Max's Restaurant San Diego, Cuisine of the Philippines

Delicious Filipino cuisine ready for dine in or takeout. I usually come here with my family after church for pick up or dine in. I could take 1 million photos, but photos don’t do it justice. This reminds me of my childhood of delicious fried chicken and Filipino comfort food. There is plenty of parking in this location. The staff is always so nice. Don’t despair if it looks empty most people are coming in to take it home for a party or for a meal. I recommend getting the famous fried chicken. 100% Also: The kare kare Lumpia And any of the sinigang.

Hello, I came to this place because I love the following. Sit down dine in setting - serving - atmosphere- authenticity. I read a lot of the reviews and here is mine. The palabok is not a winner. It was dry - it doesn’t taste like Palabok and they are missing some ingredients shrimp chicharon tinapa one slice of lemon 🍋 for the cost this is not worth buying. The Kari Kari - it’s ok the peanut taste and texture is there but they skimmed you on veggies and the ox tail - way over charge with a small portion. It is not worth the cost, I had more soup than the veggies and ox tail and beef. I did like the Fried fish Daing the cost is a little high but it’s ok but you can buy this elsewhere. Now the Crispy pata - that was good deep fried well. The cost for this is high there is another Filipino restaurant down the street from Max that cost a little less. The environment was great, it’s clean that is a big deal for me but the server they only had one and she was running around doing everything on her own. I complimented her and she deserves a raise.

First timers here, had the pancit, lumpia and fried chicken. All good, and garlic rice should be a standard, nice touch! Wouldn't mind trying the chicken again, the skin super crispy but deep frying a whole chicken is hard (in all fairness better than what I can do) meat was tender, flavorful but a bit dry. Portions and pricing more than appropriate for a sit down restaurant. If you want to compare to a pick pick joint, not a fair side by side. Favorite part of the meal...the calamansi drink was spot on!

Came here for an early Wednesday dinner. This is in the same area as Target. There were plenty of parking spots. We were seated right away. The place wasn’t too busy. We ordered the famous fried chicken and it was moist and skin was very crunchy and delicious. The chop suey was very good, too. Veggies were not soggy and not over cooked. The garlic fried rice was also very good. Their halo-halo for dessert was a perfect ending to a nice dinner.

Authentic Filipino cuisine. Beautiful place and very clean. A dedicated hall for parties. Clean toilets. Clean tables and floor. Good food. Beef soup and kare kare. Plenty of parking.

One of the best place to visit if you are craving for Filipino food. There are plenty of options and my recommendations would be the sisig and bbq. The ambience is good and it can accommodate a lot of people. The staff are friendly and efficient. Be ready to eat cups of rice because the food is yummy

The food was well prepared and delicious. We had the classic Sisig, Bualo, pork skewers, Bangus (Milk Fish), and rice. The restaurant has plenty of seating and seems to be popular. I have not had any problems with any of their locations and highly recommend this location in San Diego.

The store closes at 9pm but they stop their dine in an hour or more before the stated store hours(closing time). I got there at exactly almost or a little before they closes and was turned down for service expect to make a to go order but the hostess had to verify if it was okay for about a minute or two. We proceeded ordering take out and enjoyed the night after all the food was good.

Go-to -Nilaga -Lechon Kawali -Max's Chicken Good food, located in the heart of Mira Mesa. However their service is on filipino time. Every time we dine-in it's seems to be only 1 waiter/ cashier who is waiting tables, running to the front to seat people, get the food in the back, getting the check, and barely getting refill waters.

Stopped by on Black Friday lunch time and wow, there was only one waitress working. She was seating guests, taking orders, and cleaning up tables. Felt bad she had a lot to do when there was a lunch time rush. The chicken was crispy and juicy! The sizing versus price doesn't really match but the food tastes was good. Paid almost $200 for chicken, crispy pata, lumpia, sinigang, chop suey, garlic fried rice, pancit and halo halo. I prefer this location over Chula Vista/Eastlake! It's much cleaner and bigger.

