**** Manila BBQ & Grill has closed
Back in November my Buddy Jack told me that a new Filipino Take-Out had opened up in Point Loma. So on a recent Friday that I had off I decided to pay Manila BBQ and Grill a visit.
I found the little take-out place in a stand alone "Food Court" in Point Loma Plaza. In fact, no permanent "signage" was yet in place.
I don't know what the "seafood" sign is about, there's no seafood on the menu! I looked over the 
menu and went to order. Unfortunately, my first two choices were "not ready" yet. I'd come a bit too early(1045am), and many items were not ready yet. So I finally settled on a Combo Meal with Teriyaki Short Rib BBQ (I find the Teriyaki and BBQ to be a bit redundant here), and Pork Adobo($6.50):
There were two cross cut short ribs and several large chunks of Pork Adobo served over a large bed of rice, a pretty good size portion of food. The short ribs were tender and moist, with a nice bit of carmelization, but fell "short" in flavor. In fact, the ribs were pretty bland and unremarkable. In comparison to say, L&L, I'd say, much more tender then L&L, but L&L's "Kalbi" had much more flavor. In fact, I really don't consider this "teriyaki" by any means, not even Hawaiian Style Teriyaki. It's closer to Hawaiian BBQ.
Many consider Adobo, along with Pancit and Lumpia to be
one of the quintessential dishes that represent Filipino Food. Pork Adobo for those who do not know, is pork cooked in vinegar and soy sauce, and seasoned with bay leaves, garlic, and my favorite in adobo, a touch of black pepper. This version had a pretty good sauce, with a nice touch of vinegar. But the downfall of the dish were the overly large chunks of pork. The smaller pieces had absorbed the flavor of the sauce and were nice and tender. The larger pieces did not have enough flavor and were also on the dry side; a big no-no when it comes to adobo. Also the slight hint of black pepper I enjoy was missing. On the good side, was that the Gal who put this dish together placed the adobo over the rice, making the rice very tasty.
I had made up my mind to do a follow-up visit. And so a month later I paid Manila BBQ & Grill another visit. Now open about 2 months, I was pretty sure that all the wrinkles would be pretty much worked out. I dropped by and ordered a Combo Meal($6.50) with Teriyaki Chicken BBQ Skewer(wow, talk about a mouthful), and the Chicken Adobo.
Talk about deja vu all over again! The chicken adobo were really large pieces of chicken that really didn't absorb some of the flavor. The sauce was the same as the last time, and really not salty enough. As large as the pieces were, it was mostly bone, except for a whole drumstick. As a whole I wish the adobo was placed on the rice as the last time, since there was a huge pool of sauce with nowhere to go at the bottom of the container.
The BBQ Chicken looked beautiful, and were nicely grilled. But don't lose that little container of teriyaki-ish sauce
, as a whole these were under-flavored. The chunks of chicken were moist and nicely grilled, but the overall flavoring was quite weak, though I'm pretty sure I tasted a faint peanut-butter flavor. I did pour the sauce over the chicken for flavor.
If I were to return, I'd order the Pork Adobo with the BBQ Chicken Skewer. In retrospect, I wonder if this place would survive in National City or Mira Mesa? But they have the market cornered for Filipino food in Point Loma and are probably better then some other options. The portions are large and service is very nice and friendly. So if you're in Point Loma, and really need some Filipino "grinds"; Manila BBQ & Grill is nearby. The menu is short but feature other items such as Pancit, Grilled Pork Chop and Beef Steak(I think it's probably Bistek).
Manila BBQ & Grill
3615 Midway Drive Suite C
San Diego, CA 92110