Horrible!! We ordered a whole chicken and lechon 16oz a la carte, and I asked for an additional vinegar they said no, and I had to pay $2 extra and to buy a bottle it's $12. According to them, their vinegar is homemade. For someone who is Filipino, yeah right!! I'd buy a bottle at Seafood City for $5 and it tastes better. What kind of a service is that? See the attached picture of the vinegar. It's so little compared to what we order. Paid $73 for a whole chicken, cucumber in a cup, and lechon. I will not order from this place anymore, and I don't recommend it at all. Their lechon is salty as well. The chicken is burnt. Not good. If I could have a negative star, I will.
Izaac Tay
Amazing Filipino food in ktown! The grilled yellowtail is fatty and juicy, while the chicken is tender and moist. Pricing for the combo plate is super good! Great portion size.
Everything was great. Salad was excellent, couldn't stop eating the chicharon bulaklak.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dan Pyatetsky
The chami noodles and rice here are amazing
Hope Rosemary
So delicious! We were bummed to have JUST MISSED the ribs special, the sold out right before our order. But the food we did get was so good. Mmm, for sure will be back.My boyfriend went with a few of his friends several months ago and I’ve been wanting to go since. I’ve sent several friends and family members to enjoy the food.Cute little hole in the wall space. I’ll be back’
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fried Pork Belly, Ribs
Gina Mariko Rosales
Delicious chicken and java rice! Grabbed food before leaving for the airport to head back to SF. Loved watching Chef cook up the grill in the back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Martina Mattar
A little gem. The flavors are bold and unpredictable. The pickled vegetables balance everything out. The yellowtail collar is perfectly cooked, so flavorful and moist. The prawn is cooked in a crab fish paste that is so tasty we had to finish it with the spoon after eating the prawns. Even the side of noodles, looking so simple, has a hidden sauce that makes you want to clean the plate.Parking: Saturday lunch time was easy to find parking. Evening weekday was really hard.
Recommended dishes: Grilled Hiramasa Collar Yellowtail Fish
Michael Uzmann
Derived from the Tagalog word for “older brother” combined with Chef Lord Maynard Llera's name Kuya Lord offers regional Filipino dishes rethought through classical technique on Melrose at the corner of Western Avenue.Begun as a pop-up out of the Chef’s home during November of 2020, pandemic restrictions still in full effect for most of California, three intervening years find Kuya Lord firmly situated on several “best of” lists despite just 21 seats.Considered "quick casual," a concise menu and online ordering seeing the staff of four in non-stop motion even as guests are responsible for bussing their own tables, prices range roughly $20-30 per person for hearty portions of everything from roast Meats to Noodles.Filled shortly after opening with a crowd of varying ages and ethnicities, music overhead adding to the buzz, most plates arrive perhaps fifteen minutes after the bill is paid and every single one finds distinct balance thanks to the combination of fermentation, salt and sweetness.Beginning with “Filipino Ramen,” a steaming bowl of Pork Broth loaded with Pork Belly adjacent textural components and fried Garlic, Llera's Pancit utilizes thicker Noodles than usual with a lot of Umami added by Fish Cakes.Focused more on Pork than the famous Fish Collar, both Lechon with shattering Skin and chopped Lucenachon tender as one can find, sweet Tocino alongside Garlic Rice and Pickled Green Papaya is fragrant, filling and lightly perfumed by smoke.Not one to skip Dessert, both available in limited quantities daily, Calamansi Pie eats nearly identical to Key Lime with a subtle hint of Coconut while Filipino Peanut Brittle Spread adds depth to delicate Rice Flour Cake.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Calamansi Pie, Pancit Chami
Johanna V.
It was excellent! We got the Kuya Tray for two and selected the pork and added the prawns. The lady at the counter was super helpful and advised us to order the prawns as part of the tray and get the pork al a cart as it would save us a few dollars. The pork was cooked to perfection, crispy on the outside and very flavorful. I will dreaming of this dish. The prawns were tasty too. Loved the crab, garlic sauce they were soaked in. I threw in my leftover rice at the end. It was perfect. We got the pandan, calamansi pie for dessert. The pandan flavor was not as strong as I would have liked but the pie was delicious. We will return over and over again!
Foods are expensive with small portion but foods are really good. Parking is a big problem here.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Lucenachon Tray
Pinoy PyroGuy
Food is all right the pansit noodles not that great taste pricey and expensive.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 3
Brent Cham
Cool hipster Filipino spot. The trays and bowls are a great way to try a few different things. Personally loved the beef tapsilog much more than the lucenachon but next time I’d try the prawns or the lechon kawali. The rice is so flavorful and don’t forget to add some of the vinegar on everything. It brightens everything up. They were also so friendly
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Rice Bowl
Marc Pena Pena
Well food was okay nothing to be wow....order lechon for it crispy skin that it didn't have...the flavor was good but it more fusion than traditional cooking.No parking near by so the hike to eat wasn't worth the step.
