Rarely Ordered | Adventurous dining made safe!

I, Fiel had received an email from one Rayna Vihuela Reyes with the email subject “Boycott Kowloon House”
here is an exact copy of her statement to me:

taken from a friend at anakbayan-up diliman.

Before June of this year, the Kowloon management refused to pay the minimum wage which was mandated by law. In fact, it did not follow the three most-recent wage hikes, amounting to 82 pesos. As a result, while other workers were already receiving at least P382 a day, the workers of Kowloon only got home P300.

To pressure management into giving them SOMETHING WHICH THE LAW ALREADY MANDATED AS THEIRS yet which management refused to give, the workers wore black ribbons at work in a single day last June. But instead of listening to the workers, management instead reprimanded them, especially the union leaders.

Afterwards, they decided to hold a “picket protest” AFTER their WORK-HOURS and AWAY from any locations that would result in DISRUPTIONS of OPERATIONS. Management then decided to hold negotiations with the union. But secretly, they filed a case of “illegal strike” against the workers at the NLRC (National Labor Relations Commission). So when management did agree to raise their wages to P377 a day, the workers only enjoyed this wage hike for one pay day. Why? Because the other Saturday, all 73 members of the union were fired.

Meanwhile, the contractual workers of Kowloon receive only P250 a day.

All of this is ironic because Kowloon could easily pay for the demands of the workers. After all, the owners of the restaurant never applied for “exemption” from the minimum wage, something the Law affords to businesses that can’t afford to pay the minimum wage to its workers without going bankrupt. A lot of local businesses do that, but Kowloon never did. Its either they simply can afford to pay the minimum wage, or the owners of the restaurant have a severe case of amnesia (selective that is).

To illustrate their point, the workers calculated the amount in backwages (the amount of wages which all workers in Kowloon should have received if management had obeyed the three most-recent wage hikes). They then compared it to the sales for a SINGLE product of the restaurant: the siopao. Their calculations showed that the total backwages owed to all the workers was more than equalled by Kowloon sales for siopaos in only 11 days!

If this is greed at its worst, then the NLRC is stupidity exemplified. It ruled in favor of Kowloon management, agreeing that the workers indeed held an “illegal strike”. How could that have happened? Could it be possible that someone from NLRC forget that the definition of a “strike” is a stoppage of work? How could there have been a strike, when the workers protested outside of their work hours?

As of my writing, the workers of Kowloon have already established their picket line. To confront these unarmed and hungry workers, management has hired so many security guards that they virtually equal the number of striking workers. Who has heard of a restaurant with 20-30 security guards? The only restaurants that I know that have such a number are those in the movies that house activities of the Mafia. Come to think of it, its appropriate. The Kowloon management’s greed and dishonesty in dealing with the workers can only be described as nothing short of “criminal”.

And like everything in the Philippines, the Government sides with the thieves, not the theft victims. The Phil. National Police keeps a few cops on the scene at the ready… to disperse the picketline should there be a moment where no outsiders will intervene. Members of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Phils. have installed a security camera near the picket line, an obvious attempt to harrass students and youths who have regularly visited the picket line in the past few days to show their support to the workers.

This is something which should never be tolerated, and has no place in just society. I urge everyone, my relatives, friends, classmates, schoolmates, casual acquaintances, “online buddies”, and anyone else who is reading this, to adopt the cause of the Kowloon workers as if it was their own. Because like in the time of Hitler, the best accomplice of evil are those who keep silent and remain apathetic.

Please participate NOW. Everything is stacked against the workers. Here are a few suggestions:

- Tell everyone you know to boycott Kowloon Restaurant until it agrees to take back the 73 laid-off workers. The best way to hurt greedy people is by denying them our money.

- Repost an online version of their statement all over the internet, write blog entries, post in message boards, and send emails, all regarding this issue.

- Donate money so they can sustain their strike. Its not easy to feed 73 people especially when they all just recently lost their jobs. If you belong to an organization, have your org make it an activity of theirs to raise funds for the strikers.

