Jek's Kubo Bulalo at Ulo- Ulo

August 13, 2013

By now everyone knows that Maginhawa Street (and it's neighboring streets) is a great stretch of foodie heaven. You have your katsu, pizza places, burger joints, milk tea shops, tex- mex restos, etc. But what I have noticed is that there seems to be a dearth of Filipino food themed restaurants. Sure there's your standard carinderia's here and there, but aside from Pino there's really no other nice restaurants that serve mostly local fare.

Enter Jek's Kubo Bulalo and Ulo- Ulo.

We forgot to take a photo of their actual signage up front!

We have noticed this "eatery" since last year, but haven't had the chance to eat here before since it was always full and parking is sometimes a b*tch in Maginhawa. I use the term eatery loosely because it's not your average kanto carinderia but more definitely more affordable than most upscale restaurants. Hmm, maybe we can call it a high end eatery.

You order from the counter like most eateries, and pay there also. Their menu consists of three groups: Specialty, Kubo Favorites and the daily menu. Their specialties are the two dishes mentioned in their name -- Bulalo and Ulo- Ulo (Sinigang sa Miso). Both are good for sharing for two people, but can also be manhandled by one hungry person on his own with no problem Then the Kubo Favorites, in which all menu items already come with rice. Then there's a daily menu that changes from day to day (duh). After ordering, you can take a seat in their yellow and gray themed tables and chairs, either inside or outside. We found it more refreshing to seat out and eat al fresco since the place isn't equipped with an AC inside. Then you wait for them to serve you your food!

We ordered the following:

We shared an order of Bulalo.

Bulalo. 150php.

Okay we really didn't share since I ate most of this with my plate of rice. For 150php, this is really good value for money! The beef was really soft with just the right amount of fat, and came with a piece of bone with bone marrow in it. It also had corn and some vegetables. I loved how the veggies were still very firm and had nice snap to it. Of course, a good soup is what make a good bulalo. And Jek's Bulalo broth is very tasty.

Kim ordered her own Salpicao.

Salpicao. 90php.

At first glance the serving might seem small, but this is a single serve dish meant for one person and not for sharing. The beef is served with some finely chopped garlic on top, and with salpicao sauce/ sarsa on the side. Aside from the rice, it also comes with some carrots and baguio beans. Kim loved that the beef was tender and not rubbery. She also noted that the garlic flavor was just right and not overpowering. Having the sarsa separate from the beef meant that the customer has control if she wants to add some more to the beef. Kim only tried to put some to try it out, since the beef was already flavorful.

For drinks we opted to get a Buko Shake from their own stand, Jek's Bu-ko.

Buko Shake. 30php.

This was really good considering how cheap it was compared to most mall buko stands. And the bottle reminds me of those buko shakes prevalent in Boracay.

Cleaner than your average carinderia and the food definitely tastes better. It might be more more expensive, but the prices are justified with the food they serve. So if you're looking for a hearty Pinoy meal, Jek's is your best bet in the Maginhawa area.

Jek's Kubo Bulalo and Ulo- Ulo
#77 Maginhawa St., UP Village
Quezon City
(02) 434 7362
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jeks-Kubo-Bulalo-at-Ulo-Ulo/445767328790161

Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen

August 10, 2013. Saturday.

Aside from the recent influx of Katsu places in the country, Ramen restaurants have also been popping up left and right. Kim and I have always made plans to try one but has never gotten to doing it (until this entry). It's ironic that it took us this long since we're practically around Eastwood all the time and there's a Ramen Bar there.

We only recently explored SM Aura, and we love how uncrowded it is! We've been there 2 weekends straight. The first time we ate at Yabu and the next time.. yup, you guessed it right, we ate at a Ramen place (the title is kinda a dead giveaway)! Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen to be exact.

Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen is a mouthful to say and a lot to type, so we'll just refer to it as IFR from this point on. IFR in SM Aura is the Japanese import's 2nd branch in the country; the first is in Shangri- la. We saw how long the lines were during dinner time the previous time we passed by it, so we made it a point to get early dinner. Well, we were early but no tables were vacant  and we ended up sitting at the bar instead. Not a big deal though, it adds to the experience I guess. We could say we ate ramen at a bar, but not at Ramen Bar. Haha.

We first ordered Gyoza.

Gyoza. 150php.

Gyoza is basically a dumpling. The fillings usually vary from restaurant to restaurant but its usually a combination of some ground meat and vegetables. We liked this one because it was lightly toasted and crisp on the outside. It came with some sort of soy- vinegar sauce which was slightly sweet.

Kim ordered the Ajitama Tonkotsu.

Ajitama Tonkotsu. 330php.

The Ajitama Tonkotsu is IFR's best selling ramen. It comes with chashu (pork), ajitama (slow boiled egg), green onion, bamboo shoots, wood ear, and dried seaweed. Tonkotsu is made from boiling pork over a long period of time. It is usually fatty and creamy. IFR's Ajitama Tonkotsu was creamy but not as creamy as we expected it to be. But aside from that, it was great and really filling!

I went for their Black Garlic Tonkotsu.

Black Garlic Tonkotsu. 380php.

