Lechoneria: Everyday Happy Belly Dining

Taking pride in serving eccentric Filipino classic dishes, Lechoneria Lechon Belly & Filipino Favorites has been offering quality comfort Filipino food and filled up bellies since 2019. The restaurant is constantly growing as it expands its menu and opens more stores in metro Luzon and metro Visayas.

We first saw and visited Lechoneria in SM Seaside City Cebu and thought that it has its roots in Cebu. But I discovered that the restaurant is actually a native of Luzon and it has its pioneer branch at SM North EDSA. That explains why their Lechon tasted different from the Lechon we had in Cebu-grown restaurants like Rico’s Lechon and House of Lechon.

Tanglad Espesyal Lechon Belly

I define Cebuano Lechon as a flavorful roasted pig up to the bones. Sadly, Lechoneria’s Tanglad Espesyal Lechon Belly has just mild flavors, despite of being infused with lemongrass. It isn’t that bad. It actually tasted similar to the Lechon we have Luzon. However, to offer this in the city where the best Lechon is, I think, it’s a shame. We were first served with Lechon Belly that has too many fats. We informed the servers and requested to fry it further so the belly would be reduced. But we’re surprised that they replaced it with a new set that has more meat now.

Chicharon Bulaklak

Just like their Lechon Belly, the Chicharon Bulaklak has too much fatty parts in it. I know that it’s generally made of ruffled fat but, perhaps, they could eliminate the big ones or cook them more and serve more ruffled petals because when we squeezed them, there were still too much oil. It’s a good thing there’s vinegar to soak them and somehow diminish the satiating parts. It actually tasted good. It was seasoned well and was cooked to crispiness. It’s just that there were only few pieces that were eatable.

Lumipang Ubod

They had Lumpiang Ubod in two ways. I could definitely feel the freshness from the fresh homemade palm spring rolls. The egg crepe wrap has a touch of fluffiness in it that made it delicate and delish to eat. But I’m more hooked to the crispy-fried palm spring rolls. I only had fried lumpia and fried togue before so this way of Lumpiang Ubod is something new to me. The wrapper was so thin but it successfully held the fillings together neatly. Both the peanut sauce and vinegar are made the dish more luscious. It was indeed a good choice for starters as it was totally appetizing.

Bulalo Steak

Upon setting Bulalo Steak, I immediately noticed its small serving relative to its price. Yes, it’s for sharing but it can only cater two people. In terms of taste, it was great. The meat was flavorful. It wasn’t tough but it wasn’t tender enough to satisfy me. I like that the flavors of the soup version was still present because most Bulalo Steak I’ve tried in other restaurants used gravy as sauce. However, the mushroom tasted weird. It didn’t feel natural. There was no marrow in the bone. It would somehow increase the value of the dish and make the price reasonable.

Sinigang sa Miso na Salmon Belly

Countering the fried dishes, we had Sinigang sa Miso na Salmon Belly. After all these dry and umami meat we had, we needed something wet and sour. Basically, we needed vegetable and fish. However, while the Sinigang contained plenty of salmon belly strands, it lacked vegetables. It’s evident in this photo. That’s alright, actually, but there are no other textures to get since it was all belly and little amount of leaves. There was also an intense flavor from ginger that kinda hinders the sourness of the soup. 

Ginataang Ube Mochi

I really like the twist they are making on their desserts. They have the unusual combinations like Polvoron Con Hielo, Turon Napoleones and Sorbetes sa Ensaymada. This one is another Filipino meryenda, bilo-bilo but with glutinous balls like mochi of Japan. It is filled with Ube yam that complemented the dish, especially the palatable thick coconut milk. The jackfruit, white pearls and sesame seeds added flavors and texture, too. Despite of having all these sweet ingredients, it surprisingly had a balanced sweetness. 

Turon Napoleones

I guess Lechoneria has perfected creating desserts already so we bought another one. Turon Napoleones is the fancy version of Lechoneria on Filipino favorite snack, Turon. It’s attractive that I immediately and unconsciously pointed it in the menu. In this way, the turon wasn’t oily and the wrapper was guaranteed to be crispy and not soggy. The banana was cooked first in sugar so it was sweetened nicely. They had a good choice of vanilla ice cream to pair with the turon. Generally, it wasn’t just delicious. It was also aesthetically appealing.

Special Classic Halo Halo | Mango Shake

The Halo Halo has the right sweetness. I’m glad that they included Macapuno but I’m curious why, out of all the Halo Halo components, they chose to increase the amount of beans, which is one of the least preferred ingredient? Anyway, I love that the Mango Shake leaned more on being a smoothie. The ice was finely crushed so it was smooth to drink. It was made with real mangoes but I’m having doubts with its sweetness because the mango fruit topping was very sour and this drink has no hint of tanginess at all.