barbecue – Page 2 – Jellybeans in the City

Unli Premium Korean BBQ at Muhan Samgyupsal, Greenhills

My love affair with Korean BBQ has already spanned more than a decade and I welcome every chance to enjoy it, especially with my family in tow. Really, what’s not to love about it? Sizzling strips of tender beef or pork cooked right before our eyes, a proliferation of side dishes (called banchan) to munch on while the meat is cooking, the interplay of tastes from the meat wrapped in crisp lettuce accompanied by the complexly flavored ssamjang paste.

This past week, I was quite fortunate to try out one of the newer entrants among Korean barbecue restaurants: Muhan Samgyupsal.

This resto is situated in a newer buildings along Ortigas Avenue in the Greenhills area, and it boasts of ample parking space as well as expansive and well-appointed interiors.

As I have come to expect in all Korean barbecue joints, this branch of Muhan Samgyeopsal is equipped with exhausts to suck the smoke from the meats cooking on the table-top grills.

Its menu is refreshingly simple but packed with value. The choices consist of:

UNLI 1 (Php369/person for lunch available from 11am to 3pm and Php399/person for dinner available from 3pm to 2am): unlimited refills of 5 kinds of pork barbecue

UNLI 2 (Php399/person for lunch available from 11am to 3pm and Php449/person for dinner available from 3pm to 2am): unlimited refills of 5 kinds of pork barbecue and 3 kinds of beef.

UNLI 3 (Php449/person for lunch available from 11am to 3pm and Php499/person for dinner available from 3pm to 2am)): unlimited refills of 5 kinds of pork barbecue, 3 kinds of beef and shabu-shabu.

All these come with soup, unlimited banchans and steamed egg.

Plus, the resto currently runs a Lunchtime discount promo wherein a group of four diners get to enjoy, not just the discounted pricing on the Unli sets, but also a free 1.5 liter Coke. Now, isn’t that a great combination?

The fam opted for Unli 2 so we were able to enjoy various options of marinated and unmarinated pork and beef. Granted, our tastes veer towards the unmarinated kind.

The premiumness of the meat cuts was apparent in their flavor, juiciness and tenderness, which, together with the clean and comfortable surroundings and the warm and friendly assistance from the wait staff, makes the price of the menu items so worth it.

We all enjoyed our first dining experience at Muhan Samgyeopsal and we look forward to our next visit.

This Muhan Samgyupsal branch is located at the Ground Floor, Eton Square Building, Ortigas Avenue, Greenhills, San Juan, open daily from 11am to 2am. For reservations and inquiries, call +63 956 3912240.

Other branches are located at:

Second Floor, One Archers Place, Taft Avenue, Malate, Manila (Tel: +63 2 7175627)
830 Padre Noval Street, Sampaloc, Manila (Tel : +63 955 4957585)

Disclosure: Part of this family lunch is sponsored by Muhan Samgyupsal through free Unlimited Meals good for two people, the balance of which was paid for.

Former OFW pays tribute to family recipes at Las Pinas’ Cafe Tribu

When OFW, nurse and new mother Krishna Torres – Pagarugan returned home to the Philippines to raise her daughter, she decided to become a franchisee of Cafe Tribu, a coffee shop specializing in Philippine-grown coffee beans.

However, her coffee shop soon turned into a family affair.

Her sister and business partner Kathleen Torres-Bell turned their premises – formerly occupied by a beauty salon – into a bright and cheery haven for relaxing and conversing with friends. A colorful array of furniture and decor are mixed and matched into an eclectic yet tasteful combination: from the flowers and wire lamps hanging from the ceilings, her father’s paintings and mural taking pride of place on the walls, to the various chairs, tables and throw pillows that make one’s stay here quite comfy indeed.

The cafe’s sprawling premises can accommodate up to fifty people for a party or office function, but can also serve as a cozy venue for an informal art exhibit or crafting workshop.

A wide spectrum of diners comfortably pass their time in this space – from local businessmen taking a break from their morning walk, to students of nearby schools and colleges meeting up with friends.

