I was visiting my friend who lives in Philly, and she knew I've been looking for a Filipino restaurant. She made reservations for us, and it did not disappoint. Chef Lou made us a wonderful meal! We ordered the pancit with razor clams, sinagang, which is served with a bone marrow, jasmine rice with garlic scapes, Ginataag Hipon, which is prawns with acorn squash, sweet peppers, in a coconut-lemon grass broth, and the pork belly adobo. It's not your traditional Filipino food, but so delicious! We also tried some of the desserts. The ube mousse with mirengue was so good! I would like to come on a Sunday to try the family style, traditional Filipino dinner. Linda was our server, and she was very knowledgeable and friendly. I will definitely be going to Perla again next time I visit Philly. Masarap!
Absolutely amazing. The food was prepared perfectly. Someone needs to send Gordon Ramsey to this place. Elegant atmosphere and extremely intimate. You can watch the chef prepare and plate your meal. Absolutely loved it. Get the bone marrow rice!!!!
I almost had a food coma...food so good it brings back memory of my childhood when my family go out in a resort and share food on banana leaf. Pampano fish was cooked perfectly crunchy that even the fish head is gone. My son said that the fried rice is the best combine with the pork belly and chicken inasal...Yummm, it was all worth it...As soon as we arrive home I'm so full I passed out....he he he.
Perla had stiff competition- that being my Mom's own Filipino cooking. Her's is still the best but damn Perla comes close! The sisig (pork), escabeche (octopus), lichon (pork belly), and kare kare (short rib) were all delicious- great flavors and the lichon was super crispy. I read a review below where someone scraped the fat off the pork belly... Umm who does that? The escabeche was cooked to perfection and the sisig had really good flavor as we could taste a hint of calamansi. I will DEFINITELY be back. Oh and it's BYO.
Everything was amazing. The decor, the atmoshere, the hostess, and most importantly the food. As a very unadventurous and picky eater, I tried things I would have never eaten before, and was conpletely blown away. Kudos to the chefs!! I would highly recommend this restaurant. I cannot wait to try the Kamayan Family style.
I love kamayan style but I just wished their chicken and desserts are different dessert is so flat no taste leche flan would have been better the chicken bbq is much better too
Amazing! Was so excited to try out Perla last night. A great BYOB with mouth watering food. Highly recommend it if you are in the mood for great Filipino food ❤️
fantastic, from the staff to the food to the atmosphere, in fine dining its not about the size of the of the portions but rather the experience, the atmosphere.. taking it all in, enjoying your stay there and savoring each bite. this place has it all.
Thank you Lou for a great time! me and rose shall be back!
The food was great. The place was small but cozy. Everyone there seemed to really be enjoying the family style and the food. The restaurant was full on a Sunday night after 7:30. Will definitely be going back.
Went to the soft opening of Perla on Monday and I can't say enough about the amazing food and service! Love the decor and layout of this intimate BYOB! Taking Filipino food to the next level, Chef-Owner Lou Boquila's Perla is an incredible addition to the booming restaurant scene in Philadelphia. Congrats and best wishes!
Wonderful experience! Excellent food! Highly recommend! My compliments to the chef!
Spectacular, authentic Filipino food served with love. Make room in your stomach for the Kamayan feast - it's worth every penny!
Amazing Filipino food...from two half-Filipinos and a full fledged Filipino mom! We enjoyed Kamayan Dinner tremendously and will definitely be back for the a la carte menu as well!
The only way I can describe it is all of the flavors of Home, but lifted up to an extremely high level. I don’t even have the words to say how much I love it.
Always a delight to dine at Perla. Gourmet Filipino cuisine made from wonderfully fresh ingredients. BYOB. Great service.
I took my sister here last night, and we loved the idea of eating food on top of the banana leaves. Everything was delicious, especially the milk bun, lumpia, and veggies on top of the rice. I really wanted to like the crispy pork, but it was so tough that even our steak knife couldn’t cut through it. Plus, it was mostly fat and very little actual meat. Chicken was very moist and flavorful, and the pompano fish was delicious. The dipping sauces made the meal tastier. Loved all three of them. Service was fantastic, and everyone is super attentive and warm. We had lots of leftovers, which my family happily devoured when I got home! They kept commenting on how delicious everything was. I will definitely go back with my husband.
I had an awesome experience here. Reservations are necessary. This is definitely a place you come to for the experience. The food was super fresh and amazing. The menu is fixed. My partner and I don’t eat pork so they gave us an additional whole fish to replace the pork on the menu. It is BYOB and you eat with your hands. You do have the option of silverware, but looking around, most people didn’t use it. Dining here felt very personalized. The staff were all sweet and accommodating. I left happy that I came.
The fish, lumpia rolls and pan dulce were delicious. Cant go wrong with fried pork. I wish the rice had more curry, it was mostly on one side of the table. Kind of hard to find the door entrance to the restaurant, they need a sign. Not against eating with my hand, but not sure it adds to the experience, will recomend this place delicious
byob so bring your favorites. Another plus, you have stateside vodka across the street if you want extra after dinner drinks.
Now onto the food, authentic Filipino kamayan feast. If you haven't been to one, it's so worth it for the experience in itself. You start off with your table covered in banana leaves. Then the food starts coming poured right onto the table, starting with the rice, then the chicken halves, fried pork, lumpia, whole fish, veggies and finally dessert. Communal style dining Filipino style means you're eating with your hands!
