The food is much better these days The club sandwich is pretty good. Choice of ham/cheese, turkey/bacon or egg salad/tina salad. Comes with excellent french fries. read more

This place could be on DDD. It's definitely a well known spot by the locals. It's got that greasy spoon atmosphere. Service was friendly and attentive. However, my Longsilog plate was just so-so. They charged extra for garlic rice which was not the greatest or tastiest IMHO. The sausages were just okay as well. While not in the same area, Tapsilog Bistro (or Cantina) have nothing to worry about. read more

The Pantry - Longaniza with garlic rice - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

Parking at 9:30am was no issue on a Sunday, plenty of parking and was seated in no time. What drew my fiancee and I's attention to this place was the mix of American food and Filipino. Which is prevalent as soon as you walk in since the spot is family owned. The place is sit anywhere you want and they'll come to you with the menu. The decor inside too is filled with what I assume are family photos and it really gives it a warm cozy feeling. I ordered a Longanisa plate with their hashbrowns with onions. The Longanisa was fine and exactly what I wanted it to be, however the hashbrowns were soft for my liking, maybe they could make it crispier. Also I saw they only had white rice, kind of wish they had garlic rice to really drive that Filipino experience. HOWEVER, order that lumpia! Minced well, crispy to a bite and honestly our favorite. Def would come back for it. read more

The Pantry - Longaniza - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Breakfast for 3. - Ambiance (1*) I'm all for dingy diner experience. It usually brings back nostalgic vibes. But dingy diners don't usually also have an army of ants crawling along the tables. - Service (4*) Very friendly, very fast. They did move us (meaning they at least recognized that dining with ants was not desirable). - Tocino, $16.80 (4*) Thought it was delightful. Eggs cooked great. Meat itself very flavorful. Mixed altogether with the rice made it very homey. - Value (3*) About right for a breakfast plate these days. - Final Word Pretty tasty spot. It probably should have gotten a 4*, but the whole ants experience left me really uncomfortable. It did cross my mind- if there are ants out here, what is in the kitchen...? read more

The Pantry - Tocino - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

So this was our second visit. The prices were high for the setting but they must pay a ton in rent. I want to support Filipino owned business but that may be our final visit. I think the center might be knocked down soon, the property manager IF they exist do not bother to hire a gardener or maintain the parking lot. If this place can relocate when this center turns into more condos I will go back and try it. The workers are polite read more

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BRUNCH BETTING When I go to the Jockey Club at San Mateo Events Center to bet on horse racing, if I'm hungry I'll go to The Pantry for breakfast. I've eaten several items like chicken fried steak, tocino, longaniza, and loco moco. However there is one item that stands out at The Pantry - teriyaki steak. I judge restaurants that serves brunch by the steak and egg dishes especially if there are different cuts of steak. I've eaten at a restaurant where I had coulette steak and eggs. Another restaurant I would eat tri tip and eggs. In Hayward I went to a restaurant that served ribeye and eggs. About a month ago at a steakhouse on my mom's birthday for brunch I ordered petite filet and eggs. At The Pantry one of the specialties is teriyaki steak and eggs. Last Saturday I ate here before betting at the San Mateo Jockey Club. When you go to a restaurant to eat the same item you want consistency. The teriyaki steak I ate several years ago had that same tender and juicy meat. One aspect I love about the teriyaki steak is it not charred. Therefore you don't taste the burnt residue. The teriyaki steak is simply prepared yet very delicious. If I go back to The Pantry I'm reluctant to order different items even though I'm tempted because teriyaki steak is so unique as it's an item I rarely see at a diner for brunch. After eating at The Pantry I went to the Jockey Club, which is two-minute drive, to place bets on horse racing. I lost money at the races so overall I had a better time at The Pantry that day. read more

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I came here for lunch and got the longanisa (~$17) which came with two longanisas, an egg, and rice. Longanisa is one of my favorite filipino foods so I really loved this dish. I do feel like it was a little more on the expensive side though for what they give but still delicious! It has very much a denny's vibe and service was good read more

The Pantry - longanisa - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

We ordered the sizzling sisig, and yes it was sizzling but it was lacking flavor and didn't look close to what they had pictures of. My wife enjoyed the loco moco. My son had a burger and was asked if he wanted the cups or fries. He said fries but we weren't aware that the fries were an extra $4.95. read more

The Pantry - Bacon Cheeseburger - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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No-frills family owned diner. Mixture of standard diner and Filipino cuisine. Came on a weekday lunch and there seemed to be a local crowd. Very retro decor that reminds me of an old ski lodge. Service is very limited and aside from taking our order and bring our food, we were largely ignored. Loco Moco: Solid version Tocino : Hash browns and sautéed onions were solid. Nice flavors of the meat, but some pieces were a bit tough. Portions were very generous. Overall, a solid place for those looking for tasty home cooking. read more