Her mother, a cooking enthusiast, helped her expand the store’s menu to include classic Filipino dishes – affectionately dubbed Naty’s Specialties after her late grandmother – some of which I was able to sample, among others, when I visited this place for a much-awaited get-together with two of my closest college friends. These are dishes made-to-order at least two days prior, and are good for three to four persons, which include:

Kare Kare (Php420). To be honest, I’m still loyal to my mom’s Kare Kare in terms of flavor and mouthfeel but this does come close. The meat, slow-cooked for hours, is tender and can be easily pulled apart by my fork. Together with crisp, lightly cooked vegetables, it is submerged in a thick peanut sauce. When eaten together with rice and the cafe’s slightly spicy homemade bagoong (shrimp paste), each mouthfull is an explosion of flavor.

Laing (Php240). Bicol’s signature dish of shredded taro leaves and meat bits cooked in coconut milk – and accompanied by a hefty serving of sliced chilis – is one of my husband’s favorite dishes. I took some home for his dinner which he loved. (Ganda points for me, huh!)

Chicken Barbecue (Php350) and Liempo Barbecue. Another set of Pinoy classic dishes, these are comprised of large pieces of chicken and pork belly marinated in a sweet barbecue sauce and grilled to tender and juicy perfection.

Beef Tapa (Php130). Why, oh why, do strips of tender fried marinated beef become irresistible when accompanied by fried egg (sunny-side up, please!) and garlic fried rice?

Alas, too bad for my #dietgoals, Naty’s Specialties go so well with rice, lots and lots of it. (Our nanays and lolas seldom thought about carbs when these recipes are being developed, I guess.)

Meanwhile, to address the hunger pangs and limited budget of the students who frequent her cafe, Krishna also serves snacks that are easy on the tummy and on the students’ wallet such as:

New York Hotdog (Php115). A hefty Frankfurter rolled in oil, topped with caramelized onions, salsa, spicy mustard, mayonnaise, ketchup and bacon bits.

Club House Sandwich (Php100). This double-decked sandwich has layers of ham, tuna and veggies, served with crisp potato chips.

Want something hot to accompany those yummy snacks? You can’t go wrong with the drinks whipped up by the cafe’s Lebanon-trained barista such as the Hot Chocolate Velvet (Php90), White Chocolate Latte (Php105), Caramel Macchiato (Php105) and Oreo Latte (Php120).

How about something refreshing to cool yourself down when the hot summer days come along? Check out the cafe’s icy frappes such as the Matcha Green Tea (Php140), Strawberries and Cream (Php120) and White Mocha Frappe (Php120). But really, don’t leave the store without a taste of the cafe’s specialty, the Coffee Peanut Butter Avalanche (Php150), truly a heavenly concoction!

This day was memorable because three friends were able to come together for good conversation over good food and drinks, amidst beautiful surroundings. So make your own beautiful memories with family and friends here at Cafe Tribu!

This Cafe Tribu branch is located at 136 Gloria Diaz Street Corner CV Starr Avenue, BF Resort Village, Talon, Las Piñas City. For reservations and inquiries, call +63 2 3563971 or +63 995 2740204.

Disclosure: Together with my college friends, I was invited to a food tasting held at this restaurant. Food items mentioned here were served to allow us to sample the fare and were not paid for by my companions nor myself.

Carnevore Food Trip at Fat Daddy’s Smokehouse, UP Town Center

There’s something so primal about grilling food, particularly meat. Harking back to cavemen days when it was discovered that cooking food in an open flame makes it more tender and taste better, grilling has now become an advanced study in itself, with specialized tools and techniques to satisfy the most discriminating tastes among grilled food fanatics.

Fat Daddy’s Smokehouse began as a venture among siblings – right in the backyard of their house in Marikina. Having discovered the unique flavors and distinct styles of the American southwest when it comes to grilling, smoking meats in particular, they determined to bring that kind of cooking back home with them.

From its flagship store in Marikina, to this bigger store in UP Town Center in Quezon City, the Fat Daddy’s has certainly come a long way. This newer branch boasts of a spacious seating area, fun and playful decor as well as a showcase of meat rubs, condiments and sauces that the restaurant owners developed while perfecting their barbecue techniques. It is an ideal place for fun family dinners and boisterous barkada get-togethers.

