Bad Saint: The Promise of Filipino Food

*Co-authored by me, and my sister Nadia

Bad Saint is a popular Filipino restaurant that opened up in Washington D.C. only this year. I’ve never had Filipino food, though I suspected there would be a glimpse of other Asian cuisines present. Needless to say, I was curious by the concept, so yesterday my sister Nadia and I paid Bad Saint a visit. We put our name down around 5:30, after waiting in line for 30 minutes, and were told we could be seated between 7:15 and 7:30. And that text message alert came around 7:30. We had spent our wait at Meridian Point, a nearby restaurant, and were rather excited to finally enter Bad Saint. It was time.

Upon arriving inside, we were greeted by a waiter. Of course, this restaurant was a small hole-in-the-wall, where the seating was basically arranged around the kitchen. Though the space was rather small, the area felt well-organized. The intimate atmosphere was complemented by half the kitchen being in plain view – the rise of flames and smoke hallmarked the food preparation, giving an authentic feel.

Fancy restaurants, ones like McCormick and Schmick and 1789, strictly separate the sitting area from the kitchen area – and in the case of M&S the restaurant is brightly lit. Not so here. Bad Saint, true to its nature of being an informal hole-in-the-wall, is dimly lit enough to be warmly cozy but not too dark for visibility. Another dissimilarity from M&S: the room adornments strayed from a sense of neatness, aiming instead to represent Filipino culture. Paintings were hung on the wall behind me and my sister, which we could see in the mirror in front of us. Loud music coated the space – choices ranged from an Aesop Rock piece, to “Buggin’ Out” by A Tribe Called Quest, and even to electronic music. This decision added a natural buzz, elevating the ambiance of the restaurant. Bad Saint’s atmosphere is impeccable.

Seated at a couple of stools, we received an elegantly simple one-pager menu – one side listed the vegetarian, seafood, and meat dishes, and the other side, which noted alcoholic beverages, was promptly ignored. The service, it must be said, was a strong part of our time here. We were brought water promptly, though we had to wait to give our order. However, the food was brought in a timely manner (discussion about the food to follow shortly). Small flourishes made the experience better. Our waiter brought jasmine rice to complement a chicken dish my sister and I shared. The waiters expressed true courtesy during our meal.

Naturally, it was not the atmosphere, the culture, or the service that we came for. The food was the main attraction, and here I will devote more thought to it. Our drink was simply water, so the food itself is of greater concern. To recap, there were three groups of dishes: Vegetarian, Seafood, and Meat. Me and Nadia reasoned that one dish from each category would be plenty for sharing. We ordered and received, respectively, Pancit Bihon Guisado (Rice noodles with wood ear mushrooms and lemon oil), Ukoy (soft-shell crab, sweet potato fries, and fried cilantro), and Pyanggang Manok (chicken, Thai curry sauce [palapa], and burnt coconut).

Pancit noodles, were brought first, allowing us a light first course. The noodles are thin and slight, making them fun and easy to eat. The taste itself had strong hints of garlic. Creative arrangement elevated this dish over your typical noodle dishes. Green spring onion rings were scattered around the edge, making the plate seem stuffed with food.

Next up was the ukoy/crab dish. Crab meat was presented with orange sweet potato fries protruding – in other words, the dish appeared as a crispy crab. Though the ukoy veered towards being too orange, the presence of fried cilantro diversified the taste and appearance of the dish. Because cilantro tends to require much chewing, its fried version was much welcomed. The presence of a spicy sauce with hints of lemon and spring onion elevated the flavor of the sweet potato fries. However, as I do not like crab, I left the meat itself to Nadia – fortunately, she enjoyed the crab.

Lastly, and bear in mind we were getting full by this point, was the Chicken (Manok means Chicken in Filipino). It came to us very warm, with a visible stream of steam. This chicken, though it was served as a fried dish, was well layered with greens, particularly spring onions. The manok itself was tender, allowing for easy eating. The edge of the plate caught my eye – a murky green sauce encircled the chicken. Its spiciness raised the overall impact of the chicken, but also allowed for my sister to only eat the non-spicy parts. (Nadia is rather sensitive to spicy food.) However, I prefer chicken to be served with rice – eating the manok with jasmine rice accentuated the taste for me, preventing my mouth from drying.

By the time we finished our meal, an hour had passed, and we had our remaining food packed. Coming to Bad Saint had involved a wait of nearly 3 hours (starting from when we left the apartment), but it was completely worth it. As a whole, Bad Saint is a very good restaurant that lives up to its hype, while allowing the eater to immerse oneself in Filipino culture. Beyond good food, the entire visit was cultural edification.