‘Tis the season for greetings and eatings, too. You have this craving to sink your teeth into some litson kawali. What to do? Try these Bulacan buffets for under P350.
Don’t worry about the rest of the family. There are seafood and salad for the wife. For the kids, there’s ice cream, barbecue, and spaghetti, in no particular order.
Why go through the hassle of grocery crowds, traffic, and cooking when all-you-can-eat buffets offer a quick and convenient way to satisfy your cravings?
And if you are in or near Bulacan, there’s a gamut of places to choose from. Just a short drive from Metro Manila, there are quite a few buffet places you and your family should sample.
The best thing is that they are all affordable. Compared to slaving in the kitchen for a whole day to cook for a family birthday celebration, just bring them to these buffets. You can eat unitl you’re bursting at the seams — no fuss, no rush, and no dishes to wash.
We selected these buffet restaurants based on a good balance of volume, quality, variety, and most of all, price. We also looked for that one dish that will make you forget about all the others.
To set expectations, please note that all these buffet options are below P350 per person. You won’t get to sample any steaks, lobsters, or king crabs. Just think of your typical Filipino comfort food, not your five-star hotel buffet that costs at least P2,500. There is so much international cuisine that you won’t be able to sample them all.
You just want a quick, filling comfort meal, but not the usual fast-food fried chicken. I see a lot of seniors in these Bulacan buffets, so the food must be that good if they are disobeying their doctors.
Presenting the top 5 must-try buffets of Bulacan.
A. Buffet #1: Gelo’s – Bulihan, Malolos
Gelo’s has a spacious dining area that accommodates up to 200 people, and they have cool air conditioning. Upon admission, you are given plates, which are how they count the guests. You pay on the way out.
You can select from a variety of Filipino dinner mainstays, like the litson kawali, menudo, pancit, seafood mussels in salted eggs, kare-kare, pork barbecue, hot dogs, isaw, and sisig. Desserts are bilo-bilo, coffee jelly, and palitaw. Soup is at the ready depending on the day.
For us, the star attraction is the mixed seafood, litson kawali and the isaw. The latter disappears soon after each refill. The litson kawali is crispy and tasty, especially when still warm.
For only P279 per head, you can eat your fill for two hours, which is more than enough time. You can bring your balikbayan guests and barkadas without breaking the bank. They also have a function room for special occasions, for a minimum of consumables of P30,000.
Lines form on Saturdays and Sundays, so it’s best to send a friend ahead of time before your whole party arrives. We already got seated in various areas of the dining area, and their AC is pretty good.
B. Buffet #2: Casa Rosalinda: Sta. Barbasa, Baliuag
Thanks to the Plaridel-Balagtas Bypass Road, Baliuag is only about 30 minutes from Balintawak on a good day. This means Casa Rosalinda and its delectable buffet are within easy driving distance. Rosalinda has the longest buffet in Bulacan, or so their Facebook page says
I tend to agree. Among the restaurants featured here, Casa Rosalinda easily has the widest buffet spread. I always start with the pares, which tastes like my wife’s home-cooked version.
Our kids love the fried palabok pancit. My wife adores the tinumis. There are at least 20 other dishes to choose from, mainstays like litson kawali, menudo, tsitcharon bulaklak, kaldereta, kare-kare, fried chicken, afritada, squid, and mussels.
Rosalinda was serious when they said they have the longest buffet offering in Bulacan. That’s because, in addition to the above, they also have crispy tawilis, crispy chicken skin, spaghetti, and siomai. We won’t forget the Korean dishes such as buttered sweet chicken, stir-fried pork, Japchae, Gimbap, and Bulgogi.
Rosalinda’s desserts will also call your attention with their bibingka, puto bumbong, house-made donuts, pastries, and halo-halo.
For me, the main attraction is their pares. The tinumis comes second. You can be forgiven for digressing once you sample all their offerings.
All these for only P299 per head. It’s a steal. We’d be there every day if Rosalinda was within walking distance. You ordinarily won’t have problems getting seats during weekdays, but don’t try walking in during weekends. Make your reservations first.
You can try taking a chance if it’s just you and your wife. We did that a few times, and Rosalinda’s friendly staff managed to find us a spot. You just register with the host, and you pay on the way out.
There’s parking at the back, which can be full on weekends. I suggest you drop off your family at the entrance and just walk back after parking. Rosalinda doesn’t have a function room. They’ll just reserve some tables for you in the dining area, which can fit around 100 people. The one downside is that their air conditioning is not up to par for my liking. Pick a table near the AC and away from the sun.
