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Lion’s Rice at Rose Bowl

Although many things in Baguio have change, my Rose Bowl Lion’s Rice is a constant and a part of the Baguio I remember.

While I was growing up, my parents took me to eat at Rose Bowl countless times. Rose Bowl is a restaurant located along Harrison Road and facing Burnham Park in Baguio City.

I vividly recall being brought to Rose Bowl past my bedtime and falling a sleep several times before the soup arrived. I remember my parents having long discussions about things I could not understand while I sat and stared at the paintings of daisies on meadows in Rose Bowl and waited for the food to come. And, as far back as I can remember, I have always had Lion’s Rice.

Lion’s rice is a dish with lechon kawali (deep fried pork chop), chop suey (sautéed vegetables of fresh button mushroom, cauliflower, carrots, fresh peas and brocolli) and a cup of steamed rice. Sometimes, I asked for a sunny-side up egg to go with my Lion’s rice.  To this day, my parents give me perplexed funny looks when I order Lion’s Rice, which I eat alone, while everyone else gets to eat “family style”, i.e., everyone shares all the dishes ordered.

The thing about Lion’s Rice is that its taste has never changes since I was a child.  Its familiar taste not only gives me comfort, it reminds me of my wonderful childhood in Baguio.

This website defines the Filipino word lamon as “to eat with gusto - more like a swine.”  Lamon is exactly what Monk and I did at Cavite after a grueling work morning.

As usual Monk played a bad trick on me. He told me that he would pass by for me at 5:30 a.m. because of the traffic in the Southe Express Way but he arrived well past 6:00 a.m. Grrr… We concluded our business in Cavite by lunchtime, and before we headed back to Manila, we ate at LZM.

For months Star, Monk and a host of other friends have been raving about the bangus (milkfish) at LZM. Although I am not a fan of fish, I was curious to try this bangus that people were raving about.

By the time we got to LZM, Monk and I were starving and poised to pig out. I suppose sleep deprivation makes one want to pig out. We ordered the boneless bangus, Bulalo (boiled beef and marrow with vegetables), salted red eggs and a mountain of steamed rice. I wanted to order the lechon kawali (deep fried pork) as well but that was a bit too much.

While waiting for our food to arrive, Monk and I started making our own sawsawan (dip). Monk mixed calamansi, which according to this website is a “small, very round citrus fruit that’s ubiquitous in the Philippines”, soy sauce and sili (tiny hot chili peppers). I mixed patis (fish sauce), calamansi and sili.

The bulalo was fine but I think they popped in some beef bullions, which altered the taste of the broth. I prefer bulalo without the enhanced flavoring as the beef shanks, when boiled for a long time, can adequately flavor the broth.

Now the bangus did not disappointment. In fact, it was so tasty and tender that I ate half of the giant bangus served to us. I ended up eating the bangus with rice sans the sawsawan because the fish needed no extra flavor to enhance its taste. Monk and I barely spoke while we were eating the bangus like swines. This bangus is definitely something worth coming to this place for specially if your are in the mood for a lamon.

Dearest Uncle G,

On our way to Borobudur, there was a truck carrying two cows.  For a good twenty minutes, all I could see was the back of the cows.  Then, Danang suddenly pulled into a side street and stopped.  He then announced that we were having lunch.  When I got out of the car, I saw a sign that read Warung Makan Purnama.  I learned that warung means store and that the names of most restaurants have the word warung in them.

The food in Warung Makan Purnama was on display and all you had to do was point to the food that you wanted so the server could place it on your plate and hand the plate over to you.  As usual, I did not recognize most of the dishes on display.  As I was not feeling particularly adventurous, I ordered fried chicken and rice.  Danang ordered the same thing except that he had some curry sauce placed on his rice.  He also took a piece of what he told me was deep fried egg tofu.  LS, who I recently discovered is a picker eater than me, refused to eat anything and settled for just a cup of cold tea.  

