Now Open: Tita Flora’s Filipino Restaurant in Independence

When it comes to cuisines that are sorely lacking in Cleveland, Filipino is at the very top of the list. The melting-pot cuisine of the Philippines continues to climb in popularity around the nation, but locally the options are extremely limited.

Starting this week, we can add Tita Flora’s (6531 Brecksville Rd., 216-232-4303) to that short list. The 60-seat full-service restaurant in Independence has begun welcoming in diners for Filipino staples like crispy lumpia, filled with either vegetables or pork; pork or tofu sisig served on a sizzling platter; pancit, made with rice or wheat noodles; and longsilog, the all-day breakfast dish of sausage fried rice topped with a fried egg.

And of course, “the famous adobo, which is chicken or pork braised with soy sauce, vinegar, onions, garlic and pepper,” adds owner Flora Grk.

For the past 25 years, Grk has worked pretty much every job there is to do in a restaurant. Throughout her time in the industry, she has had her sights set on opening a place of her own.

“Being in the restaurant business for 25 years, I always had a passion for food,” she explains. “I like to cook for my family and friends. I always said, one day I would like to have my own restaurant. But I came from the Philippines when I was 25 and that’s not always the easiest way to have your own business when you don’t really know what’s going on around you.”

As one of Cleveland’s only retail providers of Filipino food, Grk understands that her dream comes with challenges that a typical restaurateur might not worry about.

“We never had a Filipino restaurant, so not everyone knows what it tastes like, so you have to explain everything," she says. "I would like them to try authentic Filipino dishes that I will serve and hopefully the people will love it."

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