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Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, American (Traditional), Filipino
Neighborhood: Ukrainian VillageChili's® Grill & Bar is as bold and flavorful as the food it serves. The energetic, fun atmosphere makes it the perfect spot for a... more »
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If you're craving a Filipino breakfast come to this spot ... Loganiza, tocino, they have it all. If you want more vinegar with garlic, they'll bring it out. The owner made us a special fish dish completely off the menu with your typical Filipino side that you eat the fish with. It has tomatoes, onions and mango... and of course fish sauce!! I generally dislike Filipino food cooked anywhere except my own kitchen or my mom's kitchen, but Uncle Mike's does it right.
go here, eat, you'll love it
Uncle Mike's is hands down, one of the best breakfast/diner experiences I've had. The food is good AND doesn't make me feel sick later. The servers are friendly and the coffee man is ATTENTIVE. :)
I'd personally recommend you ask to have your hash browns well done, cuz the default is pretty soft. Also, their sausage patties are better than their links. Finally, if you order toast (AND they have raisin toast by the way - a personal indication of a great b-fast place), you have to ask them to put butter on it, if you want butter on it. Otherwise, they bring you dry toast and it's cooled off by then, to the point that the "cold" butter packets on the table don't melt into it.
Also, if you're adventurous they have Filipino breakfast specials - which can be a fun change.
ALSO also - if you come for lunch, anyone ordering a lunch in house, gets a free soup - and they make their soup there! I've only been there for lunch once (-it's a breakfast haunt for me), and didn't know about the soup thing - and they gave me a chicken noodle and I was like, "meh - chicken noodle is boring" - but my mom made me try it and it was actually one of the most delicious chicken soups I've ever had.
YUM.
I love small, no-frill diners. What makes this place stand out for me is the fact that they not only offer a regular American breakfast, but a great Filipino breakfast as well! As a first gen Fil-Am, this makes me very, very happy (plus I don't know how to cook this stuff).
The Filipino breakfast consists of longaniza (Filipino version of chorizo/sausage) or tocino (cured pork - sweet flavor) or a combination of both; add that to eggs any style with garlic fried rice and VOILA! There it is. A taste of mom's cooking.
The longaniza is cooked just as I like it; the tocino is a bit on the greasy side. Over-easy for my eggs - they were great. The garlic fried rice is heavy on the garlic, so make sure you have some spearmint gum or a toothbrush handy.
My whole plate was covered with food; I usually take home the rest of my breakfast and have it for lunch. For me, it tastes great any time of day!
Service is fast and friendly. As soon as the folks there realized that my friend and I were becoming regulars, we got some freebies --- bacon, donuts (you know, healthy stuff).
Of course, there's more to the menu than the Filipino breakfast (which is actually not printed on the menu, but written on the chalkboard). I took my bf here and he was pretty happy with the regular American breakfast.
Street parking is easy to find, which is great when you're starving and in no mood to drive around.
I know I'll be back - but maybe I need to do my body a favor and get my cholesterol checked first!
Uncle Mike's is a trusty brunch spot. Always consistent service and food. We go there when we want a no frills breakfast. No, you're not going to find flavored coffee creamer or fresh squeezed OJ, but you also will never find a wait or an absent server.
Their "classic" breakfast is a great deal. It comes with a giant plate of fresh fruit (plenty for two)- plus eggs, breakfast meat and toast. They have english muffins too which I find a big plus.
The folks are nice, the coffee is hot, and there's always a chair waiting for you. Good job, Uncle Mike.
By far one of my favorite breakfast food places in Chicago. What separates this place from almost every other place is that the food has a Filipino flavor to it - the owners wife is Filipino...so it makes sense that me being Filipino I naturally love this place.
I ordered skirt steak with Filipino style garlic fried rice and 2 eggs - delicious. Not only did we get our food, the owner himself, Uncle (Tito) Mike came out to give us extra garlic fried rice for the whole table...how great is that? It help when you've been here several times and your friend knows one of the servers.
