Catch the Next Culinary Wave with the Filipino Barbecue Buffet Every Thursday Night at Wave in City of Dreams Manila

From sundown all the way to 9pm every Thursday until April 25, City of Dreams Manila brings the comforting and even nostalgic flavors of popular Filipino street food to the pool deck at Wave with its latest and sumptuous buffet concept. The Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave is the latest culinary offering by City of Dreams Manila drawing inspiration from iconic street food staples including Pares, Batangas Goto, Sisig, Kinilaw, Inasal and even the ubiquitous and popular fish balls on skewers set in the elegant open air space next to Nobu Hotel's infinity lap pool. Read on for a tasty peek at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet and rediscover all your favorite street food for the perfect sunset feast...

Located at Level 1 of Nobu Hotel's pool deck, Wave is a casual and contemporary outdoor poolside restaurant and bar surrounded by a lush landscape for that tropical escape from the hectic urban pace. And every Thursday evening until April 25, Wave is transformed into an oasis where sumptuous Filipino street food is raised to the next level by the culinary team led by Executive Sous Chef Edmundo San Jose of City of Dreams Manila. 

And it's the perfect spot to enjoy magic hour. What better way to enjoy the sunset than with a lavish array of comfortingly familiar Pinoy-style street food and endless rounds of beer, right? Plus, live musical performances completes the unique dining experience.

The buffet dining scene remains the most popular and even the most competitive category with the growing number of restaurants joined by more new entries and concepts across all segments for a lucrative share of the pie. And this isn't just another passing trend anymore, but a well-entrenched option deeply woven in the local dining landscape. Variety and value continues to drive meaningful differentiation along with quality and masterful execution to set any buffet dining establishment apart from the other. City of Dreams Manila isn't new to the buffet game, as it is home to some of the finest buffet dining outlets in the metro. But they've taken the concept to a whole new level by focusing on a well-loved theme and elevating it with their own version of Filipino street food in a buffet format. The result is a unique buffet dining experience anchored on familiar flavors straight off the local street food scene. Coincidentally, the month of April has been designated as Filipino Food Month and that's your cue to enjoy a round or two of your favorite tusok-tusok and pulutan at Wave. 

And you just can't go wrong with timeless and popular local street food staples in an all-you-can-eat format like the Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave. For only P 1,999 per person, you can indulge in the unlimited offerings of the Filipino Barbecue Buffet and come back for more at Wave. Pair it with unlimited rounds of selected beverages including San Miguel Light Draft Beer and that's an offer you just can't pass up. 

Executive Sous Chef Edmundo San Jose is the main man behind the classic and traditional all-Filipino offerings for the sumptuous Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave. I first met Chef Ed back in 2021 at Haliya Modern Filipino Cuisine in Nuwa Hotel within the massive City of Dreams Manila integrated resort complex where his innovative take on local flavors offered a refreshingly new and unique dining experience (for more on Haliya Modern Filipino Cuisine, see my post Filipino Flavors Reimagined with a Contemporary Spin at Haliya Modern Filipino Cuisine in City of Dreams Manila). Now, Chef Ed brings his mastery of local flavors back to the limelight at City of Dreams Manila's culinary stage at Wave with the Filipino Barbecue Buffet every Thursday night until April 25. 

As the late afternoon light of the setting sun leaves a lingering glow at Wave, that's the perfect time to start with one of many rounds of an iconic local ice-cold brew to jumpstart your Filipino Barbecue Buffet experience. 

Pair your San Miguel Light Draft Beer with heaping servings of garlicky peanuts, sweet and spicy crispy dilis, salted cashew nuts and even puffed corn Cornicks. It's about perfect starts, and that first plate sets the tone for the rest of the evening. The Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave sets you on the right track with its impressive selection of local flavors. 

Then, the wide and diverse offerings at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet of Wave suddenly switches your appetite into overdrive with its tempting stations and displays. The sight of familiar street food classics triggers fond memories from countless childhood summers making the Filipino Barbecue Buffet a worthy addition to your long list of dining additions in the metro. 

