Really eating out in Malate – Super Six Grille

Utterly ignorant politically, I only judge leaders by their output. And though I heard a lot of flak about Atienza, I miss what he had done in Manila. I miss being able to walk along Carriedo without jeeps bearing down on me. And I miss walking Roxas Boulevard’s nightlife, amidst the vibrant, salty throngs.

Buti na lang, Super Six Grille hasn’t been shooed away despite its spilling over Remedios sometimes.

Craving the beach but unable to get out of the city, I settled for, uh, the caress of the malagkit and briny wind off of Manila Bay. Practically broke, I dragged D into a slumming dining experience he survived naman.

If I do influence you to try Super Six Grille, push away ANY expectation of ambience. This place is unapologetically street. And not Som’s kind of street pa which is at least quiet and homey.



A and I discovered Super Six on another slumming adventure maybe 2 years ago. On a break from working in Bangkok, I wanted to find Manila’s version of Khao San (and its requisite cheap street eats). We figured Malate would have it. And it did :)

For Php20 each, you can get basics like a stick of pork or chicken bbq, as well as other choices like pork with garlic, pork liver, pig ears, chicken with onion, chicken heart, chicken gizzard and liver.



A platter of liempo is Php 50, as is bbq chicken thigh.
Three pieces of grilled chicken ass is Php 40.



What really caught my eye though was their fresh bbq ideas like tomatoes wrapped in bacon, onion leeks, grilled eggplant, grilled garlic, grilled tofu and crab sticks bbq. All also 20 bucks each. Cheap AND so yummy.



I think we ordered half of their menu and lots of sticky garlic rice. We only paid Php 300.
Plus, we got serenaded pa with “Kay sarap ng may minamahal”. Well, parang mas-masarap pag may murang pagkain ;p





Super Six Grille is right along Remedios St., in front of Socialista, Club Tekshi and Tia Maria’s. Grab a monobloc table and wait for a guy to take your orders. Or go to the grill counter and pick out your sticks ☺

dream puffs

Tee Up Cream Puffs, it should read. The latest offering from Monde. Little balls of crispy pastry filled with chocolate or custard cream. Yum.

At P12 per box at 7eleven, it's really too good to be true.

Everything At Steak

has been reviewed every where else. But it took me awhile to try the place out. It's along P Guevarra in San Juan. It's right at the Petron Station nearest to Wilson. It's not quite your 99 bucks steak joint. My T-bone with rice came out to be 132 bucks. But that's still not bad for what I got. And they do have P88 meals, I think.

The place tries to be a bit homey and country. But there's no disguising that it's a cheap steak joint. But what's important was that my T-bone was soft and juicy, and the gravy tasty. Ok na ko dun.

popcorn is evil

When you eat a whole giant tub. Which is what I can't help doing when I come across Chef Tony's white cheddar popcorn. Don't let the eager salesfolk trick you into getting the parmesan. Medyo bitin siya sa lasa for me.

I've tried two other flavors-- caramel and white chocolate walnut (?). Pero white cheddar fan pa rin ako. Sweet, salty and extremely addictive. It says low fat and low cholesterol on the label. I really hope that's true. Consuelo de bobo y gluttono.

Stole the pic off Chef Tony's website. Hope he doesn't mind. You can look for the nearest Chef Tony's outlet here-- http://cheftonyspopcorn.com/TheBranches.html

wheee :D

Relatively quicker and cheaper. Been open at the Glorietta 4 foodcourt for more than a week now. Yehey! :)

Ihaw Balot Plaza

And then there’s the quintessential QC beer garden. Going to Ihaw Balot Plaza is like entering a time warp. They still have multicolored light bulbs. In-house rock ballads come from the videoke machine they’ve set up in the garden. And one time, I ordered a Coke Light, and got served what was probably the last bottled Diet Coke on earth. Serves me right for ordering a softdrink in a beer house.

A buddy of mine introduced us to this beer house/garden found along a little street between Panay and Quezon Ave. His father used to bring him and his siblings there, when they were little. Later, when my buddy married, he got his sisters together to bring them back to the place where you can find the best inihaw na pusit and chicken ass. There was also a drunken brawl at the nearby table as an added treat. (No worries, doesn’t happen that often.)

