Review Gj's Grill - Melbourne

Worth finding this place. Short walk into the arcade off Franklin St. Friendly service. Clean. Food was good. Best Crispy Pork in Melbourne! It really was crispy! Milk fish & chicken were nice. Sliced pork was bit dry. Home made papaya relish was good. Glad we found this little gem.

We wanted to like this place. We really did. There were so many great recommendations. We came here with such high expectations. However, left not too satisfied. I'll preface by saying this resto is cash only, so make sure you withdraw before you arrive. Now, the sinigang was really good. Really reminds me of a Vietnamese soup 'canh chua'. The salmon was a bit too fatty for our liking, but otherwise was the best dish we ordered. The lechon we had, had a very porky taste/smell when we ate it. So it wasn't very enjoyable. In addition to that, the coconut oil that was used to cook it was overpowering. We could not get pass this smell and taste. The lechon also wasn't as crispy as everyone has made it out to be. I'm not sure whether we came on a day bad day or not. Overall, what you see in the pictures came to a whopping $59.50. We're usually okay with prices, but the quality on that day could not justify the price. I'm not sure whether we'll come back here again.

GJ’s Grill served delicious hawker-style Filipino meals. We tried their lechon and it was amazingly delicious! Crispy skinned, tender fatty pork coupled with sour Dole pineapple juice to balance all those savoury flavours. Perfect for quick lunches.

Unfortunately they ran out of crispy pork. | Staff knew my friend was trying Filipino for the first time, they gave extra sides with the skewers. | Im picky with Sisig and I really liked this one, topped with plenty of chicaron

Lechon crispy pork with garlic rice and pork skewers with garlic rice. Both were delicious, especially the lechon which has the perfect crisp. Definitely worth coming back to

Tasty sisig. Gave me a taste of home. Lechon kawali is crunchy.

Fxck! This chicken was freaking good! 200 g of chicken thigh and 230 g of rice. Just hit the macros! Business would see more customers if they incorporated chicken breast or sort of “make your own Philippines 🇵🇭 dish”

It’s was beautiful! The place goes unnoticed because it is small but you get a big surprise with the food. It reminded me of home food! I'm not from the Philippines, but Latinos eat very similarly :)

One of the best Filipino, no-frill restaurants I’ve ever eaten at. It’s so authentic: Genuine and friendly staff, and a care and effort that’s put into the taste of their food. You will not get an exciting decor, but you will be blown away by the authenticity, and great-taste of Filipino food. 👍

Oh my gowd! Friend took me here for takeaway, and it was the best lunch takeaway! They are fast and scrumptious! Had garlic rice and their famous crispy Lechon pork 😍😍😍 . It’s the bomb! Sooo yummy, I was thinkin to eat half of them but ended up ate up the whole portion by myself 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽

Ordered the beef with rice ($14.50), beef was overpoweringly salty, but had nice flavour underneath all that salt. I had to spoon big portions of rice to lessen the saltiness. The garlic rice tastes like normal rice (it has some garlic granules on top as decoration) which is good in this case, since you need something bland to wash out the saltiness of the meat. My friend and I were still feeling hungry after we finished eating. I would expect to still be hungry after if the dishes were $10-$11, but not at this price.There were 2 male workers, one of them give me a stink eye when I asked for a fried egg. Definitely not the 4.3 stars, more like 3 stars.

The service was extremely terrible! We asked them to keep the birthday cake for us but they charged us 20$ and didn’t tell us they would do that in advance. They also ruined the cake by not keeping it the freezer! definitely never comeback again!

Hungry of Filipino Food? Try and eat at this cozy place close to Vic Market, parking is no problem. Food is nice. The Achara is so nice you'll be asking for more.

I wanted to love this place, but unfortunately it was not what I was expecting. I had the lechon with garlic rice. The lechon was dry, and the crackling was chewy, and the garlic rice was only mildly garlicky. The only plus side of the dish was the seasoning and fattiness of the meat

GJ’s Grill is a filipino restaurant located in Franklin Street. The place is quite hidden, it’s in one of the alleys near Queen Vic Market. It is famous for their crispy pork belly, but it’d be too much for us to eat the pork belly only, so we decided to order the chicken too. <br/><br/>Large Lechon<br/>Price: $35<br/>Taste: 🌝🌝🌝🌝🌜<br/>The skin of the pork belly was super crispy. The meat was tender and was fatty, which makes it even better. It could be a bit overwhelming though if you eat too much. The sauce was salty and added a nice flavour.<br/><br/>Whole Chicken<br/>Price: $19.5<br/>Taste: 🌝🌝🌝🌝<br/>The chicken was tender and juicy, it wasn’t dry at all. The skin was really good as well. It was served with a side, which I think was pickled vegetables. It was refreshing after all the meat and fat from the chicken and pork. It was definitely another favourite besides the lechon.<br/><br/>Definitely worth the guilt! The pork can be overwhelming, better eat it with rice. Must-try for Filipino dish first-timer.

