The third annual Filipino Restaurant Month in Canada is coming up in April.

The observance will happen across Canada, and in British Columbia -- nine Filipino restaurants will be participating.

Consul General Arlene Magno, whose tour of duty in Vancouver was extended until June, said the event has made Canadians and even Filipinos here more aware of Philippine cuisine.

“That is also one of our important target audiences, right?” she said. “Not just the foreigners, but [also] our second-generation Filipinos who might not be growing up with the Filipino food that we are used to.”

This year, Goldilocks restaurant will be joining the event for the first time. Other participants include Audielicious in Fort St. John, Flavours 8 in Dawson Creek, as well as Max’s, Pampanga’s Cuisine, and Grandt Kitchen. 

Filipino restaurant owners, however, have noticed that rising food prices have forced many Canadians to eat out less.

“There’s an economic crisis obviously because of inflation,” said Plato Filipino owner Bennett Ganata. “We keep on hoping and like wishing that this will end soon, really really soon.”

Others said they have tried hard to keep their price increases minimal while maintaining the taste and quality of their food.

“We always consider the buying capacity of our customers,” said Pampanga’s Cuisine owner Editha Malang. “[But] at the same time, we also have to maintain the quality.”

Said Evelyn Lopez of Grandt Kitchen: “We try to delay the increase in our prices because we did not want the quality of the food that we serve to be compromised, or for its taste or serving amount to be reduced.”

Magno said that despite the rising costs, it is still a good idea to take a break from home-cooked meals and enjoy dining out once in a while.

“It’s also good to celebrate outside with the family,” she said. “If you live alone or there’s only the two of you at home, sometimes it’s cheaper to just go to the restaurant and order takeout, right?”

The participating restaurants hope that the Filipino Restaurant Month will jumpstart the current sluggish trend and bring new customers to their doors.

Prices for the pre-fixed meals at participating restaurants range from $19.99 to $30.