Uncle Mike's is a cozy neighborhood spot that has become near and dear to my heart. Inside is nothing fancy but honestly I feel right at home here. Try to head here early because this spot can fill up quickly after 11am/12pm. Before you even order, someone will come out with water and rice porridge which tastes just like how my mom would make it - delicious. I usually order the breakfast combo longanisa and spam or tocino which also comes with two eggs (served how you'd like) with rice. If you do order the spam, I'd order it a little on the crispy side. The servings are always large and will leave you either extremely full or with a good amount of left overs. Service isn't over the top but they also don't leave you hanging which I like! read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Amazing homey breakfast spot! Right off the bat, we got some complimentary Lugaw porridge and tea. It was like a warm hug. The lemon was a lovely surprise and added a unique flavor to the chicken based broth porridge. I ordered the Longanisa Breakfast with scrambled eggs. The sausages had just the right amount of sweetness that went well with my scrambled eggs and garlic rice. It was a very homey dish that was a large portion for its price. Also, it came with a side of chocolate rice pudding that was a nice touch at the end of a salty meal. Service was super fast and the servers were so friendly! Highly recommend checking this place out if you're in the mood for a savory breakfast! read more

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Very good Filipino breakfasts. Large portions. Small tight restaurant. Combos are delicious. Will come again but only if weather is cool. AC not working or nonexistent. read more

I came here very early in the morning when they first opened during a weekday, so it was nice and quiet. I enjoyed my breakfast while reading a book. Staff was very sweet, and it was a lovely time. Such amazing Filipino food, only complaint is I wish I lived closer! I also want to drink gallons of the lugaw. read more

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Stopped in for breakfast. The waitress brought coffee and a small bowl of Lugow while I reviewed the menu. I got the combination plate with the 6" skirt steak, and chicken tocino, and a side of longanisa. The food came out and I dove right in. Everything on the plate was delicious and cooked just right! Great service, great food, and great atmosphere. I will definitely come back the next time I'm in town. read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Combination plate! - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Always a great experience at Uncle Mike's! Best Filipino Breakfast in the state! I always order the skirt steak with garlic fried rice while the rest of the family prefers the longanisa-tocino combo. The arroz caldo / lugaw and champorrado / chocolate porridge are lovely additions to round out the meal. Scan the QR code on the door to get on the waiting list. No waiting in their narrow hallway, even if below zero wind chills outside. Park nearby so you can wait in the car. Once you are seated, scan the QR code at the table for your menu. Place your order with a server. Once you are done eating, pay your bill by scanning yet another QR code. Very convenient for the tech savvy folks. Not so much for the oldies or those with not-so-smart phones. I hear the non-Filipino menu items are great, but I have always been too full to try them. Maybe next time. read more

Uncle Mike's Place is fire. I think it is well-priced, the food is tasty and authentic, and when you come during the week the wait is not absurd. They also are on Doordash which is awesome. The Filipino breakfast is so good and I love their garlic rice. My favorite part is actually their complementary lugaw or porridge that they give all of the diners. Porridge makes me feel at home and this one is cooked so flavorful and served hot that it warms my heart. The steak and eggs were cooked lovely and my partner thought it was very well priced. The portion sizes are perfect (although may be large for some as we eat a lot haha). The kitchen and staff make it seem very family run and I love that! This place is definitely a must in Chicago! I wish I had taken pictures but the ones already on yelp are very representative. Try this place!! read more

Visited this place around 9 AM on a weekday and I was glad it wasn't too crowded. I picked my seat and was quickly served porridge with lemon (complimentary). It tasted good! I ordered Filipino breakfast: Baby Bangus and Tocino Combo. It was quite a huge portion! I'm new to Filipino breakfast and I enjoyed this dish. The Bangus was fried and tocino tasted like sweetened meat (not really bacon as I've thought). The tomatoes and cilantro tasted fresh- though I wish they could've cooked the cilantro. The brown paste in the cup was chocolate-flavored porridge- it was nice as a dessert! And I wasn't sure where to add the vinegar so I left it unused. I had a really great experience here. Would visit again! read more

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The place schedule was 6am - 2pm yet closes early. Not even considering their customers!!!

