ThePinoyPanda

A Food Blogger's Lunch at Pondahan

How can I call myself a Pinoy Panda without doing a post of Filipino food? So here we go! 

Within the last two years, I've met an incredible group of new friends. Friends from the Los Angeles blogging scene. Before I met them all, I thought I ate pretty well. Geez was I wrong. They've exposed me to some of the best and eclectic cusine that L.A. has to offer, let alone some of the hardest reservations that one can get or even just hope for. I consider myself exremely lucky because of this.

Since I'm the lone Filipino in our group aka The Panda Clan & Team Fatass, they urged me to take them to a Filipino restaurant. It's rare in the Los Angeles area to have a Filipino restaurant that's not a "turo-turo" (where you point at items on a steam table). Luckily there was a one in West Covina run by a couple from my hometown of Malabon, a city just north of Manila back in the Philippines.  

We started our meal with a refreshing glass of Calamansi juice. Calamansi has a distinctive tart and sweet citrusy taste. This is so perfect on a hot summer day. 

Lumpia Shanghai. These are mini egg rolls filled with pork and shrimp that's been fried to a lovely crispness. Daing na Bangus (Fried Boneless Milkfish). This is usually typical breakfast fare back home in the Philippines and we've taken that tradition here. I grew up eating this every Saturday morning. Lechon Kawali (Fried Pork Belly). This is one of our favorites. What's better than taking hot oil to a slab of pork belly...it's just magic. Sinangag (Garlic Fried Rice). A Filipino meal is not complete without rice. It seems that every Filipino dish was especially created to be eaten with rice. Pinakbet (Vegetable with shrimp paste). This was my attemt to get some vegetables in our meal. But as you can see, there are huge chucks of fried pork in it too. Sizzling Sisig. Sisig literally means "to snack on something sour." A mixture of meat taken from a pig's head and mixed liver and flavored with calamansi and chilis. As a final garnish, an egg is cracked over the top. This is typical fare that you'ld have when drinking San Miguel or Red Horse beer with your buddies back home. Crispy Pata (Deep Fried Pork Knuckles). This is our other favorite dish. I'm at a loss for words. It's just that fantastic. Kare-Kare (Oxtail & Tripe stew in peanut sauce). Another classic Pinoy dish that's seems to be everyone's favorite.

We ended our meal with Turon (Banana egg rolls). Here it's served with vanilla ice cream and drizzled with caramel. Delicious!

And of course a Halo-Halo. The name literally means to mix and mix. It's the Philipines' version of shaved ice. This version included gulaman, sweet young coconut, sweet white beans, sweet red beans and topped with Ube ice cream.

This was an enjoyable lunch for all of us and I know we'll be back for more. Having a Filipino meal brings happiness to my heart. And sharing a Filipino meal with wonderful new friends just makes my heart that much happier.

Pondahan Fusion Restuarant Cafe & Bar - 535 South California Avenue, West Covina, CA 91790 - (626) 856-0416