So not only is the food great the service and owner are awesome - hence the very high review. If there's one place you have to try in Chicago this is definitely one of them. This is a regular spot for me now!
My whole experience was just okay. I entered thru the front door to find a private party going on and no place to stand or move. I was unsure where to go or how to get a table. Finally someone came up to me and told me there were tables in the back. Ok cool. Got to the back and was a little put off I guess you can say. It just looked messy in the back. Smelled a little funky because our table was next to many containers full of flowers. Service was spotty, it took a bit to get a waitress.
Food came out fairly quickly, my turkey club sandwich was really good and my Mom had breakfast with eggs, bacon and hash browns and she said it was good. It took some quite some time to get our check, our waitress just kept walking past us and we couldn't stop her. Finally got the check and I didnt know if we were supposed to pay at a register or pay her. Eventually we just gave up and left the money on the table with the receipt and walked away. As we were leaving we saw the back door and went out that way. Apparently this was the door we were supposed to enter thru because there was a mini sign saying mentioning the private party in front, regular customers in the back.
Anyways, I would probably come back, they had a huge menu and the food itself was good an decent priced.
Totally meh. Mismatched silverware. Cluttered, exposed storage in the back area. Seems a bit dirty also. Maybe it's just the neighborhood?
Yes, props for the longanisa (but not so much for the fact that you'll be burping it for the next 6 hours. hehe) and spam.
But honestly, after just walking in, I kind of lost my appetite. If Uncle Mike's cleaned up their act a little bit, maybe I'd come back, but for now, I'll stick w/ spam and longanisa at my mom's house. ;-)
First, I'll premise this with : I had been out REALLY late the night before. I actually went to this place wearing the same clothes I wore to the outing the night before.
It started off innocently enough. I was invited by two dear friends to have a "glass of wine"...which turned into a bottle of wine by myself, with no dinner on my stomach.
I ended up konking out at said friends house. Wake up in the morning to a brisk walk with his dog, and coffee at some cute little coffee shop served by a very devoted coffee shop owner.
Then the suggestion of breakfast at Uncle Mike's place.
I would have driven right past it, its kind of tucked away on Grand. The interior looks like the place had seen its hay day years and years ago - wood paneled walls, and a little serving counter.
Then I had to pee, and realized the place extended back really far. I would have loved to see this hidden gem hopping with business. There were about 15 other people inside, besides us.
I had the spinach and swiss omlette. Super yum! It was perfect, and so was the bottomless cup of coffee. They kept offering refills on it, as well as the ice water. It was nice to be taken care of. It came with toast and a side of hashbrowns, which were actually pretty good.
One of my friends asked for hot sauce, and they actually had a selection for him to choose from. Bonus points!
The bill came, and it wasn't that expensive for 3 people. I enjoyed the atmosphere, and the conversation I had while there. It wasn't loud - we left through the front entrance, which I didn't even notice when we arrived, as we came in a side door (as did most people).
I'd suggest Uncle Mike's for the perfect hang over breakfast. Not that I had a hangover. Being a virgin and all, I know when I've had enough to drink.
Short and sweet- off the menu Pilipino breakfast!! I was craving longanisa and tocino for weeks after coming here.
Perfect diner experience. Met my grandpa and dad here for brunch last weekend. It was important that the meeting place had "normal food" as my dad put it. Meaning, my grandpa lived on the south side and went to the same diner for 20 years every day for breakfast - eggs and sausage and coffee. The other requirement was that we didn't have to wait long to get in, my grandpas old, yo.
It worked out great! Food was as to be expected. To be honest, it's not really my cup of tea, swiss cheese omelette and spinach. Obviously just slices of swiss layered in there. Coffee was kind of weak, in that gas station coffee way.
