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Made for · Filipinos abroad

For Filipinos abroad: every taste of home, kept.

In a new city the first question is rent, and the second is where to get proper sinigang. Here is how to find Filipino food far from home, and how to keep the places that taste right once you find them.

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In short

To find Filipino food abroad, start at the Filipino or Asian grocery, ask the community, and search maps for Filipino restaurants and bakeries. To keep what you find, snap the table: PlateDiary files each dish under its place and city, so the kare-kare that tasted like home is one search away.

Checked

Finding it

How to find Filipino food in a new city.

  • Start at the grocery. The Filipino or Asian grocery is the community’s noticeboard. Ask at the counter where people actually eat, and read the board for catering and weekend pop-ups.
  • Search for more than “Filipino restaurant”. Try “Filipino bakery”, “lechon”, “halo-halo”, “pandesal” and “tapsilog”. Bakeries and grill stalls often aren’t listed as restaurants.
  • Ask the community. Church groups, local Filipino associations and online groups for your city know which home cooks take orders.
  • Look for markets and pop-ups. Many Filipino cooks sell from a weekend stall long before they open a shop.
  • Go at a weekday lunch. That’s when the regulars come. Ask what’s good today, not what’s popular.
  • Read the photos, not the stars. Rice on every plate, vinegar dips on the table and a handwritten specials board are good signs.

The test

A taste-of-home test for a new place.

Everyone’s home tastes different, so treat this as a starting point, not a rulebook.

What to look for in a few Filipino dishes at a new restaurant
A good signNote it as
SinigangProperly sour, not shy with the tamarind“Sour enough?”
AdoboVinegar and soy in balance, not just sweet“Like home, or like a restaurant?”
Lechon kawaliCrackling that shatters“Still crisp at the table?”
PancitNoodles with bite, not soggy“Would I bring it to a party?”
Halo-haloFine ice, ube and leche flan on top“Worth the trip?”

The map

Your map, city by city.

Each moment keeps the place it was taken, so Dubai, then Toronto, then a weekend in London all sit on the same map, one pin per place. Search Places for sisig and you see every place you’ve had it, in every city, with how many times. Moving again? The diary moves with your phone and your backups.

Going home

Food trips when you’re home.

Visits home come with a list: the bakery for pandesal at six, the little canteen near your old school, your mother’s favourite seafood place. Snap each one and the trip becomes a set of moments on the map. Prices stay in pesos, as you paid them — PlateDiary never converts — and capture works with roaming off.

Sharing

Sharing with family back home.

Found a halo-halo that would pass your aunt’s test? Export the moment as a picture with the free share sheet and send it to the family chat. Nothing is shared automatically, and the people you tag as companions never get anything from the app.

Keeping it close

Keeping home dishes close.

  • Heart every taste of home into Favorites (free), or give them a collection of their own (Premium).
  • Add a free tag like tastes like home to the dishes that pass the test.
  • Write who recommended the place in the note. Recommendations are half the community.
  • With a PlateDiary AI membership, ask your diary “Where did I last have sinigang?” and get the place back as a card.

Questions

Questions people ask.

How do I find Filipino restaurants abroad?

Search map apps for Filipino restaurants, bakeries and dishes like lechon or halo-halo, then ask at the nearest Filipino or Asian grocery. The staff usually know the good ones.

Does PlateDiary work in any country?

Yes. It is in English, works offline, and keeps prices in whatever currency you paid, without converting.

Can I keep places from different cities apart?

Every moment keeps the place it was taken, so the map and Places show each city. Search by dish to see them across all cities at once.

Is my diary private?

Yes. There is no account, the diary stays on your phone, and backups can go to your own iCloud Drive or a Google Drive file you pick.