Together with fellow bloggers, I was invited to attend a foodie meetup held here where I was able to sample many of Fat Daddy’s signature dishes.

Buttermilk Fried Livers (Php210)

Who would have thought that I will be munching on – of all things – chicken liver! But this is not your ordinary fried animal innard dish; the chicken livers are marinated in buttermilk, deep-fried, coated with Fat Daddy’s home-made barbecue rub and served with piedmont and Alabama sauces.

Jera’s Ultimate Pulled Pork and Bacon Nachos (Php330 for half serving/Php600 for whole)

A humungous pile of nachos, pulled pork barbecue, smoked bacon, salsa and sliced jalapenos, drizzled with oodles of homemade cheese sauce and Alabama barbecue sauce.

Hot Pork Poppers (Php175)

Imagine biting into thinly sliced pork belly dried to a yummy crisp and coated with homemade piedmont sauce.

Chef Pat’s Ultimate Cheese Dip (Php250)

Bless Chef Pat’s heart for this! Melted cheddar and mozzarella mixed with beef and onion make for a great dip for toasted bread and tortilla chips.

Crispy Fried Pickles (Php185)

Panko- and corn crust-coated dill pickles are deep-fried and served with Alabama-style barbecue sauce.

All those appetizers sure did their job: whet our appetites for more… because more certainly came.

The star of the show is undoubtedly the Holiday Feast Platter (Php2,699, good for 4 persons). The family’s holiday dinner will no doubt even be more festive with all its hearty inclusions:
Smoked Ham
Smoked Pork Ribs
Roasted Chicken
Barbecue Pulled Pork Salad
6 Pieces Salted Egg Chicken Wings
2 Slices of Chocolate Cake
Plain Rice
4 Glasses of Iced Tea
2 Extra Sides: choose from Southern Potato Salad, Buttered Veggies, Coleslaw, Sauteed Beans and Bacon and Chicken Macaroni Salad

I would have let this story end right here, being so full from the carnevore feast laid out for us, I was approaching food coma.

But, no, they just had to bring out dessert.

O. M. G.

Sweet saints above! Whatever good I ever did to deserve a taste of the Cajeta Cheesecake (Php155/slice) – a sinful variation of the dulce de leche – and the Caramel Drizzled Banana Pudding (Php170/slice) – moist butter bread drizzled with caramel and topped with home-made vanilla ice cream – I’m just glad the powers-that-be were around to see it.

The other delectable dessert treats we were able to gorge ourselves on include:

Pecan Pie (Php250)

Bacon and S’Mores Dip (Php250)

Spicy Chocolate Cake (Php125)

Pineapple Carrot Cake (Php125)

My foodie adventure at Fat Daddy’s Smokehouse was a feast for carnevores capped off with treats for sweet-tooths like me.

This Fat Daddy’s Smokehouse branch is located at the Ground Floor, UP Town Center, Katipunan Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City. It is open open daily from 9am to 11pm. For inquiries and reservations, call +63 2 7174482.

Fat Daddy’s original store is located at 171 Dao Street, Marikina Heights, Marikina City, open weekdays from 12 noon to 9pm and weekends from 11am to 9pm. For inquiries and reservations, call +63 995 5832237.

Disclosure: Together with other food bloggers, I was invited to attend a foodie meet-up held in this restaurant. All the food items mentioned here were served to allow us to sample the fare and were not paid for by the attendees, including myself.

Discover great food by great cooks at Meals.ph

With our busy schedules and so many responsibilities, preparing something good for a family meal or a gathering can be quite a challenge. Don’t you sometimes wish that you could just have someone to do all the marinating, basting, slow-cooking, grilling and baking for you? This will leave you so much time to do all the other stuff you need to do but still assures you and your near-and-dears a great meal.

Food delivery services recently started becoming popular as it connects us busy working moms to restaurants from which we can order food to be delivered to our homes.

But sometimes, we crave for food that only good artisanal home cooks can give.

Enter Meals.ph.

Meals.ph is the brainchild of young entrepreneur Macky Sy who envisioned creating a platform that helps people find great home-cooked meals near us as well as help home cooks earn a little extra by selling their meals online.

