Jim's Pares & Mami — Restaurant in Manila

Just got home from Jim's Pares. I have a few things I want to share.

First, the place. The place is very open, there's a car wash beside it. Just in case you're looking to have your car cleaned while eating. Standing table, as you would see in the pictures from other customers and no chairs. If you're planning to stay and chat, not the place. I had my meal and left. It's the same thing I noticed of the other customers, they ate and left. Imagine a street vendor selling pares on a cart, make it 10x bigger. You order, eat and go.

Second, the service is good. I feel that the people working there are happy. The kuya who gave me my order was accommodating to answer my questions. The cleaning ladies who clean after the customers leave are doing their job with a smile. And it seems like they're having fun.

Third, the food itself. It's true, you get overflowing soup and they don't count the number of beef chunks in your pares like some pares street vendors will do. However, there's nothing special about it. It's not bad, it's actually good, the beef is tender but I had some better ones before. I had pares where I would order 1 or 2 more extra rice because it was that good. However, this one, I had my initial serving and that's it.

Overall, if you're not "maarte" and want to try it then go for it. And if you're nearby, go for it. I think it's a good place to go and try, see what the fuss is all about. However, if you need to travel far, there are probably better...

I am a lover of pares, and I know what street pares looks and tastes like, but man, their pares is, let us say, different. It tends to be on the bulalo side than the pares side. I am actually doubting the reviewers here who said their pares is good. Have they actually eaten pares before? 😅 Their "pares" looks and tastes like bulalo! I had doubts on my first visit, baka natyempuhan ng bland kaldero batch, so kumain ako 2nd time. Ganun talaga ang pares nila - lasang bulalo. Oh the hype and the wannabees that think they have eaten the best pares.

The bulalo is good and okay, to be honest (does not beat Tagaytay and Batangas bulalo, though) . But if you come here and expect to eat "pares" then be prepared to be disappointed. If I am craving pares, I will probably just eat at the tabi-tabi pares nagkalat kung saan-saan with their rich umami broth, kornik and...

Jim's Pares & Mami is one proof that you will still succeed even if you only have one product/dish to offer.

The Pares is so delicious. The meat is tender and flavorful. They are generous enough to offer "unli sabaw". The bone marrow melts in the mouth. The best Pares I've ever tasted. Masarap na, affordable pa.

Don't expect much from the place though. Kung maarte ka, hindi ka pwede dito. Pero kung hindi problema sayo ang cowboy-style na kain, pasok na pasok ka dito. 👌🏻

They got high tables, no chairs. They should have considered people with heights lower that 5 feet. This is just eat-and-run dining, di pwedeng tumambay.

They are open 24/7 as of the writing. And they are sought-after by people from different places. They were also featured on different shows and have 60k+ followers in Facebook, btw. Pretty famous....