We went for breakfast, which I regretted because the place seems dirty, dark, and dingy. Food was ok, but nothing to recommend, and the waitress could barely describe the options. read more

Great place to grab breakfast or lunch. The staff is friendly and nice. Enjoyed ordering the Longanisa and it was the right amount for me. Always look forward to grabbing a bite here when I'm in the area. read more

You are treated so well here. It's filled with regulars and the will management treat you like one. If I feel like having a big satisfying breakfast, this is the place to go to read more

We were in town for a volleyball tournament and decided to try the Pantry. Probably the worst breakfast experience my family has had. They didn't have cream for coffee, just soy milk. My daughters order was completely wrong and when it did come out correct, there was a hair in it. Nothing about my chicken fried steak was good...aside from not being hot the flavor and consistency was terrible. After finding the hair we all lost our appetite and left. read more

Just happened across the pantry around lunchtime and figured it was just another diner, but I love it. Staff is friendly and my server Tim was incredibly amenable to my requests. It was busy but I was seated quickly and Tim was right there with a friendly attitude. Food is great, exactly to order and just what I was looking for. Hash browns to die for! read more

The Pantry - Liver and hash browns made by.special request, and exactly as ordered. Generous :-) - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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We went to the Pantry to try somewhere new for brunch, the reviews looked pretty good except for the service. They weren't kidding. We got to the restaurant and put in my name. The waiting area was full so we sat down outside. After about 10 minutes of waiting someone came out and said if you want to be seated you need to be inside, we are calling people and no one is answering. We moved inside and waited for another 10-15 minutes. They finally called my name and up to the front we went. The sign in sheet had my name crossed out but no one was there to receive us. We waited another few minutes and a guy came over asked who I was then said go take a seat over there in the middle..... We went and sat down then waited. My boyfriend finally went to the front to get menus. As we sat we looked around and there were four tables free (two cleaned up and two needing to be cleared). We sat there for 20 minutes with no waiter service to be seen. A waiter came by handed the check to the table next to us and then left. No acknowledgment, no I will be with you in a moment, nada. Needless to say, we left and won't be back. I feel sorry for all the people standing in the lobby, maybe they have finally started seating people at the free tables...... read more

OMG, when you get your plate, you'll be like HOLY SHIT- DID I OVER DO IT!? Yes, yes you bet your fat ass you ordered too much. And you hate yourself but you eat that food for 2 days and its delicious.... Sure calories are a thing but dude, that adobo is on POINT! The omelettes are amazing, the toast is even food. This is a filipino breakfast place ... Yes, go there, see what I mean. GET THE GOD DAMN LUMPIA WITH YOUR BREAKFAST BECAUSE YOU CAN!!! DO IT! GO AND DO IT! Regret that you ate like a fat ass by yourself in the dark but it's not important because the food was so good, and you couldn't stop yourself....and you say you won't come back.. but its like crack and you're in need of a fix.. SO go there.. eat it... shut up and put it in your mouth. P.S. So why the 4 stars? Well because its face it, you can't eat this every day or you'd be fat as hell... so you know 4 times a month is good.. read more

I went to the pantry with high hopes and was greatly disappointed with the service. The food was okay, I ordered a breakfast sandwich and a side of hash browns to go. The lady serving me was quite rude and I'm very surprised at how she's even able to hold her job there. I asked for no meat on my sandwich and she offered avocado and tomato as a substitute and so I said okay. And then I asked for a side of hash browns and then asked for a half portion of them and she responded with "is there anything else I can tell them for you" with the more passive aggressive attitude I have ever encountered in sales. She then after completing my order was packing my bag and I asked a simple question of "do you guys have any ketchup?" And she responded with "yes sweetie let me finish packing your bag" with the attitude again. After she finished packing my bag she said "have a great day sweetie" and then yelled "Jesus Christ" I wish I got her name, but she was a younger woman in her twenties I'd assume, if you're ordering something to go with any modifications steer clear of her and I encourage you to report any of this kind of behavior to their manager, because this is just unacceptable. Never going there again unless she is no longer working there. read more

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

I came here twice for breakfast hoping I can support our local eateries. Well, this place is just hopeless. I ordered a bacon and egg and coffee. Well, the coffee came but is lukewarm and bacon is cold and not even crispy. Definitely will not come back again. Totally disappointed. read more

I didn't get my servers name but he was very welcoming as soon as my little family walked thru the door. Service was great, food was awesome and everything came out in a timely manner. My server recommended the Terriayi Steak and it did not disappoint. Also the rest of the workers were great too. read more

