Trying the Weirdest Filipino Dishes - Lobster Lechon at Manila's Best Restaurant

Good day everyone this is Tim and I hope you're doing well and I'm wishing you a happy new year on two counts a happy and healthy 2025 and also a happy and healthy lunar new year that's just about to come upon us and I'm back in Vancouver and just doing some shopping and preparation for the festivities of the lunar new year and here in Vancouver it's definitely cold compared to the recent trip I was in in the Philippines and really enjoyed that there a lot of buffets lots of great food but to be honest I'm a little bit buffeted out so in today's video it is something a little bit different I got a chance to visit one of the best restaurants in the Philippines and in fact it probably has one of the best meals I've ever had not only in the Philippines but from all the places that I've traveled so have you heard of a lobster lechon neither have I until this wonderful meal it's a hybrid in the most wonderful form it's a whole lobster with a tail de-shelled then wrapped in sticky rice and stuffed in a pork belly and cooked till crispy on the outside and tender and lobstery on the inside so really grateful that we can experience this meal together and before going on to today's video I'd like to thank Ekster for sponsoring this video Ekster makes amazing high quality super slim functional wallets that keeps your valuables safe secure and organized and whether at home or when traveling I hate bulky wallets and Ekster is a great solution to that very stylish minimalistic well designed and everything is well organized and you can have access to all your cards with a simple press and let me show you mine nice and compact holds up to 14 cards and room enough for cash and you might have noticed there's still some Filipino currency that I still need to swap out and the team at Ekster pays close attention to the quality and construction of the wallet offering a lifetime warranty and in fact the team at Ekster is so sure you'll love the wallets that they'll offer a 100% no 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giving this as a gift to seed the wallet properly add a bit of funds to the wallet to get things started in the right direction what a wonderful interpretation of the red envelopes and if you happen to miss one of their sales or even if there is a sale the folks at Ekster were kind enough to offer a promotion just visit Ekster online by going to partner.ekster.com slash tim lee let's go or use promo code tim lee on their website and there you'll find additional savings even if there is a sale so really kind of them again that is Ekster online by going to partner.ekster.com slash tim lee let's go or use code tim lee on their website for further savings on top of their sales so really kind of them and it's getting a little chilly and it'll be nice to get out of the cold and chilliness of North America and be transported back to the warmth of the Philippines and this is the Philippines during the day as it transitions to the Philippines at night and right now here in Manila this is evening time and thank you so much for joining me and this is a little bit of a different video here really enjoying the great places in Manila the great friends the old and the new and all the great buffets and it was fun trying to find the best buffet in Manila and I just got to watch out for the traffic here and as I mentioned great buffets and it's kind of fun trying to find Manila's best buffet since the Sofitel or the spiral buffet is no more and we found a couple of good ones but today I'm going to take a bit of a break from the buffet search because it's nice to just watching with the traffic as well it's nice to find the traditional Filipino meal and the other day my good friend Red and I got a chance to visit what's supposedly Manila's best lechon or the best cochineal place and unfortunately just again watching out for the traffic unfortunately it's a little bit disappointing and it just wasn't up to par so while we were pretty disappointed I'm not gonna let that get me down because we did some more exploring and the other night I got a chance to have a great meal with my good friend Tina where we oh thank you where we got a chance to try an amazing dinner and that is at a place called Casa Palma and it was a tasting menu and you had a choice of five courses eight courses or ten courses and that was absolutely amazing in fact that was probably the best meal I've had in from a tasting menu in Manila or even the world so the flavors are absolutely stunning and unfortunately we did not get the full 10 course menu so I was really curious about some of the dishes we have missed but it was so delicious and that gave me an excuse to come back again and share the experience with you together so I hope you're hungry and I can't wait let's go have a great meal together and it's just opening up through the alleys of Manila with construction and all and I can't wait to get out of this heat come on let's go inside all right so we were here just a few days ago and it looks like they are just getting ready to set up but maybe we can visit the bar first hi sir hi Gomer how are you I'm good sir oh