Grill 21

7.3/10Malay/Indonesian

AI-generated summary

Traditional Filipino cooking with no modern spin, which is the reason people keep naming it. The kare-kare, lumpia, sinigang and laing all get called out, and the tapsilog will scratch a craving. One regular calls it the most home style cooking in the borough.

346 E 21st St, New YorkGramercy / Flatiron, ManhattanGoogle Maps

What Reddit says14

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  • in:Non-Americans of NYC -- which restaurant in the city has the best version/showcase of your home country's food?2 pts
    replying to u/seashellsnyc: I haven’t tried the new Filipino restaurants in Manhattan. Pig & Khao was excellent pre-COVID. Kalye Bistro has a lot of excellent dishes. Their Goto (Filipino congee with intestines) is the best version I’ve had, especially because it includes other proteins like lumpia and crispy pork and the roasted garlic flavor is well-executed. Kabayan Bistro has very good pork sisig and crispy pata (deep fried pig’s feet)- Babbo had a boneless Italian version that cost a lot more pre-COVID. I heard Ihawan is still good, and I was a big fan of their beef kaldereta and pork BBQ. I also heard that Renee’s and Tito Rad’s are still solid. Purple Dough’s flan is fantastic, it’s egg yolk heavy which is what I like. I’ve heard Jersey City has better Filipino food but Woodside’s Little Manila is pretty good.

    “I’m a big fan of Grill 21, because they are not trying to do a modern take on Filipino food. They just make everything the traditional way that I grew up eating. Everything is super tasty from the lumpia, tocino, sinigang, Laing, Kare Kare.”

    H3

  • in:Best Filipino Food NYC?26 pts

    “My current faves are Grill 21, Renee's Kitchenette, Kusina Pinoy Bistro, Mama Fina's, and Tradisyon.”

    H1

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