Outside Now Serving in Chinatown, the scent of steaming banana leaves and sweet rice fills the air. Otto Markel, better known as “Otto vs. Jello” for his viral adventures in eating vintage Jell-O recipes, is trading gelatin for something far more personal: bibingka, a traditional Filipino rice cake.
Markel’s background is as eclectic as his culinary experiments. He’s worked as a prep cook at Bub and Grandma’s, Joy, and Pearl River Deli, smoked meats at The Park’s Finest, and even spent time on a chicken and pig farm in his hometown of Santa Cruz.
“A bibingka is a thing I've wanted in an old-school style for a while. It was hard to find a good, authentic style,” he says.
Made from rice, coconut milk, and eggs, bibingka is traditionally baked in clay pots lined with banana leaves over scorching charcoal. The result? A golden, slightly charred cake that’s spongy, subtly sweet, and infused with the earthy aroma of toasted banana leaves. Toppings like butter, cheese, grated coconut, or even duck eggs add richness, while modern variations sometimes include fruits like pineapple.
Bibingka’s history is as layered as the flavors. Some say it originated in Indonesia, others trace it to India, where a dessert called bebinca shares coconut milk and egg as key ingredients. Another theory suggests the Portuguese may have introduced a layered rice dessert in Southeast Asia.
While other chefs have taken bibingka in new directions, such as cast-iron cornbread and pancake styles, Markel prioritizes banana leaves for their flavor and aroma.
“Tony's BBQ does it well. Park's Finest does a cornbread bibingka. But I want it as old school as possible,” he says.
The pop-up emphasizes tradition. Markel soaks the rice, and eventually plans to cook it over live fire, evoking the communal feel of Christmas midnight mass in the Philippines, where bibingka is traditionally prepared and enjoyed outside the church.
“I’m trying to tap into a sense memory,” he explains.
He tries to do everything by hand, even noting that he has been hand-making the stamps for the cards he uses to pair with each dish.
The pop-up’s name, Nananu-ka, means, “What are you doing?” Markel says he picked it because it’s open-ended.
He envisions more than bibingka in the future, planning a Filipino breakfast series and halo-halo in the summer, always keeping prices accessible.
“At the end of the day, I want it all to be fun. I want everyone to enjoy it.”
Follow Otto on Instagram to stay in the know of his future pop-ups.
Now Serving ~ 727 N. Broadway #133. Los Angeles, CA 90012
