Category: Filipino

ArizonaAsianFilipinoRating: N/R (Not Rated)United States

Jollibee – Chandler, Arizona

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

One visit to Jollibee might convince you you’ve visited yet another American chain restaurant.  You’d be half right.  Jollibee is a chain, but it’s a chain based out of the Philippines.  Apparently the many islands comprising The Philippines developed a taste for fried chicken and burgers during its years as a U.S. colony.  My Uncle Fred, a career Navy man stationed several times at Subic Bay (on the west coast of Luzon Island in the Philippines northwest of Manila), raved that the fried chicken, in particular, was far better than fried chicken anywhere in the United States.  Apparently he’s not the only person with that opinion. USA Today and Eater both recently named Jollibee fried chicken as the best in the country among fast-food restaurants, beating out brands such as Popeyes, Chick-fil-A, Church’s and KFC (not that you can consider that much of accomplishment considering how bad American fried chicken chains have become).  Jollibee now has about eighty locations across the fruited plain.  With my Kim hankering for fried chicken, we managed to find the only Jollibee in all of Arizona.  It’s located in Chandler, not too far from the Intel plants which I once visited for eighteen years.  Chandler,…

AlbuquerqueAsianFilipinoNew MexicoRating: Excellent

Barkada’s ABQ – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

As a self-confessed mama’s boy away from home for the first time, my transition to being on my own could have been much tougher.  Thankfully I was “adopted” by Air Force veterans and the spouses they had married during tours of Vietnam, Korea and The Philippines.  Those spouses were largely responsible for my introduction to Asian cuisine, none of which I had ever had as a sheltered bumpkin  growing up in secluded Peñasco.  I wanted to try it all.  In some cases, I would try foods (such as rancid kimchi and stomach-turning balut) my friends (some of whom had seen combat) were afraid to try.  My willingness to try virtually everything endeared me to my friends’ spouses though my friends complained I was making them look wimpy. Although all Asian food seemed exotic in comparison with the beans, tortillas, and chile diet of my youth, I did experience one cuisine which was more relatable because it had the qualities of home cooking, the type of which my mom’s prepared for her family. That cuisine was Filipino.  Norma would greet me to the family home with a traditional Filipino greeting of “Kain tayo!”.  That greeting doesn’t translate to “welcome to our…

ArizonaFilipinoRating: OutstandingUnited States

TAMBAYAN FILIPINO FOOD – Phoenix, Arizona

Gil Garduno12:01 AM

When my Kim required physical therapy after a brief hospitalization, extraordinary physical therapist Lana Ramos was dispatched to our home where she worked with my Kim for several weeks.  Lana was wonderful–a superb and patient coach for my injured bride and a knowledgeable and patient source of knowledge for me.  Having been around many Air Force colleagues married to Filipino women, I developed a fondness for both the culture and cuisine of the Philippines.  Lana reignited that fondness by answering my questions and clarifying a few misconceptions I had.  When my Kim successfully completed her physical therapy, Lana prepared lumpia for us.  It had been a long time since we’d had lumpia. Lana told us that she and several compatriots journey to the Phoenix area periodically to get their fix of Filipino cuisine which–until September, 2024 could not be found at an Albuquerque eatery.  Then came Cindy Recile, an effusive and radiant personality who named her take-out establishment “Barkada’s ABQ” for the Filipino word for “friends” or “group of friends.”   Barkada’s is not a sit-down restaurant in which you can linger to enjoy fabulous flavors.  Instead, you’ve got to use social media to order food which you can pick up…

AlbuquerqueAsianClosed in 2021FilipinoGone But Not ForgottenNew Mexico

Bubblicitea Cafe – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno9:22 PM

According to the United States Census Bureau, by 2016 the Asian American population–including those of multiracial, Hispanic and Latino ancestry–had reached nearly 21 million, constituting about six-percent of the Fruited Plain’s total population.  As the table below illustrates, there’s absolutely no correlation between population and the number of restaurants across the fruited plain representing the listed Asian ethnicities.  Ethnicity Population Restaurants Source Chinese 3.79 million 41,000 Chinese Restaurant News Filipino 3.41 million ???? ???? Indian 3.18 million 5,000 Washington Post Vietnamese 1.73 million 8,900 Institute for Immigration Research Korean 1.7 million 5,000 Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) Japanese 1.3 million 25,100 Japanese Overseas Diplomatic Establishments   Just try finding an authoritative source enumerating the country’s Filipino restaurants.  There is none.  Despite being the second most populous Asian-American ethnic group under the spacious skies, there’s plenty of anecdotal evidence indicating there are very few Filipino restaurants in the United States–even in California where Filipinos are the largest ethnic group in the state at at 1.5 million.  Contrast that with Thai restaurants.  Despite a population of only 300,000 Thai-Americans, Thai restaurants have exploded across the country, today numbering around 5,300 So why aren’t there more Filipino restaurants in this country?  It certain…

AlbuquerqueClosed in 2007FilipinoGone But Not Forgotten

Fil-Am Fast Food Mart – Albuquerque, New Mexico (CLOSED)

Gil Garduno1:50 PM

The pursuit of the secret to a happy life has led people to metaphysical, psychological and religious paths. Where it really should have taken them is to a tiny Albuquerque restaurant in a nondescript shopping center where the secret to happy living is posted for one and all to see. The elusive secret consists of only six simple steps: (1) Come to Fil-Am Fast Food Mart; (2) Check out mouth watering menu; (3) Select items that appeal to your tastes; (4) Pay and leave tip; (5) Leave happy; and (6) For best results, repeat tomorrow and the day after, and the day after, and the day after. I can vouch for one thing–dining at Albuquerque’s only Filipino restaurant will definitely make you happy. Launched in November, 2004, Fil-Am (shortened version of Filipino-American) Fast Food Mart may sound like competition for 7-11 stores, but it’s so much more. Austere to a fault, Fil-Am includes a small market with Filipino products, but it’s the undersized cafe that will be the huge attraction, particularly because of its proximity to Kirtland Air Force Base. Place your order at a counter for one of the six combination plates (rotating daily) and in minutes, your order…