Lumpiang Shanghai from La Mesa, Goulburn Street, Haymarket |
The Chinese influence was obvious in our entrée of lumpiang Shanghai: deep-fried spring rolls filled with unidentified minced meat and an array of vegetables, and served with sweet chilli sauce.
While the shape and condiment were both familiar, there was an unexpected flavour profile or seasoning to the lumpiang that made it distinct from Chinese or Vietnamese spring rolls.
Kare Kare |
The vividly coloured peanut sauce had me thinking curry, although it wasn't spiced and despite looks, it was a little bland. One of the restaurant's most popular dishes, the kare kare was served with bagoong Filipino shrimp paste which added flavour by way of a fishy oomph.
Adobo Chicken |
The chicken was marinated and cooked in sugar cane vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and black pepper which then formed a thin sauce. With steamed rice, the adobo chicken was a homely-tasting comfort dish that I wouldn't mind attempting to make at home.
Daing na Bangus |
We ended up choosing the previously unheard of milkfish in Daing na Bangus; two serves for a total of four deboned, deep fried milkfish. The small fish themselves were marinated in vinegar and garlic, although most flavour came from the deliciously refreshing hot chilli and vinegar sauce on the side.
Crispy pata |
A platter of pork – bone, meat and deep-fried, crispy skin – had me salivating on sight. The meat was impressively moist and tender despite the deep fry treatment.
The crisp, cracking skin was undoubtedly the highlight of the crispy pata – some of the best pork skin I've ever eaten, with the layer of fat normally beneath the skin completely rendered. The dipping sauce of vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and onion was barely necessary as the pork was so darn good on its own.
Pinkabet |
Not so great for any vegetarians (the restaurant recognises and highlights the lack of pure vegetarian options), the vegetables included a pretty medley of eggplant, snake beans, pumpkin, bitter melon, onions and tomatoes in the fishy sauce.
Leche flan |
Flavoured with vanilla and topped with lashings of caramel sauce and a wafer stick, the leche flan was unbelievably rich and thick in texture – no wobble – like softened butter or a really heavy pate. I could only bear a couple of teaspoons of this leche flan before conceding defeat and moving on to the next dessert.
Ube yam |
Cassava cake |
Not cheese, the thick, sweetened milk provided all the saccharine kick to the cake, which was thankfully served as a small, rich portion.
Having sampled the hits of Philippine cuisine, I'm looking forward to sampling more of the La Mesa menu, especially some of the more exotic-sounding dishes. As my first taste of the Philippines, La Mesa has got me wanting more.
I haven't tried Filipino food either. Although it's similar in some ways to Peruvian cuisine, it's not quite the same, so I'm very keen on giving it a shot, specially after seeing that photo of the crispy pata.
ReplyDeleteYou cannot go wrong with their crispy pata. Best one I've had in Sydney. The kare kare is normally made to be a bit bland to give way for the shrimp paste to do its magic. Love this place and nice review Tina :)
ReplyDeleteI've been to La Mesa in Dee Why but this is much closer to get to! :D
ReplyDeleteThe crispy pork! Who can say no to crispy pork!
ReplyDeleteI haven't had filo food and I've been wanting to for ages. Raff has raved on plenty about it! Oh man...
ReplyDeleteUm crispy pata. HELLO! And their cassava cake was my favourite dessert too.
ReplyDeleteHi gaby - Yes, lots of varied influences which makes it very interesting..!
ReplyDeleteHi Raff - Thanks! I'm not a huge shrimp paste fan, but I did like the kare kare (love ox tail). Crispy pata is amazing!!!
Hi Lorraine - I believe this is the same one - they've moved, I think.
Hi Sherrie - Definitely not me!But the fact that it wasn't dry at all - so good!
Hi Tina - Yeah, it's new to me; so much more I'd want to try!
Hi Helen - Yup, AMAZING.
Thanking you for sharing a great dessert.
ReplyDelete