Filipino feasts

MANILA, Philippines - Just how many types of adobo have you tried? Have you ever gotten your hands on a slice of suman cake? If your idea of Pinoy food is composed only of sinigang, kare-kare and inihaw, then it’s time you introduce your palate to bringhe, Tagalog pochero and beef nilaga consommé. For delicious local dishes that add a unique twist to the classics, here are three Manila restos to feast on this weekend.

Adarna Food And Culture Restaurant

Upon entering Adarna Food and Culture Restaurant, you’ll be immediately transported to days when carnival queens were celebrities and the inauguration of Magsaysay was the paper’s major headline. Framed money bills, old softdrink bottles lined up in a row, crocheted table mats, mismatched wooden chairs, and a sari-sari store with candies our parents used to enjoy — all these add to the charm of the house-turned-restaurant along Kalayaan Avenue in Quezon City. The taste for history also translates to the menu, which is full of heirloom dishes, some as old as the 1600s.

Partners Beth Angsioco and Chef Giney Villar are the brains behind this travel back in time, and it took them months of travel and research to find recipes that, if not for them, might have been lost in time. You’ll see how much work they have put in as you browse through the menu and discover the story behind each dish. The Pamplina, for example, is a white bean, chorizo and beef tripe stew that dates back to the Galleon trade days. And the recipe for their adobong Batangas comes from a granddaughter of a prominent family from that province. The restaurant also has three types of pancit, each hailing from different eras: 1913, 1930 and the 1800s. Now that’s a taste of history, literally.

Supreme Picks: The kaldereta, which has been stewed in tomatoes and a mix of spices three times, exactly the way they did it back in the day. And the Bicol Express, made up of finger chilies stuffed, battered and deep-fried, then lathered with a flavorful sauce.

Abe

It’s always tough to get a seat at Abe. All three of the resto’s branches — at TriNoma, Mall of Asia, and Serendra — are always packed. This writer’s score: two fortunate walk-ins, one successful reservation, and three better-luck-next-times.

But the success of this restaurant is no surprise. One will truly get hooked on Abe’s satisfying Kapampangan dishes. The Bamboo Rice alone (a mix of mountain rice, shrimps, mushrooms and bamboo shoots steamed inside a bamboo shell) is worth going back to. So is the traditional pinakbet and tidtad, which is dinuguan done Pampanga-style. Other bestsellers include the Batangas original adobong manok sa gata and the binukadkad na plapla (butterflied tilapia fried and served with mustasa leaves and balo-balo relish). Everybody may be familiar with a number of dishes listed in the menu, like kare-kare, puchero and pork sinigang; even so, we recommend you try Abe’s versions to understand why we keep coming back for more.

Supreme Picks: The indulgent lamb adobo and the pork lechon paksiw dish called “The Day After,” both of which I suggest be eaten with plain rice to balance the richness of the dishes. 

Bistro Filipino

Rolando and Jackie Laudico’s Bistro Filipino started welcoming eager customers in 2006 and ever since, their loyal followers (this writer included) have never seen Filipino food quite the same way. Their busy kitchen whips up dishes that display pure culinary ingenuity.

Just imagine — green papaya and grilled sayote are tossed along with malunggay pesto and chicken for a unique take on chicken tinola. Then oven-roasted squash is puréed and served with crispy okra, ampalaya leaves and bagoong cream, making up Rolando’s interpretation of pinakbet. Then there’s the US Angus beef short plate cooked in kare-kare sauce and US Angus ribeye done à la “bistek.” It even extends to the desserts where halo-halo is given a touch of sophistication, care of the ube tuille and fresh carabao cream sorbet, and the street-side snack suman is turned into a cake. It is plain genius how the chefs have come up with interesting ways to present classic Filipino dishes without sacrificing the distinct flavors they are known for.

Supreme Picks: I always start my meal off with the ubod spring roll, which comes with a sinamak sorbet. Then for my main dish, I either order the adobo overload (adobo rice, chicken adobo, adobo flakes and adobong kangkong) or the salt-crusted tilapia served with turmeric coconut cream sauce and bagoong rice.

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Adarna Food and Culture is located at 119 Kalayaan Avenue, Diliman, Quezon CityTel. nos.: 926-8712, 0917-9618113.

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Abe is located at Serendra, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City. Tel. no.: 856-0526; TriNoma, Level M3, North EDSA, Quezon City. Tel. no.: 901-5691; and Mall of Asia, Entertainment Section, Pasay City. Tel. no.: 556-0608.

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Bistro Filipino is located at Net One Building, 3rd Avenue corner 28th Street, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. Tel. nos.: 856-0634, 856-0541.