“It’s simple, flavorful, delicious and goes perfectly with beer.”
—Anthony Bourdain about Filipino dishes
Cecile and I had dinner with our friends Sarah and Bill last evening at Tapsilog Bistro, known for its Filipino cuisine. Tapsilog is referred to as Little Manila in the heart of Campbell with a cool vibe and interesting decor, delicious, hearty, and authentic food with a great beer selection. One of the first things you notice when you walk into the restaurant is a framed photo and autographed red boxing glove of former professional boxer Manny Pacquiao nicknamed “PacMan.” He is regarded as one of the great professional boxers of all time. He has been serving as a senator of the Philippines since 2016. He officially declared his candidacy in the 2022 Philippine presidential election on September 19, 2021 as nominee of the country’s ruling political party. Ten days later he retired from professional boxing.
Bill had a Red Horse beer and I had a Mango Cart beer. We ordered Fried Chicken and Pork Lumpia Spring Rolls with Spicy Sweet & Sour dipping sauce for the table. For our main dish, we ordered Super Silog: BBQ Chicken (2 Skewers) served with a mound of garlic fried rice cucumber salad,and two eggs prepared to our liking. Tapsilog TAPA (aka: Steak and two Eggs)—Certified Angus thinly sliced top sirloin steak with a mound of garlic rice
Grand Silog: Various choices of two or three or four meats including pan seared fish, steak and sweet sausage with rice and eggs, and Pancit (stir fried egg and rice noodles). They also have an array of burritos and many other offerings.
Bourdain once said, "Filipinos are for reasons I have yet to figure out, probably the most giving of all people on the planet.” During his special appearance at the World Street Food Congress at the Mall of Asia Concert Grounds in 2017, the late eloquent food critic spoke to The Manilla Times about his "personal connection” with the Philippines, saying, "like so many American children, his daughter was "largely raised by Filipinas.”
Cecile and I too have had a personal connection with the Filipino people. In the early years of being a practicing podiatrist I worked in skilled nursing facilities where Filipinas worked as compassionate caregivers and nurses aides. When our children Jason and Michelle were young we hired a special live in nanny named Norlita whom they adored. Throughout the years we donated boxes of clothing for her large family in the Philippines and treated her like a member of our family. She traveled with us to Hawaii. We witnessed her swearing in to become a US citizen and even attended her wedding. On occasion she would cook some traditional Filipino dishes like lumpia, empanadas, pancit noodles (Filipino comfort food), and seasoned thinly sliced sirloin steak with squeezed lemon, onion with sticky rice. She continued to do this for years even after she retired as a nursing aide at a local hospital, and private home caregiving assignments. We were blessed to have her in our lives. The kids refered to her a yaya, which roughly translated means nanny or caregiver in Tagalog.
