It’s finally time for another QD experience! This time, it’s all about authentic modern Italian dishes, and about everything fresh, like fresh herbs and spices (no artificial flavors), and freshly made and handrolled pastas! One of the few restaurants who can execute this perfectly is Va Bene Pasta Deli. They only have 1 branch as of now, which is at Petron Gas Station EDSA corner Pasay RD, so if you ever get that urge to eat Va Bene Pasta Deli dishes but you’re nowhere near the place, you can also order via Quick Delivery. Va Bene, by the way, means “Ok” in Italian – correct me if I’m worng, “va bene”? ^_^
ABOUT THE DELIVERY SERVICE
As always, ordering was a breeze. What I did this time was send them a text message to 0918-2121212 which detailed my order. In a few minutes, I got a call from Quick Delivery and because I already texted them my order, they just read it back to confirm and asked if there’s anything else I needed. As it turns out, I could have just texted “Callback” instead of my whole order and they could have just taken my order over the phone when they called me. Well, No harm done in texting my whole order, and it actually made the transaction faster! ^_^;
The food arrived in disposable microwavable plastic containers and I promise I’ll take pictures of the packaging they came in next time. They were all still hot, except for the bread (you’ll see our orders in a little while).
We also got a booklet with lots of nice things to read and menu of some of the restaurants tied up with Quick Delivery! I’ll make a separate article about that but here’s a glimpse…
ABOUT OUR ORDER
Here’s what we ordered:
Extra Order of Bread w/ Dip of the Day P70.00
I’m not really a bread person but I know and appreciate good bread when I “hear” one. Yes, you’re right! This bread was as crunchy on the crust as all proper dinner bread should be and as soft and tasty on the inside complemented by the light dip we got which was, I think, olive oil, some herbs (tasted like basil), tomato and a little bit of salt. I LOVED IT! I can order just that and be very happy and satisfied the whole day. Really!
Seafood Marinara Taglioloni P280.00(Marinara-tossed with clams, prawns, mussel, tomatoes and garlic, baked in an aluminum foil)
We originally wanted Beef Lasagna (230php) but it wasn’t available, so we decided to try this. This was a filling meal. If I was eating the whole dish, I wouldn’t be able to finish it all, so good thing Mario and I were sharing. He liked seafood, I like seafood too so it was a dish we didn’t have any biases against. I liked how creamy the sauce was mixed into the pasta. The pasta itself was soft, not soggy and I think if I was looking for a meal to satisfy my hunger, this would be it.
I Canneloni P280.00(Rolled spinach and ham canneloni served in a light tomato cream sauce)
So here’s the lesson, if in Va Bene Pasta Deli they say it’s rolled spinach, expect spinach through and through. They really weren’t kidding! The outside may look like it only has hints of spinach here and there, but the inside, which regrettably I didn’t take a photo of, was screaming green! It was intimidating at first, I’m really not a fan of spinach, but I also knew there was ham at the center so I braved it and took a big fork full of I Canneloni. The verdict? Not bad at all! The cream sauce was light and not overwhelming and the pasta was perfect as it should be. The spinach flavor, the way they cooked it, did not ruin the experience for me so I’m not that intimidated of spinach anymore!
Chicken Cannelloni P280.00 (Filled with chicken, tomato, bachamel sauce and mozzrella cheese)
This one we really like. Again, sauce wasn’t heavy so it didn’t take away from the actual cannelloni which was good. I wished there were more than 3 but I’m glad the sauce was plenty.
OVERALL
If you think that it’s a little pricey, well, you think right. But you should also consider that this restaurant offers dishes from fresh ingredients (if I’m not mistaken, they have potted herbs on display in their actual shop) and you can’t really disregard the fact that the pasta (they also sell their pasta) are hand-rolled and freshly made. So if it’s authentic Italian cooking you’re looking for, this is a must try. Personally, I would order the Seafood Marinara Taglioloni again and hope that the Beef Lasagna is finally available, and will also try their square pizza!
