Taking the Road Back Home to Kalsada’s

Located where the late St. Augustine’s used to be, this restaurant made us nostalgic of our old stomping grounds in St. Paul. Kalsada opened just over a year ago in 2022 and we are so thankful it did. It’s owned by Twin Cities restauranteurs, Leah Raymundo and John Occhiato, who are notably known for founding Cafe Astoria back in 2016. We came for brunch, we have to say, the food was divine. Paying homage to Leah’s Filipino heritage, this menu was full of bold and bright flavors.

To begin our brunch, we started with ordering drinks, and lots of them. Sarah and I are drink girlies- we can never suffice with just a coffee or a juice. We are people that like to share everything and try the whole menu, or as much as our stomachs will allow. First up, we knew we had to get Leah’s Happy Place, a matcha with hints lavender and pistachio. It’s subtle, but boy does it take us to our happy place. Next up, on a sweeter note, we ordered Calamansi, a Filipino soda, per our server’s recommendation. We could have just been dehydrated, but we slurped it down very quickly- good thing too because it was served with a paper straw, and you all know how that goes. Finally, in classic Goldilocks fashion, we ordered a less sweet Ube drink. This drink has mixed reviews between Sarah and myself. Sarah really enjoyed it, while I much preferred the Filipino soda.

Moving onto food, we ordered two items: a pork dish no longer on the menu, and the Ensaladang Kalsada. When it comes to brunch, Sarah and I are in our pork era. We crave pork belly anytime we can get our hands on it! The pork tasted like exactly what we were looking for. Unfortunately, this dish gets knocked down a peg because we didn’t receive our jammy egg. That’s the part Sarah was looking forward to the most. For me, I’m not a huge egg person so I was still content. As for the salad, honestly we could have done without. As someone who doesn’t particularly enjoy cheese, this dish just didn’t hit the tastebuds where they wanted to be hit. (Yes, I know it’s strange I’m a food blogger who doesn’t like cheese). I wish we would have ordered one of the sandwich varieties, whether that be the Pulled Pork Adobo Sandwich or the Crispy Chicken Sandwich. That’s on us for not ordering properly.

Our friends Matt and Adam ordered the Ube Pancakes and a chicken dish which is no longer available. I can’t speak much to them as I didn’t try these dishes, but they looked delicious and seemed to have gotten positive reviews from Matt and Adam through conversation. Mark my words, next time we all go out to eat, we’ll let them be a guest writer on the blog.

At Kalsada, the price was right. We felt everything was super reasonable and it was a nice change of pace from our usually absurd ending bill total. We recommend this place to everyone, but especially college students! It felt like a great bang for your buck and it’s less than a 5 minute drive from St. Thomas, Macalester, or St. Catherine’s. If only Kalsada were here when Sarah and I lived 2 minutes away at our college house! #RollToms Without question we would have been frequent visitors. It was a delicious brunch and we can’t wait to come back for their dinner menu.

VIBE CHECK

The vibes here were adorable and quaint. There was seating for little groups, big groups, and groups in between. The palm leaf wallpaper brightened up the space and really differentiated it from St. Augustine’s, a date night place known for its dimly lit, moody vibes. We love how Leah and John modified the restaurant to be more open and inviting. And did you see this bar… adorable! We must go back for drinks simply so we can sit there and sneak a glance at ourselves in the huge mirror behind the bar.