Sunday afternoon, I headed uptown to Wychwood Barn for the Kapisanan Centre's Adobo Cook-off where several Filipino restaurants vied for the best adobo dish. There were also arts and crafts vendors and a small stage for performers. With the blazing sun, I felt too tired to eat very much so I can't comment on the best dishes (the judges' choice was Lamesa and the audience's choice was Adobo Cafe). However, I did sample 2 items.
 |
| Inihaw Adobo Liempo |
|
 |
| Tinanok |
|
From
Casa Manila, I got the Inihaw Adobo Liempo ($7). It consisted of 2 small plates. One contained a nice pile of grilled pork belly with adobo sauce reduction and braised eggplant with papaya slaw. The other had a cone of garlic fried rice. The slaw, though augmented with onions and cilantro, didn't have enough bite. The rice was good, but brown rice may be healthy for you but doesn't soak up as much oily goodness as white rice. Need more greasy mouth-feel! However the pork belly was a stand-out. With an interesting sweet and slightly sour tartness, the fatty meat was firm but yielded nicely to the bite.
For dessert, I ordered 2 skewers of Tinanok ($3) from
Adobo Cafe. These balls made from glutinous rice were rolled in coconut shavings and drizzled with caramel. They were surprisingly less sweet and sticky than anticipated. This was a fun snack.
 |
| Maylee, April, and Casey |
|
 |
| Adobo Sisters |
|
I had arrived just in time for the last entertainment slot for the day: a collaboration between
Maylee Todd, Casey Mecija (
Ohbijou) and April Aliermo (Hooded Fang, Phedre). The 3 ladies made their way to the stage covered in shawls and carrying over-sized cooking utentils. They sang songs from their own repertoire including Maylee's Downtown but this occasion was meant for a bit of fun and goofiness. To that end, they covered
Manila (The Hotdogs) and
Will You Love Me Tomorrow (The Shirelles). They finished their performance with an original, silly tagalog/tinglish rap with a shout-out to "fry it up".
No comments:
Post a Comment