The first time I heard the name of this Filipino restaurant was from Bong. Kusina ni Lorraine daw has pansit palabok. His friend Danny, and Boying also mentioned this restaurant as one of the places they frequented.
With three recommendations, Kusina ni Lorraine could be worth my while so I went for lunch on either January 19 or 20. I couldn’t remember exactly when. Maybe on the 19th.
I took Uber from Tuscany Hotel and it was about 10 minutes away.
I was disappointed when I reached the place. I wanted to ride back in the same Uber car right away. I wanted to leave right away.
The place looks like ghetto— dirty. There was an istambay pa asking for money.
The building facade wasn’t welcoming at all. I thought the restaurant had closed and the space was abandoned. Madungis sa labas and madumi ang mga salamin nung restaurant, pati yung harapan ng pinto nila, madumi. Parang ayaw kong pumasok.
There were two doors na meron pang kandado kaya I really thought sarado na ito.
I saw a woman seated inside one of the doors. She saw me and said tuloy ka.
A—–“Bukas ba kayo?”
Woman—–“Ay ang ganda nung mukha. Pasok ka ganda”.
Woman to co-worker—–“Ang ganda nya, iba ang mukha”.
Na-conscious tuloy ako. Pati yung ale na tiga ligpit ng mga pinggan ganda ang tawag sa akin.
I wasn’t expecting this much food. Ang dami.
There were 28 different kinds of dishes.
I got rice, kare-kare, pansit, paksiw na lechon. tig-konti lang.
It’s impossible to taste all 28 dishes.
I came here for the kare-kare and it didn’t disappoint me. It’s all tripe and very soft. Tamang-tama sa mga malapit ng malagas na ipin ko.
Majority of the dishes have sauces.
There were dishes I could not identify.
My table
Tikim-tikim lang I didn’t know what dish to get aside from keyr-keyr.
From left to right small bowls: a little bit of sinigang soup, kare-kare, pansit, paksiw na lechon.
Big plate: galunggong and rice
Top plate: pork sisig (ang konti, tikim lang)
Kung bakit naman I got attracted to galunggong. The minute I tried to slice it, oops matigas. I tasted it, ooops no taste. Hayan, dapat no left-overs. It’s one whole galunggong. I didn’t know where to hide it. I shoot ko kaya sa bag ko? Baka naman mabilanggo pa ako for making umit a galunggong.
I didn’t eat the fish but I found a way to hide it. No not in my bag or pockets. I sliced it into pieces and scattered it among the small bowls.
I also had left over pansit and sisig. The paksiw na lechon was good.
I went back to the buffet and found guinataang munggo and chicharon bulaklak.
Tikman nga natin.
The chicharon bulaklak was delicious. The guinataang munggo was sobrang lapot (sticky) and a bit sweet but otherwise it was good. Goldilocks’ guinataang munggo was sobrang malabnaw (watery) and not sweet. If I mix Goldilocks’ with Kusina ni Maria’s, I will have a perfect guinataang munggo.
There’s a beverage station. I thought the soft drinks were included in the buffet price. Even then, I just got water.
When you are in a restaurant that has abundant table napkins, then you know you are in another country. Tell me which restaurant in the Philippines leave a stack of napkins on the table? Wala, kasi baka iuwi ninyo. Gugupitin pa nila yan into two pieces.
The kitchen staff brought out steaming hot ginisang sayote. I just looked at it. Hindi ko naman makain lahat ng dishes dito ang dami.
The first time I got chicharon bulaklak I only picked the crumbs, those durog-durog kasi I just wanted to taste it. I went back for a second serving kasi masarap but of course this dish is fatty to the max.
People go to the washroom and wash their hands several times only to touch the door knob when they go out. Di ganun din, you have to wash your hands again. Me, I never touch the door knob without a tissue paper.
Before I left the hotel I counted the coins in my bag because they were getting heavier. I paid Kusina ni Lorraine using some of the coins, para akong pulubi nakabilot pa sa papel yung mga barya ko. The bill was $10.82 yata.
Kusina ni Lorraine
Filipino food buffet $9.99
Address: 3507 S Maryland Pkwy #1, Las Vegas, NV 89169
Phone: (702) 369-2613