so I think there's still a couple of minutes for dinner um what is your signature cocktail the Casa Blanca sir oh okay with the mezcal, yuzu lemon and calamansi can I order one so as we wait for our cocktail let me show you the lounge this is inside but it looks like the outside and Gomer is preparing the drink with expert care looking absolutely gorgeous oh and is that for me oh thank you so much and it is warm and humid in Manila as you can see the sweat on the glass but let's give this a try oh nice and delicate like the flour on top a bit of citrus a bit of lemongrass and of course the creamy egg white oh cheers so as we await for dinner and more and more people are arriving I believe our meal will start soon and I'll take you back one more sip oh thank you Don thank you oh thank you oh hi sir and this is a beautiful room with a beautiful grill and the hard-working talented chefs working over the hot wood-fired grill oh thank you so much all right so nice to get a seat here and watching the chefs in action and the table is set elegantly with the cocktail and the wine glasses and we'll take you back when the first course comes and looks like the chefs are in a caucus oh thank you so much so course one of ten have arrived and the courses are not small I remember even a couple of days ago when we had the palate cleanser that was a dish in itself but this is looking fantastic with the and the duck neck crab wrap very crispy and of course this is the sea bream and earlier I was seeing chefs making larger portions of the sea bream right over there and that's the last of many and we will enjoy this in order and I was told to do this with your impeccably clean hands and this is the again the duck neck wrap and inside what's hidden is crab not just the crab meat but the crab roe or the crab fat as well well nothing like duck neck skin and for those who are on keto or carnivore this is right up the alley very delicious equally delicious because I've had this one before is this is the crab croquette or rather the spider conch croquette and that is said conch's exoskeleton cheers to you oh crispy outside sweet seafoody goodness on the inside and more sauce over here but very hard to reach it's kind of nice while you're enjoying you can see chefs hard at work flaming the oysters and finally the sea bream a little citrusy fresh sea bream on a crunchy chicharron I can't think of anything better and we'll take it back for course two thank you so much so second round is here and is absolutely stunning and this was actually in the course that Tina and I had and as good as it looks the taste is even better because I have tried it beautiful corn and underneath is the mackerel and this is a traditional Filipino quinilao which is like a ceviche oh and just cutting into it the corn has underneath is a mackerel and it is kind of nice to know what to expect let's dig into it here oh a spoonful everything together even though I had this before the flavors are absolutely stunning the mackerel quinilao beautifully fresh like a ceviche baby corn and that corn mousse really accentuates the sweetness absolutely incredible and I can't really describe the flavors and do it justice so many things going on and absolutely gorgeous the textures are crunched a little pop of the corn and some corn crisps as well and quite a sizable second course and as I have learned the courses actually do get bigger and bigger I'll finish this off and I'll take you back second course all complete and I can't get over the freshness and the flavor of the mackerel and the corn scooping up every last bit and bite hunting for some more until the very last kernel and now with the table empty and the hard-working chefs picking up a storm for all the other guests I'll take you back for the next round so this is really interesting a trio of seafood and they call this their seafood tower and for some reason this is called the hallo hallo seafood del mar and I can imagine this as a hollow hollow it is too pretty to mix up and this is a beautiful river prawn tartare with a conch and I believe we get this on the inside and this is one of the newer dishes on the tasting menu because I didn't realize that even though they have different courses the items on the different menus changes so the five items on the five course menu is different than the the eight items and the ten items they didn't mention that this is a dessert of the dish this is an uni tart or as they say an uni brulee but they did say to start with a tartare and the conch and the uni and after every bite below is the icy palate cleanser so let's give this a try so we'll do oh the river prawn ceviche and a little bit of a mishap but that's okay if you won't tell I won't tell and all back together let's give it a try we didn't have this one and this is absolutely gorgeous the flavors are intense but well balanced nice crunch freshness of the prawns and of course now the prawn head and as chef was saying after every course or after every bite we should have a bit of the palate cleanser thank you again that is like a cold sinigang I'm not sure if it cleans the palate or works up the appetite either way with the palate cleanse and the appetite open we'll