Manila Sunset

Went down to SOCAL on Memorial Day weekend 2016 to go to Universal Studios and Disneyland. We stopped to eat at Manila Sunset on the way to Anaheim. The food selection was pretty good. I had ordered crispy pata and rice. Not bad for the price. The workers, however, were not very friendly and lacked some serious customer service skills. For that, this place gets only gets 3 stars from me. The food was pretty decent and will probably go there again.

Heart Attack Entrée Ordered. Beware, mostly thick pork fat on dinuguan and monggo. Although the rest on the menu should be good, I hope… On this first visit I was frustrated that my dinuguan looks so lethally made of thick pork fat The same with the monggo that is fatty and salty. The chicken bbq tastes good BUT hard to chew. Because the restaurant looks clean with nice staff, I am coming back to try their fish entrée or fresh lumpia next time.

This is a crappy location for a Filipino food. The servers are freakin rude because they lack of customer service. It feels like their mourning. They don’t even smile at all. I will never ever recommend this place.

So far, this is my top filipino restaurant here in LA. For a price of $ 5 to $ 7 you can get two combination of hefty viand plus soup. It’s cooked fresh from the kitchen and not the usual ‘carinderia’ style where food had been pre-​cooked and you choose from the same greasy smörgåsbord where flavors tend to mix up. Manila Sunset stands out for serving fresh and tasty filipino food and even at a cheaper price.
So far here are my top choices there (since these are the ones I have tried so far and yet all of them are top notch):
1. Porkchop (yum).
2. Monggo
3. Lechon Kawali (at par with Good-​ha)
4. Beef Sinigang (comforting)
5. Bibingka
What I don’t like but still isn’t enough to bring my five stars down is the puto bumbong. I have tasted a much better puto bumbong back home.
But everything else has been very good for me so far. :)
PS: Nothing beats feeling at home than good ol tsismis spoken in the native tongue right in the next table. Haha.

If we can give this place zero stars. WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE EVER. VERY UNORGANIZED AND CASHIERS/​ladies are very rude. When you ask something they ignore you. Longanissa with egg took 45 mins to give. NEVER AGAIN. Bad service. If u want Filipino food go somewhere else.

Manila Sunset is one of my favorite Filipino restaurants in LA. I know that there are many other Filipino restaurants all over Los Angeles but what makes them stand out to me, what keeps me coming back for more is the flavor of the food and the cheap prices.
The Pork Inihaw, pork belly plate, is my absolute favorite. It tastes just like how they make sinugba baboy back home in the motherland. I’ve also tried their lechon kawali, beef caldereta, pancit malabon, and the bangus. All very good as well. I liked the flavor of the bangus and I thought it was fried perfectly. Their prices are great too because they are affordable and they always have food specials going on.
There is a parking lot but spaces get filled pretty quickly. Street parking isn’t too bad early in the day. You can always call in your order too and just pick up, I think that would be easier as well.
Overall great place. I always take my family and friends over here whenever they want Filipino food.

My review is mostly for the bibingka. I love the Bibingka here. It’s made perfectly. Their Bibingka has just the right amount of sweetness, it’s soft and has the right density. I love that they put cheese and salted egg in it. The freshly grated coconut they give you to accompany the Bibingka is delicious.
As far as their other cooked food goes, I’m not the biggest fan.

NO TO FRESH LUMPIA. we order to go one of the item is fresh lumpia for $ 4.00 all i got is cabbage and few carrots strip. very disappointed.#ripOff #kungMakakalamangGagawinNila

Firstly there is an amazing vibe here, it feels like a family establishment the second you walk in. Then there is the food… so good. I had the lechon and lumpiang plate which was like 7 bucks, and they don’t skimp on portions here either. Lechon was super crispy and the lumpiang were really good as well. Can’t wait to come back.