Probably my first time eating Filipino food, let alone Filipino breakfast, so I had no idea what to expect. I was visiting Chicago for the first time, so this review has many firsts. Came on a Sunday before noon for brunch and had to wait around 30 minutes. The interior is very casual, and we were sat in the back room, which felt kind of like a cafeteria with wide tables, unlike most other restaurants. We ordered the pork chop & tocino combo and longanisa & tocino combo. The food was super tasty, and the proportions are very generous. I loved every bite of it, and the meal left me feeling full but not too stuffed. Important to note that the prices are not cheap but are pretty fair and worth its price. It was a great start to my day and a memorable part of my trip to Chicago. I am excited to try more Filipino restaurants as this restaurant really opened a new door for my tastebuds. read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Longanisa and Tocino Combo - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I came here on a Sunday around 12 pm. This place is super packed! The food is really comforting and has good flavor. I ordered the Tocino and Longanisa combo platter which came with a cup of pico de gallo and a warm chocolate rice dessert. Tocino and Longanisa combo platter: super good! I liked the way the meat was marinated. The garlic rice wasn't too heavy, and everything on the plate tasted good together. Lugaw: They give you lugaw with every order!! It was well seasoned, lots of garlic :) Service: kind of depends on the day, sometimes it's super busy but usually the service is great :) read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Lugaw - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

So so so good! I've eaten here so many times to the point where I always want Filipino breakfast. Their Ticino & spam combo with the garlic rice is a hit! Their hash brown w cheese. OMGGGG YALL ITS SO GOOD. Ordered it for team brunch and everyone loved it too. Highly recommend read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Tocino and Spam Combo - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Went here yesterday. We came in and there was no one by the door, no host. A tall guy with an apron approached us and we said we'd like a table for 4. He blubbered something unintelligible and pointed at the door. We looked at the door and saw that there was a QR code for getting on the wait list. Ok, but how rude!! When we got seated, we order the combo plates. We asked about the champorado side and said that they didn't have it. We asked if there was a replacement and the pinay waitress said "oh it's only complimentary, so it doesn't matter". Me and my friend looked at each other. I don't know why they are rude to their fellow Filipinos, we certainly felt that way. The Latino help were much more kinder and polite to us. BTW, without the champorado, I felt that our meal was incomplete. And one of our orders came incorrect, one of the plates was steak and bangus combo as opposed to bangus and spam. I don't know how this happened when she has repeated our orders and even asked for how the steak should be cooked. They did correct that which was good. The food no doubt was really delicious. I might even say that their tocino is better than Kasama's. But the downside here is that the service is abysmal. That is such a disappointment, they need to get that in check. read more

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Forget the American breakfast, you have to have the Filipino breakfast. Anticipate a wait on the busier weekend brunch times, but it's super easy to stop by to scan the QR code to hop on the wait list. We got the pick 2 so we were able to try the longanisa, tocino, skirt steak and bangus. The bangus was by far my favorite, just topping it off with the little cup of brine enhanced the fish to just another level of flavor. Skirt steak was on the rarer side so it made it quite chewy. Longanisa and tocino were some of the best I've had in the city and honestly, the citrusy, ginger congee you get served at the start of the meal is worth the trip alone! read more

