PenPen's Filipino Kitchen: Three-Cheese Baked Bangus Belly, Talangkanin, and more!

PenPen's Filipino Kitchen

Cubao X is filled with interesting restaurants yet we landed here at the humble space of PenPen's Filipino Kitchen due to the positive reviews we saw online. This restaurant owned by actor Ping Medina is said to be a hole-in-the-wall type or a hidden gem inside the crowded Cubao X.

small space, no aircon

Definitely not a fancy place, and except for the blinking name signage, the place is more like an eatery than a restaurant. The place doesn't seem to be well-maintained and has no aircon so ventilation is a bit an issue. Based on my observation, people go there to have beers.

Despite the unimpressive ambiance, we kept our faith as we look onto the menu. There are a lot of interesting dishes and prices seemed to be quite okay.

Smoked Cheese Dynamite (140Php)

Smoked Cheese Dynamite

An order of Smoked Cheese Dynamite has five pieces of full size. For me, spiciness is tolerable but what I love most here is the generous and rich cheese.

Three-Cheese Baked Bangus Belly (165Php)

Three-Cheese Baked Bangus Belly

Talking about cheese again, this Three-Cheese Baked Bangus Belly is a successful creation. Size-wise, it's small but the cheese topping is never short. The fish itself seemed to be marinated with vinegar giving hints of sourness but still went well with the topping.

Chicken Adobo sa Gata (168Php)

Chicken Adobo sa Gata

Although I'm used to the usual adobo made out of soy sauce and vinegar, this is the first time I've tried Chicken Adobo sa Gata. And I think they did pretty well in this dish as it is good and flavorful, plus the gata or coconut milk is evident.

Sizzling Sisig in Liver Sauce (185Php)

Sizzling Sisig in Liver Sauce

Sizzling Sisig in Liver Sauce is another dish that I liked. There were hints of sourness but overall, the liver sauce is noticeable. A great beer match.

Talangkanin (195Php)

Aligue rice

Talangkanin

The waitress said this Talangkanin is good for 4 to 6 but in our case, I'll say maximum of 3 people can share this. Either we have a huge appetite or this flavored rice is that good! My usual experience with aligue rice is it tends to have too much seafood saltiness. But this one from PenPen's Filipino Kitchen has the right balance, not too salty so you can still enjoy other viands with it, yet the aligue essence is there.

Malunggay-Quezong Puti in Pili Oil Pesto (148Php)

Malunggay-Quezong Puti in Pili Oil Pesto

The name itself, Malunggay-Quezong Puti in Pili Oil Pesto, is enough to make me drool for it. I love pesto! I love kesong puti! And so the addition of pili oil and malunggay seemed to make it special. So even though we had enough food in our table, I still opted to order this. I had high expectations on this just to find myself disappointed. For one, I find it too oily that even if it's pili oil, I didn't notice the pili taste much. Maybe I'm used to pesto pasta with more flavorful and sharp pesto that for me, this version seemed to be lacking. Also, the kesong puti, which I got excited about, is not noticeable if there is.

Bottomless Pandan Iced Tea (55Php)

Bottomless Pandan Iced Tea

For only Php55, you get Bottomless Pandan Iced Tea. Though the pandan flavor is not obvious, the price is okay for an unlimited drink.

cute treasure box

Although our experience is a mix of good and bad, this cute little treasure box where our bill was placed put a smile on our face. If you plan to visit PenPen's Filipino Kitchen, at least you know what to expect unless they have renovated or improved their restaurant. In terms of dishes, they still have more unique dishes such as the Penoy & Bacon Carbonara, Smoked Tapang Usa & Duck Egg Silog, and Five-Way Adobo.

PenPen's Filipino Kitchen
Cubao Expo, General Romulo Avenue, Cubao, Quezon City