Filipino Christmas Party Trays in Halifax: How to Order for the Holidays
Filipino party trays in Halifax for Noche Buena and the office party. Full tray list with prices, how many each tray feeds, notice, pickup times and catering for fifty or more.
Barrios Restaurant & Bar
10/8/20267 min read
Filipino Christmas Party Trays in Halifax: How to Order for the Holidays
In the Philippines, Christmas starts in September. By October the planning has started, and in a lot of Filipino households in Halifax the same question comes up: who is cooking?
If the answer is meant to be you, Filipino party trays are how you feed the room without losing two days to the kitchen. This page covers what is on our party tray list, what it costs, how many people each tray feeds, and how far ahead we need to know.
Why Filipino Christmas starts so early
The Philippines runs one of the longest Christmas seasons in the world. Once the calendar hits the ber months, September onward, the carols start and the parol, the star-shaped lantern, goes up in the window.
The season builds through Simbang Gabi, the nine days of Masses before Christmas, held at dawn back home, and lands on Noche Buena, the family meal late on Christmas Eve.
In Nova Scotia the feast still matters, but the kitchen is smaller and Christmas Eve is often a work day. That is the gap the trays fill. In Halifax, Simbang Gabi times vary by parish. If your parish or your community group is holding a gathering after it, the same trays do that job, and those dates fall in the same busy stretch, so the same advice applies. Order early.
What is on the Filipino party tray list, and what it costs
Most trays come in two sizes. Family size serves about five people. Party size serves about ten. The price on each tray page is the family size, and you choose the size you want at checkout. Two work differently: lechon belly is sold by weight, and rice is priced per tray for about ten people.
Prices shown are from our current party tray menu and may change.
Lechon belly, $75 for 5 lb, which serves about 12, or $120 for 8 lb, which serves about 20. Each extra pound is $15. Rolled, seasoned pork belly roasted until the skin crackles. The centrepiece for the table. We do not sell a whole roast pig.
Crispy pata, $80. Pork hock, deep-fried, crackling skin.
Filipino style pork barbeque skewers, $70. Marinated, grilled, sweet and smoky.
Breaded chicken wings, $70. Crisp, and the easiest thing for a mixed crowd.
Pancit bihon, $35, with one topping of pork, chicken or shrimp, or vegetarian. Pancit malabon, $40. Palabok, $40, rice noodles in a shrimp stock sauce with boiled egg, shrimp and crispy pork belly.
Filipino-style spaghetti, $40. Sweet, red, and the one the children will actually eat. Tray only, not on the dining room menu.
Spring rolls, $20. Fried, crisp, sweet chili sauce. Lumpiang sariwa, $45, the fresh kind, wrapped rather than fried.
Roast beef caldereta, $45, beef braised in a Filipino tomato-based sauce. Crispy pork kare-kare, $40, in peanut sauce. Pork sisig, $40, chopped roasted pork with soy sauce and chili.
Chicken inasal, $40, grilled and citrus-marinated. Garlic shrimp, $45. Beef brisket with truffle mushroom sauce, $45. Siomai, $50, steamed pork and shrimp dumplings. Lasagna, $75. Chicken ala king, $40, creamy and mild. Mushroom truffle penne, $40.
Steamed rice, $20, good for ten people.
One thing worth saying out loud before you order for a crowd. Palabok, garlic shrimp and siomai all contain shellfish, and so does pancit bihon with the shrimp topping. Crispy pork kare-kare is built on peanut sauce, and in the dining room it comes with bagoong, a shrimp paste. Pancit malabon is traditionally made with a shrimp sauce, so ask. Most of the list has pork in it. If anyone at your table has an allergy, call 902-444-2515 and ask before you order rather than after.
Building the Noche Buena table
One thing first. The classic Noche Buena table has hamon and queso de bola on it. We do not make those, and we do not have a set Noche Buena menu. What our trays cover is the rest of the table, in four parts.
The roast. Lechon belly is the one to settle first, because roast pork is the centrepiece at a lot of Filipino celebrations. If you would rather have the hock and the skin, crispy pata at $80 does the same job.
The noodles. Pancit belongs on a Filipino celebration table, because long noodles stand for long life. Pancit bihon is the plainest and the one a mixed crowd will all eat. Palabok is the richer one. If there are children coming, add the Filipino spaghetti and watch it go first.
Something fried. Spring rolls at $20 disappear at any party, and the barbeque skewers at $70 are the other easy crowd-pleaser. Lumpiang sariwa at $45 sits beside them as the fresh, unfried option, which is worth having when everything else on the table has been in oil.
Something saucy, and rice under it. Roast beef caldereta or crispy pork kare-kare, then a steamed rice tray for every ten people. Rice is the thing hosts under-order.
How much to order
These are starting points built from our serving counts, not rules. Tell us your headcount when you order and we can help you adjust.