Lechon was really salty. Sinigang na bangus didn’t taste like sinigang at all. I’ve asked them why it’s not even sour and they said they ran out of the sinigang mix. They should have told us about it so we didn’t have to order. 🤦‍♀️ This place is a total ripoff.

2.5<br/>Once again, I was seduced by the Zomato ratings. I’ve never been thrilled by Filipino cuisine but always willing to try again. The menu is limited and the lovely lady was chatty. On appearance, the rotisserie with the pork looked amazing. Unfortunately the food was rather bland. The pork was served warm and came with garlic rice which didn’t really taste of garlic. I enjoyed the pickled vegetables on the side and the liver sauce was interesting. Overall, not as thrilling as food from other countries in the region.

Kept hearing lots of great things about this place so decided to check it out! Safe to say I’m quite confused about the hype, the reviews have raved about the food but I can’t relate. <br/><br/>Staff were lovely and the service was great, however the chicken we ordered was quite bland - though it had just been cooked and was satisfyingly hot. <br/><br/>Lechon was definitely a let down, it was served quite cold which detracted from its well developed flavours. The crackling was delicious though, super crispy. Also the garlic rice didn’t really have a flavour, was very bland and at room temperature...<br/><br/>Overall, the flavours were decent, am still very bloated, however it wasn’t spectacular. Hope that it’s just an off day for them, as most of the ratings definitely differ from mine. <br/>

OFF TO THE PHILLIPINES| So for lunch today, we went to try this restaurant with Filipino food on Franklin St (near Queens Vic market) and at first I was a little hesitant of the restaurant, because it was in a ‘sketchy’ place, but as they say ‘ you find the best food in the weirdest places’. ☺️☺️ The food was so yum and affordable and so glad we decided to come here! The pork was very flavoursome and the dipping sauce was different BUT a good different 😋😋😋😋😋 #marinabrunchnmunch #melbournefood

Filipino food is severely underrated. I had the roasted pork on a spit called lechon on garlic rice. It is so delicious. The mang tomas (liver garlic sauce) is addictive, and the archara (pickled vegetables) balance this meal. I've also had the chicken, and the beef tapa which are great too. <br/><br/>The interior is basic but cosy. You're not here for fine dining, you're here for authentic Filipino food. The service is so friendly. It's very mom and pop.<br/>The people who know about this place love it. Because it's hidden away, you might not see it on your walks through the city, but it's definitely worth the adventure. <br/><br/>Have a try because you won't be disappointed. Unless you're a vegetarian.

I was craving for Filipino food and good thing we have a hidden gem near but outside hoddle grid. It is very, very hard to locate but found it anyways because of sheer determination. Happy to have atchara, Mang Tomas, chilli-vinegar-lime-toyo dipping sauce and accompaniments for my lechon kawali. Very Filipino. I had extra pork skewer. Not bad. I wish I had someone to share this with.

The grilled meat was cooked to perfection, with a slight caramelised taste. The garlic rice doesn’t have a overpowering garlicky taste. The meal felt kinda meh as the balance of meat veggies and rice was kinda off. More veggie would be great.

GJ’s Grill served delicious hawker-style Filipino meals. We tried their lechon and it was amazingly delicious! Crispy skinned, tender fatty pork coupled with sour Dole pineapple juice to balance all those savoury flavours. Perfect for quick lunches.

First try at Filipino cuisine. Had the lechon and pork skewer. Lechon was just so good and very sinful, crispy skin and flavourful pork meat/fat. Pork skewer was well marinated and grilled, full of flavour.

Found this place from our encounter at the market. Crispy pork was divine! Light crispy crust & soft succulent pork meat perfectly merge with tangy flavor of pickles, garlic rice & deep flavor of pig liver sauce. Chicken looked so succulent as well. Place has this Anglo Asian cafeteria style look. Service was slow & took awhile to get the order. If you totally ignore the service , ambiance then you in for a treat. Their menu is small but they do it best. Overall taste, quality, service & ambiance against price gives an overall rating of 3.8*

I love the pork belly a lot. First filipino cuisine i have ever had. It might be a bit similar with other asian cuisine, But the chilli and the pork belly stole my heart straight away. The price is pretty friendly too.

If you haven’t tried Filipino barbeque… You. Are. Missing. Out!<br/><br/>I had the lechon (pork belly roasted on a spit), with garlic rice, achara (pickled vegetables) and mang tomas (pork liver sauce). I loved ALL the elements to this dish. I was in Filipino heaven. I cannot rave about GJs enough.

