We haven't had much Filipino food in St. Louis outside of private homes. Our loss, certainly; eating new kinds of food is always an enriching experience. I'm told that in India, they believe that eating new food makes you smarter, and in light of research involving neural pathways in the brain, it certainly seems like folk wisdom once again may have nailed it.
Now a new – and very smart – option is available for the gastronomically curious. Kamayan Brunch is open Sundays only. They're a catering company who's using a facility on Olive Boulevard in University City, and this really seems to work well. The greeting is warm and the room has plenty of space between tables and around the buffets. They even offer a tour of the buffet for newcomers.
This is not a breakfast-y brunch, although they offer omelets and pancakes cooked to order. On this visit, though, everyone seemed to be heading for the Filipino food. And there is, be aware, little for vegetarians, although there are, to be sure, three kinds of rice – regular, garlic and coconut. That rice can serve as a base for a long line of interesting stew-like dishes in chafing dishes, along with the traditional pancit noodles, rather like Singapore noodles. There's an adobo, the stew – its meat base varies by chef and, apparently here, by week – that simmers in a vinegar-seasoned base to tenderize and give a nice pungency to the soy-garlic seasoning. Another dish I liked a lot was chicken Bicol Express, a coconut curry, mild and sweet, that utilizes shrimp paste as part of the stir-fry that starts it out. That ups the umami factor nicely. Another vinegar-based dish, paksiw na baboy, looks rather like pulled pork (remember those vinegar-based barbecue sauces from Carolina, of course) but has bits of even richer meat than the included pork shoulder, since it utilizes the knuckles of the hog as well. (That cartilage's slow cooking also makes the meat juices better.)
On another table, there's a roast suckling pig. It was the smallest I've ever seen, true to its name, and wonderful in its flavor and texture. I opted for the cheek when it was offered, a real delicacy, particularly rich and succulent, and with skin so crisp that Charles Lamb, he of A Dissertation upon Roast Pig, would have shed tears of joy. Also on that table was a platter of fried things, lumpia, the finger-sized egg rolls of this cuisine, some bits of fried fish, and large lacy fritters, perfectly un-greasy, with whole shrimp studded into them. Fabulous. Nearby was some longanisa, the coarsely ground, slightly sweet sausage, an easy to taste to enjoy. Much of this food, in fact, is not off-putting to the hesitant. Nothing is fiery and nothing is deeply off-putting except perhaps the little dried anchovies that are offered.
There are also two soups offered, both tart like some of the Thai soups can be, from tamarind. Puto, which look like large unbaked biscuits, are offered with one of the savory stews. They're steamed, a little sweet, sometimes used as a dessert when they have other flavors added, but possibly meant here as a base like the rice would be, but tasty on their own.
Halo-halo, the traditional dessert of crushed ice, evaporated milk, with toppings like fruit added at the pleasure of the diner, is available, with ice crushed to order. There's also a table of other sweets, many chewy with rice flour, plus a nice flan and a sweet rice porridge with fruit in it as well, perhaps my favorite.
Coffee was quite good, and refills offered. Lots of folks drinking pineapple juice, interestingly.
$24.95 for adults, including non-alcoholic beverages (they do have a liquor license), $12.95 for children. It's a large buffet, and, more important, an interesting one.
Kamayan
8008 Olive Blvd., University City
Sunday brunch 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
636-299-0241