go for the conch and oh it's nice that it is all prepared for you let's give this a try it's not bad flavorful conch but as you keep eating you get the charness and the natural flavors of the conch but now we will go for the dessert of the seafood tower and a little bit of a soggy bottom but that's okay let's give this a try oh when you're here go for the 10 course menu because you get this absolutely gorgeous sea urchin tart beautiful mousses at the bottom and the bruleed sea urchin beautiful textures nice and savory and deep flavors of the ocean and a sugary crunch to it because of the brulee oh and as you're biting you're getting the ocean brininess of the sea urchin and the crunch of the sugary brulee and you really do need the sinigang ice to clean your palate it's always nice to get new surprises on the tasting menu and this along with a corn mackerel are absolutely superb and i'll take you back for round three all right so we have something new on the table and with mother of pearl i think this is caviar and it was interesting because earlier i can see chef fanning the flames to get the wood fire grill going and now they are at it full blast and i hope they're not grilling the salad but it might add a bit of flavor oh and here's edward oh thank you so much oh wonderful thank you for that extra long for edward yeah thank you what is this and the suspicion is correct and this is another dish again all the tasting menus are completely different and with the mother of pearl i kind of suspected we have some caviar and that suspicion has been verified and chef was kind enough to explain everything that's going on but i really couldn't pay attention but looking at the notes this is a trifecta of ube with an ube puree at the bottom uh ube foam or i think they call it espuma and uh speaking of espuma i have my spoon here and she was suggesting to go for the caviar first crusted with manila clams because we are in manila so let's give this such oh i think there's something underneath okay so maybe just a bit of the caviar to start and i think there's a crispy ube and maybe a clam as well oh beautiful the flavors are just like the ocean intense and balanced but yet not too strong because the ube adds a beautiful contrast to that rich ocean briny goodness oh and as we're enjoying this there is so much going on and i'm not sure they're little crispy bits are they bacon or are they some other crispy version of ube i think it's the former an ube crunch to the ube puree and perfectly paired with a glass of wine from edward cheers oh the taster was good but having a full glass is even better very dry but very smooth and very enjoyable so i'm gonna dig in further we will go for the disc of i believe this is ube on top of which the caviar sits all right again when you're here go for the 10 course just for this dish just simply gorgeous the amazing filipino flavors with techniques around the world so i'm not gonna have any problem finishing this trifecta of ube and you know come to think of it the last dish where it was called halo halo seafood i think halo halo would best be reserved for this dish because we do need to mix this up as what halo halo means so again i'll take you back on course number four and the chefs are caucusing again that was absolutely delicious and the chefs are continuing on to have an in-depth discussion whether it is jam first and then clotted cream on the scone or clotted cream first and then jam so uh really tough decisions to make i'm just kidding oh and what is this i wanted you to try this this is our oh bestseller la carte oh what is this filipino rice cake called too big okay with some smoked mascarpone and smoked caviar oh beautiful if you can one bite please one bite oh thank you chef again thank you chef erin this is wonderful so really kind of chef uh so this is something extra from the menu and this is a traditional sweet rice cake but this is grilled and made sweet and savory oh i'm gonna use my hands here with a bit of mascarpone and i am handling this delicately because it is sticky but good oh there we go so uh mascarpone dried fish and smoked caviar so this is a one biter let's give it a try oh maybe a two biter but that is absolutely gorgeous because the glutinous rice cake is nice and grilled and a little sweet but the caviar and the mascarpone and the dried fish has a wonderful salty kick to it briny and fishy in the best possible way very nice finger-licking good oh and it's great to see chef erin interacting with the guests beautiful techniques and the flavors are just gorgeous and you may notice there's something new on the table and with the chopsticks i believe there will be some asian influences on the next course and we'll take you back oh thank you all right so this again is new and i remember for our seafood course we had trout but this is not trout this is mantis shrimp in a spaghetti japanese style because this is somen and we will need to make use of the chopsticks for the somen noodle but we will need to remove the crispy crunchy shrimp chip lattice on the side this is a gorgeous rich sauce and i believe these are sea mantis just gonna give this a try oh the sauce is incredibly rich confirmed and let's give