Peri Peri Charcoal Chicken, SM East Ortigas

After hibernating at home since New Year’s Eve (and eating yummy leftovers!), the fam and I decided to go out for dinner on the second day of 2020.

So off we went to our neighborhood mall, SM City East Ortigas, where, as luck would have it, a new branch of Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken just opened.

Peri-peri (also spelled as piri-piri or pili-pili), is a type of chili that is grown in Southeastern Africa, taking its name from the Swahili term for “pepper.” Also known as the African bird’s eye chili, its cultivation and culinary use was spread by the Portuguese to their Indian territories.

When combined with salt, garlic, lemon, oil and vinegar into a sauce, called the peri-peri sauce, it provides a distinctive flavor to the chicken dish that also bears its name.

Peri-peri Charcoal Chicken prepares its birds by trimming excess fat and marinating for at least a day prior to grilling to achieve that tender and juicy meat that explodes with every bite.

Every order of chicken comes with your choice of mild or spicy sauce. Feel free to ask your server for their recommendation.

For our first dinner out of the year, we feasted on:

Sebastian Salad (Php210). A manifestation of Hubby’s resolution to eat healthier, this salad is made of lettuce greens topped with shredded crabsticks, wedges of hard-boiled egg and cherry tomatoes served with a roasted sesame dressing.

Chicken Group Meal (Php799, good for four persons). A fully loaded meal that includes a whole peri-peri chicken, four bowls of Java rice and four side dishes – we chose coleslaw, corn and carrots and bacon mac ‘n cheese.

Four Cheese Flatbread (Php315 family size). Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken’s version of pizza which my son immediately demanded, because, as everyone knows, he is a pizza monster.

Carafe of Iced Tea (Php130). Eating these flavorful viands work up quite a thirst so we get ourselves a family-sized pitcher of Peri-Peri’s house-blend iced tea.

As the branch is still fairly new, there were some operational hiccups such as the sudden unavailability of hummus (Hubby’s preferred side dish) and some billing concerns which were easily straightened out. That said, our family dinner here was still a yummy start to 2020!

This Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken branch is located at Ground Floor, SM City East Ortigas, Santa Lucia, Pasig City, open daily from 10am to 9pm.

Other branches in Metro Manila may be found at:

Las Pinas: Evia Lifestyle Center
Makati: Ayala North Exchange, Greenbelt 3
Mandaluyong: SM Megamall
Manila: Robinsons Place Manila
Marikina: SM City Marikina
Muntinlupa: Alabang Town Center
Paranaque: Ayala Malls Manila Bay
Pasay: Resorts World Manila
Pasig: Ayala Malls Feliz, Capitol Commons, Robinsons Galleria
Quezon City: Eastwood Mall, Gateway Mall, Robinsons Magnolia, UP Town Center, Tomas Morato, Trinoma Mall, Banawe, Brittany Square
San Juan: Promenade Greenhills
Taguig: Uptown Parade BGC, Market! Market BGC, Venice Grand Mall