Blog

Restaurant Reviews

Browse every restaurant review.

White House 1938 — Homey Filipino Eats in Liliw, Laguna

This article reflects one personal dining experience. Menus, service, availability, food preparation, and restaurant conditions can change over time.

Quick take

Warm service and comforting Filipino cooking, led by tender ginataang kalabaw, make White House 1938 a worthwhile Liliw stop despite smaller portions and parking logistics.

The visit

White House 1938 delivers exactly the kind of comforting Filipino meal you’d hope to find in Laguna, served in a warm, homey setting with genuinely welcoming staff.

The ginataang kalabaw was the highlight. The meat was exceptionally tender, and the coconut-based sauce was rich without overpowering the dish. Every flavour came together beautifully.

The dinuguan kalabaw with labong was an interesting take on a classic. The bamboo shoots add a subtle lamang-loob depth that works surprisingly well while making the dish feel lighter. The only drawback is the number of tiny bones mixed into the meat, which makes eating it more difficult—and at times, potentially dangerous.

What stood out

The okoy was wonderfully crisp and paired perfectly with the accompanying mustasa, providing freshness that balanced the fried texture.

My biggest criticism is the serving size. Several dishes are advertised as good for sharing, but portions felt noticeably smaller than expected.

Parking around the restaurant can be challenging, but they do reserve parking for customers. A quick call before arriving can save you from circling the block looking for a space.

What to keep in mind

Across the street, don’t miss the sugarcane juice stand. Their servings are generous and make the perfect refreshing companion after your meal.

Food: 4 | Service: 5 | Atmosphere: 4

Final takeaway

White House 1938 offers the kind of warm setting and comforting Filipino cooking that makes a road-trip meal memorable. Call ahead about parking, set expectations for portions, and do not miss the sugarcane juice stand across the street.

Explore more: Browse reviews in Liliw and read Liliw Bake Shop.

August 18, 2026
Aida’s Chicken House review: Michelin hype, zero service

This article reflects one personal dining experience. Menus, service, availability, food preparation, and restaurant conditions can change over time.

Quick take

A lunch visit defined by unavailable dishes, repeated ordering obstacles, and a wait of more than an hour with no food served.

The visit

Aida’s Chicken House
1 month ago
Lunch | ₱1–500

Michelin Hype, Zero Service: Where Appetites Go to Die

Dining is a holistic experience. It’s about anticipation, atmosphere, and hospitality. Unfortunately, a visit to this Michelin-recognized spot turned that anticipation into an absolute desire to scram before a single plate even hit the table.

We arrived at 10:30 AM with high hopes, but our appetite vanished the moment we opened our mouths to order. What followed was a comedy of operational errors:

The "Ordering" Nightmare

The Signature Chicken Inasal: Turns out you have to order their star dish a day in advance.

What stood out

The Inasal Wings: When we tried to pivot to wings, the server actively discouraged us, warning that it "takes too long."

Kangkong with Chicken Liver: Unavailable. Why? They ran out of adobo sauce.

The Bulalo: We actually managed to place the order, only for the server to return 10 minutes later to inform us they didn’t actually have any beef yet.

The Compromised Feast (That Hasn’t Arrived)

After navigating a minefield of missing ingredients and operational roadblocks, we settled on a compromised safety order: Pecho inasal, spare ribs, sotanghon guisado, chicken sinigang (to replace the ghost bulalo), and batikolon with chicken liver.

What to keep in mind

The Ghost Town Operations

It is now 11:33 AM – over an hour since we sat down—and there is absolutely no food in sight. We aren’t the only ones suffering in limbo; patrons who arrived well before us are staring at empty tables. The kitchen appears to be in a state of total systemic collapse.

The Verdict

A Michelin nod brings massive crowds, but it requires competence to match. When a restaurant spends more time telling you what they can’t do rather than serving what they can, the gusto dies.

Final takeaway

A strong reputation only matters when a restaurant can meet basic expectations for availability, communication, and timely service. Until those fundamentals improve, I would choose a different place for lunch rather than risk another hungry and frustrating wait.