The Pantry - Tocino - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

Went with a friend and it was cozy with no frills. The food is solid and the staff is friendly but I did not feel like I would want to return or bring the family. It was good to experience only once. read more

Gave this place a try on a Saturday morning and I was very disappointed. The service was good but the foods not so great. Bland and tasteless. I will not return. read more

This place feels like it has a lot of history! It seems run by a Filipino family for sure as the walls are decorated with lots of family pictures. If you're looking for a homey, easy, casual Filipino/diner spot, check this place out! They have your typical silogs and breakfast combos. I tried their loco moco, which was cooked medium to my preference. Their pancakes were fluffy and thick. Their servers were very attentive and welcoming. Can't expect less from Filipinos. I would say this place needs a bit of updating in terms of decor and dishware, but of course those don't take away the delicious embrace from their food! Let's support local businesses! read more

This is a good breakfast spot! I love that it's Filipino owned but they serve both Filipino and American classic breakfast dishes. My wife and I were craving Filipino breakfast so we wanted to try this place out. The place feels old with that classic old diner vibe. There are lots of family photos on the wall and other memorabilia decor. The place is pretty quiet with no music in the background; you can hear the family talking in the kitchen. I do think they should have background music to provide a better ambiance. We ordered the tocino and longanisa plates with 2 eggs each and some rice. The pork tocino was sweet and delicious. My wife's longanisa was cooked to perfection with even a nice grill char texture to it. The biscuit and gravy were pretty solid too with the gravy being thick and had notes of chowder. I thought the gravy was a bit bland; I like my gravy with that sausage taste and lots of bits in it. The pancake was cooked perfectly! I loved the texture and fluffiness. My toddler son enjoyed this thoroughly. I do want to come back again to try their sizzling sisig. I know this'll be good! We're huge fans of this place. I highly recommend this spot. read more

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My family and I have been dining here for years, even when it relocated to current location. Service is excellent with an extensive menu of breakfast, lunch, dinner entrees!! Took us awhile to figure out!! Ordered the Filipino Tocino , chili con carne omelet, Truck stop special,Joe's special with an appetizer of Sigsig....! All with a generous portion of hash browns w grilled onions -a "must have" here! Just a typical "hole in the wall" (near Ross and Trader Joe's) but serving up delicious Comfort foods with a Filipino flare!! read more

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We use to like this place and the food is good but the service has gone down a lot. The customer service has been disappointing as well. This used to be a warm and welcoming place. It has lost its charm. read more

Let's Make Breakfast Cheap Again... I couldn't believe it when I went to pay. No itemized receipt on the screen till after I paid and asked for a receipt. Charged me extra for garlic rice when silog suppose to have garlic rice. Tasted like rice with garlic salt. Added a service fee and then tip off the grand total. GTFOH playing games with the bill. Steer clear of this place. read more

The Pantry - Breakfast for 2 - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

I have been driving passed this place a lot since I live in San Mateo but today I thought I might stop by and try it out! Externally the place looks not as aesthetic as other breakfast/ brunch spots but the food here is actually really good! It's a Filipino brunch spot and i absolutely love the honey dipped fried chicken!!!! The adobe is a little too salty for me but overall I would recommend this place. read more

The Pantry - Chicken Adobo Lunch Special - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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We've been coming here for Filipino breakfast for years. Our whole family enjoys the food. I always order the longinesa and my #2 loves the chicken teriyaki. Very generous and flavorful delicious food. Very home style ambience. Staff are very friendly and efficient. Oh and the coffee is great! Highly recommended! Always coming back! read more

The Pantry - Chicken Teriyaki with substituted vegetables - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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I have been enjoying many breakfasts at this location along with their the original one on El Camino. We always only come for breakfast which the omelets are huge full of items.Pancakes are also large and plentiful.Until covid hit this place was packed on Weekends with a waitlist.For the past 3 years unfortunately business has slowed way down to only a few tables being served.All employees always so nice.I find it hard to believe they will be open much longer especially with this strip center falling apart.Very sad.. read more

THE neighborhood spot. Been coming here for years - the morning after prom, casual weekends with the family, rendez vous with the girls. This is the spot we come to over and over again. Highly highly recommend!!! read more

The restaurant has a nice family atmosphere. The food portions were large for a breakfast plate. Price was fair and reasonable and the service was quick read more