The Pantry - Longanisa breakfast (extra longanisa and extra 2 eggs) - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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Such an unwelcoming place, staff never welcome me or say hi when I come in, I have to stand at the counter for like 10 mins before someone comes and takes my order. Why the terrible customer service? read more

I LOVE THESE PEOPLE! They know me by name and my order. I even if I forget my order... Come and have an amazing breakfast. read more

The Pantry is a very solid breakfast spot. It's where you go when you want some no-nonsense breakfast fare plus some comfort Filipino fare as well. I love the fact that they serve Longanisa and Tocino with eggs. I went with the Tocilog (http://bit.ly/1dHWEgx) and it was satisfyingly good! Comes with two eggs, a generous amount of tocino and your choice of rice or hash browns or half of each. My friend ordered the Longsilog and I got a little jealous because it looked just as good. I'll probably try that next time. They also have a full menu of comfort food for lunch that includes burgers, fried chicken, spaghetti, chicken adobo, and lumpia. I'll have to stop by again sometime for lunch to try those. read more

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

I HATE writing bad reviews, especially for family owned places like this one. Unfortunately, sometimes it just has to be done. We had breakfast here a few Saturdays ago, and were really disappointed. We were quoted a longer wait than we actually had, which was surprising, but appreciated. When we did get seated it took a long time for anyone to bring waters, and take drink orders. It was nearly impossible to get a refill. Our server was nice, but not around much. When we asked another woman working there for refills, she was pretty surly. She was refilling condiments on tables, and putting place settings out, and made it very clear she didn't want to deal with customers at all. It took FOREVER to get our food. We were there for 2 hours, (from being seated to leaving.) This kind of food shouldn't take that long. We couldn't help but notice that table next to us was unhappy with their food and service as well. The food was fine, nothing outstanding, but nothing was bad. When we were finally ready to leave, we asked for the check a few times, waited about 10 minutes and finally just went to the counter and asked for it.(It's a good thing we did, because it was clear we had been totally forgotten.) Prices are reasonable, but with the service issues and mediocre food, we won't be back. read more

Big portions, quick/friendly service, good food. Ordered sausage, mushroom, avocado omelette and it was a generous portion, but avocado should be cold and on top of the omelette instead of warm and inside the omelette. Hash browns were great read more

I mean no disservice or disrespect to the family that runs The Pantry, but there is no way this restaurant earns the five stars each of the first eight reviews gave the new location. My two-star rating above reflects my experience last Saturday afternoon and should be a counterweight to the stream of fives reported by overly-attached "regulars" who have missed the place while it was closed. Seven of those eight reviewers admitted to being longtime customer-friends of the owners. I had only been to the prior location once and thought I'd try the new one. There is no counter seating and this newly-remodeled former Der Weinerschnitzel space is split roughly 50/50 between four-tops and two-tops. At 1.40pm on a Saturday there was a 25-minute wait even for a lone diner. Close to 20 people were waiting thanks to a party of 12 waiting for three four-tops together. The wait probably would have been 10 minutes without them. The noise level was literally the highest I have ever experienced in a restaurant and no single table was responsible for the volume; it was everyone in general competing to hear each other. Maybe the "A" frame interior is part of it? When I was seated, my order was taken reasonably promptly and with professional skill. But it took nearly 30 minutes for my chicken fried steak, sunny-side-up fried eggs and hash browns to arrive. The eggs were fine, the toast was fine. The hash browns were totally undercooked, even though they come with sliced, cooked onions mixed within them. Great idea, sad execution. The crusher to my order was the chicken fried steak. I'm not kidding when I say it was one of the two poorest-quality examples of this species I've ever been served. I know the whole plate is merely $7.95--about $2 cheaper than anywhere else--but the quality of this offering was inexcusably bad. Not only was it paper thin (less than 1/4"), the coating was so soaked through with frying oil it was impossible to actually get crunchy. If I hadn't been starving, I'd have sent it back or not finished the plate except for half the mushy hash browns. Once I was finished I noted the place had emptied somewhat; about one-third of the tables were empty. That's why I was puzzled to sit there for nearly fifteen more minutes without being presented a check. At five minutes to 3pm I finally went up to the counter to tell them what I'd had so they could find my check and I could leave. FYI, I *did* tip my waitress 20% since they're not responsible for either the kitchen's poor quality, the noise level, the time it took to get seated or anything else. Except for not delivering my check to me, the service was fine. But just because this place is cheap, don't go unless it's empty. Then, maybe they can overcome everything other than the tragic quality of their pre-made ingredients. The experience is bad on weekends. Just bad. And I'm not happy to say that because I had high hopes for them as a family-owned business. read more

