Manila Fast Food Restaurant

This place is so delicious! It is like a family diner cafe style. You gotta choose the foods from the counter. There are a lot of choices and they offer small size portions, so that you can try different things. The taste-wise is very very nice, it reminds me of my grandmas cooking. The foods somehow are a little bit heavy taste, but I like them. I tried their desserts before. They are super super yummmmm! Sorry I couldn’t really remember the dishes names. But please come here to try it out.

The line is always long and I get it. Food is great and staff is friendly and quick. It's a step up from the old Manila restaurant.

I've been going here for about 14-5 years now and they've always been consistent with the taste with their food. The workers and owners are welcoming and nice all the time. And their portions are huge with reasonable prices. If this is your first time trying Filipino food, go the safe route and try Chicken, Pancit, and Lumpia (egg roll).

Get here for that Pilipino food fix. Pretty good. It'll make your BP, sugar and cholesterol go up but you knew that already. Getting stuff with lots of fresh veggies may tip the scales back in your favor.

The best thing about this place is the customer service. There is just this hometown feel to it, and the man is really friendly, he really took the time to let me sample things on my first try. And he has this kind smile too. I also came in a few minutes after they closed, and the cashier actually apologized that they were closed. He actually made a face that seemed like he was sorry. I went to a nearby indian restaurant, and they rudely told me it was closed when I came in a few minutes late. I just appreciate the kindness here. And they are very generous with their portion. For the second largest they overflow the portion size. I just love this place. To be honest, 75% of the restaurants here in Mira Mesa have crappy service, but its nice to finally find some nice people. I'm definitely going to be a regular here. I already have been here 4 times in my first week. They're going to make a good $40 off of me a week if they keep this up.

Good food, friendly staff, lots of choices of Filipino cuisine, decent portions. The turon or banana fritters is a bit of a cheat. 3 for $2, not even half of a banana inside. I ate one and all I got was a piece of jackfruit and mostly wrapper.

Great traditional filipino food at a good price the employees are very kind

This is one of the TOP filipino spots in Mira Mesa! The food here is delicious and they always hook it up with A LOT! I typically get their sisig, sinigang and lechon. But everything else I've tried here is delicious as well. If you come at the right time you absolutely must get some of their BBQ pork belly! It's everyones favorite though so if you come later after the lunch or dinner rush you're going to miss out because it will be sold out. The amount of absolutely delicious food you get here for the price you pay is incredible lol. I love this place!!

BBQ chicken is so bomb, you can taste that grill flavor and it's just so damn good. I always call in an order of 50 lumpia and only ever takes 20 mins to make, even on a busy day! They're very nice, my son fell asleep in the car and I told them I'll be waiting outside with him, and they brought out my order to me, on a busy day! No bad experience in the three years we've been customers.

First, my husband and I have always tried to support our local Filipino restaurants being we live in Mira Mesa and long time Manila FF & Desserts have been here for years. Reason for the 1 star is due to the VERY disappointing catering order. We ordered a large tray of BBQ chicken for our son's graduation only to discover that the tray was the shallow and very little for $130! I tried to understand why, maybe inflation but I was shocked as we had previously ordered in the past! I felt scammed! I cut up the chicken in pieces to make it easier for guests to just get but after cutting the ENTIRE large tray, it left me with an ALMOST full size HALF tray!!! Why I was angry, I had praised how good the BBQ chicken was in the past and the amount for the price was worth it...THEN, but after seeing the difference with ordering the rest of the food on our menu from LISA'S Cuisine on Plaza Boulevard, it was no comparison by far. We ordered Beef Steak with Onions from Lisa's LARGE tray and super full for under $130. Now correct me if I'm mistaken, but I believe beef is much more expensive than chicken and the amount is definitely worth the drive and time. ALL our other LARGE trays did not come near to being $130 and the trays were twice the depth and amount of what we got from Manila FF! I recommend that if you decide to cater, do your research and look up reviews. LISA's Cuisine or Tita's on Plaza Boulevard! Tasty and price won't make you feel like you've been taken advantage of even if it's a to-go order and more so the catering is excellent!! I hope Manila FF gets it together...we love to support our local Mira Mesa people, but this was quite a disappointment!!

