an egg is an egg...meditating at the Museo Miró in Barcelona

Thursday, July 07, 2005

'di salamat, po naman

Thanks but no thanks. We gave it a try but they just didn't measure up. Was it because the restaurant was new or was it because they didn't know how to 'restaurant'?

Went to Kainan at 1030 Silas Deane Highway in Wethersfield, CT to celebrate the D's 43rd anniversary. This was everyone's introduction to Filipino_cuisine [except me, lived there for two years]. There were JD, BD, JB, WB and me. Table for five, please. I couldn't find any San Miguel beer so bought a bottle of Cordoniu Cava [the restaurant has no liquor license yet].

The room is beautifully decorated with bamboo furniture. The AC was not functioning. The tables were not set. The waiter was affable but hampered by a very slow kitchen. And someone was smoking in the other room! We had to ask for table settings, water, condiment tray, salt and pepper, etc. The entrees came out in a slow and embarassing order. First one dish, then a little while later three more entrees and then a lot later the final dish.

Ordered 2 orders of Lumpia, one Frito and the other Sariwa [fresh and vegetarian]. We got 2 orders of fried; one with meat and the other vegetarian. Dipping sauce was Banana Catsup.

BD and WB ordered the Adobong Baboy [Pork Stew, the National Dish of the Philippines] accompanied by a large portion of good Rice, JB ordered the Pansit Palabok which was a Creamy Seafood Sauce over noodles. JB ordered the Pansit Gisado and got Bihon [cellophane noodles] covered with Veggies and Shrimp. I ordered the Drunken Chicken which had been marinated in rum and soy sauce and then slow cooked in smoke house. This is what the menu said but the end product was just a half Roasted Chicken served with Roasted Baby Potatoes, some Grilled Peppers and Onions with a good serving of Rice.

We looked at the dessert and found everything quite expensive from flan to 'Philippine ice cream to fresh fruit. They even had Halo Halo but I may go back another time just to order that and see what culinary memories it brings back.

The winners were the Pork Adobo and the Fried Lumpia. The losers were the rest of the entrees and definitely the service/kitchen combo.

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