- Visit the picket line and show your support. As the workers in my previous visits have told me, the morale support they get from us is priceless to them. In a system that stacks everything against them, our support really matters. And aside from that, the constant pressure of youths and students constantly raising hell at the picket line has created negative publicity towards the restaurant, forcing management to promise to hold a dialogue.

- Have your organization, barkada, block, church, family, or whatever, to support the workers.

Thank you and a Good day to you all.

Now I do not wish to make any judgement - only that I am a supporter of proper labor especially here in the Philippines. As a man who is experienced in business and dealing with employees, I could say that if this statement was accurate it would be just plain evil.

Located somewhere in Thomas Morato, known to most as the prime location for really good restaurants, right beside Shakey’s is a hidden gem for Japanese cuisine fans. Offering the usual and common in Japanese cuisine they also have the chef specialties for the Makis, not your usual makis but definitely worth to give a try.

Out of the eight dishes we ate, we chose to feature 3 of the more interesting dishes. Joining us is our High School bathmate and longtime friend, Mr. Leonard Dizon from DLSU who was sick that day, so we kidnapped him and forced him to dine with us!

Seafood Dumplings

Ren: I half expected that it would have a taste of fishballs inside the dumplings but I was delightfully wrong when I took a bite of this dish. The fish still remains whole inside the entire thing, still giving a wholesome expression of the fish, along with the crunchy outside smothered with sauce to top it all off. The crunchiness with the soft sauce gave the dish an overall a very impressive taste. A 9/10. With the “God-Sauce”, well it already has but more wouldn’t hurt, a 9.5/10.

RJ: This dish was a splendid surprise for all of us. The taste of the fish was not diminished at all, giving it a powerful taste and texture. This is what fishballs should taste like! For meeting beyond my expectations, I give this a 7.5/10. The dish was already blssed with the Sauce from the Heavens, but you can’t have too much of the stuff! It jumps to 8.5/10.

Allen: I ordered this dish expecting an amalgamation of fishballs/squidballs/kikiam XD
It surprised me when I took a bite though; you can actually make out the different seafoods that make up the dumpling (the fish was the most prominent out of them all). It’s actually the cheapest dish we reviewed, so do try it out~

8.00000001 / 10

[ + godsauce ]
Makes it much less “umay-ing” (lol translation pl0x), which is always a good thing

8.50 / 10

Mix Sunomono

Ren: A mixture of vegetables and seafood marinated in vinegar, very rich in flavor but definitely not for everyone. The tastelessness of the seafood highlighted the vinegar as they were not thoroughly marinated long in the vinegar but the cucumbers had a sour taste of the vinegar. Not for your normal consumption, but could it have another use? A 6.5/10. With the “God-Sauce” a 7/10.

RJ: Being alchoholics, we definitely had an “UY!” moment when we first tasted this dish. I just loved the crab and prawn, the squid was ok and we just couldn’t get enough of the seaweed. Just avoid the cucumbers, you’ll get overpowered by the sour taste of vinegar. 7.5/10. The All-Mighty Sauce didn’t really affect this dish, 7.6/10.

Allen: This is something that in my opinion, would sound better if it was called the “Japanese Pulutan”. I found myself avoiding the sea cucumbers though, since the taste was really too sour for my preference; the squid, prawn and seaweed on the other hand, really went well with the vinegar. You could think of this dish as an expensive version of the pickled radish you can find at Yoshinoya’s ~_^

7.131323 / 10

[ + godsauce ]
It makes the sea cucumbers actually bearable! Didn’t do much to help the squid/prawn/seaweed though

7.5 / 10

Jurassic Maki

Ren: The mixture of the soft rice and seafood with the crispiness of the unagi, definitely made this one a keeper. But this tiny package isn’t complete without the sauce! Taken in as their secret recipe (we tried to ask and they wouldn’t just give it to us how) just made this dish more delectable! A rare treat, and something I would come back for 10/10. With the “God-Sauce” a 12/10. (not sure if its possible but what the hecK?)

