Manila BBQ & Grill

Back in November my Buddy Jack told me that a new Filipino Take-Out had opened up in Point Loma. So on a recent Friday that I had off I decided to pay Manila BBQ and Grill a visit.

I found the little take-out place in a stand alone "Food Court" in Point Loma Plaza. In fact, no permanent "signage" was yet in place.

I don't know what the "seafood" sign is about, there's no seafood on the menu! I looked over the menu and went to order. Unfortunately, my first two choices were "not ready" yet. I'd come a bit too early(1045am), and many items were not ready yet. So I finally settled on a Combo Meal with Teriyaki Short Rib BBQ (I find the Teriyaki and BBQ to be a bit redundant here), and Pork Adobo($6.50):

There were two cross cut short ribs and several large chunks of Pork Adobo served over a large bed of rice, a pretty good size portion of food. The short ribs were tender and moist, with a nice bit of carmelization, but fell "short" in flavor. In fact, the ribs were pretty bland and unremarkable. In comparison to say, L&L, I'd say, much more tender then L&L, but L&L's "Kalbi" had much more flavor. In fact, I really don't consider this "teriyaki" by any means, not even Hawaiian Style Teriyaki. It's closer to Hawaiian BBQ.

Many consider Adobo, along with Pancit and Lumpia to be one of the quintessential dishes that represent Filipino Food. Pork Adobo for those who do not know, is pork cooked in vinegar and soy sauce, and seasoned with bay leaves, garlic, and my favorite in adobo, a touch of black pepper. This version had a pretty good sauce, with a nice touch of vinegar. But the downfall of the dish were the overly large chunks of pork. The smaller pieces had absorbed the flavor of the sauce and were nice and tender. The larger pieces did not have enough flavor and were also on the dry side; a big no-no when it comes to adobo. Also the slight hint of black pepper I enjoy was missing. On the good side, was that the Gal who put this dish together placed the adobo over the rice, making the rice very tasty.

I had made up my mind to do a follow-up visit. And so a month later I paid Manila BBQ & Grill another visit. Now open about 2 months, I was pretty sure that all the wrinkles would be pretty much worked out. I dropped by and ordered a Combo Meal($6.50) with Teriyaki Chicken BBQ Skewer(wow, talk about a mouthful), and the Chicken Adobo.

Talk about deja vu all over again! The chicken adobo were really large pieces of chicken that really didn't absorb some of the flavor. The sauce was the same as the last time, and really not salty enough. As large as the pieces were, it was mostly bone, except for a whole drumstick. As a whole I wish the adobo was placed on the rice as the last time, since there was a huge pool of sauce with nowhere to go at the bottom of the container.

The BBQ Chicken looked beautiful, and were nicely grilled. But don't lose that little container of teriyaki-ish sauce, as a whole these were under-flavored. The chunks of chicken were moist and nicely grilled, but the overall flavoring was quite weak, though I'm pretty sure I tasted a faint peanut-butter flavor. I did pour the sauce over the chicken for flavor.

If I were to return, I'd order the Pork Adobo with the BBQ Chicken Skewer. In retrospect, I wonder if this place would survive in National City or Mira Mesa? But they have the market cornered for Filipino food in Point Loma and are probably better then some other options. The portions are large and service is very nice and friendly. So if you're in Point Loma, and really need some Filipino "grinds"; Manila BBQ & Grill is nearby. The menu is short but feature other items such as Pancit, Grilled Pork Chop and Beef Steak(I think it's probably Bistek).

Manila BBQ & Grill
3615 Midway Drive Suite C
San Diego, CA 92110

Comments

[Reid]

Hi Kirk,

Chicken adobo sounds great right now. I haven't had Filipino food in a while and I guess it's because many of the places are in suspect areas. I really should make adobo at home, then use up the gravy to make adobo fried rice. =)

[elmomonster]

Adobo with no black peppercorns?! What gives! That's the part I like too.

[Kirk]

Hi Reid - mmmmm Adobo-Rice, delici-yoso!!!

Hi Elmo - You know they probably had black peppercorns in there, but I couldn't even taste the faintest hint of it.

[Jack]

Kirk...there must be filipino food cravings in the air. I;ve had filipino food three times this week, once at this place. Have you tried the pancit? Not great to look at but not bad tasting. Totally agree with you on the large pieces of meat in the adobo.They look good but no flavor! Definitely not slow cooked long enough. With all my complaints, I'm still happy that there is filipino food in Point Loma!

[Joan]

Wow, I didn't even know there was a Filipino place in Pt. Loma! I've been in that food court a few times, can't say that any of those options are very impressive, but I'll have to stop by and try this place sometime. Probably can't compare to my dad's adobo, but it sounds like it's worth a shot!

[Passionate Eater]

I wanted to leave a comment on your Indian Restaurant review communicating the same thing: "Even when your restaurant experience was just mediocre, I still get hungry!" Thanks for providing such a great restaurant reviews for those in San Diego and those visiting San Diego (like me. . . in the near future).

Are you going to move to SF soon? Please? (Jk.) :D

[Kirk]

Hey Jack - Haven't tried the pancit here. I have to be in a certain mood to want pancit and rice. :o)

Hi Joan - It is a good thing to be able to grab some Filipino Food outside of the South Bay and Mira Mesa. I've found another Filipino Place in a pretty interesting place that I'll be trying soon.

Hi PE - Thanks so much! I appreciate your comments and support.

[Joan]

Hi Kirk,
Just wanted to say thanks again for reviewing this restaurant in your blog- my hubby picked up some food from there tonight and we really enjoyed it!

[Kirk]

Hi Joan - Thank you for letting me know how both of you liked Manila BBQ. It does provide another eating option in the Point Loma area. Thanks again for the feedback, I really do appreciate the time you take to let me know!

[Jen]

I have to say, being filipino, this is one of the few places that I really like and comes close to mom's cooking. Admittedly, I've had the adobo and it's awesome. My mom, born and raised in the PI, even says that they have the best adobo. Whenever we've gone there, she always gets the chicken adobo and I get the pancit with beef steak. YUMMO! But I was sadden when I went there last week to find out that they're closed as in boarded up and looking for renters. WAH! Does anyone know if they've relocated? Or was it the economy? I was wondering how they'd do because of their location...I can see them attracting the few filipinos living in Pt Loma, PB or OB but it's such a hard location that if you dont know of it, you'd miss it. So I'm wondering if they just couldnt make ends meet. I guess if they're still in business I'll have to wait for them at next year's PIFA (they've been there 2 years in a row). That is unless they just relocated somewhere...anyone know?