The habit worth keeping: enough roast and noodles for everyone, a saucy dish and something fried for about half the room, since they are shared around, and a rice tray for every ten heads, rounded up.
For about twelve people: a 5 lb lechon belly, one party-size and one family-size pancit, a family-size saucy dish, a family-size tray of spring rolls, and two rice trays.
For about twenty: an 8 lb lechon belly, two party-size pancit, one party-size saucy dish, a party-size tray of spring rolls, and two rice trays.
How much notice we need
Standard notice is 24 to 48 hours. December does not work like the rest of the year, because everybody wants the same few dates. There is no fixed last day to order before Christmas, so check our Facebook or Instagram page, call or message us for holiday deadlines. On very busy days, tray orders have to be confirmed by us first and may be turned down. Once your headcount and your date are settled, order.
At checkout, put in your preferred pickup date and time. An order without them cannot be confirmed.
Some trays can be done the same day. Call 902-444-2515 or message us on Facebook or Instagram to find out whether yours is one of them.
Where and when to collect
Pickup is at Barrios, 1571 Barrington Street, Halifax. Tuesday to Saturday, 11:30 AM to 8 PM. Sunday, 11:30 AM to 4 PM. No pickup on Mondays.
Note the eight o'clock. On a Friday the dining room is open until 11 PM, but tray pickup still stops at 8, so collect before dinner rather than after.
We plan to be open on December 24, 25 and 31, and closed on December 26 and January 1, but holiday hours can change, so check our Facebook page or call 902-444-2515 before you build a plan around a pickup on those days.
We do not deliver trays. If nobody can come to collect them, book a courier in the Uber app and send the driver to us.
Getting the food home hot
Hot dishes are packed into a foil container, and the foil container goes inside a box. That holds the heat for the trip home. It is not a warming oven, though, so work backwards from when you are actually sitting down rather than collecting early and hoping.
The lechon belly and the crispy pata are the two where the skin is the whole point. If they need bringing back up, an air fryer is the best tool for the job. It crisps the skin again. An oven is slower at it, and a microwave undoes it completely.
Lids and serving utensils are available on request. Ask for them when you place the order rather than at the counter, so they go out packed with your trays.
Filipino catering in Halifax for fifty guests or more
At that size, trays stop being the simple answer and our catering package takes over, at $37 per person with a minimum of fifty guests, in our dining room or at your venue.
It is a buffet: spring rolls, a side, a noodle dish, four entrees (one each of chicken, beef, pork and seafood) and three assorted desserts. In our dining room it includes three hours of exclusive use of the whole restaurant, our audio and video system, and water and pop. At your venue anywhere in Halifax, Dartmouth or the surrounding HRM, our staff set up and refill the food; drinks are not included. Both are plus 14 per cent HST on the food and a 15 per cent service fee, which has no HST and is not a gratuity. Off-site, transportation is added, with HST on it. Catering needs one to two weeks of notice, so for December, ask early.
If your party is smaller than fifty and you would rather eat here than host at home, call 902-444-2515 and tell us the date and the headcount. Friday and Saturday we are open until 11 PM.
Quick answers
When should I order Filipino Christmas party trays in Halifax?
Standard notice is 24 to 48 hours, but December is busy and there is no fixed last day to order. Check our Facebook or Instagram page, call or message us for holiday deadlines, and order as soon as your headcount and your date are settled.
How much does a Filipino party tray cost in Halifax?
Family size runs from $20 for spring rolls up to $80 for crispy pata, and party size costs more. A steamed rice tray for about ten people is $20. Lechon belly is sold by weight: $75 for 5 lb, which serves about 12.
How many people does a tray feed?
Family size serves about five. Party size serves about ten. A steamed rice tray feeds ten.
Is Filipino-style spaghetti available?
Yes, as a party tray at $40, family size. It is not on the regular dine-in menu, so order it ahead.
Where do I collect my trays?
Barrios, 1571 Barrington Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3J 1Z7. Tuesday to Saturday 11:30 AM to 8 PM, Sunday 11:30 AM to 4 PM, closed Mondays. Phone 902-444-2515.
Can I collect trays on Christmas Eve?
We plan to be open on December 24, but holiday hours can change, so check our Facebook page or call 902-444-2515 before you choose a Christmas Eve pickup.
Do the trays come hot?
Hot dishes are packed in a foil container inside a takeaway box, which holds the heat on the way home. For the lechon belly and the crispy pata, an air fryer is the best way to bring the skin back if you need to reheat.
Do trays come with lids and serving utensils?
On request. Ask when you place the order so they are packed with your trays.
Do you deliver party trays?
No. Trays are pickup only, at 1571 Barrington Street. If you cannot collect them, book a courier in the Uber app to pick them up for you. For 50 guests or more, our off-site catering brings the food to your venue.