A Taste of the Philippines

Great food hands down! Chicken Adobo and Tapas are my absolute FAVORITE!

Incredible and authentic taste of the Philippines! The lumpia was just about as good as my mother’s, and her lechon kawali was scrumptious! She has a little food truck that goes everywhere!

I just met Kathy and experienced her «Taste of the Philippines» food truck yesterday. Our apartment complex let us know Kathy was parked outside the Marriott Hotel and the line was already forming!
I talked to Kathy for a few minutes and she was wonderful and truly cares about her customers and making some really great food! I tried the Chicken Adobo and the egg rolls (Lumpias, I think). Delish!
I am so glad Kathy is planning to be there every other week because I want to try the other items on her menu! You have to try food from this amazing chef!

I came across Kathy’s truck while stopping by Stem Ciders. Cherry and I already had an order of burgers to-​go waiting inside our car for later, when our friends came inside with food from A Taste of the Philippines. It smelled so damn good. I had a taste. I wanted more. We said we can always eat the burgers tomorrow. Right now, there was some Chicken Adobo to eat!
We went outside to the truck, ordered, and got to chatting with Kathy for a bit. We were telling her that I’ve had Filipino food before and I was never impressed, until now! The flavors were so rich, complex, and well-​balanced. Kathy said she learned to cook from her mom, who was a chef at a high-​end hotel in the Philippines.
We also talked about making the leap to entrepreneurship. Kathy mentioned that she was an accountant before and we hit it off on that, since I was an accountant before starting my own business too. We asked her how life is different nowadays and she said it’s busy but fulfilling. She said she takes care of everything right now because she’s committed to quality, in both her cooking and her customer service. Well Kathy, it definitely shows!

This is the best food truck/​stand I’ve experienced in Denver. Maybe anywhere. Everything is done so well. Philippine food is certainly underrepresented and the young chef who runs this truck makes you wonder why. But it’s pretty clear that she’s especially skilled. When you encounter someone who cooks what they love and does it so well, it is a true pleasure.
The food is reasonably priced and the owner is one of the nicest people you will ever meet. Philippine food is somewhat like other Asian cuisines but has its own style. Not spicy but tremendously flavorful. And this is the place to try it.

Ever since I’ve moved to Denver, I’ve had a lot of Filipino food withdrawals. I’ve grown up most of my life eating Filipino food (being Filipino as well of course) and I was spoiled with my mom’s excellent cooking. She lives in California & therefore my dilemma (& I don’t like cooking). I no longer have withdrawals now that I’ve found Kathy’s food truck. She captures the true essence of Filipino cuisine without making the food full of fat & grease, which is the traditional way of cooking our food.
She «Coloradoized» the food to make it wholesome & amazing. For all you Filipino food lovers out there, you need not suffer any longer from Filipino food deprivation; come try Kathy’s outstanding flavors, especially the Turon!!! After you’ve tried her food, you will be hooked to want more & more

Yummm! This was a great lunch choice at the Union Station Grand Opening. They were also offering a free lumpia with entrée order check-​in offer via Unilocal.I ordered the chicken adobo. The woman running the shop apologized for the slightly sticky rice, but it was great in my opinion. It was a mix of sticky, slightly crunchy rice. It tasted done, yet was crunchy. It was an unusual, but enjoyable texture. And the chicken! Simply prepared and delicious. Makes me want to visit the Philippines.

This place is great! Definitely try the lumpia, it was delicious. The owner is extremely friendly. If you’re in the area and are craving Filipnio food, come here!

Kathy is such a sweetheart. Her lumpia’s are awesome! They are made to order. She even makes her own sweet and sour sauce.

A Taste of the Phillipines was parked outside Stem Cider last Friday, and it seemed like getting a snack to go along with our drinks was a good idea. All we tried were the lumpias– Filipino egg rolls– but they were great! They were made-​to-​order and super fresh, perfectly crispy with a yummy handmade sweet & sour sauce. And at $ 1.50 each, they’re a great deal.
The lady running the truck was super nice, and is obviously a great cook. If I ever see the truck again I’ll definitely be trying more of the menu.