the beautiful noodles a try we'll just mix it up a little bit with the beautiful sauces looking good holy and it tastes incredible noodles are beautifully soft this is like a japanese angel here but that sauce is so rich and so deep with the shrimp mantis flavor but so i guess delicate is the word because there's a nice sweetness to it oh very good holy mantis shrimp let's go for the mantis shrimp cracker with a bit of noodles carefully oh that is absolutely heavenly it's like a crunchy mantis shrimp and with the noodles and the sauce on top the beautiful textures the soft al dente noodles the wonderful mantis shrimp all together so again i'm going to finish this up and it will not be hard to do and i'll take it back for the next course i lost count but what i do know is the chefs are cooking hard and having an intense discussion as well an absolutely wonderful course and again i am starting to get full and we're halfway through so i believe that is course number one two three four five so we are halfway there and five more to go and really starting to get full so it's a lot of work but someone's got to do it and oh thank you edward and with a silverware in place our next course is about to come and chefs are in deep discussion this time is it milk first or cereal or cereal first and then milk thank you all right so we are past the halfway mark now with dish number six and this is our fish course beautifully done and i can tell it will be well balanced because of the scales in place and apologies for that but what they say here is underneath the fish is the milkfish belly which is nice and fatty along with the clams and the braised papaya and i think we need to use our knife and fork here we will need all our utensils oh and the leaves i believe are a little bit crispy so let's dig in i've never had scales like this before you can hear the crunch oh and underneath oh the milkfish belly so changing utensils so we have the right tools the belly all together carefully there we go oh so many textures from the crispy fish to the fatty milkfish and the beautiful broth brings it all together and i'm going to try more of that broth with the braised papaya very delicate the clams in the broth pack such a beautiful and powerful punch in the best way possible so again if you're in manila or you're from here or you're visiting here the flavors here are just incredible it's hard to describe visually but the flavors again is uh indescribable that's all i can come up with and apologies for that but this is very good so lots more to finish up and with the intense flavors of the clams and the broth perfect pairing oh my god so this is gonna be your main dish tonight call this lechon the lobster so it's spiny lobster wrapped in something pork belly and then we roast them together the lobster cooks inside the pork with its with the juices and the flavors of the pork the courses are very generous but you are going way above and beyond there's no way we can finish this one slice okay so thank you so much chef aaron so oh i can't wait so they're gonna slice this up and the kitchen has died down because i think some of the chefs got upset and they huffed and puffed because there was a big disagreement whether pineapple should belong on a pizza and uh i think the pineapple won so all but one or two remain gloating for your next dish this is a spiny lobster from palawan a local island in the philippines so this is a much more manageable piece and it is looking stunning sliced up and hiding underneath this is the lechon with the sticky rice and again underneath is the spiny lobster and while i would love to dig in i believe we need to have it as chef has intended with the tartar sauce i'm just gonna put it over here and the luscious pork jus sliding down and a little more and a bit of the pesto now we can dig in we'll mix up the sauces and oh i can feel the crunch of the pork belly or the lechon bit of the rice and i gotta check out the skin nice and crackly there we go tartar some pesto so my faith in being able to cook proper lechon in philippines has been restored this is beautifully crispy cut into it here skin is nice and thin crispy flip it over with the lechon on the sticky rice that absorbs all the flavors of the pork belly and maybe a bit of lobster that appears to be cooked perfectly well all together perfectly balanced looking so good right i love it when the skin is crispy and as good as the skin is that lobster is cooked to perfection with a bit of tartar absolutely delicious so very easily finished and with only three elements each element is superb and i'll take it back to our final course our final savory course cheers and the chefs are at heart at work again what a way to end the course with a magnificent crunch and with the empty plate we await for the next course and while things have calmed down in the kitchen we have the servers in a heated discussion is it soda or is it pop oh thank you so much i'm so glad we are finishing up the savory courses and typically in the asian type meal you finish up with rice or noodles and i am so glad that this is a very manageable size but there is a lot to this this is garlic fried rice but not just any garlic fried rice that