Cendrillon
45 Mercer Street (between Broome and Grand)

I am usually not a big fan of Asian cuisine, but once in awhile I get in the mood. And Filipino food is a rare commodity here in New York. Nevertheless, I managed a very solid lunch at Cendrillon downtown between two meetings.

I've not had Filipino food in ages. I spent several years in a Californian town that had the biggest settlement of Filipinos outside of the islands, so I've had my fill of lumpia and adobo amongst others. But still, I checked out this place and it was an interesting lunch.

The place is decorated nicely in an Asian restaurant way, nothing too excessive. The booths are a nice touch, and it was comfortable eating here. After a nice, icy drink made with lambanog, the interesting coconut-based booze, I felt ready.

I thought the portions were typical New York lunch ones, but when my starter arrived, I knew I was in trouble. The ukoy (shrimp and vegetable fritters) was huge...a large plate of it! I was nearly dead when I finished all the pieces! It was quite nice, but too much for one person. I couldn't believe that I ate it and went after the main with gusto still...

The main was the typical chicken adobo -- chicken cooked in a vinegar-heavy sauce. Usually I'm not a big fan of this most-popular Filipino dish, but this was cooked well. Again the portion was extremely large and I almost died finishing it. I barely touched the rice on this one...

After a coffee I somehow managed to get up and make my next meeting...this was a little too much. Nice to get some nostalgic food, and it's a good place to drop back into. It's good and safe.

Food: B
Atmosphere: B
For Lone Diners: B+