They're closed today 24NOV23... I'm so sad. So many other cars were here for them too ha ha ha

Meh... Kinda generic place to eat at, maybe worth it if you live around the corner and you are not bothered by poor quality or inflated prices. They tried to sell me small sausages (longanisa) for $1.75, WTH I am from Manhattan and hearing $1.75 for a sausage about the size of my thumb was shocking to me. Supply and demand maybe? But I would pass and go somewhere tastier... Two stars cause the older lady who answered the phone was polite enough to get me to drive from south county.

I rarely give 5 stars to a fast food restaurant, but Manilla deserves it. There is a very good selection of Filipino foods for dine-in or take away. You order and pay cafeteria style. The Pancit Bihon (rice noodles) is excellent (either vegetarian or with chicken), as is the Crispy Pata that now is served everyday. But the pièce de résistance is the Lechón, a whole roasted baby pig. I ordered one for my wife's birthday party to feed over 20 guests, and it was great. Place your order at least 3 days ahead and be prepared to pay cash. Oh, they take credit cards but with a 1.5% surcharge.

The BEST crispy pata in town. The skin is always perfectly crispy, & the meat has great flavor & is perfectly seasoned. The sauce matters too, & their soy vinegar dip is perfect. Just make sure not to get the crispy pata chopped up, loses its crispiness on the way home. But if you keep it whole, it stays crispy till it's time to eat. I honestly only come here for crispy pata, but enjoyed their other dishes as well. I've never dined in, but service is always good & fast.

If you're Filipino or like Filipino food. This place is ok. I have a discerning taste since my father and his brothers are all culinary talents in this department. Not only that, I'm a food connoisseur. Most people like to go to places like this due to convenience . I go to places like this to compare good Filipino cuisine from mediocre. This establishment is ok. It's clean. However, the service is very slow and gets even worse when there are people in line.

First time here and had no idea what I was doing but friendly worker suggested one item and gave me samples of another item. Also gave me a sample of their soup. Not indicative of an average experience but my first impressions here were great because of that.

great food & great service! prices are great & reasonable...food is fresh & very tasty! these guys always take care of me at every visit! this place is my go to when i get the filipino food crave! alot of parking...alot of seating! love love this place!

Placed a lumpia order based on someone else's review thinking they still had the best prices around BUT that review was several years ago. Which is my error. Their prices are much higher than Valerio's City Bakery. $75 for 100 whereas it could've been $50 for $100. Can't attest to the quality but this is based on price alone.

With all these reviews. Like bad customer service. You should expect great customer service coming into a restaurant. Like thanks for choosing to come to my restaurant instead of the other ones.! Greet your customers and be grateful they chose you. I highly recommend just taking the trip to Titas kitchenette in National city! They show way more love there! The plate is so fat that they need Saran Wrap to close it.

This place is so delicious! It is like a family diner cafe style. You gotta choose the foods from the counter. There are a lot of choices and they offer small size portions, so that you can try different things. The taste-wise is very very nice, it reminds me of my grandmas cooking. The foods somehow are a little bit heavy taste, but I like them. I tried their desserts before. They are super super yummmmm! Sorry I couldn't really remember the dishes names. But please come here to try it out.

Good food and service and ambiance. I will recommend it to anyone! Also you can order for any type of occasion or party.....

Skin crunches loudly in my mouth.  Fat rendered into liquid form gushes over skin as I bite down.  Tender fried pork bursting flavor throughout my mouth.  Flavors and the various textures delight my senses.  I grew up with Chinese style roasted pork but lechon kawali is an amazing example of how frying makes things taste better. Bbq pork was tender and had a sweet lightly char'd flavor.   Pork belly had a sour flavor.  I was hoping for a savory bacon flavor.  I wouldn't get this again. Pancit had a smooth, slick texture and a delicious mix of flavors from the chicken, cabbage, and seasonings.  This is one of my fav places to get food like they have in Manilla.  It's not fancy here but I've found the food to be fresh + full of delicious flavor.  Staff have been nice and provide speedy service.  Back in high school I use to bike by this little mall alot as a friend lived on this block.  Wish this place was here back then.  Wouldn't have had to eat at Jack In the Box or McDonald's.

