Affordable Japanese Meals To Go at Izakaya Flame, BGC

Personally, I consider my weekday lunch hour sacred.  It cuts right at the half of my work day, giving me a few precious minutes of respite from daily grind, so I can escape into my next foodie adventure before I get back to work in the afternoon, refreshed and energized.

It also serves as time for bonding with work colleagues who also happen to be good friends.  Our brief #HappyLunch outings  give us an opportunity to catch up and relate with each other, not as coworkers, but as friends, fellow parents or just fellow nerds. 🙂

Central to our #HappyLunch experience is the discovery of good food – discoveries that become our new favorite places.  Sometimes, during weekends, we find ourselves taking our families and friends to the places we discovered during our lunchtime jaunts.

Sometimes though, morning meetings spill over to lunch time, or a report needs to be submitted at precisely 1.30pm.  During times like these, when we can’t go out, can #HappyLunch adventures still be possible?

Fortunately for corporate denizens of Bonifacio Global City (commonly referred to as BGC :-)), Izakaya Flame recently launched a line of affordable rice meals exclusively for takeout. Dubbed as Power Meals to Go, the line is comprised of five tasty yet fuss-free Japanese viands packed with premium Japanese rice.  They are served in microwaveable (and reusable!) plastic containers for easy reheating.

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Izakaya Flame, BGC

These include:

Gyoza (Php109)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Dory (Php119)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Tori Karaage (Php129)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Pork (Php139)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Katsudon (Php149)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Izayaki Flames’ Power Meals to Go are an excellent option for those who are craving for their Japanese food favorites but are not able to dine at the restaurant. That’s such as shame as the restaurant’s swanky premises sure are easy on the eyes.  For those who can, I do recommend to visit the resto to take in the novel experience that it has to offer.

Building on the concept of izakaya – a type of informal Japanese pub where people can enjoy small-sized meals together with a drink – it has a modern Asian-inspired decor and both table, bar, and outdoor seating to cater to the diners’ preference.  The bar, in particular, is where the teppan is masterfully prepared right in front of dinners by a trained cook.

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Among the tasty representatives of Japanese izakaya cuisine you can sink your teeth into are:

Spicy Beef Roll (Php245)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Takoyaki (Php95)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Beef Teppanyaki (Php305)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Ice Cream Tempura (Php125)

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Plus, watch out for a fusion of Japanese and Pinoy flavors: the Dulong Maki.

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Izakaya Flame innovates on classic Japanese flavors and brings them to lovers of Japanese food to be enjoyed whether inside or outside the restaurant.  Well, I know what I’m going for the next time I’m in a meeting that spills over to lunch at BGC. I know I can still have a #HappyLunch with Izakaya’s Power Meals to Go. 🙂

Izakaya Flame, BGC

Izakaya Flame is located at the Fourth Floor of the Uptown Place Mall, 36th Street corner 9th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City in Taguig.  It is open daily from 10am to 10pm. For queries and reservations, call +63 916 2519922.

Izakaya Flame Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Disclosure: I attended the Bloggers’ Day held at Izakaya Flame.  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.

Ramen for a Rainy Day at Ramen Kuroda, SM Marikina

The recent bouts of heavy rain and colder weather gave rise to a craving for a bowl of hot, steaming and hearty ramen.  There really is something about slurping on some thick hot broth that drives the rainy day blues away.

During a recent back-to-school shopping trip at SM City Marikina, the fam joined me in giving in to my ramen craving when we decided to have lunch at the newly opened branch of Ramen Kuroda.

The place seems to be a hit as there was a line of people waiting to get in.  To help facilitate faster service, the hostess already facilitated the orders of the waiting patrons so that waiting will be minimal once the diners are seated in the dining area.

