NYC to QC: 159 Deli Brings a Mean Bagel Burger to Maginhawa

(SPOT.ph) Raya and Lorraine Villafuerte didn’t originally intend to stay so long in the Philippines. They lived in New York in the healthcare industry, and were only in town for the opening of their other concept, Funki Izakaya. But then Raya was diagnosed with cancer, and decided that she’d do the treatment here, close to family.

“I overstayed,” Raya confesses. “So, hindi pa kami nakabalik ng America.” And while she was working on getting stuff cleared up with the embassy, she decided she wanted to put up a shop that served bagels.

“I love bagels in New York,” she says. And when they saw the space on Maginhawa that would become 159 Deli, they jumped at the chance to share a slice of their life in New York to the crowd in Teacher’s village.

“That’s really what I would do before work,” Raya says. She’d stop by a deli or a bodega, and pick up some sort of breakfast sandwich. And then she’d have it on-the-go; maybe in her car or while rushing through the streets. And so, the primary focus of 159 Deli are bagel sandwiches. It could be something as simple as a Plain Bagel with butter or cream cheese (P99) Or it might be a Breakfast Sandwich with bacon, eggs and cheese (P189 on a plain bagel, P199 for sesame or wheat).  Or it could be a more elaborate production, like the Chicken Pesto Bagel Sandwich (P189 on a plain bagel, P199 for sesame or wheat), with a grilled chicken fillet and tomato, slathered in the Italian green sauce.

Whatever your choice, these sandwiches are pretty substantial, with the chewy bagel providing a hearty base for whatever rich and savory fillings they put in there. The sandwiches are wrapped in paper and cut in half, which is pretty helpful, because just half of the sandwich is probably enough to tide one over until the next mealtime.

159 Deli also does burgers in bagels, which they’ve dubbed “The Hybrid.” And the burgers here are not an afterthought—they’re genuinely some of the most well-executed smash-style burgers in Metro Manila. The Double Decker (P199 on a plain bagel and 209 on sesame or wheat) contains two deeply browned, lacy-edged beef patties served with mayo, cheese, and a homemade onion jam. The patties are perfectly done, and the onion jam provides hefty flavor support with the sweetness that comes from caramelized onions.

They’ve got dishes that don’t involve bagels, too. The Villafuertes are pretty proud of their Pulled Pork Sandwich (P199), which has slow cooked barbecue-flavored pork on a sesame bun, served with french fries. The couple recalls trips out to Amish country, where they’d have something like it. And they really set out to recreate it on their menu.

For those looking for a more sit-down experience, there are also rice meals and pasta. We tried the Carbonara (P199), and like the rest of the menu, it’s heavy on salt and fat and all the not-so-good for us things that we often crave.

159 Deli is still a work in progress. Raya talks about wanting to find a pastrami supplier, for example, and serve a classic New York Reuben. And they’re planning to have the place open 24 hours at some point, offering their range of craving-satisfying sandwiches to a late night crowd that might be looking to fortify themselves after a night out drinking. On our visit to the deli, the walls were still being painted, and it felt like there was still some figuring out to be done.

That’s reasonable, since the Villafuertes weren’t even intending to stay in the Philippines for so long. They’re figuring it out, and they’re serving some pretty delicious food in the meantime.