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.