Lulu R.
Yelp
The previous owners of the closed Filipiniana have opened up a new spot to serve that delicious food that they once served. Conveniently located across the way from the Jefferson Park in Veterans Plaza, makes getting there a breeze. There is a free parking lot, and of course, bus and train accessible. It's a cozy place that can fit about 50-75 people (depending on the seating arrangement) with very friendly staff. We arrived right when they opened and the place was bustling already with people of all races enjoying their food. Luckily, we were seated right away and I decided to "take it all in". The waiter, Jerry, who was very helpful and knowledgeable assisted us to help make some decisions on what food choices to for our party soon to be arriving any moment.
For starters we ordered the Bbq pork skewers and the Lumpia Shanghai. BBQ pork cooked to perfection on a stick served with a garlic vinegar dipping sauce. We devoured it, it stood no chance. Lumpia Shanghai was fried golden and served with a sweet chili dipping sauce. I must say that I was already impressed with the service upon entrance but the appetizers made us excited about the rest of the meal we were about to have. For the rest of the meal I need to break it down because it deserves some detailed reviewing:
-Insal na Chicken (bbq chicken) - Chicken can be messed up so easily but Kawayan did it just right. Thank the Lord! Juicy bbqed chicken served with a sweet sauce.
-Bistec Taglog - Sliced and marinated beef. Cooked with a soy sauce, garlic and calamansi (small limes- but more flavorful). Cooked with sliced onions. It reminded me of my grandmother's! It really took me back and the flavors melded so well together. It married perfectly over white rice (which it is served with).
-Crispy Pata - Deep fried pork knuckle served with vinegar or "mang tomas" which is a sweet dipping sauce. I would say it reminds me of a meaty chicharron flavor. It's a huge serving and I suggest you get it when you have 3 or more people to help you tackle this delicious dish.
-Kare Kare - If you don't know, you must. I am totally serious. It's a Philippine stew flavored with peanut butter, they serve it with fork tender beef, boy choy, green beans, and eggplant. I know it sounds weird but I promise you, it is outrageously delicious. Kare kare can easily be messed up if you make it more like a soupy consistency and I am glad they made sure that the stew was thick and super flavorful. That stew had such developed flavors it was wonderful. Put that over some rice and that in itself is a meal. Just thinking of this again is making my mouth water.
-Daing na Bangus - De-boned milkfish marinated with fresh garlic, salt, pepper, vinegar. Fried until golden brown and delicious. I am not a fish eater. I don't know why, I am just not. This fish though, I make an exception for. It is that good. Really, try it, don't hesitate. It tastes like chicken but with all those flavors that it was marinated in locked in by that fry but not over cooked.
The staff informed me that they serve Filipino breakfast dishes all day. Tocilog (sweet cured pork served over garlic fried rice and an egg on top), tapsilog(fried beef served over garlic fried rice and an egg on top), Longsilog (sweet cured pork sausage served over garlic fried rice and an egg), Bangsilog (deep fried milkfish served over garlic fried rice and an egg, etc.
All these dishes come with a dipping sauce of some sort and if you know me, I am the accoutrement queen! I was in dipping sauce heaven. All perfect accompaniments to their meals and not over powering.
Not only did I enjoy the food but I also enjoyed the wonderful service they gave my family. The owner's came out to mingle with the patrons of their establishment and took some time to talk to us about their history and small chit chat. I knew they were wildly busy but took the time out to anyway. That is grade-A service that I expect. They gave me the feeling of feeling welcomed in their home. I can see that they take a great sense of pride in their food and give it their all. I love when I see passion in a restaurateur's eyes. I am positive that everything else on the menu is just as delicious, be adventurous and try something new because you just might like it, especially if it comes from Kawayan. One of the owner's told me that they will be holding special events in the near future - all which sound delicious!
In all, we enjoyed our meal and we will be back time and time again. A great time and meal was had by all. I would like to apologize for not snapping a photo of everything we got since we devoured it so quickly. I captured what I could. See you soon Kawayan!