There was nothing unusual about the way the chicken was cooked but it seemed tastier because it was a native chicken (free range).  I did try some of Danang’s egg tofu, which was actually very good.  The tofu had the consistency and taste of egg custard, which is different from the consistency and taste of soya tofu.  I would have, however, preferred to eat it warm.  Danang’s egg tofu was cold.  I also ate my meal with kerupuk.  

I do not know if you would like to eat in a warung, but as for me, I do not mind eating there again.

Love, Pandora

Dear Uncle G,

The only place on your list that we tried is Jimbaran and we loved it there.  We ate there twice.  

We ate dinner there on our first night in Bali.  Tito L and Tita D were hoping we could watch the sunset from Jimbaran, which I learned is on the west side of Bali.  Unfortunately, we arrived there late.  We ate at a restaurant called Dewata.  We were asked to choose what seafood we wanted to eat and the staff at the restaurant would grill it for us.   That night, we had grilled squid and two kinds of fish, a red snapper and baronang (I do not know what this fish is called in English).  The fish came with three kinds of sauces and one of them was called Bali Sambal.  This sauce had tomatoes and chilies and other spices.  LS loved it.  As for me, I concentrated on the grilled baronang.  

Fish is not one of my favorite foods but the baronang I liked.  It did not have that fishy taste of the sea or the muddy taste that I could sometimes detect.  It tasted “clean”, fresh and had that distinct taste from being grilled in charcoal.  It was cooked just right as the baronang was not soggy or tough.  Just thinking about it now makes my mouth water.

Tita D, LS, Jani (the guy who drove for us) and I each had fresh coconut juice, which was naturally sweet.  As the coconut itself was served to us, we ate the coconut meat after we were done drinking the juice.  As expected, the meat was translucent and of the type that would slither down your throat.  Yum!

Even if we were full from our meal, Tita D and I had to get our grilled corn fix.  Someone was selling grilled corn along the shores of Jimbaran.  As usual, I got my grilled corn buttered and salted.

On the day we were leaving Bali, LS, Jani and I had dinner in Dewata again.  This time, we ordered two grilled baronangs and grilled shrimp and pigged out.  LS had an extra order of the Bali Sambal too.

You have to tell me about the other restaurants in Jimbaran that you tried so we could compare notes.

Love, Pandora 

Dearest Uncle G,

Among the things our dad asked us to get him from Indonesia is Flores coffee, which is “[f]rom the volcanic slopes of Flores Island near Timor… [with a] mild piquant taste with perfect balanced rich flavor [that is] unmistakably Indonesian.” Tito L introduced our dad to Flores coffee several years ago when he visit Indonesia.  My dad has been drinking it ever since.  I am not a coffee drinker but all those who tried Flores coffee have vouched for its great taste.

On the Sunday before we left for Manila, Tito L and Tita D took us to some far away mall to buy Flores coffee, which is not available just anywhere. While we were buying our dad his coffee beans, Tita D introduced us to the Indonesian version of pickled guava. I was expecting the guava to be sour but it turned out to be a sweet sort of pickle. The guava was crisp, refreshing and quite filling.  It is a must try.

Tita D also introduced us to Pazola, a fruit seasoning.  Pazola tastes like salt.  Only it is not as salty as salt.  Pazola enhances the sweetness of the fruit.  If you like to eat your fruit with salt, you will like Pazola.

Love, Pandora

Dearest Uncle G,

On our last day in Jakarta, we did last minute shopping with Tita Day and she treated us to lunch at Bakmi GM.  According to her, Bakmi GM is a popular fast-food joint that Indonesians frequent.  True enough, when we got there at 3:00 p.m., the place was still packed with dinners.

 

For starters, we had cold Soursop juice (Guayabano juice).  While it was sweet, you could still detect that slightly sour taste.  The juice was also quite refreshing and just what we needed on that hot day.  I do think, however, that one should just have one glass of Soursop juice to go together with a meal.  More than a glass of this juice is too much as it is think and filling.  