Solid Filipino food. Sisig was good. Portions are big. What I would want to try is their breakfast platters only available on weekend though. Outside of that the BBQ chicken and the longanisa looked delicious and enough for a return try.

This point point joint has been around for years and I just discovered it. The food is authentic Filipino food that is fresh and very popular among the Filipinos. I'm so glad I found this place with me mom! Highly recommend it for a quick fix for Filipino food!

This is one of my go to places when I am craving Filipino fast food. They have a good selection and it is fast since you just point to the already cooked foods. They offer free soup with your combination meal. They also have desserts like Halo Halo, Ube, Leche Flan etc. I also use them sometimes for catering for a party or picking up for a potluck. Today I was picking my order of lumpia and the guy in front of me was picking up his lechon, yes a whole pig! It looked so CRUNCHY and yummy! My order of lumpia was freshly cooked and hot and right on time as ordered. What I like about this place is they have a good selection and their foods tend to be not as greasy as other Filipino joints. If you like eggplant, try their torta talong, it is delish!

Very yummy Crispy Pata. Tender, savory and crispy.. Thank you for serving our community. Maraming salamat po!

Dry pork adobo tasted so good! Halo-halo missing leche flan topping! Pinakbet was good, veggies not overcooked!

They are closed, looks like they are not operating anymore. It's very disappointing that driving here and the schedule says they're operating. Please update this.

Service was a no-no. Yesterday, June 23 at around 9:30 am, as first to enter the restaurant, my old eighty three year old friend and I were not welcomed to be served as first on the line by both the cashier and the server. They were just both glanced us. But when, the second customers, a couple, they served them. When, it was our turn, the server, to my surprise, said a statement looking unhappy and angry that happened more than a week ago, when I brought my brother-in-law with his guest from the Philippines. Unfortunately, that day, after eating , my brother -in-law gave a constructive criticism on the fatty food called "menudo" they served us, which they never took as a way to improve their food, instead argued with my brother -in-law. I never answered a word to the ungrateful server, instead I just gave her my warm smile. The cashier, apparently, the owner of this establishment, was just watching and listening. Background: to add they were not grateful enough, about a month ago, I bought bottles of their "bagoong" (shrimp paste) and "atsara" ( pickled green papaya) for my sisters as gifts. My brother- in-law, likewise, even after being negatively responded with his thoughtful gesture to improve the quality of their food that was served us, purchased a couple of the same bottles of atsara and shrimp paste. Big attitude problems in this restaurant!!

This is the first Filipino food place I ever visited in San Diego when I moved here 7 years ago. I went with my parents for dinner and the second time I went was when family was visiting several years back. I hadn't been here in a long time and I was craving Filipino food for lunch so I decided to stop by with my coworker last week. The people working there are very nice. I'm just sad to say that the food wasn't very good. It doesn't have that lutong-bahay (home-cooked) feel.One of my favorite Filipino foods is Kare-Kare ( Oxtail with peanut butter sauce), I told my coworker to get this since she likes oxtail. Ugh I'm sorry to say but it just didn't taste good. It was matabang (bland), it could definitely use some MSG ha ha. I also got the chicken adobo but it was too dry. I think they should add some of the adobo sabaw (broth) with your order. The lumpia wasn't that great either, it could use some flavor. I like orientex lumpia better. I didn't finish my lunch so I ended up bringing it home, that was last week and now a week later it's still in my fridge. I feel guilty wasting food and just throwing it out ha ha but I really don't want to eat it. Overall, they have really nice staff and I like how they have TFC showing on a TV but I wasn't really feeling the food.