But you have a solid game plan, honed by years on the buffet circuit where restraint at least on the first round pays long-term dividends to fully maximize your buffet experience. Start instead with a bowl of refreshing local salad to open up the palate...

Underneath this heaping mound of freshness, you'll find layers of grilled eggplant, pako or fiddlehead fern, lato or sea grapes, red onions, cherry tomatoes, green mangoes, cucumber and salted egg generously drizzled with spicy vinegar and topped with sweet and spicy shrimp paste. It's the perfect side to the savory offerings of the Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave. 

On one side, you'll find skewers of green mangoes, jicama and pineapple in brine best enjoyed topped with local bagoong exactly the way you remember it from the streets and sidewalks for a nostalgic twist to your buffet dining experience. 

Then, there's the seafood. At the Filipino Barbecue Buffet, Executive Sous Chef Edmundo San Juan takes the local kinilaw or local ceviche reimagined in a half shell. Plump and succulent oysters slathered and cured in creamy coconut milk, vinegar, chilies, red onions, sweet cucumber and coriander tease the palate with its briny sweetness followed by sour and spicy hints...

...pairing well with an ice-cold brew. Just like his inventive dishes at Haliya Filipino Modern Cuisine, Chef Ed weaves his elegant spin on local classics like his own twist on the kinilaw. It's dishes like this that make the lavish spread of the Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave different and special. Grab another half dozen. And another beer. Other options include Tuna Kinilaw and other seafood creations to tempt your palate. 

Then it all hits home with the tempting serving of Fish Balls...

...and the Kwek-Kwek or deep-fried quail eggs with its distinctive orange hues coated in batter. Remember your first time with tusok-tusok on the streets of Manila? Relive it and grab a skewer, plus a a generous slather of sweet and spicy sauce or some chili vinegar dip. Good times... 

And there's more. Grab another plate for a serving of crisp Calamari...

...and the Chicharon Bulaklak or deep fried pig's intestines. Salty, crisp and savory, each bite followed by a long soothing sip of ice-cold beer has to be one of the simplest yet most indulgent pleasures yet. Down the different stations at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet, you'll find even more creative executions with Chicharon Bulaklak so hold back on that second and third serving for now. If you can. 

The play on textures continues with even more deep-fried offerings at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet like these Crispy Crablets for a delectable change of pace. The pulutan themed selections at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet of Wave are more than enough reasons to block off your Thursday evenings. But there's more. Much more. Like crisp Dynamite Lumpia for that flavorful burst of soothing heat, Lumpiang Shanghai or spring rolls and crunchy Tokwa or fried tofu. 

The charcoal grill at Wave has to be one of many highlights at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet. The ubiquitous street side grills of the city are recreated at Wave offering a variety of tasty and savory options on a skewer.

At the buffet spread, pick your preferred skewer like Chicken Wings Inasal,  Pork Barbecue, Pork Ears and Mask, Chicken Liver and Gizzard, Chicken Feet and Chicken and Pork Longganisa. Draped with a sweet glaze for that quintessential Pinoy style experience with its fragrant smoky hints, each skewer is prepared a la minute...

...and served fresh off the grill at its flavorful peak. That calls for another round of ice-cold beer. 

The varied array of savory skewered meats is reminiscent of typical street scenes in the busy metro with vendors hawking their grilled specialties to the constant flow of pedestrians and commuters. But Chef Ed has a couple of tasty surprises in his bag of tricks...

It's just not a legit street food experience without Balut, and the Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave adds one more flavorful layer to its extensive offerings. Enjoy it as is with a pinch of salt or vinegar...

...or take it to the grill. The Balut Chili Garlic has to be another highlight of the Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave. You've seen the viral vids of the delicacy on the net, now you can experience it at City of Dreams Manila. The combination of flavors from the chili garlic sauce and subtle smoky hints just makes this uniquely Filipino staple a must-try at Wave. 

And don't forget the Grilled Corn brushed with butter and a sprinkling of salt... 

