I'm in town on vacation and was craving some god old fashion filipino food. The longganisa was cooked perfectly--I love a good sear on them! The garlic fried rice was also cooked super well with a great garlic and pepper balance. I've never made or had the longganisa topped with fried garlic and it was a game changer. The lumpia Shanghai we're also freshly fried and crispy. Perfect flavor, always balanced with the mae ploy. The service was fast and only took about ten minutes or so to cook. There was no line so it was quickly done, and they take Apple Pay which was so convenient after I forgot my wallet at home!
Sherryl M.
The cashier/helper was an awkward guy who made me feel very uncomfortable. He's short with glasses and at the time wore a headband. this incident was on a Saturday morning-afternoon if that's helpful. I ordered breakfast with my uncle. The guy was so dismissive and rude. He served the other customer and brought their food to their table next to me but when it came to my order, he slid it on the counter for me to get and walked away.. but he works in customer service. From that point we waved it off and tried to enjoy our brunch but he kept staring and making eye contact with particularly my uncle which created tension and for us to keep watch in case he would cause any physical altercation. I'm not sure if he was discriminating however we both are Filipino and were there because it's a Filipino owned restaurant... So I'm confused
Devin T.
The crispy pork belly was a great well rounded bowl with amazingly crispy pork belly and great garlic rice. The added egg was a cherry on top too!
Milchy W.
We went here but there was no pork belly or calamansi juice. Left with pork sisig. it was yummy but dont expect youll get what you want on the menu. was here at 4pm on a friday but i guess they ran out of pork.
Jonathan F.
I miss this place. I've had this dish 4-5 times and only one of the times it was overcooked. The other times it was perfect. Crispy outer skin and juicy and tender in the inside . Ube pandesal here is also AMAZING with the Ube butter. Should've taken a pic of that too. I'll go back here fasho.
Eva G.
First time seeing this place at the Liberty Market at Liberty Station. Perused the menu and wanted to purchase the Ube Pandesal. However they were sold out already!!! Oh well next time. I ended up just getting the Calamansi beverage!! YUMMMMMMMM I so enjoyed it!!! I will be back again in hopes to get a taste of ube pandesal.
Leland S.
Moving to SD I was recommended a few spots, this was a common talk of the town. AMBIANCE: Parking: Liberty Station! There's parking and there's not parking. It really depends on the day, time, and if there are events but for the most part there's good street, meter, and plaza parking. Seating: It's very community space so find a standing table or eat outside and enjoy! Vibes: Liberty Station is a signature place to visit if you're in San Diego from the food, activities, or community! Whether you're in the mood to socialize, study, or dine, this is your spot. It's in a marketplace so you'll see a lot choices. The restaurant is relatively simple with your counters and screen-menu. There's some decor paying homage to Filipino culture, which feels welcoming and comforting as a Filipino. Great place for a grab and go FOOD: Sweet Pork Sausage Silog (Recommend) Delicious! Their longanisa (sweet pork sausage) was enjoyable - soft, lightly charred, mildly spiced and sweet. This is usually embraced for breakfast but appreciated all day long. The green onions gave it a good kick and the pickled veggies (atchara). The rice was well cooked - not too soft and hard with a good amount of garlic. The egg gave it a nice savory umami touch. CUSTOMER SERVICE: Great! I had a gift card and they had some issues but they resolved it. TL; DR OVERALL: 4.5 Stars. Excellent! Simple choices, good prices, and a pleasant experience! As a Filipino it's timely to make these dishes so it's great they're able to make these bowls presentable and great comforting flavor. Thank you, Chef Phillip Esteban and team. I wish you all the best! #FilipinoFoodMovement TIPS: * Silog means garlic rice and egg!
Lerch M.
I h8 coming to this location. Poor attitude, poor service, and always out of stocks. Multiple times I've been there and they sit in the back and ask you what you want then tell you from the back of the kitchen they don't have it. Long wait times for people to hand you food with attitude. Like what's goin on here?
malcolm singh
The food here went completely downhill. I don’t know what happened but the lady that was here originally needs to come back because the food was unbeatable. Me and my sister got the Uber bread and they all tasted sour and overly yeasty. The tea was a dark brownish with a tint of purple. This company needs to rehire, or retrain because that was some of the worst Filipino food in San Diego and this place use to be great.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 2
Ashley P.