But whatever, again, great place to meet family, no frills, cheap, great service, plenty of parking. I have sneaking suspicion my Grandpa is going to be requesting more rides up to the north side.
Amazing food, and amazing service, one of the BEST breakfast spots i've been too
This diner is a great find in Uki Village! Food is very flavorful and the serving size is very generous for the small price. I got the chicken pita wrap and it was an Asian style pita with homemade fries. Even though this place has a Filipino breakfast, it is not a Filipino restaurant, as the selection of Filipino food stops at the one breakfast option. The day we went there they had a spread of food out for anyone to take because it was left over from the owners daughter's wedding and they were not charging anyone for their food. That's right, we got free appetizers and a FREE meal! In this economy, that just doesn't happen. Not only was the food good, but the staff was sincere and happy to be there. I will def go back to this spot for a cheap and quick bite to eat!
My sister has been the hype machine for this place ever since she was introduced to it probably like 2-3 years ago. She has been trying to get my family to go here to try to Filipino breakfast the entire time but we live in the burbs while she's in the city. Since my friend and I had time before a wedding yesterday, we decided to grab food with my sister to see what all the hub bub was about. It did not disappoint.
THE GOOD: So I hate it when people hype things up to me. I'm the type of person who gets overly excited when someone tries to talk up a movie, a food dish, a restaurant, etc. So my expectations tend to be through the roof and I'm always disappointed (except for one thing, "The Hangover"). This place is pretty damn good. Apparently I have to go with my sister everytime since she's a regular and knows all the ins and outs of what they have. Every entree comes with soup, but through my sister's request, the waitress gave us arroz caldo, a rice soup with chicken, ginger, and garlic. It was good but lacked a lil flavor. Still pretty good for a diner though. I had the marinated skirt steak, eggs, and garlic fried rice while my sister had the tocino, and my friend had the Monte Cristo that they serve with syrup instead of jelly. Tocino was probably the highlight of the meal. Straight up tender and flavorful. Better than what my grandmas used to make since they would char the hell outta it. Steak was great too. Made the way I like it which is medium rare, it pretty much was the entire plate and was only $13. My friend had the Monte Cristo was really good, but I didn't try it. It looked hearty with the amount of ham they put inbetween the 2 pieces of french toast. The service was very attentive. I drink a lot of liquids and probably had like 4 refills for diet coke that our waitress did pretty quick without even having to be asked. The environment was nice and quiet even with it being 2/3rds full. I hate loud places and I actually had a confortable conversation with my sister and could hear the high class comedy stylings of my friend Justin S.
THE BAD: The garlic fried rice actually wasn't that good. I've had it better in other places, and it seemed to lack flavor. It pretty much tasted like burnt rice with salt.
THE UGLY: There actually isn't an ugly to this. That's how good this place is.
Good place, Great food, and hopefully you get a chance to see Uncle Mike because he's pretty cool too.
Uncle Mike's is good. Not great, and probably not worth a trip all the way from the burbs. I had the Filipino breakfast with the tocino, but I also got a chance to try the longanisa as well. They had the red kind of longanisa which is a huge plus in my book. If it were just an American breakfast, I would say the portion size was good. However, I'm used to those large, neverending Filipino portion sizes, and so I felt a little unfulfilled with the size of my plate. I can do with a set amount of eggs and meat, but I felt the garlic fried rice portion did not seem like much. Now if they had a family style Filipino breakfast option, that might change my outlook. Until then, I'm better of making my own breakfast. Their fruit plate, though, was huge, which was a big plus.
Our server was friendly and attentive. She kept my coffee cup filled (which, while a good thing, I find annoying because it throws off my cream/sweetener ratio) I am willing to come back to try the marinated skirt steak!
By the way, Uncle Mike has added actual tocino and longanesa to the menu for breakfast. Both quite authentic to standard Filipino breakfast! For those who haven't tried it before, I highly recommend trying tocino... delicious... and the longanesa may be too fatty for those who aren't used to a fairly fatty sausages... but oh so good! Comes with diced tomatos with salt, traditional to authentic breakfast in the Phillippines so I'm told.