James Beard award finalist 2024
Horrible!! We ordered a whole chicken and lechon 16oz a la carte, and I asked for an additional vinegar they said no, and I had to pay $2 extra and to buy a bottle it's $12. According to them, their vinegar is homemade. For someone who is Filipino, yeah right!! I'd buy a bottle at Seafood City for $5 and it tastes better. What kind of a service is that? See the attached picture of the vinegar. It's so little compared to what we order. Paid $73 for a whole chicken, cucumber in a cup, and lechon. I will not order from this place anymore, and I don't recommend it at all. Their lechon is salty as well. The chicken is burnt. Not good. If I could have a negative star, I will.
Amazing Filipino food in ktown! The grilled yellowtail is fatty and juicy, while the chicken is tender and moist. Pricing for the combo plate is super good! Great portion size.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Grilled Yellowtail Fish Collar, Grilled Hiramasa Collar Yellowtail Fish, Grilled Hamachi Collar
Everything was great. Salad was excellent, couldn't stop eating the chicharon bulaklak.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The chami noodles and rice here are amazing
So delicious! We were bummed to have JUST MISSED the ribs special, the sold out right before our order. But the food we did get was so good. Mmm, for sure will be back.My boyfriend went with a few of his friends several months ago and I’ve been wanting to go since. I’ve sent several friends and family members to enjoy the food.Cute little hole in the wall space. I’ll be back’
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fried Pork Belly, Ribs
Delicious chicken and java rice! Grabbed food before leaving for the airport to head back to SF. Loved watching Chef cook up the grill in the back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A little gem. The flavors are bold and unpredictable. The pickled vegetables balance everything out. The yellowtail collar is perfectly cooked, so flavorful and moist. The prawn is cooked in a crab fish paste that is so tasty we had to finish it with the spoon after eating the prawns. Even the side of noodles, looking so simple, has a hidden sauce that makes you want to clean the plate.Parking: Saturday lunch time was easy to find parking. Evening weekday was really hard.
Recommended dishes: Grilled Hiramasa Collar Yellowtail Fish
Derived from the Tagalog word for “older brother” combined with Chef Lord Maynard Llera's name Kuya Lord offers regional Filipino dishes rethought through classical technique on Melrose at the corner of Western Avenue.Begun as a pop-up out of the Chef’s home during November of 2020, pandemic restrictions still in full effect for most of California, three intervening years find Kuya Lord firmly situated on several “best of” lists despite just 21 seats.Considered "quick casual," a concise menu and online ordering seeing the staff of four in non-stop motion even as guests are responsible for bussing their own tables, prices range roughly $20-30 per person for hearty portions of everything from roast Meats to Noodles.Filled shortly after opening with a crowd of varying ages and ethnicities, music overhead adding to the buzz, most plates arrive perhaps fifteen minutes after the bill is paid and every single one finds distinct balance thanks to the combination of fermentation, salt and sweetness.Beginning with “Filipino Ramen,” a steaming bowl of Pork Broth loaded with Pork Belly adjacent textural components and fried Garlic, Llera's Pancit utilizes thicker Noodles than usual with a lot of Umami added by Fish Cakes.Focused more on Pork than the famous Fish Collar, both Lechon with shattering Skin and chopped Lucenachon tender as one can find, sweet Tocino alongside Garlic Rice and Pickled Green Papaya is fragrant, filling and lightly perfumed by smoke.Not one to skip Dessert, both available in limited quantities daily, Calamansi Pie eats nearly identical to Key Lime with a subtle hint of Coconut while Filipino Peanut Brittle Spread adds depth to delicate Rice Flour Cake.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Calamansi Pie, Pancit Chami
It was excellent! We got the Kuya Tray for two and selected the pork and added the prawns. The lady at the counter was super helpful and advised us to order the prawns as part of the tray and get the pork al a cart as it would save us a few dollars. The pork was cooked to perfection, crispy on the outside and very flavorful. I will dreaming of this dish. The prawns were tasty too. Loved the crab, garlic sauce they were soaked in. I threw in my leftover rice at the end. It was perfect. We got the pandan, calamansi pie for dessert. The pandan flavor was not as strong as I would have liked but the pie was delicious. We will return over and over again!
Restaurantji Recommends
Foods are expensive with small portion but foods are really good. Parking is a big problem here.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Lucenachon Tray
Food is all right the pansit noodles not that great taste pricey and expensive.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 3
Cool hipster Filipino spot. The trays and bowls are a great way to try a few different things. Personally loved the beef tapsilog much more than the lucenachon but next time I’d try the prawns or the lechon kawali. The rice is so flavorful and don’t forget to add some of the vinegar on everything. It brightens everything up. They were also so friendly
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Rice Bowl
Well food was okay nothing to be wow....order lechon for it crispy skin that it didn't have...the flavor was good but it more fusion than traditional cooking.No parking near by so the hike to eat wasn't worth the step.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3
Yummy!