merely acts as a base for the duck liver and on top a little quail egg and uh and four caviar eggs to give it that pop let's enjoy oh it's a one biter but you can taste the garlic fried rice and then the duck liver makes its own sauce and as you chew the quail egg really kick in and then the caviar so with this we are done with the savory courses and what a rich way to finish it off just a bit of wine and we'll take it back for the final dessert round or final desserts round cheers very nice and once again the chefs are looking perplexed in deep discussion debating the fact whether a hot dog is actually a sandwich oh thank you so much so this has got to be the largest palate cleanser i've ever seen so this is something called a lanzones sorbet with a meringue so many elements and down here is a bit of olive oil so really interesting flavors oh meringue just dissolves let's give this a try with our hands and i believe this might be a logan hands down the best and largest palate cleanser i've ever had the sorbet is delicately floral logan is popping with sweetness and freshness and a little bit of the sorbet really delicious beautiful textures they're palate cleansers from earlier on where we had the sinigang palate cleanser and now this we have something underneath and i believe that is the um frangipane but more goodness there all together i'm definitely going to finish this palate cleanser and we'll take it back for the desserts to a great dessert so the palate cleanser is complete and to be honest if they called it a dessert i would be just as happy and i forgot to mention there's two kitchens in this restaurant the kitchen over here where they're grilling up all the steaks and in the other dining room there's another kitchen where the chefs are delicately and thoughtfully preparing all the intricate dishes for the tasting menu so the best of both worlds with two brigades of chef and chef aaron overseeing everything right over there and now chef aaron has entered into the debate whether pizza should be eaten folded flat or with a knife and fork oh my goodness and finally i believe this is last of the desserts and i think we had 13 14 15 dishes because some of the courses come with multiples and this i've had before this is still much too pretty to eat but very delicious and i recall as full as we were last time and tina was full she actually finished this amazing ice cream beautiful textures and this is a call back to the earlier round with the ube in three ways but this has ube in the form of ice cream and you know chef aaron is french because they have infused duck liver on the top on the bottom and throughout let's dig in all right give it a crack oh with authority all right oh look at that oh the second time just as good if not better than the first because the sweet potato or ube ice cream is so delicate and a little sweet but with the salty duck liver on top and more salty duck liver as a mousse on the bottom it's actually very rich and light and refreshing at the same time and cold and again wonderful textures throughout and i can see why or how tina was able to finish this very nice and oh a cup of coffee thank you and this is a perfect pairing a beautiful smoky rich americano and also smoky from the live kitchen cheers to them and cheers to you very nice so that dessert was so easy to finish and it was completed without difficulty and we can see more and more chefs cooking away and debating and this time i'm hearing the arguments whether a tomato is a fruit or a vegetable but oh here's our dessert thank you so much oh that looks absolutely gorgeous and my apologies because i can never pronounce this whether it's a mandolin or a mandolin beautifully done and about to be devoured with our relatively impeccably clean hands i'd say oh so delicate oh let's give this a try oh hands down the best mandolin i've ever had beautiful pastry or cake that is soaked and that little bump at the end that occurs because it is filled with a seaweed mousse but a very the perfect time so great desserts here and just one more sweet treat left in the form of a peanut butter cup but the peanut butter cup is in leaf form and very delicate and just melting away what a wonderful way to end an amazing meal oh i'm not sure if you can hear the crunch the sign of a good chocolate is where everything breaks away crispy chocolate and crispy wafers of peanut butter you got to eat this fast things are looking good as well so that brings an end to the dessert and also an end to the meal very nice so this is Casa Palma and again chefs are busy cooking and debating away to life's most important questions so again thank you so much for joining and really of all the places i've tried around the world and in manila i think i truly think this is one of the best tasting menus i've tried the flavors again were were phenomenal so if uh if you're here or if you're local do pay them a visit uh right around rockwell area and i believe they call this a back well or for some reason so again i just have a bit of coffee to finish up and until we see each other again i hope you're keeping well i hope you're traveling well and i hope you're eating well and take care of each other and god bless