C. Buffet #3: KKB – Plaridel-Balagtas Bypass Road, Bustos
KKB is probably the newest kid on this list. Not even a year, but it’s becoming a favorite stopover for those travelling to the northeast towns of Bulacan, Nueva Ecija and beyond. This is because it is conveniently located along the Plaridel-Balagtas Bypass Road in Bustos. You pay upon admission, and they place a paper bracelet on your wrist.
KKB itself is located in a gasoline station looking to serve travellers. The Filipino theme ambiance is nice. We haven’t tried it during lunch time, but the air conditioning was cool each time we went there during dinner.
KKB’s feast consist of beef kaldereta, pancit, menudo, sweet and sour pork bola-bola, fish fillet, litson kawali, tsitcharon bulaklak, lengua, crispy pata, barbeque, fried chicken and spaghetti. They also have salad to nicely top off all that meat you’ll be consuming. KKB is the only joint in this list that offers ice cream, and our kids loved it. The turones are also a hit with my wife. Other Pinoy desserts which you can sample are mahablanca, biko, and palitaw.
The top hit for me was the crispy pata. My wife really likes the lengua and salad. The kids didn’t want to stray far from the ice cream.
It will cost P350 per person. That’s already the most expensive place in this list. I think it’s still a good deal. You won’t need to worry about parking at KKB. They have plenty. KKB opens at 11 am and closes at 8 pm.
D. Buffet #4: Teodorico’s – Malolos, Plaridel, Baliuag, and Sta. Maria
With four branches covering the northern and eastern parts of Bulacan, anyone can experience Teoderico’s buffet. It’s also an indication of how popular they are. And how Bulakenyos love the all-you-can-eat buffet. The ambience is homey and casual. Noise level is manageable at least the times when we were there.
I didn’t find any beef in Teoderico’s (sad face). They have fried chicken, chicken adobo, longanisa, kare-kare, litson kawali, pork broccoli, tsitcharon bulaklak, shanghai, longganisa, mussels, siomai, and pancit. Desserts comprise of coffee jelly, halo-halo, and bico.
Their tsitcharon bulaklak is on top of my list. My wife likes the pork broccoli. My daughter went back a couple of times for the longganisa.
If you need a quick fill or didn’t have time to prep for birthday celebrations, Teoderico’s is not a bad choice for P269 per person.
Just be patient when trying to park on weekends. Make your reservations also. Teodorico’s opens at 11 am. Last call is at 8 pm, so arrive at least one hour before your set chow time.
E. Buffet #5: Apag Manyaman – Sta. Maria
Located in Caypombo, Sta. Maria, Apag Manyaman is probably the most out-of-the-way buffet restaurant on this list. But that doesn’t stop customers from beelining to the place. In fact, it’s better to check their Facebook page first before going, since the place can be closed to the public for exclusive events.
In Apag, you will find the familiar Filipino comfort food such as kare-kare, tinumis, pancit, mussels, adobong balut, pork steak, litson kawali, fried tilapia, pancit, veggies, fried chicken, sweet and sour bola-bola, pakbet, chopsuey, talbos, sisig, shanghai, tsitcharon bulaklak, hotdogs, and sausages.
For deserts, you can sample the veggie salad, coffee jelly, bibingka, puto, and macarons.
My wife and I were hunting for the adobong balut, but it was all gone. That was just around 3 pm. Seems to be their top hit.
For only P269, I doubt you will find a place that offers more value for money. They close at 8 pm. Parking can be crowded on Sundays around lunchtime.
Summary
| Place | Price | Cap. | Payment | Star Attraction | AC | Location | Operating Hours |
| Apag | P269 | 150 | Cash on the way in | Adobong Balut | Cool | Sta, Maria | 11am to 9pm |
| Teodorico | P269 | 100 | Cash on the way in | Pork brocoli | Medium | Sta. Maria, Baliuag, Malolos, Plaridel | 11am to 9pm |
| Gelo’s | P279 | 200 | Cash/Gcash on the way out | Isaw, Mixed seafood | Cool | Malolos | 11am to 9pm |
| Rosalinda | P299 | 100 | Cash on the way out | Pares | Low | Baliuag | 11am to 9pm |
| KKB | P350 | 100 | Cash on the way in | Crispy pata | Cool | Bustos | 11am to 8pm |
Best for Kids: KKB, it is the only one on the list that offers ice cream.
Best for Large Groups: Gelo’s, due to its 200-person capacity and available function room.
Best for Variety: Casa Rosalinda, which claims the “longest buffet” and includes Korean dishes like Japchae and Bulgogi
Conclusion
So you see, going to eat-all-you-can buffets doesn’t mean spending thousands of your hard-earned money, especially when you’re not a flood control contractor, congressman or a DPWH engineer.
When all you want is a taste of home, all in one sitting, Bulacan buffets have a table reserved for you.