Nowadays, IBP is a brightly lit, wholesome beer garden. If you go early enough, say 6 to 9pm. Appetizers come in the form of kasoy, green mango, and bagoong, from the manang who sits by the gate (thought they've moved her indoors lately). Kasoy, sour, unripe fruit and sweet shrimp paste hardly go together. But it’s IBP, and anything goes, including your sense of what goes together.

At IBP, they have consistently excellent and simple food fare. Their grilled chicken ass is sweet, and the sizzling bulalo is tender and meaty. Their sisig is underrated. And lest you give yourself a heart attack, the inihaw na pusit is even better. Theirs is seasoned, smoked and slowly grilled to perfection. It’s not too soft, not too chewy, and always fresh. Arguably, the best pusit in town.

It’s the perfect place for the guys (with the patient, low-maintenance girlfriend or wife) to kick back and talk about the most important things in life: family, politics, and our NBA fantasy leagues.

At Ihaw Balot Plaza, you’ll find that the chicken ass good, the squid better, and the cholesterol and beer induced conversation best. I hope it stays the same for the time I bring the wife and kids over.

Going all the way (chicken ass, 1 kilo of pusit, sisig, bulalo, rice, softdrinks and beer) cost our group of 6 over 200 bucks each. Not bad, I reckon.

Ihaw Balot Plaza is along Scout Borromeo, between Panay and Mother Ignacia. Side of Tropical Hut.

Poochini’s

After the extravagant spending and eating of the holidays, it’s back to work with as lean a meal allowance as possible. Can you get a good meal for, say, 50 pesos? Bogchinoypi was started to answer that question. And to find possible solutions like Poochini’s.

With a niche carved out of the Valero parking building, I expected higher prices than a jollijeep. They have seats after all. And bespoke at that – orange, with cut-out carrots like the one on their logo. Don’t expect to get your bum on any of them though, unless you come way before or well after the lunch rush hour. With only three sets of tables and its popularity because of the jollijeep prices, your best bet at lunchtime is take out.

Poochini’s set-up is carinderia-style. But rather than huge, stainless casseroles, they have food warmers. So lunch almost seems like a wedding buffet gone wild. Attendants stand behind the long table of warmers, while diners come up to the table and swarm around.

If there’s no free spot right in front of the table, stand behind someone and wait patiently. When he or she’s done, take his/her place and wait for an attendant to pay attention to you. Once one does, point out the viands you want and she’ll ladel them out for you. It’s chaos, but its organized. Typically Filipino, no?

The great thing about Poochini’s is that there’s lots to choose from. I’d say they easily have twice, even thrice the number of choices you’ll get at a Jollijeep. Just today, I counted 24 warmers of different viands on the table.

Plus, despite the jollijeep prices, their servings are more generous. And I guess because of the presentation, you’ll feel more confident about how sanitary your food is.
I usually come in for staples like their thick monggo (10 pesos), their very tasty, crunchy squid (30 pesos) or tokwa in black bean sauce (30 pesos). But officemates swear by their adobo (30 pesos), caldereta (30 pesos), pata tim (30 pesos) and sinigang (30 pesos). Biko lovers will be glad to know they always have a few slices on hand. Leche flan seems to frequently grace the table too.

They have a good range of choices for pork, beef, chicken and, important for me, veggies. Chances are, if you’re craving for a specific pinoy dish, they have it. And it’s bound to be truly satisfying too.

Poochini’s is along Valero st., along the line of Valero parking building shops like Bugong (another favorite!) and Mercury Drug. Open til 9pm, sometimes even later.

p.s. don’t forget to claim your free broth!

Dong Bei

Turns out I had to be in Escolta for work today. I decided to make a food trip out of it and searched online for recommendations. Dong Bei was mentioned in several blogs as one of the stops in Ivan Man Dy's Binondo walking tour (which I would love to take one of these days).

From my meeting in Plaza Cervantes, I walked in the direction of the Binondo Church and beyond. I took my cue from Gene Gonzalez and ordered fried dumplings and dry soybean noodles. A tour group (I presume Ivan's) entered the place as I was having my meal, allowing me to shamelessly eavesdrop for a few minutes. I would have wanted to try other dishes but the servings were too large. Next time, I'll make sure to bring reinforcements. 

