After 3 years of being a staple in the Poblacion F&B scene, Polilya, at the height of the pandemic like many businesses had to bid farewell and close its doors to the public in 2020. Having left a massive hole in the popular district, there were those left longing for their favorite spot and those left to their curiosity about a place they can never visit. With that much fascination present in an unfortunate circumstance, they knew that they were eventually going to return, it was just a matter of time. True to their promise, they did so on August 26 at Ebro Street in “SoKal,” or south of Kalayaan.
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Polilya 2.0 believes in the value of bringing together differences, the atmosphere of their establishment is a testament to that. Identifying themselves as industrial, new Filipino and inclusive, the team shares, “The new, evolved version is meant to capture a whole new generation that couldn’t ‘party out’ due to the pandemic confinement and yet had heard about the Polilya myth.” However, emphasis is not solely placed on capturing a new set of clientele, rather, patrons that have missed Polilya will still recognize its new iteration from the various items, and furniture pieces that they reintroduced from their previous spot.
Known of course for their delectable selection of food and drinks, Polilya promises an improvement on their already impressive menu. As their team shared, “We spent time talking to them about their favorite flavor combos for different times of the evening. That allowed us to come back with the classics that never go out of style plus a new brood of signature cocktails to keep the novelty and excitement.” Polilya prefers keeping their mixes simple, preferring instead to supplement choice spirits with select additions that will enhance its already existing flavor.
This mixing philosophy also finds itself applied to their food where they were inspired by the Filipinos’ pulutan culture. Serving instead to add to the drinking experience, their food takes the backstage, allowing their cocktails to take the floor. In providing a cohesive experience, they made sure to “have the classics but also converted celebratory food like Kare-Kare into street food via skewers and ihaw. And then we used Filipino fruits and flavors in our cocktails like sampaloc, ube, guava & pineapple to match our food.”
Take note of these must-try food and drink combinations straight from the Polilya family!
IAN – Polilya BBQ & GuavaVOOM!
NINA – Patis-Calamansi Wings, Maple-Chipotle corn, Tigrita
ALEX – Señor Sisig, Pancit Lamig & Boozy Barney
LUIS – Inasal sa gata & the pusit bugoy with a Pre-Malone
Outside of their quality menu, at the heart of Polilya lies the dedication to providing a comfortable and familiar experience that goes beyond their cocktails. Liking their space to that of a living room, they believe in the added value that comfort means to a customer. “There needs to be a familiarity in the environment and the service for a great experience to be remembered. Those are the same comfort cues we made sure Polilya had for our guests.” And with these principles in mind, they have returned better than ever before.