Nice place with good food at very reasonable prices and polite waiting staff. The only reason I'm giving it one star is because the owner (wife) is incredibly rude. I was sitting at my table when she said something from across another table. At first I didn't even realize she was speaking with me. When I looked at her, she told me "Can you move to a different table?" I said "Excuse me?" And she said "Can you move over here, I have 16 people I need to sit". I was appalled. Before I could say anything, she goes "Fine, if you can't, you can't" and goes away as I start picking up my things ready to move, not wanting to start a conflict. When I saw her walking away, I just stayed at my table. After I finished my food, I came up to her wanting to tell her the food was good, and that she probably didn't mean it, but came off rude. I approached her with a smile, and before I could say anything, she told me "I'm busy, I've got customers". I said "I just wanted to let you know the food was great, but..." She cut me off and said "Just go". When I said she was the most rude person ever, she said "My people love me. You don't come back". Wtf?!?! I can't believe what a b*tch she was, especially after I gave her a benefit of a doubt. She should NOT be interacting with customers. I saw her husband walking up to people and being friendly and lighting up the room with good energy. But wow, she is one little witch. read more

I I've been working at the COVID vaccine center in the San Mateo Event center for the past 3 months. I Attempt to order from here once a week since that's the closes place from the event center . So I came in today 03/26 and asked for 1 PLASTIC FORK, because I had forgotten mine for my lunch. The lady in the front was super rude ! And said NO ! I just laughed and walked away. with no fork. I can't believe she was so rude and unprofessional. You've lost a regular customer! read more

We decided to try out The Pantry after seeing the 4.5 star rating. After arriving, we were told that the wait would be 35 to 45 mins. ONE HOUR AND THIRTY PLUS mins later we are finally sitting at the table. The hostess seats us and we tell her we are ready to order. She says the waitress will be here shortly. Another lady brings us water and we tell her we're ready to order, and she tells us our waitress will be here shortly. After waiting some more, we finally flag the original hostess down and beg her to take our order. Sitting here now waiting for our food... this better be amazing, and even then it'll be hard to overlook the awful service. #PantryFail read more

Reopened today! Packed house at their new location! People waited in line just to grab a table! Food is just as good as it was and the service was great as always! Their gonna need to hire more people if the crowd continues like this! read more

Big portions, big smiles from the people who work there, small price, what's not to like?! This is such a good little diner where the service is quick, food comes out in a hurry and is exactly what you want. I got the fried chicken and French toast combo and for $13 I got two thighs, a wing and a breast and two big slices of French toast - it was delicious and nutritious! I had to get a to go box which is alright with me. Will come here again the next time I need a big lunch. read more

