Updated February 2016
There are now several food parks in the Maginhawa area, but the original one that started the trend back in 2013 is the collective of food stalls known as Z Compound or “The Z”, which can be found in the garden area of an old house on #33A Malingap Street. The Zone has a good mix of budget-friendly and unique quality food, making this one of our favorites in the area. It’s also one of the most bike-friendly places to eat in the area, since you can park your rides inside.
The best thing about eating here with a group is you can mix and match your food and order the best dishes and drinks from different stalls. Since my blogpost on Maginhawa: The Eat Street has been getting too long and unwieldy to update, here’s a separate guide to all the food stalls you can find in this friendly neighborhood food park.
- Address: Z Compound. 33A Malingap, Teacher’s Village, 1101 Quezon City, Philippines
- Facebook: Z Compound
- Contact number: 0919-8161699
Stalls:
- Meshwe (Lebanese Shawarma)
- Me Love You Long Time (Thai & Vietnamese)
- Samu Eats (Japanese)
- Bochic (Pulled Pork)
- Hijo de Pita (Mexican)
- BBQ Zone (Grill & Steaks)
- Stoner’s Soul Food to Go (Soul Food)
- The Backyard Reservoir (Pizza/Pasta)
- Bagneto (Bagnet rice meals)
- Eats Saasta (Finger foods & rice meals)
- Monster Rice (Rice bowls)
- Sweet Scoop (Ice cream, milkshakes & milk tea)
- Cocktails + Drinks (bar)
- Fat Zach Cusine (Sizzlers & sandwiches)
- Hierro (Filipino, pasta & frappes)
Pizza from Backyard Reservoir, Hummus & pita bread from Meshwe, Vietnamese Spring Rolls from Me Love You Long Time & Strawberry Shake from Chamba Juice by Burger Hub
Table of Contents
MESHWE
- Type of cuisine: Authentic Lebanese Shawarma and Middle Eastern fare
- Recommended dishes: Beef Shawarma, Shawarma Rice Plates with Bukhari Rice, Hummus, Arabic Fries, Falafel Sandwich (vegetarian) Muhallabia (Creamy rose flavored milk pudding topped with Crushed Pistachios), Mango Yoghurt Shake, Chicken Tenders
- Price range: P100+ per dish
- Restaurant hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 3:00PM-10:00PM; Sunday – 4:00PM- 10:00PM; Monday – Closed
- Facebook: Meshwe, Tel. no: 0927-6638764
The most popular of the restaurants in the complex, Meshwe serves authentic Lebanese Shawarma and Middle Eastern fare. We’ve been eating here almost every week since they opened to get our shawarma fix. Everything on their menu is great. Come early to avoid running out of food because they sometimes get sold out especially during weekends.
Beef Shawarma Sandwich
Muhallabia (Creamy rose flavored milk pudding topped with Crushed Pistachios)
BURGER HUB
- Type of cuisine: Burgers
- Recommendations: Juicy J’s Burger, Hungarian Sausages, Raspberry Fishbowl Iced Tea, Avocado Shake, Strawberry Shake
- Price range: P150 for burgers & fries. P80 for Iced Tea (good for 4)
- Restaurant hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 4:00 pm to 10:00 pm
- Facebook: Burger Hub
Burger joint that serves grilled burgers and sausages. Pretty decent size and affordable price since one order comes with a side of fries. They also serve fruit shakes, smoothies and fishbowl iced tea by Chamba Juice.
SAMU EATS
- Type of cuisine: Japanese
- Recommended dishes: Chicken Teriyaki Rice Bowl, Japanese Tofu & Bacon, SPAM Musubi, Tempura, Salmon Sashimi
- Price range: P120+ for rice meals
- Restaurant hours: Monday 11 am to 10 pm, Wednesday to Thursday 11 am to 10 pm, Friday to Sunda 11 am to 10:30 pm, Closed on Tuesdays
- Facebook Page: Samu Eats
Samu Eats serves sushi, sashimi, tempura, ramen and some rice meals like katsu curry and teriyaki. Good meals at an affordable price. 
ME LOVE YOU LONG TIME (MLYLT)
- Type of cuisine: Southeast Asian
- Recommended dishes: Pad Thai, Vietnamese Spring Rolls, Satay, Thai Iced Coffee, Pho, Ban Mi
- Price range: P99 for Pad Thai, P79 for spring rolls, P59 chicken satay (3 pcs.)