RJ: I fell in-love with this dish. It’s just fantastic! The Crunchyness, the softness, the tenderness. It all blended so damn well, it’s heavenly! Definitely a must-have if you decide to go to this establishment. 9/10. The Sauce of Divinity made a heavenly dish even more heavenly! I couldnt believe it! 11/10!

Allen: Crunch. crunch. The name jurassic fits quite well, since the maki does seem to give of a “meaty” experience. The crunchy eel and soft crab is a nice combination, and really goes well with the dip. Crunch. crunch.

8.2343343 / 10

[ + godsauce ]
HEAVENLY. this is certainly a dish where you could throw away the much familiar soy sauce + wasabi combination~

9.00 / 10

The Aftermath

What you see in the center of the photo is the Legenadary God-Sauce. The sauce that was served with the Seafood Dumplings and Jurassic Maki. All eight dishes were dipped in it and it showed remarkable results! Our questions on what made this heavenly sauce possible were denied, Omakase intends to keep their Sacred Sauce a secret.

When we went: Saturday, August 30, 2008. (sorry its late Fiel - -;)
Where it is: Thomas Morato Food Strip!!!
Budget Range: About 200-300 per person.

Closing this month of August, this post will be the closest thing to our 2nd monthsary! Yey! Two months of daring the menu is past us and we are still at it! Wooh!

This is also our second dessert review – and this time we reviewed the known but not so familiar Italian ice cream – gelato. Quoting Ricardo Cuna, the owner of the very famous Fiorgelato brand, that “Gelato is different from ice cream as it has significantly less butterfat making it more dense – which lets you taste the flavor immediately compared to ice cream.”

For this review, we went to a very historical Italian franchise – Amici in Thomas Morato. The original is now called Amici di Don Bosco near Don Bosco school, Makati founded by Chef Giorgio and Father Francis of said school. This place is reputed to serve authentic Italian – and is very famous for its gelato. The flavors you see here are ones we carefully selected – making sure nothing is to common to our readers’ taste keeping it Rarely Ordered.

Stracciata

Fiel: This actually disappointed me as it tastes basically the same as double dutch or cookies and cream. The difference is in the chocolate used – which is notable since it is bittersweet complementing the vanilla gelato. Still very ordinary though – 6/10.

Ren: Comparable not to cookies in cream but more to the double Dutch to average ice cream goers. The chocolate is hard and has a lingering taste making the gelato notable. Notable but still ordinary, so I give it a 7.75/10

Blueberry

Fiel: After tasting it, I find that blueberry probably isn’t up to the Filipino tastebud. The whole fruits used are frozen – making it bland whenever you eat a berry. However, I commend the use of natural ingredients making this easy on the palate. For those who like your desserts really tasting like the fruits, give this a shot! 8/10.

Ren: Could have been good gelato, it had a nice texture and the use of fruits was exquisite but what didn’t click for me was that the fruits were frozen making eating it a hassle than the flavor could have given off. So I give it a 7/10.

Mango Jubilee

Fiel: It has the same fruity feel of the blueberry gelato. This time, a variety of fruits were put in a mango gelato base. Creative and you can really tell the gelato itself used mangoes with no additive unnatural flavorings. Again easy on the palate. 8/10.

Ren: Again it could have been good but the frozen fruits just didn’t work for me. The soft texture of the gelato was in great contrast to the hardness of the fruits. If maybe we went in to get an earlier batch where the fruits aren’t as frozen like ice maybe it could have turned out better. The taste of mango was in the cream the taste of the other fruits could have complemented it but it was just too hard to get a mix of it in. A 7/10.

Hazelnut

Fiel: This is just fantastic! Tasting the gelato, you can feel the very finely ground hazelnut take its powdery toll on your tongue. Imagine eating Ferrero Rocher but without the chocolate taste – and I tell you the nuttiness of hazelnut is heavenly. It got consumed quite briskly haha. 9.5/10.

Ren: Not just a nut ice cream, no whole pieces of hazelnut on this one. The flavor comes from the hazelnut itself you can taste it as it has a bit of a powdery taste to it. A nice smooth texture as can be expected, but the taste is excellent as it captured a good sense of what hazelnut taste like. A solid 9/10.