I just recently moved to Mira Mesa from down south and wanted to find the best Filipino fast food in town. I told the employees that Tita's Kitchen is my go-to spot ever since I was a kid, and they insisted that their food was better. I had pretty high hopes after hearing that and must admit, the food failed to meet my expectations. The adobo was so bland, pancit was OK, lumpia was good but pricey, and the sabow of the sinigang was not as sour as I'd hoped. I do like that the restaurant was clean and had plenty of tables. The employees were also very nice. But when it comes to the food, I think it was mediocre at best. Someone please recommend the BEST Filipino food in Manila Mesa! I do not want to drive down to National city or cook my own damn food lol. K thanks! (: Note*** Parking in that town center is HELL. Old Asians can't drive/park/let alone see very well. Just be careful people.

Stumbled upon this place as I was waiting for my haircut reservation a few shops down. So glad I gave it a try. There was quite a line when I stepped in, so that's always a good sign. The shop was pretty big, so Seattle's was no issue. With it being a fast food style, it was quick to get my order. I decided on the combination plate, which came with rice and two entrees of your choice. Went with the Kare Kare and BBQ Chicken. The Kare Kare is oxtail I believe with a peanut sauce. It was my first time hearing of it and it was delicious. It also came with tripe as well. The bbq chicken was extremely tasty and tender. I was satisfied with my meal. I'll definitely be back to try out some of their other many items. They also had many different desserts!

Today was special weekend breakfast selection. I love the torta talong. My daughter loves the half rice/pancit with double BBQ pork. Got some hot fried turon for dessert

I would've liked to give this place a 4 or 5 star rating but I just couldn't. They started out in a different area within Mira Mesa before moving to their location near Rite Aid. Regrettably, the quality of their food went downhill from there. Everything got greasy, salty, and downright unappealing. Back in the day, the owner even proudly boasted that she made sure the food was as healthy as can be. And yes, it was true, back in those days. Nowadays, their food sit in trays of artery-clogging grease. Pancit combo with beef caldereta and pork sisig: The pansit - had a few haphazardly chopped cabbage and carrots. There were a few pork pieces. Altogether, that should have been an easy hit but this was a big miss. It tasted of too much soy sauce, which overpowered the entire dish. The noodles used were of low quality. Not worth the $1 additional for pansit instead of rice. The beef caldereta - had the right taste but the grease was half of the container! The beef had too much tendons. I guess tendons are good for some people but the grease was too much. The pork sisig - is not as I remember it. There was more fat and skin than meat. I guess that's a version of sisig but I don't like it. I prefer sisig with a lot of crunch from chopped lechon kawali. This Manila Fastfood version of sisig is not "it", not even close. I ate a few bites of this combo and had to throw it all away. What a waste of $10. Oh and I bought some of their guinatan bilo bilo. I was glad it had lots of bilo bilo bits and sago. They got that one right, at least. It's a little too sweet for me so it has too much sugar and not enough coconut milk. Thankfully, this was one I could endure and did not have to throw this away

My search for sisig continues. Or is it *continued*. I'm kinda over it now but that's what happens to me. I overdo it. When I crave something. Every. Single. Time. I'd pass by Manila Fast Food & Desserts without much thought. I'm not sure why. They're located in the same plaza as Boiling Crab and McDonalds. I saw on Yelp that Manila Fast Food & Desserts offers sisig as well as lechon for their combination options. So I decided to pay a visit to grab a combination plate for my lunch one late morning. This is a cafeteria style restaurant. They have combo options as well as a la carte options. They put my first two combos inside the container. The two item combo is $7.49. I added another item to my combo for an additional $3.49. I tried: BBQ PORK: - THIS was my favorite item of the day. The marinade wasn't too sweet. The red coloring resembled chiasiu pork. The pork was wonderfully fatty (which some may not like) and the meat had a nice pull to it. SISIG: - They gave an ok amount of sisig. The diced up deep fried pork belly was tossed with vinegar and onions. There was a nice tartness to it. I wasn't sure if I could detect other pork parts in this sisig. I was so hungry that morning that I didn't even care if I ate a pork part I normally wouldn't. Overall, the sisig was fine. LECHON: - They give you about 5 pieces of lechon. The pork skin looked crispy but was difficult to chew through. The flesh itself was tender and nicely fatty. But let me tell you what blew me away. Their lechon sauce was out of this world. Again, I learned awhile ago the sauce usually contains liver but that didn't deter me this time around. There was a true umami sweet savoriness to this sauce that had me mesmerized. SINIGANG: - They give you a side of sinigang broth. It wasn't as good as the version at Mama Cinia Rice & Noodles. The broth wasn't very tangy and was just lukewarm. The staff seemed friendly but not as welcoming as Mama Cinia down the street. BUT, I'd return here to Manila Fast Food & Desserts for the bbq pork as well as the lechon sauce. They have a lot more variety to try out as well. Overall, a fun visit for a first try at this Mira Mesa fast food restaurant.

