Ang Hapag Kainan – The Dining Table

Oh-ma-gosh…there were 20+ people (mostly Filipino) lining up at lunch, which must DEFINITELY say something good about their food. (Luckily, I arrived 5 minutes BEFORE the lunch rush and got my order out of the way, sat down close-​by and watched the army of hungry ants flow into Lau Pa Sat.)
NOPE.
I’m still struggling deep within after eating two out of the three dishes I’ve ordered so far. I can safely say that I was really angry for a bit so I had to wait a few days before writing this review so that I’ll remain objective. But I can’t completely bash them either, everyone was ordering something I didn’t order… all I heard throughout my meal observing the line were the words «COMBO 2» (which I found out later was a combination of Chicken Adobo, Fried Fish, Veggies, and Rice).
But I still can’t get over my frustration with these three «MAINSTAYS» that is on their menu…
1. Pork Sisig — DO NOT EVER ORDER THIS PILE OF CRAP FROM HERE!!! Sure, it looked good… but it was tough LIKE jerky left open on the table overnight. I tried to salvage this dish with vinegar and lime… but ended up leaving more than half of it untouched. EPIC FAIL.
2. «Bacolod» Chicken Inasal — This is NOT Bacolod Chicken Inasal. This is just plain OLD grilled chicken, which I would have enjoyed a LOT more if I didn’t dive into the dish EXPECTING «BACOLOD» Chicken Inasal. Okay fine, it tasted okay. It just isn’t the real deal.
3. Lechon Kawali — Sighs, one of the simplest pork dishes… and they still managed to do it wrong. Really? As in… REALLY NOW? Severely… overcooked.
So WHY would I still GIFT them 2 stars?
Well, I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt that they MUST be doing something RIGHT somewhere (which I’m pretty sure is COMBO #2)…that keeps them open and leads to long-​arse-​lines during lunch time.
So next time we meet… I’m going to try just that… and find out if that is their REAL (and only) mainstay after all.
Unilocal 100: ¹³⁄₁₀₀