Eat – Page 78 – Jellybeans in the City

Hearty noodle meal at Marugame Udon, SM North EDSA

My friends know that I’m quite a ramen lover but I’ve also been known to expand my range when it comes to gustatory adventures.

One such expansion was when my officemates first introduced me to the delights of another kind of Japanese noodle dish at the Marugame Udon branch in SM North EDSA.

Udon differs from ramen in the size and texture of noodles: udon noodles are straight, thicker and have a softer and chewier texture than ramen noodles. They also tend to absorb the flavor of the udon broth more easily.

Marugame Udon is the largest udon noodles restaurant chain in the world with over a thousand stores worldwide where authentic udon noodles are freshly kneaded, boiled and cooked upon order everyday.

At Marugame Udon, customers get in line in front of the open-style kitchen to choose their udon according to the numbers displayed and then choose their desired toppings to customize their orders before they pay at the cashier.

Among the dishes my friends and I enjoyed are:

Beef Ontama Bukkake Udon (Php210 regular | Php260 large). Comes with marinated gyudon beef strips, Japanese poached egg, and bukkake soup.

Chicken Paitan Udon (Php200 regular | Php250 large). Comes with sauteed chicken, a soft boiled egg, and flavorful chicken soup with a distinct taste of cracked pepper.

Gyudon (Php170). Beef strips flavored with a sweet-savory sauce and garnished with onions on top of rice

Well, it sure looks like there’s a new addition to my Japanese food cravings!

If you’ve got a craving for udon but are stuck at home due to the enhanced community quarantine, you’ll be glad to know that Marugame Udon re-opened its BGC branch yesterday to cater to takeout and delivery customers. It is open weekdays from 11am to 5pm and can take pre-orders via +63 2 77999184 or +63 916 6270275.

How about when the quarantine is done and we’re all back to our regularly scheduled programming, we go out to have another serving of Marugame Udon’s offerings, eh?

This Marugame Udon branch is located at Upper Ground Floor, Main Building, SM City North EDSA, Bago Bantay, Quezon City.

Other branches are located at:

Level 2, Robinsons Galleria, Ortigas, Quezon City
Second Floor, The Podium, ADB Avenue, Ortigas, Mandaluyong City
Third Floor, Building A, SM Megamall, Ortigas, Mandaluyong City
Ground Floor, SM City Marikina, Marcos Highway, Calumpang, Marikina City
Ground Floor, O Square Building 2, Greenhills Shopping Center, Greenhills
Ground Floor, Uptown Place Mall, 36th Street corner 9th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
Ground Floor, SM City Cubao, Araneta Center, Cubao, Quezon City
B7, Bonifacio High Street, Lane P, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
Ground Floor, Phase 2, UP Town Center, Katipunan Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City
Ground Floor, Main Mall, Ayala Malls Circuit, Carmona, Makati City
Third Floor, Glorietta 4, Ayala Center, Glorietta Complex, Makati City
Lower Ground Floor, Fisher Mall, Quezon Avenue, Del Monte, Quezon City
Upper Ground Floor, Main Building, SM City Fairview, Novaliches, Quezon City

Get your delish kabab at Behrouz

My son, #ExhibitB, is such a fan of Behrouz’s beef kabab that when we dined another Mediterranean restaurant and he tasted the kabab there, he said, “Mom, I think we’re in the wrong place.”

I really couldn’t fault the little one for his loyalty to Behrouz’s beef kababs. For over twenty years, it has been the gold standard for beef kababs as far as his dad and I concerned.

Behrouz had its start in the country in 1985 when Iranian-born Behrouz Mojde established a hole-in-the-wall restaurant along Scout Rallos Street in Quezon City and called it Behrouz Persian Cuisine. Today, it’s being managed by his son, Modj, and his family, who continue Behrouz’s no-frills approach to managing the restaurant.

Central to Behrouz’s appeal is Beef Kabab (Php70/pc). The juicy and tender ground beef is flavored with herbs and aromatics then grilled over charcoal to produce that appetizingly smokey flavor. Honestly, whenever the fam eats at Behrouz, we order at least eight pieces because each of us have to have at least two pieces of these kababs.

The kababs go so well with Basmati Rice (Php80) with Butter (Php50). We just couldn’t imagine enjoying our kababs any other way.

We normally have Grilled Tomatoes and Onions (Php50), Ox Brain (Php80) and Hummus (Php80) with our kabab meal to bring out even more yummy flavors.

