This place is right by my house and I've frequented it on more than one occasion. The people are always friendly and the food is absolutely delicious. On occasion I have even been treated to a free portion of some dish that I asked about. There was maybe one time that my pansit (sp) didn't taste 100% fresh, but that's it. The price is right, the portions are good, and it beats the heck out of fast food chains. A poor college man's dream.
Though the majority of my experiences have been in ordering take out, I must agree that the atmosphere leaves a little something to be desired. The service is as slow as you would expect from a hole in the wall place like this, but it has never been to the point where it bothered me.
I've eaten there plenty of times and, business willing, I intend to eat there plenty more.
After reading the guidelines I feel morally obliged to edit: This is my first time writing for yelp but far from the first time using it. This was sparked by a sign at Elena's saying a free gift for "a review". So I whipped out my smartphone and posted away. Everything I said was my honest opinion, regardless of any gift. You wanna know what the gift was? Wait for it... FREE FOOD! Woooo! Now this poor college student can eat for that much longer simply for sharing his opinions. God bless America!