When we went: Tuesday, August 26, 2008.
Where it is: Thomas Morato Food Strip!!!
Budget Range: Its just P50 a scoop – trust us its worth it.

This time we decided to make things simple as we reviewed the pioneer of pares – Jonas! Surprisingly, Jonas is only well-known to the people who have tried it as it proved memorable for them – good taste, great service and very affordable. Their most common dish is of course the classic pares, which is as its namesake a tandem - between Filipino style beef stew and garlic fried rice. We tried a couple of dishes then – an interesting twist to a classic and a rarely ordered item on the menu.

Chicken and Mushroom

Fiel: The chicken was very soft and the vegetables were done right. It almost frighteningly tastes like home cooking by my Aunt. It was rightly bland as it should be – although I am not a big fan of not so flavorful food. Good job though – 7/10.

Ren:It had a nice feel to it. the sauce was very light and didn’t overshadowed the steamed chicken giving it a slightly “homey” feel for the dish. a 7.25/10

Beef and Isaw Pares

Fiel: The highlight of this dish is the blissful mix of perfectly softened beef and the enticingly sinful taste of isaw. It has a salty stew, which was balances well with the garlic fried rice. I have tried other pares versions from other restaurants but this one bluntly outshines them for great taste and excellent value. For that, it deserves a 9.5/10.

Ren: The beef pares was great! You can taste of the marinated beef was able to go through the center of the meat, giving a somewhat presence of the sauce. with the addition of the steamed isaw it was able to give it a balance between taste and bland. A solid 8/10.

When we went: August 9, 2008, Saturday around 7PM
Where it is: Ali Mall, Araneta Center, Cubao
Budget Range: P100 for a very filling meal! XD

Rain, Fiel and RJ

This is the review that celebrates the return of RJ Palabasan – who just got home from Dubai after 7 months! RJ we miss and love you and we’re glad that you are back – you are indeed the proof that GMA must further secure the borders to our country.

We were actually supposed to attend a bloggers event sponsored by Coca-Cola; but when we arrived at Taste Asia, NO ONE WAS THERE! Turns out that the parteh was the day before! We’re sorry ate Aileen! We blame RJ! After getting laughed at by kuya Andrew, we decided to enjoy ourselves anyway by getting lost and eating where destiny took us!

Tempura restaurant at the Mall of Asia proved to be a very authentic yet very different sort of Japanese dining. First of all, they serve Japanese rice in all their dishes – which is a big deal because Japanese food really isn’t Japanese food without it. So for all other restaurants that serve normal rice – beware for this place rocks! Secondly, it is not as expensive as most authentic Japanese restaurants – so you get authentic Japanese food at about P150-P250 per dish. Lastly, they serve not-so-popular-here but very-popular-in-Japan dishes such as the Hamburger Curry Rice.

The three dishes featured here are novel – and they did not fail the Rarely Ordered expectations! And to top it off, we have a omfgsupergadengsizzlinghot reviewer in Rain Santos-Ocampo! This indeed is a great way to go! So here goes:

Buta Sansho Yaki (Pork Slices with Shiitake Mushrooms and Spinach in a Special Sauce)

Fiel: The thing I loved in this one order is the variety of the stuff in it – which all complemented the sweet sauce nicely. The pork was soft, and cut in the same way as in Pork Asado. I love shiitake and spinach – which when all put together was a wonderful dancing variety while I ate it with rice. The sweetness wasn’t overpowering either. Very solid – 8/10!

Rain: This had a very good sweet sauce that blended well with the taste of spinach and shiitake mushrooms. Unfortunately, the pork slices in this dish didn’t seem to have much impact on me. 7/10.

RJ: The meat in this pork dish wasn’t very memorable. However, what made the impression in this dish was the Spinach - we were fighting over ‘em instead of the pork! The sauce was very good as it blended well with the pork and spinach. Recommended for those who like salty dishes. 7.5/10.

Ebi Bacon Furai (Fried Shrimp wrapped in Bacon)

Fiel: I felt that the bacon was non-existent for me in this dish. However, it was fried nicely and the sauce (which we theorize to be honey-mustard with Japanese mayonnaise and sesame seeds) was very good and different. Try imagining the taste – or better yet, try it! 7.7/10.

