Habanero Kitchen Bar: A Modern Filipino Restaurant Tucked in Cubao X, Quezon City (Is it Worth Lining Up For?)

I have a friend who recommended Habanero Kitchen Bar. While I’ve always wanted to visit it, I couldn’t do it right away because it’s located in Cubao (Quezon City), which is far from me, and it’s notorious for its long queues. But for a late celebration of my birthday and another friend, we finally went to the restaurant.

Located in Cubao X (a.k.a. Cubao Expo), which is a melting pot of cafes, lifestyle stores, and restaurants, Habanero is a Filipino restaurant that incorporates modern twists to classic dishes. They’re also known for infusing habanero peppers to their food and drinks. It’s been around for a while but has received more attention during the pandemic thanks to the power of social media. So for a long time, there’s always a long queue. But I think it’s easier to be seated nowadays, like in our experience (we went on a rainy evening weekday).

Is Habanero worth lining up for? Let’s me share our experience.

We ordered their bestselling Habanero Three-Cheese Pizza (made with grilled cheddar, mozzarella, and quezo de bola) and Oyster Sisig. It’s interesting that these two dishes are also the bestsellers of barLO Resto Lounge of Two Seasons Boracay Resort, which makes the best versions of the dishes, in my opinion. So will Habanero top barLO’s?

Let’s talk about the Three-Cheese Pizza first, which is cheesy and has a cube of queso de bola for every slice. It also has a crisp, super thin crust. But the taste is unusual, as it reminds me of SkyFlakes, the famous Filipino crackers.

The Oyster Sisig is creamy and smoky. It’s also spicy, when you happen to eat the chilies, and slightly sweet. This dish feels like you’re eating meat instead of oysters, and I think it’s a good thing.

So does it beat barLO’s? Honestly, no. But it’s still worth trying.

We also got another of their bestseller, the 1 Kilo Lechon Habanero, which is a sous vide pork belly flavored with fresh habanero peppers and special spices. There are two heat levels that you can choose. We only got Level 1 since some of us don’t like spicy food.

It’s fatty and super tender, and has a crisp skin. Even though we only wentfor Level 1, it’s still stay-in-the mouth spicy. So if your spice tolerant is low, better stay away from this.

For an additional fee, you can have the lechon with Mustasa at Buro (mustard leaves and fermented rice with shrimp). So you wrap your lechon with a leaf and dip it in a sauce ala Korean barbecue.

From Front to Back: *Mustasa* and *Buro* (PHP125)

More than the bestsellers, my favorite at Habanero is their Beef Hanging Tender Salpicao (tender beef cubes cooked in garlic). It has big chunks of beef, is super garlicky, and is slightly spicy. The bell peppers add a nice crispness. This dish is worthy of extra rice!

We also got Chicken Wings, which is covered in sweet and tangy sauce. The flavor is okay, but I prefer my chicken wings crunchy than soggy. (This reminds me of the Buttered Chicken of GoodTaste Cafe and Restaurant in Baguio City. Is Habanero just drawing inspiration from other restaurants? LOL.)

Although there are things that can be improved and I’m missing a wow factor (with the dishes we tried, at least), I think Habanero Kitchen Bar has good food. Just visit when there’s no queue.

I may not return anytime soon. But when I do, I’ll definitely try other dishes (including their popular Leche Flan) to have a better assessment of its menu. I recommend Habanero Kitchen Bar to you.

What dish above have you tried or would like to try?

Address: Cubao Expo Stall #63, Gen. Romulo Ave., Araneta Center, Cubao, Philippines | Operating Hours: Tuesday-Thursday, 11AM-10PM; Friday-Sunday, 11AM-11PM | Contact No.: 0977-2065489 | Facebook | Instagram