My ABSOLUTE FAVORITE Filipino restaurant in ALL of San Diego. When I want Filipino food this is usually the only place I go. I've been going to eat at Manila Fastfood when they were located on Camino Ruiz, so basically since 1997. No one beats their Kare Kare hands down. Lechon Kawali, Crispy Pata, Beef Steak, BBQ Chicken, Bicol Express, Afritada and Adobo are all good. Desserts are fabulous as well, the Halo Halo, Sago Gulaman, Suman, Leche Flan and so much more. The staff has always been extremely friendly. They get really busy, the lines get long, so I usually know what I want to get when it's my turn. When I need a caterer, I have only used Manila Fastfood. Whole Lechon (whole roasted pig including the head) prices are reasonable. I have been using them since my son's 1st birthday (he's 25 now), we also had them cater my parents 50th Wedding Anniversary. And of course planning to have them cater my dad's 88th birthday party this month. With so many family businesses closing due to COVID, I am truly glad they were able to weather through. Yes their prices have had to increase but so have other restaurants. There is plenty of parking. Good for large groups, you just have to get there before the rush.

Great place. Filipino comfort food on the fly. When I come in, it's like having a meal with my grandma or mom. Been here for years, and hope it is for many more.

It was close. A sick friend was asked for sinigang or nilaga. I was craving some also so I came here. I didn't want to drive to Zarlitos or Tita's. You read those reviews, I know. Well the place was closing so I arrived just in time and glad I did. First the servers have the biggest smile. They welcomed me and stop breaking down and cleaning the place. They washed their hands and told me to take my time deciding. That was good because to me all the food on the line looked so good. Thank you aunties for no pressure. There was no nilaga so I got the chicken tinola and the sinigang. And never forget the rice. Everything was good and reminded me of a taste from home. The tinola was oily like everywhere I've had it at but I didn't mind. As they were packing my food to go, they made small conversation to occupy my time wrapping everything in Saran Wrap. They wanted to make sure nothing spilled and I appreciate that. Overall four stars. Great people and great food. I understand they were cleaning and running out of food so I never experienced full service or a full menu from the line. So can't give them five stars YET. Now excuse me, time to eat. M

The hubb-tard likes to talk sh!t about Halo Halo Cafe while I felt like they had better food and desserts. He likes to grab food from Manila FF. The appeal of seeing food behind glass and getting it dumped into a plastic container draws him here. I guess if authentic Filipino food is supposed to be too salty and overly fatty, then Manila FF has got it down. For me, it's too much salty soy sauce , too much lard, too much fatty fat in their stew, soup, stir fry, what have you. Not interested in needing a gallon of pepto bismol after eating anything here. Hard pass on this one brah.

It didn't taste authentic. I got the chicken adobo cuz the pork adobo looked very dry. No flavor just tasted like soy sauce.The lumpia was good. The pansit looked nice but no flavor.