I’ve been here a lot since its close to my apartment and a comfort food for me. I always order the lechon, the skin is so crispy its like you are eating a thin candy. The meat is so tender also. The gravy sauce or sarsa is really good also thats the best partner for the lechon (for the people who dont know it) but you can use soysauce and vinegar also as an alternative. Chickennis good also but sometimes its a little bit salty.

Came here last night and the Lechon was fantastic! Was hard to think with most probably the crunchiest pork being chewed on!!

First time trying Filipino food at a restaurant and the garlic rice is so good!!!! Yum! Super tasty and the owners were also so friendly and welcoming. Loved the pork skewer!

The first time I had this was at a food truck during a random food festival. I was literally kicking myself for not taking note of the name of this place . It took me almost half a year of searching through all the Filipino restaurants in Melbourne to be finally reunited with their delicious menu - especially the Lechon pork on garlic rice and liver gravy sauce ! It was one of the happiest moments of my life

Tried Filipinos crispy skin pork here today with pork liver sauce and young paw paw pickle. The skin is so crispy, the fat just meat in my mouth and the meat is succulent. Love the charcoal -y aroma in the pork. The sauce itself is too sweet to my liking on its own however when paired with the roast pork it is just perfect. The pickles is a good accomplishment to balanced out the ‘fat’. I gave opt for garlic rice but you can choose steam rice.

Have been here a couple times. This place is a hidden gem near qvm! Love their crispy pork belly. The acara balances out the greasiness from the pork.

Pork belly for my side belly and some pretty great garlic rice.<br/><br/>I am a Pinoy and live Cbd so legit there ain't that many places to go to I'm not gonna lie tho this place got some daaaaaaaaymmm nice pork belly for real 💕<br/><br/>MVP

Best restaurant i've ever tried.<br/>One day, i wanted to kill myself but i didn't because this shitty world still has gj's.<br/><br/>*plz do delivery plz plz plz*

My friend brought me over to GJ grill and when we arrived, I actually asked her: "uum so where's the place?" GJ grill is quite hard to miss and is pretty unassuming from the outside. Once you enter, you get the feeling that it's a family-run joint. We ordered the Lechon to share, which is essentially crispy pork. Unlike crispy roast pork from Chinese BBQ restaurants, this Filipino take on the dish has a ridicilously crisp and melt in your mouth crackling which just amazed me. Even with its crisp crackling, the meat itself is still so juicy and tender. The pickles that comes with is tart and is the perfect accompaniment to the dish. Would highly recommend this place to crispy pork lovers!

My first experience with lechon was from Hoy Pinoy at the night markets, that of which I thought was expensive, minimal and the lechon tough. At a similar price point at GJ's you will get crunchy and tender lechon, fragrant garlic rice accompanied with what I'm told is liver sauce and pickles. On the odd occasion the lechon's crackling can be chewy and greasy, but that comes with the territory of eating lechon.<br/>You really can't go past the lechon visiting this establishment, they have it in their display case as well as spinning on the charcoal fired spit. Can't vouch for any of their other dishes but their roast chicken (I've tried their skewers) is a great alternative.

Very rare to come across Filipino food in Melbourne.  Came here for dinner after some bushwalking in the day.  Meals were all tasty but on the sweet side.  It would help customers who are not familiar with Filipino menu by providing photos or descriptions next to dish names.  There is a lack of presentation and greens.  Felt like I needed to go cleanse my body with fruits and veges after.

It's not the easiest to spot, but its worth it. The chicken skewer is juicy and flavoursome, easily one of the best I've had to date. Enjoyed the garlic rice and the lechon was really crispy. Will definitely return. Note seating is limited and while card is listed as an option, their EFTPOS wasn't working. Would suggest you have cash ready.

Unfortunately I think eating here straight after Easter wasn't a great idea. Everything tasted a bit old and like it had been cooked in the morning or the day before. Even the rice was stodgy and tasted old. Have eaten here half a dozen times and loved it. To date it is easily the best Filipino place in Melbourne. I just hope today's meal was due to the holiday and not a decline in quality here. Grill is fairly simple, chicken pork and rice. So each of these need to be fresh, well cooked and full of flavour. Sadly can't say it was today.

Have not tried Filipino food before and it's interesting enough to try once. A venue with a fast food feeling that's for the meat lovers, tucked in the alleyway off the main street. The food is the sort of deep fried or BBQ grilled meals that would go down well with a beer or two.

Been here a few times, but the last time i went, the portion of the lechon is significantly reduced when you order with rice. So for the price and what you got, i reckon there are other places i can go to next time.