Rain: This went very well with the sauce. I loved the crunchiness of the batter and the subtle taste of bacon wrapped in shrimp. I was happy that the sauce they served to compliment the dish wasn’t the usual or common sauce one would expect to receive. 9/10.

RJ: I just HAD to try this dish. First of all, it has bacon; and everybody knows that bacon (and lesbians) make the world go round! It is also rare to find dishes with both shrimp and bacon in them - and it was awesome! I absolutely loved the sauce, which we deducted as honey mustard, Japanese mayo and sesame sesame seeds. I will definitely come back for this dish. 8.5/10.

Gyu Hamburg Curry Don (Beef Hamburger Patty Curry with Rice)

Fiel: This for me is just loooove – eating it made me feel some of my memories in Japan come back to me as I ate this dish happily there. So far, this is the only restaurant here that I know of that serves this – and trust me when I say they do it very well! The curry was blended just right and the hamburger patty was very juicy. For curry lovers out there, this is a must try. 9/10!

Rain: This had tender meat and was served with an ample amount of curry sauce mixed with veggie tidbits. The veggie bits made the curry sauce interestingly crunchy. I find that this dish reminds me of a regular Pinoy breakfast food because of the egg, rice, and meat combination only with the addition of the curry sauce and veggie bits- its a fun and filling dish! 8/10.

RJ: I got so used to eating Indian-style curry that I forgot how good other curry variants are. The curry sauce was excellent as it went surprisingly well with the patty. Eating a burger patty with curry sauce on a flat plate using chopsticks was a bit troublesome (we refused to use other utensils) but it was a fun experience. 7/10.

When we went: Saturday, August 9, 2008.
Where it is: Mall of Asia
Budget Range: About P150-P250 for good enough servings.

I would like to share a very common family dish usually prepared by my grandmother – Lola Liling I love you po! Thank you for feeding me everytime I visit you.

This is a good, interesting dish for the savory-sweet Pinoy tastebud. This is very easy to cook in under 40minutes – making it perfect for any sudden guests and unplanned eat-ins. In my case, I simply passed by the grocery store on the way home for the ingredients and an hour later, I was digging in. Since ribs are very low in fat and cholesterol and pineapple contains phytochemicals and antioxidants, this is a very healthy dish too!

Ingredients:

1 kg pork spareribs, chopped into approximately 2×2 inch slices if you want it on the bowl (good for 4-6 people)
1L Pure, unsweetened natural pineapple juice
1 tsp whole black pepper corns
4 Laurel Leaves
1 Small garlic, peeled and chopped

Preparation:

1.Under a low fire leave he pineapple juice to a simmer.
2.Add the rest of the ingredients, and cover but with a slight opening to let the steam pass – this should be for about 25 minutes.
3.You know it is ready when the pineapple juice is thick and brownish. Check with a fork if the meat is cooked just right.
4.Serve with rice.

Tips:

There is a longer version to this dish which can be applied to any dish with meat – which is to slowly cook it under a low, low fire for about 3 hours. After which, you can follow the steps shown here. The advantage here is that the meat will be much, much more tender.

You can cook it without chopping it into pieces!

Experiment with the thickness of the pinapple juice – some may like it more viscous or more watery. Just add a bit of water while cooking to adjust,

Bangus is an interesting restaurant that promotes the bangus – in English the milkfish. This tasty freshwater fish is not the national fish of the Philippines for nothing. The milky taste that comes from the modest amounts of its fatty belly is absolutely heavenly. The meat is hard to prepare professionally since one has to tediously remove the little and numerous bones found virtually in all parts it. It is a delicacy for foreigners and an all-time favorite for Filipinos.

Usually, this fish is usually just either fried, stuffed, mashed or made into Sinigang. However in Bangus Restaurant, we find very unconventional ways of cooking it. We chose the three we found most interesting in the menu and put them here for your delight!

