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A TRIP DOWNTOWN TASTE ASIA

Legendary Filipino cuisine expert Tito Rey's innovative sinigang recipes..Chinese Chef Yao's delicious woks of art...the delicate flavors authentic Thai cuisine...freshly baked Indian breads like chapati and roti blending in with its specialties...a new twist to Japanese and Korean favorites...succulent oysters in a fusion of flavors.

These are some of the highlights that make that food trip down Taste Asia an exciting culinary journey. Located outside the SM Hypermarket in the SM Mall of Asia and Pasig, Taste Asia not only brings together some of the best Asian recipes, but also an eating out experience like no other.

Foodies can choose from a selection of the day's fresh live catch at the Seafood Section, and have these cooked at any of Taste Asia's ten stalls, each manned by expert chefs in Indian, Thai, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and Filipino dishes.

Tito Rey transforms the Traditional Sinigang recipe into an unforgettable eating out experience in the booth that celebrates this hearty Filipino soup. A defining figure in Pinoy cuisine, Tito Rey has given a new twist to our best beloved homegrown recipes. Not to be missed is the Sinigang na Sugpo, in which the tamarind soup base achieves the perfect mix of sour and salty, with the sugpo emittina flavor of milky freshness. Tito Rey's Chili Alimango sa Aligue is also a good-choice - crab fat cooked to perfection in a hot sauce and red wine and garnished with garlic, onion and ginger.

Chef Patt's booth captures the delicate flavors and tastes of Thailand. Part of a family of prefessional chefs, Chef Patt spent his formative years in cooking with his father in the palace of the King of Thailand, later honing his culinary skills in a famous school in Bangkok. He brings his expertise as a master chef in one of the country's well known Thai restaurants to Taste Asia, balancing bold flavors of sour tamarind, hot chili and tangy lime leaves with aromatic basil and mint. Among its bestsellers are the Pad Thai and Fried Tofu.

The Indian food booth is another great foodie stop. Owner Manu Mukhey recommends his Lamb Biryani, Chicken Curry served with paratha bread and Spicy Tandoori Chicken to those who wish to sample traditional Indian favorites. These are prepared with selected herbs and spices, marinated for days in order for the meat to absorb the special sauces and cooked to perfection the traditional Indian way. Freshly baked Indian breads like chapati, roti hcain, naan and paratha are also available in the booth.

In the Chinese food stall, Chef Yan Dazzles food lovers with his delicious woks of art crafted with natural ingredients steamed and stir fried over high heat and flavored with soy sauce, ginger or spring onions. A native of China Chef Yan's love and passion for cooking has won him awards from prestigious culinary competitions in Hongkong where he worked as a chef in a famous restaurant. He has been in Manila since 1999 and impressed taipans and food enthusiasts with his authentic Cantonese recipes. Among the booth's specialties is the Succulent Lobster cooked to perfection in tausi sauce; Hainanese Chicken, Pork Brisket, Fish Fillet in Lemon Sauce and dimsum delights like Pork Siomai and a supersize Pork Asado Siopao.

At the Japanese station the Master Chef gives importance to food preparation as well as in the freshness of ingredients in favorites like Tempura, Sushi, Sashimi and Yakitori. The Kitchen Specialty, However, is grilled beef marinated in a special sauce cooked in Yakiniku style. Yakiniku, which literally means grilled meat became popular as a street food during World War II and also has chiken and shrimp variations.

Korean favorites like Ojingko Bokon (Fried chili squid), Sewu Gui (hot grilled shrimp with kuchujang sauce), Chapchae (Korean sotanghon) and Kimchi are among the best sellers in Mr. Park Kwang Seok's booth. An experienced chef from Taegu City in Korean, Mr.Park says that the rich flavors of Korean cuisine are derived by combining various herbs and seasoning like chili, sesame and ginger which give it a distinctively spicy taste. Taste Asia also celebrates the best Filipino cuisine:Aling Naty's Sisig Specialties; Barbecue delights; and Bacolod Chicken Inasal. There is also an Asian Fusion booth, which offers the freshest oysters flown daily from Iloilo City, where the special homemade oyster sauce for marinating and cooking is also processed. The booth also offers rice specialties like Aligue Rice, Kalkag Rice, and Longganisa Rice.

