! Will be back for munchies or somethin! read more

I give Tastebuds 4 stars for their food. I've eaten here enough times to confidently say that Tastebuds is my favorite Filipino restaurant. I've visited with co-workers, friends, and family and ordered the following dishes I feel are worth highlighting. Garlic Calamares: Not too salty, not too crunchy, and is served with whole garlic cloves. Crisphy Binagoongan: Better than Patio Filipino's version in my opinion. The pieces of pork are smaller and a big crispier. The shrimp paste isn't drenched over the meat. They put the right amount, making the dish salty enough but it balances out with the mangos and eggplant. Adobo Rice: Goodness, this is so good that it can be a meal of it's own because it has big shreds of chicken! Kare-Kare: I don't prefer to eat this; however, it is deeee-licious! Bok choy, string beans, Ox-tail, you just can't go wrong. Bangus Sisig: If I could eat this everyday, I would. I love the combination of milkfish marinated in vinegar and other spices and mixed in with red onions. It's definitely mouthwatering. Lomi Soup: Thick noodles with quail eggs, fish balls, shrimp, and chicharron is just delightful. I did notice that if I ate too much, it'd start to get a little salty. If you're in the mood for breakfast plates, you can forget about the garlic rice with your ulam, because Tastebuds gives you adobo rice! Yes, adobo rice and I personally can't complain about that. It also comes with half a salty egg with dice tomatoes and onions. The perfect combo for a hearty filipino breakfast plate! Let's head on over to their service. I'd have to agree with the Yelpers with this one - service is awful. They obviously don't know how to handle busy days because you are either ignored, the waiter takes forever to take your order, the empty tables are still filled with dirty dishes, or your phone calls are ignored if you try to order for pick up. I've also noticed that the staff are more keen to tagalog speaking patrons as opposed to the Americanized Filipinos like me, which I think is really unfair. With that said, the food wins here and I'll continue to return as often as I can. read more

My girlfriend brought me and some friends here on a whim. We wanted to have some amazing Filipino food. Man - the manager took us to a big table, and gave us free samplers! We ordered the stuffed fish, that had tasty fried onions, and so much delicious seafood that was more savory than pork! Amazing service, and the prices! For 6 people we probably didnt spend more than $20 each! Great spot, not to be missed, and so many seafood options! read more

Im an avid Filipino foodie and have traveled all over the Philippines and other countries. I'm craving Lechon and Tastebuds came up on search. They got Lechon!!!! They claim it's the best !!!! Fridays is Cebu Lechon!!!!!. Sooo I zoomed over to taste the food. They served my FAVORITES. So many to choose so I ordered 3 of my favorite Filipino Dishes I tried the Lechon. They claim its Cebu style lechon. I ordered a pound. I ordered Bicol Express. I ordered Sinigang bangus belly with mussels. To my dismay this is probably the one of the most Tasteless representations of Filipino cooking ever. Let me break it down. The cook who ever it is seems to precut all veggies and throws then in a mixed pile because WHO THE HELL IN THE PHILIPPINES PUTS CELERY, EGGPLANT, BELL PEPPERS IN BICOL EXPRESS AND IN SINIGANG. Nobody is their right mind should call it Bicol express if it's got celery Effin Bicolanos would probably be offended. Sinigang soup was so bland and the bangus and rubbery mussels tasted like it was frozen sitting in water then microwaved then thrown in to a soup base just before getting served. Now for the Lechon. My Dearest Cebuanos please control yourselves when I say this Lechon that they claimed was Cebu Style had absolutely no flavor. The lechon meat tastes like they boiled it in water then baked it. It's either that or they are doing a switch and bait on customers. My conclusion. I wouldn't bring guests here to introduce Filipino food. I dont mind paying good money for good food. This was not good food. I felt Robbed and fooled in to eating a bad representation of what they claim is "traditional Lechon and they claim to have the best Lechon in the Bay Area" Definitely not the best. If you own this place you should quality check your food and your staff for possibly botching up your establishments recipes. read more

Being greeted by a carving station of a whole lechon upon entry into a Filipino restaurant is impressive even by my standards. The place isn't that big, just a few tables but at the far end of the restaurant is a glorious display of a glistening, roasted pig hand carved and sold by the 1/2 pound. I have not tried it but every table or take-out order contained lechon. I ordered the silog deluxe which was a trough of longanisa, tapa, tocino and fried rice with achara; kare kare which was so tasty I didn't need the bagoong; crispy pork binagoongan and pancit miki-bihon. We thoroughly enjoyed the food and the portions were more than generous. I was disappointed to read others' reviews that seem to reflect a lack of integrity on Tastebuds' handling of the lechon. I imagine roasting a pig on a spit in the middle of El Camino Real would be difficult so my understanding is that they only offer fresh lechon during week-ends. It's probably cost-prohibitive to roast pig daily. And as for the guy who got the holy grail lechon after claiming his pilgrimage from San Jose, I'm not sure what that's about. We're only reading an anonymous reviewer's perspective and there isn't much context offered. I'm also wondering why s/he didn't put up an argument like "I was here first and if I don't get my lechon, I'll put *you* on a spit." I know if anyone tried to strong arm me out of some fried pork product, I would get street and/or Serena Williams on the spot to procure me some pork. read more