A Filipino Feast

Filipiniana Again!

Yesterday was cold and gray and uninspiring.  That is the perfect kind of day to go on a food adventure.  This cute little spot recently opened in a shopping center in Pearland.  It's tiny, but it's packed with food!

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Dining with Brenda and Suzanne

Sometimes I experience new foods with friends who are as clueless as I am.  But it's always great going with "food experts" like Brenda and Suzanne! Suzanne (r) and I met about 15 years ago, and I've been lucky enough to sample a bit of her Filipino cooking.  But yesterday I had the fun of sampling at least 15 different foods with Suzanne and her friend Brenda. 

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Ready to go!

It was before noon when we arrived and there were quite a number of diners already eating.  We grabbed plates and got ready to hit the buffet.  I've eaten Filipino food once before, but I didn't recognize one thing.  Suzanne and Brenda were more than happy to point out the various dishes and explain away.  Mostly I just grabbed a little of everything and hoped for the best.

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The Food Kept Coming

Even after we filled our plates, steaming dishes kept arriving to the buffet.  The owner and staff were all welcoming and eager to point out new dish arrivals.  They all seemed excited to know that I (a first-timer) was enjoying the food!

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Many Plates

As you might notice, there are two plates in front of my empty chair!  And that was before  I added some more bar-b-q chicken and desserts.  

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One More Photo

Before digging in, Suzanne grabbed the camera to get me in a photo.  I look like I'm leaning in, ready to dive into the plate...and that wasn't even my plate.  I hadn't eaten breakfast, so I was starving!

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What's What...

It's a little hard to remember everything I ate, but I tried to be pretty daring.  Brenda showed me how to break the cod in half and peel out the bones.  I was surprised to find the salty fish pretty tasty.  I'm not usually so brave about having tails on my plate.  I had no problem at all loving the Tinola soup with melt-in-your-mouth-chicken, or the calamari or the noodle dish!

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 Clean Plate Club?

It took a little more courage to try the  Dinuguan which was a sort of stew with a gravy of pork blood.  I just focused on the strong ginger flavor and ignored the word blood.  The Kare-Kare was another sort of stew made with oxtails and a great thick peanut sauce which I liked.  The Lechon or pork belly was pretty much like eating a square chunk of fatty bacon. I like bacon and had a sample that was more meaty than some.  And I had to laugh when I found out my Sisig dish was chopped pig snout. The tiny pieces mixed in with chopped peppers and onions (I think), reminded me of what you might eat rolled in a lettuce wrap at an Americanized Asian restaurant. So it wasn't that daring after all. I can't believe how much I ate and then I sampled some desserts. I liked the sticky rice with sweet, chewy bites and the warm bananas soaked in a brown sugary sauce! 

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So Full!

We had one more pose before we left.  As I said, the staff was wonderful and offered to take a few photos. 

Suzanne and I dropped off Brenda and made the drive back to Sugar Land, jabbering the whole way...to stay awake.  I figure the "buddy system" is important for Filipino Feasting. I would have fallen asleep if I'd driven myself home after all that food. It's taken me about a day to get hungry again, but now I'm ready for another bite of that noodle dish or some Tinola soup!

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