Take advantage of it while you can, as I'm not sure that it will be a permenant add to the menu, though the waitress assured me it will not be leaving the specials menu any time soon.
Yum!
After much rave about the tocino like skirt steak and garlic rice, I grabbed my Filipino fiancee and… Read more »
It's Okay, not sure what the big hype is, but its JUST OK.
Just because there are a few Filipino items on the menu doesn't make it the best place ever.
The first time I went here, brought my Flipino parents along and Uncle Mike definitely hooked it up with some stuff that wasn't on the menu. He was really friendly and made us feel at home. He was Tito Mike by the time we left.
Been there a couple times after that, never saw Tito Mike again or received the service we did the first time.
Garlic fried rice is not crispy enough, not fried enough. Please becareful when you say you want fried rice because one time they came out with chinese fried rice...errr?
It is a little expensive for breakfast/lunch.
The West Town portion of Grand Ave. is a little weird. Like constipation... it wants to happen but it just can't.
Even though it's no place for a bar crawl, Grand Ave. has joints worth checking out and Uncle Mike's in one of these.
Interestingly this little corner joint has ties to the Philippines (one can order a Filipino breakfast) and perhaps also Guam (notice Guamanian license plates affixed to the wall)... in other words, if you're into Spam this is the spot for you.
Now I know that hating on spam is like shooting fish in a barrel but allow me to say this - I've gladly eaten multiple portions of Haggis but I'm unashamed to say that the dreaded reconstituted pre-cooked meat product has never crossed my lips. I mean, I'd probably eat it if there were money involved but it definitely falls into my "bizarre regional cuisine" category. Like mint jelly or poutine.
Thankfully you can get a good, honest American greaseball breakfast here. Their hashbrowns are part of a well-balanced hangover cure. I was also pleased by the low lighting and the prompt service. Pretty much on par with Sunrise Cafe, not far off, but sometimes you just need a change of scenery. There was a lovely used-car dealership (specializing in defunct CPD cruisers) to look out at while I was enjoying my buttery, multigrain toast. Lovely Grand Ave.
Ok. Well went here after a night of drinking with the sis and got the filipino breakfast.
Got the tocino which to be honest is good, but I guess felt very much like what I can have my mom make for me. Their garlic fried rice is good, but not unlike any other I've had.
It was a very traditional filipino breakfast, but sorry Uncle Mike. Nothing stood out too much for the food.
It does seem like a nice neighborhood place and I did like the service so that is always a plus.
We headed here with some friends who were in from out of town, and I have to say, Uncle Mike's made all of our hungover tummies very happy!
This is your basic diner - eggs, pancakes, sandwiches, and coffee. Walking in here is a trip - it looks like it came straight out of the 70s with the tiled walls and odd wooden tables. I kept expecting to see carpet on the walls and servers in leisure suits. It cracks me up to read that they've remodeled - I can't imagine what this place looked like before this!
The food here was very tasty and cheap. This isn't health food, nor does it try to be. I had the farmer's breakfast, which was a big mashup of potatoes, eggs, veggies, and cheese. Dee-lish! The rest of the table seemed pretty happy with their omelettes too. I'm glad we found a cheap brunch option in the neighborhood.
I wanted to try this place due to the recommendation of my roommate. She told me that they served Filipino breakfast. Being the terrible Filipino I am, I had no idea what that meant, and had to find out.
The two menu items in question were the Loganiza and Tocino. I have never had either, and chose the Tocino. Our food came quickly enough, and I was pleased to see a large pile of meat on my plate next to the eggs and garlic fried rice. I have never had garlic fried rice either, and I was surprised at the pungency of it, but I think it worked well with the Tocino, which was carmelised and sweet.
I will definitely be back.