I am not that familiar with Filipino food so I will describe the food incase thats how the food is meant to be.<br/>Staff was really friendly and nice.<br/>Ordered the Lechon with garlic rice, and one pork and one chicken skewer.<br/>The garlic rice was really really rich, and the texture was like glutinous rice.<br/>The Lechon it self...looked dry but was actully very juicy and was delicious, my whole plate was covered in grease in the end. The pickled vegetable that came on the side was very good to help cut down the rich heavy taste, I also very much enjoyed the sauce that came with the Lechon. The skewers were very nice, enjoyed the pork flavour more so than the chicken, however the pork skewer was a tiny bit too dry. <br/>Would come again.

Simple and delicious BBQ filo food! Came here with my family and absolutely loved the chicken and the crispy pata! 😍 we will definitely be back!

Excellent eatery but a little hard to find. Its actually located on ferderrick way and you can enter from abeckett or franklin. Very inviting little place. I ordered the lechon with garlic rice with a pork and chicken skewer. Excellent filo food here. The lechon was juicy and crunchy and the skewers were full of favour and not as sweet as usual but i like it better less sweet. I cant get enough im definately coming back.

I had the beef tapas with egg on garlic rice. I tried a little of the roasted pork with plain rice. The beef looks pretty ordinary but I should remember not to judge food based on appearance alone. I cannot believe it's the best flavor I've ever tasted when I put it in my mouth. Such a great dining experience.

I love this place, the food is as authentic as you can get to Visayan street food, with excellent customer service.<br/>I highly recommend this place. <br/>The only problem is the seating. Obviously it can seat lots of Asians, but for a burley bloke like myself its quite squashed in. I'll be sitting at 2 tables at the same time :D<br/>Overall, great place for food specifically from that region, or if you feel like some good Pinoy food.

My sister/dining buddy for the day wanted the Lechon on Rice ($12.5) with an extra Pork Skewer ($4.5). The lechon, aka crispy skin pork, was as good as it gets. Chopped into bite-sized pieces, the roasted pork belly was fatty and succulent, topped with a long ribbon of flawless crackling, and served on a glistening mound of garlic rice. Thank goodness there was a small plate of peppery pickled papaya to cleanse the palate between bites. But believe it or not, the skewer was even better. Not only was the pork tender and smoky, it was glazed with a sweet, sticky sauce that carried a hint of tanginess that really brought out the flavour of the meat. My sister proclaimed ecstatically that the skewer gave her life (kids these days).

Came across GJ's Grill while looking for good Pinoy cuisine in Melbourne. There is a mild speakeasy feel about this spot, hidden away next to the towering apartments near Queen Vic Market. Space is clean and cosy, showcasing the gorgeous landscapes of Phillipines. Would highly recommend booking in advance for larger groups.<br/><br/>We decided to sit beneath the Asik Asik Falls of the North Cotabato to enjoy our Half grilled chicken and Lechon (crispy pork). I like how simple the menu is and well priced each dishes are. Grilled chicken was cooked to perfection, there is just the right amount of smokiness texture to it. However the portion was more like a quarter chicken rather than a half. The Lechon texture was similar to the chinese "Siew Yoke" dish, I felt it tasted quite bland on its own but much better when combined with the Lechon sauce.<br/><br/>Service was very pleasant and made us feel right at home. Complimentary tap water are available but i don't think there is any toilet in the restaurant. Will be back for the crispy pata(Pork trotters and knuckles) which is more like a "to share" dish.

I've been here several times now usually with the same people and there are reasons why.<br/><br/>Pros.<br/>- Reliable quality and taste. If we were up for some crispy pork, beef tapa or chicken, they delivered every time.<br/><br/>- Decent pricing, only wished the food serves were bigger, but we have no issue ordering additional food, its good.<br/><br/>Cons.<br/>- The place is small, usually bumping chairs with people on another table. Its clean though, just tight.<br/><br/>- Air conditioning was on during winter, I had to go get my beanie and extra jacket.<br/><br/>- Not the fastest service, but not bad.<br/><br/>I recommend this place, just go there when its not peak to prevent long waiting times and rubbing shoulders with strangers from different tables. But the food is reliably good.<br/>

Today my wife and I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary. And today we both craved true pinoy cuisine. And we knew that when we heard that GJs Grill opened in the CBD 2 years ago, we knew we had to try it. Today we did. And we were not disappointed. We ordered the Sinigang with salmon belly...

love the chicken skewer, tender and juicy, really tasty, order to make! The roast chicken was good, the pork belly was a bit fatty, the skin was crunchy. Will come back next time.

There are few Filipino restaurants in Melbourne, and finding GJ's definitely isn't a simple task. Tucked away in a laneway, surrounded by apartments, GJ's is a small restaurant. The wallpaper is of gorgeous photos of Filipino landscapes, reminding me it has been a while since my last visit home.<br/>The food is reasonably priced, and the selection is fantastic. My absolute favourite is the cripsy pata! I had no issues with any of the dishes we ordered, and am definitely looking forward to my next visit. GJ's is one of the few Filipino restaurants I have visited that have delivered authentic, delicious flavours, and at a great price.

