eum•ma•ne

Korean food has always been one of my favorites.  Had my fair share of good and bad Korean food, ranging from the cheap fastfood ones to the expensive ones that can be found in places that you have to specifically go to.  So one random night in Capitol Commons where Hubby and I were looking for something different from the usual (no noisy crowd), we decided to try eum•ma•ne. 

Half Moon Mandu Dumplings

Four pieces of pan fried dumplings fried to a crisp with a juicy pork and beef filling

Never tried Korean mandu dumplings before.  And on the first try, I must say it tastes quite fantastic.  The outside was crunchy and the insides were a mix of ground meat and vermicelli, which were pretty good.

Baked Bacon and Cheese Mandu

Korean pork and vegetable dumplings smothered with a rich Mornay sauce and bacon then "gratinated" with more grated cheese.

Was not impressed with this one.  We had our hopes up after trying out the mandu dumplings, so we thought this was going to be even better.  Sadly, it wasn't.  There was just too much going on.  I felt that the flavors did not mix well.

Bulgogi Ribs with Sweet Potato

Slow baked and grilled Bulgogi pork ribs doused with miso barbecue sauce served with sweet potato and Korean pickle salad, fresh kimchi salad and seaweed dusted corn on the cob.

Now THIS, was a pleasant surprise.  When we ordered this I initially thought that this was going to look like the usual Korean beef stew.  I even thought they got our order wrong when this arrived!  eum•ma•ne's version of the pork ribs, was fall-off-the-bone-tender and really really flavorful.  2 thumbs up!

The verdict?  I'd give eum•ma•ne 4 out of 5 stars.  A fair warning though:  This is not your usual Korean restaurant.  They call it modern Korean, so don't expect the usual fare you'd find in normal Korean spots.  There is no banchan (free appetizers) here either.  But hey, if you're up for something different, go give eum•ma•ne a try!  

eum•ma•ne is at the Ground Floor, Estancia Mall, Capitol Commons, Pasig City

Smoper Chicken

One fine weekday, Hubby and I found ourselves in Fort.  And what do you know, it was lunchtime too!  To save us the trouble of looking for a restaurant to eat, I suggested we go to Smoper Chicken.  I've heard about this chicken place once or twice, and have been tempted to eat there ever since when I passed by a few weeks ago.  Another reason is that I still have an unused voucher from Deal Grocer, hehe!  

Two years ago, Korean chicken invasion happened in our country.  These twice-fried uber-crispy glazed chicken drove us nuts.  First it was Chicken Charlie.  Then came the ever famous Bonchon.  Four Fingers also opened.  And who here does not know our very own Manang's Chicken?  Yes, I'm a chicken freak.  Sue me.  Kidding!  From those I mentioned, I've tried three out of four.  So naturally, when Deal Grocer came up with the Smoper Chicken deal, I had to get it.

Now back to our lunch, it was 12:30PM when we arrived, right smack in the middle of the busy office lunch hour.  And yes, there was a looooong line and nowhere to sit.  Luckily, a group just finished their meal and I asked Hubby to secure the table while I queue at the counter.  When it was finally my turn, I handed the cashier my voucher only to be told that the voucher is only redeemable starting 2PM.  She pointed at the fine print.  BOO!  That's what happens when you don't read the fine print.  But we were there anyway and there's no way I'm going to another restaurant after the long queue.  

Tick tock, tick tock... We were served around 10 minutes after I ordered.  Plus points for the fast service!

My 2-piece chicken in Soy Garlic.  What I noticed right away is the size of their chicken parts.  It's bigger than what the other chicken places are serving.  The skin is also thinner (less batter) and oh so crunchy.  Feels like I'm eating chicharon.  Crrrruuunch!  

Hubby's 2-piece chicken in Original.  Original is spicy-sweet.  Hubby said it was ok, but he liked mine better.  

Overall, I give Smoper Chicken a 4.5 out of 5.  I like it better than the other chicken places.  Guess I have to try the last and final one, then I can declare a winner.  But so far, Smoper is on top of the list.  Will definitely be back.  I still have a voucher to redeem!

Smoper Chicken is at One McKinley Place, 26th St cor 4th Ave. Fort Bonifacio, Taguig.