WSFC17 Food Frenzy Safari

WSFC17 Food Frenzy Safari (31 May, 2017)


B. Melayu

The Food Frenzy Safari of the 2017 World Street Food Congress is a 15-hour journey to visit and experience outstanding indigenous food of the Philippines. It was held on 4 April, 2017, with visits to food outlets in Metro Manila and Pampanga Province.

This food frenzy is just a prelude of what's more to come in May and June, when it culminates as the World Street Food Congress 2017 (WSFC17). Also happening is the World Street Food Jamboree, a gastronomic extravaganza participated by street food masters from over a dozen countries. I will be updating this page and report progressively on every place we visit on this food frenzy, so, stay tuned!

Here I am with KF Seetoh in Manila. You may have seen him on TV where he would take viewers to various hawker stalls in Singapore. No wonder the President of Singapore Mr SR Nathan honoured him as Singapore's Food Ambassador. And it's no empty praise. Seetoh has literally taken Singapore food beyond its shores. Right behind us is Makansutra Hawkers, a food court established by Seetoh. It is located within SM Megamall, the largest shopping mall in the Philippines. This food court is an oasis for shoppers to enjoy the best of Singapore food - I'll tell you more about it in a separate post.

Seetoh is never chauvinistic when it comes to promoting food culture. He does not limit himself to promoting only Singapore food. Far beyond that, he is ever willing to lend a hand in helping to preserve the indigenous foods of every culture, to stop them from sliding into obscurity, the moment those food vendors pass on. And that's the very reason I am here in the Philippines. Seetoh is taking me, along with other food enthusiasts, on a 15-hour food frenzy, not only in downtown Manila, but right across the country, to Pampanga, which is long regarded as the culinary capital of the Philippines. We had a fantastic time, and I am excited to share with you, progressively, in my subsequent posts and write-ups, all that I have experienced and discovered.

Article by Julie Wong on the Food Frenzy Safari (Click to open full size)
© The Star

KF Seetoh & I at Makansutra Hawkers in Manila, the Philippines (4 April, 2017)

Participants of the WSFC17 Food Frenzy

Participants come from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, the United States, Spain and of course, the host country Philippines, and they all have one mission: to enjoy the best of Filipino food in a 15-hour food frenzy!

Participants of World Street Food Congress 2017's Food Frenzy (4 April, 2017)

Map of the World Street Food Congress 2017 Food Frenzy Safari

On the map below, you see all the places we visited during our Food Frenzy Safari.

Monday, 3 April, 2017

On this day, participants started arriving from various countries to converge on Hotel 101 (GPS: 14.5357, 120.98802) , a newly completed hotel along EDSA Ext, one of the main thoroughfares of Manila, near SM Mall of Asia. That evening, the event organiser KF Seetoh treated us to a very Filipino dinner - fast food at Jollibee! Okay, not quite street food, but Jollibee's as Filipino as it gets. So having a meal at Jollibee is one the checklist of things to do for visitors to the Philippines. So happens there's a Jollibee outlet along EDSA Ext (GPS: 14.53561, 120.98767) next to our hotel.


KF Seetoh with a bucket of Jollibee fried chicken. More photos here. (4 April, 2017)


We had an early closure to the evening, and was told to get plenty of sleep in preparation for the next day, which is Food Frenzy Safari day! I was really excited and couldn't get much sleep that night. I set the alarm to go off at 5:00am in the morning, but I didn't need it after all. By 5:00am, it was already bright outside. Although the Philippines share the same time zone with Malaysia, their location further to the east means the day starts earlier here.

Tuesday, 4 April, 2017

This is the day we've all been waiting for! We assembled at the lobby and were introduced Chef Sau del Rosario, a celebrity chef from the Philippines. Chef Sau is joining us on our food frenzy and will act as "team captain" for the Philippine contingent, which include among others travel writers Mike Aquino and Potpot Pinili. There is also a university student, Celine Allarey, who joined our group, together with her mother Sheilah. They are both avid cooks, and we hope they will gain something from this opportunity.