Not many places can do Filipino food well, GJ's grill does it really well. <br/>Great portion sizes for the price with all your Filipino favourites to boot. Lichon was definitely my highlight. <br/><br/>Service was really friendly and atmosphere was great for a cold winter night in Melbourne. Definitely worth a visit if you need a Filipino good fix.

So being Filipino ourselves, we know there aren't too many Filipino restaurants around and about town so when we saw that "JT" Jeffrie Trika hit this place up and gave it a pretty good wrap at 4.5, we thought we'd hit it up. We think it's the only filo place we haven't visited yet not that were going around town looking for filo food. We grew up with it so there isn't too much if anything at all that we'd be surprised with or haven't eaten.<br/><br/>We decided to get some take-away Lechon (crispy pork) and garlic rice served with atchara which is a pickle of carrot, onion and capsicum and a traditional pork liver (Mang Tomas) sauce. Also ordered some Halo Halo (mixture of all things to give you a delightful diabetes attack but well worth it, TRUST! Google what's in it as there is heaps of stuff). All up it costed a flat $20.0 and was ready in just under 8min. Whilst standing around, it was a full house with even more people coming and going which was a great sign and full of filo's too. Mind you, the place is located down the end of a darkish lane way off Franklin Street with little lighting and I almost missed it as i drove past and parked so was surprised at how many people were inside.<br/><br/>The verdict? Was it worth a find? Salt. It needed salt. Quite surprising considering how much filo's love salt. The Lechon and garlic rice was good but really did need some salt! Great crackling in the pork but salt would've made it even better. I was slightly disappointed in the Halo Halo as it wasn't very sweet at all, like they had forgotten to put in enough evaporated or condensed milk. Toppings were sufficient enough but could definitely do with more (reference Kabayan Halo Halo) so besides the lack of sweetness and toppings, it was good?<br/><br/>Might try GJ's again and try a few of their other dishes and also might eat in to give them a fair crack but until then, this is Our Foodie Find!

Located near Victoria Market and Flagstaff Station, it is along a quiet walkway (laneway next to Pegasus Apart’Hotel), it was a bit hard to find, but again, Google Maps exists for a reason. The place mainly serves BBQ and grilled dishes, sounds simple however my partner and I have not been immersed much in Filipino food so we decided this place might be a good start.

Ordered their pata, and it was crunchy! Remind me of i-spicy pork shank, the lechon which everyone bragging about? I didnt fancy it tho, the pork was smelly when we had it, too porky as some ppl say it. The chicken was good with smoky taste and it was tender and juicy.<br/>Sinigang, i dunno if its supposed to be that sour, but it didnt work for me, less sour will be nice as the salmon belly was fatty and tender, and the spinach compliment the dinner as phillipin food lacking of veggie, so its good to see green on our table.<br/>Halo halo is a must as it was sooooo good, its a bit pricy as the ingredients inside is lacking but the taste itself was sooo yummy i couldnt resist it.<br/>Overall the food was okay, the one stand out for me was the halo halo only, so will go back for that.

Nice simple lunch. Love the idea of having something different to Thai / Japanese. Ordered the rice and grilled chicken. Came with this tasty chili sauce.

Yummy authentic Filipino dishes! I had the Lechon with rice and it was delicious. The vibe was pretty cool too. Will definitely come back :)

It was my very first experience to come into the restaurant and order a food myself. I am half Filipino and I was pretty shy to speak in Tagalog! xD The food what I ordered was fantastic and I had a fantastic early dinner at GJ's Grill Restaurant! I will come back again to order for lunch! :) I forgot to buy Halo-Halo! xD Anyway next time! x)

I've been a frequent visitor to this small but neat restaurant. The staff has alway been very friendly and the food was awesome every songle time 5/5!!!

Little unpretentious place hidden in an alleyway.<br/>Lovely people and yummy satisfying food.<br/>It's simple, flavoursome, possibly not the healthiest food around but oh that Lechon tastes good!!<br/>The only reason I'm not giving it 5 is because I would have like to see a green stuff side dish option on the menu.

Lechon with the crispy skin is a must try. Crackle is to die for. Not to be eaten everyday though. Just love coming back to them. The owners are very welcoming as well!

Been waiting to try this place for a while and it didn't disappoint! Nothing fancy, but does simple well priced dishes so well! Had chicken and lechon and I think the portions and the rice and Achara were perfect. Delish! Been back so many times

Great grilled meats Filipino style, very tasty indeed for reasonable price ($10-15 a portion). Very comforting for our rainy day in Melbourne!