This restaurant’s mantra is to “make Real Ramen part of your everyday.”  This is central to its promise to its customers to provide:

  • carefully selected ingredients such as home-made noodles, soup and seasoned garlic oil that provide their distinctive flavor
  • speedy service to satisfy busy people
  • ramen that is affordable enough that you can enjoy it everyday
  • culinary supervision by an expert ramen chef
  • Japanese-quality ramen made accessible to more Filipinos

For the family’s lunch, we ordered:

  •  Ramen Chahan sets that already include ramen, rice and fruits such as:
    • Katsudon (Php380) with Aka Ramen. As Hubby likes spicy food, he ordered the ramen with a spicy bent.
    • Gyoza (Php320) with Shiro Ramen. I ended up splitting the gyoza with my daughter and giving my rice to my son as the ramen was hearty and filling enough, albeit a little bit too garlicky.
    • Karaage (Php360) with Shiro Ramen.  My daughter found the chicken pieces a bit small but she was able to get her fill of the ramen.
  • Tonkatsu (Php240) plus Rice (Php40) for my son.

A post shared by Jellybeans in the City (@beingjellybeans) on We found the meal as a whole filling and affordably priced, and the service staff friendly and accommodating, though a bit overwhelmed at the influx of diners.

Still, we found the resto’s mantra to have its fair share of overpromising. The resto would do well to settle on one or two propositions (such as affordability and fresh ingredients) and build from those, rather than have such lofty goals and be found lacking in some of them.

This branch is located at Ground Floor, SM City Marikina, Marcos Highway, Calumpang, Marikina City. For reservations and other queries, call + 63 2 7772839.

Other branches of Ramen Kuroda are located at:

  • SM FAIRVIEW: Annex 2 Lower Ground Floor Quirino Highway Cor.Regalado Avenue Quezon City
  • TV5: LaunchPad Reliance Corner Sherdian St. Mandaluyong City (Tel: + 63 2 6370220)
  • SM MANILA: 2/F SM Manila Conception Street Corner Arroceros and San Marcelino Streets, Manila (Tel: + 63 2 2438665)
  • CYBER & FASHION MALL EASTWOOD: 3/F Cyber and Fashion Mall Eastwood City Bagumbayan, Quezon City (Tel: + 63 2 5343414)
  • MEZZA RESIDENCES STA MESA: G/F The Strip at Mezza, Aurora Blvd. Araneta Avenue Quezon City (Tel: + 63 2 2417449)
  • VENICE GRAND CANAL MALL: 2/F Venice Grand Canal Mall, McKinley Hill, Upper McKinley Road Taguig City (Tel: + 63 2 5521170)
  • LUCKY CHINA TOWN MALL: 3/F Lucky China Town Mall, Reina Regente corner Dela Reina Streets, Binondo, Manila (Tel: + 63 2 2418157)
  • ASEANA II: Ground Floor Aseana II BRADCO Avenue Aseana City Paranaque City (Tel: + 63 2 8326246)
  • RCBC PLAZA MAKATI: 3/F RCBC PLAZA 6819 Ayala Avenue Makati (Tel: + 63 2 8326216)
  • BF HOMES: #96 Aguirre Avenue, Phase 2 BF Homes Paranaque City (Tel: + 63 2 5536824)

A vastly improved dining experience at Teriyaki Boy, SM East Ortigas

My first and second dining experiences in the SM East Ortigas branch of Teriyaki Boy with my family were less than stellar as detailed in my previous post.  I was therefore quite pleasantly surprised when I received an invitation from the management to dine again at the same branch for free.

Together with Hubby and the kids, I set out to give this branch another chance.

Well, what can I say? The service and kitchen team set out to wow our group and they did!

As instructed, I looked for the manager-on-duty, Acee, when we arrived.  The service crew immediately ushered us to our seats and handed us the menu until Acee came out to greet us.

She clarified a lot of my misgivings during my earlier visits in this branch.  For one thing, our first visit here was during the first week of the branch’s opening and the group was still ironing out some kinks in the system while dealing with the first rush of people.  Another was on how we can better enjoy the steaks we cross-ordered from Teriyaki Boy’s sister-restaurant Sizzlin’ Steak (more on that in this post).

