Are you fiending for a sweet treat, but so over/bored with the recent explosion of ice cream and cupcake options? I present to you halo-halo, the sweet and cold and crunchy and chewy and melty and perfect Filipino dessert (or questionably nutritious dinner substitute).
From the Tagalog word for mix, halo-halo’s possible ingredient permutations are endless, but the dish I revered last night at Kawali Grill (AC!) comprised coconut gel, sugar palm, jackfruit, banana, tapioca pearls, milk, sugar, and shaved ice, topped with ice cream and leche flan. The near-glowing bowl arrives at your table frosty and bright, each ingredient popping with neon glory. Savor the sight for a moment before mixing aggressively for proper taste distribution. While fleeting, the joy instilled with each drippy, now uniformly purple spoonful builds a cooling fortress against stultifying heat. If you go alone, bring along headphones and tunes, ideally these guys, to distract you from the sonic booms overhead.
Get yours here:
Columbia City: Kawali Grill
Beacon Hill: Inay’s Pan Pacific Restaurant and Kusina Filipina
U-District: Inay’s Manilla Grill
Also of note, this bowl is particularly satisfying as a follow-up to a bowl of a different sort.
Pic by Zeetz Jones.
“bowl of a different sort”
God, were you taking a hit while wearing argyle socks and a bow tie?
Pass. Neon food, not so much.
Why allude to it? Your “Editorial Director” is openly a stoner.
(Most) Asian desserts are gross, especially anything with shaved ice. Pass.
Because it’s a turn of phrase and that tickles the brain.
Damn you! That pic made me crave halo-halo and now I must search and eat it this weekend.
For all those who commented you pass, continue eating your mcdonalds powder flavoured cones and ” milk ” shakes.
@ #4. (Some) Asians like (Asian) desserts. But, heck–stick to Baskin-Robbins–we won’t mind.