- Restaurant hours: Monday: 3 pm to 10:30, Wednesday to Sunday: 3pm to 10:30; Closed on Tuesday
- Facebook Page: Me Love You Long Time
Me Love You Long Time (MLYLT) serves Southeast Asian cuisine, specifically some Vietnamese and Thai dishes. Very clean flavors & authentic tasting dishes at an affordable price. For those who don’t get the reference, the resto was named after a phrase popularized by the movie Full Metal Jacket. They also have a second branch in StrEAT Food Park along Maginhawa.
THE BACKYARD RESERVOIR
- Type of cuisine: Italian, Pizza & Pasta, Sandwiches, Wine
- Recommended dishes: Latonioni (cream sauce, bacon and herbs) pasta, Pepperoni Pizza, Zucchini Chips, Bruschetta, Pastrami Sandwich
- Price range: P125-135 for sandwiches, P120-145 for pasta, P180 for pizza
- Restaurant hours: Monday to Sunday, 11 am to 11 pm
- Facebook: The Backyard Reservoir
An artsy looking space that serves pasta dishes, pizza, sandwiches, wine & iced tea. The bestseller is the “Latonioni” made with cream sauce, bacon & herbs. Nice laid-back vibe makes you feel like you’re just hanging out in your backyard. Look out for the cute cats that like to hang around the tables there.
STONER’S SOUL FOOD TO GO
- Type of cuisine: Soul food
- Sample dishes: Buttermilk Drumettes, Chicken Wings, Fish & Chips, Calamares, Jalapeno Poppers, Corn Dogs and Fried Oreos, Root Beer Float
- Price range: P65 – P135 per dish; P80 for rootbeer float
- Restaurant hours: Wednesdays to Mondays 12 nn to 10pm on weekdays and until 11 pm on Fridays and Saturdays
- Facebook: Stoners Soul Food to Go
Stoner’s Soul Food to Go, which resembles a small vintage diner, specializes in deep fried comfort food and snacks like buttermilk chicken drumsticks and calamares.
BBQ ZONE
- Type of cuisine: BBQ/grilled dishes/beer
- Recommended dishes: T-bone Steak, BBQ with rice, Sisig, Liempo
- Price range: Meals are P99+, beer (San Mig Light, Pale, Red Horse) is P50
- Restaurant hours: Monday to Saturday 11 am to 10 pm (closed Sundays)
- Facebook: BBQ Zone, Tel. no: 0927691283
BBQ Zone serves a few grilled Pinoy dishes like inasal, liempo, bbq & tilapia, sizzling dishes and steaks. They also serve local beer, but you can order drinks from them even if you eat in one of the other places.
FAT ZACH CUISINE *NEW*
- Type of cuisine: Sizzlers, sandwiches and appetizers
- Sample dishes: Pritson Manok, Pritson Liempo, Spicy Seafood, Beef & Mushroom, Philly CheeseSteak, Shrimp Chips
- Price range: P70-P175 per dish
The newest stall to open in Z Compond, Fat Zach Cuisine serves sizzling meals, sandwiches and appetizers. Specialties include Pritson Liempo and Priston Manok (slow roasted pork and chicken that’s fried before serving).
HIERRO *NEW*
- Type of cuisine: Filipino, frappes, coolers
- Sample dishes: Pasta Negra, Arroz Valenciana Negra rice, Adobong pusit, Dinuguan, Tsokolate, Kape, Black Gulaman
- Price range: P75-P180 per dish
EATS SAASTA
- Type of cuisine: Finger food and Rice meals
- Sample dishes: Spam Fries, Cheese Logs, Mushroom ala Pobre, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Baked Cheesy Chix Rice, Beef Salpicao, Beef Tapa Rice
- Restaurant hours: Open Monday to Saturdays from 3pm-11pm
- Facebook: Eats SAASTA
A stall on the second floor of BBQ Zone that serves appetizers and affordable rice meals.
BAGNETO
- Type of cuisine: Asian Fusion
- Recommended dishes: Bagnet Bicol Express, Bagnet Kare-Kare, Bagnet Sisig
- Price range: P129 for rice meals
- Restaurant hours: Monday 5 pm – 10 pm, Wednesday to Sunday 5 pm to 10 pm; Closed Tuesday
- Facebook: Bagneto
Bagneto serves affordable rice meals with bagnet as the main ingredient. Plus points for the creative name & logo of the place.
