Food Critics

[tonistork]

Virginia is a food company based in Cebu.

I tried also their other products like bacon & corned beef and I say, it taste good na pwedeng i-compare sa purefoods products.

[lovemarie]

Virginia is a food company based in Cebu.

I tried also their other products like bacon & corned beef and I say, it taste good na pwedeng i-compare sa purefoods products.

their new yorker and hungarian sausage ayos din sir. . . . tama ka good alternative sa pricey na purefoods products.

[jamesbond]

Original Pares Mami House
Retiro Street, Quezon City

“Pares in Retiro”
4 of 5 starsReviewed August 6, 2013

I have lived in Blumentritt for almost 29 years before transferring to Paranaque but my craving for Pares always brings me back to this place. I would even drive from Paranaque to Retiro in the wee hours of the morning just to satisfy my cravings. My parents liked the food here, my 2 sisters are just fond of the chicken pares while my wife just loves the bulalo. I have brought my friends in paranaque to this place and they have been going back to this place ever since. My favorite food here aside from Pares beef is camto soup!

Visited July 2013


“The BEST PARES ever!”
5 of 5 starsReviewed July 17, 2013
Since my BF live near Retiro, when he first brought me here, i was hooked by the Pares Beef & Chicken. We almost tried everything in this restaurant. And now that we're in Singapore, we'll definitely drop by here to eat their best BEEF PARES!!

Visited December 2012


“Best Pares Period.”
5 of 5 starsReviewed April 22, 2013
Last Saturday, I went down to Manila from Baguio to get some items for my small business. I spoke to my brother to bring me to Original Pares Mami House in Retiro, Quezon City because I miss this type of food since the one in Baguio is totally bogus. As usual, I had the beef pares which includes beef stew, a bowl of garlic rice with bits of chorizo and scrambled egg, and soup. Even under the midday sun, I sipped the delicious broth and the meal began. I added chili sauce to the salty sweet star anise flavored sauce of the beef stew for that extra kick! It was heaven. I also ordered a piece of stuffed shrimp which I shared with my brother. Of course, no meal would be complete with this meal without an ice cold bottle of coke. Oooohh! This is simply one of life's little pleasures. My brother and I had to eat fast though since the lunch time crowd was really filling up fast. This is the place Anthony Bourdain should have visited when he was here in Manila and not the crappy tapsilog place in Cubao. Simply delicious. I wish we had this in Baguio, it would be perfect for the cold weather.

Visited April 2013
















Rochelle Sy Chua

I LOVE pares!  It might come as a surprise to people considering the ambiance of Pares house but it has always been one of my favorite food!  However, there’s one particular Pares Mami House that I frequent to and that’s the one located at Retiro Street, Quezon City.  To be completely specific, the name of the restaurant is The Original Pares Mami House.

The Original Pares Mami House is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  So just in case any of us crave for pares, we can always go there.  And you don’t have to worry even if you go at wee hours of the day, because the place is jam-packed anytime of the day, any day of the week.  I’ve been there evenings, midnights and even early mornings, and every single time, there was always lots of people.

You’ll see people from all walks of life.  Whether from class A, B, C or D, they are all there to enjoy the yummy, affordable food in the Original Pares Mami House at Retiro.  If only we can see that kind of unity in our government, anyhow, that’s a different topic altogether.

Considering how the turnover of the restaurant is, it seemed they have perfected their restaurant process.  The establishment was pretty efficient in their service.  They get orders fast, they serve food pretty fast too and the billing process was slick!  They have numbers allotted for each guests.  Even how they clean plates and utensils was impressive too!

As for food, I always order the same thing at The Original Pares Mami House.  Pares will always be part of it and when I get hungry again, I’ll order additional food items like stuffed shrimp, campto and chicken.  Yes, they are all good and I’m happy that they are not so expensive.  Though I think their prices are getting higher and higher, I guess they get that they have tons of loyal customers.  I hope they don’t raise prices that often coz I might change my mind in frequenting them.  Though I must admit, their pares is just too irresistible!

Pares in english is “pair”, a dish that is composed of braised beef, soup and fried rice.  It’s a dish that, as far as i know, originated in the Philippines, a dish we can truly call our own:)

Pares’ braised beef is sweet and I love how soft the beef is.  The soup is made with beef stock mixed with the braised beef sauce, locally known as loto.  This is oh so yummy and I’m sure it’ll always be something I crave for often.

Oh my, I’m craving for Pares again!  Now to drive to Retiro street.  This is it!

The Original Pares Mami House has soft drinks, buko juice and water for ordering.  I, however, always choose to order Coke!  Sarap eh!  I can drink coke for one whole day and still feel thirsty for it!  Maybe Coke has a love potion in its drink that most of us consumers can’t seem to stop drinking it!

Campto is a stew of pork strips flavored with garlic and spring onions.  It is comfort food at its best.  If ever I still get hungry after finishing an order of pares, this will be my second choice.

