A big adobo burger? You've got to be kidding me. But there it was on the menu with a description that read "finger-licking good."
Although I was expecting vinegar-and-garlic-marinated chunks of pork sandwiched in between a pandesal (Filipino roll), I instead got a chopped sirloin disc that had been pan-fried in an adobo sauce to give it that distinct Filipino flavor.
Not even in Manila will you find an adobo burger so it was surprising, if not palate intriguing, to see this at Loulen. This Kalihi place has been around for the past four years but, much like Filipino food in general, it's still unknown to many.
The husband-and-wife team of Luis and Len Butay have toiled to change this over the years and they're finally making some headway.
Trained in European culinary techniques, Luis tried to make Loulen a more gourmet-type Filipino restaurant when they first opened. But in the end, it would be Len's homestyle Manila cooking that guests wanted and expected from this ethnic eatery.
So what may have been osso buco at first is now the kare kare ($12.99), a traditional Filipino stew-like dish that consists of fall-off-the-bone braised oxtail steeped in a savory peanut sauce and garnished with an assortment of vegetables. A side of bagoong (fermented shrimp paste) is the mandatory dipping sauce to give the oxtail a saltier flavor to balance the sweetness of the peanut butter.
Like everyone else who uses their mom's home cooking as a sort of benchmark when they go to a restaurant that offers the same type of food they grew up with, I was constantly comparing Loulen's dishes to those of my mom's. And as biased as I was — hey, it's my mom, the woman who raised and fed me — I enjoyed every dish that I tried here.
The kare kare wasn't too soupy, nor too gelatinous. It was well balanced in flavor and had a smooth velvety texture.
The lechon kawali ($10.99) offered crispy pieces of deep-fried pork that can be dunked in one of three sauces: garlic and vinegar, classic liver and, my favorite, a blend of garlic, vinegar, shoyu and calamansi (a type of citrus that is native to the Philippines). A bowl of rice on the side and it doesn't get anymore comforting than this.
A popular appetizer, the sizzling sisig ($9.99) came to the table in a cast iron skillet with plumes of smoke rising to the air and the crackling sound of pork was music to my ears. I'm surprised this hasn't made it onto bar menus since it's perfect pupu fare and easily shared among friends.
One of the more impressive looking dishes here is the fish escabeche Mayon ($10.99), named after the active volcano in Southeastern Luzon. Once the deep-fried fillets of white fish are done, they're propped up to form a tepee, which is then anointed with a splash of tamarind-infused sauce and topped with julienned slices of carrots and red bell peppers that supposedly represent flowing lava. The fish flaked effortlessly and was nicely complemented with a sweet-and-sour sauce.
Two Filipino standards include the pork guisantes ($7.99) and the pinakbet ($8.99), which was prepared with fresh long beans, bitter melon, eggplant, tomatoes and bits of roast pork, all floating in a pool of sabao, which is a liquid that's usually spooned over rice.
Of course, adobo ($8.99) is on the menu, as well as one of my favorites, sinigang ($9.99), the Filipino equivalent of bouillabaisse.
A few not-so-Filipino dishes can be found, including spaghetti Bolognese ($7.99), crispy fried half chicken ($8.99) and sirloin steak complemented with an aioli sauce ($11.99).
Luis later told me that he offers these dishes for the younger generation who don't necessarily want to eat Filipino food all the time. Well I suppose then the adobo burger is the perfect compromise.
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