Hi Rice Grill — Restaurant in Pasig

The buffet @ P399 was fairly good but not to be considered as excellent. The variety of salads is very limited but, the selection of hot dishes was good. I think they had around 10 different hot dishes to choose from. I liked their chicken teriyaki and the Vietnam style chicken (7*of 10). They do have fish and pork dishes as well.

For the Iced Tea, I felt like I'm having a spoiled medicine more than tasting any tea flavour (1* of 10).

For the coffee, the machine was out of order but, still on display while the staff didn't know that it's not working (1* of 10).

They have a corner for noodles & veggies (it's far in the dark corner so u should ask the staff about it). I would recommend giving it a try (6* of 10).

The deserts selection was limited also but, they serve you a nice ice cream which is included as well. (6* of 10).

They have a selection of 6-7 kinds of home made breads with some nice toppings to select from on the side. (6* of 10).

Service wise: The guy by the noodles counter was so friendly and he speaks good English. He can even go around the counter to help you select what you might like. In general, their service and hospitality was good.

Atmosphere: it was rather hot when we were there for dinner around 6pm to 8pm. Although they had a couple of AC units around but, it seems it can't handle the crowd as the resto was full.

Booking: although we made a booking while the restaurant was still not full yet but, when we came back at the agreed time, all the tables were given away and, they tried to accommodate us inside a hall / room where the AC + lights were still off..!! Anyhow, when they noticed that we were about to leave, they managed to find us a table close by the buffet.

Finally, it was a nice dinner experience and, we might visit...

We just recently celebrated Mother's Day at Hi Rice Grill. The dining area was almost full but we were led to a table right away because we had a reservation. I was surprised to see that as early as 6pm, some of the dishes had to be refilled already like the steamed veggies for kare-kare. The japchae almost had no ingredients at all with its noodles sticking together. Even the dipping sauce for the fish fillet was wiped out. Toppings/ingredients for the soup were almost gone. We had to ask for more fruits. I was able to get the last few drops of the Kikkoman soy sauce for maki after waiting for only a single-served clean saucer. I also had to ask for a bowl for the halo-halo. The ice cooler needs to be replaced or thoroughly cleaned. Their resto really needs a renovation. I had to tell one of the staff that we still had 3 other companions coming so I had to know if they will still replenish. About an hour later, they finally arrived due to heavy traffic in the area.

Rates are higher on weekends and holidays. In anticipation of high volume of customers most especially during special occasions, the staff should be more professional, alert and attentive. The replenishment of assorted dishes and desserts including dips and sauces, even the clean plates, bowls, cups, saucers and glasses should automatically be done. The buffet rate is not worthy and our overall experience wasn't a perfect 10. I don't highly...

We had the most unfortunate experience going there at past 7 in the evening, on Nov 1 which was a national holiday. So the place had been packed and almost all the food were finished and unreplenished, the chefs also were on their way out so we were left with whatever we could get from the buffet table. Every other dishes were finished and unreplenished, including the Mongolian toppings, but it was fortunate that one waiter offered to set up the samgyeupsal set for us, but since the place was already packing and closing shop for the night, we only had one round of "unlimited" samgyeup meat and sidings. It was good though, a little above average. The kare-kare was however noteworthy. It was very tasty and meat was tender, veggies were alright. The maki is not to be desired. The fresh salad section is appealing though. Drinks were also unreplenished, likewise the desserts and pastries and fruits. The lesson here is "never come during a holiday at the last hour of restaurant operation". It was a moment of hungry desperation that we decided to proceed with eating there after we did our little cardo exercise by walking all the way from Sta Lucia Mall to Hi - Rice. It was a learning "experinece", neither good nor bad. For me it was the kare-kare that...