Plato Filipino

Just south of Joyce Street Station is a small treasure trove of Filpino food in the form of 3 Filipino restaurants in a row! A month or two ago, Marie and I started to explore these places and we decided to arbitrarily start in the middle with Pampanga's Cuisine! We certainly had no regrets there but where would we go next? North or south? These are the types of dilemmas that we face on an almost daily basis! Life certainly can be complicated! Fortunately, the problem was solved for us as out of the blue, Plato Filipino followed us on Instagram! Let this be a lesson for all of you. Follow us on the gram and we will blog about you. Even if you do not have a restaurant!
The set up at P.F. is similar to the aforementioned P.C., namely rice and two for $9.50.
The photo above shows maybe a third of what they offer as your two. I am fortunate to have a Filipina as my guide in this selection as the food was not labelled and the lady serving spoke a little too fast for my ears. I am getting so that I can recognize a lot of the dishes though.
As usual, my first choice was Kare Kare. I have realized that this is my Filipino sweet and sour pork (i.e. accessible to the most uneducated palate and something a white guy might order). I do not apologize however as this was rich and peanuty with tender pork. The ubiquitous funky shrimp paste has fast become a delicious necessity to cut through the rich sauce. 
Next was Pork and Chicken Adobo which is essentially the national dish of the Philippines. Pork belly and in this case chicken breast, stewed in garlic, soy sauce and vinegar this is another dish that can be enjoyed by all. It was also wonderful with the exception of the chicken breast which was surprisingly tough. Dark meat is always a better choice for adobo.
Again, Marie being the Filipina among the two of us, goes a little more all in with her choices. Her first dish was Binagoongan. This is stewed pork with shrimp paste, a rich complex flavour with the subtle hint of that shrimp paste flavour. Again it was very good. Her second choice was Papaitan, a dish traditionally made with goat innards and the flavour of which comes from bile. Yes, I said bile. It is truly a favourite of some of our Filipino friends but I have had a little problem loving it. The first time I tasted it, I would not let Marie bring the leftovers into the car for fear of spillage. This time, it seemed a little more palatable to me and Marie ensures me that it was enjoyable.
Filipino food may not be as chic as some Asian cuisines but it is warming and comforting for the Canadian winter (and it's not even winter yet). It is food for family and friends and is indicative of a culture that could make something from a little and not waste.
As for as P.F compared to Pampanga's Cuisine, we're going to go ahead and call it a draw. Friendly folks and casual, comfortable enough atmosphere.
For what it's worth, we give Plato Filipino, 4 out of 5. 
Plato Filipino Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

1 comment:

  1. You will need a recent receipt of your purchase from Mcdonald’s and an internet-connected device, and spend a couple of minutes answering a few questions in Mcdonald’s Customer Survey regarding your satisfaction level.

    Papa Murphy’s Survey

    ReplyDelete

About Us

Are you guys eating again? At some point Marie and I became the kind of people who take pictures of everything we eat, whether in a restaura...