Oh my gosh this place is incredible!! I'm not even finished eating and I had to go to yelp. This has got to be the best Filipino food in town! At least the fast casz version of It! Food tasted very authentic and delicious! The service was even great, I told the lady it was my first time and she gave me a complimentary soup!! I got the sour soup and put some rice in it and it taste so yummy! I don't know what I ordered as I told her to choose for me but it's all amazing! I did select the sausage because I know Filipino sausage with rice is tasty! This place is amazing and exactly the afternoon pick me up that I needed!!!

Manila Fast Food was PACKED during lunch time on the Saturday I came in. This is always a great sign. My co-worker recommended this place to me after we ate at Orient Valley in RB for lunch earlier in the week and they didn't have sisig. I've come to learn that if you're going to have cafeteria style Filipino food, you need to come during busy hours to get fresh, hot food. Filipino food, or any food, is not good and should not be used as a basis of judgement after it's been sitting around for a while. There were so many options. I already knew when I stepped up to the counter that I would have to come back another day. I was not extremely hungry. I was actually here to fulfill my sisig craving and got the one item combo ($5) with sisig and steamed rice. The portion was huge! Everyone who helped me at Manila Fast Food was extremely nice. They even gave we a free sinigang soup with my meal. I think everyone gets this for free. The soup reminded me of tamarind soup that is common with Thai or Vietnamese cooking. I ended up sharing half my combo with my roommate. I liked that the sisig was not too fatty, a little chunkier than other places, and not too sour. It was perfectly balanced. This place is conveniently located in the Rite Aid, Boiling Crab, and Seafood City plaza in Mira Mesa. I'll definitely be dropping in on my way home from work sometime soon to try more items.

Yes we found a good clean Filipino restaurant... very affordable and delicious. The service was awesome.

I happened to be near this strip mall and decided to get lunch here. It's located in the same shopping area as Seafood City next to Rite Aid. Lots of items to choose from and they don't skimp on their portions. You have your choice of getting a one, two or three item combo which comes with rice or noodles or half rice half noodles and then your entrees. Or you can always get it Ala Carte and cook your own rice at home. Some of the staple Filipino foods are greasy but Hey some things that may not be good for you are the ones that are the tastiest! I enjoy eating Filipino food and have a craving probably once a week. They have lots of indoor seating and everyone is always friendly.

I rarely come here because there really isn't healthier options, but sometimes you just want good ole Filipino food. I came here with a few co-workers for lunch. Some have been before, while others have not had Filipino food aside from lumpia and pancit before. There was a line when we arrived, but we immediately placed an order for crispy pata to share. This dish does have a 15 minute wait time once ordered. We each ordered 2 items. I ordered a BBQ pork and sinigang. You can order 1/2 rice 1/2 pancit, but since I had the soup, I opted for only rice. Others ordered kare kare, squash, pancit malabon, and lechon. The sinigang was luke warm though, but had a good sourness to it. The two item combo was enough for me to take some home and have leftovers. Crispy pata was a good dish to share, and amongst 7 people we still had leftovers. The Filipino food is good here and you can tell as there was a constant line throughout the time we were eating there. There are plenty of tables inside. Everyone overall enjoyed the food. Those that had not really had Filipino food would return and try more.

I discovered this place from a friend who served kare kare that Manila Fast Food made. It was the best kare kare I had, and I'm not even a fan of kare kare. Although it takes me 15 mins-ish to get to this place from where I live, the trek is all worth it. There's a ton of parking, clean and orderly space inside, friendly staff, fast service, and tons of fresh, home-made, yummy Filipino food to choose from. I've been to a few Filipino food places, and Manila Seafood is currently my favorite.

The food caldereta and adobo we ordered was terrible. Their extra rice was so over price too. One scoop for $2.

This place is large compared to a few FF Filipino food restaurants. The menu covered all the classics like Adobo, Pancit, lumpia, and Chicken Afritatta. They give you so much food for a two item combo they had to put the rest in an extra container. The food looked pretty good. The food tasted was ok. It's not the best I've ever had, but it was good enough. I felt there was a lot of extra parts of the meat that could have been trimmed of fat a little better, but that's probably bc that's how I cook filipino food at home. So that is just my preference.