When I’m ordering for just myself when eating out with friends, I usually go for an order of Chelo Kabab Makhsos (Php300 with Basmati Rice). It combines the beef kababs, grilled tomato, basmati rice and butter, and iced tea. It may not be Instagrammable, but it brings practically all the flavors of my favorites good for one person.

Well, Behrouz is a family favorite of long standing and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

During the enhanced community quarantine, two of Behrouz’s branches – Scout Tobias (+63 2 89627615) and Santana Grove (+63 933 4196444) – are available for takeout and delivery via GrabFood and FoodPanda.

Download the Grab App on the App Store or Google Play. Get a discount on your first food order when you use my code: GRABJELLYBEANS.

Use this link to download the FoodPanda app and get Php100 off your first order.

This Behrouz branch is located at Ground Floor, Metrowalk Commercial Complex, Meralco Avenue, Ugong, Pasig City.

Other branches are located at:

Wilson Street, Greenhills, San Juan City
Scout Tobias Street, Laging Handa, Quezon City
Santana Grove, Dr. A. Santos Avenue, San Antonio, Paranaque City
226 Aguirre Avenue Corner J. Ramirez Street, BF Homes, Paranaque

Check out my posts on other restaurants serving Mediterranean cuisine:

Winner chicken dinner, thanks to Chooks-to-Go

If you run out of grocery items and are at a loss on what to have for dinner during the enhanced community quarantine, well, help is just a few clicks (or phone taps) away.

Why not order a lechon manok from Chooks-to-Go and have it delivered to you?

Lechon manok is sure to appeal to everyone in the family: it is a favorite, fuss-free yet flavorful viand that goes so well with that other Pinoy staple, steamed rice.

I would go for a Sweet Roast Oven Rosted Chicken. A whole rotisserie chicken marinated in a mixture of local incgredients and expertly roasted in an oven that still brings about the classic lechon manok flavor we all know and love.

Ordering it won’t break the bank, either. At only Php259 for a whole chicken, and with lots and lots of steamed rice, you can already feed the entire fam a tasty meal.

This Chooks-to-Go branch is located at De Castro Avenue corner Ilang-Ilaang Street, Santa Lucia, Pasig City.

It delivers through its hotline +63 2 86871010 or via FoodPanda.

Bayanihan Musikahan raises additional 1.5M in 1 hour

Small donations amounting to PhP 1.5 million poured into the Bayanihan Musikahan fund-raiser in 1 hour during the live concert-from-house of music superstar Lea Salonga last night.

She began and ended her hour with composition by the principal organizer of the project, Ryan Cayabyab, National Artist for Music. Emphasizing citizen action in the face of a pandemic, Salonga encapsulated an emerging dynamic of citizens helping citizens through small contributions and exercise of talent.

The unusual spike adds this amount to the total of PhP 22,373,178.00 already raised by April 2, 2020. Ms. Salonga announced this figure during her concert, while triggering a outpouring of support from Filipinos on lock-down, watching from their homes in the Philippines and overseas.

The increased fund-raising momentum enables increased speed in delivery of food packs to the marginalized communities in Metro Manila facing the pandemic with extreme vulnerabilities.

The Samahan ng Nagkakaisang Pamilya ng Pantawid (SNPP), a 70,000-strong urban poor organization, began distribution of the Bayanihan Musikahan food packs from a few days after the launch of the marathon concert series, and is increasing pace and reach daily. Nearly 15,000 food packs have been provided families in dense, inner city pockets.

Filipino musical artists giving one hour concerts kick-started and sustain the Bayanihan Musikahan fund drive that enables this quick-response citizen action to stave off the possibility of worst case scenarios among communities compromised by poverty in Metro Manila.

Among those who already performed are Martin Nievera, Ebe Dancel, Acapellago, Karylle Tatlonghari and Spongecola, Bullet Dumas, Rachelle Gerodias and Byeong-in Park, and Morisette Amon.

Donations came in at an increasingly fast clip as the Lea Salonga concert proceeded, and it was immediately clear to an audience of tens of thousands that the surge was driven by the experience of virtual, communal bonding around an admired singer, and heightened awareness of the gravity of threat to impoverished communities.

The citizen-led marathon concert series, livestreamed on Facebook, is an unusal partnership between and among the significant talents of the Philippine music industry and the most trusted of civil society organizations. Philippine Business for Social Progress receives, accounts for, and disburses the funds. The SNPP hit the ground running because it has a complete database on its membership.

Details and image provided in a recent press release.