...or the Dried Pusit on skewers. These inihaw on sticks have long defined the Filipino street food experience weaving both traditional and nostalgic flavors to City of Dreams Manila's culinary offerings for the month of April. Imagine finding all your favorite street food in one central street location. That's the Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave in City of Dreams Manila. 

For your main course, make a quick stop at the live Sisig Station where you can customize the iconic pork dish with all the fixins' topped with a sunny side-up...

...or get extra creative with a freshly-cooked fried rice bowl mixed with Sisig prepared fresh and hot a la minute. Enjoy your classic Sisig just the way you like it at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet of Wave, you can simply ask the station chefs for their recommendations. 

My personal pick at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet has to be the Pares Station with its bowls of hearty Gotong Batangas and Pares and Mami with all the traditional trimmings. Prepared and assembled as you order, each bowl is served piping hot...

...anchored on slabs of fork-tender fall-off-the-bone Beef Short Ribs and Pork as the savory base. Carved and chopped to your specs, it just takes mere minutes for your customized Pares and Mami or Gotong Batangas. 

The Beef Pares or Filipino braised beef stew is a popular and common fare from street side karinderyas often served with rice or garlic fried rice and a bowl of beef broth for a fast, affordable, hearty and complete meal. The name is derived from the literal meaning of pairing the beef asado stew with either sinangag or garlic fried rice and a bowl of light beef broth for the classic "pares" meal set. 

The use of premium Beef Short Ribs results in a lavishly upgraded bowl of savory goodness, and Chef Ed stays true to the dish with its blend of soy sauce, aniseed, onions, garlic, peppercorns, chives and leeks for a mildly sweet and nutty finish. 

Served with rice or on soft yet firm springy noodles topped with egg, crisp shallots, garlic chips and crushed Chicharon Bulaklak, each sip and bite of the Beef Pares brings a lingering savory richness like a comforting hug on the palate. The crushed Chicharon Bulaklak is the perfect finishing touch adding yet another layer of contrasting flavors and textures. One more sip and you know this is exactly what you need. 

You can also opt for the Gotong Batangas flavored with thick slabs of beef short ribs or tender pork for another tasty bowl at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet in Wave. Like the Beef Pares, each bowl of Gotong Batangas is prepared as ordered and served steaming hot. 

From the tusok-tusok, inihaw and pulutan all the way to the pares, the Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave showcases the very best of the local street food culture in an elegant setting. 

Desserts present another colorful layer in the tapestry of the local street food culture and Chef Ed offers a winning play list of indulgent sweets and treats from the popular Banana Cue, Kamote Cue, Guinataang Bilo-Bilo and Turon de Rhuma along with seasonal fresh fruits to cap a sumptuous feast at Wave. But it's the do-it-yourself Halo-Halo that's the perfect finish for me with the Filipino Barbecue Buffet. Why? You can create your Halo-Halo just the way you like it with more of the ingredients you love in a glass. 

Sit back and enjoy your creation before taking that first spoonful. And it really just doesn't get better than this. 

Live acoustic performances threads each tasty bite and soothing sip at the Filipino Barbecue Buffet in Wave for a memorable dining experience. One more round of San Miguel Light Draft Beer? Why not. The Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave only happens once a week, so enjoy the moment. 

A cold beer and a lavish array of all-time Filipino street food staples at the pool deck combine for good vibes and good times all around. The once a week Filipino Barbecue Buffet runs only until the last Thursday of the month so don't miss out and book your table (see contact details and links below). 

A dining destination since it opened in 2015, City of Dreams Manila continues its run of innovative culinary offerings with the Filipino Barbecue Buffet at Wave. Where else can you find nostalgic and traditional flavors inspired by the vibrant street food scene all in one place with the setting sun to kick-off an epic feast at a pool deck? Now this is your sign to ride the latest culinary wave from City of Dreams Manila. A sunset late in the week on a normal Thursday may be just the perfect way to reconnect with the simple joys of flavorful street food leveled up by Chef Ed and his team. Tusok-tusok, inihaw, pulutan, pares and beer. See you next Thursday at Wave in City of Dreams Manila...