Tried this truck last week, it was the first time I have tried any philipino food.
All I can say is WOW. Highly recommended!

Today was my first experience with Philppino cuisine. The menu provides flexiblity to try different entrees for the same price making it possible to get a feel for different flavors in one sitting. This is a great value to the customer. I tried the split entrée so I could try the Adobe Chicken and Manak Sa Gata. She tossed in a Lupias as a special!!! Both where impressive in quality ingredients and flavor profile!!! For street food and a reasonable price this is top shelf compared to sit down restaurants. What made the experience and food so pleasant was Kathy. She had great customer service skills and I could tell a strong work ethic from talking to her about running a food cart.

I have to say, the Manok sa gata was simply delicious! You could taste the ginger and garlic the chicken was seasoned in. The woman running the cart was so super nice. She talked to me like we were old friends. She told me that the lechon kawali was a new dish so I got that one for my grandmother. The pork was so tender. We got the venison lumpia and I wish I had ordered more! They were so delicious with the home made sweet and sour sauce.
Great place! I wish I was staying in Denver longer so I could eat there again.

Very friendly service which is always a great start.
Food was tasty and I really enjoyed the lumpias the most.
Would go back here again

Full disclosure– I’m Filipino and my mother makes some pretty amazing dishes. That, and I’ve been to the Philippines multiple times so I think its safe to say that my review is pretty legit.
The food and service are top notch. We got the ½ and ½– adobo and paksiw. She told me ahead of time that her adobo texture was different– and it is. I usually have adobo with sauce that is thinner (which is what happens when you combine soy sauce and vinegar). Her sauce is thicker, more gravy like. I’ve actually had that type of adobo before and I can’t say I prefer one over the other. Anyhow, her adobo is up there. The paksiw was good too– not the best I’ve had, but for a dish that comes out of a free standing food stand, I can’t complain. The lumpia was good too– nothing overwhelmingly amazing but it was tasty. (Shall I recommend adding green beans for texture and maybe cooking in olive oil?) And finally the pancit. The pancit was ok. It might have been the factor in rating this place 4 stars instead of 5. I just felt the taste was too salty/​sour. I think the perfect pancit is dryer, with soft noodles and made from a shrimp base. I would pass on the pancit. I realize its her vegetarian option so that might explain my issues with flavor.
Overall, good food, good price, and the owner/​cook/​server is a sweetheart. The area is pretty busy… but also pretty sketch. What’s up with that?