Steakin’ it easy at Meat Depot

Truth be told: I came from a family of true-blue steak-lovin’ carnivores and so did my Hubby. Apparently, through the interplay of “nature” and “nurture”, our kiddoes turned out to be just like us.

Little wonder, then, that the thought of indulging our inner carnivores by having a steak lunch at Meat Depot after a bout of shopping in Greenhills was enough to have us practically salivating with excitement for the upcoming meal.

Meat Depot has the unique quality of being both a butcher shop and a kitchen at the same time. First established in 2014, it aimed to provide consumers with quality meats for home or institutional consumption, and to bring excellently cooked meats to hungry diners.

At any of its branches, diners can browse through and select their choice from a wide selection of premium cuts which they can bring home, or turn over to Meat Depot’s master grillers for cooking those meats to bring out all of its possibilities in flavor, tenderness and juiciness.

So that’s how we ended up gorging ourselves with our tender and juicy medium-cooked AB Rib-Eye Steaks (Php2,410/kg with Php125 cooking charge per piece which already includes mushroom gravy and choice of rice or mashed potato).

Well, what can I say? We really are a family of steak lovers!

This Meat Depot branch is located at Second Floor. O Square Building 2, Greenhills Shopping Center, Greenhills, San Juan.

Steak lovers in the metro will be happy to know that although this branch is closed for the duration of the enhanced community quarantine, selected Meat Depot branches are still open for pick-up and take-out.

Available products in these branches include:

Pork: lean ground (Php268/kg), menudo cut (Php304/kg), pork cubes (Php288/kg), pork chop (Php278/kg), country style (Php380/kg) and baby back ribs (Php330/kg)
Beef: ground (Php275/kg), shank (Php400)
Angus Beef; T-bone (Php2,070/kg), Striploin (Php2,130/kg), Rib-Eye (Php2,410/kg), Tomahawk (Php2,535/kg) and Tenderloin (Php3,920/kg)
Wagyu: Japanese Wagyu Striploin (Php10,070/kg) and Japanese Rib-Eye A4 (Php11,130/kg)

Just call or message the branch closest to you, indicate your name, order and time of pick up, make your payment via BDO and pick up your order or have it delivered to you through Grab Express or Lalamove.

Banawe, Quezon City: +63 966 7444366
Paseo de Magallanes, Makati: +63 926 0755187
BF Homes, Paranaque: +63 926 6474778

Ramen delivery from Ramen Len, Santa Lucia

My #RamenPhase has been going on for years (and I don’t think it will end anytime soon!)

With the implementation of the Enhanced Community Quarantine, it has been hard for me to get my ramen fix. Authentic ramen does not lend itself well to delivery: the noodles tend to get soggy if left in the broth too long. Due to this, many ramen restaurants refuse to offer their fare for delivery.

Well, the ramen shop near my home, Ramen Len, has found a way around that difficulty. Thanks to its ingenious packaging, the firm and chewy noodles, toppings (a slice of chashu, naruto, bamboo shoots and green onions) and broth are all kept separate until they get delivered.

I discovered this when I decided to supplement our family dinner with some of Ramen Len’s offerings by ordering from FoodPanda.

Our ramen orders included:

Tonkotsu Shoyu (Php190). Thick and creamy pork bone broth flavored with herbs and Japanese soy sauce.

Tonkotsu Red (Php220). The pork bone broth combined with spicy sesame as well as various herbs and spices.

Tonkotsu Black (Php230). The pork bone broth made even more flavorful with the addition roasted garlic oil.

We also ordered Special Gyoza (Php110/ 5 pieces) which is among my daughter’s perennial favorite Japanese dishes. These are Japanese dumplings filled with seasoned ground meat, finely chopped vegetables and aromatics.

Now, I know where to go when I get that ramen craving!

Ramen Len is located at 45 Countryside Avenue, Countryside Village, Barangay Santa Lucia, Pasig City. To order for pick-up, call +63 939 3357160 or have your order delivered to you via FoodPanda.

Website launched for locating nearby open establishments during quarantine period

As most establishments in the Philippines closse due to the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) making it both hard and risky to go out to buy goods, a website launched to help locate those that are still open.

Called “Crowd Store Finder,” the website works lie Waze or Google Maps that scans through the user’s neighborhood to find stores, banks, pharmacies, and remittance centers that remain operational.

Under government guidelines, only establishments selling basic commodities are allowed to open during the quarantine period. This is to prevent people from staying outdoors that increases their risk of catching COVID-19.

Aside from knowing the open establishments, users can also chat with their neighbors who are currently using the website to ask questions and seek further assistance.

