Green Mango: Filipino fastfood

This is my latest new-resto-raids after trying out Carlo's Bakery and Cafe two weeks ago. As the talks in the SSC forum kept on centering on this newest restaurant added along the "Gastronomic" Valeria street, I can't help but feel the excitement and pressure of trying it out as soon as it opened.

And Green Mango now holds the distinction of being the soonest-to-be-tried-out newly-opened-resto on my list. Well it really wasn't that I stood in line when it opened its doors but tried it out on the second day and went back again the next day (it was dinner then brunch respectively).

From the outside it looks intimidating since its glass walls reveal a classy interior that do not seem to convey the usual fastfood scene. Good thing they placed a streamer that proudly says Filipino Fastfood. These words seem to wave at the passers-by and say "Try us, we're NOT that expensive" (not to underestimate them of course).

A new concept in fastfood restaurant interior design (in Iloilo City ) would certainly earn two thumbs up. Its counter is located at the center of the restaurant with three LCD monitors serving as menu boards. Cushioned seats align the perimeter with more chairs and tables found at the back of the counter and outside the restaurant. They even have a mini function hall good for casual meetings.

On their menu, the most expensive item (as of now) was less than a hundred pesos so it's another thumbs up. Mostly Filipino fares with fastfood staple burger and spaghetti. Breakfast meals "si-logs" with Pinoy faves like adobo, caldereta and bistek to their pancit, sinigang, grilled and fried food stations. You can have unlimited rice and drinks if you feel like it.

My order that time was Choice #3 of their fiesta meal consisting of grilled pork, bistek Tagalog and pancit palabok with rice and 8oz drink for 95 pesos. And now the thumbs down come in, at the counter I asked if I can mix and match items and they said no. But when they ran out of the items I ordered they rushed and said if they can change my orders. And I just said yes, because I was already hungry that time and it wasn’t really fastfood. I was waiting for almost 15 minutes.At last my order came and despite my hunger I spent another 10 minutes or so, taking photos of my order from all angles.

This is where my second thumbs down come in. Their tables are not that sturdy that it could topple anytime especially if you have many things on it. I've been there twice actually and would I consider myself lucky if I got to unsteady tables?From the looks of it, 'twas nothing spectacular and they served 3 saucy items side by side thus mixing their sauces. Luckily, their bistek saved the night. I liked the sauce mainly though the meat was still a bit tough. Their chicken barbecue (the changed order from pork belly barbecue, though it might have cost them more) and pancit palabok were just okay, had better ones elsewhere.

All in all I would say that the pros weighed more than the cons that I had brunch there the following day with a friend. We had three orders; bistek Tagalog (I insisted), pork adobo and beef caldereta. And these three made it into my favorite’s lists and can’t wait to be back there. New items to try and blog about.

UPDATE: Green Mango is set to open two branches soon. One is along E.Lopez street near McDonalds and the other at Ledi Supermart Building in Jaro Plaza.

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Easy Century Tuna Recipes

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Takway

The gabi (taro) is just one of those plants which is edible from "roots to tops". The most popular of which is the tuber part which is used in a variety of dishes and mostly in combination with coconut milk. Its leaves, of course, is the main ingredient of a Bicol specialty, laing . It is dried then chopped and sauteed with other ingredients including, again, coconut milk. Then there is takway . The local term for its tendrils/runner, that part which is torn between being a stem or a root for it neither grows upwards nor downwards - it grows sideways . Scraped off of its outer skin, takway is often a key ingredient in vegetable dishes like laswa and the gabi tuber with coconut milk and local snails know as bago-ngon . It is also popular when cooked adobo style with guinamos , the local bago-ong . It is very popular in the region that even big supermarkets sell takway in style - cleaned and plastic wrapped in styro with some additions to make it easier to prepare. ...

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