Kusina Filipina

Beacon Hill in Seattle does have a little Filipino influence, with a couple of restaurants and markets/stores. One of the restaurants that I do frequent once in a while is Kusina Filipina.

The restaurant has a medium-sized occupancy for its patrons. Once you walk through the entrance, you're greeted with the server and the food laid out behind a case, cafeteria-style. The food here is pretty authentic. They have a lot of the "normal" Filipino dishes like pancit (noodles) and adobo (marinated beef, chicken, or pork), as well as other specialties. One of my favorites is the caldereta (a hearty marinated beef stew). However, I wanted to try some other dishes.


The friendly server asked me what I wanted as I pulled up a tray. I took a moment to peruse the selections and ordered up the pancit, pork adobo, and longanisa (sweet sausage). The pancit was just like any other pancit, nothing special but still good. The pork adobo was tasty with a nice marinade and very tender. The longanisa is one of my all-time Filipino favorites. It's a reddish, sweet, pork sausage. Delicious! All of these sides came with two heaping scoops of white rice (a staple in most Filipino restaurants).

My order is shown in the first pic below. My parents met up with me for lunch and their orders are pictured right next to mine. Great food!



And now for my 5-doughnut rating system:

• Service, n/a= I can't really rate them on this since everything is pretty much self-serve, from ordering the food cafeteria-style, to getting your own utensils at the "silverware station", to getting your own drinks even. The server was nice and friendly though.


• Atmosphere/Location; 2.5 doughnuts= It's a pretty nice, clean, and colorful establishment. There is really nice artwork and even an espresso bar in the eating area. It's kind of like a laid-back cafe with really good authentic Filipino food, and it's very clean. It's located on Beacon Hill Ave, a couple of blocks from the Red Apple Market. I guess the only downer would be if it was busy and you would have to contend with on-street parking.


• Food Presentation; 3 doughnuts= Everything looks very fresh and nice behind the viewing case. They serve each dish in those white, ceramic boat-like dishes.


• Taste; 3.5 doughnuts= The food is really good. I think it comes pretty close to authentic Filipino food.


• Cost/Value; 2 doughnuts= I think one combination comes out to about $7 which isn't too bad. I think when you start to order side dishes individually, then it starts to add up. For some reason, I end up spending more than I'd like whenever I come here. The food is really good though, so maybe it is worth it. The portions are just right, and even I was full without finishing all my food.


• Originality; 2 doughnuts= Nothing too original here. I guess the addition of an espresso bar in the eating area is a little different.


• Overall; 2.5 doughnuts= I think this is a great place to check out some really good Filipino dishes. You should check it out and also try their desserts.

Find out more info at: http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Location?location=26434. Enjoy!

-NMOS

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