A Birthday Tribute: Modern Filipino Flavours at HALINÁ
Today is hubby’s birthday, which means a mission to fulfill his specific food wish. This year, I failed. He requested suman, and despite searching our usual spots around Joyce and Fraser, we came up empty-handed. To compensate for the lack of suman, we headed to the one-year-old HALINÁ Modern Filipino Kitchen + Bar in Vancouver. I’ve seen their modern Filipino dishes popping up on my Instagram feed for a while, and I was keen to finally taste their creative take on our favourite classics.
Sharing this special day with you, hubby, is my greatest joy. Even without the suman, our time together felt like a gift. Happy birthday, love love!
Practical Bites & Prices
We settled into the vibrant atmosphere of HALINÁ to see if their innovative menu lived up to the hype. Here is our birthday documentation:
- Lumpiang Shanghai ($16.00): I still think Little Ongpin’s version is better, but these were a close second and much bigger. HALINÁ serves these pork spring rolls with cotija cheese, serrano peppers, and a setup of fresh lettuce. While the savoury rolls are amazing on their own, wrapping them in lettuce with their house-made mayochup and sweet chili sauce was a fun, fresh twist.
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Lumpia (Pork Spring Rolls) from HALINÁ Modern Filipino Kitchen Classic Filipino springroll, cotija cheese, fresh lettuce, serrano pepper, house-made mayo-chup, and sweet chili sauce |
- Pancit Batil Patong ($25.00): Since noodles signify a long life, these were a birthday must. This is Halina's take on the Tuguegarao classic from the northeastern Philippines. It’s a hearty plate of stir-fried egg noodles, ground beef, prawns, crispy liempo, and Chinese sausage. I didn't grow up with this style, but the salty sauciness and crunchy chicken skin were a delicious upgrade.
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Pancit Batil Patong from HALINÁ Modern Filipino Kitchen Stir-fried egg noodles, ground beef, prawns, crispy liempo, Chinese sausage, crispy chicken skin, vegetables and fried egg with side soup. |
- Sizzling Pork Sisig ($24.50): The star of the show! It’s made with chopped smoky pork belly and a rich chicken liver sauce, topped with a sunny-side up egg, red onions, and serrano peppers. While sisig isn't always my first choice, this was a hearty and acceptable version of the classic, especially when paired with fluffy white rice. Next time, I might ask to make it spicier!
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Sizzling Sisig from HALINÁ Modern Filipino Kitchen Chopped smoky pork belly, chicken liver sauce, sunny-side up egg, red onions, serrano peppers, and green onions. |
- Tinapa Pasta ($28.00): A last-minute order! This features mafaldine pasta with smoked milkfish (tinapa), cherry tomatoes, and beech mushrooms. I should have read the description better, as I expected a garlicky aglio olio. Instead, it was a tomato-based dish with a subtle smoky hint. It was tasty, but now I’m inspired to try making my own tinapa aglio olio at home!
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Tinapa Pasta from HALINÁ Modern Filipino Kitchen Smoked milkfish, mafaldine pasta, cherry tomatoes, and beech mushrooms. |
Cheers to More Celebrations
Overall, we can’t wait to return to HALINÁ to give their brunch menu a try as I already have my eye on the tortang talong! It was a wonderful way to honour another year of life together. To God be the glory for your strong heart and another year of lovely memories. Cheers to many more smooch-worthy years!
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