Last Day Lunch with Manny Pacquiao

…’s favorite restaurant in Chinatown, L.A.. To make more sense, I ate at Manny Pacquiao’s favorite Chinese restaurant! *POW* (Okay, perhaps the pow didn’t help make me sound cooler.)

On our last day in L.A., our family friend treated us to a Chinese restaurant somewhere in Chinatown. She said that our very own PacMan frequents that place. 

 

Upon entering the restaurant, the claim “PacMan frequents the place” was confirmed in more ways than one. 

Ordering was quite difficult due to language barrier. We were not the ones who ordered the dishes but I felt my aunt’s frustration while conversing with the person who waited for us. It was a happy ending though as after 15 minutes of describing and pointing, the order was made. 

I looked around some more while waiting for our dishes to arrive and I noticed more photos of… you guessed it!

Other celebrities visited the place too!

The service was quick as it only took them less than 15 minutes to serve all dishes. First off was the Pan Fried Sole (price is seasonal). It was quite dry and bland if you do not dip it in oyster sauce. What I loved about this one was that the fish was crispy in the outside and tender in the inside (sounds like a chicken advertisement, huh?). You could tell that the fish used was fresh.

My mom and sister loved the Minced Squab with Peanuts and Lettuce ($8.95). It was like our own Lumpiang Sariwa but with squab. It was quite crunchy because of the peanuts and the crisp lettuce. The sauce that goes with it was quite sweet. So for those not fond of sweet meals, avoid putting too much sauce on it.

The Snow Peas and Water Chestnuts ($7.50) was rather refreshing. It was cool in the mouth and it was very light. What I loved about it was that the flavor was not overpowering and that there was a bit of crunch. 

 

But the highlight of the meal was the Lobster. Cooked with garlic, it was oola-la to the taste buds. The lobster was cooked well and the sauce was just divine. It was not very sweet as the garlic’s flavor kicked in.

Of course, a meal in a Chinese restaurant will not be complete without fried rice. We ordered Seafood Fried Rice ($7.50). It was really good as it was not the block of yellow rice. It was quite flavorful and as some people would say it, “kanin lang, ulam na!” (loose translation: rice alone is enough).

We also got fortune cookies after!

I will definitely go back for more of the lobsters next time. :)