Drive out to Denlim’s

Making the drive all the way out to Pampanga for a restaurant might seem a bit excessive, when there are numerous good restaurants cropping up within city limits. But sometimes driving out is its own pleasure, particularly if the destination has the hard-earned ambiance of Denlim’s Kitchen.

Signless and somewhat difficult to locate if the territory is unfamiliar, the former bodega-turned-bakery-turned-restaurant has been described as “one of Pampanga’s best-kept secrets” and “most raved about…hush-hush dining experience.” The secret’s out, but making the drive certainly contributed to the mystique. Once you step in, fresh from the highway and the provincial darkness, the real triumph of the way it is set up hits you with a warm light that makes you welcome.

Once a bodega, then a bakery, and now a specialised restaurant, Denlim’s caters to exclusive groups by only taking one group a night. Their sole purpose is to serve you up some good food, and not one iota more — it’s BYOB and no dessert is offered. The ambiance, though, can’t be beat; it’s been accurately described as having a sort of East London vibe about it, with pleasantly localised touches. The sanctioned graffiti over nearly every available wooden surface in the entire space is part of what makes it popular; many a restaurant in Manila has some kind of space for people to scrawl their names over, but this is the first I’ve seen that lets you write on almost any surface in the entirety of the space.

Denlim's Chicken

Denlim's salad

Gambas

What kind of food we were supposed to expect exactly was never clear, but by the time the first dish was served up we were convinced to trust the kitchen. In our case we had an excellent salad, a warmly satisfying pasta, a truly tasty gambas, some fresh guacamole chicken, and lengua. Personally, I would say the salad and the shrimp were the best of the bunch, though there was a cauliflower and chickpea spread appetizer that really got us going in the beginning.

Lengua

Pasta

If you’re one for getting out of town to some good food, but detest having to outsmart crowds, this place is a content solution. Comfortable enough to make you feel at home (Chef Den is attentive, and quite obviously enjoys his setup) but fun enough to make you feel like you went somewhere, Denlim’s Kitchen will easily make a short but enjoyable trip out of town with friends worthwhile. You’ll just have to have it in you to plan and reserve in advance.