Cover Freshly baked croissants by Masa Madre Bakehouse | Photo: Masa Madre Bakehouse/Instagram
Freshly baked croissants by Masa Madre Bakehouse | Photo: Masa Madre Bakehouse/Instagram
1 / 1
Welcome to Foodie Finds! This is an article series by Tatler, chronicling where and what to order according to the food-obsessed.
I myself have never understood non-foodies. How can one not love flavours, spices, aromas and all the cultural nuances and memories that come with every bite? Dining is an experience meant to be savoured and is even more fun when shared with loved ones. Dining around a table means sharing, conversing, bonding and learning. A dish can tell you so much about a person, a culture, and a country. It speaks volumes of a nation’s history and is an art form on its own. Skilled hands are trained over years or are born out of pure passion and practice. Professional chefs and home cooks alike, from young stars to grandmothers, have been cooking up meals filled with emotion and have truly made us foodies, happy.
Through Foodie Finds, we ask our epicurean friends to share their favourites. In this feature, we tackle takeout and delivery. Hear what JC Cailles Lo, co-founder of JC Wines and Facebook’s Fine Dining Club of the Philippines, has to say. He shares his go-to shops for takeout here:
See also: Foodie Finds: Food Stylist Chichi Tullao Shares Her Top Takeout Picks in Metro Manila
1. The Lazy Susan
@thelazysusan.mnl
They have the best cha misua for me! This is translated in English as stir-fried wheat vermicelli noodles and is something that is usually served during birthdays. This is no doubt the best-tasting version of this dish in my opinion. It is authentic, very flavorful, and packed with premium ingredients. The noodles are so fine and silky! The special homemade broth is so flavourful even without MSG. Each serving is topped with what they call eight treasures, namely: fresh shrimps, scallops, fish cake, carrots, pork, pork tripe, mushrooms and fried egg. This is the only current offering of this store. Talk about focus!
2. Bibingka MNL
@bibingkamnl
This is the only bibingka I truly appreciate and crave for. They have premium packaging, top ingredients, and excellent quality. I like how creative they can be when it comes to their variants. There’s the original with salted egg, ube and cheese, four-cheese bibingka and my favourite, their suman latik bibingka. This is the classic soft and fluffy bibingka with premium, chewy suman inside. It also has salted egg as a surprise centre and is then topped with roasted latik and queso de bola. The bibingka of my dreams!
See also: Where to Order Bibingka in Metro Manila
3. Green Bar
@greenbar_cafe
Head to plant-based dishes that are hip and cool! Their dine-in restaurant transports me to a casual California restaurant where I can have my vegan wines too. What impresses me about this place is first, they walk the talk. The Santos sisters are 100 per cent vegan and grew up as vegetarians. Second, is that their veggie meat called seitan is made in-house! They have very delicious gluten-based products in the form of beef, chicken, pork, and fish meat. They are truly masters of texture! Whenever I order take out, my go-to is their gyro fries made with house-made seitan that is marinated in balsamic herb mix until tender. These are placed on top of fresh-cut potatoes and then drizzled with garlic mayo, onions and parsley.
4. Masa Madre Bakehouse
@masamadrebakehouse
I’ve been ordering from chef Kris Edison Tan as early as August 2020 even before he formally put up Masa Madre. I admire the young chef as he represented the country a couple of times in Mondial Du Pain—a bakery cup held in France. No one can argue too that his croissant is one of the best when it comes to texture and lamination. The crumb structure is insane! His viennoiseries are of the same league as that of the famous ones in Paris like Laurent Duchene and Gontran Cherrier. I order a lot of items from him, but I prefer the less-novelty ones. I usually get plain croissants, pain au chocolat and the croissant loaf.
See also: Bread Lovers, do you Know the Difference Between a Patisserie, Boulangerie and a Viennoiserie?
5. Tipple Cafe
@tipplecafe
Chef Francis Lim is one of the few chefs with whom I share an almost identical preference when it comes to flavour. His food is well-seasoned, robust, and never dull. When chef says it is spicy, make sure you prepare a glass of milk, haha. Their bestselling shawarma rice is one of the yummiest I’ve tasted. Truly addicting! You can have your pick of beef, chicken, or mixed meat with tomato, cucumber and pickled onion relish. Their KFC (Katipunan fried chicken) has a catchy name and is something I usually order too. It is boneless country-style fried chicken paired with creamy mashed potatoes.
See also: 9 of the Best Fried Chicken Burgers in Metro Manila
6. Jen Cooks
@jencooksph
Home cook owner Jenny Chan Tan is one of the nicest and most accommodating Instagram sellers I’ve encountered. This is a big plus because she really makes it a point that her customers are happy and she takes constructive criticisms really well. Her offerings are very unique and cannot be easily found elsewhere. Yes, the dishes are Chinese-inspired but they don’t all come from a particular region. My general observation is that her dishes tend to be on the innovative side but are still comforting. Although her number one bestseller is the beef tendon, my top favourite is her jiggly and ultra-smooth silken egg with seasoned pork. I can finish a tub by myself, haha! My next favourite is her stuffed seafood eggplant that I can easily finish in minutes.
See also: Foodie Finds with Chef Jen Gerodias Slagle of Casa Luisa
7. Every Bite
@everybite.ph
Fight me, but this is the best New York-inspired cookie in the Metro. Levain is my favourite cookie ever in the world and I don’t miss it every time I order from Every Bite. It is very underrated and has lots of potential to become viral. I like cookies that are huge, buttery, and with a balance of both sweetness and saltiness. This premium brand has all of that. My absolute favourites are their ultimate chocolate chip and double chocolate peanut butter cookies. They also have a lot of seasonal items and also offer plant-based cookies that taste as good as the regular ones.
NOW READ
Foodie Finds with Chef Carlos Villaflor
The Eggs Factor: Asia's Top Chefs Share Their Favourite Egg Recipes
Expert Jay Khan Tells us all About Agave, Mezcal and Tequila
Topics
About
Isabel loves to learn, and see things from different perspectives. Connecting with people and engaging in new experiences to broaden her horizons is what inspires this storyteller, keeping her constantly curious, and excited for what's to come. An absolute love for all things F&B ignited a hunger to devour content from this world and keeps her jumping into tasty adventures around the globe. From the beauty of simple bites, to nuanced fine dining tasting menus, street food, and the art of entertaining, the multi-faceted nature of the dining experience is something she can't get enough of. A good cup of coffee or a glass of wine paired with a dash of witty conversation is a quick way to win her over. This editor loves travelling, food, music, skincare, fitness, and is only friends with people who love dogs. Guilty pleasure?: Binge-watching TV shows and movies she has already seen.
Work
Concept creation is the name of the game and branding takes centre stage in Isabel's day-to-day schedule. From producing shoots, conceptualising bespoke projects for our partners, relationship management, to cooking up features and events for Tatler Dining, this editor is a tried and tested foodie at heart. She mainly writes content for Tatler Dining, engaging in captivating discussions with restaurateurs, chefs, producers, and food enthusiasts to tell must-know stories. Aside from that Isabel manages Tatler Dining's flagship events like Off Menu, or Cocktail Festival and puts together the Tatler Dining Guide, our annual listing of the best eats around town.
Follow her on Instagram @isabelvmf.
