Ombu serves modern Filipino cuisine in the heart of Quezon City

Ombu is located on the ground floor of Sequoia Hotel along Mother Ignacia Avenue in Quezon City. It’s a cozy little dining space with interiors and mood lighting to match its menu’s modern sensibilities.

“Ombu is the name of a tree,” says General Manager Edison Lo. “The name matches Sequoia, the name of the hotel, which is also a tree.”

Though its name has a Japanese flavor, the restaurant actually serves modern Filipino cuisine, half of its menu the restaurant’s take on Filipino classics, the other half comfort Filipino food that everyone knows and loves. Some of the fusion dishes may seem predictable on paper, but these still manage to surprise the palate with their execution.

The Tinapa Croquette (P200), for example, uses tinapa instead of the usual tuna. The tinapa’s smokiness adds depth to the layers of potato and breadcrumbs that encase it without overpowering the entire dish.

The Salted Egg Spaghettini (P200) is an interesting dish. The pasta is deep-coated with salted egg yolks and sprinkled with tomatoes, cucumber, and salted egg whites. The sauce is slick and a bit grainy, barely coating the pasta, offering just enough taste of egg to make your taste buds search the dish for more. The vegetables add contrast in terms of taste and texture, while the salted egg whites provide bits of salty flavor that complement the yolk sauce—but not so much that it becomes overpowering. That said, it’s a dish that might be too subtle for some people, and is best ordered as a snack than a dinner course.

"We wanted something very Filipino," Lo said. "What’s more Filipino than salted egg?"

One of the dishes that impressed the people at our table was the Crispy Glazed Chicken (P240), a batter-fried chicken glazed with sweet garlic sauce that Lo said has been part of their repertoire since he and his family got their start in the food business 10 years ago. It is what you expect it to be: tender chicken fried to a crisp on the outside, the garlic glaze coating it like a sweet, sweet blanket that hugs your mouth as soon as your lips touch it.

"People would remember us from previous catering jobs for our garlic chicken. We changed its name and carried it on," he said, adding with a laugh, "If only I knew, I would have been more popular than certain fried chicken food chains."

Ombu’s seafood selection is interesting as well. The Herb Crusted Mahi-Mahi (P395), pan-fried mahi-mahi with an herb crust served with cream sauce is a good choice if you’re looking for something familiar, but not Filipino. I would recommend the Seafood Mix Laing (P200), which the menu says is “a mix of shrimp, crab meat, onion, and lemongrass wrapped in taro leaves cooked in light coconut milk.” This makes for a fuller, creamier laing, though it isn’t spicy.

Another favorite—the dish that made the most impact—was the Dilis Rice (P135), which was basically rice fried with little bits of crispy dilis. The tiny dilis not only added crunch, but subtly flavored the rice as well. It paired well with the seafood laing, and is not bad with the glazed chicken.

For dessert, order the Frozen Brazo de Mercedes, lovely layers of ice cream, yema, and meringue that’s not too sweet, and is so good your plate will be empty before the ice cream can begin to melt.

Ombu may be a liitle bit aways from QC’s restaurant row, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth visiting. In fact, if what you’re looking for is good food, cozy ambiance, and a little privacy, this restaurant might be worth checking out. — VC, GMA News