This is Chicago's version of that small hometown diner that people miss when they find themselves at the many golden nuggets and IHOPs around the city.
The coffee is totally acceptable, the pancakes are as good as they get, the service is prompt and the Filipino breakfast is pretty awesome. The strangely pink meat (bacon) is slightly glazed, served with garlic rice, eggs, and something like a pico de gallo. It left us waking up and uttering, 'Uncle Mikes' on many weekends since we've first tried it.
Good breakfast is good.
I've been here a handful of times and enjoy it. The first time I went the food was good, second time not as good and the most recent trip it was back to good.
It's a diner. They have diner coffee, decent breakfast, the servers are nice and the place is dripping with character.
Honestly I'd so much rather go to a place like this over the stand out on the curb and wait 2 hours brunch place routine.
Check it out if you're in the neighborhood, definitely worth the trip.
Pretty solid breakfast place. The marinated skirt steak is awesome if you like steak and eggs for breakfast. I'm not sure about the Filipino selections on the menu, I haven't tried them, but I haven't been disappointed with anything on the menu. On the lunch side, I had a grilled cheese with Swiss and fresh jalapenos that was awesome, and a bacon cheeseburger that was really tasty. The service is good, they keep your coffee cup full.
I didn't think this place was anything special. After being told that their meat delivery did not come that morning (although disappointing, it encouraged me to think that they get fresh meat,) our options were limited. I got the Santa Fe omelet, which was good, as were the home fries...but, if you mess that up then your breakfast license should be revoked. I was looking forward to something different like the fillipino stuff mentioned, but there was none of that. Also, I would have gotten the marinated steak, but I had steak last night.
Given the options (read: its a diner) and the quality I would say 4 or 5 stars, but the price doesn't seem to go with it...it ended up being $20 for 2 omelets and 2 waters and for a place like this I expected cheaper.
Cute little place. Went here for Sunday brunch--great service and awesome food.
Our server was amazing--super friendly and refilled our coffee 8 times that I remember. The food was great as well, I mean nothing raving but I'm a sucker for breakfast foods so if it's done right, I'm an automatic fan.
Cozy, neighborhood spot.
THEY HAVE TOCINO AND LONGANIZA ON THE "MENU"!!!!!!
At least they did today.
In case you don't know why I used all caps: http://en.wikipedia.or...
Something about the marinated skirt steak is just magical. It's actually marinated like tocino -- a… Read more »
Here's how last Sunday went:
me to boyfriend: Come on, wake up we're going to get brunch
boyfriend: what's the point? You always pick a place that sucks
me: You know what? I do pick good places but you're really f-ing difficult because you're a picky diva-ass chef and you don't leave the house until 2 and guess what? Most places close at 2 on Sundays!
boyfriend: No, I just want good food. It doesn't matter that I'm a chef
me: get your f-ing ass out of bed now because I'm starving and you know that I turn into a crazy biatch when I'm not fed.
So after searching through Yelp, I stumbled upon the reviews for Uncle Mike's and dragged my boyfriend's ass out of the house to get brunch. I don't know how the wait usually is on the weekends since we walked in pretty late in the afternoon (they're open till 3 on Sundays, score!) but we were able to sit right away. I had a craving for corned beef hash so I ordered that while my man knew he wanted the Filipino breakfast as soon as he walked in and saw the chalkboard. Honestly, my corned beef has was just OK (minus one star) but the Filipino breakfast was AMAZING. When the waitress came over she said to eat the neon pink meat with the vinegar onion dipping sauce because it balances out the flavor. She was definitely right, the meat was delicious by itself but with the sauce it was even better. It also came with garlic fried rice and eggs so it was a large, filling breakfast. I loved Uncle Mike's Place because Brunch was gourmet enough for my snooty chef boyfriend and came with bargain diner prices. I will definitely be going back.
