Christmas Dinner at Pepita's Kitchen

Last Christmas, my friends and I had a 12 course Hayop na Degustacion at Pepita's Kitchen.

Dedet dela Fuente, the woman behind Pepita's Kitchen, opened her home in Magallanes Village to host the private dinner.

Menu

I would have came to dinner early if I only knew that my favorite childhood snacks were ready for picking before service began.

Tray of Chocnut

Mixed Nuts

Dedet guided the degustacion experience expertly by explaining every dish that was served.

Let's get started...

Pepitas Magic Potion: Cotton Candy + Lambanog

Unique drink that made me all the more excited for the food to come! 

Tendon Chips with Dip

Tasted every bit like chicharon minus the guilt!

Hiplog

One of my favorite dishes! Perfectly cooked shrimp covered in salted egg and aligue sauce. Do us all a favor Dedet and bottle the sauce pls.

So good that it deserves a close-up!

Bone Marrow w/ Oxtail Marmalade and Special Salt of Chicharon

 Dedet said that some choose to eat the components of this dish separately while others prefer to mix the crushed chicharon and oxtail marmalade with the bone marrow. I, of course, chose the fat on fat on fat way of eating and absolutely loved it! The crushed chicharon gave the dish the needed texture while the slightly sweet marmalade was the perfect contrast to the richness of the bone marrow. 

Salad Surprise

Lettuce, homemade yogurt cheese, pureed cashews. The surprise? FIZZ CANDY! 

Sipit Sarap

The fat and juicy crab claw was lathered in coconut milk. I'm a sucker for anything that has coconut milk so this was another winner for me. 

Lucky You

A simple dish of cold noodles that had a clean refreshing taste. Wished that I could have drowned the noodles in the salted egg sauce of Hiplog!

Lambada

Tender lamb kaldereta which had the right amount of spice.

Cheers Palate Cleanse

A tamarind palate cleanser to prepare us for the star of the night. 

Spanish Lechon

Pepita's Kitchen offers several stuffed lechon variants but we chose the Spanish Lechon. We had to pay premium for this stuffing.

Dedet's daughter was an expert pig carver!

Our Spanish lechon had chorizo and aligue rice.

The best part of the lechon was the skin! It was so crispy that I could hear every delightful crunch in my mouth. The aligue rice and lechon itself could use more flavor though.

Cholesterol Sweeper

After all the rich dishes, we were given a shot of creamy oatmeal. I'm not sure if it helped in containing all the fatty food we ate but it certainly was the best oatmeal concoction I've eaten so far.

Pinoy Dessert

Dessert came in the form of Dedet's Pinoy take on the classic creme brulee. It was sweet and light which was the perfect way to cap the 12 course meal.

Bravo to Dedet dela Fuente for being a culinary genius. The dishes were all well-executed and thoughtfully prepared. For me, the true test of success when it comes to any dining experience is my willingness to go back. For Pepita's Kitchen, the answer is YES... in a heartbeat.

Degustacion at Pepita's Kitchen starts at 2,200php per pax. Minimum of 15pax. For inquiries, call 09178660662 or 425-4605. You can send an email at pepitaskitchen@gmail.com. Click here for more information.