The best thing on the menu that I tried were the Ube pandesal. As a Filipino, maybe I'm a little biased. I tried their vegan sisig made with mushroom and although it did have the flavors similar to sisig, it was too sour and lacked that umami profile that usually comes with sisig. I also tried the longanisa and that was pretty good, but not the best I've ever had. It took a while for the food to be ready, but totally worth it since the Ube pandesal was freshly prepared and baked. The location is cool, and I will still go back to try the other menu items.
Great lechon kawali. It was tender, and all of the skin was crispy! Bummer that they ran out of ube pandesal. It's all over Instagram and people keep asking for it.
Andrew S.
Oh my lord, I love everything Ube. I got an order of the ube bread and ube cookies. The bread and butter are to die for. You can see them making the ube butter right in front of your very eyes. Be prepared for the warm, soft bread and incredible butter. Pretty sure you can just get the butter on it's own. The cookies are very good, and they come pre-packaged. The're good, but I think they could be better if warmed up before eating.
Levi
Filipino here, I was excited to order the Tocino - all for supporting the business - but this isn’t tocino - it’s grilled chicken over rice, an egg, and some pickled veggies. I talked to the guy and he reiterated this is tocino - it’s not. I’m sure other dishes are good but it’s false advertising to call this anything close to Tocino.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Tocino Manok
Nicole B.
It's so nice to have quality Filipino food available at one of SD's most iconic spots. I love this spot and my absolute favorite item is their ube pandesal with the ube butter that comes with it (chef's kiss!!), but I also really enjoy their sisilog + calamansi iced tea. My partner is new to trying different kinds of Filipino dishes and loved their sisilog as well, rating it a 10/10 and calling it the perfect mix of crispy/spicy/sour. Raised in San Diego, I know there's lots of great Filipino businesses in town and that's why it's so exciting to see a newer Filipino restaurant on the scene offering refreshing concepts without compromising any of the quality I love to have when I'm back home. I no longer live in SD but I love to come back around to this business and hope to continue enjoying meals here for years to come.
Toni P.
Got lunch here in Liberty Island, San Diego. We got Spaghetti and Tocino with rice. Foods are tasty and freshly prepared. Service was decent. The place is very clean and trendy. Love the displays and atmosphere of the store. Lots of parking spaces outside.
I'm in town on vacation and was craving some god old fashion filipino food. The longganisa was cooked perfectly--I love a good sear on them! The garlic fried rice was also cooked super well with a great garlic and pepper balance. I've never made or had the longganisa topped with fried garlic and it was a game changer. The lumpia Shanghai we're also freshly fried and crispy. Perfect flavor, always balanced with the mae ploy. The service was fast and only took about ten minutes or so to cook. There was no line so it was quickly done, and they take Apple Pay which was so convenient after I forgot my wallet at home!
The cashier/helper was an awkward guy who made me feel very uncomfortable. He's short with glasses and at the time wore a headband. this incident was on a Saturday morning-afternoon if that's helpful. I ordered breakfast with my uncle. The guy was so dismissive and rude. He served the other customer and brought their food to their table next to me but when it came to my order, he slid it on the counter for me to get and walked away.. but he works in customer service. From that point we waved it off and tried to enjoy our brunch but he kept staring and making eye contact with particularly my uncle which created tension and for us to keep watch in case he would cause any physical altercation. I'm not sure if he was discriminating however we both are Filipino and were there because it's a Filipino owned restaurant... So I'm confused
The crispy pork belly was a great well rounded bowl with amazingly crispy pork belly and great garlic rice. The added egg was a cherry on top too!
We went here but there was no pork belly or calamansi juice. Left with pork sisig. it was yummy but dont expect youll get what you want on the menu. was here at 4pm on a friday but i guess they ran out of pork.
I miss this place. I've had this dish 4-5 times and only one of the times it was overcooked. The other times it was perfect. Crispy outer skin and juicy and tender in the inside . Ube pandesal here is also AMAZING with the Ube butter. Should've taken a pic of that too. I'll go back here fasho.
First time seeing this place at the Liberty Market at Liberty Station. Perused the menu and wanted to purchase the Ube Pandesal. However they were sold out already!!! Oh well next time. I ended up just getting the Calamansi beverage!! YUMMMMMMMM I so enjoyed it!!! I will be back again in hopes to get a taste of ube pandesal.
