food delivery – Page 24 – The Jellybeans Edit

Lunch delivery from Pares Retiro, Tomas Morato via LalaFood

Before the community quarantine and the need to isolate ourselves in our homes began, I’m glad I was able to try something that will surely be a blessing in the days ahead.

LalaFood is a food delivery app that guarantees delivery of food orders within forty-five minutes or less with no minimum order required. (Note: Since the community quarantine was implemented, LalaFood has adjusted its delivery times in light of the increased demand for food delivery and its skeletal crew of riders.)

One busy workday, my friend and I could not find the time to get out of the office for our #HappyLunch. Not wanting to limit ourselves to the choices available in our office building’s food court, we grabbed our phones to look at the options available through the LalaFood App.

As luck would have it, one of the restos that deliver via LalaFood is the Pares Retiro branch nearby. Wanting a taste of Pinoy comfort food, we ordered ourselves variations of Beef Pares.

This dish is basically braised beef stew paired with garlic fried rice (hence the name pares) and usually served with clear soup. The beef cubes are simmered in a mixture of soy sauce, sugar and other spices, resulting in tender meat and flavorful sauce that go so well with the garlic rice.

My friend ordered the Classic Pares (Php155) while I got myself a Pares Tendon (Php165), which is basically beef pares made even better with the addition of tender litid (tendon) that seems to melt into the sauce and provide a contrast in texture to the beef and rice with every mouthful.

I even got myself a can of Sarsi from the Ministop store across the street to complete my meal.

We ate our comfort food bounty at our desks, not exactly the way I’d like to enjoy my food, but at least I had some time to eat and get ready for my meetings after our midday break.

All things considered, I’d say it was still a happy lunch. Wouldn’t you?

This meal was ordered from the Pares Retiro branch located at 205 Tomas Avenue, Barangay Laging Handa, Quezon City via LalaFood.

Other Pares Retiro branches are located at:

P. Tuazon corner 17th Avenue, Cubao, Quezon City
SM Hypermarket, EDSA corner Main Avenue, Cubao, Quezon City
344 Visayas corner Congressional Avenue, Pasong Tamp, Tandang Sora, Quezon City
Food Court, Fourth Floor, Market! Market!, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig

The Jelly List: My fave resto dishes you can enjoy at home

Hello, fellow foodie! How are you holding up? I hope you’re safe at home and surrounded by your loved ones just like me.

After several days of being #TeamBahay, I have to admit: I may be getting a bit tired of home-cooking. (Yaya, don’t be tampo! Your cooking is great!)

I can’t help but miss those scrumptious, meticulously prepared, beautifully presented dishes from my favorite restaurants.

Do you feel the same?

Well, guess what: we can enjoy those wonderful viands at home, thanks to delivery services. (I panicked for a while when Gran and FoodPanda briefly suspended their services the other day. Thank heavens that’s all sorted out! Whew!)

So, if you have a craving for any of these delectable dishes, just contact the resto and have them delivered to you. Not only will you get to enjoy a fabulous meal in the safety and comfort of home, you also contribute to the continued health of these businesses.

Buttered Parmesan Chicken Wings of Buffalo Swing Cafe

Ooh, these tender and juicy chicken wings, deep-fried to crunchy goodness and flavored with a butter parmesan rub are perfect bites when you’re binge-watching movies on Netflix.

Buffalo Swing Cafe is located at 363 Dr. Sixto Antonio Avenue, Caniogan, Pasig City. To order, call +63 2 86412561 or +63 917 7954554.

Buffalo Swing delivers via Food Panda.

Read more about Buffalo Swing Cafe here.

Martabak Manis of Sammy’s

If you have ever come across this delightful Indonesian dessert called Martabak Manis, I’m sure you will agree that it’s quite a treat. Made with thick pancake layers filled with chocolate sprinkles, crushed peanuts, cheese and condensed milk, it’s perfect for those late-night sweet cravings.

Sammy’s is located at 14 Raspberry Bend Street, Valley View Executive Subdivision Phase 3, San Juan, Cainta. To order, call +63 939 1483960.