Bangus Lumpia

Fiel: This is a great new twist to our favorite fried lumpia! Other than the enticing taste of the bangus, the main difference of this from regular pork lumpia is the texture. It is smoother and it slides down much easier since the mashed fish meat is much softer. The seasonings and spices used in the mashed fish meat was great too! The dip however, didn’t match the dish itself and I preferred to eat it as it is. This gets an 8/10.

Ren: A different approach to the ever popular lumpia. The fish was grounded well the meat was juicy at most, and the sauce just gave the right kick in comparison to the calm taste of the lumpia. I give it a 8.5/10.

Bangus Kare-Kare

Fiel: I did not think much of the kare-kare sauce as it was not viscous enough and the bagoong was not flavorful enough. The fish was a bit dry too and it did not go well with the sauce. All in all, it just seemed to be too bland for me. This is a dish that could have worked, but not this time. 4/10.

Ren: Well for the Kare Kare part, it was like a regular Kare Kare. The taste of the Bangus fish just didn’t mix or wasn’t there with the creamy broth. and the fish was dry of sorts. But a good thing to try but not a favorite. Another nice “to-try” dish for me 7/10.

Bangus Belly in Tamarind Candy Sauce

Fiel: This must be the best bangus dish I have tasted as far as I can remember! The tamarind sauce was not overpoweringly sweet or sour – which is good because you could really taste the fried bangus belly. The belly was cooked just right too – as the “fatty” taste in my opinion, would not dissuade non-fatty eaters from liking it. The fried kangkong leaves with it were crispy and blended well with the sauce too! My only qualm about this one was that there wasn’t enough serving! This is a 9.2/10.

Ren: The sauce is definitely the highlight of this dish! It was sweet and had a bit of its well known tangerine flavor. With the fried fish and vegetable give this dish a bit of a balance. A decent surprise 8.75/10 for me!

When we went: Last July 26, Saturday at around 1PM
Where it is: Mall of Asia!
Budget range: A bit expensive because of the lack of huge servings. Expect to pay P200-P300 per dish on the average that is good for 2-3 people each if you order 2 or more servings.

Ren, Kylie, Joanne and Fiel

Bread Talk is well known for its Flosss and other delectable breads for being very tasty to the point of having long lines all day long! But have you ever tried their cakes? Usually displayed behind the glass, it seems that people rarely order them. So as we wanted to do review some cakes we decided to give this place a try. As women love cakes more than men we brought with us a couple of friends - Kylie Chen, a Chinese exchange student from Sun Yat Sen University and Joanne Costo, a long time friend n’ foodtripmate of ours and student from the University of the Philippines.

Chocolate Mousse

Ren: Well I have tried different chocolate cakes in my time, this one is pretty good with being spongy. It didn’t give you too much of a hard time consuming it, but the taste was more rewarding, with a flavorful icing on top, its more than a site to behold! 7/10 for the cake!

Fiel: While this is good, it didn’t provide for me the usual exquisite pleasure of eating chocolate mousse. It was not very soft to the point that you didn’t have to bite into it – which is what I usually liked about mousse. But it was solid, chocolatey and a good overall cake. 7/10.

Kylie:The icing gave out an entrancing chocolate aroma that tempted everyone to take a big bite of it. However, I expected the inside to have been firmer and creamier yet it just turned out to be too spongy for me. If it had been less spongy, I would have loved it more. As to the fan-shaped black chocolate chip on top, I gotta give it a credit cause its melting in my mouth did boost the dopamine inside me which is exactly why I’m such a crazy fan of chocolate cakes. Sorry about that maybe I’m too picky about chocolate cakes…I would give it a 6.9/10.

Joanne: This cake layered with chocolate cake and mocha cream tastes unbelievably divine in all its simplicity. It had just the right amount of sweetness to have you craving for more! 8.5/10!

Black Forest Roll

Ren: Well as far as the name goes it was a pretty ordinary black forest. Though the hefty serving of chocolate chips on top and the sweet cherry in the center more than makes up for it. 6.2/10 ordinary but it still had a nice touch.

