Askal

Askal is a modern Filipino restaurant in the heart of Melbourne CBD. It has a funky, moody fit-out, unique cocktail menu and lots of twists on traditional Filipino fare. Co-founded by five entrepreneurs, including John Rivera from Kariton Sobetes, Askal has quite an amazing pedigree.

We visited twice this week, once for a catch up with friends, and once as a date night.

Here is what we would recommend:

Pork and Abalone sisig: perfect texture of crunchy and soft offering a delightful mix of grilled pork brain and mollusc, this dish serves well to no-oil fussy eaters

Beef ‘pares’ claypot rice: a staple Filipino cubed beef cuts, Pares highlights the marinated flavour of braised beef with flavoured rice

BBQ pork skewer, topped with sweet tropical atchara pickle. Intense and flavoursome.

Kare-kare oxtail doughnut with peanut butter curry and bagoong butterscotch: soft yet punchy flavours of peanut butter curried sauce (kare-kare) great for easy bites

Kinilaw ocean trout, guava aguachile with heirloom radish and fried taro: quite a refreshing mix of trout ceviche-style with a good balance of guava flavoured sauce and crunchy finely sliced taro topping

King prawns with onion piaya. Juicy, soft, and served with an amazing onion filled flatbread. Order extra flatbread, it’s delicious.

Tutong silog with taro flakes and longanisa sausage – rich and indulgent – Max’s favourite!

Skip: Hen lechon – Great pickles, and the young poultry seemed like a lot of care was put into it, but lacking flavour (I wish it had a stronger Filipino BBQ taste!)

Best dessert: Not Halo Halo – Great spin on a Filipino classic. So many different flavours and textures using dried kiwi fruit, longan sago pearls, to name a few. Wonderful end to the meal.

“Askal” is Tagalog for street dog or stray dog, and just like it’s namesake, the restaurant is scrappy, exciting, punchy yet balanced, and has a zest for life! Give Askal a go, share with family and friends, and you will be guaranteed a great time.

Max & Janeca Gross