Ate * A Restaurant

Amazing food and great music

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Lechon Kawali

After a bit of due diligence, I decided to check the place out for a Wednesday lunch based on it’s association with Hanks. The space is small and cute. The service was warm, sweet, and friendly. I struggled a bit to make a selection as the fish sandwich I had seen online was not on the current menu. I decided on the Kinilaw tuna “ceviche” for $24. It was good, but with room for improvement. The fair portion of tuna was fresh, and house corn chips were delicious. The corn nuts and jicama were fine. There was one cherry tomato halved and two leaves of cilantro, c’mon?The Hoyne Italian pils was delightful. I’d luv to go back and try other dishes, but I’d likely be inclined to try somewhere else due to perceived low value of my dish. Wish I had snapped a pic, dohh…

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 3

Service: 5

Attentive and welcoming service, with really tasty food made with care and attention to detail. We had the cured tuna, fried chicken & stick food and loved it all.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Lovely chef, waiter. Talked to us about each dish, was a really special way to enjoy a meal. Food was creative and tasty!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

We stopped by here on a random Wednesday evening and had such an amazing meal! My husband got the 75$ feast, and I got a watermelon salad and crab lumpia. My two appetizers were fantastic, but the real stand out was the feast. Similar to our experiences at Hanks, when you order the prix fix at ATE, they're going to feed you until you tap out ?

Normally when we get a prix fix menu, most things are good, with a few standouts. ATE on the other hand was 10's across the board. Every dish that came out was our new favourite, each one perfectly cooked and with beautifully balanced flavours. The sweet/sour combinations especially were to die for. Little touches like a zingy sauces or handmade noodles really elevated each dish.

On top of all this, the chef was super friendly, and delighted to hear how much we enjoyed each item. We loved sitting at the bar and watching each item as it was prepared.

I can't wait to go back and would recommend this restaurant to anyone. Even if you're not familiar with Filipino food, you'll love what they have to offer!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Kinilaw

Great music. Great service. Love the vibe

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Kinilaw

I have mixed feelings about this place. Compared to other Filipino restaurants I've tried, this one definitely stands out with better flavors. The Kare kare steak (4.5/5) was perfectly cooked—tender with a unique sauce that reminded me of antipasto, especially with its olive notes mixed subtly with peanut sauce. The Lechon Kawali (4/5) was also good; crispy on the outside, tender inside, although the fatty parts were a bit mushy, so I had to avoid those. The accompanying plain steamed rice left me wishing for options like garlic-flaked rice.

However, there were a couple of issues that stood out. Firstly, the employees seemed lacking in knowledge about the food they were serving. When I asked about the type of noodle in one dish, the response was confusing, mentioning it is soba, ramen, and vermicelli, which are quite different from each other. Secondly, I observed the cook handling raw ground beef with bare hands and then grabbed a towel and pans. I also saw that the cook touched cooked food like my steak with bare hands as well, which definitely bothered me.

Overall, despite the great flavors, I am not sure if I would revisit.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 3

Great food, amazing service by Karl, we really enjoyed our whole experience at Ate and appreciated the unique menu options. Stick food with house made spam was a fun highlight!

Wonderful experience at Ate! Our server Carl was lovely and did a great job explaining the dishes. Everything we had was thoughtfully made and delicious. We especially enjoyed the stick food and Kinilaw. Great to see more diversity in the Victoria dining scene!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Full dining experience! The staff are friendly, food was a bomb and Keem is such a sweetheart! This place is a must to try

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Every dish was a 10/10 experience! It’s a must go in Victoria!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Amazing! Food and service were outstanding. I’m not familiar with Filipino food so most of the menu was new to me. Our server described so well! Three of us shared 5 delicious dishes. And dessert! We had fish that was caught fresh that morning! Wow! Attention to detail was great. Can’t wait to go back!

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Meatballs, Lechon Kawali, Buko Pie

Check out this place! The menu is thoughtfully crafted with health spins on Filipino classics. The staff are super friendly and put a lot of heart into their work. The cocktails were stand out fantastic, I had the Mezcal Devil’s Blood. There were milk, cream and cheese-free options for appetizers, entrées, and dessert. The atmosphere was great, the only suggestion I have would be to be to add larger tables to accommodate larger groups.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Meatballs

Had a really great experience at ate, we tried their tasting menu and it was so fun- we got to eat with our hand and try so many different flavours. The green papaya, stick meats and chicken with foie gras sauce were our top picks. Looking forward to doing back and trying the rest of the menu in the future.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 4

Really delicious modernized Filipino food and friendly service. Tried the Kinilaw (fav), Lechon Kawali (fav), Arroz Caldo, and Buko Pie.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5