Catherine Gail
Google
RAW & HONEST REVIEW
We came here for their grand soft opening the evening of Saturday, March 29th. We’ve actually been coming to this spot since it was You-Ka Cafe. As fellow Filipinos trying to support local and small businesses, we decided to give it another shot.
This place has changed hands a few times, but what caught our attention this time was that they were bringing in the people from Sizzling Manila and offering traditional Filipino breakfast in the mornings.
We brought our bonus daughter to join us for dinner and planned to return another time for breakfast.
When we arrived, a lot of the dishes we originally wanted were already sold out (see attached photos), so we ended up ordering the oxtail and tripe kare-kare, sisig, chicken inasal, and chicken pancit.
The pancit was not the same as in past reviewers' photos. It was a mix of bihon and canton, which would usually be fine pero napaka-lata (too soft, like it was overcooked or sitting too long). It looked off—either not fresh or made with too much sauce. Definitely not traditional. I wouldn’t order it again,
The kare-kare was okay, but the portion of bagoong was tiny—barely even a sample. My husband had to ask for more. And the meat portion was not very generous considering the price. Also, if those are supposed to be two scoops of rice, they were the smallest I’ve ever seen. He upgraded to pancit and rice for an additional $1.99, but had to ask for it because it was not included in the order.
I wanted to give my chicken inasal a fair shot, but it was super bland—not even close to the flavor chicken inasal should have. Makunat pa (tough to chew) and really dry. I tried to power through it—pasang-awa na lang (barely passing). You can see in the photo it almost looked burnt. Maybe it sat too long or was cooked while still frozen. Either way, I won’t be ordering it again.
The best dish out of the four was the sisig—it was flavorful and delicious. So one out of four... that’s 25%. (Hence a 1 star review)
There were no signs saying desserts were sold out, but there was almost nothing in the display case.
As for the setup and seating—it was busy, and while there was seating, some people still did not have a place to sit. Because of the layout, a party of two ended up sitting at a table meant for six, which made it harder for bigger groups to find spots. It felt a bit unorganized in that regard.
One customer came in with her family and seemed to know the crew. While still in line, she was shouting out asking if they had halo-halo and basically announcing she was going to order it—while others were waiting their turn. It is great that she felt comfortable and knew the staff, but it came across like her order was more important than everyone else’s. She kept speaking to the crew directly instead of waiting in line like the rest of us. The sense of entitlement was real, and it definitely affected the energy in the room.
I really wanted to love this place. Maybe it’s just early growing pains from the soft opening and getting a new team up to speed. But right now, it takes a lot of patience—and a lot of money—to eat here. Our total was $80 for four meals (we did tip), three waters, and one fountain drink (which was $2.99 for a cup only slightly larger than a water cup).
Sadly, I left feeling disappointed—with a hole in my pocket and a lack of flavor in my stomach. Maybe we’ll try again for breakfast. I mean, you can’t really mess up breakfast, right? Hopefully they get it all worked out soon and can get back to the authenticity without feeling like it's fellow Filipinos ripping off fellow Filipinos only trying to support.