We've been hearing about this place for quite some time since moving to Chicago, and finally on the last day of 2021, we decided to grab a late breakfast here. When we walked in, the place was somewhat full, but we were sat right away. We were taken our orders and no doubt had to get an only Filipino breakfast here. There's a million places in the city to get an American breakfast... come on, just get the Filipino breakfast here. I was actually expecting more items on the Filipino breakfast menu.. like tapsilog for example, but nonetheless, we both ordered two combos, and both different from each other so we could try it all. They provide you with a soup of the day for free when you first sit down, and on a cold December day, our Lugaw hit the spot. Once we received our plates, we took photos because the aesthetics and presentation were nice, lol. The longanisa, spam, Bangus, and Pork Chop were all tasty, and this place even provides Pico de Gallo in a small plastic cup which isn't a typical Filipino offering, but it goes damn well with the food! Vinegar is a must, so I'm glad they also provided that as well. Overall, I'd come back, but I am hoping the add a few more items to their menu in the future. I'm sure I'd come around lunch time to eat some sisig if they offered it! read more

My name is Gerry T and the T stands for Tocino, which is honey flavored ham. It's also what I've pointed out as my last meal - Tocino, garlic fried rice and two over easy eggs with banana ketchup and sriracha sauce. So I've had Mike's saved for at least 10 years but it's out of the way so today was the day, to try their Tocino. The drive out here involved the usual I-94 traffic and the paranoia of possible being carjacked, but it wasn't too bad. We were seated in about 5 minutes (the place was packed as I've read in a number of reviews) but after getting our water and menus, no one came by. In addition, other people who were seated after us (next table), were provided their complimentary chicken rice porridge and they took their orders right away. What the ?! After waiting some more, we just stood up and walked out and promptly drove to Ricobenes for their steak and eggplant Parmesan sandwiches. My experience was a one star today. It was very sad because we looking forward to some great food. read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Looking forward to ordering the tocino - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Best Filipino breakfast I've had hands down! Quality - 10/10 -- Top tier skirt steak, one of the best I've had. Value - 11/10 -- Tocino side was huge! Unlimited lagaw (rice porridge). Overall - 11/10 -- Would definitely go again! read more

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Filipino sweet sausage or American steak? You can get both at Uncle Mike's Place! I simply fell in love with this cute little Filipino American fusion in the west loop Longganisa: this Filipino pork sausage tastes sweet, chewy, with some unique smoky flavor and full of meat juice. 10/10 Sinangag: Classic Filipino garlic fried rice, you'll be surprised how flavorful it is and the rice is cooked just right, not sticky and not dry. 10/10 Champorado: sweet chocolate rice porridge. Smooth, sweet, silky... this dessert is too good to be true and still savoring it. 11/10 read more

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This place is a solid 4.5/5 in my books. Traditional Filipino breakfast and I like the complimentary citrusy soup that's served in the beginning. I love that the Longanisa and Tocino is juicy and flavorful and the rice helps neutralizes the heavy savory flavors. We had a party of 5 and went on a summer Saturday and waited about 45 minutes. Probably come back again if I'm craving a Filipino breakfast read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Longanisa and Tocino Combo - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We have heard great things about this place for years but never had a chance to go. Well we finally went this morning and it is beyond amazing. Can have a bit of a wait but it's definitely worth it. Plenty of staff very friendly fast service and oh my gosh the best skirt steak I've ever had in my life. The marinade and seasonings were just perfect It melted like butter from the tip to the very end every piece was perfection. The garlic rice is also amazing I could eat that everyday and never get tired of it. Overall I cannot believe we waited so long and maybe I'll try and go back again tomorrow read more

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Ok Tito Mike! Looking for Filipino breakfast, I highly recommend this spot. It's a small little corner diner. Just a heads up -- They do check for proof of vax before seating you. Lugaw (rice porridge) is packed with bits of garlic and some small bits of chicken. I asked for a side of patis (fish sauce) but unfortunately they didn't happen to have any in stock. Which was a bummer since I like my lugaw with a little more umph. It was still good nonetheless. I opted for the Filipino bfast combo and I chose the porkchop and longanisa. The bfast plates come with garlic rice and eggs cooked your way, a side a champorado, and a side of pico de gallo. The porkchops were a little dry/overcooked in my opinion but the flavor was good. The longanisa was like typical longanisa. I liked how they slightly charred the outside so it gave it an extra layer of flavor. The garlic rice was also really tasty. A little more on the sticky wet side for me, but still very good. The pico was a nice touch. Normally I have just a side of tomatoes but the extra onions and cilantro helped bring it up a notch. read more