I remember Manila Sunset when it was actually on Sunset Boulevard in Silverlake. Now being on Vermont near Santa Monica Boulevard places it very close to a mini «Little Manila» since there are other Pilipino shops nearby such as Ilonggo Delicacies, Turo Turo Fast Food, Valerio Bakery.
I ordered Pancit Malabon since their sign states that it is their signature dish, and Lumpia Shanghai to take out. I waited 20 minutes and nothing was happening even though people who arrived & ordered after me had gotten their orders. So I go up to the counter to inquire about my order. They looked around the counter & found my Lumpia Shanghai, but they then informed me that they had run out of the Malabon. If that were the case, it would have been so much better had they informed me as soon as they found out that my Malabon order could not be made. In the meantime, my Lumpia Shanghai is sitting around just cooling down. There seems to be a break down in the ordering system when they can’t make good on your order, and don’t let you know immediately of that situation.
The Lumpia Shanghai of Manila Sunset of old when it was on Sunset Boulevard differs widely from the ones served now on Vermont. They used to be more meaty, porky, but now most of the filling is grated carrots with minimum of the seasoned minced pork meat. The seasoned flavours are still there, but the lack of the pork filling has lessened the porky Umami that had made this Lumpia Shanghai one of the best in LA.
My substitute dish instead of the Pancit Malabon was Sotanhon Soup & Puto. «Puto is a type of steamed rice cake in Philippine cuisine derived from the Indian dish Puttu.» Basically Sotanhon is a clear chicken soup w/​chunks of chicken cooked in the broth, egg flowered in the broth, crunchy, dark cloud ear mushrooms, cabbage, glass noodles that look like Mai Fun, chopped green onions, sliced boiled egg. It’s a delicate, comforting soup. Supposedly there should have been slices of Chicharron/​fried pork skin, and the Puto/​steamed rice cake was totally missing in action.
There is something lackadaisical at Manila Sunset in that the customer service aspect is flawed as described above, and also missing a food item when it is explicitly stated on the menu board. Plus running out of their signature dish means that they do not seem to plan ahead. 2 Unilocal stars for an eatery that has had many years to perfect itself and get the kinks out of the lack of effective communication & logistics. Unfortunately, that was not the case.

One of the cashiers clearly didn’t have a concept of first come, first served basis. Was standing in line only to notice that the people behind us were called to the other register. The other cashier’s excuse: «Oh because you were looking at the menu». But did she ask us if we were ready? No she didnt.
Had fried tilapia on the menu but cashier told us only the head was available. Mind you this was at 11:00 in the morning. What are they going to serve at 3PM? Fishbone? I guess the drought was causing a fish shortage? Meanwhile, two filipino seafood supermarkets are 3 blocks down the street.

Very impressed by the customer service and accommodation by Manila Sunset. I called last minute to order some pancit and bibingka. Although it’s Easter and they closed early, they were willing to wait an extra 15 minutes after closing so that I could pick up my order. I for one am a sucker for amazing customer service so will definitely be recommending this place to all my Filipino friends.
Now for the food… I ordered the pancit and bibingka because it’s what I personally like. The pancit is an egg noodle with an amazing garlic taste and shrimp. This particular location offers different size trays to go and they are beyond reasonably priced. (I’ve tried pancit at other locations and this one is by far the best tasting in my opinion)
On to the bibingka… Bibingka for those of you that don’t know is a rice cake from the Philippines that’s usually eaten during holidays, particularly Christmas. Considering that it’s Passover (Easter) I felt it was appropriate. Bibingka is usually eaten warm and has a sweet and slightly salty flavoring. It’s hard to explain but just try it!
All in all I’m happy with my experience and my Filipino coworkers approved. So if that isn’t saying something I don’t know what is.

Those chicken bbq sticks are so good. They grill them perfectly with just the right amount of doneness that makes them juicy but still have that smoky char grilled flavor. Garnished with a banana leaf, your 3 skewers of chicken come with two scoops of rice, pickled cucumbers, and soup (rice noodle soup in pork broth).
The lunch specials are a good value and the food is generally delicious. There is enough variety on the menu so you could come regularly and still have a different meal each time. The crispy pata (fried pork knuckles) looks especially good. I see other customers just getting their grub-​on and enjoying it.
The inside of the restaurant is clean and well maintained. Of course the cheesy Filipino dramas are playing on the flat screen — seems to be fine with everyone so I’m not complaining. The parking is not great so be patient waiting for a spot or find street parking.

So glad I stopped in today for a late lunch because I can truthfully say that I think this is now my favorite Filipino restaurant in the area.
I’ve slowly been trying Filipino restaurants in the area and although most have been average, I find Manila Sunset to be a step above the rest.
First of all, the interior is very clean and modern. Filipino eateries, unfortunately, don’t seem to take pride in making the ambiance inviting and comfortable for patrons and in fact, most of them are downright divey in feel and appearance.
This particular eatery, on the other hand, is clean and has the feel of a fast food restaurant but serves pretty tasty home cooked meals.
It’s not a «turo-​turo» style restaurant where you point and select the items you want from a buffet bar. They have a lunch combo with two entrees and had them listed on a board on the counter. I liked most all that was listed so it made it a little hard trying to decide what I wanted. I finally settled on the pinakbet which is a vegetable dish sautéed in a shrimp paste and the beef kaldereta stew which is made with chunks of tender beef, carrots and potatoes in a tomato sauce.
The serving I received was quite generous. The price is on par with what other eateries will charge you for a two-​item combination with steamed white rice but you get more food here and so this is really quite filling. It’s almost enough to share… almost!
They also had other baked goodies and desserts such as bibingka (rice cake), halo halo (a shaved ice dessert) along with a few other sweet morsels. I’ll also have to come back for the kare kare which is a dish made with oxtails and vegetables in a peanut sauce.
Needless to say, I’ll be eating here a lot from now on when in the area. If you happen to be close by and are hankering for some Filipino cuisine, check them out because I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.