From Teriyaki Boy’s menu, we ordered most of what we got during our first visit such as:

  • Tempura Tuna Tartare (Php165) – This spicy mix of tuna sashimi, Japanese mayo and tempura flakes is a great appetizer as the slight spicy kick of the wasabi-seasoned sashimi is counterbalanced by the creamy mayo and the texture of the tempura flakes.
  • Gyoza (Php155 for 5 pieces) – Another of my daughter’s favorite appetizers, these steamed and seared pork dumplings were juicy and flavorful on the inside and has a slight crisp on the outside.
  • Dynamite Roll (Php185 for 8 pieces)– I found this sushi roll composed of fresh tuna, chili oil, Japanese mayo and Japanese chili pepper togarashi too spicy for my taste but Hubby loves it and orders practically all the time.
  • Tonkatsu (Php280) – This breaded and deep-fried pork is actually my son’s favorite dish.  We just ordered a Gohan (Php65), or steamed Japanese rice, to go with this viand. We are happy to note that this time, the breading does not fall apart from the meat unlike in our previous visit.
  • Katsu Ju (Php345)– Pork tonkatsu that has also been simmered in sweet soy sauce, diced onions and sliced leeks, and served with a beaten egg on top of steamed Japanese rice, and whose blend of flavors and textures appealed to my daughter.
  • Teriyaki Boy Cotton Cheesecake (Php115)– This cross between a rich cheesecake and an airy souffle is one of Japan’s most popular desserts.  Next time, though, I’ll request to have the chocolate syrup on the side rather than drizzled on the cake.

This much more enjoyable time at Teriyaki Boy was also brought about by the attention and assistance of servers Rhea and JR who immediately fulfilled, and even anticipated, our requests.

The week after this visit, Hubby and I dined at Sizzlin’ Steak and we cross-ordered Endamame (Php90) for our appetizer, two orders of Tonkatsu and Yakimeshi Rice (Php75).

I’m glad I was able to have the opportunity to change my mind about this resto.

By the way, with the Max’s Group’s All You Can Wednesdays Promo, you can eat all the Ebi Tempura you want at Teriyaki Boy from 2pm to closing time at only Php349, available all the Wednesdays in June.  More details are available in this blog post.

Teriyaki Boy Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Tempura Overload at Tenya Tempura Tendon, BGC

Considered of the most successful tendon restaurant chains in Japan, Tenya Tempura Tendon opened its doors in the BGC Stopover Pavilion. Its goal, driven by the vision of its founder Mr. Yoshio Iwashita, is to provide diners with high quality yet affordable tendon and tempura.

Tenya prides itself on the quality of its ingredients – such as the sweet succulent tiger prawns, the heart-healthy canola oil, Japanese rice and secret dontare sauce for its tendon – and its methods to produce consistent and tasty tempura such as the specially designed infrared heat technology-powered fryer.

Tempura is one of Japan’s most popular dishes, characterized by seafood, meat and vegetables covered in a light batter then quickly deep-fried to produce tempura’s signature golden-brown hue.

During our family’s recent foray in BGC, we chanced upon this Tenya branch around lunchtime and decided to try it out.

We ordered a Yume Ooedo Set (Php1,295) which consist of 6 black tiger prawn tempura, 6 kani sticks, 3 squid, 3 fish tempura, 2 small kakiage (chopped vegetables and seafood), 3 battered green beans, 3 battered sweet potato, 4 rice and 4 miso soup. Aside from that, we also ordered a 5-piece Salmon Tempura (Php310).

The servings were hearty and the textures and flavors were varied enough that we did not experience umay (roughly translates to flavor-fatigue). The batter was light and adhered well to the fried seafood and veggies. Given that all four of us ate our fill, our orders were affordably priced indeed.

The service staff were friendly and accommodating, quick to assist us with our requests.

My only complaint about the experience was that the store’s airconditioning system was not able to counteract the summer midday heat.

This Tenya Tempura Tendon branch is located at the 2nd floor, BGC Stopover Pavilion, Rizal Drive cor 31st Street, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig (Tel No: 02 – 512-4776). Other branches are located at:

  • Ground Floor, Market! Market!, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City (Tel No: 02 – 833-9682)
  • 4F SM Megamall Bldg. A, Doña Julia Vargas Ave, Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City (Tel No: 02 – 696-5996)
  • Food Street, Ground Floor, SM Southmall, Almanza, Las Piñas City (Tel No: 02 – 984-3872)
  • ASEANA Avenue cor. Diosdado Macapagal Blvd. Paranaque City (Tel No: 02 -370-5924)
  • GF Water Garden, Extension Site, Civic Drive, Festival Supermall Alabang, Muntinlupa (Tel No: 02 – 512-4862)
  • GF North Wing Entertainment Mall, Sunset Ave. cor. Seaside Blvd. SM Mall of Asia Pasay (Tel No: 02 – 810-2784)
  • GF Southpark Bldg. Paseo de Magallanes, Makati City (Tel No: 02 – 821-5797)

For more details on Tenya Tendon and Tempura food offerings, visit Tenya’s website.

