Ruby's Fast Food Filipino

As Nick has lived in the Philippines, he was very excited to try Ruby's Fast Fast Food Filipino located at 3740 W Montrose in Chicago.  We had heard about this place from Chicago's Best and Bizarre Foods on the Travel Channel. From Natalie's perspective as not much of an expert on Filipino food, she wants to give a big disclaimer that if you do not know very much about Filipino food you should not go to this restaurant.  We were the only non-Filipino customers during a busy lunch rush, which tells you that it is truly authentic food but that it is not as accommodating to customers who are not well versed in traditional Filipino dishes.

Goto - rice soup

One of the main reasons why it is not friendly for newcomers to Filipino cuisine is that the menu does not give any description of the items listed.  It just has the Filipino term and the price.  Natalie had to rely solely on Nick's preferences and judgment because she didn't know what everything was. Also we learned that there is a lot missing from the written menu.  After we had our food we observed others ordering items that were not listed on the menu. As first timers to the restaurant we didn't know any better.

We ended up ordering Goto (a rice soup), Lumpia shanghai (similar to spring rolls) and Pancit Canton (pork and noodles).  Nick felt this was some of best tasting Filipino food he has eaten in the United States - of  course other than what he can make himself at home. Natalie enjoyed everything but was a little turned off by the pieces of pork fat in the Pancit Canton dish. She's sure that Andrew Zimmern of Bizarre Foods would be fine with that, but with her Americanized palate it is a little scary.

Lumpia Shanghai

We got to the restaurant right before the big lunch rush.  The restaurant has walk up service where you order at the counter and wait for your food to come up. We were able to order right away but by the time we left there was a long line to even place an order, so much so that one couple walked in the door and walked right out. The slowness of the line was due to only one employee working the front - both  serving and cashiering. This caused us to not order any dessert, something we were looking forward to.

Pancit Canton with Pork

Although Filipino food is very tasty it hasn't caught on like Thai or Chinese food in the United States due to its lack of color and presentation when being served. Nick wishes that Filipino food (and service) were a little more mainstream so that it could catch on more in the United States.  There was place in the Chicago western suburbs that tried to make Filipino food more westernized but unfortunately that restaurant closed a few years ago. So if you have any recommendations please let us know.  Otherwise, the best Filipino restaurant that we have been to in the last year is Isla Pilipina in Chicago.

Final thoughts on Ruby's:
Food - tasty but you need a guide to help you order
Service - slow for a place that is called "fast food", it is cash only but fortunately the prices very low for the portion sizes
Atmosphere - small location, tight seating, authentically Filipino with TV programs from Manila streaming in the background