Lola's Filipino Cafe & Mini Store

One of our favorite places for Filipino food! We occasionally come here when my husband misses his grandma's home cooking and this cafe never disappoints! The cafe is more on the smaller side but it's cozy and the customer service is always happy and friendly! When you walk inside, there's a hot bar with all the food items available that day. You can check their Facebook page for their menu each day! You can get combos like an entree and a side, two entrees and a side, etc. On the shelves near the windows, there are local Filipino desserts like crinkles, puto (rice cake), flan, etc for sale. They also sell mac salad in the fridge and some dried fish on the shelves. What I love about this cafe is that they have a small snacks/drinks/candy market next to the dining area. The dining area is a good size and faces the parking lot. On this particular Saturday, we had the following entrees and sides:Lechon (roasted pig), Kaldereta (Filipino beef stew), and some rice! The lechon pieces were big and the skin (my fav!) was crispy, salty, and golden! The meat was also juicy and not dry. What I like to do is dip the meat into some white vinegar to give it some acidity since the lechon is on the heavy side after a few bites. The Kaldereta was hearty, rich, flavorful and it reminded me of an elevated beef stew. The potatoes and carrots literally melted in my mouth! I gave my combo plate a 8.5/10! My husband had Humba (braised pork belly that is slow cooked in soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, bay leaves, fermented black beans, and sugar) and he thoroughly enjoyed it. He shared some pieces of it with me and it was smooth as butter. It was sweet and salty and his rice soaked up all the sauces. Definitely a must try! I would give it a 9/10 because the flavors were so rich and it made me want even more! The prices are reasonable for how much food you're getting! They also sell desserts like halo halo (shaved iced with fresh fruits, taro ice cream, toppings like flan, condensed milk, jellies, beans, etc.) I've personally had the halo halo and it's one of my favorites! Super refreshing on a hot summer day. They also sell mango and taro flavored cakes but you have to call in advance for whole cakes. Their cakes are light, delicious, and fluffy! I especially enjoy the mango cake because you get chunks of fresh, champagne mangoes on and inside the cake. We've been coming here for years and don't plan on stopping. My husband is a bit of a Filipino food snob at times, but Lola's definitely has a special place in his heart!They do military discounts too, FYI!

Greetings from Jacksonville. Housesitting means vacation and vacation means local-ish food!Today, it's Filipino. Never had it, and well, gonna be making a big effort to get there in December (if you knew you know).I walked in and was instantly welcomed. The shirts they had were funny "you can't scare me, my Wife (or mom) is Filipino!". I had no clue what to order so I left it up to the lady behind the counter. Pancit, rice, caldereta, and dinuguan. The pancit... rice noodles with chicken and vegetables. Well seasoned, full of flavor, and just exactly what I was hoping for. The caldereta, tasted like a good hearty stew for winters. It gave me the feeling of winter comfort food instantly. Dinuguan... which I would've said was a slow cooked pork belly that tasted like BBQ... until it was told to me that Dinuguan is pork offal, with vinegar and blood. Now, before feeling grossed out, trust me on this, IT WAS DELICIOUS! I trusted the kind woman behind the counter and she's got my trust when I go back again!I also had this calamansi drink. I love citrus, so I had to try it. Ding! WINNER! It helped cut through some of the fatty notes, balancing it all out. Before I left, I saw the karaoke machine... definitely the Filipino vibe one looked for. But the entire ambience was wonderful. Laid back, welcoming, and just relaxing. I also brought back some puto (it's a dessert, yes, I know it's a Mexican swear word). Can't wait to try that too, but I'm full now. I paid and turned to the lady behind the counter and said Salamat po (respectful thank you in Tagalog). Overall, 10/10. Fantastic service, very kind people, amazing food, and definitely a must visit next time!

Stopped by for lunch and was pleasantly surprised with the choices available. I of course got the lumpia and pancit, and tried a few of the other offerings as well ( won't attempt to spell it) but the chicken and rice was delicious. The service was quick and friendly, and I browsed the market side while they fried the lumpia fresh. I will definitely come back when the craving hits me again.

Fresh, authentic, droolworthy, savory, well-seasoned, delectable... my husband & I just had the best adobo chicken, pancit, chicken siopao, & lumpia!What a great place to get some Filipino delicacies! Jessica & Joey, thank you for your cooking talents, combos offered, fully-stocked/mini store of delights, the well-displayed/baked goods, & friendly faces!Extra Pros:*reasonably-priced*large parking lot*lumpia cooked to order*clean establishment

Loved the pork adobo! Beef Tagalog was good, too much gravy for me though. Pancit was good, would have liked it a little heated. Also had a fried banana that was really good and their lumpia tasted like there was a hint of banana

A friend recommended this place to us. We were on the hunt for crispy pata. A dish my parents were craving. I called and they said they could make it to order and it would take an hour. We were coming from the other side of town so we placed the order and headed that way. Took us almost an hour to get there but it was ready when we walked in. They had other dishes cooked and ready for purchase as well. We grabbed a fried tilapia, drinks, and a few filipino snacks as well. Besides the cooked food, they have a little shop on the side too. Snacks, canned goods, frozen foods, and even traditional Filipino clothing. The owners were pleasant and very helpful. Crispy Pata was amazing! Definitely worth the drive.

This is a small Filipino cafeteria (carinderia) and grocery store. You order hot prepared dishes, pay, and take your food into the dining room next door. We got Lechon paksiw with rice ($11.50). My wife really liked it; for me it was a bit too rich, and seemed to have a lot of skin in it, which I'm not a fan of. That dish was pure meat, so, to get some vegetables with our meal, I got a bowl of chicken curry ($6.75) too. The chicken curry had potatoes and carrots in it. It was decent, but not something I'd get again. We also got a leche flan for $7. It was pretty good (I always like leche flan): the sauce was nice, but it was drier than I'm used to. In all, we spent $28.01, more than I expected, but we did take about half of it home. The owners were nice. They have a smallish selection of Filipino groceries next to the dining room. The dining room was simple but roomy and I was comfortable there. You bus your own tables. The bathroom was decent, though with some room for improvement (e.g. no paper towels in the dispenser). Personally, I probably wouldn't go back, but my wife liked it and would go back if we were in the area.

Hard to find authentic food like this anywhere around here!! These people go out of their way to give only the best that represents who they are and where they come from!!

After seeing many good reviews for Lola's who is in my town I decided it was time to stop on over and show some support. They had a great variety of items to choose from. I spy the chicken curry. It had a deep broth and lite vegies like carrots. Large chicken parts but could not see what parts so I decided that's what I will try. I hoped it would not be a watch out for the bones experience.As I started my meal by putting the CC into a bigger bowl and saw the big parts were breast meat. Immediately that broth was a taste explosion and after trusting there was no bones I devoured the curry dish and wished I had bought a large :(. The curry was light and not spicy or over salted. Just right. So now definitely need to get back quickly and get more but also try some of their other fresh made dishes.

The food was amazing. The employees were very friendly. Cute cozy little place. I definitely will return