Nothing quite compares to a wonderful lunch together with family, with nothing to complain about and everything to like. That’s exactly the lunch date we had at my parent’s house last Sunday. We decided that the theme to the lunch feast would be Asian and choosing Banana Leaf Curry House, which has been awarded one of the best restaurants in the Philippines for 2 years – 2009 and 2010, is a no brainer. It’s a good thing that it’s one of the restaurants that Quick Delivery is tied up with. We decided to do a Group Order so that if there’s anything else on the menu that other people would like to order (that I haven’t ordered yet), they can add them to the list themselves. Here’s how it works:
Quick Delivery Group Order
Group Order is a neat tool especially for officemates and group of friends ordering together, but would like to have their orders conveniently marked/tagged so that when the orders arrive, you won’t have that confusing task of trying to remember who ordered what. Also, this tool allows you to specify if payment would be done separately (for each person so that you won’t have to bother with the individual computation and the change) or as a group.
*** You can click on the screenshots to view the larger image.
Step 1. Login/Create Account (quickdelivery.ph)
Step 2. Check Delivery Address (or add a new one) then Click on “Group”
Step 3. Select/Add Group Members by typing in their email address
Step 4. Choose a Restaurant and Choose a Date and a Time (Group Orders are made in advance, we made our order a day in a advance. By the way, we set our delivery time to 12NN and boy was is on the dot! Not a minute too soon or late! We all had a good laugh about it because it was too on the dot.) Then Click “Place Order”
Step 5. Click on the items from the menu that you want to add (specify quantity, labels, request and flavors-if needed)
Step 6. Take note of the Total (add 10% for delivery fee if the website didn’t include it) and click “Continue”. The next screen will show Quick Delivery House Items if you want to add wines and spirits to your order, otherwise, click “Continue”.
Step 7. Specify the following: a) if there’s any amount limit per person (the creator of the order sets this) so that other members of the group won’t get trigger happy in adding items you won’t be able to pay for in the end. b) If payment will be per person or as a group c) Payment mode (cash, GC or other – they accept credit card – VISA, MASTERCARD, AMEX, JCB) and ATM payment – Megalink, Bancnet, BPI Express Payment) d) Message for the whole group (which will be sent to the email addresses you specified for them) e) Order Comments/Instructions
Step 8. Review the delivery address (of course) and the delivery time, then click on “Place Order”
Step 9. You’ll receive a confirmation email. Everyone else in the group will receive an invitation link which will allow them to view the order and add some more items they want to add from the menu.
*** Quick Delivery will give you a call after all members of the group have placed their order OR you can also FINALIZE and LOCK the order (the creator of the order can do this) if you don’t want anyone else to add anything to the order.
PROs
This is a great tool if you want to have your food “pre-marked” so that when it comes, no need to burden your group with trying to identify whose dish is what.
It’s also very addicting and fun because it’s something new.
As usual, the Quick Delivery staff (both on the phone and delivery crew) were pleasant to deal with.
CONs
I wish there was a “SAVE ORDER” option. While I was making the order, I had to leave the order half-way through the process for some errands. I already added a lot of the items and I just wanted to be able to go back to the order later that day to finalize it or maybe add some more, but there wasn’t a save function, so I had to do it all over again.
Now on with the food!!!
The Banana Leaf Curry House Experience
About the Restaurant
Banana Leaf Curry House offers modern dishes coming from various Asian countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. If you want to experience a culinary adventure from various countries in 1 stop, I would say Banana Leaf Curry House would be more than able to supply you with a great long list of must try dishes.
WHAT WE ORDERED Roti Canai P78.00 and Curry Sauce P30.00
Roti Canai is a Malaysian flatbread usually paired with a dipping sauce which is curry, so that’s why we ordered Curry Sauce too! ^_^ Since they’re called Banana Leaf Curry House, I really had high hopes for their curry products and they lived up to them!
Roti Canai is the one on the bottom right of the screen and the yellow dip is, of course, the Curry Sauce. Perfect match! The curry was great! As one famous catch phrase says it, “Sarsa (in this case, sauce) palang, ulam na! The other food in the photo is the Vegetable Samosa with its Yogurt dip.
Vegetables Samosa P118.00
This one’s an Indian snack, which is pastry filled with a combination of vegetables usually potatoes and peas. Just by its name, it’s not very inviting. ^_^ Anything labeled vegetable, I think for other people too, is something we stay away from when ordering from restaurants (although I enjoy eating them, but I enjoy meat more than I enjoy veggies). Well, this one was a pleasant surprise! It was like I was eating a flavorful mashed potato with a non-oily wrap. I liked it!