Explore more: Browse reviews in Manila and read the latest restaurant reviews.

August 18, 2026
Fogo de Chão Review

This article reflects one personal dining experience. Menus, service, availability, food preparation, and restaurant conditions can change over time.

Quick take

A milestone family celebration was disrupted by changing reservation instructions, a shortened dining window, and communication that never produced a reliable plan.

The experience

We booked a 6:00 PM table for November 26 to celebrate my mother’s 75th and my son’s birthday, excited to try the country’s first churrascaria. The day before we were told the only dinner slots left were 2, 4, and 8 pm and to try arriving around 7:15 in case earlier parties left. At 4:00 PM Rose called to say we wouldn’t be seated until 8:30–9:00; when I asked the closing time she said 10:00. I asked for Ems, the general manager, who offered a 5:30–7:30 slot and we agreed. Leaving Bicutan at 4:15, we hit heavy traffic; when we rang to say we’d be thirty minutes late they replied we could come but would have to leave by 7:00—half the time we’d been promised. We later learned the restaurant was hosting a party of fifty that night; had we known we couldn’t be properly accommodated we would have made other plans. What should have been a joyful milestone dinner dissolved into a string of last-minute changes, unanswered requests for an email contact, and the bitter realization that this churrascaria was better imagined abroad than experienced that night.

Final takeaway

For a time-sensitive family celebration, I would not rely on verbal assurances alone. A clear written confirmation of the seating time and full dining window would be essential before planning another special occasion here.

Explore more: Browse reviews in Makati and read the latest restaurant reviews.

August 18, 2026
Basil Filinvest Review

This article reflects one personal dining experience. Menus, service, availability, food preparation, and restaurant conditions can change over time.

Quick take

A disappointing Thai meal marked by unavailable dishes, weak value, uneven execution, and basic cleanliness concerns at the table.

The visit

Disappointing Experience: Not Worth the Price Tag

We went in with high hopes, but our experience at Basil Filinvest was plagued by poor availability, sub-par food execution, and a serious lack of basic cleanliness.

The Food: High Prices, Low Execution

Due to a busy weekend, nearly our entire original order was unavailable, including the Bagoong Rice, Duck Curry, and Chicken Pandan.

What stood out

Thai Beef Ribs (Avoid): A small serving, approximately 10 oz and four pieces, that was incredibly salty and tough. Strangely, the meat tasted more like goat than beef.

Lettuce Wrap: The mushroom and tofu filling was served too warm, which wilted and cooked the fresh, crisp lettuce. The flavors simply did not come together.

Value: While the flavors in the few bites we had hit the right Thai notes, the dishes severely skimped on protein. For this price point, it felt like a total rip-off.

What to keep in mind

Ambiance & Cleanliness: Our table was covered in crumbs, which I had to wipe off myself. The first chair I tried to sit on was covered in size-12 rubber shoe sole marks. When I swapped it for another chair, that one also had crumbs on it, forcing me to clean my own seating area.

Final Verdict: Between the dirty dining area, skimpy portions, and poorly executed dishes, Basil Filinvest is absolutely not worth revisiting. Save your money and go elsewhere.

Final takeaway

There were isolated moments when the intended Thai flavours came through, but they did not outweigh the unavailable dishes, limited protein, uneven execution, and cleanliness concerns. Based on this visit, I would spend my dining budget elsewhere.

Explore more: Browse reviews in Filinvest and read Miyazaki Japanese Restaurant in Alabang.

August 18, 2026
Teppan Edo Review — EPCOT, Walt Disney World

This article reflects one personal dining experience. Menus, service, availability, food preparation, and restaurant conditions can change over time.

Quick take

Fresh ingredients and an engaging teppanyaki performance could not overcome muted flavours, thin soup, and disappointing sauces on this family return visit.

The visit

Dining at Teppan Edo has always been about more than the food. It’s about tradition.

I first came here decades ago with my parents and my in-laws when my children were still young. This time, I returned with my son’s family and my granddaughter, continuing what has quietly become a family tradition. Because of those memories, I genuinely wanted this meal to live up to what I remembered.