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I visited this past week and had the tocino breakfast to-go. Still amazing! They did raise their prices, but the quality is still exactly the same, and I'll always support them. The chicken lemon lugaw was just as tasty, and the main dish came with sides of tomato salsa and champorado. Thank you, Uncle Mike's! read more

I've heard about this restaurant over the yrs but I had never dined here before. The service was very nice and everyone greeted me. Today I had the skirt steak and fish for breakfast. The steak was cooked to perfection. My eggs were on point and I really enjoyed my fried rice. This was my first time trying a fillipino breakfast but for those who ate less adventurous they have American food too. I'll be back again soon read more

I had been wanting to try this place forever. The start you out with a complimentary bowl of Lugaw which is a garlic and lemon porridge. It's hard to describe but very comforting and not too garlicky at all. The lemon adds a burst of freshness. Then I got their signature Filipino breakfast: two eggs over garlic rice and a choice of meat(s). Eggs and rice were great. I ordered the spam and longanisa. Spam was somehow better than the spam I make at home which makes absolutely no sense. The longanisa was out of this world. We also got a side of tocino which is a bright red and delicious pork shoulder. It's not bacon despite the Spanish word tocino. The only adjustment I'd make is that we got a side of the tocino and it came out with an enormous portion. The longanisa was our favorite. So I'd do a half spam half tocino egg breakfast and a side of longanisa. It's worth noting that Jake got the skirt steak - it was definitely good but I enjoyed all of my meats more. Only thing stopping it from a perfect A+ meal is that I didn't love the chocolate rice pudding that also comes with the breakfast. Awesome staff too read more

9/21/2023-After a little over five years, I managed to return, while in town visiting my dear daughter and a few college friends. I'm so relieved to see the familiar sign that says, "Uncle Mike's". Food is as good as it's going to get. Simply prepared but it cleanses the soul. There was three of us. We each ordered 1) the big bangus (milkfish) breakfast; 2) steak combo; and, 3) longanisa and spam combo. Wait, before you even get started with eating your meal, you get to savor a nice bowl of rice and chicken porridge called "lugaw". I had to ask for seconds! It's served hot, and it's seasoned perfectly with garlic and a slice of lemon inside the porridge. The champurrado or the chocolate porridge that came with the meal was a total and pleasant surprise! You could tell the chocolate used in making it was very good quality. I put some half and half in mine although it was honestly not needed, but that is how I ate my champurrado as a kid. So, so happy to be back! Too bad I live all the way out in the southwest and I don't get to visit Chicago that often, especially since the onset of the Covid pandemic. I will return to Uncle Mike's again and again. read more

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Came for Sunday brunch to a packed house around 1pm. Check in via phone app, seated within 10 minutes. Ordered traditional Filipino breakfast with garlic fried rice, longanisa and two sunny side up eggs- just like my Dad used to make! Did not disappoint! Came with a small serving freshly chopped tomato/onion/chive "salsa"- mix that all in with your rice and eggs and ohhhh, it's a delightful mix of flavors! We were also gifted with an Uncle Mike's keychain upon our departure. Nice touch! Highly recommend this place when in the Windy City! read more

Upon arrival, you have to scan a barcode to place you in queue. Waiting time was about 10 mins, we were 6th in line when we got there. They served hot tea as you wait outside. FOOD WAS AMAZING! Generous serving, amazing service, and ambiance was okay. Overall would definitely recommend. Authentic filipino cuisine! read more