In a little laneway off Franklin Street close to Flagstaff station lies this little gem of a restaurant serving a range of Filipino BBQ and grilled dishes. Melbourne hasn't quite experienced the "Pinoy wave" of BBQ just yet but I suspect it'll be on the horizon soon as it is a very simple and accessible yet tasty cuisine. The go-to dishes here are the "lechon" (Filipino roast pork with crackling) and the char-grilled chicken pieces. I had the lechon with garlic rice ($11.50) and what appeared to be preserved papaya pickles and a green lechon sauce. The pork crackling had a superb texture, crispy, crunchy and salty with much of the fat having been rendered so it was actually quite lean.  Flavour wise, no fancy spicing or marinades and on the salty side, but it was all very delicious. It was really kind of like a cross between Chinese roast pork and Mexican "chicharron". The garlic rice reminded me of Hainanese chicken rice, the pickles also sharp, acidic and vinegary, balancing out the richness of the pork. The accompanying sauce however was pretty average and didn't have much taste at all, though a request for fresh chopped chilli was happily met and this did give it the requisite kick. The lady at the counter was very friendly and welcoming, though service was very slow on the day (in fairness, perhaps this was due to a large table of people (at around 11.30am in the morning!) that had arrived earlier. I'd recommend going early as it was rather packed for lunch and staff seemed to be struggling a little. Overall, an excellent and worthy addition to the quieter north-west side of the CBD. Can't wait to try some of their other dishes like pata and their charcoal-grilled chicken which looked delicious.

I went here with my Mum for lunch today. It's tucked away in some lane. We've never had Filipino food before so we were very excited to try it. Mum ordered the lechon and I ordered the crispy pata but they told me it would take 20 mins and we didn't have time to wait because of parking so I got the lechon as well. When it came out we were excited to see the skin was crispy and it came with a spicy vinegary sauce which we liked because it cut through the rich pork, it also had a sweet and sour pickle. While we were eating it a lady came out and asked if we liked the pork and she told us they ran out of lechon sauce so they used a different one but we wouldn't have known better. Even though there wasn't a huge amount of pork it was very rich and next time we'd order something lighter and share the pork. The service was ok. The people were nice.

You'll find treasures along the journey of life .... not for Vegetarians.<br/><br/>MABUHAY!<br/><br/>We all know that life is a journey, Foodie journey is no different, somewhere along the journey you'll find treasures, today's lunch was one of them.<br/><br/>The journey of life is like going through a Maze, finding and locating this place is not different, it's hidden at the back of an apartment building lane-way, across from Victoria Market.<br/><br/>Not prominently signed, and it's dark, badly lit, easily missed this place. There's a BIG A Board at the front, I would go tackier and put up those colourful beach lights to lined the laneway/alley, it goes with the beach themes inside, beautiful Archipelago of the Philippines.<br/><br/>It's not a big place, a few tables inside, would be struggling to fit 30 people I would say, so come in early or later.<br/>On what this Family run place is offering ..... What ????? <br/><br/>$11.50 for a Lechon, Crispy Pork Belly dips in their home-made Pork Liver sauce and Atchara (vegetable pickles) with some Garlic Rice ..... being a Chinese descendant we know how to eat good Crispy Pork Belly and these has to be one of the best example of Crispy Pork Belly version, Filipino style.<br/><br/>SENSATIONAL ..... it didn't end there, I ordered 2 big Chicken Skewers for $7.00, big mistake, 1 was enough as they are huge. Well marinated and grilled, I should know being raised in the Satay land of Indonesia, the only thing missing would be some dipping sauce and more Atchara.<br/>Many heritage treasures along the way, don't blink just order and eat .... I even forgot about whether they do BYO or not, I could do with a gladd of Pinot Noir with these beauties.<br/>A great way of showcasing a County, Culture and People ..... Pinoy Power all the way ..... well done and thank you for enriching Melbourne's culinary scene.<br/><br/>Lechon is the word Bro!<br/><br/>27/02/16<br/>Another great session.<br/>Beef Tapas was yummy just a bit tough, Whole Chicken tymmy just a bit dry but the two large Lechon (Crispy Pork Belly) just on song ....<br/> <br/><br/>17/07/18<br/>Back for more, and thoroughly delicious and enjoyable those crispy pork belly, grill chicken and garlic rice ... LISTERINE!

This was my first taste of Filipino food so I had no idea what to expect and had nothing to compare it to. What I found out about GJ’s Grill is that not only are the staff Filipino, but so were most of their customers during our visit. If that doesn’t say authentic, then I don’t what does! There isn’t a lot of seating here and when we got there at 7pm on a Monday night, we had to wait about 15 minutes for a table to become available. The staff were very warm and welcoming, and service was relatively quick. The menu is predominantly meat based so don’t expect to find any salads or vegetables here. Instead, expect to find generous servings of well cooked meat that will lead to you rolling happily out the door.