Summary first for the TLDR crowd: The price is good, the food is plentiful and edible, but it's not enough to make up for their poor customer service. From some of the other reviews the current location is apparently a lot larger than their old place. If so, their old place must have been tiny because the current location is not big by any stretch of the imagination. It's certainly not big enough to explain their shoddy customer service. The regulars who post here (and you can tell who they are) also say they get great service, and I think that's a big part of The Pantry's customer service problem. The staff are so eager to keep their regulars happy and make them feel welcome that they forget about the rest of their customers. Anyway, on to the review. We were in San Mateo for the weekend and after a quick Yelp it came down to The Pantry or Paul's for breakfast. Being a big fan of longanisa (with Paul's seeming to be more of your typical American diner) I convinced the wife that this was the place to go. We got there mid-morning on a Saturday and were seated pretty quickly. The waitress brought our waters, took our orders, brought out the food...and that was practically the only service we got. My longinisa was good and the wife enjoyed her tocino. My daughter got the hotcakes, sausages and eggs and was not able to finish them, nor could my son finish his bacon & cheese omelette, which was stuffed full of bacon. You definitely get a good amount of food. It's not great food, but it was alright, and still good enough for us to give them a second chance the next day, in spite of the poor customer service. My son's order came with toast, except it didn't, it came afterwards, so by the time our waitress finally brought it out my wife and I had both finished our coffee. I took my wife's mug and put it at the edge of the table, next to my equally empty mug, right in front of our waitress. She looked down at the empty mugs as she sat down the plate of toast, never said a word, and never came back, either. My son finished his soda so I put his empty cup next to our empty mugs, and at one point our waitress did walk past our table, looked at our empty cups, looked at me...I looked at her...and she walked right past. Again, without saying a word. You have got to be kidding me!!! Maybe this is one of their ways of keeping costs down. Maybe you need to become a regular to earn refill privileges. Maybe it's a Filipino thing. Maybe I should have pursed my lips and used them to "point" at our empty cups. Eventually our waitress brought out the bill and sat it right beside our still empty cups. "Take your time," she said, before leaving again. Still with no offer of a refill. Despite this, the mediocre food was cheap and plentiful, so we decided to give them a second chance. We returned for breakfast the next day and after a slightly longer wait than the day before (no more than 10 minutes, so not bad) we were seated, by coincidence, at the exact same table as the day before. Near the end of the counter to the left when you walk in, so in the high traffic area. This time one of the guys took our orders, and incredibly his service was even worse than the homely girl from the day before. After bringing our food he ignored us completely. Again we had empty cups sitting at the edge of our table and while he served the tables on either side of us, he walked right by our table without ever checking how we were doing. I finally stopped another waitress and asked her if we could get refills, and gestured at my son's empty soda cup and our empty coffee mugs. She said "sure, just a minute", walked back to the serving area, got the coffee pot, came out and served her own tables, then returned to the serving area. I watched her the whole time and she never said anything to our waiter. Finally she looked up, saw me staring at her, and only then did she appear to remember she'd promised to get our refills. After topping up our coffees my wife used the last of the cream, so I took the creamer pot off her and held it up in a very obvious "Excuse me, but this pot is out of creamer" gesture. The waitress walked past, our own waiter walked past, the busboys walked past...the entire waitstaff walked by our table, back & forth for 5 minutes, while I sat there holding up the empty creamer pot. And not one of them offered to refill it or even looked at us. It's a good thing I can drink my coffee black if I have to. We have family in San Mateo so we will be back, we just won't go back to The Pantry. read more

My sister asked what to get at a filipino breakfast place, and I said fatty pork products :) I tried the longanisa and tocino with rice, hash potatoes, and poached eggs. Tocino is basically slightly sweet bacon, which is just as good as that sounds, and they fry it good! They do give you a LOT of fat pieces though. Longanisa is slightly sweet sausage, and they slightly char that too-- which I actually like. Slightly fatty, but very tasty. Both go great with the rice. And the eggs were poached just right! The hash isn't really how I like it cooked. It's basically somewhat crispy on top with a healthy helping of pepper, and then it's almost like mashed potatoes in the middle. It's not bad, but not my fave. I got my order to go, and the guy on the phone was super friendly. When I went in just before 1pm, I could see there were some free tables. But also, nobody really said hello or asked me how they could help me. I stood in front of the register with the woman, and she didn't acknowledge me at all. It was all kinda weird. But overall a great place if you want some tasty (and not so healthy) breakfast. read more

I love their country breakfast plate. It's not expensive. Staff rate: 9 The drinks are a bit overpriced so it somewhere else. read more

It's a quirky venue with interesting food selections at dirt cheap prices. Of course there would be a line out the door on a Sunday afternoon. Well worth the wait for all those wondering! For a Filipino take on chicken and waffles, this place doesn't disappoint. The bustling blast of heavenly honeyed heaps of chicken wings and plenty of buttered batter, this brunch spectacular will leave you dizzy. It's what every nonalcoholic brunch should be - deep fried and slopped on a plate. Come for the huge portions, stay for the friendly ambiance and bizarre architecture! read more

The lies! The fried chicken was sad but I loved the French toast. Jasmine rice just not our cup of tea. The spinach in the veggie omelette was from a can but I did like the lumpia. I don't think I'll be back, just didn't make the cut! read more

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

There's something about this new space that just does not work out for this restaurant. Bigger does not necessarily mean better, and in this case it means understaffed. Yes, they are a sweet and friendly group of folks, but considering the size of the place and the number of patrons they take in to seat and serve, they just need to suck it up and hire more staff to meet with the demands. I've had the tocino and eggs dish at their previous location which was wonderful... but at this location, the pork chop cuts I got were 75% fat %25 percent actual meat. How this ever even made it out of the kitchen is a wonder to me. I would be quite embarrassed to put a bunch of jiggly pork fat on a plate and expect someone to eat it, yet it seemed to get past the cook, and then the server, no quality control whatsoever. I felt kind of sick after the meal (and no I did not eat a bunch of jiggly pork fat) it was most likely from the intake of too much coffee while waiting a good 20-30 minutes waiting for the food to arrive. I think it's wonderful that they have a great rapport with the community, however the absence of small yet obvious details can really sour the experience. It can still be a funky little dive... it just needs, and can be a lot better with a little more help. read more

