This place takes on Filipino dishes back to it’s roots. Their menu are familiar dishes but done the traditional way. Their food were well prepared, so it means you have to spare a few minutes to better prepare your meal. The price was also good. Nice serving size for each dish. Price was also good. We had brunch on a Sunday morning, for a group of six, 2,500.00 pesos is not so bad. Definitely recommended for a big family. And if you have some foreign guests staying, this is a go to place to introduce the to Filipino dishes.

Out of all the restaurants we’ve tried who occasionally give celebration surprises, I’m grateful that these guys were considerate enough to tell the other customers about their intended activity. Because they WILL surprise everyone with a loud bang (of their drum, kawali, or whatever it was. They were behind me so I didn’t get to see… unfortunately LOL) and warm greetings! 🎉

Anyway, this isn’t the first time we’ve tried Crisostomo. We’ve been to the Fairview Terraces branch, and I’d say this branch looks way classy - design-wise. I still find their menu very creative as most were named after the characters and events from Noli and El Fili. Sounds geeky but truly creative!

As this visit was chosen, and therefore, a treat by our balikbayan cousins, we slightly stepped back from choosing what dishes to order. Well, if one just came back from a foreign country and been away from the Philippines for a few years, one would surely miss the rich Filipino Cuisine. And Crisostomo is just one of the right places to be apart from home! Regardless, we just have to order a plate of Kinilaw. Fortunately, it’s one of the dishes our cousin was pining for. And so our list began:

1. Kinilaw - Kinilaw is probably the only raw-meat dish I can truly enjoy. Technically, not so raw since it’s been soaked (and cooked) in the vinegar for hours or even days. But yeah, you just can’t go wrong with Kinilaw in every Filipino Cuisine Restaurant. Moreover, the Grilled Liempo on top made it… what more can I say but YUM, and SULIT that I’d even ask for a second round!👌

2. Crispy Pata - I’ve never been a fan of Crispy Pata but I’d say this was one of those times I tried, and did enjoy the crispiness of its skin. It looked really mouthwatering upon serving so I indulged myself with a few bites with the hope of understanding what’s all the fuss about this dish. I’d say I did look for a Mang Tomas to go with it but soy sauce with chopped onions (and a chili on the side, in case we want to spice it up a bit) isn’t so bad to wash away even a bit of its greasiness.

3. Grilled Liempo - If the Grilled Liempo on top of the Kinilaw isn’t enough yet, then you can always order a separate plate of it. Served with Atchara, and steamed Okra w/ Bagoong. I don’t particularly find this sulit especially with our list of orders, and there’s only a few slices on it. It’s good for about 2-3 persons only, but any more persons to share it with, especially when you’re a meat-eater, then you might need to ask for another round.

4. Batchoy - I’ve been curious about the taste of Batchoy since I’ve only ever tasted it as a noodle flavor. And just like a Batchoy-flavored instant noodles, it’s salty but less salty than the instant noodles, oily, BUT with a lot more real ingredients than just plain thin noodles. It even has bits of liver (probably chicken liver?) but nope, I’ll just go with the broth! Not my kind of soup but it’s good as a meal starter to warm the stomach.