My first trip to Manila...

Okay, maybe not all the way to Manila but it felt like I was a good chunk of the way there after lunch at the Symphonie Restaurant.  I was going out for lunch with some colleagues and they had a craving for Filipino food so off we went.  I had no idea that there was a Filipino restaurant near where we worked, so I was looking forward to trying it out.  The restaurant itself is cute.  Street level, tucked away, plenty of seating, friendly staff and a wide variety of food. 
 
They have sandwiches and soup amongst other dishes, but the reason we went there was for the Filipino Lunch Specials: 

• Monday: Pork Adobo - pork ribs cooked in soy sauce, vinegar and garlic
• Tuesday: Bistek with Pickled Cucumber - beef cooked in soy sauce and lemon juice
• Wednesday: Kare Kare - beef and pork cooked in peanut butter sauce
• Thursday: Daing na Bangus with Mungo - marinated boneless milkfish with mung bean soup
• Friday: Jollibee Fried Chicken with sweet spaghetti

One of my colleagues is Filipino, so I was even lucky enough to get the low-down on the food that I was eating.  We were there on Friday, so there was no question about it, I had to get the Jollibee Fried Chicken.  This was truly homemade fried chicken.  According to my colleague, it is also very authentic.  Just like the fried chicken that her mother-in-law makes, or the type that you would get in the Philippines.

As for the sweet spaghetti, it is exactly what it sounds like.  Spaghetti but sweeter with hot dogs.  My colleague explained that this is traditionally served at kids birthday parties, so the sauce was made sweeter since kids prefer sweet sauces and hot dogs were added because what kid doesn't like hot dogs?  So, the long and the short of it is that this is one of the ultimate Filipino comfort foods.

The food was yummy and it was a great learning experience, so I definitely couldn't complain!  If you're in the mood for some Filipino food, you should make your way to Symphonie Restaurant on Pender between Thurlow and Bute.

My Jollibee Fried Chicken with Sweet Spaghetti.  ($7.95 tax included)