With everyone on board, our coach started the journey, leaving our hotel towards our first stop. We pass through the streets of Pasay City, which is one of the component cities of Metro Manila. Looking out the window, I saw the Shrine of Jesus the Way, then the 6-star Conrad Hotel and SM Mall of Asia, where the street food jamboree would be held in May. It passes through the City of Manila before continuing to Quezon City. More details in the page below.


What a nice visit we had with Mrs Pineda, but we have to move on. So it's back to the highway. From Quezon City, we headed to the Balintawak Interchange, where we took the North Luzon Expressway aka AH26 out of Metro Manila. One of the more interesting sights along the way was the Candaba Viaduct, a 5-kilometer bridge over the Candaba swampland between the provinces of Bulacan and Pampanga.

We exited the expressway at the San Fernando Pampanga's Best Exit, which takes us to Jose Abad Santos Avenue heading east. We pass SM City Pampanga, the longest shopping mall in the Philippines, on our left, and continue on the semi-rural road to the barangay of Parian, within the municipality of Mexico, in the province of Pampanga, to visit doyen of Pampanga cuisine, Atching Lillian Borromeo.


After the good time at Atching Lillian's house, we hit the road and head for Angeles City. The city of Angeles is located within the province of Pampanga, but is administered separately. To the rest of the world, Angeles is best known as home to Clark Air Base, which is presently being transformed into Clark International Airport. With more space for development, the planned Clark International Airport might in the future replace Ninoy Aquino International Airport of Manila as the main gateway to the Philippines.

But we aren't going to far north as the airport, as the city centre of Angeles further south. From Mexico, Pampanga, we returned to the North Luzon Expressway heading north until the exit to Pandan, beside Marquee Mall. Then we went down Pandan Road heading towards our next stop, which would be very hard to find if you weren't a local. We passed a roundabout, then continue on till we saw a church, Iglesia ni Cristo, on our left, and we made a left turn there into a side road, passing workshops where reeds or rattan were being put out to dry. Our coach same to a stop, and I realised that we have arrived at our next destination. It is called Taldawa, and is possible the most "off the beaten path" of all the eateries we visited.


Continuing our journey, we proceeded to downtown Angeles, to visit 25 Seeds, one of two restaurants established by Filipino celebrity chef, Sau de Rosario. The restaurant is located within a beautiful heritage building off Santo Rosario St., one of the main streets of Angeles.


From 25 Seeds, it is just a short walk across downtown Angeles City to reach our next stop. From Santo Rosario Street, we strolled through the city, and to Hilda Street, to visit a local eatery called Susie's Cuisine. This place specializes in traditional Filipino desserts.


After visiting Susie's Cuisine, we headed on back to Manila. Even though the distance is not that far, we had to give ample time because of rush hour traffic, which caused tremendous congestion on the highways.

Our next stop that evening was SM Megamall, the largest shopping mall in the Philippines. Located on the 2nd floor of this massive mall is Makansutra Hawkers, a food court established by K.F. Seetoh.


After a press conference at Makansutra Hawkers, we were on the road again, heading for downtown Makati, to the 7th and final stop of our 2017 Food Frenzy Safari. Our final destination, with supper waiting for us, is Zubuchon, a restaurant that specialises in Cebu-style roast pig. Tell you about it right here.


It has been a long day. We have stopped in many places, but this day would remain a wonderful memory for me, for a long, long time to come. We have eaten in Quezon City, Mexico, Angeles City, Manila and Makati. We have seen traditional Filipino street food up close. I am not sure about the others, but I like to believe that all of them enjoyed the Food Frenzy Safari as much as I did.

And what to you get at the end of the 15-hour binge? A certification that you are now a Commando Foodie! Thank you to K.F. Seetoh and Chef Sau de Rosario.

Food Frenzy Safari Certification (4 April, 2017)

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