Forever my go-to Filipino food spot. I drive 15-20 mins just to eat there. Been going here for years! I love them and this place! I also love that they remember my name!

Quick, cheap and tasty...but not the best I've had in the area. I was in the neighborhood one day and had a major hankering for some authentic Filipino food!!! I heard about this place from another Filipino spot down the street since they didn't have any Pancit and pancit was what I was many looking for! Lucky for me when I walked in they had just walked out a new batch of pancit and lumpia too!!! I purchased a two item plate with pancit. Two items being lumpia (5) pieces, and some sort of BBQd pork. I also saw some fried shrimp pancake like thing toward the corner of the buffet, I inquired about it and was told it was a sweet potato shrimp pancake. So I nabbed one of those along with the 3 complementary vinegars flavor they offered and I was on my way. All food was good except for maybe the lumpia wasn't crunchy enough...and the pancit was a bit dry. Also, the lady in the front sort of snapped at me when I came in, I guess she was busy and wanted to me to wait before I opened my gob! Haha But, I honestly don't expect great service in small hole in the wall joints. Overall it was a good fix for the moment but I think I'll try any number of the other Filipino places in the area!

Great experience here. Food is cheap and plentiful if you get the combo. They give you a side of Sinigang soup too free! They serve Kare Kare everyday, and they haven't run out of sisig the 3 times that I've been here. Don't expect fancy; it's a classic point point joint (cafeteria style.) The food is good and the prices are right. Ofcourse the earlier you get here before close, the more options you'll have. Definitely on the go to list :)

I really like the Manila Fest food and desserts it has a lot of options one of my favorites there is Kare Kate which is made of peanut butter and oxtail the other dishes that I like as well is the sinagang and the pancit and rice choices for a one entrée it's 5.49 and for two entrées it's around 7.89 this is really great when you miss home cooking and you just want Filipino Food to go I will definitely come back and the staff is very friendly as well. Make sure you go before 6 that's when it closes and also they serve breakfast specials on Sat

I'm a 2nd Generation Filipino American, which means I was born in the United States. My exposure to Filipino food has been through my parents, Filipino parties, and Filipino fast food restaurants aka turo turo places, which are places with a long steam table showing a large array of Filipino food dishes. Manila Fast Food & Desserts is this type of fast food restaurant. If you're a fan of Filipino food or are curious why Filipino food is so loved, Manila Fast Food would be a good introduction to this type of food. Manila Fast Food is located on Mira Mesa Blvd., specifically in the Seafood City shopping center. There are several Filipino food restaurants in Mira Mesa because of the large concentration of Filipinos in the North San Diego County city. Similar to the South San Diego County city of National City, Filipino businesses like Manila Fast Food exist due to the Filipino clientele that would frequent these type of businesses. As I entered Manila Fast Food, I liked that it could accommodate a good amount of people with the many wooden tables and chairs. There are a lot of fans circulating in the restaurant, which made it feel comfortable eating inside. There are two decent sized tvs showing the standard Filipino Channel tv shows. Leading to the restroom, there is a large fan hanging on the wall with painted art of the Philippines. Besides that fan, there are posters hanging on the restaurant's walls, but nothing really specific to our homeland. Towards the back of the restaurant is the focal point of every Filipino food restaurant and that's the long steam table where customers can admire the large selection of Filipino food dishes. For those customers who aren't familiar with Filipino food, it can be intimidating because there's so many choices, but there isn't any signs explaining what each of the dishes are. Manila Fast Food has the typical Filipino food such as lumpia, pancit, and adobo, but if you're unsure about a certain dish, just ask any of employees and they will gladly explain what each dish is. I was impressed with Manila's large selection of Filipino food. Whenever I eat at a turo turo joint, my go to dishes are sisig and kare kare, which is what I ordered. Manila's 2-item combination is priced reasonably and comes with your choice of 2 dishes, white rice or pancit, and a cup of soup. Some places don't give you the soup unless you ask, so make sure in Manila Fast Food's case that you definitely have their soup. Sisig is a Filipino dish made from parts of pig's head and liver, usually seasoned with calamansi and chili peppers. Manila's version was tasty and savory. Kare-kare is a Philippine stew complimented with a thick savory peanut sauce. It is made from a base of stewed oxtail, pork hocks, calves feet, pig feet, beef stew meat, and occasionally offal or tripe. My issue with Manila's version is that there were too many bones and not enough meat. For my 2-item combo, I didn't think I was given enough white rice. If I were to rate Manila Fast Food solely on the sisig and kare kare, I would have rated them 3 1/2 stars. What pushed my rating to 4 stars was the sinigang soup, which is a Filipino soup or stew characterized by its sour and savoury taste. Manila's soup was yummy and had the perfect sour taste. It really was the best tasting sinigang soup I've had in San Diego and according to the cashier, I could have asked for more. Manila Fast Food satisfied my craving for Filipino food on my day off. I'm glad it's not too far from where I live because I will definitely return specifically for that sinigang soup.

