Found out about Kalesa Grill from some fellow foodies, and decided to try it out today. As most know, Filipino food in South Orange County is pretty rare (as in non-existent), so it was worth trying out. \r
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Kalesa Grill follows the common practice of having pre-heated food (cafeteria style), so it's not a fancy sit-down restaurant. Given that there's very little choice if you're hankering for Filipino food, it wasn't a factor for my friends and I. The inside decor is pretty non-existent: This is standard Filipino ""fast food"" type eatery, so we weren't expecting much.\r
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Most importantly, the food itself? It was ~Average at best. They had Halibut with Vegetables-type Soup, which is normally sour (and it was), but pretty good. The Pork Adobo (a classic dish) turned out to be very tender, but a bit too salty for my tastes (if they pulled back on the sodium levels, it would be ""very good,"" but as it was, it was ""Ok"").\r
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The Binagoongan (stewed pork with shrimp paste)'s flavor was very nice, but the pork itself was a bit too dry (not stewed long enough), so that undercut the final experience as well.\r
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They serve a variety of traditional Filipino desserts and drinks as well, like Halo Halo, and Boba with Ube, Buko-Pandan, etc.\r
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Overall, I would say it was ""Average,"" but considering there's almost nothing else in South OC at all, it's better than nothing.
Pros: Decent Filipino Food in the OC! Good portions
Cons: Food not as refined or good as the best Filipino restaurants
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