Aristocrat: Searching For Good Filipino Food in K-Town
It’s overwhelming to think of how much amazing ethnic food there is in Los Angeles. And while there are plenty of great modern day resources for exploring Koreatown or Thai Town or the SGV or South Bay or East L.A., there is something irresistible about asking somebody who lives in or grew up eating in one those neighborhoods for their favorites. I know I do it. “Oh, you’re Korean? What’s your favorite place to eat on Vermont?” “Oooh… your parents live in Monterrey Park? Where’s the best place for Dim Sum?” And most of the time people are more than happy to spout off lists of their favorite places to eat. (Hell, musician Bill Esparza has practically made a second career for himself recommending Mexican places in the city and beyond.)
But ask somebody Filipino where to get the best Filipino food in Los Angeles and they always say the same thing: “At my house.” L.A. sports the largest Filipino population in the U.S. and there are plenty of places to eat Filipino food in the city, from Echo Park to K-Town to Arcadia (where I had some of the best fried pork I’ve ever had in my life.) But ask a Filipino person which one is the best, and they’ll likely tell you the same thing… “none of those places are as good as the food my mom makes.” Sadly, my mom is not Filipino. So if I want lumpia (fried egg rolls) or longanisa (sausage) or adobo or sisig (fried pig face) or kare kare (in all its peanut-y goodness) it’s off to a restaurant for me. Echo Park is the obvious choice, but there are actually plenty of places in the far more centralized Koreatown.
Posted at 12:00 pm, June 2nd, 2011 under Aristocrat, Filipino, Koreatown.
