Kulinarya Filipino Eatery — Restaurant in Vancouver

I had been craving Filipino food for over a month now, and after finding Kulinarya on Google, I decided to take a 45 min bus ride from UBC. As pictured, I ordered a small rice, vegetarian kare kare, fried bangus (milkfish), a whiskey sour (with kalamansi juice), and eventually a glass of pinot gris (not pictured).

If I could have stuffed every bit of food that I ordered into my overstretched stomach (by the end of the meal), I would have done it. Everything tasted like home, so familiar, so delicious.

My standards for Filipino food are high since my mother is a fantastic cook, and because she has taught my siblings and I how to cook delicious Filipino food. Hence, I usually don't eat out for Filipino food; but, as I was away from home, I needed to satisfy my craving and circumvent my inability to cook.

Let's start with the fried bangus. The hallmark features of this dish - which ensure high quality cooking - are as follows: the skin and head must be crispy and edible; the meat has to be brown on the outside and white and tender inside. I need to have a side of tomatoes (visible in the photo) and vinegar- the acidity from both condiments (tomatoes are condiments here) cut the fat from frying. Check, check, and check! The only thing I left behind was the tail and gills. Top notch bangus. A++

The kare kare: goodness, the sauce was thick, creamy, and substantially better than what I could make. A++. I also loved that the vegetables (bokchoy, string beans, and eggplant) were cooked separately and placed on top of the sauce and garnished with chopped peanuts; this strategy avoids overcooking vegetables and allows each vegetable to maintain and showcase its flavor. A+!

On the drinks: both the whiskey sour and pinot gris paired well with the dishes. A+. If the whiskey sour had a slice of actual kalamansi so I could squeeze some juice on the drink, I think I would've lost my mind (in a positive way). If kalamansi is accessible, perhaps the owners could consider this.

On the ambiance: the restaurant is cozy and exudes a Filipino household inspired by Scandinavian aesthetics. A+. The decor matches the dishes: the food is traditional, but with contemporary cooking techniques.

Overall, this was a fantastic experience, and I give Kulinarya my highest endorsement. It felt and...

This is Filipino dining at an exceptional level that restaurants on Commercial Drive are known for. My wife and I enjoyed our meal here so much last week that we came back the next weekend with our friends.

What really sets them apart is their execution and presentation of the dishes. Not only does everything look amazing, the chefs have perfected the balance between soft and crispy, the fatty and sweet, and the saucy and dry. The complex combination of textures and temperatures really grabbed the attention while most flavours remained gentle on the palate because the flavours themselves tasted more on the natural and fresh side.

For our first meal, we ordered from their à la carte menu a selection of Filipino staples: the Crispy Pork and Mango on Rice (Fiesta Rice) hits all of those delightful fruity and meaty notes without the lingering fattiness; the Fresh Lumpia Roll was well seasoned and accompanied by a highly addictive dipping sauce; the thick peanut and pumpkin stew in the Kare-Kare was a standout as the nuttiness was abundant but did not overwhelm the beef, eggplants and green veggies, which went down a treat with the rice.

For our second meal, we emailed them half a week ahead of our reservation for the Kamayan Feast (for four). It became the event we looked forward to all weekend. They really took it to the next level with a table layout that rivals wedding banquet receptions. The crispy pork, the rice and spring rolls, all of the fresh vegetables and fruit made for a balanced meal with plenty of leftovers to take home. It felt more like an activity we did with our friends as we worked through the food with our hands. The meal came with a huge bowl of delicious Halo-Halo (dessert) to finish.

To top it all off, the ambience of the restaurant was fantastic on both nights, with a number of birthday celebrations in the neighbouring tables over the evening. The mood was jovial, the drinks were flowing, the wait staff were passionate. We really could not...

We visited with a bigger party to try their Kamayan feast charged per person. We ordered the dishes in advance when placing the reservation, and a deposit is required.

When we arrived, all the food was laid out on banana leaves and uncovered in front of us. No cutlery and meant to be eaten with our hands, but we each commandeered a sharing spoon per person at the end because it was easier to scoop up the food and rice that way.

We had a party of 9 adults, and they sat us at a tight table meant for 8 with the assumption that we could squeeze 5 people on the bench on one side. They gave in and gave us a chair at the end when we requested because the seats are a tighter squeeze on the banquette seats than the chairs. Perhaps the tables that are not banquette would be more comfortable. Smaller space in general.

For the food, at $50 per person, it was a generous amount that left us leaving with a take-out box each as we only managed to finish half the food. The flavours were great, and the fruits were fresh. Our highlights were the kare kare (beef and tripe in peanut sauce and shrimp paste) and crispy binagoongan (crispy pork belly in shrimp paste). The grilled squid was a hit and miss for some, as it got a bit fishy after it was cooled down from being lain out ahead of time.

For the drinks, the Pina peach and mango mojito were refreshing and delicious, the ube was special, and the coconut cream was a nice touch. The pandan cocktail was much less memorable and attractive in flavour profile for us.

The dessert was included in the food cost, and we were so stuffed at the end. It was tasty but on the sweeter side.

The total spend for us included a cocktail each, which was great value for all the food, drink, and dessert we got.

The last thing was that the take out boxes were thin material, and after we packed up, we noticed the oils and sauces from the food were leaking out and made a mess of our hands and dripping out of the bags so we had to pad them all with...