Manila Bay

Loved that place, always stopped by while on vacation. Excellent food, and the owners were great people, we definitely miss this place.

Me and my bf had lunch together here at Manila Bay since Filipino food sounds good. We wanted TapSiLog, so we asked for it. It was okay overall, nothing special. We ordered Menudo and Adobo, just to try their food. We got full and pretty satisfied. :)

I am ½ Filipino (my Father’s side), so I have had my fair share of good and bad Flip food during my life — Bad food, mostly from my Dad — JK — Love you Dad!!! This is my second stop at Flip places close to my office in Orange. It is unfortunate I am more than 10 miles (my outside range for eating out for lunch on my own dime) from Cerritos. Otherwise, i would be there all the time. However, this place is decent for being about 6 miles from my office.
Let me warn you: Don’t bring a date here; Don’t bring too many friends (there are only six seats); And be prepared to have some decent Flip food for a low price. BTW the tables are amongst the balikbayan boxes going to the rellies back home and the small amount of grocery items.
The menu is turo turo (point point) and there are about 16 items. I decided to have a two item combo: ($ 6.99 — Lechon kawali [fried pork belly] and torta [eggplant omelette]) with two scoops of rice. I decided to try another dish on the side and I ordered the pancit bihon ($ 2.50 — thin noodles).
All of the items were pretty good. The lechon was nice and crispy. I arrived at 12:30ish so I imagine the items had recently been prepared. I can’t say the same for later in the day. The torta was lightly battered and the eggplant was very fresh too. The pancit also contained very fresh ingredients and some meat vs. just being a side dish. The noodles were not soggy. But, I could have easily done w/​o the pancit. I was stuffed afterwards and I was going to Chapter One for dinner (WTF were you thinking Joe? — LOL): All 3.5 Stars.
They also had other recognizable dishes like menudo, adobo (chicken and pork), dinaguwan (chocolate meat = pork cooked in it’s own blood), pinakbet w/​ipon (vegetables cooked with fermented shrimp), estofado (beef stew w/​beans and carrots) and longaniza (Filipino sausage), et al.
The woman behind the counter was super nice. She didn’t know what to make of me — A 6’2″, 225+ lb Azn crazy looking dude. She was probably surprised I could speak English, because she knew I was not full Flip — LOL. She made sure to offer me the sauce for the lechon — sarsa ng lechon (primarily liver paste, vinegar, brown sugar and water). She also offered me mafran (banana sauce or Flip ketchup), but I opted for the patis (fish sauce) for the torta. The place was clean, but I didn’t see a bathroom.
I rate this place 3.5 Stars. This place has better food than the recently visited Fil-​Am BBQ Grill in Orange. If you can get past the ambiance, or lack thereof, I would recommend coming here.

fly infested and the food looks like it’s more than a day old. do yourself a favor… DRIVE TO Cerritos!
Btw, if you still want to try it out (like my friend did), be prepared to shell out 7 bucks for a a couple scoops of rice and 5 (FIVE) small pcs of lechon kawali. :/

The food looks like it has been sitting there all day. The portions were small. the taste was blah… would I come back here again? NOT.

Ask for Balut if you want something exotic? Want something a lil more standard, get the beeksteak, pancit, bbq, siao pao etc… They do different food on different days as well!
The food is decent and all homemade. The prices seema tad bit high, and the location is a pain to get to. But for a mom n pop hole in the wall flip food take out joint & mini mart, what do you expect.
Check on in here for a lil bit of different grub sometime when you are ready to explore and try something new.

Everything that I have tried so far is good. Dinuguan, sisig, beef steak, bbq on a stick, lumpia and my favorite item is the lechon kawali. They don’t know me by name but they know what I want.

Hmm I’ve only been to this place once, and it was cute. I’m not in a hurry to go back for their food though. However, they’re not at all that far from where I live, so it’s pretty convienient if I want to grab some filipino snacks or groceries. The service was good, they guy that served me was really friendly. The food wasn’t that great though, I ordered fish and it wasn’t even heated and it tasted like it was a day old, the diniguan was alright, my sister got the adobo, and the meat was a bit tough, so I suspect that wasn’t fresh either. I felt that they overcharged me a bit. The food might be good if you catch them on a fresh day.