I spent around P250 for 10 fried dumplings, a bowl of noodles, and a can of beer.

Here's to Ears

Boiled pigs' ears tossed with olive oil, lemon, cilantro, and salt. Enjoyed at O' Santos, Taipa Village, Macau.

Original post (11/25/07):

I don't remember exactly when I fell in love with with the cartilage crunch of pigs' ears. What I do remember is where I had my first taste of what is now one of my favorite parts of the piggy. It was at an isawan somewhere in the kilikili of Makati. Barbecued, the ears were good - sticky and crunchy at the same time. If I were to have barbecued tenga now, I would probably head over to Countryside along Katipunan Avenue.

I also enjoy pigs' ears deep fried - aka crispy tenga. I think pretty much any of the ubiquitous grills will be able to prepare this dish competently. But I never thought I would enjoy pigs ears that weren't either fried of flamed. The pictured dish, which we tried in a small dumpling restaurant in Hongkong, contains slivers of steamed/boiled(?) pigs' ears, garlic, cucumber, and oil. Served cold, it was very simple and very good.

Let us know where you enjoy your tenga.

where to get taho by the bowl

Apart from pets, bicycles, shoes, magazine back issues, PX goods and winterwear, add soy products to Cartimar's, er, varied, list of finds.


Cartimar isn't exactly a stone's throw away, but if you happen to be in the area, save some space in your tummy for a very filling bowl of taho. It's the perfect pre- or post-shopping protein fix.


You get a hefty bowl (your choice if you prefer hot or cold), and you can choose if you want it plain or with toppings. You have red bean, lotus seeds, mango, sago or peanuts as options. Plain taho is at 25pesos a bowl. ( I had mine at 4pm and was full til dinner.) Add 15 per topping.
This one's lotus seeds (aka garbanzos) and the one at the top's red bean.


I found the red bean the tastiest. Sago with syrup is classic, of course. And here, you get a finer quality and bigger serving than what you get from the manong taho. I have yet to try peanut, but I think I'll save that for when I'm craving an improbable meal of crunchy and soft.

The Tiong Hwa foodstore gets brisk business from people dropping by for their freshly bottled soy milk (it's really good, sweetened or otherwise), red bean-, peanut- or lotus-filled mochi (have yet to try this), and a wide variety of frozen specialty foods (dumplings, fish steaks, furais, chinese rice meals). And with the tables and seats inside, I'm glad they've created a clean, quiet place to take a break from walking around.



Tiong Hwa food products store is in Cartimar Shopping plaza, along the row of Japanese groceries.

Oishi Pods

Geek that I am, the product name sends my mind in sci fi directions. I almost didn't buy it. But anyway, this yummy potater alternative's been hard to find, so when you see a bag, grab it!
The clean, crisp package design drew my eye. And I was pleased with the crunchy contents. Don't expect actual peas though. As the copy on the bag stays vague, I assume it's some recombined pea material instead, haha.

It's baked not fried, and fortified with vitamins. So it's an inexpensive, very tasty and somewhat healthy (on the most babaw level) snack. In a cursory comparison with other chips in the shopping bag, it did have less fats and calories and more protein. It seems a bit high on sodium though.

Still, I like it. And at 11php in MiniStop, I'm grabbing the next bag I see.

(On a sort of related note, have you been to Oishi Land? www.oishi.com.ph. There are cute games and everything! And, I didn't realize they had such a wide product line up na. What's your favorite Oishi snack?)

Good Origin

According to karabau, this place has closed down. Sad siya. (updated 12/30/07)

Riding around Makati late one night, I came across Good Origin Bento along Pasay Road. It looked new and cheap - how could I resist. I ordered the niku curry soba udon, which wasn't too yummy. But then it cost only P75 so I shouldn't be complaining. Also on the menu are your usual rice toppings, gyoza, and some salads.

Good Origin Bento supposedly closes at 5am. Seems like a decent place to fill your stomach after a long night of partying, when hot and cheap *almost* make up for taste.