Campto with rice is at Php 88.  If you wanna order ala carte, it costs about Php 70.

I ordered The Original Pares Mami House’s Buttered Chicken as I was curious to find out if they cook chicken as deliciously.  Well, I wasn’t disappointed at all!  I love how they cut the chicken into small pieces and put the right amount of breading.  There was ketchup available but I ended up just eating it as is.  I super liked the taste considering it was newly cooked.  If I estimate it correctly, one order of this is equivalent to half the chicken.

My friend ordered this when we had breakfast at Pares.  I somehow felt that Php 80 is a bit high for a small bowl of chopsuey.  But since this has been ordered, I tried it anyhow.  It’s a normal combination of vegetables.  A good option to have variety in your meal.

When I first tried out stuffed squid at the Original Pares Mami House, I was completely shocked.  I actually thought it looked like tempura.  However, I didn’t even notice the shrimp at all hahaha!  It looked more of an embutido than a stuffed shrimp.  But still, it’s a good side dish for our favorite pares!

If you go to the restaurant, you’ll see almost everyone ordering the stuffed shrimp.

My plates will always be empty whenever I go to Original Pares Mami House.  Yes, I’m always hungry whenever I visit the place.  Empty bowls and plates FTW after every pares meal.  Satisfying!!


  *** ang gusto ko dyan mga kosa ay yung campto. . . .  swabeh to the max!

[jamesbond]

REVIEW OF CEBU’S BEST – RICO’S LECHON RESTAURANT (MABOLO, CEBU CITY)
POSTED ON JUN 1, 2015 IN ASIAN, FOOD REVIEWS

When in Cebu, it’s almost mandatory to try Cebu’s best lechon (unless you are a committed vegetarian). We asked several locals for recommendations, and the most popular answer was Rico’s Lechon. Intrigued, we made sure to have a meal in one of its branches before leaving Cebu City. So what’s with Rico’s lechon that everyone is craving for it? It must be their original discovery: the best-selling SPICY lechon, the first in the Philippines.



Rico’s Lechon serves lechon with ingredients that penetrate the deepest part of your taste buds. Cooked with precision and served with perfection, the lechon is dished up with only garlic and leeks. Is it really that good? We’re keen to find out.

[jamesbond]

The Shrimp Bucket
as reviewed by Man About Manila

he Shrimp Bucket is located in the Ground floor of the Grand Hamptons Building Tower 1, 2nd Ave corner 31st St, BGC, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig.  I happened to pass by it during its construction and it looked very interesting.  It opened a while back but we did finally end up trying it on a Lenten Friday night.  It’s not easy to find but its near La Girolle and very close to Burgos Circle.

If you eat in Shrimp Bucket naturally you should order the Shrimp Bucket ( no shock there, if a restaurant is named after a dish then that is what you should order there).  But guess what?  The shrimp doesn’t come in a bucket, oh no it doesn't.  It comes in a clear plastic bag and so do the mussels.  The reason is that you choose a flavouring and then the shrimp or mussels are shaken with their sauces in the bag just like Potato Corner fries!





Our full order, the French Lemon Pepper Butter Sauce on the Mussels and the highly recommended Salty Eggperience sauce on the Shrimp plus an order of their fish and chips.




The bucket is for just for the discarded shells.  As I said, the shrimp doesn't come in a bucket although it does in other places like Bubba Gump in the case of one of my favorites there, the Bubba Gump bucket of boat trash (check out this pic of it).


 The Salted Egg sauce was very, very good.  I think its mashed itlog na pula in lots of butter.  I enjoyed it so much that I would spoon it as sauce on my rice.  Everything was very good, for those who are calorie concerned, well, the secret to any restaurant is really butter on everything.  The sauces in Shrimp Bucket are no exception.  If you want to lose weight then its best to not get sauce in which you will miss out here.  The fish and chips are great not Fish and Co levels but quite good.


Here is another blog with a review to Shrimp Bucket.  My thoughts exactly, another alternative to Dampa!  Click on the next link if you want to know what other Seafood Restaurants are swimming around.

Posted by Man About Manila at 9:06 PM @ manaboutmanila.com

http://visitpinas.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Fish-and-Frites-at-Shrimp-Bucket-Restaurant-UP-Town-Center-Quezon-City.jpg

[razorsharp]

aba parehong nakakatakam, di ko alam kung saan ako titingin 

[lovemarie]

hmmmm . . ..  not paying attention sir james ah . .  .. . na critic ko na po shrimp bucket ah . . .  ako pa mismo kumain dun hehehehe. . . 

