LA Pares, ATBP

After passing by it several times, me and the gf thought we’d try this place out on a random Sunday. Little did we know it was their «grand opening» as the sign made out of a 8×11 piece of paper on the door stated. Call me crazy but If you’re starting a new restaurant in a city dominated by competitive and established eateries, you might want to do a better job at putting the word out there. The moment we walked in there was only 2 other people ordering food… Big surprise!
The place looked clean I’ll give it that, but at the same time it looked like the place was rushed onto its «grand opening», I’ll just tell you this, If you’re a fan of white walls then you’ll feel right at home here. The overhead menu looks incomplete and the chairs and tables are arranged in a manner that does not take advantage of their little space that they have. Anyway onto the food, we ordered the 2 entrée combo w/​lechon kawali and their specialty pares along w/​garlic rice. Also, I ordered what I always ordered back home the pares mami. Now for the gripes, THE PORTIONS ARE SMALL! I recognize that the prices are not bad but for the same amount I could go to any other Filipino joint within walking distance that piles it up for the same price. The lechon kawali was all fat and little meat in it. The pares mami’s broth was bland at best and the noodles were all stuck together and the whole thing just lacked any kind of flavor. The one saving grace for them was their namesake specialty, the pares. This beef entrée was exactly how I remembered it back in the motherland. The meat was so tender if it had a bone it would have fallen off of it as soon as I picked it up!.Also, the lady that took our order forgot to charge us for our drinks, I figured it just made up for the price of the small portioned entrees, oh well.
I remember fondly back when I used to live in the Philippines this franchise of restaurants was a staple in Manila and my father would take me and my brother frequently there whenever my mom was too mad at him to cook. But, this place right here is nothing but a shadow of it’s originals glory. Get in, get the pares, get out.