Through the website, you can navigate the tabs to find vendors for specialty meals (according to cuisine), meal plans (with options for per-day and per-week orders), catering for events (party trays), desserts, ready-to-cook/eat meals, as well as sauces, side dishes and snacks. You can also just use the search bar to find a specific dish you’re looking for.

When you’ve selected your dish, click “Order” to initiate the order process, wait for the vendor to acknowledge, then settle with the vendor regarding the terms for payment and fulfillment of your order.

Note, though, that these terms vary from vendor to vendor, and the availability of dishes varies from area to area.

If you find yourself too loaded with tasks and would like to leave the cooking to someone else, why not check out some of Meals.ph’s vendor partners. Especially with the holidays coming, get yourself to enjoying more time relaxing and having fun with family and friends, and maybe help support some of these budding entrepreneurs as well.

Kitycups

The person behind Kitycups is part-time accountant/financial advisor Kristine Rodriguez. She started by baking simple cookies and eventually grew a business out of her hobby. Her venture specializes in cakes and sweets and she hopes to establish a factory for her food business someday.

On a side note, I recently treated myself and the kids to one of her Dreamcake Chocolattas and we loved it! Watch out for it among my future posts. 🙂

Nikita’s Pastries

Niki Alfaro, on the other hand, works full-time on her business, Nikita’s Pastries, while taking care of her mom who has a heart condition. This home baker decided to put up a home-based business that will give her the time and flexibility to be available to her parents while providing her with an independent income. She dreams of one day opening her own restaurant or bringing her business with her to the US. Check out her cheesecake cups; those are her specialty.

FoodAllMighty

When Cristina Bustos is not at her job, working as a supervisor in a BPO company, she occupies her time with cooking but she hopes to go full-time on her side business someday. Her FoodAllMighty party trays, particularly the baked lasagna, are a boon to those who are assigned to bring viands for the office potluck or the clan get-together.

Shoreline Barbecue

Men seem to have a special relationship with grilling and artist, entrepreneur and doggy daddy John Muyargas revels in this. Having worked his way up from waiter to chef in an Italian-American resto in Dallas, Texas, he brings Tex-Mex flavors to his local customers through his Shoreline Barbecue trays. His immediate plans involve steadily growing his business and sharing the love.

Migu Migu

Carlos Cabigao pulled himself up from the multiple challenges that his family encountered and set out building a business. He first started with baking until a friend suggested he try making spreads using flavored butter. His White Truffle Butter is a definite must-try.

With so many great cooks ready and willing to prepare gorgeous and delightful food for us, and with a service like Meals.ph that connects us to the best among them, it just make sense to free ourselves from the stress of holiday cooking.

Check them out at Meals.ph!

You’ll be also glad to know that Meals.ph already has a mobile app. Download it from the App Store or Google Play, check it out, and tell Macky what you think. 🙂

Have an Instant Party at Alex III, Tomas Morato

With the approaching holidays comes the much-awaited season of parties and get-togethers. Pinoys, in particular, love to celebrate with food, lots and lots of it. I recall my mom and titas slaving away in the kitchen, preparing their signature dishes for our family gatherings.

While I’m passionate about food, I’m not too keen on stressing myself out in the kitchen. Fortunately, thanks to a Foodie Meet-up held at Alex III’s Tomas Morato branch, I, together with my fellow foodies, discovered that I can treat my loved ones out to a feast of classic Filipino favorites, thanks to its Instant Party Menu.

Alex III’s Instant Party Menu consist of two sets of dishes. Both priced at Php2995, these feature home-grown Filipino party food enough for a group of five. These are all prepared and cooked with the same love and tradition that goes all the way back to Aling Asiang (or Mrs. Engracia Reyes), the matriarch of the family behind the Aristrocrat restaurant of which Alex III is an offshoot, being a business started by one of Aling Asiang’s grandsons.

