Old brands, new favorites
TWO OLD BRANDS are ramping up their game with new menu items.
YABUYabu has just opened store numbers 18 and 19 in just 12 years. The restaurant chain, specializing in tonkatsu (crispy fried pork cutlet, Japanese-style), partnered with Michelin Bib Gourmand chef Kazuya Takeda to create their product. Part of the appeal lies in the farm-to-table cabbage and homemade panko (breadcrumbs).
The store openings (in SM Grand Central and SM Fairview) also served as vehicles to launch two new products: Hokkaido Softcream and the Tornado Omelette Curry. Hokkaiso Softcream is a soft serve ice cream made with milk from the famed Hokkaido dairy farms, while the Tornado Omelette Curry is tornado-style omelette on top of rice, served with signature rich and deep Japanese curry sauce. This can be paired with either Rosu or Chicken Katsu.
“We are not just opening new stores; we are setting a new standard,” said the Yabu management team in a statement. “It’s a celebration of where we’ve been and an exciting glimpse into where we are headed. We invite everyone to join us in this new chapter and experience the pinnacle of tonkatsu dining.”
PAN DE MANILANeighborhood favorite Pan de Manila wants to remind the public that not only do they offer pan de sal, but they also have dining outlets. Merienda by Pan de Manila currently has six branches: at Rockwell Ortigas, Rockwell Sheridan, Santolan Town Plaza, Four E-com Center Pasay, SM City Batangas, and Ayala Center Bloc Cebu.
Merienda by Pan de Manila presents timeless classics like crispy beef tapa, palabok espesyal, Lucban longganisa (sausage flavored with garlic), and arrozcaldo (savory porridge) alongside culinary innovations such as lumpiang embutido and lechon belly batchoy. They also have coffee, and hot chocolate, which one can pair with the menu of bibingka and other kakanin (a category of Filipino rice cakes). With classic wood moldings and capiz fixtures, the cafes are equipped to remind one of times spent in familiar houses.
Follow Merienda by Pan de Manila on Instagram @meriendamanila.
