Much ado about something

It is all about Choobi Choobi, a restaurant owned by the Tanchan family which has offered to the residents of Cebu new tweaks to Filipino dishes. The name "Choobi Choobi" is an inspiration that comes from the grandfather of GM Stan Tanchan and it is a Chinese Fukien word that means "lingaw lingaw" in Cebuano or "having fun". Grand opening of its first branch in Parkmall (168 Ouano Avenue, Mandaue Reclamation Area, Mandaue City, phones 3180319, 422-8686) was held last July 6.

Old time residents of Cebu associate the word "Tanchan" with two businesses, tires and piggery. And it is because of pigs that your favorite food columnist, who just graduated from the College of Veterinary Medicine, met Dodong and Rufina Tanchan, owners of Multi Farms about 40 years ago. It was also in their residence that I have cooked an eight-course Chinese dinner some ten years ago and medyo ambitious ra to invade their home since I had a critic like Rufina Tanchan who is an excellent cook herself.

Today, some of the family recipes of the Tanchan family are now revealed to the public like the classic Lola Pepang's Fried Manok Bisdak and a relatively new comer, Stan's Fried Black Pepper Shrimp. Many of the ingredients supplied to the restaurant come from their own piggery, organic farms and prawn farm. The latter is one of the very few survivors of a once thriving prawn industry and I clearly remember what my good friend Dodong Tanchan said "Even in a sunset industry, there will always be survivors". That is if you last long enough, excuse me, to be the last man standing.

Produce from the piggery is made into the following dishes: Dinuguan, Pork Sisig, Belly Dancer, Pork Barbecue Chicharon Bulaklak and Choobi Pata. The latter is crispy on the outside but soft and juicy in the inside and it is a very strong contender to be the best crispy pasta in town. To check the quality of the dish, break the folds of the skin of the pig's toes and if does not extrude an offensive smell, it is properly cooked.

 From the prawn farms to the table, the trip is merely four hours away (maybe add one hour because of traffic) and this is the reason why the Shrimps served in a Bag (available in five flavors) are really that fresh. To tell if the shrimp is really that fresh, break off the shell of head, then suck on the delicious tidbits and if it is "tam-is", it is indeed very fresh. And the meat of the shrimp will spring back into shape even if you press it very hard; it will not be squashed like a mosquito.

Vegetables for the Veggies Tempura, Green and Mean Pinakbet, Choobi Chopsuey, Stir-fry Morning Glory (Chinese Kangkong), Utan Bisaya and the chicken for the Tinolang Manak Bisdak all come from their organic farms. I had also a reunion with a long lost veggie, the Cha Tao Miao or Stir fry Snow Peas Sprouts.

I have already made four trips to the restaurant and yet somehow, I have yet to taste the Crispy Balbacua, Crispy Adobong Kanding and Choobi2X Signature Dish, Mama Pina's Fried Herbed Free Range Spring Duck. Maybe it's time to schedule another trip. [email protected]