I've have breakfast here a few times and I have to say they are very consistent with their food. I had a bad experience with service one time, but Emanuel helped us this time and he was great. He really made up for it and ensured we had a great breakfast. The food is the star here, but the service is really great when Emanuel is working on the weekends. read more

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

So here's the thing that I do not appreciate about this place. First: The food-it's good, not great but good. Decent enough to get full on but nothing spectacular. So because of lack of luster, I find it difficult to even remember a single item on their menu. THE SERVICE- absolutely terrible! Here's what I don't understand....I'm sure they read their reviews. I mean, cmon you guys! YOU HAVE TO READ THESE REVIEWS RIGHT?! -First, what is wrong with your staff? Why are they so miserable to work there? I was overwhelmed with the over-the-top rude waiting staff. I, as a customer, am paying for YOUR FOOD....ESSENTIALLY: YOUR SALARY, YOUR LIVING WAGE. Can you at least acknowledge that? Here's what happened today: We arrive, wait to be acknowledged by the cashier (older gentleman with glasses) and he looked up at us, continued to tally up his totals from previous bills and points to the sign in sheet. He said to write our name down. Okay, we do it that's cool...I don't mind that, and we did. But he was really cold about it. So, we get seated and have a cup of coffee and wait for the waiter to take our order. We were sitting down for about two minutes, looked over the menu and then approached by a not so friendly waitress. She had light brown hair, with glasses (I hope she's reading this). Anyway, she comes over quickly-no introduction, no smile, just this coldness about her. Immediately (and kind of snappily) asks "if we're ready yet." WOW! We just sat down, thanks and btw how's your day? What's your name? Are you having a busy morning? Nothing. Look, I get it. It's busy, but cmon! First, it's a small place, there's maybe about fifty tables max (and I think I'm being generous with that number). The tables were not that full and honestly if it kills you to smile I don't understand why you're at a place that requires at least SOME customer service skills. I mean, you want me to come back right? Guess not... Anyway, she was really cold about our ordering. I just didn't like how she said one to two words, and then went away. She didn't refill our coffee cups until way later too :(. My food came out late, and didn't receive toast until I reminded her that there was supposed to be toast. She rolled her eyes and said something else...Jesus why did you come to work today? I firmly believe in taking a five minute break to get your composure back on. Maybe you should've done so? That's not my fault. To be clear, I never complained or made any suggestions to the staff. I guess I should've so it could've been corrected right away. So I was waiting for the chance at the end, and then I realized that no matter what I had to say, it was going to fall on deaf ears anyway. We were paying for our food and I was waiting for the gentleman in glasses to at least ask how our food was or even our experience. Nope, he ran the card and that was it :( . He's a collector and then it made sense. You guys will never learn. I will never come back here. Unfortunately, you lost a customer but it doesn't matter does it? read more

I eat here at least once a week and I have never been disappointed! Not only is the food DELICIOUS, but the service is EXCELLENT. The staff is very welcoming and it feels good when you walk in and they already know what you want to drink and have a pretty good idea of what I am going to pick to eat. They are very family oriented and make you feel like family. I highly recommend this spot for everyone to try. I guarantee you will agree with me, that this is one of the best Filipino food places to eat in the entire bay area. TRY IT, YOU WONT BE DISAPPOINTED! read more

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Mourn no more. The Pantry is back at a new and bigger location. One of my saddest moments this year was when I passed by the original The Pantry location and they were all locked up and closed. How could they do this to me?!? Lo and behold they are back and bigger 1-2 miles away at a slightly random location behind Ross in the RIte Aid/Ross/Trader Joe's mall in San Mateo off Delaware. The food, menu, and family feel are still pretty much the same. Love the Filipino options woven into standard American breakfast fare. My pancakes were not as fluffy as usual but I'll let it go this time. Bottom line: Welcome back Pantry. I missed you. read more

I always love to come here for breakfast, they have American / Filipino menu, portions are huge. Affordable, service is excellent! Super busy on a weekend. read more