It's been 6 years but we finally came back to give The Pantry another shot. This time I ordered the Tocino Filipino Breakfast. I was very disappointed when I was told they didn't have garlic fried rice. What?!? Can you have filipino breakfast without garlic fried rice? It isn't even hard to make! The tocino was also pretty bland and dry. I make my own marinated tocino, so I like to think I know what I'm talking about. I feel like they really missed an opportunity to showcase how good Filipino breakfast can be. read more

The Pantry - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Such a great family-feel spot! The food came out quickly, and everyone was super attentive. It's your classic diner fare, but the hashbrowns with onions? Absolutely the highlight! Love supporting fellow Filipino-owned spots in the Bay. Definitely worth a visit! read more

The Pantry - Chicken Apple Sausage - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Nice friendly diner experience. The food is reasonable and the service is warm. This used to be an old IHOP back in the day but has turned into a nice Filipino restaurant. The only thing keeping me from giving them 5 stars instead of 4 is that they use margarine instead of real butter. read more

This Filipino Fusion restaurant is a great place for breakfast, brunch, or lunch. There menu will not disappoint, and the staff is always so welcoming as tradition in their Filipino culture. You won't be disappointed if you decide to dine at The Pantry. Enjoy read more

**changing my review since we were surprised to find they decided to send the salads after all. Saddened this isn't always allowed as we were told though. Just paid over $60 for two omelets with hashbrowns and toast. My partner and I don't eat heavy carbs anymore as she recently found out she's diabetic and was told she could slip into a comma if she doesn't change her diet. I called in to ask the toasts and hashbrowns be removed so they wouldn't need to go in the trash. I was offered a side salad in their place and instructed to always call to have this adjustment made. Today when calling I was informed my adjustment was not possible and asked instead what type of toast I wanted after already explaining I don't eat bread. To offer side salad in place of a large portion of hashbrowns seems more than fair, but to tell me I can no longer do that after being instructed to call and already placing my order is bad business. I will no longer order from this flip flopping establishment. read more

The Pantry - $60 and refused to exchange hashbrowns & toast for side salad after I'd ordered, after telling me they would. Now I'm out money and sides. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

My dad used to come here every Wednesday with his retiree group. It was slow on the Tuesday we came and I wanted to order a Filipino dish, which was okay and standard. Others ordered hamburgers but the Pantry had run out of buns so they opted for sandwich bread which didn't carry the patty weight well. One didn't like the texture of the patty and couldn't eat it. It was a bit disappointing. read more

The Pantry - Longanisa Special - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

This is a mom'n'pop diner with Filipino and American food. I don't think I've come across a Fil-Am Diner anywhere in the U.S. (I have in the Phililppines), but there it is in San Mateo, California. There is ample parking and it is a convenient location off of Highway 92. I didn't order much food from here, maybe just the Shanghai rolls which was oily and crispy, like they should be. It is hard to go to Filipino places, because I just go to my parents', but my interest is piqued and I think there is some potential in this spot. read more

We came on a late Saturday morning and it felt like walking into Luke's diner from Gilmore Girls, a no frills atmosphere that felt like home. Interior is charmingly retro, with booths that just beg for a cup of coffee. The food? Hearty comfort food with a twist. The eggs cooked just right and hash browns that are to die for. Paired perfectly with the sweet and savory tocino. Staff was friendly and down to earth. Highly recommend for anyone who's looking for a cozy, delicious meal that hits all the right notes! read more

The Pantry - Tocino and Loco Moco Style Hamburger Steak Special - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

We found The Pantry on Yelp as we were visiting the area and found this little gem! We had the Early Bird Special and it was a perfect mix of savory and sweet. The team was friendly, attentive and the restaurant is old school charming, with pictures of family throughout. Highly recommend! read more

I'm new to the area and have been on the hunt for family owned businesses and restaurants. I think I've found my favorite place so far. The service was incredible, our waitress was incredible kind. The food was delicious felt like a home cooked meal and we cleaned our plates. Lastly I absolutely loved the way it was decorated in there, lots of family photos on the wall. 10/10 we will definitely be back! read more

The Pantry - Longanisa Special - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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This place was pretty solid. I got the Joe's scramble which is a bay area favorite. It comes with mushrooms, spinach and ground beef. You can get hash browns and a biscuit or toast. The biscuit was really good! The overall dish was plentiful. It may need more seasoning but overall it was great. Service was really great. It's kind of like a local hangout. Very chill place with a homestyle vibe. I liked it! They have Filipino dishes as well. I tried the tocino and this was very good. read more

The Pantry - Joe's scramble - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

Went there with my three brothers and the food was bland and greasy. Ordered tocino and it arrived just warm. Portions are big and filling. My brother had teriyaki steak and that was tasteless too. Only thing good was the coffee. I will not eat here again. read more