Crowd Store Finder relies on information shared by volunteers from Good Vibes Digital PH, a group organized by Trinmar Boado, winner of the Clash of Codes competition at Multisys Technologies in 2019.

Boado, who works at the Department of Science and Technology’s Metals Industry Research and Development Center (DOST-MIRDC), said more than 100 volunteers are coordinating safely from their own homes.

“This technology reminds us that sharing of info does not just save the time of other people but also their lives.” shared the IT expert.

Visit the Crowd Store Finder website or follow it on Facebook.

Website details provided in a recent press release.

Avocado Ice Cream Cheesecake from Avocadoria.PH

Avocado remains one of my favorite fruits ever.

Some of my favorite foodie memories when I was growing up involved my mom preparing a simple dessert made of avocado, sugar, evaporated milk and ice cubes. This was done only within the rainy season because that’s the only time avocados are available.

Now, thanks to modern farming technology, fresh avocados are readily available practically throughout the year.

It also gave rise to the popularity of avocado-based desserts such as those found in Avocadoria.PH.

This dessert chain prides itself on its delicious dessert products made with fresh avocados and other premium ingredients. It also helps local avocado farmers by creating possibilities for use of their harvests and by recycling discarded avocado skins to be mixed with fertilizers used by the farmers.

For foodies like me, it provides more ways to enjoy our favorite fruit.

Take the Avocado Ice Cream Cheesecake (Php550), for example. It’s a great pasalubong for the family or a gift for loved ones during special occasions.

Made with smooth and creamy avocado-flavored cream cheese filling on top of crushed graham crackers and topped with a layer of white chocolate studded with chopped nuts such as pistachios, almonds, cashews and walnuts, every spoonful of this cheesecake is a study in delectable contrasts of tastes and textures.

I’d love to get my hands on another tin of this lovely dessert so I can sate my avocado craving again!

This Avocadoria.PH stall is located at Level 1, Robinsons Galleria, Ortigas Center, Quezon City.

Other stalls in the metro are located at:

Pasig: Tiendesitas, SM Center Pasig, Robinsons Metro East, Ayala Malls The 30th, Ayala Malls Feliz
Mandaluyong: SM Megamall, Shangri-la Plaza, EDSA Central Pavilion, SM Light Mall, Forum Robinsons
San Juan: Greenhills Shopping Center
Quezon City: Eastwood Citywalk 2, Ali Mall Cubao, Farmers Plaza Cubao, Robinsons Magnolia, UP Town Center, Ayala Malls Vertis North, Fisher Mall, SM North EDSA, Walter Mart North EDSA, Ayala Malls Cloverleaf, Robinsons Novaliches, Ayala Fairview Terraces
Marikina: SM City Marikina, Riverbanks Center, Ayala Malls Marikina, Dona Aurora Parang
Taguig: Market! Market!, Food District Signatures on the 5th
Makati: Ayala Mall Circuit, Glorietta 3, Philamlife Tower, San Lorenzo Place Condominium
Manila: The One Grand Center Sampaloc, Robinsons Place Manila, SM City San Lazaro, Lucky Chinatown
Pasay: Ayala Malls Manila Bay,
Paranaque: SM City Bicutan, SM City BF Paranaque, SM City Sucat
Caloocan: SM Center Sangandaan
Malabon: Fisher Mall
Valenzuela: SM City Valenzuela
Las Pinas: SM Southmall, Vista Mall Las Pinas, Ayala Center Las Pinas
Muntinlupa: Alabang Town Center, Starmall Alabang, Festival Mall, Ayala Malls South Park Alabang

Healthy choices and fresh flavors at Hillside Cafe & Juice Bar, Paligsahan

Making healthy food choices is important.

More than the amount of calories consumed, healthy eating is also all about the nutrients that fresh and wholesome ingredients bring.

Hillside Cafe & Juice Bar, located inside Cedarhills Garden Center along Mother Ignacia Avenue, is one of Quezon City’s prime destinations for healthy food.

Aside from its healthy food choices, visitors can also enjoy green space of the plant nursery beside the resto, and maybe even learn a thing or two about urban gardening.

My office friends and I recently visited Hillside Cafe & Juice Bar where we nourished ourselves with the resto’s deliciously prepared dishes made with organic and all-natural ingredients that demonstrate the gustatory possibilities of healthy food, such as:

Roasted Vegetable Salad (Php285 solo | Php475 to share). Roasted carrots, broccoli, cauliflower and squash tossed together and doused in a cauliflower-tomato-garlic dressing and topped with herbs.