Along Pasay Road, between the corners of Amorsolo and Paseo de Roxas. You can't miss the huge neon sign.

Suzukin, at the corner of cheap and tasty

Well actually, it's at the corner of Kamagong St. & Sampaloc st. But yes, it IS cheap and tasty, and quite filling too. So after a sulit saturday, hungry and beat, I declared I wanted cheap japanese. Noone else had an opinion, so we piled into the car and headed for San Antonio village.



As we were all too tired to read the menu off the walls, we settled for the laziest choice and also the most sulit item - the set meal. For php123, you get 2 ebi tempura pieces, tuna steak, chicken furai, tai kimiyaki (fish fillet), squid balls, pork kushiyaki, rice and miso soup. Yes, aaalll of that for 123pesos. On a little steel serving platter.



It's almost like a menu sampler. And as you can glean from this selection, you shouldn't expect anything sophisticated in Suzu Kin. Their cook's imagination stops at frying. But he does it well, haha! And it lets them deliver big on taste and value despite the small price.

Take the free miso soup, I find it tastier and more savory than a lot of the miso soups I have to pay for in other, higher-end japanese restaurants. They put little bits of fried batter to add to the tastiness. And the broth is opaque from all the miso, tofu and veggies.



Everything on the set is yummy, each in its simple, fried way. I like too the uniqueness of going through little bite size meats prepared in different ways. It's a mini buffet! For me though, the tuna steak is a stand-out. (A lighter, tuna version of bistek. Garlicky and dark with toyo, but still retaining the taste of tuna.) I just keep forgetting to order it on its own, instead of succumbing to viand polygamy. You can get tuna steak a la carte at php120. Mmm-mmm. The chicken furai is great too, juicy and memorable thanks to its dark but tangy sauce. The tai kimiyaki is tender and packed with taste.



Their menu has all the japanese fastfood basics: donburi from php109 (Oyakodon) to php129 (Gyudon), teppanyaki from php157 (squid,chicken) to php202 (shrimp), tempura (6-8 little pieces of shrimp for php155), sobas, udons, sashimis and makis. If you're a raw fish connoiseur though, I wouldn't reccomend ordering here as these really aren't their specialty.

What I appreciate most about Suzukin is that they know their target market. The average salaryman who just wants a good, no frills, inexpensive meal at the end of a tiring day. I want to commend them for turning out solid, filling meals at low prices, WITHOUT scrimping on their ingredients.
Plus, i mean, they're basically a carinderia. They serve their water in thick glasses and their food in steel plates. The staff hardly smile. They have no ambience at all. But I think they get by on inadvertent charm. Their menu's hand-pentel penned on cartolina. There are japanese-y curtains above the doorway. And they all scream "arrashaimase" when you go through the door. These make me fond of Suzu Kin - the little japanese carinderia that tries.

Going down Metropolitan ave. towards Quirino ave., turn left at Caltex. It's right on the corner - facing the dress shop and lying tangent to Metrobank. You can park along Sampaloc st., right by SuzuKin itself. At lunch, there's an old man who watches your car while you eat fried meats.

Snackaroo, yahoo!

Somewhere in the lower-middle class suburban jungles of QC is a steak joint where the staff is overworked and surly, and where the tables are wet, and the utensils greasy. So, come prepared with a very good sense of humor about these things, because Snackaroo is worth the trouble.

For P130 bucks, you get an excellent t-bone slathered with wonderfully unhealthy gravy.


Photo actually shows two orders of well-done t-bone steak… I was really hungry.

Snackaroo is located on Judge Jimenez Street. Coming from T. Morato, get on Kamuning, and you'll find J. Jimenez on your right.

spreadable chocnut

In an informal taste test, 3 out of 5 people found that Candyline Co. had succesfully duplicated the ChocNut taste. I guess it depends which ChocNut taste you remember - the sweet&nutty earlier formula OR the more recent too-sweet version. For me, ChocoMani captured ChocNut at its best and upped the ante by playing with the consistency. There's a good balance of the swetness and nuttiness (insert crazy joke here). You can taste each distinctly but appreciate their mingling together too. Plus, the change of texture from crumbly to buttery made a 'classic na pinagsawaan na', suddenly fresh.

