Foodie Manila

I love me my chicken rice. No I am not an avid fan, I am one of the most hardcore fans of HCR or Hainanese Chicken Rice I know. You see, I go to Singapore and Malaysia quite often for work, and I usually stay for 5 days up to 2 weeks. During my entire stay I would usually have HCR for lunch or dinner. It never fails. Whether it be the common Hawker Center HCR thats costs 2.90 SGD or the more notable places I will definitely visit these places at least once. Wee Nam Kee is right up there with the best of them. Along with its own history and traditions, Wee Nam Kee, promises to deliver one of the best HCR’s in town. So imagine my delight that Wee Nam Kee will be arriving here in the Philippines.

And arrive it did.

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Since the Foodie club has been on hiatus lately, some of the founding members decided to just have a quaint little lunch at Richard‘s place. We decided on having a time old tested classic of HCR. (Hainanese Chicken Rice for the uninitiated. Check out old post here)

Between Bites and I have been talking about this lunch for quite some time not only for the food, but also for the kwento and chi-chi that comes with the meal. It was a good time to get to know cute cute little Lauren as well! It was also a good time to teach Richard and Jane some photo tips as well.

On the table was of course, Stevie’s HCR and for Dessert, Costa Brava’s Caramel Cake, Jane brought some wine as well as Irene bringing out some. Coffee was served afterwards.

HCR

Yummy Yummy Wine

Costa Brava Caramel Cake

Coffee by Irene

I enjoyed the coffee actually. Being an avid coffee drinker, I am slowly inching my way to convincing myself to buying an espresso machine for my room or maybe the office. I wonder how much that would set me back by. But for the taste of absolute good coffee, how can I say no?

I’ve been hearing a lot of Chi-chi lately about the latest food craze and Hainanese Chicken from Stevies has always popped out. Blogs really do offer the best source of information. Now mind you, my standards for chicken rice is somewhat high. The first time I tasted it was on the first night of my Singapore trip last year. Ming took us to Boon Tong Kee. Little did I know that it was one of the best places to get said chicken rice. Even hawker center chicken rice was not the same after Boon Tong Kee. But for the price it was well worth it.

I’ve tried the “Original Chicken Rice” over at Cubao and was not satisfied. Something was missing. The chili was just not the same. I missed Singapore.

Yesterday, while talking about food in the office we finally decided to go get Stevies Chicken Rice. At P950 per set, it wasn’t going to be a cheap meal on a Friday.

We ordered 2.

Mind you that Stevie’s won’t deliver unless you get 8 or more orders. So we with GPS on my blackberry in hand we were off to find his house.

I’ve been on a diet (portions) since January this year. I’ve literally stopped myself from eating more than I should, controlling my want for more and more. But today I promised, no vowed, to throw all of that out of the window, even if for just one day.

On the way to the house it was a fun drive discovering which route to take via GPS. The blackberry was indeed really helpful. We kept driving around until we finally found his house. It was an unassuming house. A quaint little chateau nestled in a milieu of foliage. It seemed so different from all the other houses. We have found the place.

Stevie and FoodieManila

I half expected an old man, decked out with white hair as a sign of old age and wisdom. Or some well-travelled explorer who has decided to bring to the Philippines some of the best dishes he has found during his travels. After requesting the house help if we could meet Stevie, out came a gleeful person, all in smiles, and actually thrilled to meet us. He didn’t expect that we would want to meet him. I found him so humble and friendly that I couldn’t help but just smile. So this is the man who made my meal. After exchanging pleasantries and how we chanced upon his chicken rice, we shared how www.dessertcomesfirst.com’s mom lives next door too. Small world this food blogging niche. We said our goodbyes and pleasantries and paid Php 1900 for our meal. His help actually loaded up 5 trays. 2 chicken trays, 2 rice trays, and final tray for all the sauces.

I couldn’t drive fast nor slow for fear the some of the oh-so-precious sauce drippings would spill in the car. But the smell alone was driving us crazy in the car. It smelled like Singapore. I suddenly missed Singapore. The Nuffies and everything.

Chicken Rice

Hainanese Chicken Rice

We quickly unloaded everything at our office. I decided to style the food a bit, (but by this time I was really holding back) and take some pictures for this blog. I proud myself on taking nice food photos. Usually I am able to control myself when it comes to food but for some reason I was too eager. After 2-3 shots, I sat down and ate. I left it to my other co-workers to take other pictures of the food.

I took my first bite.

I took another.

And it just kept going.

I was in heaven. Goodbye diet. I promised to run tom even more than what I had originally committed to do. I am considering 15km because I ate so much.

Stevies is a success. A bit too much lime in the chili but I love it nonetheless. I see myself dreaming about chicken rice for the next few weeks as I try to forget the aroma and scent of the chicken.

Thanks Patty for the Photo. I couldn't resist anymore.

Next Challenge: Find Bak Khut Tey

You can contact Stevie at 0906-508-4155