Mabini's Kainan Kapihan Tindahan

A week day visit to my home city of Manila,checking the progress and rejuvenation under the leadership of "Yorme" Mayor Domagoso famously known as Isko Moreno.

Upon arriving Taft Avenue and checking the formerly frantic and chaotic traffic both people and vehicles of Pedro Gil Street .I went straight to Ermita area specifically Mabini Street.I saw an old Art Deco building of Tesoro's.Beside that old structure is Grand Prix Hotel and a Cafe/ Restaurant named as Mabini's.As it was about past 11am and famished because of my long walk from Paco to Ermita.I settled in to have an early lunch there.

Impressed by the name Mabini,a Philippine Patriot ,I was charmed in a way that this maybe a good representation of the Local Philippine cuisine considering it is situated at the very heart of Manila and an old tourist belt.
The interior design of the place was inspired by the" retro modern style",Spanish 60s-70s designed furnitures,capiz lamps and some native adornments which is very Filipino.

As I'm a going solo for this lunch I went for the solo meal.They offer choices of combo rice meals with iced tea included(BAYANI LUNCH MEALS Available 11am-3pm, Mondays-Fridays) for the individualdiners diners.I chose the "squid sisig" an off the beaten path dish for me and it can also be a "make or break" item.

Upon the arrival of the dish,it was on the round sizzling plate,rice was well cooked,surprisingly and impressively the squid is not overcooked ,the texture was perfect ,not to chewy yet there's this certain bite into it whenever my teeth sunk into each piece.Lovely hint of heat , I like the small slivers of green local chili.The sauce has this unique savory taste and fine touch of garlicky flavor.The dish brought some happy grin on my kisser.

As another observation ,I saw that they have a Chef Line which is a remarkable thing in my humble opinion.Service is very good ,"magalang and magiliw".

Price ,mid range,the names of the dishes have touches of novelty and history which is very amusing.

If you have foreign friends that will visit the Philippines ,Mabini's is a great option to introduce them to the flavors of the Philippines.And a big plus is that it is not situated inside a mall.

For now I will give it a 4 but I'll have to try a lot of their offerings the next time.

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Very delicious and flavorful food! My favorites were the Balut Mata Pobre (which says a lot, as I don’t really look for balut), Sizzling Squid Steak, Chicharon Bulaklak, and Hito. Very friendly, attentive, and accommodating staff. Also nice that there’s a Tesoro’s inside, so while waiting for our food, we were able to look around. I forgot to take photos of the food because I kept wanting to eat more and make sure my family didn’t finish the food before I got 😅 PS - They had a great playlist when we went. They were playing modern OPM artists like The Ransom Collective and Ben&Ben.

As what the Hotdog band sang in their song Manila, “I keep coming back to Manila. Simply no place like Manila.” It’s just so difficult to say goodbye to Manila. It’s so hard to forget. All the good times during its heyday. No matter what I’ve already experienced, no matter where I’ve already been, there’s really no place like Manila. I just got to keep coming back to Manila. In this edition of EATSplorations, I will be featuring a restaurant that aims to bring back the old days with its classic Filipino dishes and an ambiance that would really take you back to the good old days! Get ready to be transported back in time as I share about the Classic Filipino Food at Mabini’s Restaurant in Manila!

[2019-May-19] When you hear Mabini or Ermita, food is definitely not the top of mind item that most people would associate it with. With the advent of malls and the relative deterioration of the area, it has somewhat lost its luster. Just like what ‘Poblacion’ is to Makati, this area used be part of Manila’s ‘Poblacion’.

Located in Tesoro’s Building is a charming Restaurant called Mabini’s Kainan, Kapihan Tindahan. It is yet another Restaurant in Ermita Manila whose name tells you exactly what it’s all about. They serve the best traditional Filipino dishes as close as they could to the original recipe with a little twist to make the feeling heavenly.

It was really amusing to read their Cleverly named menu. What we got first was the Balut Matapobre, Sizzling in Garlic Butter. It really turned out well. Never knew it tastes that good, just dont stare at it while eating 😁. Next was my personal favorite, Laing Inside, Lobster stuffed with Laing. Looks too good to eat. If you’re like me who prefer prawn in Laing, you should try it here! It’s really good! You’d also want to try their freshly made hand-pulled noodle, Pansit ni Aling Doreen. It’s a bit salty yet the noodles were nice and chewy.

Sungka Sungkaan is an ideal when you’re out for a group. A mixed Inihaw Platter served with different dipping sauces to complete your enjoyment. Everything on the platter was grilled to perfection.

And ofcourse, we got our taste buds treated to different version of desserts like Dirty Ensaymanda, or what we call icecream sandwich. I just love how the sweet and salty taste of chees Ensaymada combine with icecream.
If you fancy kakanin, they have Skillet Cassava Cake. A dessert everyone will love. Not too sweet and just right. Best eaten when it’s hot. Both desserts were highly satisfying.

For this, you pay for the quality not the serving size, definitely better quality than i expected for a Filipino food. Will definitely go back here!