The triangle ones are the Vegetable Samosas and the white dip is the yogurt dip that came with the Samosa. First impression, looks like triangle version of lumpia, and once you taste it, for someone who’s never tried Samosa before, I was surprised! I forgot that not all vegetables were leafy. ^_^ I was expecting a very leafy filling and I’m glad it wasn’t like that at all. It’s perfect for an afternoon snack.
Half Hainanese Chicken P298.00
This dish is shared by 3 countries; Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand – although it’s originally a Chinese dish. It’s mainly boiled chicken in stock which infuses the chicken with the flavor that it has. It came with 3 sauces (or spices) which I think are chili, soy sauce and another one that I don’t really know what it was. The chicken, for me, really needed those 3 sauces/spices, otherwise, I would have added salt on mine. Well, you all know how I love salty food so I guess my opinion doesn’t count. ^_^ My brother said that the 3 spices/sauces were essential to add flavor to the chicken but the wonderful thing about the chicken is how tender it was.
Here’s the chicken and you can see the 2 spices and the soy sauce which my mom drizzled over the chicken (top chef presentation-wannabes ^_^). Do you know what the other spice/sauce is (top left)? Let me know if you do… ^_^ By the way, the cucumber came with the chicken. The fact that it’s boiled, is a healthier way to eat chicken staying clear from the oily fried ones.
Nasi Goreng- Nenas P188.00
On the menu, it’s described as “pineapple rice”, but there doesn’t seem to be any pineapple mixed in the rice, although there’s sweet pork (tasted like fiesta ham or tocino) and raisin (plus a couple of other things fried with the rice) that made it sweet.
Here’s the Nasi Goreng-Nenas and you can see the bits and pieces they added. It was a little dry for me. I guess fried rice will be fried rice. Is there a way to keep it moist and a little sticky even after you fry it? Anyway, I like the bits and pieces and there’s no shortage of them. Every spoonful will have some of the ingredients you see on this picture.
Stir Fried Clams in Singaporean Chili Sauce P228.00
Wow, is all we can say… This one was the star of the day! I’m glad that for 228php it was a lot! It was spicy, you’ll definitely feel the heat but it’s tolerable. Even Mario, who’s not a “spicy” fan, loved it! Manang Inday, our helper, did the first tasting and she underestimated the spiciness of it and got it real bad she ran for water. ^_^ But she kept getting more clams and sauce throughout lunch.
Hello, spicy clams! I just can’t forget how wonderfully tasty it was! We all loved it! Can you see the red peppers scattered everywhere? And it had generous amount of sauce against my expectations. When the menu said it was “stir fried” with sauce, I thought they would just drizzle the sauce over the clams. I didn’t think the clams would be swimming in it. So that was a good surprise.Another look at this awesome dish! Some of the shells, well, you’ll find the clams swimming in the sauce so most of the shells are empty. Have I mentioned how tasty this dish was!? ^_^
Malayan Beef Curry w/ Potatoes P268.00
My dad had first dibs on this. We all agree, they’re worthy of their curry house restaurant name. Curry was great! What I’m amazed though is how well they cooked the beef and the potatoes! The beef was tender! It was almost tender for babies to eat… ^_^; Well, maybe not but you get the point. ^_^; But the potatoes are done perfectly in a way that it still has its form, but it’s soft but not mushy, so I’m really quite impressed.
I’m not sure if you can figure out which ones are the potatoes and which ones are the beef in this photo. ^_^For 268php, I guess the perfection on how they cooked it is the reason for the price. Don’t be fooled, this wasn’t a big bowl. It was more like a personal soup bowl. Hmm… It’s as big as when you cup your face with both of your hands but open up your hands away from each other some more.
Barbeque Roasted Whole Baby Back RibsP328.00
This one was for Mario, knowing how he loves barbequed baby back ribs. It was odd to find something like this on the menu because you would expect that this is really a Western dish but the taste, I guess, is an Asian twist. As what’s expected, it was fall-off-the-bones tender! I can’t really say that I like this Asian twist to the flavor, we did finish the whole thing, but compared to the chicken, the clams and the curry, this was emptied last.
My mom, before plating it, separated (or wanted to) each rib but I stopped her midway, because it wouldn’t look good in the photos but I didn’t stop her soon enough, I guess. ^_^; