Juandering: Pares for the Ages

Beef Pares is a Filipino staple of Chinese origins that is a favorite of every hard working, low to middle class Pinoy who swears by his or her favorite joint. A joint that offers Beef Pares as its main draw follows a template: the cooking area is at the center, open to the diners who are seated around a table that frames the cooking area. Tables are often laid out outside of this main setup and most Pares joints use 'The Original' or other variations of a claim to being the inventor of the dish. Why this is so, I have absolutely no idea.

But one thing is certain. If you are of the middle class or lived in an urban street-centric community or barangay, then you most certainly have a love affair with Pares. I know I do. Now, I am not one to make superlative claims. I certainly will not say where the best 'this' or 'that' is, except for three things: Pares, Tokwa't Baboy and Pancit Malabon. We can debate about Bulalo, Sisig or any other Filipino mainstay, but when it comes to former three, I will stand my ground. I mean sure, chefs may whip up versions of these that are gastronomic wonders, but when it comes to the best, readily available and cheap Pares, Tokwa't Baboy and Pancit Malabon, I grew up eating the best.

So before I even write another lett --

Damn. Aint that a beaut.

The best Pares you will ever taste is located in Retiro, specifically, on N.S Amoranto cor. Dr. Alejos. We call it simply, Pares Retiro. Here's the map.

Along with Beef Pares, joints like this often serve different kinds of pancit, fried chicken and many other Filipino food staples. But I only really go to this one for two things: Pares and Bulalo. I grew up a short jeepney ride away from Retiro and the place is home to many great growing up memories. My childhood friends and I would troop to Retiro for a pig out to celebrate something or when we just want to stuff ourselves silly with awesome food. This place is integrated to almost all facets of my life as many of my school friends know and love this joint as much as I do. And I have taken new friends and relatives to this place. I have a personal record here of eight... 8 extra servings of garlic fried rice. A friend of mine, downed 11. ELEVEN EXTRA BOWLS of garlic fried rice. I have been paying my respects to this place ever since I learned to commute on my own, man.

To illustrate, here are before and after pictures of a visit recurring characters in this blog Marvin, Bojji and my visit here in 2009.

Before. Sorry, Marv (left). LOL

The chaos after. Actually, this was at a point in time when we collectively ate less, and thus, the poor showing.

The term "Beef Pares" is actually not the name of the dish, but refers to a partnership (pares translates to 'a pair' -- don't we just love stating the obvious?). Much like Fish and Chips mean fried, battered fish fillet and friend potato wedges or fries, Beef Pares is actually beef (camto or flank steak) asado (Chinese stew) paired with garlic fried rice. There is Chicken Pares, fried chicken paired with garlic fried rice. I have tried replicating their beef asado for years. Years man. And so have Marv and Boj. But the balance of sweet, anise-y and salty flavors of their version still escapes us. Boj, who lives near the joint and thus clogs his arteries with glorious stewed beef fat and sinew more often, says he's seen evidence of black bean paste in some of his beef asado orders. The basic flavor profile of the asado relies on soy sauce, acid that is either vinegar or kalamansi (Philippine lime) juice, anise, clavo de comer or clovas (cloves) and oyster sauce. I've tried adding chinese cooking wine, Sprite and a bunch of other stuff, but still cannot replicate the caramel and distinct salty undertones of Pares Retiro.

Through the years, after experimenting with accompanying orders for the pares (they have a great stuffed prawn and passable embotido), I, together with Marv and Boj, have settled into a default order:

Clockwise from top right: bulalo, chili sauce/kalamansi/toyo, lotong, garlic fried rice and beef asado.

Let's break these down, shall we?

 

Bulalo

This is not the meaty version which showcases the beef shank. This one uses the lower leg, from the foot to the start of the meaty lower leg. It contains little to no meat and is often labeled Batangas bulalo. Its soup is rich and heavy due to the collagen in the joints and skin. your protein here comes fromt he skin and the boiled-til-they-jiggle cartilage that are so sinful you should not dare this if you have cholesterol problems. Boiled slow and low, the soup is unctuous and has deep flavors because of ginger, onion leeks and all the bones that are in the dish. A dish redolent of fat and bovine, this is as sinful as it gets man.

Lotong

Want to know if the pares is good in a pares joint? First, ask the waiter if they serve lotong. If he or she gives you a puzzled stare like you're talking gibberish, leave.

Lotong is the sauce of asado. Basically an extra kick to quiet your jonesing for more asado. Often it is served on the side with bits of fat and cartilage. I never claimed that this was going to be about healthy food, have I?