This place is unbelievable! Service was quick and great! The pork was perfectly cooked, skin was so crispy!! The dessert looked so amazing and delicious that i had forgotten to take a photo before mixing it up!!

Very consistent, great filipino food. Looooove the Lechon, chicken inasal and crispy pata. Over the counter service. And they've got Four Seasons Drink. Thank you guys! 1 of my favorites now 😊😊😊

First time to GJ's and it was pretty awesome. Had 2 lechon (fried pork and skin) rice sets and ordered an additional half chicken for my brother and I. It was a bit much but decent serving size. Service was good too, they were always attentive to us :)

Lechon is famous here. Extremely crispy roast pork. A must try! Best Filipino restaurant in Melbourne. They could be even better if their pork have a little more garlic taste to it.<br/><br/>Went to try their fish belly soup. Portion wise is huge!! A tag sour but if you like sour is really yummy!

Enjoy select Filipino cuisine in the heart of the city! Highly hospitable hosts and delicious food!<br/>Personal favourites: Tapa (with egg!), Lechon, and Sinigang!

Just eat it all. My god. So delicious it's food from heaven. Come back again and again and bring as many friends as you can. This little eatery deserves a visit from every person in Melbourne!<br/>

Seriously good BBQ, real taste of Phillipines. Favourite place for friendly service and succulent pork. If you are bear the Victoria Markets this place is worth finding!

Okay so this is my first time trying Filipino food and I'm so glad I did! I tried the Lechon (crispy skin pork), Chicken Bacolod, and Pork Skewers. They did not disappoint. The Lechon was cooked to perfection and it melted in my mouth - ate it with garlic rice, too! Yuuummmm!!! 10/10 would come back here again.

Amazing grilled chicken with a very personalized service. The overall presentation was very elegant and just loved the garlic rice. I did a take away order and it was ready in 15 minutes. The restaurant is located in new premises. Initially, it was hard to find find but eventually I got there. The sauce was very nice, I wish that I had more.

Been to GJ's several times and was always impressed with the consistency of the food quality and the service. Small and clean venue. As a family owned business, you can sense a lot of care that is taken with the quality, flavors, textures and authenticity of the food. A simple and traditional menu consisting of different meats and rice. The favorite and most popular amongst the diners is the Lechon (crispy pork)- slow cooked to perfection with the best crackling! The portions are generous at a decent cost. I really appreciate the greetings and welcoming of the warm and smiling staff! Keep it up GJ's!

The pork dish in the picture looks like lechon.  I ordered lechon when I visited GJ's, but what I was served looked and tasted like chicharon.  The lechon sauce was a little bland and too little serving, so the dish came out really dry!  I will go back to try the other dishes though.  Will try to avoid ordering the "lechon" unless I actually see the meat moist.  Staff are quite nice and friendly.

Want to experience true 'Pinoy' (Filipino slang for 'Filos') hospitality and food? Then come to this cosy place called, GJ's Grill tucked away within a lane near the iconic Vic Market. It has modest menus but you will get food that is big on taste and value for money! I tried the Pinoy BBQs on skewers, beef tapa and the lechon accompanied by their own home-made atchara (pickled green papaya). Make sure you book your tables on weekends! Mabuhay to GJ Grill and staff!!

Quite the unassuming wonder, the delightful food and the cheerful service made for a fantastic lunch, further elevated by the wallpaper featuring large photographs of natural wonders of the Philippines. The LECHON ($11.50) is a must-have - it is pieces of pork with e-x-t-r-e-m-e-l-y crunchy skin. I read that it is one of the national dishes of Philippines, and the highlight of their celebratory meals. Tasted great along with the sticky garlic rice with which it was served, the brown lechon sauce/gravy, and the vinegared vegetable strips. The CHICKEN SKEWERS ($3.50) seemed a bit too salty at first, but I eventually got used to it. Complimentary JASMINE TEA was the perfect companion to this new culinary experience for my wife and me, and we left the restaurant with a big smile and a satisfied stomach!

OMG. It's difficult for a Filipino restaurant to be successful and appeal to non-Fili. However GJ hit it on the nail, bang on by serving mainly grilled food, nothing regional. The food is simple but full of flavour. No wonder people patiently queue during lunch time. To somewhat avoid the crowd, we went there for dinner. We had boneless milkfish (bangus) and lechon. We also tried their halo halo and that was really delish. I'm truly happy for the owners and wish them all the best. I cannot wait to go back; already thinking of what I'm having next time. :) Maraming salamat po.