After serving us the juice, the next thing that was placed on our table was Pangsit Goreng, which is the Indonesian version of deep-fried wonton. It came with a sweet and sour sauce. LS said that the Pangsit Goreng is similar to the fried wonton we get in Chinese restaurants. Only, the Pangsit Goreng’s wonton wrapper is “bread-ier”. I agree with her observation.

    

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Dearest Uncle G,

After I told the concierge at our hotel that I had a hankering for food that was not sweet (many Javanese dishes are on the sweet side), he laughed and said he is from Sumatra so he would know where to find food that is not sweet.  (I am told that Sumatrans are accustomed to food that is spicy and not sweet.)  The concierge recommended we try a restaurant called Iga Bakar and promised that the food was not sweet at all.

On our third evening in Jogjakarta, LS, Danang and I ate at Iga Bakar. 

Iga is the Indonesian word for ribs while bakar means grilled. It therefore came as no surprise that, at Iga Bakar, the main dishes served were grilled beef ribs basted with various sauces, which true to the Sumatran concierge’s word, were not on the sweet side. (more…)

Dearest Uncle G,

Recently, I re-read the children’s book by Dr. Seuss called Green Eggs and Ham and thought of my Indonesian food trip.  Have you read that book before?  Just in case you have not read it, it is about a persistent guy named Sam who tries to make his unnamed friend try green eggs and ham.  Throughout the entire story, Sam hounds the unnamed friend who, without trying the green eggs and ham, says that he does not like it.  To end Sam’s pestering, the unnamed friend  eventually tries green eggs and ham thinking he will not like it but ends up liking it instead.  I love this story because it sounds funny when read fast.  Try it. Read this excerpt from Green Eggs and Ham really fast -

“SAM:  Do you like green eggs and ham?

UNNAMED FRIEND:  I do not like them Sam-I-Am.  I do not like green eggs and ham?

SAM:  Would you like them here or there?

UNNAMED FRIEND:  I would not like them here or there.  I would not like them anywhere.  I do not like green eggs and ham.  I do not like them, Sam-I-am.”

Like Sam’s unnamed friend in the Green Eggs and Ham book, I was doubtful about some of the Indonesian food I encountered.  I wonder if you would be more adventurous than me.

I forgot to ask Danang what this was when I chanced upon it at the traditional market in Jogjakarta.  Monk thinks it is fried bats.  Whatever it is, I’ll passed on this roadside food. (more…)

Dear Uncle G,

For as long as I remember, people have always warned me not to eat roadside food.  Most of the time, I heed their advice.  But sometimes, roadside food is just too irresistible to pass up.

Love, Pandora

In Indonesia, I could not resist eating grilled corn, which is sold everywhere.  LS, Danang and I were in Ketep Pass, Java to see Gunung Merapi when I first saw someone selling grilled corn on the side of the road.  The next time I saw someone selling grilled corn was when we were in Jimbaran, Bali with Tito L and Tita D.  Grilled corn with salt or basted with butter is also sold in the sidewalks of the Philippines.  In Indonesia, however, other than salted or buttered grilled corn, you can also opt to have your corn basted with chili butter.   (more…)

Dearest Uncle G,

What in the world is Oleh-Oleh was the first thing that came to my mind when I first heard  that word uttered. I later learned that Oleh-Oleh is a store that sells local food stuff and gifts that one could bring home from a trip. In the Philippines, we call the coming home gifts pasalubong.

Tito L and Tito D took us to Krishna Oleh-Oleh in Bali so we could get out Dad these tiny, crunchy, dry and salty roasted peanuts.  The peanuts were so addictive that LS and I kept munching on them the whole time we were in Bali. We got our Dad a few bags of these great peanuts but they were so heavy that I actually wanted to throw them away when I realized that I could no longer carry my bag.  But, I digress… Other than food stuff, you could buy t-shirts and toys in the Oleh-Oleh.  The prices of the things sold at the Oleh-Oleh are far cheaper than the prices for the same things sold elsewhere in Bali. I think it is because Oleh-Olehs cater to locals rather than tourists. (more…)