The best of the Philippines at SM Mall of Asia
The French call it nouvelle (new) cuisine, which is characterized by lighter, more delicate dishes that put more emphasis on simplicity and elegance
in presentation. Oui, less is more. Swept by refreshing winds of change
happening in the culinary world, our creative chefs have started fusing Filipino cuisine with classic
Treat your jaded taste buds to nouvelle Filipino cuisine at the SM Mall of Asia, today’s hottest dining destination in Metro Manila. As we mark the 110th anniversary of Philippine independence on Thursday, June 12, celebrate our being Filipino, celebrate life with the best that the Pinoy kitchen can offer.
Nouvelle Filipino
Mangan: Pampanga classics with a modern slant
The chic modern interiors give diners a smacking taste of what Mangan’s ever-bustling kitchen has in store for them. Yes, you get a toothsome portrait of modern Pinoy cuisine — at yesterday’s affordable prices.
The okoy (P73) is A-OK, what with Mangan elevating it from street food to resto fare.
Among the best-sellers of the house — that sells like hotcakes or should we say, like Mangan’s bibingka — is the seafood pancit luglog (P90).
“Our pancit luglog comes from an old cherished recipe that originated from Sta. Rita, Pampanga,” says seasoned restaurateur Maritel Nievera-Shani, herself a homegrown Pam pangueña.
Maritel lets us in on the tightly-guarded secret of Pampanga’s famous luglog: “It’s so tasty because the head of the shrimp is crushed to bits to give it flavor. Atsuete (annatto) is used for coloring.”
Giving the good old luglog a little tweak, Maritel has come up with seafood luglog. “The original luglog has chicharon (pork cracklings),” she describes. “Our seafood luglog is topped with tinapa flakes. It’s healthier.”
So, what else is sizzling at Mangan?
The sisig! But Mangan’s sisig doesn’t sizzle. “It’s based on the original sisig recipe of Angeles, Pampanga’s sisig queen, the late Aling Lucing,” says Maritel. “But ours is grilled until it’s toasted and its chicken liver sauce is already mixed in.”
Please pass the sisig!
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Visit Mangan at the ground floor, south arcade of SM Mall of Asia with telephone number 556-2783.
Kalye Juan: The street where foodies meet
Traffic on this street is quite heavy, particularly at lunch and dinnertime. And you ignore all stop lights on your diet when you see the staggering list of Pinoy dishes on the menu, which Kalye Juan calls “mga paborito ni Juan dela Cruz.”
KKK area manager Donald Macapagal recommends the fried hito with fermented rice from Pampanga (P145), tiyan ng bangus kare-kare and yes, the balut ni Juan, our own version of the souffle, which consists of two pieces of balut (a Pinoy delicacy that’s the foreigners’ bane), sauteed in carrots, onions, garlic, with potato crust, and then baked. How eggs-hilarating!
“It was invented by Jimmy Juan, president of Icon Food Corporation that owns Kalye Juan,” says Donald. “He loves to cook and experiment with dishes.”
Kalye Juan serves all-day breakfast, too. Care for sisiglog, tosilog, lechonsilog, bangusilog, or tawilog?
Now you know where the street-smart eat.
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Kalye Juan is located at the ground floor, north arcade of Mall of Asia with telephone number 556-0612.
Lamesa Grill: A tableful of meaty treats
If you want to pig out on good old native food in a delightful new setting, there’s one hot place to go: Lamesa Grill at Mall of Asia.
Crispchon (crispy lechon) is one of Lamesa’s signature dishes — actually, it was invented by Senator Kiko Pangilinan, one of the owners of the place. Lechon (Spanish word for suckling pig that’s slowly roasted over charcoal) is a traditional staple in Pinoy fiestas or celebrations.
“Our crispchon is boiled in herbs and spices before it’s deep-fried in our big customized fryer,” says Beth Cañete, Lamesa Grill manager. “We also have our chili garlic crispchon, which is sauteed in garlic and chili.”
A whole crispchon (4.5 to 5.5 kilos) costs P3,250. It’s eaten like you’d eat Peking duck. Take some bitesize strips of pork skin and meat, put them on a pandan crepe with wansuy, cucumber, onion leeks, and roll it up.
Lamesa beefs up its menu with its asadong bulalo (beef bone marrow sauteed in asado sauce, P265). It’s got its own version of the ever-popular sisig — in fact, 15 different sisig variants. With its sisig festival ongoing until Sept. 30, you get more of your favorite sisig at 10 percent less the original price.
For more cool savings, try Lamesa Grill’s set menus, good for 10 to 12 persons. For instance, Set A Menu, priced at P3,15, consists of two molo soups, two servings of baked mussels, two servings of boneless hito, two servings of Lamesa combo, two servings of binagoongang baboy, two servings of kalderetang bulalo, two servings of pancit palabok, and 12 servings of plain rice.
Indeed, at Lamesa Grill, you get more than a mouthful.
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Lamesa Grill is located at the entertainment mall, ground floor, north wing (facing the bay) of Mall of Asia with telephone numbers 901-1995 and 556-0737.
Pupung & friends: A spoonful of laughter and more
Want fast and delicious Pinoy food served with a dollop of laughter? Then go to Pupung & friends, and do bring your friends. As you dig into your Day (more on her later) special batchoy (clear soup of small round noodles with pork liver, pork meat, crispy garlic, spring onions, beef and chicken stock, P55), share a laugh or two with your friends as your eyes are riveted to the giant reproductions of the Pupung cartoon strips of Tonton Young that you find all over the place — on the lamps, walls, posts, and seats. You won’t miss the horizontally-challenged Day, who’s forever struggling with her weight.
“Day’s special batchoy is our version of the
Batchoy (from the Chinese word ba chui) is a prized Ilonggo delicacy that originated from the picture-pretty district of La Paz,
You and your friends will also love Pupung’s tapa ribeye steak (P125) that’s truly tender and juicy. It’s a popular choice, along with the other complete meals (like lechon kawali, inihaw na liempo, chicken inasal, breaded bangus belly) that are served with rice and atchara.
Hmmm ... Good food, good friends, and a good laugh. What more can you ask for?
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Pupung & friends is located at the ground floor, entertainment mall, north wing of Mall of Asia with telephone number 556-0779.
KKK: A brewing culinary revolution
KKK is at the forefront of a culinary revolution. At KKK, Mall of Asia, diners get a slice of Philippine history with pictures torn from the pages of time adorning the restaurant.
But oh, don’t expect to be gorging on the food that our national heroes Jose Rizal and Andres Bonifacio ate in their time. What you’ll find at KKK is a modern take on old favorities. For instance, for your unang sigaw (starters), try the sinigang na lechon (P280/P420).
You’ve probably tasted a lot of adobo (Spanish word for seasoning or marinade) dishes, but have you tasted Adobo ni Jake Espesyal? Popularly known as our national dish, our good old adobo originated from the northern region of the country; of course, adobo is a Spanish import from
Cooking up a storm in the kitchen is KKK head cook Ariel Palian who introduces us to KKK’s other house specialties: Sugpo ng KKK (P358), bistek flakes (P195), Ilokanong bagnet (P220), among others. KKK also has its piggy-tarian specialties and maki-baka dishes (like the kaldereta cooked in San Miguel cerveza, P280).
By the way, KKK means Kainan sa Kalye Kanluran. And the battle cry of KKK habitues may as well be: Wag matakot! Maki-kain!
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KKK is located at the ground floor, entertainment mall, north wing of Mall of Asia with telephone number 556-0755.
