Cafe Colma — Restaurant in Colma

Food is hit or miss. The sides for the prime rib are close to inedible (when in doubt, ask for the rice which is just slightly dry as versus the mashed potatoes which taste overwhelmingly of margarine not butter, the gravy is clumpy and terribly salty, and only get the vegetables if you want to be reminded of elementary school cafeteria food), while the prime rib itself would taste better if not so dry (asked for medium rare, got well done), and could use just a bit more salt and seasonings -- mind you, this is only the 2nd time in my life that I've thought a dish could use more salt. The American-style breakfasts are very, very greasy -- the eggs were drifting around in their own pool of oil, as was each item on the plate. Whereas the daily specials have been consistently good, as are the Filipino & Chinese dishes. Desserts are wonderful; the halo halo is available topped with mango or ube ice cream and is absolutely worth the value, though I do wish there were more ice cream flavors offered, for instance coconut or pandan.

Service is old school Filipino-speed -- raising one's hand to get the attention of the assigned server does nothing. Multiple times' experience has shown that the servers think if you're trying to get their attention then you must want the check asap (even if you're actually trying to order dessert or even just asking for a water refill), but they'll still do what they want since they don't really believe in being assigned to specific tables, at the pace they're comfortable working at (which is far slower than what most restaurants would deem normal service speed).

The decor is that of a nostalgically garish diner stuck in the early 90s. The din can get overwhelming in the midst of...

June 2025 - Party of 3 @ 10:30p

Long story short, we walked-in the restaurant undecided whether to order for take-out or dine-in but since the cashier was in a bit of a rush I ended up ordering my two items for take out (Halo-halo and Tocilog). A minute or two after I had already paid for my order, we changed our minds and ask to be seated .. my bad! I then asked for the halo-halo to be served at the table instead. Anyways, the cashier said it was okay and sat us down in a booth. We were unsure but for what it looked like, it was a change of shift. A couple servers passed right by us with NO eye contact. We probably waited close to about 30 minutes by the time someone actually took my friends’ order. Now, let’s go back to my “take out” order, you’d think it would be ready after all we’ve been sitting down with our glasses of water for the past 30 mins which took maybe another 20 mins for my friend’s order to arrive = 50 mins and still NOTHING. Where does the confusion lie?! There I was thinking the cashier understood the assignment but apparently not! :P

Come to find out, they were hesitant to provide service because I ordered for “take-out” and that they will not be able to add a “table” service charge since it was already paid for. It was never our intention to cheat them out on an extra $5-$7 tip, if that was the case. We had such a great laugh out of the situation so friend left a 35% tip!

Also, given that it’s located inside Lucky Chances, always expect to drive around a couple of times for parking and walk through clouds of smoke! Halo-halo was pretty good and the same goes for...

I frequently visit Cafe Colma and have brought many friends there, both Filipinos and non-filipinos. food is relatively good - it became more expensive and portion size got smaller, (someone mentioned that it was the decision of the management) I have noticed that their Kare-Kare (it's delicious) but the portion size has gotten smaller and you are lucky to get enough meat or tripes. Several occasions I asked our waitress, for the tripes, cause there just weren't any. The waitresses are nice & friendly, (sometimes LOUD) but I think they are over worked, because sometimes service can be poor, with the exception of a couple of waitresses that are always attentive. There was one time, that I was seated on the counter table and there were 2 parties of people that were seated AFTER I have placed my order. Guess what, my order never came (my waitress must have forgotten to place my order), While I watched the other parties that were seated after me, finished their meals. I tried to be very patient, but it was getting too late in the evening and I was getting very upset & hungry, so I left!! Thinking that I will never come back ever! I usually give a 20% tip despite of the service but more If the service was good. Bottom line, Cafe Colma's advantage is that It's the only restaurant that is open 24hrs, there's no other competition. If you crave Filipino & Chinese food in the late hours of the night but can endure the sometimes mediocre service and the waiting, then its good, but definitely not the first choice if there were ...