Romulo Cafe & Restaurant can deliver a taste of the Philippines to your dining room

Romulo is a Filipino restaurant which is set in Kensington. I have dined there once before we went into lock down and they served an abundance of Filipino food full of flavour. Thankfully though they are not completely closed as they are able to home deliver their cuisine so you can enjoy a taste of the Philippines within the comfort of your own home.

I was kindly treated to a feast to enjoy at home and even though I may not have been able to meet the lovely Rowena and Chris again in person least I was able to enjoy their tasty delights which tasted as fresh and tasty as the dishes which they serve within their restaurant usually.

Romulo Cafe & Restaurant

Rowena Romulo and her partner Chris set up Romulo Cafe & Restaurant to bring diners a taste of the Philippines and a way to celebrate her grandfather Carlos Romulo bringing his generous spirit back to life, in their food and impeccable service.

All their menus are based on family recipes with Chef Jeremy Villanueva twist combining Philippine cuisine with a mix of Malay, Chinese, Spanish and American influences creating something Filipino from dishes such as Binagoongan Crispy Pata, Chicken Relleno, Beef and Seafood Kare-Kare, Pork adobo, pandesal, purple yam. All dishes are served in generous portions from sharing plates to smaller size platitos.

A taste of the Philippines within my dining room

Home delivered by Romulo Cafe & Restaurant I was treated to a 5 course tasting menu designed for two to enjoy within the comfort of my own home.

All of their recipes are passed down from one generation to the next and are all truly Filipino at its finest, executed by their team of Filipino chefs.

Setting up my dining table with a green tablecloth to represent the green colour scheme used in Romulo actual restaurant I was ready for my Philippine feast.

Delivered by car the food was all nicely packed in brown paper bags in containers keeping the food nicely compacted and hot which I was surprised by as I live in Bromley, Kent which is quite away from Kensington. In fact it was hotter than most takeaways I have got that are local so I was very impressed.

The five course tasting menu consists of Crispy Squid, Pork Belly Humbav, Chicken and Prawn Wok-Fried Rice Noodles, Honey Glazed Chilli Beef and Ube Cheesecake.

Upon opening each lid of each dish I was immediately hit by the wonderful smells of spices, meat and fish.

The Crispy Squid were julienne sliced strips of deep-fried squid which were served with a chilli honey and garlic glaze and topped with spring onions. They were a crispy delight with a nice sweetness and a hint of heat.

The Pork Belly Humbav was a succulent piece of braised pork belly which had been cooked in soy sauce, vinegar and spices served along with peanuts and plantain. The pork literally melted in the mouth with each bite.

The Chicken and Prawn Wok-Fried Rice Noodles was lovely. The thin rice noodles were loaded with prawns, chicken, and assorted vegetables so with each bite got a different taste.

The Honey Glazed Chilli Beef is braised grass fed British rib which had been slowly cooked and seasoned with honey chilli glaze and served with a slaw prepared by their chefs. The beef fell apart and was full of richness in flavour. The slaw was also a nice touch as to refresh the palette every so often in between bites.

To accommodate the dishes above there was a portion of their traditional garlic fried rice which was light, fluffy and garlicky. So if you love fluffy rice and plenty of garlic you will love their rice.

The Ube Cheesecake is made from purple yam and topped with sweet young coconut. Looked amazing with it’s vibrant purple colour and the taste was ever so creamy. The only negative about this dessert dish though was it was a little too loose as had started to melt but that is most likely down to it being kept near hot food during the travel from Kensington.

“Which dish appeals to you?”

Philippine food heaven

All in all the 5 course tasting menu was a real delight and certainly a change from having the usual Fish and Chips or Indian takeaway.

As mentioned earlier the food all arrived very hot and packed really well.

The food all tasted wonderful as each dish was packed full of flavour.

I felt like I had been transported to the Philippines.

My favourite though was most definitely the pork dish as was so succulent and yet crisp and was packed full of flavour. Moorish and rich.

Plus with the tasting menu you get so much food, especially the noodles. I would certainly say that this 5 course tasting menu could easily serve 3 or 4 people, not just 2.

I will certainly be ordering with Romulo Cafe & Restaurant again in the future for my Filipino hit.

It is inspiring to see though that many other cuisines such as Romulo Filipino food are now more easily available for home delivery. I hope that once we are out of lock down and that Romulo and other restaurants still have the option of home delivery.

Romulo Cafe & Restaurant order your Philippine feast

Romulo Café & Restaurant London
343 Kensington High Street
London
W8 6NW

Order the same 5 course tasting menu I enjoyed for £40 or check out their full menu via clicking here and order from a wide variety of Filipino food.

Thank you to Rowena for treating me to the most amazing 5 course tasting Filipino feast. It was a real treat.