The thing with homestyle dishes is that you will always harbor a personal penchant for the version to which you are most attached to—your mom’s, your lola’s, the one you order every Christmas for the last 20 years. It is why you can rarely find traditional adobo in restaurants.

Instead, chefs and eateries take the creative route, introducing fun takes on this beloved staple. Here are some of the more innovative takes to the unofficial Philippine national dish.

Manam’s Overloaded Garlicky Chicken & Pork Belly Adobo

  • Manam’s twist on a classic means topping it with so much garlic, it’s practically encrusted in the golden-brown aromatic.
  • Beyond that terrific garlic flavor, the tender meats are punchy with that iconic sweet-salty-tangy adobo taste.

Ilustrado’s Adobong Bagnet with Taba ng Talangka

  • Founder Boni Pimentel’s idea was to put together the most delicious things in one dish.
  • Ilustrado’s original iteration once came with sugpo. But even without prawns, the flavors are breathtaking (or heart-stopping).
  • The crab fat pairs well with the richness of the fried pork belly.

Gallery by Chele’s Meringue de Sal

  • This is not your mama’s adobo, chef Chele Gonzalez and his team recreate the adobo experience with this mousse-filled meringue.
  • The mousse is a soy and chicken emulsion.
  • Despite the textural change, the adobo flavor is unmistakable.

Sentro 1771’s Crispy Adobo Catfish Flakes

  • Sentro 1771 cooks hito or catfish adobo style with native garlic and yellow ginger.
  • Once those flavors seep in, the fish is fried crisp and shredded into flakes.
  • You can enjoy this on its own or over a plate of piping hot white rice or even in pasta.

Locavore’s Octadobo

  • At this point, everyone has seen squid drenched in adobo sauce, but Locavore takes seafood adobo up a notch.
  • This one-of-a-kind paella negra comes with octopus adobo, labuyo aioli, pickled radish, and chicharon.
  • Instead of rice, Locavore uses adlai for an extra local twist.

Spiral’s Adobo Puff

  • You never know when an adobo craving hits, but fortunately, Spiral has the answer with its pocket-sized puffs.
  • Inside the perfectly crescent-shaped pastry is otherwise textbook adobo in portable form.
  • The buffet, which reopened at the start of October, also occasionally offers crocodile adobo, so make sure to watch for that.

Lampara’s Duck Leg

  • Lampara’s edgy take on adobo looks nothing like the classic version. The flavors, however, are characteristic of adobo.
  • The duck leg is cooked in a confit of duck fat, garlic, and orange, then lavished in soy and garlic sauce.
  • It comes with kaliskis empanada filled with delicious liver pate.