Alquds Restaurant: a Dream of Jerusalem in the Heart of Manila

Alquds Restaurant: Halal Food 
1533 Del Pilar Street, Ermita, Manila
Contact: 8523-3164, 8523-6568, or 0905-477-9052
Facebook: www.facebook.com/AlqudsRestaurantManila
Open from 9 a.m. to 2 a.m., Monday to Sunday

(SPOT.ph) We arrive amidst a hazy mid-April evening. Outside, at this hour in this season in the Philippines, the heat is still at its peak, radiating off Manila’s endless sprawl of concrete and steel long after sunset. But things are a but cooler in this unassuming, unpretentious, residential basement converted into a restaurant where festivities are just beginning.

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Alquds Restaurant in Ermita

It’s a few minutes before 7 p.m. and we’re the only patrons in Alquds Restaurant: Halal Food along Del Pilar Street in the historic Ermita district of Manila. On one round table sits three half-finished shakes: two mango, and one strawberry. Across it, facing what we realize later on is the direction of Mecca, an elderly Palestinian and his wife are offering evening prayers.

The floor manager, Tita Terry, who’s worked with the team since 1992, appears to be the one who was drinking one of the shakes as she ushers us to a seat. The waitstaff works in hushed, respectful tones as their employers recite their prayers.

One of us asks where the restroom is and the Palestinian owner briefly looks up from his chanting and gestures kindly in its direction. There are hookahs and special pipes all around, a bar display holding more tea and tobacco varieties instead of alcohol, and a lounge area with couches facing each other, all under the auspices of Palestinian and Filipino flags displayed side-by-side.

Shortly after wrapping their prayers up and finishing their shakes, the couple receives more guests: Syrians, Lebanese, Egyptians. Cards are taken out, hands are dealt, tea is steeped. Baba Khalil joins them and the shishas are lit. The TV is switched on and a teleserye appears, its sound drowned out by lively conversation in Arabic.

Alquds takes after the Arabic name for the ancient city of Jerusalem. There are those who consider the restaurant a go-to for authentic Arab, Persian, Turkic, Levantine, and Mediterranean cuisine, which have all infused themselves in Palestinian cooking. 

Terry relays its story: the owners, Baba Khalil, a Palestinian, and Madame Fatima, a Filipina Muslim, met in a Kuwait-bound flight, fell in love, then opened shop in 1991. It has since continued to serve authentic Palestinian and Arabic cuisine in this cozy space, drawing new visitors to what appears to be a game room in its past life, with a model aircraft watching over lounge chairs draped with rugs.

Fresh, Citrus Zest: Palestinian Flavor Profiles

Thanks to Filipino migrant workers (OFWs) returning home from the Middle East, Arabic cuisine has become mainstream over the last decades while adapting to Filipino palates. Anyone who’s tried a lot of localized shawarma, biryani, and kebab probably associates the cuisine with smoky, spiced, and even salty flavors with a focus on meat and less on greens.

I’m one such Filipino. I’ve never been to the Middle East and the "most authentic" restaurants I’ve tried were all by Metro Manila-based Arab migrants and OFWs who worked in the Middle East.

At Alquds, we ask the waitstaff to recommend their “most Palestinian” dishes, and so we ordered Arabic Salad (P170, can be shared), Adas Soup (P170) which we split into two, Baba Ghanoush (P170, can be shared), Pita Bread (P15 each), Maqali (P190, can be shared), a regular Falafel (P150) we cut into two (note that there’s a more packed version selling for above P300), and a main dish of Maqluba Chicken (P450, good for two).

For drinks, we have a pot of Rabea-brand black tea (P180) and calamansi juice (P75). It’s interesting to note they also have a small Filipino menu consisting of items like pancit, spaghetti, and even camaron rebosado. The menu also features specific shisha flavors for smoking.

The Adas is served first, a pureed, creamy lentil soup given a gentle kick with paprika powder. Thankfully, it was served in a temperature not too hot, making it comfortable to consume amidst the Philippine summer.

As we wipe our soup bowls with portions of the first toasted but fluffy and filling pita, the vegetable dishes arrive to finish off the remaining bread.

The Baba Ganoush reminds me of ensaladang talong, fresher and more salad-like than the thick dips I’ve grown accustomed to at local shawarma restaurants. The Alquds version has an herbier profile complementing the smoky finish of the lightly-grilled, still-fresh eggplants.

Meanwhile, the Arabic Salad stands out in its simplicity, the taste of each fresh vegetable—tomato, lettuce, cucumber—uninterrupted, complemented by a dressing made of the zest of lemon, mint of coriander, and gentle savoriness of olive. A good side dish for our weekly, homemade meal plans, wouldn’t you say?

Maqali is another vegetable dish that leans toward savory. In it are fried eggplants and sliced skinned fried potatoes swimming in lemon glaze, drizzled with thinly diced spring onion and garlic.

This proves to be a welcome counterbalance to the preceding dishes and a good segue to the main course of Palestinian Maqluba—broiled chicken served over spiced long-grain rice with lightly blanched onions, carrots, tomatoes and potatoes, which reminded me of a very mild version of Hainanese chicken.

Each bite tastes better followed by a sip of Rabea black tea, the liquid both complementing the flavors while cleansing the palate.

What stands out the most is the toum (garlic sauce) which comes with pita bread but which also goes well with all the dishes ordered.

In contrast to the more garlicky taste in Filipinized shawarma joints, this one is really more of a yogurt sauce, tart and tangy with a refreshing finish, rather than a lingering aftertaste. You might leave wishing they sold bottles of the stuff for takeout.

It's notable how certain ingredients repeatedly show up throughout the meal: eggplants, olive oil, and lemon. There's even lemon juice served on the side in a small saucer, together with chili oil.

A Love Letter to Home

It’s easy to see why Al-Quds remains strong even with minimal fanfare or marketing: Buoyed as it is by the quality of its food and the care of its staff helmed by Tita Terry. She and Madame Fatima share that these days, a lot of food bloggers drop by as well as Arabs working in the Philippines, some of whom have since become family friends of the owners.

Despite this, there's a slight sense of melancholy in the air. During the less busier moments of our stay, like when Baba Khalil waits for his friends as Madame Fatima attends to our orders, we hear news about Gaza playing in the background. And then Baba plays a live performance by American punk-rock band Green Day where the frontman tweaks the lyrics of their song “Jesus of Suburbia” as protest to the ongoing war. Madame Fatima meanwhile laments the burning of olive trees, its fruit a staple in the Middle Eastern table. 

There's a war going on somewhere far, but in this basement turned restaurant in Ermita, Manila, it's undeniably close to home.