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10am on a Sunday, almost no wait Scan the QR code on either door to get on the wait list and parking is not bad either. Hubby is Filipino and I've had some great food from the bay area but even tried some new stuff here. They bring out a delicious porridge with lemon and garlic (Lugaw) and it's such a savory and comforting start. Our 1.5 yr old loved this and the side of chocolately rice pudding (Champorado) that comes with the combo plate. She was gobbling that up! Bangus is a delicious fried fish and I got it with the spam which was smokey and tasted nothing like what you cook at home. So delicious! Would haven eaten here way more than once during our stay if we knew better. Best value and price meal we had along with super delicious. Had some right before our long drive back to Buffalo and I'm missing it already read more

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We came here for the filipino style breakfast and tried a little bit of everything including the skirt steak, the tocino, and the bangus fish. My favorite was the skirt steak, 5/5, which we ordered medium, and it was absolutely delicious with a nice char grilled flavor. The tocino and bangus were fine, but I would definitely say the star of the show was the skirt steak by far. I also really enjoyed the garlic rice with the eggs on top, which complemented the skirt steak well. There is plentiful free parking on the side streets nearby, which is definitely a plus in Chicago. read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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It's ok. Hahaha... I got the longanisa, it tastes like one of those carinderia's back in the Philippines, if you crave that taste then it'll satisfy it. Wish they had atsara and better fried garlic rice . I do like the concept of free lugaw though. read more

Great breakfast place, has multiple breakfast, Options/ menus and sandwiches. Stopped in today to have some eggs and corned beef hash with white toast service was great and food was served fast and hot. This establishment has been around for a while and a well k own neighborhood spot. read more

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They served us Lugaw Soup which didnt have a dense broth, but I liked it and was nice to kick things off with that soup. We all split the pumpkin pancakes, and I don't know truly how to describe these, but they didn't taste like regular pancakes thats for sure. Like almost a really dull sweet flavor. I tried their longanisa sausage filipino breakfast because I'm a sucker for Longanisa sausage. It was sweet and savory at the same time, my mouth is legit drooling just by thinking about it. The garlic fried rice and eggs were also part of the dish, and to be honest, I prefer this over an American breakfast any day, so feel free to fight me on that. The champorado is a chocolate rice porridge, I've never heard of something like that, but it was cool, tasty, and unique. read more

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I've recently become a huge fan of Filipino food, but I'll be honest...When I think breakfast, Filipino food doesn't even come to mind. So I was hesitant in trying this place out. And damn, I'm sure glad I gave this place a try. Unfortunately, my wife was still not really into it. She ordered a basic bacon, egg and cheese sandwich. I didn't even bother trying it so I can say how it tasted. They do however start you off with Lugao, (rice porridge) My wife also didn't care for it so I ate here. It was definitely different, but had its own good unique taste with some citrus from the lemon, ginger and fried garlic. I ordered their skirt steak and Tocino combo. It came with fried eggs over garlic rice, some pico de Gallo, A1 sauce and a champurrado pudding. I will admit I was eating some of the rice and eggs and then took a bite out of the pudding thinking it was damn pinto beans. Felt like an idiot. Lol. I saved it for last to treat it as a dessert though. This was the first time trying tocino like this. It was very tasty and has a similar resemblance to Chinese bbq pork. They give you a lot of this, and I still wanted more. The skirt steak was so delicious. It was marinated perfectly, with a hint of sweetness and the skirt steak was tender and juicy. I wouldn't hesitate in coming back here. Just might have to be patient. The food comes out fast l, but since it's small in there, you might have to wait about 30 minutes like we did. read more

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This is my first time having tocino and longanisa! Holy moly, everything was soo good. The meal even came with a complimentary side lugaw. Lugaw is the Filipino version of congee, which was perfect for a cold morning in Chicago. Also, do yourself a favor and order their garlic fried rice. The whole portion was quite big that it was like a lunch to me. But I don't mind having this kind of "lunch" for breakfast again. read more

