Dinner at O Kitchen

For my brother's belated birthday dinner, my dad brought us to O Kitchen beside the Padre Pio chapel along E. Rodriguez Avenue in Libis. The first thing that strikes you about the place is how brightly lit it is. They serve lutong bahay in minimalist interiors. Everything is simple but not scrimped on, from the utensils to the decor. Their placemat made me think of Piadina's, only subdued. It was nearly empty on Sunday night; there was only one other occupied table and they were also celebrating someone's birthday (it's September after all).

We had grape shake, which was fresh and cool. Rice is shaped into amusing pyramids. We had kare-kare (runny), dulong (tiny shrimp in a tiny plate), grilled pork (good) and deep-fried catfish (really crispy) with a little buro (fermented shrimp and rice-almost cheese!). The food matches expectations. The servings, however, are not so big. For the same price, the four of us could eat at Jatujak and leave nearly bursting. Or you could feed seven at Mann Hann.