HUGE portions for the price! I am a fan of huge portions so that started on a good note. I usually run out of ulam (I don't know what this is in English...sorry lol), anyways, I usually run out of ulam with my rice, but this time, I ran out of rice with my ulam! So much ulam! I only got one side plate and it was overflowing! My friends who got 2 ulam, theirs was overflowing too! I got bopis and oh man, so good! I can't tell you how the others tasted, but they said they enjoyed it. Well, my other friend got lenchon and she was complaining that they gave her the hard ones, so that sucks. It would be cool if they just took that out instead of serving it to people. We got halo-halo in the end, pretty good deal and pretty yummy. I think they put red kidney beans in there instead of regular red beans though. That was odd lol. They also didn't have all of the typical ingredients like langka and leche flan on top. Oh wells, you can't have it all. It was the cheapest halo-halo I've seen (price wise). When I crave Filipino food again, I will definitely come back here and will tell others about this place. Mmmm...bopis!

Great food but not enforcing the CDC rules for restaurants. They have a sign not allowing people without masks and yet still allowing customers without them to get food! Unacceptable. Not safe. All customers must wear masks

My favorite place to get filipino food in Mira Mesa or as some people call it Manila Mesa. That tells you how good the food is. If in a town full of Filipinos this place is at the top, you know it's good. They have awesome food here. I always get half rice half pancit and switch between the sides every time I come in. They do all the traditional dishes to perfection. Make sure you try their Sinagang, Sisig, Adobo, Kare Kare, Tinola, Lechon etc etc. Those are all awesome choices. But my favorite is Sunday Mornings after church getting the Longsilog and Tosilog. Be careful on Sunday mornings though because it'll get busy quick! Everyone's coming right from church & they're hungry because all they had all morning was communion so they're famished! One unknown gem that this place serves is their single portion palabok. They'll have it right next to register. You gotta get it before lunch because they'll sell out. They use vermicelli noodles for their palabok and its sooo yummy. I enjoy them a lot better than the thicker palabok that you usually see at filipino parties.

PSA: WE FOUND A COCKROACH IN OUR FOOD My mom and brother ordered lunch here and there was something weird in what they were eating. They took it out of their mouth and guess what it was? A cockroach leg. They dug into their food and found the other parts like the wings. Absolutely disgusting. I have no idea how they have an A for their health score.

Whats with this place and bagoong? My mom ordered $50 worth of food and asked for 4 sides of bagoong (its not like the containers are even full) and the ladies threw a fit with my mom saying she can only have 2 ? She kept asking for 2 more and finally they gave it with attitude. They supposively put it in the bag so my mom came home and there was none. My mom drove all the way back to get it and the lady threw yet another fit in front of all the customers yelling that she put it inside the bag and accusing my mom of lying about it. Who would lie about BAGOONG. is bagoong on the menu? Their manager must have not been in today because he is never stingy about it. Bagoong must come out of their paychecks. Not to mention the same lady messed up on my moms order on another occasion yet has the audacity to go against a paying REGULAR customer. Some grumpy old ladies at this place.