I don't know why It took me so long to discover this place. I am only 4 blocks away and always in search of diners and cheap breakfast spots. I read about the Filipino breakfast specials and couldn't believe it was so close. I've never seen a diner with Filipino food on the menu (I am Filipino, btw). My husband and I had the corned beef hash and also the garlic fried rice with longaniza. It was amazing!
The food is good, the people are very nice, there was no wait (huge plus in Wicker Park area) and they have three different hot sauces to choose from!
I will definitely be back here!!
I came here with my boyfriend during the snowstorm last week. We were purposely seated away from the front door. We soon discovered that a ghost haunts this diner and likes to open and close the door.
We had coffee and I ordered an egg sandwich with bacon and an OJ. My bf ordered an omelette and a bagel. Too bad I ate his bagel. I like that they give you an abundance of coffee creams and butter and the butter was soft so you could actually spread it. I was going to steal some creamer but I prefer to steal Hollywood Grill creamer, as it comes in flavors.
The meal was standard diner food. I mean, it's eggs. I'm sure if I had ordered a skirt steak I would have some positive/negative critiquing. The staff here is really friendly and the service is prompt.
I think our bill came close to $30 and they didn't seem to mind when your boyfriend who has OCD, has to rearrange all the butters so the corners just barely touch each other creating a perfect hexagon in the middle, before you can leave.
For the price and the quality I without a doubt give Uncle Mike's five stars. The atmosphere was perfect, in such a not so perfect, ordinary americana kinda way, get it?
It has everything you want out of a real city diner, still with a neighborhood feel and not (yet) taken over by the yuppies or hipsters.
The food was, for me, perfect diner fare. My fruit plate had very generous amounts of fresh cantaloupe, strawberries, bananas, grapes, pineapple, watermelon, etc, it was huge and on a large plate! The fruit plate was an additional cost of about 3 bucks to my eggs, bacon and toast.
The toast was good, great, thick slices, toasted thoroughly and not soaked in butter. The bacon wasn't floppy and fatty and greasy, it was thick, good quality and very flavorful. The hashbrowns were cooked well done as I asked and weren't too greasy either, but I noticed I didn't need to order them custom. I usually order them well done so I'm not biting into half cooked potatoes that are slimy or starchy... my friend didn't order them well done and he got exactly what I expect out of hashbrowns. The eggs could have been cooked how I requested, but I think our waitress was kinda new and fresh.
The two of us paid $23 (before the tip) for 2 coffees, great bacon, egg, toast, hashbrown breakfast and a huge fruit plate to split. (well worth it)
I like coffee to taste good. This coffee was mediocre (which is 5 stars for a diner.) I drink good coffee black. This stuff: I only had to add a little cream. Don't expect an espresso machine or super trendy wall decor. It's old school, with cans of spam proudly on display!
Odd side note: My friend and I also got to experience a rude grumpy old man, who's apparently a regular telling the waitress he wanted to punch her after he changed his toast order four times! He also took toast off another table to show the server what he wanted. Everyone, including the waitress, seemed amused by his cranky antics though and just sorta waved him off as 'that guy,' a fixture.
Sure maybe I'm putting a lot into a simple breakfast place, but it's my favorite meal of the week and such a part of our tradition, the big american breakfast. It's what I romanticize in a real diner and rarely get it: the atmosphere, the bottomless coffee, the formica bar and stools, the regulars, the seemingly apathetic but super focused busy and helpful waitress.
yeah I get this excited about eggs and bacon
I grew up just north of Uncle Mike's, and this spot's been been a second home to me since leaving Chicago. I've brought my entire family here; Sunday brunch is tradition among my friends.
- There's always (street) parking. It does get busy, but I've never had trouble getting a table.
- Mom, who's picky about her coffee, always has at least four cups.
- Large servings whether at 5:30am or 3:30pm.