Lechon (crispy pork) on garlic rice with condiments and complimentary Jasmine tea for $11.50 just totally made my lunchbreak.  GJ's is tucked away in the laneway that runs between Franklin St, next to Frances Cafe, and A'Beckett St.  It's simultaneously new and multicultural and one of the most Melbourne things ever -- secret laneway treasure!  One issue is that it's a bit drafty so bring your scarf in winter.  I'm seriously looking forward to coming back and trying the other dishes.

The food is delicious but no vegetables, salad or anything fresh to and live in this experience. If you love meat this is the place for you. The services fully flaky. On my recent visit there I waited 15 minutes to have someone finally shuffle out take food from the Bain Marie and hand it to me.

Great little Filipino restaurant with the warmest, most welcoming service and consistently tasty and great value food. I love coming here for a quick, tasty, cheap solo meal after work and the lechon on garlic rice always hits a (guilty) spot. You can never go wrong with rich, crunchy, salty crackling!

Amazing! Service is quick and friendly and food is to-die-for. It's my first time trying out Fillipino food and it certainly won't be the last. Had the 1/4 chicken with rice today and already can't wait to go back and try other items on the menu. Salmon head soup looks good and so does the pork lechon (already drooling). Situated in a quiet walkway next to apartment blocks, this place can be slightly hard to find if you don't pay attention to the sign on the street. A casual and cozy eatery which offers reasonably priced and delicious food, which is why they have such high ratings and consistently good reviews!

Tried their Lechon (Crispy Skin Pork) and Chicken Skewers. The Lechon was crispy as its name suggests, and the fats were cooked to perfection, giving us a melt-in-your-mouth effect. However, I felt that some parts of the lean meat were slightly too tough. The skewer was fragrant, not too salty or dry, but I felt that it was slightly overpriced at $3.50. Will go back to try their Crispy Pata and Grilled Chicken, as both of them looks good too!

So happy to find a decent Filo restaurant in Melbourne! I really loved what I ordered which was the Sinigang na Salmon and Lechon Rice. Yep! All by myself! 😋 The pictures do not give it justice, but for those wondering what Filipino food is, this is worth a try! 🍖🍧🍲

I am a regular. They need a table with my name on it. People will fall in love with Filipino bbq, smokey and tasty. The service is great - Filipino smile and hospitality.

Best Filipino food I've had in Melbourne. There are not many places in Melbourne who do Pinoy food or do it well for that matter and I think GJ's Grill have been the best so far. Most places I find are just dried out bain marie take away style dishes that are quite pricey and not that great but this place cooks to order, the servings are generous, quality and taste is good and the prices reasonable, service is very attentive and friendly.<br/>The menu is limited but I guess it is to focus more on the bbq style food with more barbecued or grilled items featured on the menu with sinigang, lechon, crispy pata, boneless bangus, beef tapa etc. But you wont find other classics such as palabok, kare kare, spaghetti, dinuguan, lumpia, pinakbet, adobo, pancit canton, caldereta etc. The restaurant itself is quite small maybe around 6-8 tables. I wish the owners/management all the best with this restaurant as I found there is much care in the food and customer service that I have yet to find in other Filipino establishments. I do hope they expand and add other Filipino favourites to their menu....Turon and Banana-Q please ;)

Great food and relaxed place. Great quiet laneway area in cbd. Great food with nice staff. Even my non-Filo bf loved their food especially the chicken and pork bbq. Will go back!

Great pinoy lechon, crispy pata, and halo-halo.

I dont know why halo halo s so expensive its only crushed ice compare to vietnamese & malaysian ice crushed they only charge $4. Grilled salmon on rice is expensive. FYI there's a lot of asian cheap restaurant around the city. the cheaper you charge, more people will come to eat.

No service and no acknowledgement of customer. My partner & I just left the restaurant a few minutes ago. there was no acknowledgement we were even in the restaurant and no one even asked how many people needed a seat. seemed like the whole restaurant was family and only they were given service/attention. We waited 5 mins for service but just walked out coz none of the 5 people in the kitchen/cooking area even looked at us or talked to us. very very disappointed. Never ever returning. Worst experience I have ever felt. the feeling was very discriminating.

Lechon Meal Deal. The Urban Ma visited GJ's Grill and enjoyed the lechon and atchara!

The best Crispy Pata and really cheap :)

When you get that craving for crunchy cripsy pata or Filipino style BBQ skewers and you don’t have a Filipino friend to visit for dinner, you can now get your Filipino fix... Sheila and Len’s new venture GJ’s Grill , is a Filipino restaurant right in Melbourne’s CBD. Homemade atchara (Filipino pickled relish) and marinated meaty goodness served with flavorsome garlic rice are the main offerings that will get your tastebuds in a frenzy. Friendly service by passionate owners...