"Eats" and misses at PJ Arañador's Wawa Heritage Restaurant

One of the most interesting finds we had during a luncheon get-together at Wawa Heritage Restaurant was Adobo nga Sisi or baby oysters. A staple in most seaside areas on Iloilo and beyond, sisi are like baby oysters, of course they come in small shells too. And usually they are bottled and sold kinilaw. Or maybe adobo as this one could have just came out from the bottled since it had no taste of being freshly cooked. But it was curiosity satisfied.

The squid rings from Estancia, Iloilo are a must order for appetizers. As PJ comes from Estancia, all the seafood goodness of this Northern Iloilo town are within his reach. Though this one just comes out straight from plastic packages (these are sold as pasalubong in most shops in the city), they are really good and addicting. No need to dip them in the vinegar (which are also good).

Ginisa nga baboy sa guinamos (bago-ong) is perfect with green mango or mixed with rice, even on it's own! For some weird reason, the Jaro Market is just 5 minutes away yet they were out of stock in the Wawa kitchen. So we just mixed this with rice for a heavenly appetizer turned meal.

The Atchara Ilonggo was surprisingly good - with a mild contrast between sweet and sour of the concoction having amargoso (ampalaya) among others.

This Tapa Ilonggo topping looked appetizing but a bit salty. It was well cooked, sort of tender and seasoned well, just a bit salty.

Must order - fried balingon. They make their own as they buy the fresh fish then salt and dry it. It makes a a melt in your mouth quality appetizer plus with the dip - heavenly! More of this please!

Ensalada na puso ng saging - strips of banana heart with vinegar and coconut milk. A good appetizer as well as side dish for fried and dry food.

Daing na Bangus - nothing spectacular and it tastes even dry like carton. Go ahead and take a bite of any carton near you, it's really like that. You might even want to dip it in the toyomansi.

Lechon kawali is made from liempo most of the time but this one looks like it came from a simple pork chop. And I had to stare (almost in disgust) with our server when we asked her what's the most Ilonggo specialty of Wawa, and she answered Lechon kawali!

Seafood Batchoy! They just put into shrimps, green shells plus more shells then add seasoned broth and blanched noodles from the fridge. As what they say, don't buy batchoy from a non batchoyan for the taste of batchoy basically comes from the caldo or broth which authentic batchoyans cook and maintain all day NOT just a bunch of seasoning and broth cubes.

I like how they used itlog ng pugo both a garnish and eventually topping for their pork sisig with kamote on the side. Actually quite good that I almost finished this order alone.

A very refreshing take on guyabanio juice, just a light mix with calamansi,again very refreshing! I could finish a pitcher of this and want more.

My first visit to Wawa might have mixed reviews but I will certainly be back because the concept is good - everybody will surely leave learning more than one or two about Ilonggo cuisine. They just need more professionalism in the service and the actual execution of this project. Can't wait to visit Wawa Heritage Restaurant again to discover some areas of Ilonggo cuisine which I am less informed with.

Read More about Wawa Heritage Restaurant.

Ultimate Ilonggo Favorite: KBL Kadyos, Baboy, Langka

K.B.L. or Kadyos, Baboy, Langka is the ultimate favorite dish of most Ilonggos. It is also one of the most missed native dishes as kadyos and the souring ingredient, batwan , are hard to find when outside of the Ilonggo region. Basically, it is boiled/stewed pork dish owing its "deliciousness" to the combination of the soft and tender pork, the tamed sourness of batwan and the malinamnam na sabaw . One of the "secrets" of the malinamnamn na sabaw , is the fact that the pork, whether just the plain meat or pata (hocks) are first grilled or broiled. This gives the broth a rather smoky taste that makes it more appetizing.. Learn how to make the Ilonggo dish KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, at Langka) with the recipe below. Ingredients 1 kilo Pata (pork hocks) or pork cubes, GRILLED and sliced into bite size pieces 1 unripe Jack fruit, cubed 2 cups pigeon pea (kadyos) 6-8 pieces batwan fruit (or tamarind powder) 1 piece pork broth cube (

An Ilonggo favorite - Valenciana

Found in almost all occasions like fiesta, birthdays, reunions and others, Ilonggos really love valenciana because most if not all have grown accustomed of having it in special gatherings at home. A complete " go, grow and glow " dish because it has the carbohydrates, protein and vitamins and minerals in just one spoonful, Valenciana is really an " occasional dish ". Here's the recipe for Valenciana

Takway

The gabi (taro) is just one of those plants which is edible from "roots to tops". The most popular of which is the tuber part which is used in a variety of dishes and mostly in combination with coconut milk. Its leaves, of course, is the main ingredient of a Bicol specialty, laing . It is dried then chopped and sauteed with other ingredients including, again, coconut milk. Then there is takway . The local term for its tendrils/runner, that part which is torn between being a stem or a root for it neither grows upwards nor downwards - it grows sideways . Scraped off of its outer skin, takway is often a key ingredient in vegetable dishes like laswa and the gabi tuber with coconut milk and local snails know as bago-ngon . It is also popular when cooked adobo style with guinamos , the local bago-ong . It is very popular in the region that even big supermarkets sell takway in style - cleaned and plastic wrapped in styro with some additions to make it easier to prepare.

Batwan

Ilonggos know batwan or batuan by heart as the fruit is almost endemic to the Western Visayas. Its scientific name is Garcinia binucao, derived from the Tagalog name for the fruit, binukaw. It is a large green fruit with large seeds and its a favorite souring ingredient in most Ilonggo dishes especially KBL or kadyos, baboy, langka and the Ilonggo-style paksiw known as "pinamalhan". It is characterized by a tamed sourness compared to tamarind and kamias . The fruit is sold by pieces or kilo in wet markets and even big grocery stores. Batwan is the preferred souring ingredients for the Ilonggo favorite- KBL. The photo shows boiled batwan with skin and without skin (right) A favorite riddle when we were young - "Among the many fruits in the forest, but one (batuan) is the best. What is it?"

A cooking weed called Lupo

Lupo is a weed that is commonly found in ricefields and roadside in provinces. It is most prevalent in Ilonggo cooking compared to others as it is mostly the Ilonggos who can recognize lupo , though maybe called differently in other places. Most commonly used in laswa or monggo dishes to add greens like kamote tops, it also makes a good partner in sinabawan na isda recipes. It has hints of bitterness but don't expect it to be ampalaya-bitter like. It is mostly sold in wet local wet markets by the tumpok .

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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