Brought a friend visiting from Oakland. He was craving Lechon. We it along with garlic fried rice, caldereta , and half fried chicken. We wanted to order the Kare Kare , but they were out of bagoong so we skipped it. Everything was very good and the lechon soothed his craving. It was very crispy and tasty. The caldereta came sizzling and the chicken delicious. However, we both agreed we should have ordered just rice because we couldn't taste the garlic. that's twice for me. I need to stop ordering it. We came for Sunday evening dinner about 6 PM. There was plenty of seating.

Beautiful restaurant and clean! They're famous for their fried chicken. Everyone knows if you come to any Max's restaurant you have to order their fried chicken. It's their signature dish. I don't know how they make it because it's very tender, it falls off the bone and the skin is very crunchy! It's delicious! The only thing I did not like was, they do not have Apple Pay and I did not brought any cards or cash so I had to go to the nearest bank to get some cash, luckily it's just across the street so that went well. I don't like the leche flan tho but the rest of their food here are really good.

Delicious Filipino cuisine ready for dine in or takeout. I usually come here with my family after church for pick up or dine in. I could take 1 million photos, but photos don't do it justice. This reminds me of my childhood of delicious fried chicken and Filipino comfort food. There is plenty of parking in this location. The staff is always so nice. Don't despair if it looks empty most people are coming in to take it home for a party or for a meal. I recommend getting the famous fried chicken. 100% Also: The kare kare Lumpia And any of the sinigang.

Came here on a random weekday as we were finishing up some shopping nearby and didn't know where else to go. We had gotten carryout before but decided to try some new dishes this time in addition to eating in. The service was polite but a typical weekday sort (younger server, less attentive, etc.) but it's a weekday so we understood. The food came out timely and piping hot. We got the pork sisig and the pork belly fried rice and honestly, both were really great. While they are really just staples of Filipino cuisine, the textures and flavored were all there and made us really enjoy the meal (and again the next day as the portions were plentiful for the two of us). Look forward to coming here again when craving to no nonsense Filipino food.

Great ambiance for casual dining. Prices are average. They have a particular combo menu to go consisting of three plates that are not shown online or on the restaurant menu. There are three to go combinations that include a drink (best value). Food was great, beef bistek was grilled with some juice, I would prefer less churn and more tender/juice. Garlic rice, although flavorful, other places pack more flavor on garlic rice. Fried chicken, average. Not a bad place to eat. If your party wants Max or you are nearby and want to eat Filipino, then I encourage you to go. If you are making a day out of Max, maybe not.

Bring your appetite and indulge in the regular fanfare, pork sinigang, chicken fried chicken, and lechon kawali. I got my soup, my chicken and my pork. Staff is super efficient and they can serve the guest in a timely manner. It was dinner time and the place was busy but they handle it well. Our order came quickly, we ate and we conquer. We didn't have room for dessert, the experience was great

This is my first time going to a Max's in California and I was not disappointed. The insider was very clean and spacious and our server was very nice and answered any questions we had. The food came out quickly, and it was all so delicious and seasoned to perfection. The pork sisig was super crunchy and was so yummy with the garlic rice. I definitely got my Filipino fix!

Fresh lumpia, Kare kare, and their fried chicken was delish. The day we went was a little busy and could of used some extra help but the food totally made up for the lack of service

Portions are so small. We ordered take out and for $66 (not including tips), the food is not worth it. After passing by Max's restaurant for so many years, we decided to finally try it and I cannot say that we will be back.. We ordered: -Whole fried chicken ($20): this was the best thing we got. but after a while, the bottom of the chicken was very oily. The chicken is also very small. -Lumpiang shanhai (egg rolls) ($14): these were tasty, and crispy, but the lumpia itself was very small. -Filipino bistek ($18): this is so overpriced, salty and the beef was dry. This came in the smallest container and it wasn't even filled the whole way? When we opened the container, we were shocked. -Large garlic rice ($10): in the pictures, their garlic is fried, golden and crispy looking but in reality its just mixed into the rice? its not even that garlic-y? and for $10?? I felt like it should've had more taste to it? Overall, a skip for me.

Changed my review based on what this restaurant is famous for, their chicken. Came here for an early Wednesday dinner. This is in the same area as Target. There were plenty of parking spots. We were seated right away. The place wasn't too busy. We ordered the famous fried chicken and it was moist and skin was very crunchy and delicious. The chop suey was very good, too. Veggies were not soggy and not over cooked. The garlic fried rice was also very good. Their halo-halo for dessert was a perfect ending to a nice dinner.

Poor Service , they have only one waiter, waitress most of the time . And theymake their clients wait before being seated . What a bad business plan . I like their food but I have to leave because I will waste time waiting to be seated . Good luck to their business plan .

Probably my go to spot for Filipino food when I'm in the area. There's always a bunch of families and older couples that come in so you know the food is going to be good. They even have a private room if you want to have a party. The servers are always friendly. We always start off with chicharon bulaklak which is my personal favorite. Don't knock it till you try it. A delicious crispy snack that pairs well with vinegar. My boyfriend's favorite dish is always the pork sisig especially when it comes on a sizzling plate. Absolutely add an egg and garlic rice on the side for additional flavor.

Look at the bagoong (shrimp paste) they gave me--this is barely a pinch. How are you supposed to enjoy kare-kare with this amount? I even asked for another serving, and they gave me the same tiny portion again. Very disappointing. I honestly don't know how they calculated this as an appropriate serving of bagoong.

One of the worst experience I ever had one waitress for the whole restaurant and she's not good. I repeated what I want. They gave us a dirty rice and asked for another one. It took them 10 minutes to come back and tell us what's wrong with it and they said oh what is all what we have I asked her to bring me another one. She took 15 minutes and she came back to me and asked me do you want rice? I had to repeat myself three times so I get my rice. All our food got cold, i will never go back again

I don'r see too many Filipino places (maybe I'm just looking in the wrong places), but a good friend wanted to go here, and it did NOT disappoint. I enjoyed that the dish came out on a sizzling plate, so you knew it was hot and you could crisp up your food more + cook the egg for longer. The rice was fire, and a simple split plate + rice between two people goes a long way. Great food, and definitely wanna come back

If you've been craving that authentic Filipino flavor, Max's Restaurant in Mira Mesa seriously delivers. Their fried chicken is legit -- just like the one back home in the Philippines. Crispy, golden, and full of that familiar savory flavor, especially when paired with their ketchup that somehow makes the chicken taste even better (yes, really!). The Sinigang? Spot on. It actually tastes like it was made with real tamarind, not the powdered stuff -- tangy, comforting, and perfect with a warm bowl of rice. Prices are on the higher side, but it's worth every dollar. The place has a cozy, homey vibe without feeling crowded. Service is fast, courteous, and the staff knows their menu -- happy to recommend dishes if you're unsure. Bonus points for the music, which is nice and chill, adding to the relaxed, welcoming atmosphere. All in all, Max's Mira Mesa feels like a comforting slice of the Philippines -- a place where the food, the mood, and the service all hit just right.

I'm not satisfied with all my orders. Over pricing and food is not good. I would not recommend this Filipino restaurant. Too bad

No Coke! Pepsi. I don't like Pepsi. Max needs to change to Coke products. The chicken is why we come here. But if they offered Coke Zero the dinner would be better.

I found it hard to believe some of the low ratings here. My wife and I went to San Diego to stay overnight and attend an annual Breakfast get-together at the Zoo next morning. We had never been to this restaurant, but a couple of our Filipino friends told us it was pretty good. We were greeted warmly at the door and service was very good. The food was very good also. We had the Kari-Kari Oxtail Stew with Peanut Sauce and Crispy Pata, and both were excellent. We had some leftovers to bring home the next evening. I also got a kick out of their little fans that they put on the tables, to blow away any flies that may be near! Cute! Anyway, this is one restaurant on our list to eat at when we are in San Diego area in the future

Deliciously expensive. Amazing Filipino food but geez prices here have skyrocketed here. The sinigang was perfect, especially with a large side of rice. The pancit was tasty. Today the chicken was dry (hit or miss). Maybe it's better just to get the whole chicken for $5 more.. The kids loved the lumpia and calamansi Juice. Overall a solid 4 star place but expect to pay $$$.

My fiance and I came here for our Wednesdate. Food: 7/10 Ambiance: 8/10 The food is good, but not the best we've ever had. The ambiance is really nice. The lighting is cute and the place is very spacious. The restaurant is clean.

There are so many good things in the menu so it was hard to decide. It is my second time here so I ordered what I haven't tried. My friend and I decided to order the Pansit Palabok, Kare-Kare, Lumpia, Beef Caldereta and of course the dessert, Halo-Halo. We are very happy with our choices. Each one is delicious. The beef was very tender and tasted homemade. The curry sauce was creamy and full of flavor. The Palabok is the best I had. I am excited to go back and try the other items. They were short staff that day but the servers were very pleasant and nice and were able to keep up with all the patrons. They surely tried their best.

Because of the 3 star rating I was worried about our dining experience. We were seated right away when we entered and shortly thereafter we ordered our entrees. I quickly put a timer on to see how long it would take. There were approximately 5 other tables that were occupied. It was a good atmosphere. Long and behold it only took 8 min for the food to arrive. The food was delicious and my son and I quick devoured our food. I was so happy that what I read in the comment section didn't come true. I hope things will get better with their rating because that's how I go to these restaurants.

Food: 5/5 Service: 3.5/5 Ambiance: 3/5 Max's Restaurant is known for the crispy fried whole chicken and other Pinoy favorites. Unfortunately our experience was not the best. I really want this location to succeed because Pinoys in California from the Bay to LA really talk up Max's Restaurant. However, the service was lacking. There was only one server who was managing a restaurant of 25 people on a Friday afternoon for lunch time. When we arrived, there was a podium with a sign that instructed patrons to use the QR code to check in. My family and I waited about 7-10 min to be checked in, this was due to the fact that they were severely understaffed and the server was busy attending to other patrons. The food was absolutely great, but this experience has made me hesitant to put this spot as a spot that I will patronize again. I have some recommendations for this Max's location: 1. Check in Desk: Move the check in desk a few more feet from the front door-- there's not a whole lot of room from an accessibility standpoint. 2. Staffing: Increase FOH staff, having one person running, ordering, and seating guests can leave guests waiting either for their order to be taken, to be seated or for the bill. The food speaks for itself, but these little snags in the customer experience could potentially make return customers hesitant to come back.

Good food.. although they didnt have Fresh Lumpia at this location. However overall still good .

I paid a total of $62 with ($8) tip for one person. Portions are too small and not for sharing. Sandok pinas bayad dollars. Small portion for $18 pork adobo alamang and $19 pork Sisig, $8 garlic fried rice and $ Gulaman/ sago drink. I should have just went to R & B. I would have been satisfied and not felt ripped off. The only difference is that Max serve your food on sizzling plate and a real plate (which they don't fill with food) while R & B is styrofoam. I do NOT recommend and will NOT go back. Service was really good and place is clean though...

+ Friendly server (Ate Patricia). + Authentic Filipino taste. Feels like I was back in Manila eating all these delicious meals. Chicken was perfectly made with crunchy skin. Pancit tasted so good. Chicaharon Bulaklak was perfect. YOU MUST EAT HERE WHEN IN SAN DIEGO!