- The marinated skirt steak is a must. If you're a fan of Filipino Tocino, and its combo, Tocilog, ask for garlic fried rice and eggs. There's some debate over whether you actually get more meat with a half-skirt or a full-skirt (width vs. length), but I always order the full. I was a steak and eggs regular prior to learning of the marinated skirt steak.
- My nice and nephew love the pancakes and went nutty over the (large) fruit plate.
Finally, you can't go wrong with a place that's been servicing the community for about a century (as I've heard it--a diner since WWII and before that, a general store). It has survived every other diner spot on Grand from Ashland to the Patch, and remains a true working class mom-n-pop establishment.
First off they have a giant penguin flag on the front door that looks exactly like the penguin from the "Banana Splits" show so they got that going for them.
Ended up here on a Sunday afternoon after going through a laundry list of lame one-named brunch places that sounded crowded and expensive.
Wasn't sure what to expect but was surprised at how nice this place was. We had a group of five and were able to sit right away and were waited on immediately.
They have a full breakfast and lunch menu, pretty much all the staples of a diner and a few interesting Filipino options as this place seems to be owned by a family
Ordered the always reliable breakfast sandwich with bacon on an English muffin and devoured that in about 2.5 seconds but was still hungry. Luckily my friend Jill ordered some neon pink pork sausage which looked a bit like a glow stick but was interestingly tasty.
Basically this is place to go if you want to just eat without wondering "How did I spend $29 for breakfast" all day.
Uncle Mike's will definitely be put into my breakfast rotation from now on.
P.S.-For some reason they were giving away a CD from 1998... Don't ask. Just go there and grab one-while supplies last.
Went here for brunch yesterday and we were...full. *shrug* I liked the sort of kitchy decor, the Ricky Martin album playing through the tracks, the apparent locals and family members there for breakfast. That was pretty cool.
The service was just okay. When we first got there a busser coming out of the (tiny) kitchen nearly ran us over...tight space, there. Then, after we sat down my companion got coffee right away, but I didn't. Maybe they were just changing the pot. Then the server took our order without writing anything down, which made me wonder if she was going to remember all of it (later, she had messed up on a part of the fruit plate, but apologized and swiftly brought the correct item). Our coffee cups went empty about three times and stayed that way until we gestured for a refill, each time.
The food was okay. Within a few minutes of sitting down, the server started bringing out little dishes of some kind of french toast/bread pudding stuff for everyone to try. It was soggy pieces of bread hit with some maple syrup. Mush in the mouth. Nice concept, generous thing to do, but it needs more development. My companion got an omelette, which he said he really liked (and it was HUGE!) but when I asked why he was just picking at it, he said it had too much cheese. "Too much cheese?" What is this? But seriously, there was a MOUND of cheese on top of the omelette. He couldn't taste anything else, he said. I got the tocino with 2 eggs and the garlic basmati rice. I hadn't ever had tocino before; it was like thick-cut bacon, only with more fat. It was also electric hot pink, and tasted like it had been simmered in maple syrup. I think I only got maybe a couple ounces of real meat off what I was served. Maybe you're supposed to eat the fat? Immaterial, as I always trim my meat. Oh, well. The garlic rice was just that: sauteed garlic and rice. The garlic was gone for the most part, meaning, it was bitter and acrid-smelling. It permeated the rice, which just didn't do it for me, texturally.
The fruit plate we split was delcious, even with the canned peaches. I happily buttered my toast with the butter tabs provided on the table and then slathered on some cherry jelly (as I don't believe I'd ever had cherry jelly), but upon lifting the slice of toast to my mouth, I discovered that the kitchen had already buttered the bread between the pieces, i.e. on the bottom of the slice I'd just buttered with the stuff from the table. Why have butter on the table if the kitchen butters the bread for you? Oh, well.
We went up to pay at the register just before a guy came in the front door for a pick up. My companion stood in front of the lady (proprietress?), bill and card in hard, and she looked at the guy walking over and said, "pick up?" The guy stammered yes, but then gestered to us. The woman flicked her wrist dismissively at us before handing the guy a bag of food and taking his payment. So I guess we didn't matter. Okay.