 

Garlic fried rice

Why even expound on this? Because if it isn't served in an orange bowl (reminiscent of its Chinese origins as a bowl is the most chopsticks-friendly vessel for rice), then it is not Pares. Period. No erase.

Stacking these guys up to personal towers of achievement was a sort of hobby/contest me and my childhood buddies had going when we were voracious teens who burned away all the carbs through small-ball street basketball with ice-water on the line.

There are, of course other offerings that you could try when you go to this place. And go there you must. I kid you not, getting parking space during any meal time (they're open 24 hours) is a challenge. Be it a heavy lunch or a drunken food binge, they are ready for you mate. Here are two things we tried the last time we went there.

Camto Soup

Yes, sirs and ma'ams, that is a soup of beef intestines. Explaining the very unique and bold flavors of beef intestine to someone who has never tasted it is like explaining the high of any red neck activity: you have to try it and you either love or hate it.

 

Sizzling Sisig

This one, honestly, is a "meh" at best. It's unimaginative and reeks of commercial, MSG-rich flavoring powder. Stay away from this if you go there.

I honestly have to say that you have not had Pares unless you go to this place man. It's unpretentious, but is flocked by people from all walks of life in all hours of the day. Want more proof that this is a must-visit place? Here's a friend's post about it on her blog. If you don't like their Pares, as Bojji once said, "Wala kang taste buds," (You have no taste buds).

Juandering: Quattro + Nation

Often, people go to trendy restos, bars, distilleries and other hangout places because of the name, location or simply because everyone seems to be going there. I went through that phase, the clubbing and binging on expensive drinks phase. But these days, I am more about finding good food. Sure, new restos with the promise of new food experiences excite me, but I don't know, I am allergic to 500+/plate places. I scour the metro for more honest food in accessible places. I found a place recently, at the corner of Kamuning and T. Morato: a hole in the wall that offers the triumvirate of highly marketable Ilokano fare: Ilocos empanada (glad it's finally becoming a trend), Bagnet (Lechon kawali++) and Vigan longganisa. I'll write about that place again and feature it here. Just need to bring my camera next time.

So I go on food hunts, but when it comes to places to share a lot of beers with people you care about, the old tradition of "inuman". Where I go for drinks is not dictated by trend or cool factor, not anymore. Where I choose to drink is not even really dictated by cleanliness, to be honest with you. I have this place I have been going to for years now, and it does not get its patronage because of it's certifications from the health bureaus. When my friends and I drink, we have to have good food.

Main bar area

My oldest and most trusted bar in the Timog area is Quattro. It started as a kick off point for night outs back in college and has evolved into a trusted bar I can always bring new friends to, or meet old ones in. I even developed friendships with a few waiters there and am still recognized when I walk into the joint.

The owners of Quattro have opened Nation in Sct. Borromeo, near Flight. It's an offshoot of my old fave but has entirely different look. While Quattro has that homely, cozy, bohemian vibe with it's old wood trimming chairs and eclectic decor, Nation is more modern, with well planned seating and minimalist decor and furniture.

Outside seating (front)

Indoor seating

The place is trendy modern Pinoy, in the spirit of Tides, chill out places with open spaces with a draw that you really don't understand. Why are people flocking to these places when the offer nothing of note in terms of food, are not really pocket friendly and are hard to get to?

With Nation, I finally understood the draw: the exclusivity of these places not being accessible to public transportation outside of a cab means that the straddle the line between exclusivity and accessibility. In these sorts of places, young and youngish people get to hang out without having to a., worry about the hoi polloi of people who can walk into, say, Quattro without b., having to spend as much as they would in places like Distillery or the many bars in The Fort.

What I love about Nation is that apart from the cool Pinoy pop art that lines it's walls, it meshes old traditions with new design. From the indoor seating ventilated by ceiling fans that remind one of old homes and lit by modernist lighting framed by abaca decor, to the outside seating accentuated by plants and antique looking furniture, to the patio-like outdoor area with the cloth umbrellas, the styles mesh well and lend the place a unique and classy look that sets it apart from the more jam-as-many-people-as-we-can style of Tides.

Outside seating (back)

But enough of this aesthetic nonsense. I am not an interior designer or architect. Let's talk food. Quattro grabbed me by offering competitively priced beers and generally above average bar food. With its Baked Fished Fillet, it has marked itself in my list of go to places forever. By chatting with Orly (a longtime Quattro waiter and the sole reason we even learned of and ventured into the place), we learned that the stuff we love in Quattro is essentially being ported into the Nation menu, with some additions. Now, I really don't take pictures of food before I eat it, not unless it's noteworthy, but often, even though. So let me just describe them to you.