Pesto Crusted Chicken Parmigiana (Php435). Large pieces of tender chicken cutlets, breaded with basil and deep-fried to a golden brown served on top of zucchini spaghetti aglio olio, accompanied by stewed chickpeas, edamame and sweet corn.

Squid Ink Pasta (Php265). Linguine pasta in tossed in rich, natural squid ink sauce along with sauteed shrimps, clams, mussels and squid. Here’s a warning, though: Get your selfies before you eat this dish because the squid ink is so rich and dark, your teeth will show the evidence of what you ate whenever you smile, hehehehe!

Citrus Crush (Php165). One of Hillside Cafe’s cold-pressed detox juices made with orange, lime and lemon to boost immunity, lower cholesterol levels and cleanse the skin.

Cacao Fudge (Php145 junior | Php185 regular). One of the classic flavors of Hillside Cafe’s Superfood Smoothies made with cacao, banana, cacao nibs and almond milk.

Choco Peanut Butter Nana (Php150 junior | Php195 regular). A Premium variant of Hillside Cafe’s Superfood Smoothies made with banana, dates, peanut butter, cacao, coconut sugar and cashew milk.

With restos like Hillside Cafe & Juice Bar, foodies can consider benefits food brings, not just to their palate, but to their overall health.

Hillside Cafe & Juice Bar is located inside Cedarhills Garden Center, 57 Mother Ignacia Street, Paligsahan, Quezon City. To order or inquire, call +63 2 77927475 or +63 915 6474706.

Check out my blog posts on other healthy eats in the metro:

Pizza delivery from Papa John’s, Riverside

It’s been three weeks since the enhanced community quarantine came down and I’ve just got to say: thank the powers-that-be for food delivery services!

My son #ExhibitB is an avid pizza lover and he’s been hankering for his favorite food for some time now.

Wanting to give him a treat for not driving me crazy while we’re all stuck at home, I scanned the FoodPanda app for some options, and lo, and behold! There’s a Papa John’s branch in the next subdivision that offers pizzas for delivery.

Gifted with a FoodPanda discount voucher which gave me Php100 off my order, I was able to get a 12-inch family-size Simply Cheese Pizza (Php519 + 10% delivery fee) for just Php470.90.

This went so well with our Pinoy Spaghetti lunch and made my little boy so happy.

Not yet on Food Panda? Use this link to download the FoodPanda app and get Php100 off your first order.

Did you know can practice contactless delivery with your FoodPanda order? Here’s how:

Make sure you’re using the latest version of the FoodPanda app.
Upon checkout, select “Contactless delivery” before placing your order.
Go to your order and tap “Contact your rider” and indicate where you want your order to be placed upon delivery.
If you’re paying via cash, the rider will step three meters back so you can get your order. Please place your payment outside when you claim your food.

This Papa John’s branch is located at Ortigas Avenue Extension Corner Riverside Street, Santa Lucia, Pasig City. To order, call +63 2 88877272.

Other branches in the metro are located at:

102 Jupiter Street, Bel-Air, Makati City
Blue Bay Walk, Macapagal Avenue Corner EDSA, Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City
87 Visayas Avenue, Vasra, Project 6, Quezon City
Ground Floor, A.M. Pacleb Building, Bayan-Bayanan Avenue, Concepcion Uno, Marikina City
N. S. Amoranto Corner Banawe Street, Santo Domingo, Banawe, Quezon City
Ground Floor, Eton Baypark, Kalaw Avenue, Ermita, Manila
Gotaco Building, MacArthur Highway, Marulas, Valenzuela
Ground Floor, Chill Hotel, McArthur Highway, South Caloocan, Caloocan City
The Rolex Place, Rolex Corner Dahlia Avenue, Fairview, Quezon City
Shell Station, C5 Corner Julia Vargas Avenue, Ugong, Pasig City
M.L. Quezon Corner MRT Avenue, Lower Bicutan, Greater Taguig, Taguig City
Lubiran Street, Bacood, Santa Mesa, Manila
VM Terminal Mall, Soldiers Hills, Putatan, Muntinlupa City
Aguinaldo Street, San Antonio, Parañaque City
Metro Gas Station, J.P Rizal Street, Nangka, Marikina City
Don Graciano Building, 1108 E. Rodriguez Sr. Avenue, New Manila, Quezon City
Kamias Road, Diliman, Quezon City
Maysilo Circle Corner San Francisco Street, Plainview, Mandaluyong City
Petron Gas Station, Marcos Highway, Dela Paz, Pasig City