Food Tripping at the Taste of the Nation
Together with friends from
the traditional and online media we were invited by Kat Dalisay to try out the
newest themed variation of the Weekend Market held at SM Lanang Premiere open
space parking area (from June 22 until June 25).
Dubbed as Taste of the
Nation, the concept according to Kat reflects around anything Filipino as the
event is held on June, the month where the country celebrates its independence.
“The booths are designed as
Filipino inspired and at least one of the menu is Filipino.” Says Kat.
Each of the participating
VIP media including this writer got the chance to try out various gastronomic
delights. With about 65 booths, each media participant had an allocated number
of exhibitors where they could try out their respective specialties.
I got the chance to try the
yema cakes of Sweet and Savory, the pulled pork sandwiches of Pulled Brothers,
hanging chicken of Espetada House of Hanging Chicken, fried ribs of Frybae,
dumplings of Dragon Dumplings, rice toppings of Sisig Factory, the boneless
lechon of Lulens (which co-shared the booth with Twister Shawarma) and the cotton
candy of K-Cotton Fries.
My first stop was the famed
Yema cake of Sweet and Savory, according to Jennie Mae who manned the stall, it
was her sister who concocted the idea of having a chiffon cake covered with
yema icing. The sweetness of the yema balanced out by the salty cheese
sprinkles.
From operating in their
parents carinderia they finally got a space along San Rafael Drive, now their
famed Yema cakes are being flown even to the United States where vacationing
balikbayans take it as pasalubong back to US.
From the classic yema cake,
they added ube and chocolate variations.
Jennie says since joining
The Weekend Market sales of their yema cakes have spiked up, from less than 100
tubs of cakes, orders now range from 300 to 400 cakes per day. Jennie credits
the heavy promotional activities of the weekend market, which entices people to
come to the bazaar.
“Pulled Pork because we
pulled the meat out, we shred it and we have different kinds of sauces.”
Anselmo of Pulled Bros. briefly describes the product which has drawn raves
from many people.
Customers can choose from
the classic original sauce, barbeque sauce and cheesy garlic sauce for their
pulled pork sandwich.
Anselmo says they started
just this year in the weekend market they now get a loyal following for their
pulled pork products.” People come back for it because it only happens once a
month and people like it also, they come back for our pulled pork.”
The Taste of the Nation is
Lulens Boneless Lechon first exposure to the Weekend Market. Culinary
entrepreneur Chiqui says the boneless lechon is being offered at Peppers
Iberica Resto located in Mabini Street, and is one of their best-selling
product.
Espetada is a skewered
chicken which is a Portuguese dish consisting of skewered meats.
Kristina says the first
Espetada House of Hanging Chicken restaurant opened in 2013 in Sobrecarey in
Obrero. They had transferred in another location also in Obrero.
She says that joining the
Weekend Market helps promote their store in Obrero. Foot Traffic and
word-of-mouth helps them market their store in fact some of the new customers
in their Obrero store were customers at the Weekend Market.
Customers can choose from
Reyna Espetada (chicken thigh with rice side dish), Beef Espetada and King
Espetada (chicken breast with rice side dish).
Frybae has its deep-fried
spare ribs, which according to Arthur makes it different from the others which
offers grilled smoked ribs. Aside from being different, Arthur wants the ribs
to be served faster to hungry customers.
Sisig Factory offers its
Ninja Q, which is a line of rice toppings consisting of beef gyudon, Vietnamese
barbeque, liempo inasal, teriyaki barbecue and spicy bulgogi.
Dragon Dumplings offers its
popular line of dumplings that include Pork and Shrimp siomai, Shark’s fin
dumpling, Japanese siomai, Chicken Dumpling, Ham Siomai and Crab Siomai. The
stall is also selling its signature chili sauce the Dragon Dumpling Chili
Sauce.
Flocked by kids, teens and
some young adults K-Cotton Fries offers Korean cotton candy with different
flavors such as bulgogi, honey butter, cream butter garlic, butter onion and
salted egg.
Had a full but happy tummy
after trying all those selections. The Taste of the Nation is perfect for one
food binge. Even with martial law, people are still flocking to the weekend
market.
Kat Dalisay says the Food
of the Nation is a symbol of normality, that despite martial rule everything is
still ok.
“Actually wala siyang
difference, all the more na gusto nilang (exhibitors) mag sell para at least
ma-aware na despite merong martial law normal pa rin ang business dito.”
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