A pair of chefs aim to launch a Filipino fast-casual restaurant this fall in the Old Port.

Nicole Bowers and her husband, Ben, are leasing the 1,600-square-foot space at 25 Pearl St., which was formerly a Subway sandwich shop.

The Bowerses and their business partners, Margaret and Luka Dow, are modeling their new restaurant, to be named Barkada, after Chipotle or Sweetgreen. Customers will be able to build their own bowls or wraps from classic Filipino foods like lechon (roast pork), bistek (Filipino beef steak), chicken adobo and lumpia (spring rolls). The restaurant will also sell halo-halo, the classic Filipino shaved ice and coconut dessert.

“Our mission is to bring Filipino food to Portland,” Ben Bowers said. “It’s one of those cuisines that hasn’t had a lot of light on it, and our plan is to put it on the map and show everyone how good it really is.”

The team plan to open their food truck operation as soon as May, parking at Thompson’s Point, the Eastern Promenade and other locations. The food truck, also to be named Barkada, will offer a grab-and-go menu of items similar to that of the restaurant, as well as fusion street food, such as poutine, tacos and nachos served in a Doritos bag all topped with Filipino foods (a fusion Texan Fritos pie of sorts?).

“We want to try these ideas out and see how the city of Portland responds to them, so when we open the restaurant, we’ll know exactly what we should be serving,” Luka Dow said.

Nicole Bowers is a native of the Philippines who met her husband in New York City while they both attended the Institute of Culinary Education. For the last two years, the Bowerses worked as private chefs on Jupiter Island in Florida.