We left full, but not necessarily happy. This place isn't as far as my de facto Sunday morning brunch companion and I have gone for brunch, but I don't think we'll be adding it to the rotation. I had hoped that maybe the Filipino side of the place would have given the menu more character, but in actuality, the Filipino dishes were actually quite few. The slightly high-ish prices for the menu items can be justified with proper execution, which was unfortunately lacking. I was disappointed with how this went down.
Interesting place. Lot's of character that you won't find at Applebee's. Spam? I haven't seen Spam on a menu since Hawaii and you have to try it at least once in your life. The skirt steak is terrific. The service is good. Thanks fellow yelpers, this was a good find.
This is a hidden goldmine! Come for breakfast and have been coming for years! The service is friendly.....the food is outstanding! I always have the french toast and bacon! Yum! sometimes i go with the Eggs Benedict!
Weekends get crowded early so it can be hard to get a table if you come during the busy time! but i recommend on a Sunday morning.....get up and take a drive!! well worth it!
I need to eat here more often - its so silly that I don't!
Its a great breakfast place - when I am a little under the weather and need grease in my belly, I go for the bacon and American cheese omelet.
I feel like I gained weight just talking about it, but man its good.
A great spot for great food by a great owner in Mike.
We met Uncle Mike when we first moved to the neighborhood. He kindly pulled up a chair and chatted us up. Very friendly place with extremely tasty food.
If you're looking for a place to eat, come grab a seat!
I give Uncle Mike's Place five stars. * * * * *
New Review - 12/30/07:
BOOOOO! Uncle Mikes sold out and raised their prices big-time! New menus, fancy website and fancy prices. Omlettes are $2.50 more to start... if I want those kinds of prices I'd just hit up Dodo or Milk & Honey. Part of the appeal here was the value - good, cheap breakfast eats and locals. I don't think any true locals will be coming here much anymore... too bad. I guess it was the rising popularity and yuppies like me looking for a deal that drove them over the edge.
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Great spot, totally local. Off the beaten path of West Town. We found it walking one morning and finally had a chance to head back for breakfast. Took a take-out menu and want to try some lunch one day. Deffinately not a trendy spot like some down the road or on Chicago but that is good; greasy spoon type place with college hungry prices. We both had fresh, big omlettes, coffee and some free soup for $19. That is hard value to find. Def. will become a regular spot for us.
Blueberry Pancakes.
Oh, and pretty much anything else, too, but if you are feeling particularly decadent, get the blueberry pancakes "for the table." The eggs are always done right (over-medium is a balancing act, and they get it right!), the bacon is just greasy enough and perfectly crispy....I've not been in a while, but I'm due for a return. 'Specially for those blueberry crackcakes. Mmmmmm.....
yay! now i know where to go for tocino, longaniza and sinangag (garlic-fried rice) when i'm not making it myself (or can't con my mom or friends into making it)! and yes, their tocino and longaniza are authentic; but they're not my favorites. i've had better.
however, i must say that a good sawsawan (sauce/condiment) can work wonders for a lackluster Filipino meal. and uncle mike's sauce does just that. his genius concoction of white vinegar, chopped tomatoes, red onions and scallions with a splash of fish sauce (i'm told) elevated my breakfast, invigorated my at-home attempts at sawsawan nirvana, and deepened my ache to return to uncle mike's. yes, it's THAT good.
beyond the Filipino fare, uncle mike's marinated steak is also superb--tender and slightly sweet--and the french toast is excellent, golden crisp on the outside, custardy-firm (not mushy!) on the inside.
service was attentive and accommodating. my only gripes are the "breakfast syrup"--please, uncle mike, invest in some real maple syrup--and the off-brand condiments. sounds snooty, i know, but i like Heinz and A1. don't mess around with the cheap stuff.
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