«Still J Lee»
[Anthony Bourdain]
Yeah Unilocaligga, I’m still messin with ya
Still waters run deep
Still A Bourdain and John L, ’11 Unilocaligga (Guess who’s back?)
Still, still doing that eatin, J?
[John L]
«Oh for sho’, check me out
It’s still John L Day Unilocaligga, A.K. EatALotigga
Though I’ve grown a lot, can’t keep it home a lot
Cause when I frequent the spots that I’m known to jock
You hear the treble from the Civic when I’m on the block
Waitresses, they pay homage, but haters say John L fell off
How Unilocaligga? My last review was „California Fish Grill“ (–igga)
They want to know if he still got it
They say reviewing’s changed, they want to know how I feel about it …»
Service — Yay! I’m a Fan.
Cleanliness — Excellent
Price — $ 7.07 (includes tax)
Seafood — Yes, fish
Meats — Yes, chicken, pork, beef
Vegetables — Yes.
Dessert — Yes, this is also a variety store that specializes in Filipino products.
Fruits — Yes, this is also a variety store that specializes in Filipino products.
Other — (1) Located on State College Blvd and La Palma Ave (in vicinity of King Pollo). (2) Free parking in front of the store. (2) Cash is accepted here – not sure about Credit Cards. (3) There are only 4 small tables so this place is not meant for large groups. (5) This is Filipino fast food where you pick your combination for take out or dine-​in.
What was ordered:
Rice and 2 Entre Combination ($ 6.50) — A-​Ok (3 Stars)
*Garlic Rice — A-​Ok (3 Stars) — They were very generous with the amount of rice they gave you. You are looking at 6 inches in length, 3.5 inches in width, and 2 inches in height of rice. The rice itself was cooked very well – not too moist and not too dry. The only flaw is that I did not taste much of the garlic. In fact, after a bit, it tasted like regular white rice.
*See-​See — A-​Ok (3 Stars) — Pork cooked in onions, red bell peppers, and green bell peppers. This was the most flavorful since you get the crispy edge of the pork skin and the cooked fat. The sauteed onions and peppers gave the pork an extra kick to Flavortown. They gave you approximately 3 inches L x 3 inches W x 2.5 inches H amount.
*Beef — A-​Ok (3 Stars) — Large chunks of marinated beef cooked in onions. The beef tasted pretty good with the correct amount of seasoning – not too salty. The texture was rather tough – perhaps due to the cut of beef or the fact that they were cut in chunks. They gave you approximately 3 inches L x 3 inches W x 2.5 inches H amount.
This is my first time I’ve had Filipino food so my cherry has officially been broken. I’m not sure what I had is considered standard Filipino faire, but that’s what foodie adventures is all about. Overall, I think Manila Bay is A-​Okay. If my Unilocaliggas want to recommend some places, I will be more than willing to try. Salamat sa iyo!
[Anthony Bourdain]
Right back up in ya Unilocalloving butt
’95 plus four pennies!
Add that shizzle up, J-​L-​E-​E right back up on top of thangs
(If you don’t get the references, here is some clarity:
)

Came cuz my wife said its good, i dont really eat filipino food… eh, it was ok. I tried some beef kabobs with some pancet & lumpias (mini eggrolls for the homies who aint knowing). The lumpias are legit, i can probably eat like one million.

I came here a few weeks ago for lunch on a Saturday. I was scanning their steam table and it didn’t seem like their food was fresh. It actually looked like it was sitting there the night before. I couldn’t leave without ordering one thing. They were out of Lumpia so I went with a side of Dinuguan which I’m a fan of. One little side cost close to $ 4.00, yikes! plus steam rice was extra. I didn’t try the entrée until later that evening and it was not bad. I probably would not come back here but at least I can say I tried.

Had lunch here last Sunday. Good food and very friendly family running the store. Good value although portions are a little on the small side. I appreciated the personal attention and friendly conversation with the owners. Sisig and dinuguan were pretty good. My daughter lives in the UC Riverside dorm and was craving Filipino food… actually took some takeout for her dinner.