Lumpia Love
*****************
I’ve had my share of Lumpia in my life. Afterall, I was in the Navy for 5 years, and I met many great Filipino Chiefs and Petty Officer First Classes. Lumpia was at every holiday potluck. I am not Filipino, so perhaps I don’t have the street cred, but this place has some pretty damn tasty Lumpia Shangai with the sweet and sour dipping sauce. The restaurant is squeaky clean and you can tell the franchise pays attention to the details.
I bought my nursing staff 100 Lumpia as a holiday treat morale booster. It was like a ravenous feeding frenzy. No kidding, It was gone within 15 minutes. To say the least, it was a hit.

Yeah! Yeah! It’s a B restaurant but honestly if you have a tight budget and u love to eat home cooked Filipino dishes then u should definitely check this place out. U can order a «To go» dishes. They also caters for a party. All you have to do is look at their menu and call it in for pick up. They always have specials so their menu is never the same. Food is homey and cheap. For $ 5 bucks u get a rice and an entrée. Now that is budget friendly! Parking is a bit hard but u can street parking.

Compared to other filipino restaurants in the area, this place by far serves the freshest food. The restaurant looks clean and doesn’t smell bad. Food was delicious.
We ordered Monggo Guisado– Mung bean (lentil) stew with pork, Caldereta (a tomato based beef stew with carrots and potatoes), grilled pork and filipino barbecue pork kabobs.
All were flavorful. The grilled pork belly reminded me of barbecue that we eat at the beach paired with some rice on top of banana leaves in the Philippine islands.
Puto Bungbong, aside from being fun to say also was fun to eat. It’s purple colored rice cake smeared with some butter then topped with coconut and sugar. Yum.

One of the better pinoy fast food spots. Much prefer it to cheap Chow King.
Love the crispy/​fatty Lechon Kawali (boiled or roasted pork belly then deep fried) which is accompanied with a gravy sauce and served with rice. Super fatty, I try to scoop out as much of the jiggly bits of fat to consume the crispy skin and meat, otherwise it’s cholesterol overkill. Every time I consume something excessively fatty of this magnitude I can’t help but repeat R Kelly’s famous lyrics: My mind’s telling me no but my body, my body’s telling me yes!!! And sicne I do give in to temptation on a regular basis I should maybe start taking baby aspirin to prevent a premature heart attack. lol!
The Lumpiang Shanghai is pretty tasty. Better than some homemade ones I’ve tried. The filling is well seasoned.
Calamansi Juice is also very refreshing. Tastes just like kumquat, one of my favorite citrus fruits! All in all decent artery clogging food I approve of. :)

I enjoy going to Manila Sunset for a handful of things. The primary reason is the bibingka. I guess you can call it a Filipino pancake. It’s a wonderful creation made of rice flour + water + coconut milk. It’s one of my favorite Filipino desserts. It’s traditionally eaten during Christmas time after Midnight Mass but I can eat it year round whenever I get a craving. It’s cooked/​baked on a banana leaf. You have cheese embedded throughout the batter. You top it off with grated coconut and sugar. Totally healthy… HAHA. It tastes great no matter how many calories you’re consuming. I try not to think about it while devouring.
I also like the puto bumbong. It’s too hard to explain what it looks and taste like. I like it a lot. I grew up eating both these delicacies during the holidays and I’ve enjoyed them ever since. The pansit malabon is also good. It’s topped with shrimp and slices of hard-​bolied egg. Manila Sunset definitely makes a flavorful one. I recommend the palabok and the other 2 things I highlighted. Good stuff.

Came here because one of the gals has a craving crispy pata… Manila Sunset Really? OK I didnt know what to expect but I love my pinoy food — so I’m down. 3 SUVs later and the entire group flocks in. I had no idea what to expect, the last time I was at a Manila Sunset was ages ago — but this place is a tiny dive and not what i remembered.
UPSIDE:
A variety of authentic Filipino food on the cheap. Not a point point joint but hard to understand the counter lady.
You can order takeout while you order your restaurant items and they actually get both orders right! Other pluses putobungbung, and bibinka all year round, not just on Christmas! And a bunch of other stuff I over ordered 2 weeks worth of food.
DOWNSIDE:
Service kinda sucks, bit its kinda fastfood. This place is totally divey and parking can be a pain.