Naks

Naks opened in December 2023 in the First Avenue room that was Jeepney for most of the previous decade, from the group behind Dhamaka and Semma. Eric Valdez, who ran the kitchen at Dhamaka, cooks from his Makati childhood and from the provinces, and the room has the low, easy hum of a place people return to.

Start with the pork barbecue — jowl marinated in soy, garlic and lemon-lime soda, glazed with banana ketchup and charred over coals. Then the pancit batil patong from Tuguegarao, thick noodles under ground beef, a fried egg and spiced vinegar, and the adobo rice, mixed at the table with egg and chicharrón. The lechon platter — pork brined and air-dried over two days before it roasts — comes in limited numbers each night, with a liver sauce made in house. Kare-kare and a crab simmered in coconut milk are there for the second round.