Wilson's Haus of Lechon
Wilson’s Haus of Lechon is a family-run eatery that makes traditional Filipino feasting fun, accessible, and most importantly, tasty.
The restaurant has moved to Scarborough since this article was published.
They specialize in lechon — both baboy (pork) and manok (chicken) — as well as whole suckling pig. The style here is specifically Cebuano, that is, traditional to the city of Cebu, where the Martinito family is from.
The space itself is humble, but the main attraction here is what’s being made, not where.
Whole chickens spin tantalizingly on rotisserie skewers, and a whole pig lays cooked and dormant among a hot table spread of fried, barbecued and grilled items.
The place is easy to spot from the charcoal grill that’s often smoking out front.
You might start off with an authentic Cebuano beef and oxtail soup boiled with onions and pepper, free with a dine-in meal.
The taste is basic but comforting, and the dish is obviously homemade.
Pork skewers and chicken leg combos ($6.50) provide the quickest and lightest options here.
The pork is glazed with a tangy, sweet barbecue sauce that, like much here, gets all over your face and hands. Combos are served with rice, spring rolls and a drink.
Lechon manok ($10.99) is one of those aforementioned go-to items here. It's ridiculously filling and well-priced, definitely enough to feed at least two.
Whole birds and large pork cuts are portioned out and chopped with resounding thwacks right before your eyes here.
Lechon are stuffed simply with lemongrass, peppercorns, and green onion.
The flavour this imparts is herby and insanely aromatic, the meat juicy and the skin fatty and crisp.
Chopped lechon baboy ($15.99/pound) is a must-try. The chopping creates crispy pork skin chips that are first to go in a sharing situation. This meat is absolutely to die for, especially when, like the chicken, it's dipped in a range of spicy vinegar, homemade soy, or Mang Tomas.
Bangus ($10.99) is also available barbecued, fried or grilled here, along with a smashed grilled eggplant dish that's cooked with tomato and onion and then deep fried.
Banana, jackfruit, and sugar wrapped in sticky layers of spring roll pastry provides a soft and sweet dessert.
It’s traditional in Filipino and adjacent cultures to feed parties whole pigs, which are on offer here for $260 to $300 for an extra large fifteen-pound pig.
Slightly less massive and intimidating orders of boneless lechon (just the belly, which is really the part everyone wants anyway) go for $100 for a small order and $150 for a large.
Refreshing familiar Filipino drinks like C2 apple green tea and Sarsi root beer are available to wash everything down. The patriarch of the Martinito family just so happens to be named Wilson: the location is actually just a coincidence.
Hector Vasquez