This had a really strong garlic aroma and flavor.. which I really loved! It's almost the same as Kim's order except without the egg and it had that special garlic oil in it.

Most Filipinos would still prefer their rice meals for their dinner (Kim and I included). But if you're feeling a bit adventurous, a bowl of ramen is just as filling and just as good. It's not that cheap especially when you think that you're just getting a slice of pork, noodles and broth, but once you've considered the way it's been cooked (slow boiling, hand pulled noodles) then it's all worth it. We definitely enjoyed eating at Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen, and would consider trying out their other ramens as well.

On a sidenote, you get to choose how to get your noodles done. We had both our orders hard for that al dente firmness.

Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen
Level 2, SM Aura Premier
McKinley Parkway, Taguig

'Cue Modern Barbecue

July 20, 2013. Saturday.

It has been awhile since we've been at Cue. We always consider eating there whenever in BGC, but it's always too darn crowded. But this time, since we were a little early for dinner, we found the place almost all to ourselves!

We've loved this place ever since the first time we set foot in it! The interiors are what I would describe as quirky-elegant-geeky. How does that work, you say? Examples: Ice tea in a jar, plant in a can as table top design, leather couches, anatomy of a cow on the wall, etc. See? Quirky, elegant and geeky!

For starters, we ordered the Bone Marrow and Steak Tacos.

Bone Marrow and Steak Tacos. 485php.

We always shy away from this, because it looks a little too rich, even for me! But I'm glad we finally gave it a try. I'm NEVER eating ordinary tacos again. The bone marrow, as expected, gives the tacos a rich and slightly salty flavor which really goes well with the salsa verde and the tender steak. This is best eatean as soon as it is served on the table, as the bone marrow dries up quickly. I still ate it even after it was already cold, but it already felt like eating cholesterol ice cream.

Then we ordered 2 mains from The Chopping Board part of their menu to share, both of which came with a side dish and sauce. The first one we got was the Beef Belly

Beef Belly. 695php.

We already had this before, and liked it so we ordered it again. It's beef belly braised in dark ale, charred with mustard with a whole roasted onion. But unlike the first time, the taste of ale was really overpowering. The beef was still tender, but it was hard to get over the taste of the ale. We had this with whipped potatoes and their house made BBQ sauce.

We also got the Bacon Slabs 'Cue Style.

Bacon Slabs 'Cue Style. 455php.

The description from the menu reads: Slow-baked then fried, house cured, half-pounder. How could you go wrong with something that sounds so sinful? The answer is you just can't! The slabs were really tender from the slow cooking, but it had a nice subtle crispiness to it on the outside. We had this with chimichurri sauce, which is normally for grilled meats but we figured the slight vinegar taste of it would offset the richness of the slabs.

'Cue will probably never be a target restaurant for those who are always high on clean eating (they have their greens, but who goes here for that?!?). It's for those who don't really calorie count and enjoy slobbing over copious amounts of meat and fat! 'Cue Modern Barbecue is a great place to be! The place is cozy, the service is always quick, efficient and courteous, and the food is always great (would've been exceptional, but I can still taste that dark ale).

'Cue Modern Barbecue
Space NELG 105, Lower Ground Floor
Bonifacio High Street Centrale,
Global City, 1201 Fort Bonifacio, Taguig
621-4052
0917-8992283/ 0921-2801389
https://www.facebook.com/CueModernBBQ?ref=br_tf

Army Navy

July 16, 2013. Tuesday.

Army Navy recently opened up shop in Eastwood and since we've never eaten in any Army Navy together, we naturally had to give it a go. It is located on the front part of Citywalk, just across Cybermall, on the location used to be occupied by Tokyo Tokyo.

   

 

We went here for a snack, so don't be surprised if the quantity of our orders don't live up to normal KiMiguel standards. Kim ordered the Charlie Bravo Querida Mia.

Charlie Bravo Querida Mia. 195php.

The Querida Mia is an open face quesadilla, and Charlie Bravo is what they call the cheese and bacon variant. This actually reminded us of a mini pizza more than a quesadilla with the cheese on it. The bacon had a nice smokey flavor to it and was the highlight of every bite of this.

I got a Steak Starving Sailor.

Steak Starving Sailor. 235php.

I normally order a Double Burger with an extra egg on top when dining here, but I wanted to change it up this time. The Starving Sailor is Army Navy's take on a Philadelphia Cheesesteak. It's your choice of either steak or chicken, topped with jalapeño cheese, green bell peppers and caramelized onions placed on a sourdough bread. For its price, this was really good and very filling. The strips of rib-eye were juicy and tender, while the jalapeño cheese and caramelized onions provided a very nice contrast of flavors.

And of course, no meal here would be complete without ordering their Libertea!

Libertea. 75php and 65php respectively.

For a quick snack, I can't think of many fast food that is comparable with the serving sizes of Army Navy. Although it's a little expensive for a common burger joint, the quality of the food and the size of the serving is more than enough to justify the high price point.

Army Navy Burger +Burrito
https://www.facebook.com/ArmyNavyOfficial
http://armynavyburgerburrito.com/