Love Uncle Mike's place! I first found this place when I was looking to try more Southeast Asian cuisines in the Chicago area and stumbled across this diner which specializes in Filipino breakfast. The Filipino breakfast combos are great and allow you to mix meats in order to try multiples of the Filipino specials. The skirt steak and tocino are fantastic and huge portions! I also love that they start you right away from complimentary lugaw which is a type of rice porridge. They don't take reservations but tables move fast and I typically will go for takeout or order delivery as they're on the big delivery platforms. Perfect for a Sunday brunch with big enough portions for lunch the next day. read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Skirt Steak, Tocino, Longinisa combos - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I was in dire need of home cooking, comfort food. I'm Filipina so we came here. I ordered the Big Bangus with a couple of longanisa on the side. My friend ordered the full skirt steak -- he was very hungry. It tasted like home. It tasted like so many meals my parents and my extended family made. I love that it's only open during the day. The restaurant is in an old saloon, I think. The rooms have high walls and one wall is panelled. Sunshiny and cheery. Food came in a short time and no one rushed us out. I'd forgotten about this place -- I moved away decades ago. It was good to get acquainted once more. I'll be back. read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Big Bangus with a couple of longanisas. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Wow! I've heard so many rave reviews about this place and now I understand why! Upon sitting down, I was immediately greeted with a warm bowl of arroz caldo. It was nice to enjoy while perusing the digital menu. I've heard so much about the breakfasts that I just had to try it. There were so many options but I ended up getting the longanisa breakfast. It came with 2 eggs cooked to your preference along with some garlic rice and relish. The unexpected treat was the little bowl of samporado which was such a great way to finish the meal. I'm normally not a breakfast person and wasn't that hungry to begin with but I ended up finishing every last morsel of this breakfast! Everything was so satisfying and definitely can't wait to come back for more! read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Tocino and longanisa Combo - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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A friend suggested to visit this place and it was good. For my Filipino peeps, they only offer Filipino breakfast dishes. Place was pretty busy when we came but service was good and attended to our needs at a timely manner. I ordered to Tocino and it was realllll good, but some parts of the meat was not cooked well. Lugaw could've tasted better, pretty bland. But came clutch with the Champorado! I wish there was more options of Filipino dishes. I only like this place for Filipino breakfast food and pricing is worth the portion they provide. read more

Uncle Mike's Place - Lugaw - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Tastes like home! I'm a long time customer of this incredible breakfast place. I used to live in Chicago several years ago, and I frequently came to Uncle Mike's place with my friends to share with them the deliciousness of Filipino food and the food I grew up with. I was able to come in recently again since we were in the Chicago area. The food is just as good as I remember. We ordered the Longanisa and Tocino breakfast plates along with coffee. The dishes are large, delicious, and filling. You get a bowl of Lugao (filipino style rice porridge with garlic, ginger and lemon), and the breakfast plates include garlic rice, two eggs, and rice pudding. The Longanisa is my favorite kind of sausage because it's sweet with slight spicy flavor. The Tocino is a sweetened and cured pork belly. It's very affordable for the amount of food you get, only just over $30 for two people. The service is fast and friendly. I recalled seeing several of the same staff still working there from when I was in Chicago from 2013-2017. They clearly are all like a family. If you get the benefit of meeting Uncle Mike or his wife they are very kind, and I remember meeting them and a few times getting free food to go as they knew we were students - or if we came at off hours in large groups. I hope they know how much we appreciated that! read more

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Came here with a Filipino coworker and the food was amazing. It was like eating in someone's house. We came around 12 and they started cleaning up around 1:30 and gave us complimentary Lugaw to drink and take home. Lugaw had a savory ginger flavor but wasn't too overpowering. Loved the crispy garlic pieces. Baby Bangus - very crispy and flakey. So tasty dipped in vinegar Garlic Fried Rice - so flavorful mixed with the tomatoes and perfectly cooked eggs Longanisa and Tocino Combo - sweet and flavorful. Love these meats Marinated Skirt Steak - very tender and juicy Chocolate rice pudding was sweet and jammy read more