Date (s) visited: about 1 time.
Food/​Drink: ⁴⁄₅
Service: ⁵⁄₅
Atmosphere: ⁵⁄₅
Price: ⁴⁄₅
Parking: ⁵⁄₅
«A PLACE FOR ETHNIC FILIPINO FOOD (SERVED BY A REAL FILIPINA!)
Food/​Drink:
You know… Because of the fact that I am also Filipina and was raised off of authentic Filipino cuisine, this allows for me to be quite «finicky» in judging dishes that claim to be ethic. I was raised attending very large fiestas and parties that consisted of different flavors not only from my family’s hometown but also from different regions of the Philippines (including Tagalog, Ilocano, Visayan, etc.) Keep in mind that I have also been served by one of the GREATEST cooks in the world… which is my mother… :-)
Now, I will say this… I got an sampler plate of different items which allowed for me to taste most of the main dishes offered at the cart. Unfortunately, most of the dishes are pork dishes which does not surprise me since much of Philippine culture is based off of pork. I have cut out pork entirely out of my diet for the past few years but tried to eat it sparingly that day as a «spur of the moment» thing. Most of it was motivated by the fact that it was my first time seeing a Filipino food restaurant in Denver and so I guess I wanted feel closer to home. But because of the fact that I do not eat pork as much, it did not allow for me to enjoy my dish as much as I would’ve wanted to.
The Sampler Plate was all-​in-​all 5 STARS (for those who do not mind eating pork or white rice)…The Lumpia was crispy and fried perfectly with a yummy sauce to go with it on the side. The Pancit Noodle was cooked perfectly with lots of flavor and not mushy like some I’ve had before where the noodles were overcooked. The Manok Sa Gata (Chicken Adobo in Coconut Milk) had a great texture which was not too watery or too dry and had a hint of Ginger in it that I could taste. I have to say that the food is very good and very ethnic so for anyone interested in trying Filipino food, «THIS IS THE REAL DEAL!..(Holyfield…)»
Service:
It is always a good thing to be served ethic food by the people who actually belong to the culture of the food being served. In this case, I met a very beautiful and business minded woman who not only served the food, but started the business off as her own sometime last year. I support entrepreneurship ventures within the Filipino community and found it very refreshing to see people like the woman who owns the stand to do business the way she does. She provided excellent customer service and even came out to where I was sitting to check on me and other customers to make sure we were doing okay.
Atmosphere:
It’s a small cart located right off of 16^th street and can be easily noticed because of its bright colors which represent the Filipino flag. There are chairs and tables around the booth which are also shared by customers of nearby restaurants. It looks as though this cart stays pretty busy and draws in a lot of customers. Great place to eat if you are downtown since it is nearby.
Price:
I ordered a Sampler Plate for around $ 6+ which came in a small container. Because of the fact that I am used to getting very LARGE plate lunches in Hawaii, I could easily say that I could’ve paid less. Yet, I do understand that overhead costs for imported products can easily total up to a nice penny so I thought that the prices here are fair. (This is something that I am realizing the longer that I live here in Denver…)
Parking:
I caught a Mall Ride here for free so did not have to pay for parking.
MY THOUGHTS?
This is definitely a place that is a hidden Asian Jewel in the middle of downtown Denver. I appreciate being able to eat here and also the fact that the cart allows for others to know and understand what Filipino cuisine is really like (especially in a city where we as Filipinos are considered a very small and outnumbered population).
I do wish though that more options could be given to health conscious people like myself such as the options for Brown Rice, Salads (Eggplant «Talong» perhaps), or Vegetarian based dishes. Other than that, this cart gets my foodie stamp and I definitely think this is a great place to eat…:)
RECOMMENDATIONS:
I like their Manok Sa Gata and found it to be a pretty tasty dish.

One of the best food carts on the mall.
As a vegetarian I love dishes that don’t compromise on flavor or health. As a person, I love excellent customer service and a great value. This cart has all of the above. Check it out!

Kathy knows how to do it in that little truck of hers. I went by around 3:30 (Happy Hour) and was rewarded with no line, a split bowl between Chicken Adobo and the coconut chicken dish (forgot the name) and a frequent buyer’s card. The flavor of both these dishes was slightly thai, but still unique. My building is only a block from the 16^th street mall/​her truck and I ate my whole bowl before I got back there.
She also makes a sweet and sour sauce for the lumpia that is so much more fresh than out of a jar. Not too sweet, and right amount of tang on the back end.
The only thing that would have made this meal better would have been a cold matcha green tea (and I realize that might be more on the Japanese side of things). I’ll be back.

I love the chicken adobo and the Bistek Tagalog is amazingly good! I go pretty often as it is right outside a remodel project I have been working on. I sometimes just go for the lumpia and find them very tasty and the homemade sweet and sour finishes them out nicely!
The stand is located off Stout on the 16^th Street Mall near the Slider Man and Walgreen’s. Go when you get the chance (or just go!)!!

After Reading the Review in 5280 Magazine I knew I had to try the Chicken Adobo.
I tracked her down over Memorial Day weekend.
Ordered Chicken Adobo With White Rice and Lumpia.
The Chicken adobo was delicious I mixed it in with the white rice and it was more than filling. For 7.50 its a big place. I could Taste the vinegar but wasn’t overpowering. The sauce was thick and complemented the rice nicely. Big Chunks of chicken.
The Lumpia was hand made and the sweet and sour sauce was delicious. I could Devour the Lumpia by itself MMMM. Hopefully she is there more often. And shes totally personable and doesn’t mind conversing while your food is cooking.