Fiel: Nothing too special, but the grated chocolate pieces that surround it was really heavy – making the chocolate really permeate through your taste. Other than that, it was good enough. 7/10.

Kylie: The first bite kinda turned me off. Maybe black forest is way too common and this one just couldn’t stand out. It’s kinda sad to be ordinary. Yet to be fair, as the chocolate chips cover, the cream and the cherry inside were all okay, it was an adequate black forest after all. It’s just I wouldn’t order ordinary ones! So… a 5/10 for it.

Joanne: This is my first encounter with a black forest cake made into a roll instead of the traditional layered cake. The icing is not very sweet but I find the cake’s chocolate and what seems to be rum flavoring too strong for my taste. For its peculiar presentation, I give it a 6.5/10.

Strawberry Chiffon Roll

Ren: Well eating this cake become one of the rare opportunities that I have to taste strawberry in a cake. The white icing and pinkish cake in the middle did not disappoint. The taste of strawberry in the bread was highlighted by the icing as the two mixed together just as nicely as the white and pink go. A solid 8/10.

Fiel: Oh my you don’t usually taste real strawberry in strawberry cakes – and thus this one is an exception! I love strawberries and cream – but I don’t like strawberry flavoring. Thus, be rest assured that there really is strawberry used her because I can really taste it. The cream, bread and icing blend really well together. This merits a 9/10 for me!

Kylie: Although I’m not a big fan of strawberry, this one did bring out the best of the freshness taste of this fruit! It’s unlike the other ones that might keep reminding you the artificial flavor. It might be perfect for the strawberry maniacs, but sorry I’m not one of them. Hehehe…7.3/10.

Joanne: I find this cake really attractive. The thin white icing complements the pink interior of the cake. To make it more appealing, a slice of strawberry was placed on top of the icing. It is not very sweet but amazingly, every bite is bursting with strawberry flavor. I give it an 8.5/10.

Mango Furomaji

Ren: Well I didn’t have any qualms about the face and dug in and it was worth it! The somewhat thick cream had a tinge of mango into it, and the bread also had taste of mango into it and there were chunks of mango a bit on the inside of the cake. A triple mango taste but you won’t find yourself overwhelmed by the sweetness of the three mango flavors as they were nicely done not overpowering each other in a sense. 9.5/10 for me!

Fiel: If there is such a thing as a “hidden treasure” in the things Rarely Ordered, this is undoubtedly one of them! The prospect of having the smiley face invite you to dig in, and taste the fresh mangoes upon biting into it is just pure love. Actually, everything had mango in it – the icing on the inside and outside and the bread. It is not too sweet either – it is just right. This is a near perfect dessert. Since it is mango, this is also good for all your foreign guests. 9.75/10.

Kylie: At first sight the all-cream smiling face amused me. It looked cute yet I worried that its cream cover would be too much hence making it a bland taste. However, once I tried the first bite, the spork (a funny thing for me cuz I’ve never seen one in China! hehe…) kept automatically heading to the cute yet no longer complete (all of us were digging in it) smiling face! The cream cover was just right and the cake itself was a superb mango incarnation! The fresh and brisk mango aroma that lingered in your mouth was absolutely irresistible and its creamy smoothness captivated your every single taste bud. This is a kind of cake that you would definitely ASK FOR MORE! 8.5/10!

Joanne: This cake is simply cute. It resembles a large puffy marshmallow with a happy face. The icing is not sweet however it complements the subtle hints of mango and cheese hidden within the cake’s chiffon interior. Personally, I am not fond of mango cakes but this one made me change my mind. It’s a 9/10!

Follow up points by Rain Santos-Ocampo: (we’ll be seeing a few of these in the future - to keep things objective here at Rarely Ordered! - submitted August 3, 2008.)

• The cream is smooth and has a sweet taste to it.
• The chiffon cake is soft but bland.
• It does live up to its name mango furomaji.
• For a simple bread cake, it’s enjoyable dish.
• 7.75/10!

Simply Tiramisu Cup

Ren: I honestly thought it was going to be another chocolate cake but after biting into it I have to stand corrected. The cup was there to give a creamy feel into it. And the coffee taste made it even better than drinking coffee! For that I give it a 8.5/10!

