Diving into an unfamiliar cuisine is always entertaining and educational, even when your taste buds are at odds with the prevailing culture. Or maybe especially then.
Filipino dining at Barrio Fiesta is marked by enthusiasm for rich, even fatty, sauces cloaking whatever protein source is at hand: pork, fish, beef. But noodles, grilling and deep-frying are favored as well, and might be preferred routes for newcomers.
Flavors are alternately pungent (fermented shrimp paste as a condiment, a vinegar/garlic dipping sauce) and deeply savory (oxtail and tripe stewed in a peanut gravy). Vegetables familiar to Westerners, such as green beans, rub shoulders with exotica along the lines of taro leaves and the aptly named bitter melon.
The dishes we liked tended to be the ones that laid off the sauce and gravy. Next time we will concentrate on grilled and stir-fried items, which make up a large portion of the extensive menu.
Crispy pusit as a starter ($6.95) is as good a dish of fried squid as you’re likely to encounter anywhere. The platter, heaped with golden ringlets, comes with a vinegar-garlic sauce. The crunchy, tempuralike batter, tender squid and salty, piercing whang of the sauce become habit-forming.
Diners with a sweet tooth will enjoy another fried starter, lumpia Shanghai ($6.95), miniature eggrolls stuffed with a sweet, mild pork filling.
The house specialties are deep-fried pig’s knuckle and a stew of tripe and oxtail. We ordered the stew and got a generous serving ($5.50) of a peanut gravy hiding tender chunks of beef falling off the bone and pieces of Chinese cabbage that had a peculiar, earthy flavor. The tripe was a no-show in our portion.
Guisadong sitaw ($8.75) makes a savory combination of green beans and “tidbits” of pork and shrimp. The beans are crisp-tender and the sweetness of the shrimp and pork work well together.
Paksiw na lechon ($8.50) as described on the menu sounds pretty good: “chunks of roasted pork marinated and aged in vinegar, herbs and spices.” Maybe that “aged” part has something to do with it, but the dish consists of pieces of bland, overcooked meat submerged in a gravy topped by a clear layer of molten fat.
The pinakbet hito ($8.95) involves another sauce situation, but a more appealing one. Chunks of eggplant, okra, bitter melon and catfishbones and allare bathed in a shrimp-flavored gravy. The fish may be a little hard to deal with, and the harshness of bitter melon will shock unless you have acquired a taste for it. But the vegetables are cooked to a turn and the sauce is rich without being greasy.
The restaurant was out of the curiosity-inspiring purple yam pudding ($3.75), so we enjoyed the very sweet, slightly grainy custard of the leche flan ($2.75) instead. Halo-halo, a traditional dessert of fruit, preserved beans and ice cream ($4.25), is another option.
You may bring your own alcohol, but none is served. Tropical juices are, though: pineapple, soursop, mango ($1.95 each) and even coconut ($3.50). A Filipino take on lemon-lime soda, kalamansi ($1.95), will remind you of Mountain Dew minus the fizz.
Our waiter was enthusiastic and friendly. The spacious dining room has been accented with strings of plastic flags more often seen over car dealerships, but napkins are cloth and the place is comfortable. Be aware that a 15 percent tip is added to all bills.
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Barrio Fiesta
(Two forks)
3316 N. Central Ave.
773-282-0885
Credit cards: A,CB,D,DC,M,V
Hours: Noon-9 p.m. daily
Ratings: 4 forks: Top of the class
3 forks: Better than most
2 forks: Very good fare
1 fork: Middle of the road
Reviews are based on anonymous visits by Tribune staff members. The meals are paid for by the Tribune.
