Kuya J Restaurant is a great option if you want to enjoy delicious Filipino food, especially because they have some unique items in their menu.
Kuya J Restaurant’s casual and easygoing vibe makes it the perfect dining place to enjoy home-cooked Filipino food.
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| Cheesy baked scallops |
Kuya J Restaurant: cozy and homey with delicious Filipino food choices
About Kuya J Restaurant
Kuya J is a
homegrown Cebuano restaurant, a fact that not all people know because they thought it was owned by
Jericho Rosales.
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| Chopsuey |
Well, Jericho is the restaurant’s official endorser and, in my opinion, is perfect for the role. In the TV ads and in other forms of media, he looked convincing as Kuya J himself.
Branding-wise, the restaurant does a great job in communicating an image
that is warm and welcoming, akin to a big brother who is ready to take
care of his younger siblings.
Our Kuya J experience
Anyway, around 2 years ago, we went to Kuya J Restaurant for the first time in Ayala Fairview Terraces but it was not the most wonderful dining experience. Service was not as fast as we had wanted it to be.
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| Crispy fried chicken |
They even forgot that we placed an order for their much-celebrated crispy pata so we had to follow up twice, only to be finally served a rubbery chunk. Their pork sisig, however, was noteworthy and I would always come back for it.
With that unfortunate experience behind us, we gladly tried Kuya J
Restaurant when they opened a branch at SM Jazz in Makati. The branch was big and spacious, perfect for large family gatherings or Sunday lunch outs.
The glass walls allow natural light to bathe the interiors so it looks
lively inside.
The food
We ordered cheesy grilled scallops for starters, a plate of chop suey for our side dish, and roast chicken and crispy pork sisig for the mains. For dessert, we went for one regular halo-halo espesyal and a glass of ube halo-halo espesyal.
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| Pork sisig |
Food was served after a fair amount of preparation time. The aroma of the
dishes, especially the grilled scallops, came wafting around us.
We tried the grilled scallops first and it was excellent. The scallops were
plump and juicy; the sweet flavor further enhanced by the cheese and butter.
Since it was grilled, the hint of smokiness provided another depth of flavor
to this dish.
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| Ube halo-halo |
The sisig, meanwhile, was still as good as I remember it. I did not try the chicken though but I heard it was also delicious. For dessert, the ube halo-halo was on point and was a perfect twist on the classic halo-halo.
Our verdict
All in all, our second time to eat at Kuya J restaurant was a much-improved experience as compared to our first visit to its outlet in Ayala Fairview Terraces.
The service is fast and efficient; all the food was delivered within a reasonable time and all our requests were promptly fulfilled. The prices could still be improved though.