Fiel: I’m a big coffee fan – take this into consideration. I also LOVE very soft cakes that aren’t just made up of bread – and this was one of them. You had several layers of different flavors and textures which had coffee, chocolate and cream. This as you can imagine – is heaven for a coffee person. 9/10.

Kylie: It was a nice combination of pudding and cake with strong coffee scent. I had never tried such combination before so this was kinda creative to me. You wouldn’t get bored tasting it as the different feelings of pudding and cake interested your palate. Definitely a delicate mixture despite its humble appearance. I’d give it a 7.8/10. Overall, I think in BREADTALK, CAKE TALKS, too!!^O^

Joanne: Composed of layers of chiffon, powdered semi-sweet chocolate and coffee-flavored soft jelly, I find it reasonable for the cake to be literally inside a cup. However, being in one doesn’t make it very attractive. I like the confectioner’s sugar on top forming a simple leaf design, though. Basically, it tastes like coffee. The cake is so soft that each bite would simply melt in your mouth. I believe the serving is good enough for one to optimize the utility attained from buying this commodity. Being a coffee lover, I give it a 7/10.

When we went: Friday, 8pm on July 18, 2008
Where it is: Ground Floor, Gateway Mall, Cubao. It is across Taco Bell. Just take the LRT going to Araneta-Center Cubao station and you are here.
Budget Range: The cakes shown here are all just exactly P68 each. Very, very worth it!

Special Thanks to:

Vandy Pesarillo - an old advertising groupmate of Fiel who provided the header image idea.

Steff Someda - for shooting the header image.

The Carinderia woman - for agreeing to participate in our pic.

and of course

Andrew Dela Serna - for doing this new layout for us and always giving us support.

Sincerely Guys, we appreciate it.

- Rarely Ordered Admin

Okra Tempura

The first of our series of Rare Recipes!

I always love it when a certain way of preparing makes me love an ingredient I would usually hate. Okra is something that dissuades a lot of people – me included. But having this dish prepared at home by my beloved mother, successfully made me LOVE okra for the very first time. It is one of the simplest and most straightforward ways of preparing it too – making vegetable tempura out of it. Due to the oil, the sticky taste of okra is minimized and due to the deep fried golden batter, it is actually crispy. With the sauce, it has an oriental but Filipinized taste.

Ingredients:

Okra (any number of pieces, sliced as shown below)
Tempura Flour
Tempura Sauce: A chicken stock cube, 1 piece grated radish, 2 teaspoons soy sauce, ¼ cup 7-Up or Sprite boiled for about three minutes in 1 and ½ cup water.

Preparation:

1.Follow directions in the tempura flour box. Typically however, it is simply mixing it with cold water and leaving the mixture lumpy.
2.Heat the deep fryer to 170 C (340 F).
3.Dip the pieces of sliced okra in the batter and deep fry until golden. Typically, this should only take a minute or two.
4.Pat dry the pieces and / or serve them on paper towels on a plate.
5.Best eaten straight off the fryer with steaming-hot rice and the sauce prescribed above.

Tips:

Do not slice the okra too thick – or they might lose their potential crispiness. A fairly large okra piece should do about 3-4 pieces. The okra piece shown in the picture is medium-sized. Oh and by the way, the two ends shown are to be thrown away. (for obsessive-compulsive people out there)

The Japanese name for vegetable tempura is Shojin-age – and is done with a wide variety of vegetables. We all know some of these vegetables – kangkong, zucchini and eggplant are all common. It takes a the Rarely Ordered spirit to experiment with other veggies – so go ahead use the steps above with a different vegetable!

Deep frying isn’t really unhealthy – it is in the kind of oil used and the technique of cooking it that makes deep frying retain a lot of the unhealthy trans-fats. Ideally, use new canola or soybean oil and quickly remove the pieces after they have become golden brown. The moisture in the food used usually repels the oil – unless it is overcooked. Besides, overcooked veggies taste horrible! Thus, if you prepared a good tasting batch, be rest assured its a healthy batch too.