Set One

This set includes:

Choice of 1 viand among Chicken Barbecue, Pork Barbecue, Barbecued Pork Belly and Whole Fried Chicken
Special Pancit Canton
Fresh Lumpiang Ubod or Lumpiang Shanghai
Kare-Kare
Crispy Pata
Steamed Rice

Set Two

This set includes:

Choice of 1 viand among Chicken Barbecue, Pork Barbecue, Barbecued Pork Belly and Whole Fried Chicken
Whole Fried Chicken
Whole Crispy Lapu-Lapu with Sweet and Sour Sauce
Camaron Rebosado
Special Pancit Canton
Shanghai Rice

Each set is served with garlic peanuts, a sushi sampler, your choice of soup (of which we sampled the Hototay and Sinigang na Salmon), bottomless iced tea and your choice of dessert (of which we sampled the Leche Flan and the Pandan Jellied Tapioca).

Both sets present diners with a combination of flavors that are dearly familiar, being dishes that were served during family reunions and fiestas when we were growing up. They also serve as a way for working moms like me to reconnect our present-day celebrations with the warmth and traditions of our childhood: that despite the hectic schedules and fast-paced lifestyles, we have a way to get together with our loved ones to exchange old memories and make new ones, while enjoying good food and good company.

With Alex III’s Instant Party Menu, the tradition of fun family celebrations with good food is made even better.

This branch of Alex III is located at Tomas Morato Avenue Corner Scout Bayoran, South Triangle, Tomas Morato, Quezon City, open daily from 11am to 11pm. For reservations and queries, call +63 2 3711414 or +63 2 3711415. Its spacious, tastefully appointed and well-lit interiors make it a great venue for large family gatherings or office parties.

Other branches are located at:

201 Wilson Street, Little Baguio, San Juan City (open daily from 11am to 11pm | Tel Nos: +63 2 7240882 or +63 2 7264444)
29 Matalino Street, Diliman, Quezon City (open daily from 11am to 10pm | Tel Nos: +63 2 9261266 or +63 2 9268942)
53 Pontiac Corner Chevelle Street, Fairview, Quezon City (open daily from 11am to 10pm | Tel Nos: +63 2 3766286 or +63 2 3765179)

By the way, did you know that for your parties at home, you can have your favorite dishes from Alex III delivered right to your doorstep? Minimum order for delivery is Php500. For more details, contact the Alex III branch nearest you.

Disclosure: I attended the Bloggers’ Day held at this restaurant. All the food items mentioned here were served to allow us to sample the fare and were not paid for by the attendees, including myself.

Soul Food Feast at Morganfield’s, Ayala the 30th

The fam recently met up with the in-laws for a birthday celebration at Morganfield’s at Ayala The 30th.

Morganfield’s is a casual dining restaurant specializing in “good ole’ fashioned barbecued pork ribs with an extra dose of Southern hospitality” – the tenets of cooking what has come to be known as soul food.

Its signature dish – Sticky Bones – is made of slow-cooked and hickory smoked tender prime pork ribs, which are then basted with the home-made tomato/based sweet-and-sour mopping sauce, resulting to the “sticky bones” left when diners are done with the meal.

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Meats for the #confirmedcarnivore and seafood and veggies for the rest. All these and more at @morganfieldsph at Ayala Malls the 30th! #foodie #foodiegram #foodgasm #foodporn

A post shared by Jellybeans in the City (@beingjellybeans) on May 16, 2018 at 3:03am PDT

This and more were feasted on when the fam ordered Rib Sampler (Php3,295) sharing platter. It’s basically a humongous serving of 3 Flavors of Barbecued Ribs, loads of sausages, garden salad, corn on the cob, corn bread and french fries. For added meat, we also ordered a 300g Rib-eye (Php1,325), a juicy medium-done US rib-eye steak accompanied by a special garlic butter, baked potato and crisp garden vegetables. To represent the fruits of the sea, a serving of Beer-Battered Fish Fillets (Php395) was ordered. And, as if all that was not enough, we munched on some Onion Rings (Php155).

There was a wide range of hearty flavors and textures that made for a filling meal, albeit quite an expensive one as well.

The place had a fun and casual family-friendly vibe, helped by cheery and helpful wait staff.

This Morganfield’s branch is located at the 2nd Floor, Ayala Malls The 30th, 30 Meralco Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City. For reservations, call +6327213502.