What I absolutely do not like about a lot of bars out there is that often, they hire crap cooks who belch out bland, oily and overpriced dishes that no amount of beer would make me enjoy. But Nation is essentially Quattro v2, so order a Baked Fish Fillet for me when you go there. Enjoy the foil wrapped Tanigue fillet swimming in oil and its own juices, topped with a mayonnaise based sauce. Then go for their Gising Gising, a mixed veggie dish mixed with fish and squid pieces, drenched in peanut and oyster sauce. Or get the Crispy Liempo Bits that my friends love and the surprisingly enjoyable Crispy Bangus Belly. Now, they've glitzed up the menu with some additional fare, and I have tried their Sinuglaw and improved, crunchy Sisig, but I have my old faves and they will always show up in my table.

So check out this new chill out place for the food. Good enough and cheap enough for you to enjoy the night out while laughing uncontrollably at your friends' or your own drunken antics. The service is great, I guarantee it, as many of Quattro's waiters have been with them since I started going there in 2005. And my main man Orly's in Nation, so I know you'll be treated to attentive and warm service.

To get there, here's Google maps.

Shifting gears + Gracie Diet + Local Flair: Pork and Corn soup

This blog was a personal blog. Written as a public (the irony is not lost to me, trust me) diary of random thoughts, it contained nothing but personal musings. Sometimes, the posts I put up were read, recently, I've had an upsurge in hits with a reactionary post and a travel-related posts.

But then, I thought: I write, I cook, I'm learning photography, I am passionate about food, so why the heck am I not writing a food blog?

Well, there are many reasons. Firstly, I just don't think I could hack the Huessaff, Marketman or Our Awesome Planet take on food blogs. I don't have that much money to spend and I don't like paying homage to new trendy restos. Secondly, I hate trendy stuff, with a gusto. Thirdly, I was refining my craft in different ways. I never went to culinary school so I lack many of the basics.The list goes on and on, really. Time, effort, blah blah blah.

But now, I want to write more about food and give a focus to this blog. But let me first explain why and how aPISOforyourthoughts is going to go about this whole food blog thing.

A friend and fellow chaser of the Muse asked me to write recipes for the website he's curating. He has a very specific list of ingredients and what can go with what. He says he's tried the diet he wants me to write for, the Gracie Diet and that it worked wonders for him. But that's also because he's resumed his MMA training. I got into a discussion with him as to how what I have in my pantry and what is available to me in the supermarkets and wet markets that I frequent will limit the appeal of the recipes I create, especially for his North American-dominated audience. Which got me thinking. Really, why over extend myself or even be intimidated by the limiting access I have to Western ingredients? Why not do what I always do and adapt recipes to the average Pinoy? Further, why even think about that when I rarely attempt classic Italian or French-inspired dishes?

So here's how I'm going to go about this. This blog will not be your usual Foodie Blog about new restaurants or about new food finds. Though I will write about restos when I feel like it, I'll be focusing more on food I make and food that I grew up with. I plan to do a "Juandering" series, featuring eateries and hole in the wall places that minimum wage earners can enjoy. I will be writing the Grace Diet pieces for my friend, but with a very local flair. But mostly, I'll be sharing recipes and thoughts about the Filipino food and dining culture.

Let's get a few things straight. I have a very healthy amount of knowledge on food and think about it a lot, some even say I obsess about it, over analyzing it, thinking about the science behind it (damn you House M.D and your the sulfur compounds in star anise will enhance the meat flavor shenanigans)... But I am no expert. I did not study it, but I am very much into food history, science and experimentation. I will also try, as much as possible, to only pictures that I take or make myself. But I realize that that is really an impossibility, so I will give due credit when I do cop a picture or get inspiration from a recipe/commercially available dish.

Lastly, let's talk about ingredients. We all know that sourcing Parmigiano Reggiano or good lamb in this country requires money. But if you're anything like me, finding relatively cheap, essential ingredients, or really, even buying a few premium ones, for special dishes, is always something you should consider. One of my first posts will be about basics. Pantry essentials like herbs and spices and my take on them. Basics like how to make a good bagoong alamang or pureeing squash without a ricer or a blender. Skills that one needs to learn, things like that. Also, I don't measure, so parts per and approximations will be the norm here.

So I'll stop rambling now and share my first dish inspired by the Gracie Diet, and one that holds a special place in my heart. I seriously do not know from whom I learned this, but I could never forget the calming and filling feeling this soup gives me.

Ground Pork and Corn soup