tokwa’t baboy – Jellybeans in the City

Do you remember your first taste of streetfood?

The varied shapes, colors and textures, the interplay of sweet, salty, sour and spicy, plus a hint of the forbidden (because didn’t our moms warn us to keep away from these back then?) and that feeling of comfort when you bite into them, these are part and parcel of our early street food experience.

While those good sensations associated with street food remain to this day, that feeling of prohibition hardly applies now, especially when street food is elevated to the level that Casa Calle brings them to.

This stall located at Eatogether Food Hall in SM Megamall serves up, not just Pinoy comfort food faves, but also welcome tweaks on our favorite street food, such as:

Inihaw Platter (Php380). Various meat and sundry parts marinated in barbecue sauce and charcoal grilled to smoky perfection such as two sticks each of Pork BBQ, Isaw Manok (chicken intestine), Bulaklak (ruffled pork fat), Tenga (pork ear) and Betamax (coagulated pig’s blood). This promo bundle is available only during Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Lugaw Special (Php95 for small | Php115 for large). Savory rice porridge with bits of meat and tripe, a hard-boiled egg and garnished with toasted garlic and choppef green onions.

Tokwa’t Baboy (Php90). Crispy bits of pork belly tossed with fried tofu and chopped chilis and onions in a vinaigrette made with vinegar and soy sauce.

Tokneneng (Php35). Hard-boiled duck egg covered in orange batter, best enjoyed when dipped in spiced vinegar.

Sizzling Beef Pares (Php188). Cubed beef brisket sauteed and stewed with garlic, onion and ginger, and seasoned with star anise. This viand is paired with garlic fried rice (hence the name “pares”) and served on a sizzling plate.

Turones ala Mode (Php155). Banana and langka slices encased in lumpia wrapper, them deep-fried, and served with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream and garnished with sesame seeds and chocolate sauce.

Get ready to rediscover your love of Pinoy street food here.

This Casa Calle branch is located at Eatogether Food Hall, Second Floor, SM Megamall Building A, Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City.

Another branch is set to have its grand opening soon at 163 Aguirre Street, BF Homes, Paranaque City.

Disclosure: I attended a food-tasting here together with fellow foodies. All food items mentioned here were served for us to sample the fare and elicit our honest feedback.

Check out my posts on other stalls at Eatogether Food Hall:

The 2151 Joint is a hole-in-the-wall eatery located at 2151 Residences along C. Raymundo in Pasig City.

My brother recommended this resto to me, singing praises to its tasty dishes and affordable price.

One Saturday, I dragged the fam here to sample its offerings.

We arrived at midday, apparently not a peak time for this establishment since my family and two other people are the only ones there. However, the waitress did inform us that they closed for the night at 4am earlier because there were still a lot of patrons until that time.

The resto’s decor is certainly interesting: it has various toys and bric-a-brac displayed in glass cases and shelves that line the walls; its tables are decorated as board games such as Snakes and Ladders, and Scrabble.

Strangely, though, when I questioned the waitress on the concept behind the resto’s decor, and whether the table tops were actually used for games, she said that the decor was just the preference of the owner. There are no Scrabble pieces or dice and tokens to play Snakes and Ladders.

To me, this is a wasted opportunity because the place could appeal to a younger market who can frequent it from late afternoon to early evening for gamer meet-ups.

Furthermore, the upholstery of many of the couches are cracked, giving the place a dingy look and feel.

On the other hand, The 2151 Joint’s food offerings did live up to my brother’s praises. For my family’s lunch, we ordered:

Tokwa’t Baboy (Php80)
Crispy Kare Kare (Php130)
Sisig (Php110)

These down-home Pinoy dishes tasted better than I expected given the surroundings and their prices.

I hope the resto invests a bit more to improve its interiors, if only to appeal to a more wholesome crowd.

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