At Php56 (at 7-11) for a 40gram jar, it comes to php1.40 per gram (WHO calculates cost like that?). But the experience of spooning the chocolatey peanut butter, licking it off and letting it melt in your mouth is priceless. Besides, the alternative - stuffing actual ChocNut in your pan de sal - sounds a bit weird.

On a vaguely related note, I appreciate 7-11's adding single Dole bananas by their check-out counter. Tells me they support my wanting to eat healthier. AND gives me a great idea for dessert. Anyone for ChocoMaNana?
(Wait, does that sound right?)

Kikufuji Updates

Taped onto the back cover of Kikufuji's regular menu is their specials menu. It changes every couple of months and contains items that give me temporary kuripot amnesia.

Right now, I find guilty pleasure in the fresh oysters sunomono (P250+). Around four pieces of oysters off the shell are served in a vinegar bath and sprinkled with chopped spring onions. Ultimate pulutan, I think.

not another Greenhills Chinese resto review

First off, shout out to YUMMY for being crazy enough to feature a delinquent blog like ours. Now we feel the pressure to keep this place up.

Anyway, back to my Greenhills-based Chinese restos. While Greenhills on weekends is such a chore, Greenhills on weekday mornings isn’t so bad. When I have the time, I make sure to work out at the gym early so that I can get a big lunch at Le Ching Too (the second one, orange interiors, not the first one, green interiors, food is the same though).


Le Ching Too is my mother’s worst resto nightmare. She questions the restaurant’s hygiene and food preparation techniques. Personally, I turn a blind eye. You do that for love.

Le Ching is best at what it does. It doesn’t have an extensive menu. And from that short menu, stick to what you know. You either get a rice topping, or noodles. A lot of people like the Beef Brisket Rice, I’m not a big fan though. I like the Chicken and Black Mushroom Rice a lot. But what I really love is their Spareribs Rice. It’s a load of tender, tasty pork ribs on top of steamed rice. Served in a steel bowl. I wonder if the steel bowl is for making me feel that eating at Le Ching is an authentic Chinese peasant/proletariat dining experience. I’m not quite sure.

When I was there last, I sort of veered off the tried and tested path. I tried their Shrimp Cheongfan. Not so good. The flour-y(?) wrap was too thick, and sort of overwhelmed the pitiful shrimp stuffings.

Next time, I’m sticking to the rice toppings. Or I’ll finally try their noodles. Like I said, I’m not a big noodle fan, but I’ve been… growing up. I saw someone order the Stewed Beef Brisket Noodles. The noodles get served with a hearty amount of brisket on top, and the soup is served separately. I’m looking forward to that.

It has to be said that a large part of Le Ching’s success are the little things that come with the food. Like their famous chili garlic. I want to know how they make it. Or at least where they make it. I want to raid the place, and steal a whole vat. That ought to give me half a lifetime’s worth of chili garlic. While I was there, there was a guy at the next table who raved that he takes his sinigang with Le Ching’s chili garlic. Weirdo. But hey, I want to know where he gets his stash. No local Chinese resto has duplicated the truly garlic-flavored Le Ching mix.

And so as not to be overpowered by the wonderfully spicy chili garlic, order their cold soya milk too. It’s not too sweet, and it retains the subtle flavor of soy, unlike the over-flavored, commercial variants.

Le Ching’s been around for years. I started eating there in high school. It’s not really a secret, given by the large lunch and dinner crowds at both Greenhills branches. But I haven’t seen anyone write about the place. Lately, at least. So I’m giving it my stamp of approval: It’s the only place where I’m happy to pay to eat out of a steel bowl.

Le Ching and Le Ching Too are both located in the basement level of Shoppesville, Greenhillls Shopping Center. Le Ching (green interiors) is across McDonalds, Le Ching Too (orange interiors) is closer to the tiangge, the row of Ricky Reyes. I hear there’s a branch at Trinoma, but I haven’t been. Dishes are large single servings, and are mostly in the P70-100 range.

pancit nanaman!

On most Sundays, I avoid Greenhills like the plague. The whole shopping center may be undergoing a facelift, but the place is still an urban planning nightmare. Traffic and parking sucks on weekends, and especially now that we’re heading into the freakin’ holidays.