Sammy’s delivers via Grab Express.

Delicious home-cooked meals from The Happy Kitchen

There is something magical that happens when family and friends sit down together over a home-cooked meal.

When people get together at the dinner table, an array of freshly cooked dishes spread before them, good conversation, good vibes and good times are not far behind.

However, with today’s hectic lifestyle and busy schedules, not everyone would have the time to constantly slave over the stove to come up with mouth-watering meals.

Enter The Happy Kitchen.

And by enter, I mean invite it to your home to bring you and your loved ones the flavors you love and grew up with.

The Happy Kitchen (or THK) is the brainchild of Risa Cirineo, a full-time food entrepreneur based in Cainta, Rizal.

She originally operated a canteen in her home to take advantage of a new business opportunity presented by a new school opening nearby, as well as an office canteen in a car dealership.

When she had to close down the office canteen, she jumped on a new and more practical business opportunity: selling party trays online.

In 2018, she started doing exactly that: selling party trays of comfort food such as Beef Caldereta, Kare-Kare and Sisig on Facebook to anywhere in Metro Manila.

Today, her product lines include include party trays, packed meals and “paluto” requests of comfort food and party favorites, some of which were sent over for me and my family to sample:

Beef Caldereta (Php650 good for 6 | Php1,100 good for 10). A mainstay in many family gatherings and fiestas, the caldereta is a showcase of Spanish influences on Filipino cuisine. Named after the caldera – the cauldron where the ingredients are stewed in – this dish combines simple ingredients such as marinated beef, rough-chopped vegetables and a bit of liver pate to bring about a comforting and hearty dish. In THK’s version, the meat was melt-in-your-mouth tender while the tomato sauce was rich in beefy flavor with a bit of cheese and just a hint of spice.

Special Pork Sisig (Php500 good for 6 | Php850 good for 10). This Kapampangan dish is actually one of my daughter’s favorite viands and would usually order it whenever we dine out. She took a liking to THK’s rendition of this classic dish as it was not overly oily and the crunch chicharon bits gave it added texture and flavor. This dish is great as an appetizer or as bar chow.

Chicken Cordon Bleu (Php600 good for 6 | Php980 good for 10). Another party classic, this dish is made of chicken breasts thinned and wrapped around pieces of ham and cheese, then breaded and pan-fried to a golden brown. It’s great as a viand accompanied by rice or by itself as a finger food during cocktails, and is usually a hit with the kids because – duh! – cheese and chicken. 🙂

Korean Chicken (Php520 good for 6 | Php880 good for 10). With all things Korean being a hit in the Philippines these days, it’s no wonder that THK began offering Korean-style braised chicken to its clientele. Risa built on her mom’s recipe – a family favorite for years – by adding gochujang to this dish made with tender chicken pieces in a flavorful sauce of aromatics and herbs. This fresh take on a chicken-based viand is a hit with my son.

These dishes from The Happy Kitchen showcase the care and pride that Risa puts into her cooking. They feature meats that are tender to the bite, veggies with some crisp freshness and flavors that appeal to everyone in my family.

Many thanks to Risa for sending over these THK best-sellers!

Here’s how you can get these delectable dishes for your family dinner or clan gathering:

Visit The Happy Kitchen on Facebook to check out its menu of available dishes.
Text the following details to +63 922 3057613 or +63 917 5493643 at least three days in advance: your name, contact number, your orders and your preferred delivery date, time and address or your preferred date and time of pickup
Pay via bank deposit or online fund transfer to BPI or BDO: 50% downpayment at least three days before pickup or delivery and the remaining 50% one day prior to pick up or delivery

Aside from party trays, THK’s dishes are also available as packed meals good for meetings or as crew meals, with sets priced at Php110 for 1 viand + 1 rice, Php135 for 1 viand + 1 vegetable side dish + 1 rice, Php165 for 2 viands + 1 rice and Php195 for 2 viands, 1 vegetable side dish and 1 rice.

Disclosure: Product samples were provided to enable an honest review.

Check out my blog posts on other small enterprises and startups in the food business:

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.