The Pantry - Tocino plate - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Wow I love this hidden gem. Inexpensive breakfast place with fantastic Filipino and Hawaiian dishes. I ordered the Tocino and it was fantastic. - Sweet Tocino pork - you can order rice instead of or split with hash browns! - I got grilled onions over hash browns split with rice and put my fried egg over rice. PERFECT!! Tremendous deal too. Quick and friendly service. I might come back tomorrow!!! read more

The Pantry - Tocino with split rice and hash browns and grilled onions over hash brown!! - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

My Belmont Ohana suggested this restaurant. Kind service and food was tasty. Bought a few choices for my husband, Ohana and I. Cheeseburger with chips, scrambled eggs with longanisa sausage and steak with eggs. read more

The Pantry - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

The Pantry is a hole-in-the-wall type of place. This restaurant serves a mix of American breakfast and Filipino food. The style of the place is similar to a diner on the inside, where it has a bar area for people to sit at and sip on coffee. I got the Chicken Adobo with Rice ($14.25). It is similar to a chicken stew. The size of the dish was large. The stew was incredibly salty, like too salty for me. I had to eat the rice with it. The other dishes that my family got looked delicious though. The service of the place was good. The waitress and waiters were all very friendly. Parking is relatively very easy as this place resides in a huge parking lot. Overall, I would recommend trying this place! It has delicious breakfast. I'll probably try something different next time I go to this place. read more

The Pantry - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

This was our second visit to this family-owned restaurant. The vibe is a hole-in-the-wall, family-run diner. When we arrived, we were greeted promptly by the young lady in the front, an older woman gave us our menus, and a young gentleman dropped off our iced waters all within 2 minutes upon arrival. It was ~11:30 AM so the restaurant was about half full. I grew up in Hawaii and honestly, I am very happy that they have a restaurant like this in the area that reminds me of home. The food is really good and you cannot beat the price in the Bay Area with the crazy inflation these days. We got two breakfast specials: Linguica with 2 eggs with 1/2 hashbrowns and 1/2 rice and Hotcakes with 2 eggs. Food was yummy and hit the spot. If you are looking for mimosas or photos for the gram, this place is not for you. But if you are looking for a cozy, neighborhood diner with inexpensive food, you should give this place a visit. read more

The Pantry - Linguica Special - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Super friendly fast service! No frills diner type breakfast spot with Filipino roots - chicken adobo ~$14ish: huge portion of chicken! Yummy but too sweet to eat a huge bowl for me - egg breakfast $9 with plain hash + toast: solid - pancakes side $3.85: yum! Fam enjoyed - longaniza side $7.20 Will def be back :) read more

The Pantry - Tocino $13.25 - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

The longanisa wasn't my fav since the skin was really thick but the corn beef hash was really good. My favorite thing here was the lumpia with the different type of dipping sweet chili sauce. read more

The Pantry - Longaniza, #5. Two Eggs with Corn Beef Hash, Lumpia - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

This place has fallen pretty far. It's $10 for a side of honey dipped fried chicken and the chicken is tiny. I could get a whole bag of fried chicken from Safeway for that price. I had to ask for my own refills 3 times and ask for sides. Service was nonexistent. Another regular came in and one of the waitresses told him in a screechy kind of voice that the business is "dyingggg" and "weekends aren't busy anymore." Gee, I wonder why. Tocino plate was good; but there's less of the meat servicing and it was a little too charred for my liking. Thank god the home fries were there to save the day. The server literally had to be asked to get up from doom scrolling her phone or whatever she was doing. I asked her for a togo box and a refill and she only gave me the to go box. I had to get up and ask her again for the refill. Total 3 refills I had to flag or get up to ask and one straight ignored. $3.85 for a bottomless refill that you have to get up and ask for! Not only that, but the fried chicken side was ~$10.50 on the menu and they charged me $11.50 on the ticket. That's not legal. You need to have updated pricing on the menus. That's a VERY concerning liability issue that should be fixed immediately. I spilled vinegar on my shirt from the tocino and I asked her to wait for me to input the tip as I was putting the food into the to-go bag. She literally rushed me for the tip and signature as I was trying to put the food into the bag (yes, I did have to ask her for the bag, and for a full plate of food, she gave me two tiny togo boxes, so the vinegar I tried to put in the box opened and leaked due to pressing it into the box). She was impatient and rude. I did feel like telling her this kind of service doesn't warrant a tip. I was hoping this place would be like before and I could become a regular again as I work nearby. Guess not. Customers are your lifeblood. If you can't even check on a customer without them getting up from their meal, don't expect a good tip. It's ridiculous honestly. I love the tocino and I've been a big fan of the Pantry especially since I'm a Hillsdale alum and the school has done a lot of events at the Pantry but this time they really missed the mark. read more