Sisig on My Mind

I can never give up sisig.

I do not eat the Kapampangan dish as often as I used to. Back in college, lunch was often sisig at the original Dencio's Grill in Katipunan where the sizzling bits of pork face was nice and crunchy, doused in Knorr seasoning, Mama Sita hot sauce and calamansi. Sometimes, after going to the gym in Ultra with my boyfriend at the time, we would ignore the cramped space and questionable hygene to have the famous, artery-clogging sisig at Aycee's.

Recently, Cookie Goddess had a craving of her own and invited me and a few friends to try out the sisig at Kebur which her friend highly recommends. Said friend is actually vegetarian, but he told her that when he feels like "cheating", he gets his fix by feasting on the pork dish. If its good enough to turn a vegetarian momentarily carnivorous, it must be pretty special. T-Boy, Sexcretary and I meet up at Cookie Goddess' house in Greenhills which is a few minutes away from Kebur. We decided to carpool since it was raining and some of us were not familiar with the area. When we found the street, we drove really slow, trying to find the signage of the restaurant. With our combined effort, we were able to spot it without passing it.

Kebur turned out to be a small carinderia, complete with Monoblock chairs and folding formica-topped tables. Lighting was quite dim with the soft glow of a TV visible from the outside. The crowd was mostly people from the neighborhood and a few working stiffs (both blue and white collared) who come to unwind for a meal and a few beers. When we arrived, the place was full, and we stood around for a minute looking around uncomfortably until we spotted a small table outside. Two gentlemen in their office attires graciously offered the chairs they did not need, and curiously chatted us up. They gave us valuable information on what to order and additional trivia regarding the place (apparently, a professional basketball team are regulars there).

As we sipped our beers, the sisig finally arrived. It was heaped generously on a sizzling plate, topped by a runny egg. No seasonings or hot sauce was given, so we just mixed the egg into the hot, hissing pork. We soon discovered that no additional seasonings were needed. The crispy little cubes were bursting with flavor, and if you must, only a dash of hot sauce should be added. It was perfect with the steamed rice and then washed down with the ice-cold beer. If you like your sisig crispy, this would be the ultimate.

Another dish that we were told to try was the Pita Pie- a pita bread topped with ground meat, onions, tomatoes, garlic sauce and cheese. Although not as crispy as I would have wanted it, it was still a pretty good dish. I mean, for a small carienderia in Quezon City, its quite an innovative effort.

Being a fan of keema (a middle-eastern dish of sauteed and seasoned ground beef), I thought we should also try Kebur's version. Their's came with a serving of pita slices and a side dish of the creamy garlic sauce. We thought it was just alright, something that would also work as a taco filling. Compared to the ones I have tried in other persian joints, this one just does not cut it.

After we were done with our meal and our beers, we quickly got up when we noticed a group of men looking for a spot for their drinking session. We wanted to have a few more drinks, but we were thinking of moving to more, shall we say, "comfortable" surroundings.

I would definitely go back to Kebur for the sisig and would recommend it to those who love the dish and would not mind a less elegant setting. Next time I would go earlier so I could get a nicer table inside.

Kebur

20th Ave.

Project 4, Quezon City

(If going north-bound on EDSA, make a right on B. Serrano Ave. Go past the stoplight in front of the Fort Aguinaldo gate until you reach 20th Ave. Turn left and go all the way down around 50 meters. Kebur is on the right side, beside a karaoke bar called Tsikas.)