I was recently driving down El Camino and noticed that the Pantry was no longer opened. I was then driving down Concar and noticed the Pantry and thought I should try this place, it has really good reviews. It did not hit me until I parked that this is where the Pantry re-opened. I know, I am slow. I actually never ate at the Pantry on El Camino because it seemed small and parking looked to difficult. We arrived for a late breakfast and it was packed with people. There were a ton of people waiting for a table, so we signed in and the host immediately sat us over everyone else as we were only a party of two and there happened to be an open table. Within a minute the waiter brought us water, returned within a minute and took our order. I ordered the corned beef has and eggs which was A-OK. My husband had some kind of omelet that he said was just okay. The meals were served with hash browns, I ordered mine with onions but it didn't come with onions. The toast is pretty buttered and was served with grape jelly, which they provided a little more variety on the jelly. Service was good. Prices are reasonable. Parking is easy. read more

The Pantry - Corned beef hash snd eggs - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Mateo, California

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We've been here many times over the past few years. The Pantry omelet gets us everytime! But, really, almost anything on the menu is good. Top it off with friendly service, and you've got an excellent family-run establishment. read more

Great spot for breakfast! The food was delicious and the proportions are large for the price you pay. Definitely recommend the linguica sausage. Service was friendly and very fast. read more

Before i ordered the Chkn adobo I asked the waiter if it was cooked thie mornin' bc last time it wasnt fresh and she said Yes So we ordered chkn adobo and terry steak breakfast Again chkn adobo was not fresh it was leftovers hard and nasty The terry steak tasted like beef liver Dont say the food is fresh and cooked that day when it wasnt Not a good look Dont order the chkn adobo its never fresh ‍‍‍ smhh read more

This place is okay! I got the chicken adobo and it wasn't what I expected. It didn't really taste traditional or authentic. Chicken adobo is my favorite Filipino dish and most of the time, it has a soy sauce vinegar taste. But the chicken adobo here was REALLY sweet.... Too sweet for me to enjoy. But on the bright side, I appreciate their huge portions! read more

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

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I'd been to the old location once before they shut down, and was actually there trying to visit a second time on the day they were closing up. Just went to the restaurant's new location, and I'd give the food a 3/5 (nothing spectacular, but not bad), but the service... no. I don't remember it being nearly this bad before. Crowded and loud and busy, but not this bad. I'm not calling these other reviewers liars, because I'm sure you DO have great service if you're a friend/regular who comes here all the time. I bet this is true precisely because every time we were looking around for someone to help us, they were off somewhere else chatting with another customer like they're best friends. We ordered from a woman who wasn't really paying a lot of attention to us, didn't even ask us if we wanted drinks (it's a good thing we're fine with just water). Waited a bit longer than I would have liked to get our food, but not terribly long. The girl who brought out our food left with a "and I'll be right back with your toast" and never came back. I was halfway through my meal before I realized I never got my toast. How long does it take to make toast? We started doing that thing where you're obviously looking around the restaurant for someone to help you, but every person just walked right past us. After a while, we flagged someone down to get us our toast, and they came back with it almost immediately. We finished our meal, and were waiting for someone to bring us our check, but not once did anyone stop by our table and ask us if everything was okay, if we needed anything, etc. The only time an employee even looked at our table was when she was carrying coffee around looking for mugs to refill, and she only glanced at us long enough to see that we didn't have coffee before looking away. We're obviously sitting there done with our meals, waiting for our check, looking for someone to help us... apparently nobody notices and just walks past us. We eventually had to flag someone down and ask for our check, and they told us to pay up at the front. Were we just supposed to psychically know this? I've been to restaurants where you pay at a front register, and that's usually communicated by someone handing you your check and pointing you in that direction. Are they so used to catering to only their regulars that they can't comprehend someone who isn't familiar with their way of doing things? And it wasn't because they were too busy/understaffed. I'm pretty sure I saw one or two of the waitresses just standing around chatting with some guests for the entire time we were there. It's been a very long time since I've been to a restaurant where I was ignored by everyone who wasn't taking my order and bringing my food. I mean, I don't want them hovering over me, but it would be nice for them to check up on me once or twice before I find my own way out. read more

Used to eat at their old locale which was was smaller. This space has changed into many different resto concepts recently. Given Pantry's proven track record, maybe they buck the curse. Had a solid fried chicken, hashbrowns, and side of longanisa. Food still solid. I think however their space is too big for the amount of staff they have so there are dead points in the service. I know they're looking to hire so hopefully they get ramped up because I'd hate to see what this would have been like if it were full read more

Reopening 9/17/12! Y A Y ! http://www.smdailyjournal.com/article_preview.php?id=1754844&title=Pantry+finds+new+home#.UFUUwtwSm60.gmail read more