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Eating, drinking, and telling stories at Alamat Filipino Pub and Deli
Away from the bright lights and overpriced restaurants of P. Burgos are smaller and quieter hideouts. It's perfect for the not-so-young crowd—tired 20- and 30-somethings who are just beginning to come to terms with the fact that making it to work after a night of drinking is now an impossible feat. One such hideout is the newly-opened Alamat Filipino Pub and Deli, which serves craft beer, cocktails, and unusual dishes, all reasonably priced.
"I usually spend my weekends at home, but this is so much fun!" my friend says, cutting a piece of inasal sausage. We exchange our embarrassing weekend stories while marvelling at how our younger colleagues have so much energy. We congratulate ourselves when we realize it is past 10 and we are not yet falling asleep. It is a rainy night, and that makes drinks an especially good idea.
We begin with cocktails: Sago at Gulaman, Salabat, and Sampalok. "Is that even a good idea?" we ask, suspiciously eyeing the Sago at Gulaman. One sip and we are convinced. It is a great idea. We're not sure where the alcohol is hiding, but it's there. The Salabat, as one might expect, is mildly spicy. It tastes healthy, which cannot be said about most alcoholic drinks. We agree that this, too, is a great idea.
The Sampalok is a lovely drink, more sweet than sour, and served in a sugar and salt-rimmed glass. The cocktails are P150, and can be ordered without the alcohol for P100. We could stick with the cocktails, but having made it past 10, we are convinced that we’re still young enough to mix drinks.
"It's a bit overwhelming," we say as we look at the list of craft beer, which ranges from P195 to P250. They have everything from Cebu to Baguio, and fortunately the details are neatly provided on a chalk board. Feeling invincible, we choose the beer with the highest alcohol content. Two Baguio IPAs: Pugaw, with 7% and Message in a Bottle, with 7.6%. The Pugaw is a quick favorite, it's crisp and a bit fruity, but not too sweet.
It's not like we haven't had dinner, but it's difficult to say no to the food. Artisan sausages sound a bit funny, but the taste, we learn, is seriously good. Flavors are sisig, bopis, dinuguan, adobo and salted egg, and chicken inasal. For the less adventurous, they also have regional sausages from Cebu, Alaminos, Calumpit, Tuguegarao, and Vigan.
Diners can visit the Suka Station for a variety of vinegar dips. We are told that the Sinuglaw skewer of grilled pork on tuna ceviche is a bestseller, but we choose the Piyanggang Chicken Wings, a Tausug tribal dish with burnt coconut meat dip. There isn't much for vegetarians—in fact, there's only Indi Chips, a mix of taro, purple sweet potato, purple yam, and cassava. For the flexible vegetarian, there's the fried tofu in the classic Tokwa't Baboy.
Later in the night, we meet the chef, Niño Laus, who shares that the original plan was to have really simple food with no preparation needed. "Just longganisa sausages, things like that," he says, but it's clear from the menu that the original plan is no more, and that's a good thing. Being at Alamat is like experiencing parts of the Philippines, from Papaitan sa Cacao, a 200-year-old Ilocano dish made with Davao cacao, to Sisig, which they serve with chicharon.
The look of the place completes the experience with what interior designer Paolo Sayo calls a rebirth of old Filipino art. Capiz stars are suspended in a trellis above the dining area, while decorative blocks from Bulacan provide ventilation as well as a pretty frame for the open kitchen. The bar is made with the side of a jeepney, and there are wooden pawikan and palm-shaped ashtrays. It’s a small space with only a few tables, so sharing a seat and winning a friend is highly likely.
If you’d rather not meet new people, there are a couple of coveted spots, wooden seats with high backrests and low tables resting on crates. It’s a pay as you order, self-service place, but the waiters are efficient and helpful, and somehow manage to remember your name despite a full house.
The partners—Laus, Sayo, Jun Sabayton, and Brian Mendoza—are there all night, talking with the customers and making sure everything is going well. I ask them about the utensils, which are plastic, and they assure me that this is temporary.
Sabayton tells us that it's "like bringing Quezon City to Makati." He's right. Alamat shares a second floor space with another new restaurant, The Wild Poppy. It's not hard to find, thanks to its bright yellow gamu-gamo logo, inspired by the popular anecdote about Jose Rizal. Across, we see a group of travelers peering over the neighbor's gate, probably catching Pokemon. The house next door doesn't seem to mind that there is a bar right beside them. After all, it's not a very noisy bar. It feels more like someone’s house with a lot of friends hanging out.
With good food, good drinks, and plenty of stories, we almost forget that we’re tired, antisocial people who would rather read books than go out. Before we know it, it's past midnight, and definitely past our bedtime. We agree that staying home is still best, but if we do go out, it should be to places like Alamat. — BM, GMA News