We came here for a birthday with a group of 17, brought our own cake. The atmosphere, small but plenty of room, of course gratuity was automatically added but the service was worth every little bit. I came here plus ones, and with groups. Regardless, you'll love the experience, you'll love this place
** check out my IG- davidyums to see the reel I made for this place
Cute and intimate space and friendly staff even though there’s only 2. Massive serving for 4 people with lots of leftovers. Food was okay but the sauces made it interesting and flavorful. Can choose to eat with hands or utensils. Yummy dessert. Overall a good experience no complaints
I've been twice and the Kamayan was tasty both times and not bland at all. It's a BYOB spot that serves great portions rather quickly, and while you're left to enjoy at your own pace (not being bothered and just going at it is enjoyable), service was always there when we needed something. Great vibes all around and something different.
Friggin love Perla. Taking a friend there this Dec for her visit and went with other friends earlier this year. The food is so good and is approved by my friend who grew up in the Philippines and is a huge foodie.
It’s very much family style so know your guest count 24 hours in advance (says it right on Resy)!! Otherwise it’s pretty rude to walk in missing people of your party and NOT expect to be charged for food that’s already likely been prepared in anticipation.
Perla was a very fun experience that’d I’d highly recommend with a group of friends. The food was quite yummy and they did not hold back on the portions!
Tasty, delicious and different experience. My favor part of dinner was the fried rice with curry veggies...all the meat and lumpia is yummy too. Excellent service and a wonderful time. Best part was BYOB.
As others have mentioned it is family style, BYOB, and you can eat with your hands if you would like.
What was good:
The veggies and rice were very good. As a table of 6 people we ate all the veggies that were put out for us. The lumpia was also all eaten. There was rice leftover which I took home and made a very good veggie fried rice. Large family portion left everyone full.
What was okay:
All the meats. Chicken was the best of the bunch, and was okay. The pork was very dry and I soaked the pieces I had in the sauce on the table. Fish was fine.
Fun experience but probably will not go again.
A must try if in Philly. I live down the street and finally went for the first time and it didn’t disappoint. Cozy and inviting atmosphere and absolutely delicious and authentic food. Bonuses were BYOB and being able to eat with my hands :) I am looking forward to many more visits!
Right off Passyunk and Tasker and BYO! Less than $50 for the tasting menu, incredible family style food and a very hands on experience literally. We started the meal with the pan de sal and then they brought out a bed of garlic fried rice. Then a bunch of lumpia and vegetables stewed in a coconut broth which were out of this world. We were a party of three, so next they brought out one of each protein; a whole chicken, huge piece of lechon, and a whole fish. The assortment of sauces for the dishes were also SO good. For dessert we had a chocolate budino topped with honey comb crumble. I had left overs for a few days because of how much food. Highly recommend eating here! Make sure you make a reservation in advance as it’s a smaller restaurant!
We went on a Wednesday evening. It was very busy. So definitely get a reservation. Food was delicious. One of a kind experience. The portion size was very good. The servers were friendly.
But it is definitely very expensive and the seating area is a little small.
It was a fun experience, the food was fresh and servings were BIG. Could’ve been a little bit more flavorful though. The service was excellent!
We had the kamayan dinner, which was just fabulous. I cannot understand other reviews saying that the food was bland, but everyone has different tastes…I thought it was delicious, way more than enough for two people, and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The service was attentive but not intrusive, and I would recommend this restaurant to any of my friends, as long as they don’t mind eating with their hands. As far as cost, I feel you are absolutely getting what you pay for, and I’ve paid a lot more at many Philly restaurants for food that is not nearly as good.
Ate here tonight with my in-laws for a late Mother’s Day celebration and everything was fabulous. I loved that it was a fixed menu so you just sit down and all of the delicious food is brought to the table - even dessert! The pork was my personal favorite and the garlic rice was so flavorful. We enjoyed every bite and our waitress was kind and attentive. We live just a few blocks away and have eaten at almost every restaurant on passyunk ave and this is easily in the top 5. Will be returning soon! Thank you for everything ❤️
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Snug Filipino restaurant for communing with food. Two words completely summarize my experience here: "wow" and "stuffed". Definitely recommend making a reservation in advance even if you're just seating two as the restaurant is quite small, and you might not survive the food envy of watching others eat as you wait. Most tables are two-seaters but they can be combined for a larger group. Currently Perla is only offering their kamayan, or communal eaten-by-hand, menu but this strategy has been paying off even despite not being the most COVID-proof dining.
Between diners, the tables are wiped down, layered with plastic wrap, and then large banana leaves that serve as both tablecloth and plate. Your waiter will ask for allergies and offer utensils for food, but I recommend the tried and true traditional experience.
It'll be all you can do to stop yourself from unceremoniously sticking your paws into the pile of aromatic coconut rice that appears on the table before the lumpia, vegetables and meat land. Yes, that is a whole-a$$ fried fish. There's a little something for everyone, especially when you can mix and match the sauces. If you pay a visit to the single-occupancy bathroom in the back you can sneak a peek into the kitchen where enticing sounds and smells tell of the delicacies that emerge.
Leave room for the chocolate coconut boudino served at the end, a perfectly snack-sized, creamy and not-too-sweet treat to top off the meal. And the only time you'll get utensils if you haven't opted for them already. Know that this style of eating encourages you to get personal with your food and messy dining IS encouraged. Just wash your hands before you leave.
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