This place is pretty good place, I usually come here for the mini filipino grocery store if I need last minute items, and can’t go to an asian market that’s far away. Food is pretty good, my in-​laws usually love to order here for parties. Staff is always nice, it’s clean, and always a great back up for any meal.

I was having a bad day at school yesterday and had this sudden craving for Filipino food. More specifically I was craving chicharron! So I decided to look for a nearby Filipino restaurant. Saw Manila Bay on Unilocal and decided to stop in.
I ordered steamed rice, chicken adobo, pork bbq skewers, lumpia, and chicharron.
The chicken adobo is absolutely fantastic. The flavor is amazing. Probably the best adobo I’ve ever had. I’m definitely a fan of it and would come back for it! The chicken was cooked so well. Definitely not overcooked, but cooked so it was tender and flavorful!
The lumpia was alright. I’ve definitely had much better but it was good. The weird problem I kept having was my lumpia meat kept falling out of the wrapper when I’d take a bite!
The pork bbq skewers were ok. The flavor was good but the meat was a little tough. I would have preferred chicken but they didn’t have any that day. I will definitely have to come back and try the chicken ones.
The chicharron was a little different than what I’m used to but it’s very tastey. It’s a little on the oily side and doesn’t have a ton of meat on it. Either way it tasted good and it’s home made so I would come back for another bag if I’m around!
Overall the place is awesome. It’s also a convenience store so they sell anything from bagged snacks to calling cards and frozen food to balikbayan boxes! I will definitely be back here and I’m really glad I stopped in. The owners are very friendly and cooked my bbq and lumpia on the spot because they didn’t have any left when I came in. I really want to come back and try some garlic rice though!
Other things on the menu I saw but didn’t order: beef calderata, beef adobo, sisig (spell check) sinigang, salted fish, cooked fish, and a bunch of other stuff I didn’t recognize (only half Filipino and we don’t cook Filipino food at home).

It was okay. Nothing to write home about. I did find it disturbing that they had to warm up the food (displayed on the steam tables) in a microwave. It was also pretty sad that they were out of rice and lunch time had barely started. I don’t think I’ll make the effort to drive here again.

4 tables. You point at what you want to order. Family owned.
Authentic. Great techniques so the meat is tender.
Chicken Adobo– Chicken is not dry! Chicken, soy sauce, vinegar, cooking oil, garlic, and some places use bay leaf and peppercorn.
Dinuguan– Because you are a foodie and you have no qualms about eating pig stomach and pork blood, and you like that it has a taste that just blends together a savory stew of garlic, onion, oil, vinegar, sugar, pig blood.
Haven’t tried the other dishes, but these are good.

When my Filipino co-​worker asked what is for lunch, I said, «Filipina.» After smacking me for saying that, we went to go get some Filipino food. I did not find what I really wanted, a Filipina, but we did find some food here in Anaheim.
On a busy section of State College near La Palma lies Manila Bay, right next to King Pollo, not too far from 91 fwy. There is usually enough parking in front. Inside, there are a few tables and chairs but not too many people eating in the restaurant. You can also purchase some grocery items, videos, phone cards, sweets and misc items. The guy there during lunch is cool, very freindly too. The place looks clean and the food is right there in front of you like in a buffet counter.
Beef calderata
This one had beef, carrots and potatoes all dipped in this very savory sauce. It was delicious with a unique salty flavor.
chicken adobo
I have had the beef adobo here and other places, like this one last time. I had the chicken adobo and I loved the flavor. I could not exactly explain why it tasted so good, but it had a light saltyness, very moist, in every piece of the soft tender chicken. I was not sure how to judge the chicken, it was just very good.
rice
I went with the white rice instead of the garlic rice just to offset the flavor of the entrees. Next time I will have to try the garlic rice.
I have tried other dishes I liked such as the beef adobo, chicken skewers and this ground beef with veggie (forgot the name but loved the taste).
I will probably be back again, not sure how soon, but I definitely like this place. May not find your dream girl here but you may end up falling in love with the chicken.

I live in Fullerton and thought I had to go to Cerritos to get Filipino food. I was wrong and delighted to find this little shop. They have many food items to choose from and everything was great. They have many Filipino snack foods there as well, you can even drink a Sarsi.
I will be back at least once a week.