So I was sort of pissed that our mother wanted to eat lunch at Casa Reyes, another offshoot from the Aristocrat family of restos (by my count, there’s Alex III, Serye, and Reyes BBQ). I was hungry, in no mood to argue, and even more ticked off to find the resto full.

That turned out to be a blessing in the sky(!) because I suddenly remembered that we hadn’t eaten at Sun Moon Garden in the longest time.

Sun Moon Garden has been in Greenhills since… forever. We used to eat there almost every Sunday when our church was actually in the shopping center. And Sun Moon isn’t actually a garden. It’s really in the basement of Shoppesville, right behind the row of ID photo booths, where I used to get my ID photos done back in the pre-digital age. (Nowadays, I just shoot myself.)

Anyway, Sun Moon is known for its pancit canton and that’s because it has the best pancit canton. Ever. And that’s coming from the guy who’s not very fond of noodles and pasta. Hold on, I’m not sure if it’s actually listed as Sun Moon Pancit Canton on the menu. Basta. It’s the one with tender noodles that’s not so thin, yet not so thick (medium?). It’s got this tasty brownish sauce that’s not too gooey. Also it’s got a mound of vegetables and seafood on it. Like a lot of the Chinese dishes that have come our way, it’s a meal in itself. The small-sized order was just right for the three of us.

For nostalgia’s sake, we also ordered my favorite Fried Shrimp Balls. It was deep fried to a golden, crispy outside, nice and soft inside finish. It’s served with a more-sweet-than-sour sauce, and should be eaten with that.

Our only mistake was ordering the Deep Fried Lapu Lapu with Oyster Sauce. The fish wasn’t fresh at all. It was also an expensive mistake, being the priciest dish among our orders. We should have gone with the Oriental Sizzling Beef (something like that) that every table except ours seemed to have.

Since it's located in the basement, and because it's a Chinese resto, don’t expect much ambiance. Here’s a photo of the interiors, in all its fluorescent-lit glory.


Small-sized orders are good for three, or a hungry two, and average around P200. Except for that lame Lapu Lapu dish which set us back around 400 bucks. Sun Moon Garden is located at the basement level of Shoppesville, Greenhills Shopping Center. Tel. no 721-0856.

The Frisspoint literal hole in the wall

For all its hoity-toity weekend market for expats reputation, Salcedo Village still has a humble panaderia sa kanto like any Philippine neighborhood.

Turning left into Herrera st., coming from Leviste, you may miss the piles of pan de sal peeping out the window. That would be Frisspoint, your 24-hour basic food source – pan, lugaw and Ricoa Flat Tops by the tingi. Syempre, there’s cellphone load too.

My favorite neighbors go there to fill their late-night crusty & crumbly pan de sal cravings. But as I like my pan de sal chewy & heavy, I find myself there to fill hankerings for lugaw instead.

Frisspoint’s lugaw is one of the best cheap, non-resto porridges I’ve tried – savory from chicken stock and generous with the ginger. A truly comforting and full-flavored lugaw, not some half-hearted attempt to squeeze out a quick buck from left-over rice.
Lugaw is 15pesos with a whole boiled egg, 10pesos without. Arroz Caldo is 25 with egg, 20 without. I usually go for the lugaw, as paltry chicken pieces in arroz caldo depress me.

Apart from the pan de sal and lugaw, the staples on their whiteboard menu are simple breads like monay and pan de coco. They also offer a variety of siomais for four pieces at 40pesos. At 10pesos for each average dumpling though, parang it’s not worth it. You might also chance upon their chocolate chip banana muffin. It used to be a real treat at 9pesos. But they upped the price to 18 (Hello!), suddenly making it not sulit for the size. Sayang.

This morning, they had taho. So I had a nostalgic 10peso breakfast on the go. I love panaderias sa kanto.

(The Frisspoint window peeps out of Makati Executive Tower, Herrera cor. Leviste Strts. Or the corner tangent to the Leviste KFC. Or in front of the building with a 711/Gloria Jean’s/BDO. And oh, don’t mistake it for Frisspoint restaurant.)