Tenya Tempura Tendon Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Carnevores satisfied at Number 1 Barbecues, SM East Ortigas

Number 1 Barbecues is a recently-opened restaurant in SM City East Ortigas.  Because of its Unli-Rice promo, it was always full of people for its first few months that my family was only able to eat there last December in time for my son’s birthday lunch.

Interestingly, Number 1 Barbecues offers a range of dishes from different cuisines including Filipino, American, Japanese and Mediterranean, so there would be something for everyone. Its’ relatively cheaper pricing and free unli-rice offer makes it a great venue for group and family meals.

We ordered the following:

Lechon Belly (Php109)

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12-Hour US Smoked Beef (Php129 + Php50 for extra smoked beef) – served with mashed potato and coleslaw

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12-Hour Smoked Pork Belly (Php119 +Php40 for extra pork belly) – served with mashed potato and coleslaw

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5 pcs Shrimp Tempura (Php149)

Kani BBQ Bacon (Php99)

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Chocolate Cake ala Mode (Php39)

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Chocolate Mouse (Php39)

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Creme Brulee (Php39 each)

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The meats are tender and well-seasoned but the servings are quite small so it’s a good thing we ordered extra servings of the smoked beef and pork belly, satiating our group of carnevores.  The desserts are adequate bookends to the meal.

Number 1 Barbecues is located at Ground Floor, SM City East Ortigas, along Ortigas Avenue in Pasig City.

Ramen break at Rai Rai Ken

While out on an errand with my daughter in SM City Taytay, we came across this branch of Rai Rai Ken.  We don’t normally come across Rai Rai Ken branches in our usual haunts and since I’m going through my ramen phase and my daughter is a tempura aficionado, we decided to have our dinner here.

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Rai Rai Ken started out as a humble eatery located along Bautista Street, Makati City in the early ’90s, which later started offering authentic Japanese ramen to its clientele.  Now, it has 30+ branches nationwide, all serving old-fashioned steamy, heartwarming bowls of ramen.  Its expanded menu now includes sashimi, sushi, teriyakis and teppans.

The branch in SM Taytay is clean with Japanese-inspired decor that includes a cherry blossom painting and paper lanterns that add character to the space.

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I chose Tonkutsu Ramen (Php375) for myself; it consists of a rich pork tonkutsu broth, Japanese noodles, slices of marinated and slow-roasted pork belly, topped with mushrooms, aji tamago (marinated soft-boiled egg), menma (bamboo shoots) and nori (edible seaweed).  The steamy dish does warm the heart with its full-flavored broth and the contrasts in texture of noodles combined with its toppings.

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I also ordered Ebi Tempura (Php355 for 5 pieces), Salmon Sashimi (Php350) and Kani Salad (Php179) as requested by my daughter.

This branch is located at the Upper Ground Floor, Building B, SM City Taytay, along Taytay Diversion Road, Bgy Dolores, Taytay Rizal.

More info available at the Rai Rain Ken website.

Satisfying Japanese fare at Ariake

Japanese cuisine is characterized by fresh ingredients prepared in accordance to the season as well as simple yet artistic plating.  Both are present in Ariake such that it’s among our group’s go-to lunch places for a Japanese meal.

Among its dishes that I recommend are:

  • Crunchy Tuna Sashimi (Php255) – raw tuna mixed with tempura flakes and a special dressing
  • Ebi Tempura (Php180 for 3 pieces)
  • Beef Teppan (Php355) – cubed tenderloin steak with sauteed vegetables
  • Tokyo Style Ramen (Php250) – shoyu-based soup, pork slices, boiled egg, leeks and cabbage
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Ariake is located at Unit C Barretto Building, 284 Tomas Morato Corner Scout Rallos, Sacred Heart, Tomas Morato, Quezon City.