Great Filipino dishes. I enjoyed them. The prices are a little bit higher than expected though.

Very nice & clean restaurant. Even a separate space if u want to host an event. The chicken unfortunately was dry which I know it usually doesn't taste like that. They also did not have garlic fried rice. The sizzling tofu was good & I really enjoyed the dinuguan!! Halo halo, sagot gulaman & buko pandan were also super good.

I very much enjoyed Max's! Comfort Filipino food... to the max! ;) It felt mom-and-pop shop-like, though I believe Max's is a chain. But classic Filipino dishes. Not anything fancy, but I left with a full belly and I'll be back to try more!

The food is delicious. This is a wonderful restaurant to expose yourself to Filipino cuisine. I am not Filipino myself, but I have heard from many Filipino friends say that this is where it's at. The chicken was not my favorite, but I loved the Dinuguan with rice. The meat is melt in your mouth with the great flavors of the thick dark sauce of pork blood base. The waitress was kind and spoke Tagalog, which makes the experience for my Filipino friends more authentic. We love the energy in the room. It's a well lit space with some amounts of table and decor, and we noticed a private dining room ideal for parties!

Yummy but expensive! Adequately staffed, clean environment, great location in the heart of Mira Mesa.

I always order for-pick-up. Crispy Pata and Chicken are our favorite! No other Filipino resto can top these two faves!

Great food and great service. Our server Jennie is very attentive and friendly. The crispy pata is highly recommended.

Got in after 3pm, they just finished lunch time. You need to scan the QR Code at the front to get to their wait list. Average wait time is 5 minutes. Pretty quiet when we arrived. Server took our orders 5 minutes after we were seated, and food arrived after 10 minutes. Customers begin filling up after 4pm, almost half full house, so noise began to affect the quiet ambience. Somebody's birthday also agitated most of the customers because a recorded "Happy Birthday" Song rang up at full blast breaking the 80decibel tolerance of human ears. Please - the birthday celebrant can hear, you do not need to maximize the volume for the next block to hear there is a birthday celebrant in your store. We tried the Lechon Sisig today. It tasted like it is ready to be tossed out in the trash can. We consumed half of the pancit canton and we are bringing home the Daing na Bangus. One star off due to the suspicious taste of the lechon sisig and the eardrum breaking level of their sound system.

Food is awesome no doubt! But service... so slow... They need more staff rather than 2. There's only the Manager and 2 servers. Of course weekends are the busiest times. So I suggest they hire a temp if not in the budget.

I only ordered the miki bihon pancit which is egg and rice noodles together along with vegetables and chicken/pork pieces. I asked for no shrimp. When it tastes close to my mom's cooking then it's definitely 5 stars for the pancit! Oh and I topped it off with a halo halo. Halo halo was eh! ;-( leche flan was old tasting like a week or so. That's the reason for a total of 4 stars! But not to worry, I would definitely come back!

The promo photo looks good deal and Enough for three people but the real food they serve you , no veggie , head part of the fish for the sinigang , and tofu is lesser compared to the promo photo. What a disappointment. Definitely two thumbs down ... I feel bad for the receptionist as well , she's the one sitting customers , cleaning up table , bussing , serving water , attending to the pick up orders , mopping the floor , I'm not sure if it's not against labor code . Not going back anymore

I love the other Filipino food around Mira mesa area and thought this place might be a leg up since its more of a sit down restaurant- but didn't really find it impressive. The fried chicken might be a traditional way to cook it, and probably im not the best judge for it, but i didnt really find it enjoyable. Pancit was good - its usually a safe choice which everyone does a good job with The garlic rice was also nice and flavourful. The Biko : Its like lechon with some shrimp paste on it - It was too dry or overcooked and the shrimp paste couldnt salvage that. I want to give this place another chance because i felt the meats were either overcooked or reheated to make it taste so dry. Might try some of the other stuff if i every visit here.

