ROMULO CAFÉ in LONDON NAMED BEST FILIPINO RESTAURANT BY THE ASIAN RESTAURANT AWARDS

 
By Gina McAdam
London
July 19, 2019
 
 


 

The results are in and Romulo Café’ is officially the UK’s best Filipino restaurant!

At a glittering ceremony held at the Manchester Hilton on Sunday 23^rd June, the Kensington favourite received the Asian Restaurant Award for Best Filipino Restaurant.

These prestigious awards were established in 2011 to recognise and reward the highest levels of excellence within the ethnic food sector, nationally and internationally. Nominations are sought from all regions including India, Bangladesh, China, Japan, Pakistan, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and, of course, the Philippines, and are voted for by the general public.

This was an especially prestigious accolade given that this is the first time Filipino food has been recognised at the awards, proof positive that this once relatively unknown cuisine is now taking its rightful place amongst the Southeast Asian greats.

When Rowena Romulo opened her Kensington restaurant in March 2016, Filipino cuisine was very much Asia’s best kept culinary secret. Since then, the restaurant has successfully introduced such Philippine signature fare as kare-kare, sisig and chicken adobo - Meghan Markle’s much publicised favourite - to a growing band of devotees, emerging as the ‘go to’ restaurant for fine Filipino food in the capital.

 

Guests flock to this former Georgian townhouse to savour heirloom Romulo family recipes and reimagined versions of Filipino dishes - in a variety of menus designed for different palates, appetites and eating preferences - in an ambience evoking a comfortable Filipino family home.

Says Rowena Romulo, “We are delighted that, having been simmering nicely for a while, the Filipino food revolution is now boiling over. The fact that its cuisine is now recognised by such a well-regarded awards body speaks volumes, and we couldn’t be more pleased that Romulo Café has taken the Asian Restaurant Awards’ inaugural trophy for best Filipino restaurant. It is even more of a compliment that we have been voted for by members of the public.”