Family bonding @ SM City Taytay

When SM City Taytay opened Nov. 9, 2007, my son Karl and I began what became a habit of visiting our very own SM on a weekly basis. We usually start our journey at the WOF (World of Fun). This entertainment center is a haven for the whole family. We love every game, especially the car and motorcycle racing games, which are my son’s favorite.

After the adrenaline rush, off we go to the BDO site — my one-stop payment center for all my credit card bills. Before, I would hop from bank to bank just to pay my bills. BDO is really a great help to me!

After recharging my cards we are now ready to shop at SM Department Store. One thing I like is the completeness of the store. There’s the Toy Kingdom to fill for my son’s endless passion for fun and games, while all our clothing, linens, dining and kitchenware needs, plus bathroom accessories can be found in its many departments. And the free gift-wrapping really comes in handy! Since my son is in preschool, those in his class celebrate their birthdays at school. So buying gifts every now and then is easy because SM is just a 10-minute drive from home.   

I remember going to Shoe Mart in Cubao with my mom and sisters to buy our school needs and shoes. It took almost an hour for us to reach the place back then. Thanks to SM for putting a branch in nearby Taytay; now shopping for us is easy and convenient!

For chowtime, there are plenty of choices to satisfy our palates on every visit. Our fave, however, is Cabalen’s eat-all-you-can merienda that really is wallet-friendly. A meal is never complete without coffee; that’s why the coming of Starbucks is a great relief for coffee lovers like me and my barkada. Before, after watching a movie and having a hearty meal, we’d go somewhere else for coffee. Another irresistible hangout is the French Baker for its breads and other baked goodies baked fresh daily.

I have found myself relying on the services of many establishments at SM Taytay. I once sought the help of Super Travel agency for our China visa/trip to Beijing. Also, the array of skincare centers offering various services/treatments are very affordable. So pampering for both my husband and me is inevitable! We have facials done now on a regular basis. Ace Hardware is my husband’s real sanctuary: he will never fail to pick up an item or two for the car or house repairs. National Book Store is also one of the most frequented places in SM. Every student knows and loves NBS. I have a nephew from Toronto who fell in love with National! He was so amazed at what the bookstore offered, he bought a stack of Disney magazines as pasalubong to send all of his friends back in Canada. How he wishes there were an NBS franchise in Toronto. 

The SM Hypermarket is usually our last stop after an all-afternoon shopping visit. The grocery trip is really a bonding moment for the family. This is my favorite part of our itinerary: we spend at least two hours to finish buying what’s on my grocery list and also the things “not on my list” — my husband and my son have this invisible list and they grab items and put them in the grocery cart whenever my back is turned! I particularly like the takal section where I buy large-sized nuggets, squid balls, breaded pork chops, etc. While I am busy in this section, my son runs to get a pack of his beloved hotdogs and my husband grabs his favorite Pampanga’s Best longanisa. The displays in the seafood section are clean, well-organized and fresh. I have SM to thank for selling pusit-lumot. My son didn’t like it before but when I let him see the well-arranged pusit and let him try to put some in the plastic using the tongs, he began loving it. Since then he always reminds me to buy the black-inked pusit. I also admire the variety of fresh fish: jumbo tilapia and dalagang bukid are our favorites. I do appreciate the fresh meats, which are displayed according to cuts. Pre-marinated meats are prepared hygienically and always scrumptious. I cannot leave out the fruits and vegetables section with its wide selection. I buy the precut fruits in Styrofoam, which comes with a fork. Ready-to-eat fruits are somehow more enticing to kids. Pambaon yummies like ham and burger patties are also appealing to my son.

Whew! My one-cart grocery run now has a tag-along basket because of the many items that we end up buying at SM Hypermarket.

Truly, SM brings happiness to every Filipino family. It remains true to its advocacy of bringing families together. As the SM song goes, “Here at SM, we’ve got it all for you.”