Bayan Ko Diner — Restaurant in Lake View Township

I recently visited Bayan Ko Diner hoping for a delightful culinary experience, but unfortunately, the meal was a disappointment. To start, the service was lackluster. There was only one server managing the entire restaurant, leading to long waits and a generally inattentive feel.

As for the food, it fell short in many areas. The lumpia was far from traditional, lacking the distinct Filipino flavors I was hoping for. It tasted bland and underwhelming. The bistek was another letdown—it was dry, overcooked, and didn’t have the savory, tender texture that makes this dish a classic.

The adobo chicken didn’t live up to expectations either. Instead of the usual tangy, flavorful richness, it resembled more of a garlic Korean chicken wing—delicious in its own right, but not what I had come for. And then there was the pancit, which was honestly the most disappointing part of the meal. Instead of the traditional rice noodles, they used wheat noodles, which completely changed the texture and flavor. To make matters worse, it had an overwhelming saltiness with no balance or depth of flavor.

The garlic rice, which should have been a comforting side dish, was another misstep. It tasted more like plain jasmine rice with fried garlic sprinkled on top as an afterthought. It lacked the aromatic richness and seasoning that garlic rice should have.

At the end of the meal, we were left with a bill of over $300 for four people. Given the quality and portion sizes, that felt like a complete rip-off. Based on this experience, I won't be returning. It’s unfortunate, as I was hoping to enjoy an authentic Filipino meal, but this just didn’t...

I really wanted to like this place but from the moment we arrived, it felt hectic and poorly organized. Upon arrival, we were ignored as staff walked passed us without even making eye contact. Eventually we were seated. Shortly there after a host asked if we were expecting company and proceeded to separate the table that was set directly next to ours, making room for a new party. Another staff member told them to not do that as there was not enough room. The staff member left the table with a gap between ours and staff members started squeezing their way into the newly made narrow gap in an effort to serve the tables behind us. Then a staff member took the two chairs away from said table nearly hitting me in the head. To be fair, the space itself is nicely decorated and is probably quite lovely and chill during less busy hours, however, like many restaurants, they cram way to many tables in an effort to serve more customers.

As far as food, my order was pretty good, an egg white skillet with mushrooms, spinach and potatoes with pancakes. However my boyfriend was served severely undercooked scrambled eggs. They were visibly watery and unappetizing.

I realize there aren't many Sunday brunch places of a decent size in the neighborhood so it's likely to be busy at the time we went but perhaps they should reevaluate how much of their customers comfort they are willing to sacrifice in the name of...

If I could give this place more than 5 stars, I would in a heartbeat. The food is out of this world delicious (I have yet to eat anything I did not love, but the Brisket Empanadas & crab rangoon dip have captured my heart in a way no other can) and the service has always been great, but this last time was a stand out experience that I will be sharing with everyone i know.

I really love the root beer they serve here (a server told me the first time i came here that it was delicious, and they werent wrong) from Joans Soda Fountain. I was looking forward to having it ahead of my last visit, but when we went to order we were told the soda machine gun wasnt working! Our waiter was super apologetic and even offered to go get us a drink from the convenience next door. I laughed and said that he most definitely did not have to do that and water would be great. We ordered our food and 10 minutes later, the waiter comes back with two glasses of ice and a root beer that he had went to the store and got us anyways. I was floored with this act of kindness, especially on a very busy friday night. I work for a hospitality company, and the fact that he took that upon himself to do that for us completely unasked AND never charged us for it was a true act of service that did not go unnoticed. This place has true heart, and the combination of that and the delicious food has made me a...