On our way to see a movie at Silvercity Riverport, I subliminally suggested we go to Little Ong Pin. And by subliminally suggesting, I mean I’ve been harassing him to go try out a new Filipino joint soon. And yes, I’ve been here before but that was a while ago. So let’s get to the review.
First off, I ordered a Royal. It’s basically a Fanta Orange drink, but called Royal. They also serve Sarsi if you’re feeling the Filipino cravings.
The dish I ordered comes with soup, and it’s basically a broth made with onions, carrots and celery with some chicken or pork most likely. It was light and good, but nothing too memorable.
Up next is the Lumpiang Shanghai, i.e. fried lumpia. They look a little worse for wear but they tasted fine. A reason they could turn up looking like this is because they were probably frozen for a while (my dad makes a lot of lumpia and freezes em, so I think I know a thing or two of what good lumpia looks like). Anyway, this lumpia is meat filled and quite simple. The dipping sauce is slightly peppery which is an interesting alternative to the sweet and spicy sauce I’m used to at home.
Next up is Brian’s dish. Lechon Kawali on rice. I did a double take when she came with our food, and I actually had to ask her what this dish was. The reason behind this? This is what I thought lechon kawali looked like – this is actually the way it was served the last time I was in Manila:
And this is how they serve it here. Strange. I was just about to order this, but I’m kind of glad that I didn’t since I was expecting just the plain roasted/fried lechon. Anyway, I know everyone has their own way of making it, so I’m not discrediting them for their version. In fact, Brian really enjoyed this version of Lechon Kawali. Lechon Kawali is basically roasted pork fried up till it’s crisp.
They serve it here with a sauce and some vegetables over rice. I think it’d be great if they served the vegetables on the side. The portion is also very big, so it’s good for two people…or one hungry husband.
I ordered their special which is BBQ pork belly, garlic fried rice and a fried egg. What I really loved was the fact they served it with bagoong.
Bagoong is a salty shrimp paste. The lady who served us asked me if the Bagoong was okay or if I wanted suka (vinegar) instead. Oh my God, I love you Little Ongpin, nobody ever asks me if I want vinegar – in fact when I have to ask for vinegar at buffets for my seafood, I always get a weird look. The dish is pretty standard and you can never go wrong with BBQ. Also, garlic fried rice is amazing. I grew up on this stuff and it never ceases to make me drool.
I really wanted to have a Halo Halo dessert, but we were running short on time! They weren’t so busy when we arrived around 6, so thankfully there wasn’t much of a wait for food.
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