tanabe

i think this is my second time to dine at tanabe.

it was a bitter sweet lunch at tanabe. i had lunch with my supervisor and colleagues from the division/office.

my japanese supervisor was having his last lunch with us as he will be transferring to our viet nam office.

my supervisor and i got the sashimi bowl (for lunch). our other colleagues got curry and pork. my japanese colleague joked that theserviceand the curry was just like from his canteen during college. he was not happy with his curry. my russian colleague/boss thought that his pork cutlet was just okay (the wait staff forgot to get his order and he ordered the quickest meal that can be prepared).

the sashimi bowl was great. i had a nice time trying to finish it. this is my new go to place for a sashimi bowl in manila as sakura was closed last year.

for apettizers we got salmon and yellow tail sashimi. the quality of the fish was excellent. the sashimi is highly recommended.

i heard from staff from my office that they saw cockroaches in this store before. luckily, we did not see any. but such rumors from credible sources will still earn a 0.5 point deduction in my rating.

to date, tanabe is the main japanese restaurant in manila, in my humble opinion

the place is small and there seems to plenty of staff butservicecould not be any worse. too bad because food was supposed to be good. we had to follow up our order ebery now and then. the gyudon arrived before the maki and the tempura never made it. i will never go back again.

really nice place to eat japanese food, place is quite big, goodservicealso, mostly, the food is authentic n taste so good. at first i was doubt to eat here, but guys , i really recommend this place, if u craving for japanese food

the sashimi was really good as it was fresh and properly sliced by the japanese chef. we ordered double as we just loved it. the sushi, chicken kaarage and tori don were good as well.servicewas quite good. a suggestion for the managemebt - you need to do something with the ambiance as the food is already great.

really good, authentic japanese food here in malate area. you pay for the quality.serviceis also fast. will come back again to eat here whenever the japanese cravings kick in.

the sashimi is really fresh, even the wasabi that they serve is really good. the steak bento meal and sashimi teiksoku meal is my favorite. quite pricey but worth it.
ambiance is good,servicehas improved a lot!

located in the iconic remedios circle of malate, manila and right next to the even more iconic cafe adriatico - this japanese restaurant has been around for a while now. it is one of my family's go-to spots for sunday lunch.

following traditional japanese restaurant hours it is open from 11am-2pm for lunch then 5.30-10pm for dinner. every time i have come here for a meal, it is never empty and there is always at least one or two japanese people dining there.

their menu offers a variety of dishes, but i actually consider this to be one of the more pricey japanese restaurants i have ever eaten at. ala carte orders are from p300-400. for lunch though, they have bentou box sets which range from p320-400. i consider these value for money, especially when their regular bentou boxes range from p600-800. when i am feeling rich (haha), i usually go for the gindara set. 

the bentou box comes with the main dish, a big bowl of rice, two pieces of tempura and deep fried vegetables, a side salad, four pieces of sashimi (tuna and salmon), miso soup and that "egg-flan-like" dessert. it is actually quite a lot of food and definitely very filling. i have noted though that their "fresh" sashimi always tastes like it had just come out of the freezer. it is somewhat fresh, yes, but there is always an icy flavor to it. the sushi though is quite good, but only comes at 6 pieces per order. i have tried some of their other ala carte options and ricebowls, they are all tasty.

over-all, i give them a 4.0 because even if i do keep coming back (with family members) it is usually out of convenience. in my book, it is one of the better japanese restaurants to eat at in malate, but not the best. especially when it comes to value for money. theserviceis pretty good though. i would still recommend this place to friends, but only those who have cash to burn.

update: september 28, 2016. after over three years, i finally got the chance to return to my favorite japanese restaurant in the philippines, and even though some of the menu items' prices will give you sticker shock, don't let that stop you from coming to this fine establishment... which is, by far, the best japanese restaurant that i have ever been to in metro manila! i say this not only because of its greatserviceor its nice, authentic environment, but also primarily because of its food -- it's to die for! regarding this restaurant's nigiri, the ikura (salmon roe) is heavenly as it sends my taste buds and my blood pressure soaring sky high, and the uni (sea urchin) is fresh and just melts in your mouth like butter (not that i'm in the habit of eating sticks of butter). additionally, if you see a lot of japanese people eating in a japanese restaurant, then it must be that good! it also must be that good when japanese staff members from the japanese embassy recommend this restaurant , too. my two centavos.

august 29, 2013. this fine restaurant is located in classic malate which has seen better days. but with location issues aside, this is actually the best sushi restaurant in metro manila that i have been to. the food is excellent! the sushi tastes fresh, and this comes in somewhat generous portions. the staff is also very friendly, courteous, and helpful, and the environment was clean and well-maintained. my two centavos.