I was so tempted to order and try most of their menu items and I did! I tried the bangus sisig (sizzling boneless milkfish), Laing (taro leaves in coconut milk), Pancit palabok (thin rice noodles), Pancit bihon (rice noodles), and lechon kawaii (crispy pork belly) I had a friendly and welcoming visit as the staff was very sweet. They came and checked up on us several times to make sure we were enjoying our meal. The milkfish was one of my favorite dishes! It was the perfect amount of saltiness and the fish was so soft. Best part? I do not need to pick out the bones! The laing was interesting since ive never tried this dish but it was so good! The dish was soft and slightly creamy. The lechon kawaii was crispy and crunchy as it should be!! Pancit palabok and pancit bihon was standard and good. It was a great meal, but the portion sizes were a little small for the price point. Although we ordered five dishes, we did not have many leftovers to take home.

We had a very bad experience eating here. To start, for a full service restaurant they only had one person who acts as receptionist who sits people, take orders, and serves food! The restaurant was not full but we have to wait to be served. Also, the quantity is so small! Filipino food is meant to be shared but in this Max's restaurant, the serving is only for one person! I would not recommend this restaurant!

I came on a weekday late afternoon. There were customers in 3 booths... slow night but it was a little slow service, from being seated to ordering and getting the food. I ordered the milkfish sisig, which was just ok. I prolly shoulda stuck to their regular pork, but i was trying to get something healthier. I also noticed they dob't have the Max's platter anymore. i was a little bummed.

I've never had a positive experience at this restaurant. I never come here willingly, just when my family wants it. You can read my last review for a more detailed version of my first impression... Now after trying this place multiple times for take out and dine-in, I'm ALWAYS disappointed. I've experienced forgotten orders... wrong orders... unapologetic staff... I've come to dine in recently (April 2023) and only liked the Bistek. Pork Sisig is not good... they offer an egg on top without telling you its an extra $5...and the lady is always just trying to upsell us to order other things, even though we do not want it. Overpriced for such small servings! Barely anyone inside when I came, which makes sense. This place is a sorry place for a Filipino restaurant and it sucks that I have to talk about my own culture like that. Do not recommend, try going to a smaller filipino shop around town.

$7 for a side of plain rice. WTF. Chicken sisig no taste. Dont bother go here. Go to nanays.

First time in years at a Max's restaurant. The first two times was at the Eastlake store and the experience was terrible. Today, was different at the Mira Mesa store. We ordered bulakkak Lechon (fried pig ears), a half fried chicken, a side of baked eggplant (skin stripped), calamansi juice and macapuno ice cream (coconut). The chicken was perfectly cooked and seasoned. Nice and crispy. The eggplant was topped with minced garlic, a side of chopped onions and tomatoes and a side of bagoong (fermented anchovies). It was delicious! The bulaklak Lechon took me back to my childhood with my dad and my ninongs. Crunchy and delicious when dipped in vinegar. The calamansi juice was perfectly presented in a slush style juice. The macapuno ice cream was an excellent way to clean our palates after a filling dinner. Service was great too!

I ordered a palabok (kind of filipino pancit). I asked for an extra sauce at least on the portion itself or by the side and they replied no so customer's satisfaction is 0/10. Now I tried the palabok and I already knew just from them saying no that it's going to be dry as fck. Turns out it is dry as fck. And what in the actual fck is that food coloring that you people put in the noodles to make it look orange thats not palabok sauce (garlic sauce) at all. And next time separate the lemon, NOT ALL PEOPLE LIKE THEIR MEAL SOUR, what you dont know consideration or maybe ask yourself before serving the food (would they like it like this?) Max's known to have good food but gets the back lash because of incompetent staff. Annoying asf -_-

The food here is great. I feel like the quality of the food is good. The only negative for me is the food is kinda expensive for small portions. Service is not bad. And the restaurant is clean. What pushes me away from this place is the price of food and portions.