The best of Asian flavors under one roof

MANILA, Philippines - With a knack for turning the most ordinary things into something special and unique, it’s not surprising that Hanobe’s F&B head Evelyn Lao would someday make use of her creativity in the kitchen to come up with Hanobe’s signature dishes. It was only three years ago that Evelyn thought of putting her kitchen skills to good use by opening a small eatery with a limited menu that consisted mainly of her family’s favorite dishes like cha yo chi (pork kidney), Birthday misua, sweet and sour pork, beef ho fan, and taope (tofu skin).

Yummy to the last bite: The pork siomai

Even with just a takeout counter and a seating capacity of up to five persons, she found herself scrambling to meet the high demand for Hanobe’s signature dishes. In less than two years, she thought of expanding the little eatery by just a bit. However, it still wasn’t enough to satisfy Hanobe clients, who continued to multiply just through word of mouth. Hanobe soon became too much for Evelyn to handle on her own so her sister, Emily Castillo, joined in to become the restaurant’s general manager. Now with her sister on board to handle the business side of the restaurant, Evelyn is free to concentrate solely on further developing the restaurant’s menu lineup.

From just a few family favorites, Evelyn has already developed more than a hundred menu items for Hanobe that are mostly Hong Kong-style dishes.

In spite of their restaurant’s success, Emily and her sister aren’t keen on putting up more Hanobe branches or venturing into franchising, saying that apart from being a business, what they really want to accomplish through Hanobe is to share their favorite dishes that they usually pick up from their travels abroad.

While Emily is currently overseeing the restaurant’s day-to-day operations — Hanobe now has a seating capacity of over 100 — Evelyn is keeping a watchful eye on their six chefs, whom she has trained to produce Hanobe’s dishes with utmost diligence. This is actually one of the reasons why they are not interested in branching out, as Evelyn and Emily are sticklers for quality. They don’t want Hanobe’s good reputation to suffer just because they want to earn more profit.

Time for beans: Hanobe’s special dessert

So if you want to enjoy Hanobe’s highly praised specialties like the light and chewy taope with three kinds of mushroom, the perfectly cooked cha yo chi, the extender-free siomai, and their own take on a Chinese delicacy, pig brain, then make that trip to Banawe. It’s something you won’t regret.

Other Hanobe must-tries, especially for first-timers, are the fresh shrimp hofan roll, spareribs, Global rice, and crab sotanghon. For dessert, Emily and Evelyn insist on trying their Hanobe dessert, which is inspired by pot bing soo, an iced dessert from Korea that is refreshing and has the right amount of sweetness.

A complete meal: The beef hofan

Aside from being high-quality — Emily and Evelyn insist on using only the best ingredients — another thing that draws people in is their healthy style of cooking, which is evident in the number of old people and medical practitioners who frequent the place. Of course, it’s also a popular family restaurant with big groups coming over, especially on Sundays.

With its impressive lineup of Asian delicacies with a twist, it’s no wonder that in spite of its location, Hanobe Asian Food House attracts customers from all corners of the Metro, making it a must-try if you’re into savory dishes or feeling a bit adventurous.

* * *

Hanobe Asian Food House is located at 99 Maria Clara St. corner Banawe, Quezon City. Call 731-4381 and 731-4371.