Unfortunately, I’d be doing readers a disservice if I let nostalgia influence my review.

The meal began with miso soup, which lacked the rich umami depth that defines a good miso broth. It was thin, bland, and simply needed more miso.

What stood out

The accompanying salad suffered from imbalance. The ginger-onion dressing wasn’t bad in itself, but there was far too much of it, overpowering the vegetables and leaving the salad noticeably salty.

Our chef, Koh, was engaging and entertaining, delivering the classic teppanyaki performance that makes hibachi dining enjoyable.

The sauces, however, were disappointing. The yum yum sauce was watery and lacked the creamy richness and complexity it should have had. The ginger sauce tasted almost identical to the salad dressing, offering little distinction between the two.

What to keep in mind

As the meal progressed, the biggest issue became clear: everything lacked seasoning. The vegetables were fresh, the meats were well-cut and of good quality, but every bite felt flat. Nothing tasted poorly cooked—just underseasoned.

The freshness of the ingredients ultimately saves the meal. Good produce and quality proteins are difficult to hide, and they prevented the experience from becoming a complete disappointment.

But if I’m judging solely on flavour, this was, quite honestly, one of the weakest hibachi meals I’ve had. That’s not something I say lightly.

Final takeaway

Fresh vegetables and good-quality proteins kept the meal from becoming a total disappointment, and Chef Koh made the shared-table experience enjoyable. Still, the thin miso, salty dressing, weak sauces, and overall lack of seasoning meant that the food did not live up to the memories that brought my family back.

Explore more: Browse reviews in Orlando and read Jollibee Orlando.

August 18, 2026
Lola Ima Pampanga Cuisine — Lakeshore, Pampanga

This article reflects one personal dining experience. Menus, service, availability, food preparation, and restaurant conditions can change over time.

Quick take

A candid review of a Lakeshore stop with superb ginataang kuhol and sinigang na kambing, attentive recovery after a missed order, and a few dishes to approach carefully.

The visit

If you are stopping by the Lakeshore Petron station in Pampanga, Lola Ima offers a mix of traditional Kapampangan flavors and classic Filipino comfort food. While the food has its hits and misses, the superb highlights and the warmth of the service make the stop worthwhile. Here is the breakdown of what to order, what to skip, and what to expect:

The Standouts (Must-Orders)
Ginataang Kuhol: Absolutely superb. The snails are cooked perfectly, and the coconut cream sauce is rich, savory, and packed with flavor. It’s a definitive must-try for anyone loving traditional Filipino flavors.

Sinigang na Kambing: The star of the show. The goat meat is incredibly tender, and the vegetables are perfectly fresh. What sets it apart is the soup base—made from real, fresh tamarind rather than instant powder, giving it that authentic, sharp sourness.

What stood out

Sweet & Sour Chicken: A pleasant surprise. Unlike many places that use heavy breading as an extender, this dish features a fair, generous amount of actual chicken. The sauce is well-balanced and notably not too sweet.

Paco Salad: Crisp, fresh fern (paco) paired with high-quality, fresh salted red eggs. A perfect, refreshing side dish.

The Misses (Could Be Better)
Bistek Tagalog: This was a letdown. The flavor profile leans toward the bland side, and the meat cuts are highly inconsistent—some pieces look like pulled pork while others are thick and chunky, leading to an uneven texture.

What to keep in mind

Tamales: Unfortunately, this left much to be desired. It lacks the rich, savory punch you expect from a proper Pampanga tamales.

The Service Experience
A Note on the Staff: The service here deserves a special mention. The staff was incredibly attentive throughout our meal. They did accidentally miss our much-awaited order of Chicharon Bulaklak, but when brought to their attention, they handled it beautifully—sincerely apologizing without making any fuss or excuses. Excellent customer service goes a long way!

Final takeaway

The strongest dishes and the warmth of the service made this a worthwhile stop despite a few misses. I would return for the ginataang kuhol, sinigang na kambing, sweet and sour chicken, and paco salad, while choosing more carefully around the bistek and tamales.

Explore more: Browse reviews in Pampanga and read the latest restaurant reviews.

August 18, 2026