And more discoveries at Emerald Garden, which the pandemic almost took away
Whenever someone asks, “Where can you find the best tasting jumbo siopao or tai pao in Manila?”
Most likely, one place comes to mind—Emerald Garden on Roxas Boulevard. The problem is, by noon, all the tai paos are gone. Sold!
Emerald Garden was an institution in Manila. But, thanks to Covid, like many dining establishments, it shut the business down.
In Manila, when we talk about jumbo siopao, three places come to mind—Emerald Restaurant, Vin Vin Café at the departure areas of the three airports, and Eat Fresh. I found Vin Vin Café’s tai pao on a tip given me by my forever hungry buddy Claude Tayag. He is like a vulture constantly on the prowl for new discoveries for the palate.
I love Vin Vin’s jumbo siopao. I don’t have breakfast at the other dining places, but here, I’ll have a siopao, which comes with two tiny plastic containers of sauce. Solb!
Then there is Nancy So’s Eat Fresh. I don’t know where Nancy gets her recipes but her tai pao is to die for. They are fully loaded with chunks of meat, sausage, egg, and whatever she puts inside. You can come to my house and you’ll most certainly find one or two in the freezer. Pop in the micro for three minutes, boom!
I don’t know where Nancy gets her recipes but her tai pao is to die for. They are fully loaded with chunks of meat, sausage, egg, and whatever she puts inside.
Emerald Garden shut its doors for good during the pandemic. All the employees were still around without any restaurant to run. Mel Robles, a regular customer of Emerald Garden, had the bright idea of getting the employees together to open Emerald Restaurant. Same delicious food, same employees, but new management. Today, the regular clients of the restaurant are back.
I was blessed to try some items on the menu and I must say they were so, so delicious. Lately, I’ve been eating healthy and so were my friends at the table. We had what the restaurant is famous for—Buddha soup! Also served were steamed fresh lapu-lapu and sizzling eel. We ordered only three items but when you see and taste the Buddha soup you will understand why three dishes are more than enough.
The Buddha soup, I am told, is made mostly of seafood. It is brownish, thick, rich in Omega-3, and therefore very healthy. On the side are chunks of abalone and some other seafood ingredients. The server puts those abalone and other seafood items into the soup bowl and pours in the bubbling hot, thick broth. On the side of the soup is black vinegar. What I like doing before adding anything to the soup is to have a taste. On its own, winner! But when I added a few drops of black vinegar, boom! Heaven! It is one of the most outstanding soups I have ever come across. I think I must have had four servings. The steamed lapu-lapu and the sizzling eel were also very good but I zeroed in on the soup discovery!
Whenever I experience something of this level, I dream about it. I was also blessed to take home the leftovers, which were a lot. My kids loved them!