Gubat

First time here! Great spot to hang out with family and enjoy authentic Filipino food. Dishes are served on banana leaves, and you eat with your hands—a unique and fun experience!

We ordered the shrimp, lechon kawali, adobo, and calamansi juice. The shrimp and lechon kawali were outstanding—definitely worth trying. ⭐️ The adobo was good, though not remarkable. The calamansi juice lived up to the hype too. Service was a bit slow; we waited 30 minutes and had to follow up twice, but overall, the food was worth it. :)

We finally had a chance to try "Pagkaing Gubat" today. It's located along Mayaman Street in Diliman, Quezon City, not far from its original branch along C.P. Garcia. Both restaurants are managed by Mr. Biboy Cruz, a native of Baler, Quezon, who decided to bring his own Kusina Luntian experience to Manila in 2017. The place is very simple and has a rustic feel. It's an open air restaurant made of recycled materials, surrounded by lush gardens that give it a "gubat" (jungle) ambiance. Foods are served on banana leaves and diners eat using bare hands. Parking is along the street. Typical Filipino foods are served (like pritong isda, halabos na hipon, lechon kawali, adobong baboy, beef tapa, etc., of course with steamed rice). Taste is really good like the home cooked dishes your parents prepare for you. The menu has a limited selection, but it was intentional on the part of the management. What adds fun to the whole dining experience is the fact that there are no utensils around, meaning you have no choice but use your bare hands, which is still common in rural areas. Price is just fine, a bit more expensive though compared to the "karenderyas" around. Service can be quite slow especially when there are many diners present. Being an open air restaurant, it does get hot particularly at lunch time and expect insects to distract you from time to time. Sometimes some of the dishes on the menu are not available.

Our food wasn’t served all together. Half of what we ordered came 5-7 minutes after ordering and the other half came after 30-40 mins, 3 follow ups, and a private phone call to the owner. We could’ve been patient if there was a long line of orders in the kitchen and if we were informed about the waiting time of what we ordered, “Piniritong Manok”, but no. Other tables were being served first before us, there was no chef in the kitchen, and our food was getting cold. Nice ambiance and all, but very very poor service and serving time.