An island cuisine with worldly ways

I’m lunching in a lively contemporary cafe on North Spring Street, at the southern edge of Chinatown.

Although my appetizer -- tiny, crunchy pork-filled rolls with a syrupy chile sauce -- is called Shanghai egg rolls and the cafe is named Asian Noodles, I’m not in a Chinese restaurant. Surrounded by Tagalog speakers and pondering a menu that lists adobo, mami and siopao, I’m actually about to indulge -- as is the lively crowd of office workers from the nearby Civic Center -- in a feast of Filipino food, a cuisine that’s woefully underexposed in L.A.

Asian Noodles bills its style as “Manila fusion,” which may be a bit redundant because Filipino food is fusion by definition. Influenced predominantly by Spain, which controlled the islands for more than 300 years, the cuisine has also been marked by Chinese traders and settlers, a Malay heritage and the United States, which took over from Spain in 1898.

The cafe offers traditional Filipino dishes such as adobo, the vinegary stew that is often called the national dish of the Philippines; kare-kare, an oxtail and vegetable stew with a smooth peanut butter sauce; and marinated grilled meats.

Chinese-accented dishes such as steamed buns and seafood-noodle combinations are a mainstay too. And the desserts include some of the best fried bananas in town.

Servings are generous, prices low: This is great food to linger over when chatting with friends, just right for the young, casual crowd that frequents the room at night.

And although many of the dishes are traditional, the kitchen has a deft touch with certain specialties, and the place has its own definite vibe.

The decor aims for sleek and sophisticated (if on a budget), and the staff is attentive and friendly. A large mural depicts an island landscape. One waiter, Paul Magalad, is a designer who sews upstairs and held a show in the parking lot. Magalad even tinted the fabric for one of his gowns with soy sauce.

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A taste of coconut

There are a couple of terrific appetizers. Fried calamari is one of the best, and the most popular, judging by the number of platters that I see going by. The coating is crisp and not a bit greasy. The delicious dipping sauce is made with coconut vinegar laced with chopped garlic. The above-mentioned egg rolls are a must-have too.

A quick and easy lunch dish is mami, the classic Filipino soup of noodles, meat strips and chopped green onions, reminiscent of Vietnamese pho. Asian Noodles takes pride in its mami because the owner, Philip Ma, is descended from the Ma Mon Luk family, which, according to a story on the menu, brought pasta from Canton, China, to the Philippines in 1920. The name mami combines the name Ma with the word mi, or noodles.

Siopao -- Chinese-style steamed buns -- are traditional accompaniments for mami. The siopao at Asian Noodles have savory Filipino fillings such as juicy braised pork (rather than sweet Chinese barbecued pork), chicken and beans. Bola bola siopao is a monster-sized bun stuffed with ground pork, Chinese sausage and bits of salted egg. Share this flavorful pastry with a friend.

I was impressed by “scampi chow fun,” a dish that’s a lot more elaborate than it sounds. Wide rice noodles are stir-fried with vegetables, topped with shrimp studded with bits of garlic and circled by thick squares of fresh, soft omelet. Steamed cauliflower and broccoli are piled on, providing crunch.

One of the nicest non-noodle dishes is called Bicol express. Named for the Bicol region in southeastern Luzon, where coconut is the leading crop and coconut milk is frequently used in cooking, this dish of seafood in a subtle, delicious coconut sauce is as complex in flavor as a Thai curry, but not as spicy.

For vegetable lovers, a concoction of vegetables and shrimp in coconut milk is a revelation. Sliced green papaya, kabocha squash, Chinese long beans, eggplant and spinach are crisp-tender, braised in the suave sauce. Bits of fresh ginger spark up the flavor.

No dish is more typically Filipino than adobo; the Asian Noodles chicken and pork version is well balanced and mellow. The meat is simmered with vinegar, garlic, soy sauce, black peppercorns and bay leaves to make a savory and comforting stew.

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Familiar and exotic

Less well-known Filipino specialties include crispy pata, deep-fried pork shank; the sour-tasting soup called sinigang; and kare-kare, a stew of oxtails and vegetables in peanut butter sauce accompanied by a pungent dried shrimp condiment, bagoong.

If you’re new to Filipino food, don’t pass up the grilled meats. They’re both familiar and exotic. Charbroiled pork chops, inihaw na baboy, are marinated with Philippine coconut vinegar, Japanese rice vinegar and garlic. The flavor isn’t complete until you dip them in a faintly sweet vinegar mixture.

Although the menu lists Western desserts such as tiramisu and creme brulee tart, ignore them and go straight for the Filipino desserts.

The best is fried bananas with tropical ice cream, a wonderful concoction of freshly fried, meltingly soft bananas topped with either mango, ube (purple yam) or macapuno (coconut) ice cream, drizzled with green pandan sauce and sprinkled with crunchy bits of pounded roasted rice, called pinipig.

It’s a terrific ending to a lunch that has been like a visit to an island oasis in the middle of downtown L.A. Those office workers and I -- sated with Pacific Rim flavors -- are ready to head back to work.

But on return visits we’ll check out the Asian fried chicken, which looked luscious on a nearby table, a fresh mango dessert and other highlights of a cuisine that deserves more attention than it has yet received in Los Angeles.

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Asian Noodles

Location: 643 N. Spring St.

Los Angeles, (213) 617-1083

Price: Noodle dishes, $4.50 to $12.95. Appetizers, $3.95 to $8.95. Main dishes, $8.95 to $16.95 (for charbroiled rib eye). Desserts, $3.50 to $4.25.

Best dishes: Fried calamari, Shanghai egg rolls, charbroiled pork (inihaw na baboy), Bicol express, fried bananas with tropical ice cream.

Details: Open 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, until 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday. No alcohol. Street and public lot parking. Major credit cards.