BOCHIC BISTRO
- Type of cuisine: Pork dishes, reinvented
- Sample dishes: Pulled pork bun, pulled pork rice and Bochic with rice, Beer Candied Bacon, Lemongrass Cooler
- Price range: P69 to P89
- Restaurant Hours: Monday to Sunday 12 nn – 12 pm
- Facebook: BoChic Bistro
Bochic, which operates in a container van turned kitchen and restaurant, serves dishes focused on turbo broiled pork crisps. You can choose your own sauce (BBQ, Spicy Buffalo, Pesto, Wasabi & Teriyaki) to go with your meal.
HIJO D’ PITA
- Type of cuisine: Tex-Mex
- Recommended dishes: Chupacabra Devil Dog, Mexican Rice
- Price range: P88-100+
- Restaurant hours: Always open
- Facebook page: Hijo D’ Pita, Tel. No: 0915-8870977
A Mexican Pita Shop that serves beef and chicken in pita bread, and some light Tex-Mex fare like nachos and chili con carne. They’re one of the few places in the area open 24 hours, 7 days a week.
MONSTER RICE
- Type of cuisine: Rice bowls
- Sample dishes: Aligue Rice, Bagoong Rice, Ham & Bacon, Mongolian Rice
- Price range: P100-P120 per dish
BEVERAGES / DESSERTS
SWEET SCOOP
- Type of cuisine: Ice cream, milk shakes and milk tea bar
- Sample drinks: Avocado Ice Cream, Mint Choco Chip Milkshake, Wintermelon Milk Tea, Halo Halo, Banana Splt, Crepes, Brownies ala Mode
A dessert and drink stall that serves ice cream, milkshakes, milk tea and ice cream specials.
COCKTAILS + DRINKS
- Type of cuisine: Bar/Drinks
- Drinks: San Mig Premium Beer (P75), San Miguel Light Flavored Beer Apple and Lemon (P50), Brew Kettle (P65), Carafe Cocktails, Whisky Sour, Screw Driver
CLOSED: Health Break, Eats Good Hong Kong Street Food, Lucky Noodles Dismum & Noodle House, Cuckooh Puffs
I actually like Malingap St more than Maginhawa because it’s shorter and more “walkable.” The restaurants are concentrated in a certain area lang tapos marami rin namang choices (all-day bfast, Persian food, Pinoy food, etc.).
We tried walking along Maginhawa kasi one time as in from Grill Queen hanggang Van Gogh at nalipasan na kami ng gutom :p Ang ending eh sa Malingap din kami kumain.
BF also used to live on Malingap St. (noong wala pa talagang mga kainan, ca. 2006-2011) kaya it has a special place in our hearts hehe. Kung kelan naman siya umalis saka nagsulputan ‘yung mga kainan.
P.S. Napaka-informative lagi ng iyong mga posts. Keep up the great work 🙂 <3
Hi Tria, I agree on the walkability factor of Malingap. It’s just gotten really crowded there lately. But I remember a few years ago when there weren’t any restos in the area. We would usually end up in Philcoa with the fast food joints or Ministop :p It’s great that there are so many great options now.
This is just a stone’s throw away from my place (Mahabagin). Samu Eats is love. I even get the chance to have a small talk and a fantard pic with 8 Toleran (owner of Samu Eats/Guitarist of Quezo) 🙂
Hi!! Your post is very informative, thank you so much! Planning to visit this Friday. Do you any idea about sa parking area nila? Parang other restos ba na sa harap lang din mismo magpapark? ?
Hi Jhem. Yes, parking is just along the street but it can get crowded during Fridays and weekends.
Thank you for this post 😀 Matagal tagal na rin kaming palibot libot ng boyfriend ko sa Maginhawa para mag-date, ngayon may bagong food adventure na naman kaming idi-discover. Thank you ulit!!! 😀 Sana may map rin gaya ng sa maginhawa post mo. :”) Excited na kami ni boyfriend mag-explore sa Malingap dahil sa post mo! 😀
Hi Bianca, a reader volunteered to make those maps pero naging busy siya to do the updates. Malingap is easy enough to navigate since it’s a shorter street. All the restos in this post are just in one complex. 🙂
Hello po! Meron ba na tricycle na sakyan kaysa lakad ka sa Maginhawa St?
Ano po ang suggestion nyo una ko try na restaurant? Pag weekends ba mas busy kaysa weekdays, so anong weekday maganda pumunta na hindi madaming tao? Salamat po.
Hi Vhin. Yes, may tricycle terminals (take the orange trike) at Philcoa or Savemore in V. Luna extension. Mas busy pag weekends siyempre. Maraming sarado na restos on Mondays. Best time to go would be Tuesday or Wednesday. I rated my recommended restos with stars in this post.