Taste Asia also has a fruit station and dessert station, the lattering offering Filipino delicacies like bibingka and rice cakes. Diners are also treated to a little night music everyday as well as a view of the mall's fireworks display during weekends.

Taste Asia is located at the Ground Level of the North Parking Building of the SM Mall of Asia, beside the SM Hypermarket.

The Philippine Star - June 4, 2006 » By: Lydia Castillo

A “ Forum of Friendship”

It is hardly ever that one finds a brooding face in a mall. Almost always people, young and old, are smiling with the look of anticipation on their faces. Cardinal Rosales could not have been more accurate when he referred to the SM Mall of Asia (and other such malls) as a “Forum of Friendship.” True enough, it is often in a mall that bonding happens, among family and friends. Some even find new acquaintances.

It rose slowly, the massive and sprawling 400,000 square meter SM Mall of Asia, that sits on a 19-hectare property in the reclaimed area by the bay. People anxiously waited its opening and when it did a fortnight ago, nobody was disappointed. Shoppers found another haven where everything can be found: the department store, the individual boutiques, bread shops, dining outlets, a skating rink, an entertainment area where an awesome screen is supposed to be installed. Most of all there’s that HYPERMART and therefore convenient. Immediately we were attracted to go in. The lady of the chain, the gracious Vends Chua, was silently seated at the rear. She struck up a conversation with us, and we found we had a lot in common, particularly food-wise. The Dots are the donuts, classic and gourmet, which start from P16 each. There are more than a dozen variants including Banana Split, dipped in a caramel glaze and topped with light custard cream, banana chips and small vanilla stick. The more consists of sandwiches (they make their own light buns), while away time, enjoy a donut, sip a cup of coffee and bond.

Now, the HYPERMART. It is a huge and has practically everything that any SM HYPERMART to the supermarket section while the one along the main road brings one through the dry vegetable section, the Dizon Farms staff were most accommodating. Mangoes were at a sells kangkong, Baguio beans. Must buys are the giant salad tomatoes at P130 a kilo. Among the seafood on sale, we could not resist the truly pink salmon heads which we always cook into savory sinigang with jumbo prawns, so reasonably tagged at P470 a kilo. There are live seafood tanks where shells called spider (the first time we encounter them) sell for P280 a kilo. The young attendant told us this could be steamed, but we need more encouragement than that. Anyway, sea bas and pompano cost P550 a kilo, tilapia P90.

From Choice Cuts we got some Farm Fresh products – country – style spare ribs for grilling at P155 a kilo, lechon kawali liempo at P160 and beef tenderloin at P525. Other outlets you can check out are Bread Talk on the second floor, left on the escalator from the main entrance, and Kopi Roti on the ground level. The special offering at the latter are Coffee Buns which have their origin in Singapore. The chain, in fact, is based in the lion City. The buns are small brown mounds made of soft bread covered with a layer of coffee-flavored dough. They also have toasted bead with kaya sauce, made of coco jam.

After shopping, either at the HYPERMART, the department store and/or the many shops that dot the mall, families and friends can rest their tired feet and have a meal at any of the street dining outlets called collectively TASTE ASIA. The thai outlet has the most flavorful, the red curry chicken are definitely recommended, and the pork barbeque sticks are seasoned well. Prices start from P35 per serving and go up to about P200. SM Mall of Asia can’t be done, so to speak, in a day. Return visits are predicted and in each time, discoveries will surely be made.


The Philippine Daily Inquirer Libre - June 20, 2006 » By: Nap Gutierrez

HIGHLY recommended for good food: Taste Asia na nasa SM Hypermart sa Mall of Asia. Grabe ang sarap ng mga pagkain na pawang Asian cuisine may Chinese, Japanese, Thailand, Pinoy, Indian at Singaporean. Bibilhin mo ng fresh ang mga seafood at ipapaluto. Kapag weekends, pila ang mga tao, at 'yong iba, willing maghintay ng kahit dalawang oras pa para lang makakuha ng upuan. Pami-pamilya ang kumakain at kapag gabi, may acoustic performers at banda na nagpe-perform. May magician pang umiikot sa mga mesa at nang-aaliw ng mga bata. Check it out, ibang klase.



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