During the long weekend, my calendar was already marked with the word Pampanga. I was ready for a North food trip, tagging along either my family or some friends. My friend, who lives there, was excited upon finding out my plan. She helped me out by giving me directions on how to go around and instructions on which restaurants I should try to visit.

Unfortunately, you can’t avoid plans to change especially when the weather is stubborn and uncooperative. The bad weather came at the wrong time. For those who went out of town, I bet your beach trip became a bit gloomy and cloudy. Similar to mine, my plans did change due to the stormy weather. I won’t say that it failed. But the trip to Pampanga didn’t push through.

As a positive type of person, I didn’t allow Plan A to remain as a flop. I researched and looked for a restaurant that would give us the Pampanga vibe without being physically there.

Originally from Pampanga, Kabigting’s Halo-Halo is one of the restaurants I hear from family friends when we talk about must-try foods from Pampanga. Thank God I remembered about Kabigting’s when I was looking for Kapampangan restaurants at that time. Plus, I didn’t need to go all the way to Pampanga because they have a branch here in Manila. 

Kabigting’s Halo Halo (Php 75)

From the name itself, Halo-Halo seemed to be their best-seller. What sets Kabigting’s Halo-Halo (Php 75) apart from others are their main ingredients which are the following:

1. Mashed Beans (As you can see, those are the brown sticky layering under the fine shaved ice)

2. Sweet Corn

3. Carabao Milk Pastillas (another best-seller in Kabigting’s)

It was my first time to try this unique halo-halo combination and didn’t know what to expect. The ingredients were not alien to me, but putting all of those in my halo-halo was the one that made it a bit strange. In my opinion, the red beans gave me a heavy feeling after finishing the glass of halo-halo. Although I appreciated the Carabao Pastillas, which I hoped there was more of that in my halo-halo.

Fresh Lumpia (Php 75/2pcs.)

Kabigting’s menu is not limited to Halo-Halo. In fact, if you are into Goldilock’s fresh lumpia, I am sure you would love Kabigting’s version of it. Dad ordered Fresh Lumpia for his appetizer. According to him, the peanut sauce was even way better than the one in Goldilock’s.

Absolutely fresh! 🙂

Don’t eat too much of this if you will be ordering their Halo-Halo. It might make you feel bloated after.

Palabok (Php 60)

Beef Tapa (Php 100)

I was reminded of Sinangag EXpress Tapa, a famous spot in Taft, upon seeing my plate of Beef Tapa. Similarly, the beef was shredded, made easier to chef and digest. Beef, when it isn’t cooked well, can result to its meat becoming hard and difficult to chew. To lean more on the safe side, it was a wise decision to serve their tapa in this way. 

Regardless of the time, 6 in the evening, breakfast food is still the best. Garlic rice of this Beef Tapa will make your diet a failure. HAHA! Make sure it is your cheat day when you try their Beef Tapa 😉 

Dinuguan (Php 65)

Dinuguan, not my type of food. I just had to take a photo of it to show you, Dinuguan eaters, that Kabigting’s also serve this dish. This was dad’s choice and he finished the bowl all by himself. While watching him eat, I saw how much he enjoyed it. So I asked him, “how was it?”, he only answered, “saraaaap!” (with conviction).

Plan B of going to Kabigting’s here in Manila was better than not going anywhere at all. If plans fail, like ours, don’t be dismayed. Think positive! Nothing will happen if you dwell and rant on the problem. “Lower your expectation, but Higher your appreciation.” As long as I was with my family, eating couldn’t be any better. 

Cheers,

Location: 592 N.S. Amoranto, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines

Operating Hours: 10:00am-10:00pm

Contact: (+632) 354-6156 / (+63) 922-851-1770 / (+63) 917-963-7000

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KabigtingsHaloHaloQC

Budget: PHP150++

Rate:

Food	9/10
Ambiance	8/10
Service	8/10
Cost	9/10
Overall	8.5/10