Courtesy of Ober Here
Pork barbecue tocino bowl at Ober Here
Folks who are fans of Filipino food or simply want to try it would be hard-pressed to find such cuisine in Fort Worth — or anywhere in the Metroplex, really.
But a food truck has recently rolled into the Near Southside to change that.
Ober Here opened in late March, parked right behind Hotel Revel at 1165 Eighth Ave. It's the brainchild of chef and owner Mark Guatelara, who was born and raised in the Philippines before coming to the U.S. as an exchange student about 15 years ago. Guatelara would spend years living "the American corporate dream," he says, opening restaurants in hotels with Marriott and working as a chef at properties like Renaissance Dallas and Live! by Loews in Arlington.
Then, COVID-19 hit, and suddenly, life began moving at a slower pace for Guatelara, awakening a nostalgia for the simpler life he had back home.
"I'm done with the corporate world," he says. "I just want to do everything that reminded me of how I was back home, with the community."
So, bemoaning that "there's nothing to eat" after 10 p.m. in his neighborhood of Mistletoe Heights, Guatelara opened Ober Here — that's "over here," with a Filipino accent — catering to the late-night crowd with hours from 7 p.m. to midnight on Tuesdays through Thursdays and 7 p.m. – 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
Knowing that many in the neighborhood may not be familiar with Filipino cuisine, Guatelara decided to try a concept that was a little more accessible, taking the familiarity of a rice bowl and giving it a Filipino twist. All entrées come with rice, a fried egg, atchara (a pickled papaya salad), and choice of meat. Guatelara recommends the pork barbecue tocino (slow cooked pork butt basted with banana ketchup). There's also barbecue chicken and honey shrimp, as well as Guatelara's own renditions of popular canned meats like corned beef and spam, both made in-house. Ober Here also offers seitan spam as a vegetarian option.
A side dish many may be familiar with is lumpia — Filipino-style egg rolls made with pork, carrots, onions, garlic, and Guatelara's house seasoning, served with a side of sweet and sour sauce.
"It would not be Filipino without lumpia," Guatelara says.
While Ober Here's offerings aren't necessarily traditional, Guatelara describes his menu as "differently Filipino" — a concept meant to introduce audiences to Filipino cuisine and, hopefully, build a following in the area.
"I'm very passionate about it because it's me," he says. "It's always been my identity."
Ober Here's full menu and other information are available at oberhere.com.
