A little of everything in Little Asia

First, a confession: I never liked tilapia, any way it’s cooked. Give me galunggong or hasa-hasa, fried very crispy and sprinkled with soy sauce or lemon, and I’m the happiest hungry person in the world. But not tilapia which is, according to doctors, good for Gary V. and his fellow diabetics because tilapia helps the pancreas produce more insulin.

Yeah, I never liked tilapia – until I went to that new restaurant called Little Asia (corner of Tomas Morato Avenue and Scout Fuentebella in Quezon City) last week along with celebrity photographer Richard Chen. After exchanging the usual amenities in Fookien (oh, yes, I speak it tolerably), Little Asia owner and general manager Charlemagne Lim, 25 but doesn’t look it, led us to the second floor to let us taste some of the place’s specialties he has been boasting about to us through his good friend Dondon Monteverde, the "little father" of Regal Films (which is, contrary to general impression, still run by its matriarch, Mother Lily).

"Here," smiled Charlemagne, "take a bite."

I did, without asking what the dish was. Hmmm, very good! I took another bite and another bite, until I noticed Richard watching me. Grudgingly, I shared one half of it with him and he finished it off in a jiffy.

"That’s our Boneless Tilapia with Honey-Mayo Sauce (P165 per serving)," said Charlemagne, and I couldn’t believe it. I never thought tilapia could be cooked so deliciously. You guessed it: I’ve said goodbye (temporarily) to galunggong and hasa-hasa fried very crispy and sprinkled with soy sauce or lemon and now crave for, yes, tilapia.

Charlemagne revealed that the tilapia happens to be the favorite of Speaker Manny Villar, with a side order of Korean Beef Stew (P255 per).

Up next was the Little Asia Fried Chicken (P200 per) cooked the way Charlemagne’s grandpa did it during family salu-salo when Charlemagne and his brother Charlson (chief cook of Little Asia) and sister Charlene (accountant of Little Asia) were kids growing up in Binondo, Manila.

"Unbelievably crispy inside and soft outside" was how Kris Aquino described it. Kris’ former home companion Phillip Salvador brought their son Joshua to Little Asia one time and ordered, among other items, that fried chicken and told Kris how tasty it was. A few days later when Kris dropped by Pin Antonio’s Salon de Manila just across the street, she ordered "take out" fried chicken, together with Vietnamese Spring Rolls (P140 per) which she described as "so authentic, even the sauce" and Breaded Pork Chop with Orange Marmalade (P165 per).

According to Charlemagne, other stars have their own favorites, such as:

• Rosanna Roces (a vegetarian), Japanese Tofu Steak (P190 per)

• Rep. Noynoy Aquino, Squid in Black Beans Sauce (P185 per)

• Violeta "Madame Violett" Sevilla (Violett Films producer), Beef Tenderloin Rolls with Cheese in Teriyaki Sauce (P255 per)

Since Little Asia opened in December last year, it has been attracting a starry clientele which also includes Ara Mina (who co-owns the Osteria Italia located two blocks away), Jessica Soho, Randy Santiago (who owns Ratsky beside Pin Antonio’s salon), Johnny "Mr. M" Manahan, Ricky Davao (who treated his friends to a blowout during his recent birthday) and family (wife Jackie Lou Blanco and their children), Janna Victoria (who also celebrated her birthday there) and Boy Abunda.

Even foreign artists like Rex Smith, Christopher Cross, Brian McKnight, Angela Bofill, 98 Degrees and The Corrs have had their fill of Little Asia’s Fried Chicken when they came here for concerts. Little Asia wasn’t there yet. At that time, Charlemagne and his siblings were doing the cooking ("The experimenting," he said) at home. Charlemagne’s friend, Nelson Manabat (who designed the attention-getting facade and interiors of Little Asia), was part of the group behind the concerts of those foreign artists, and so…

"Even when we were kids," recalled Charlemagne who finished fifth to ninth grades in San Francisco before finishing a degree in Management from College of St. Benilde (Charlson finished Management at UST and Charlene, Accounting at La Salle), "it has been our dream to put up a restaurant serving dishes from all over Asia. My mom is a good cook. In San Francisco, we would eat in all the restaurants in Chinatown. We studied the recipes and tried to come up with our own during experimentation at home."

Besides the menu (also offering Malaysian, Vietnamese, Thai, Indian and Filipino foods), the ambience of Little Asia is also, you’re right, very Asian. Red is the dominant color, with one whole wall (beside the winding staircase to the second floor) occupied by a mural by a Chinese artist. Balinese lanterns hang from the ceiling which features Asian-inspired paintings, with another mural covering one wall at the ground floor, showing a Vietnamese peasant with a water buffalo (see if you can spot it). A Golden Buddha on top of a table at one corner of the second floor came straight from Thailand. Even the waiters’ uniforms, highlighted by Chinese characters, were specially designed in Singapore.

After showing Richard and me around, Charlemagne led us back to the second floor (check the toilet bowls and the wash basin… they glow!) and capped our gustatory trip with two of Little Asia’s desserts specialties, Caramel Banana Tower (P120 per) and Crepe Samurai (P115 per).

After Little Asia, tilapia has never tasted the same again.

(Note: For inquiries and reservation, call 373-0609 or 0917-8334223.)