We've been quite busy with work these past weeks. Weekends are the ultimate time for rest, leisure and relaxation. Time out and just for ourselves. It was a rainy Sunday and we were heading to Cash and Carry to get [some] stuff when we found ourselves detouring to Manila instead. It was my "of-the-moment" spur, longing to go to Robinson's Place Manila, that forced made hubby follow the route to Taft Avenue. As I've mentioned before, Robinson's Place is my favorite mall (the place to be, just is, you know what i mean *wink*). For me, [it is] the best there is (and I think my college friends will agree). Right before hitting the mall, I asked hubby to pass by Malate for him to check out Malate Church. He has never been there so I gave him some time to take snaps, appreciate the place, meditate and smell the peace within the place. It was also Cherienne's first time to visit Rajah Suleiman (and his Memorial Park) and set foot at Baywalk just by Roxas Boulevard (more commonly know to hubby as the Ped Xing area).
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| Wok Inn Malate |
Wok-Inn was across Malate Church and it has always been in my jog list to share this with hubby by bringing him there. It's one of those feelings you want to have to share something he is not more familiar of (as he is well-acquainted with places I have never been to). That Sunday afternoon timing was just what I needed. Right after checking out Malate Church, we opted for dinner at Wok-Inn. The place, as I have expected it to be, was packed with families, groups of friends, and the sorts of folk enjoying their dinner. It was a simple restaurant without any grand furniture and fixtures just like those that you will normally see in Ongpin.
Ordering here is quite unusual since they don't have a menu. What they have is a display of all the meat they can offer including seafood. They will, more often than not, suggest some dishes or you can go by however you want your meal cooked. This took hubby by surprise. Since I was a frequent visitor there back in my college days, ordering was a piece of cake. We got the following all time best sellers in a zippy--
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| Sipa |
Deep-fried Dimsum, these babies with sweet and salty meat fillings, carrots, turnips and ultra strong Chinese flavors were (in hubby's terms) awesome. Honestly, I am not so sure what else is inside, bringing in the usual saying: "What you don't know inside makes it the more tastier and interesting", but I assure you that this is a must try! The name, obviously, came about because each piece looks like a "SIPA" which used to be a popular game among children before the dawn of this [digital] age.
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| Pancit - Long Life |
Made up of Pancit Canton, meat of sorts, vegetables and shrimp mixed in their special Chinese (pronounced as: tsa-neees) sauce, this dish was named as such because apparently, Pancit Canton signifies long life. In any case, this Pancit version was [noodles-suckingly] delicious and really tasty.
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| Fried Stuffed Squid |
Another famous dish here, the sauce (for me) is key. Squid that had been stuffed with spring onions (or so I think) and then deep fried to perfection, making it crunchy on the outside but still soft and (hubby says squid-gum) chewy inside. It was then drenched in this thick and a bit spicy soy-based sauce with a hint of sweetness peeping out of it.
As I've mentioned above, they don't have the usual menu as restos do. I wasn't really sure how much each dish was since they also don't have that usual printed receipt. But our total bill was 740php including three orders of plain rice, two drinks of mango juice and a can of soft drinks.
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| As they wait for the food to be served |
Wok-Inn is a sure fire hole-in-the-wall kind of joint. I haven't been there for years but nothing really changed inside -- no renovations made, no improvements, the same smell and look as before. They kept the business simple, shying away from technological advancements. But then again, they were able to keep up their business, keep the people coming and kept up with competition.
Way to go Wok-Inn!
***Some of our Malate Church & Rajah Sulayman Pictures :)
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| And there's my little girl |
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| Malate Church |
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| Inside Malate Church |
---Wok-Inn: 471 Remedios St., Malate, Manila
***you can also find them here: Pelbel Bldg., 2019 Shaw Blvd., Pasig, Metro Manila
Pancit looks delicious!
ReplyDeletei've passed by this place and didn't think it was special (haven't tried it yet, though), pero after this, might have to try it some time. what if the next barkada food trip, we try this one? :p haha, ibalik sa maynila ang mga food trip! :p
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