[jamesbond]

Where To Find The Best ‘Silog’?
By Mabel David-Pilar

When it comes to Pinoy breakfasts, the 'silog' is a top favorite.
Tapsilog, longsilog, tosilog—nothing beats starting your day with a plate of hot, greasy sinangag (fried rice) and itlog (egg, typically fried) to go with your favorite breakfast meat: beef tapa, longganisa, tocino, or even hotdog, bacon, corned beef and a whole lot more.
It's such a Pinoy staple, that every man, woman, and child on the street has a say on their favorite 'silog'. And where do you find the best one?
In this exclusive video for Timpla on Yahoo! Philippines, Yahoo! Southeast Asia reporter Jason Domantay hits the streets to ask where Pinoys go to have a plate of the best-tasting 'silog'. Answers range from a tapsihan in Quezon City all the way to eateries in Parañaque and Lucban, from a fast food chain to the "Batcave". Find out if your own favorite is mentioned. If not, add them to the comments section below and share with us why you love 'silog' as well.

https://youtu.be/AaVuZvZSj18

[jamesbond]

7 desserts especially made by Chef Hasset Go

Cinnamon toast with apple mango salsa by Chef Hasset Go.

MANILA, Philippines - After being diagnosed with liver cancer last year, the country's "sweets master" died at 29.

Chef Hasset Go was the general manager of Le Jardin Manila, chef consultant in Dessert Strip and a senior chef instructor at Culinary Institute of Cagayan de Oro.

At his young age, he was hailed as one of the youngest celebrity chefs in the country. He was also among the Top 50 Young Entrepreneurs of Go Negosyo and was given Young Achiever award for Culinary by Global Excellence.

[intelinside]

Wow! Bookmark! Daming masarap kainan! Maraming maraming salamat sa TS! 

[lovemarie]

Best Caramel Cake In Town



I have tasted several caramel cakes, the one from Estrel's is the best so far.

What makes it so unique is that Estrel's has been using the same baking methods and the same high quality ingredients and wonderful cake recipe for generations - as in no change from the beginning of time. The result is a smooth chiffon cake with an airy texture that is perfectly complimented by a thick, rich caramel icing that is neither too creamy nor too sweet. The butter roses that top it are so artistic it feels like a sin to eat it.

For a heavenly caramel cake lovingly baked by hand and decorated to perfection, you can test my patience and perseverance with your advanced order process any day.  It is worth it.

[jamesbond]

hmmm... ito yata yung nasa Timog nuon ah... sana andun pa nga ito... sayang kasi at dinadayo ito talaga... advance order nga sila at walang available caramel cakes... nice one mam...

[jamesbond]

Philippines' first Japanese seafood market is here



MANILA, Philippines - Manila's first Japanese market is finally here to give you a full Japanese experience.

In its effort to bring consumers the best of what Japan has to offer, Asahi Super Dry has partnered with Ichiba: Japanese Market, the first ever Japanese Seafood Market Concept to enter the Philippines inspired by the large wholesale market of Tsukiji, the delights from Gastronome Kuromon, the diversity of seafood from Kyushu and the expansive seafood and tasty crabs from Hokkaido.

From traditional and modern Hiragana, Katakana and Kanji Murals that decorate the walls, to the upbeat and entertaining Japanese ambient music, the place provides the complete market experience from the Land of the Rising Sun.

Live aquarium display for everyone

Capable of sustaining up to 600 kg of live seafood, guests can take their pick from lobsters and crabs to a variety of fishes and shellfish. For kids and kids at heart, it also boasts a fishing pond where guests may cast their lines and try to catch their meals. However the fresh seafood is selected, diners may enjoy them cooked and prepared in a variety of exciting styles by chefs expertly trained by Ichiba’s Japanese chef, a former sushi master from the renowned Midori Sushi in Japan. The entire experience puts a whole new meaning to the market to table concept.

Meat lovers need not be left out

Aside from tender, bite-sized beef yakitoris, there are flavorful sukiyakis, and juicy gyozas, The Japanese market also offers a wide range of high grade steaks and meats. All you have to do is choose your favorite cuts of Wagyu or Angus beef and the chefs will slice and serve it just the way you like it.

Nights in Ichiba: Japanese Market come alive

What better way to celebrate with friends than a platter of freshly grilled yakitoris and toasting the night with ice cold glasses of crisp and dry beer. Say Kampai! with the first ever Asahi Super Dry Bar in the Philippines.

What's unique about the beer is that it uses a rare kind of yeast which yields outstanding fermentation and produces elegant and sophisticated flavor and aroma.

Apart from its manufacturing expertise, it employs new technologies including “dream technology” which helps retain the flavor and taste of a freshly-made beer, without using preservatives, but only by leveraging the natural "powers" inherent to the ingredients.

With the arrival of the Japanese market concept, guests and Japanese cuisine lovers will be able to truly experience the most unique and authentic Japanese market dining and drinking experience.

*Located at the 2nd Floor of the Newport Mall in Resorts World Manila.

[naruto789544]

great seafoods variety... price is also affordable considering the cost of shrimps, crabs etc in the market... good option for the coming holy week...