Moving to SD I was recommended a few spots, this was a common talk of the town. AMBIANCE: Parking: Liberty Station! There's parking and there's not parking. It really depends on the day, time, and if there are events but for the most part there's good street, meter, and plaza parking. Seating: It's very community space so find a standing table or eat outside and enjoy! Vibes: Liberty Station is a signature place to visit if you're in San Diego from the food, activities, or community! Whether you're in the mood to socialize, study, or dine, this is your spot. It's in a marketplace so you'll see a lot choices. The restaurant is relatively simple with your counters and screen-menu. There's some decor paying homage to Filipino culture, which feels welcoming and comforting as a Filipino. Great place for a grab and go FOOD: Sweet Pork Sausage Silog (Recommend) Delicious! Their longanisa (sweet pork sausage) was enjoyable - soft, lightly charred, mildly spiced and sweet. This is usually embraced for breakfast but appreciated all day long. The green onions gave it a good kick and the pickled veggies (atchara). The rice was well cooked - not too soft and hard with a good amount of garlic. The egg gave it a nice savory umami touch. CUSTOMER SERVICE: Great! I had a gift card and they had some issues but they resolved it. TL; DR OVERALL: 4.5 Stars. Excellent! Simple choices, good prices, and a pleasant experience! As a Filipino it's timely to make these dishes so it's great they're able to make these bowls presentable and great comforting flavor. Thank you, Chef Phillip Esteban and team. I wish you all the best! #FilipinoFoodMovement TIPS: * Silog means garlic rice and egg!
I h8 coming to this location. Poor attitude, poor service, and always out of stocks. Multiple times I've been there and they sit in the back and ask you what you want then tell you from the back of the kitchen they don't have it. Long wait times for people to hand you food with attitude. Like what's goin on here?
The food here went completely downhill. I don’t know what happened but the lady that was here originally needs to come back because the food was unbeatable. Me and my sister got the Uber bread and they all tasted sour and overly yeasty. The tea was a dark brownish with a tint of purple. This company needs to rehire, or retrain because that was some of the worst Filipino food in San Diego and this place use to be great.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 1
Service: 2
The best thing on the menu that I tried were the Ube pandesal. As a Filipino, maybe I'm a little biased. I tried their vegan sisig made with mushroom and although it did have the flavors similar to sisig, it was too sour and lacked that umami profile that usually comes with sisig. I also tried the longanisa and that was pretty good, but not the best I've ever had. It took a while for the food to be ready, but totally worth it since the Ube pandesal was freshly prepared and baked. The location is cool, and I will still go back to try the other menu items.
Restaurantji Recommends
Great lechon kawali. It was tender, and all of the skin was crispy! Bummer that they ran out of ube pandesal. It's all over Instagram and people keep asking for it.
Oh my lord, I love everything Ube. I got an order of the ube bread and ube cookies. The bread and butter are to die for. You can see them making the ube butter right in front of your very eyes. Be prepared for the warm, soft bread and incredible butter. Pretty sure you can just get the butter on it's own. The cookies are very good, and they come pre-packaged. The're good, but I think they could be better if warmed up before eating.
Filipino here, I was excited to order the Tocino - all for supporting the business - but this isn’t tocino - it’s grilled chicken over rice, an egg, and some pickled veggies. I talked to the guy and he reiterated this is tocino - it’s not. I’m sure other dishes are good but it’s false advertising to call this anything close to Tocino.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 1
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Tocino Manok
It's so nice to have quality Filipino food available at one of SD's most iconic spots. I love this spot and my absolute favorite item is their ube pandesal with the ube butter that comes with it (chef's kiss!!), but I also really enjoy their sisilog + calamansi iced tea. My partner is new to trying different kinds of Filipino dishes and loved their sisilog as well, rating it a 10/10 and calling it the perfect mix of crispy/spicy/sour. Raised in San Diego, I know there's lots of great Filipino businesses in town and that's why it's so exciting to see a newer Filipino restaurant on the scene offering refreshing concepts without compromising any of the quality I love to have when I'm back home. I no longer live in SD but I love to come back around to this business and hope to continue enjoying meals here for years to come.
Got lunch here in Liberty Island, San Diego. We got Spaghetti and Tocino with rice. Foods are tasty and freshly prepared. Service was decent. The place is very clean and trendy. Love the displays and atmosphere of the store. Lots of parking spaces outside.