catering – Jellybeans in the City

#ItsAnIllosThing: Buffet Weekends at Illo’s Home, Greenhills

During the past two years which saw the world reeling from the pandemic crisis, celebrations at home offered a few, much-needed bright spots for Pinoys.

These occasions modestly spent with family and a few close friends gave us a look back into what our pre-pandemic lives used to be and a promise of what we can look forward to once this crisis is behind us.

For many of us, Illo’s Party Trays were a great part of these home celebrations during quarantine. Founded by food connoisseurs Chef N and Anne Rovillos in December 2019, this venture showcased the possibilities that good food presents to people who are stuck at home for celebrations.

Guided by its principle of families dining at home as they celebrate life everyday, Illo’s Party Trays launched its “Dine at Home,” “Celebrate at Home,” and “Date at Home” concepts.

These feature great-tasting, hotel-quality food delivered by Illo’s own fleet from its cloud kitchens and commissaries to anywhere in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Rizal, Antipolo, Cavite, Laguna, Tagaytay, Batangas and some parts of Pampanga and Quezon, enabling people to have the means for merry-making with their nears-and-dears in the safety of home.

Illo’s Party Trays’ novel concepts generated social media buzz which further drove this food delivery service to remarkable growth.

With the pandemic slowly but surely easing its hold on the country, and with more urbanites looking for reasons to go out for their celebrations, Illo’s now offers venues where they can enjoy a superb dine-in experience: Illo’s Home.

The first of these restaurants opened in BF Homes Paranaque in February 2022, bringing an excellent selection of local and international cuisines to its dining public.

The second outlet of Illo‘s Home opened a month later at Greenhills Elan Hotel, where diners can enjoy the same menu of scrumptious fare that Illo’s has become known for in a homey yet decidedly posh setting, which include walls with cascading water feature and displays of paintings by local artists.

To add one more reason for the metro‘s foodies to venture out of their homes and dine out, Illo’s Home hosts Weekend All-Day Buffet at its Greenhills branch.

Here, foodies can enjoy a delicious all-you-can-eat spread of appetizers, entrees and desserts for just Php1,200++ per person. These include crowd favorites from Illo’s Party Trays such as: Crispy Binagoongan, Paella Valenciana, Paella Negra, Seafood Paella, Baked Penne, Baked Salmon, Beef Kare-Kare and Roast Beef.

So treat yourself and your loved ones to a memorable celebration of food and life at Illo’s Home Greenhills. You will discover that the moment you spend with great food and great company, is, well, an Illo’s thing.

Illo‘s Home Greenhills is located at the Upper Ground Floor, Greenhills Elan Hotel, 49 Annapolis Street, Greenhills, San Juan. All-Day Buffet is served during weekends: lunch from 10am to 2pm and dinner from 5pm to 9pm.

Book your table by calling these numbers:

0969 230 0735 – Dan
0956 508 7588- Mau
0947 594 4117 -Alex

To stay updated on Illo’s Home’s offers, follow it on Facebook and Instagram.

To order from Illo’s Party Trays, visit its website or call 02 8522 9268. For more details, follow it on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or Tiktok.

Disclosure: I attended an Influencer Event held at this restaurant. Food items mentioned here were not paid for by the attendees.

Say goodbye to boring lunches with home-cooked meals from Crazy Mama’s Kitchen

Whether you’re working from home with no energy to cook your meals or at the office with no time for lunch out, never fear. Your nanay is here to the rescue!

That would be Crazy Mama’s Kitchen, a new food-based enterprise born from the thousands of fiestas and celebrations, catering request, and paluto from friends and family. From the small kitchen of her home where she refined Filipino recipes into her Classics, to a soon-to-open physical store in Robinsons Bridgetowne in Quezon City, Crazy Mama has been gearing up to feed hungry customers who are searching for a break from the usual boring packed lunches, fastfood takeout and pwede-na-yan dinners.

The Kitchen recently opened its doors for soft launch, ready to serve employees nearby offices, as well as busy households of neighboring villages with extraordinary takes on what used to be lutong-bahay staples.

‘Di Basta Menudo (Php130). Small pork cubes sauteed with cut-up carrots and potatoes in a rich tomato sauce with a few surprises thrown in such as raisins and hotdog slices. Served with rice.

Killer Caldereta (Php170). Tender cubes of marinated beef slow-braised with rough-chopped vegetables, slices of chorizo and some peppers for a bit of a spicy kick! Served with rice.

Eh-Spaghetti (Php80). Pasta purists would argue whether spaghetti is a Filipino dish. Well this one sure is! All our favorite stuff from birthday-party spaghetti is here: the al-dente noodles, the sweet and savory meat sauce, and, of course, the hotdog slices and lots of grated cheese!

Planning a gathering that needs food? Crazy Mama can easily cater to various party sizes from small group lunches and family take-outs to large events like townhalls, meetings and private parties. Crazy Mama’s Kitchen offers party trays and bulk orders which are served in individual and reusable containers to ensure food hygiene and safety.

The best part is that party planners or even busy moms no longer need a three-day lead time to have their events or family gatherings catered. They can just throw fuss-free get-togethers and serve great food any time, any day.

To order your meals from Crazy Mama’s Kitchen, visit its website.

Its dishes will also soon be available in food delivery services like GrabFood and Food Panda.

You can also drop by its physical store and take advantage of its Buy 5+1 offers.

Want to showcase your Tiktok creativity and win cool prizes from nanay? From July 21st to August 21st, join the Tiktok ni Nanay Challenge where Filipino Moms can showcase their talent or sense of humor.

To get updated on Crazy Mama’s latest pakulo and offers, follow Crazy Mama’s Kitchen on Facebook and Instagram.

Disclosure: Product samples were provided to facilitate this feature article.

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.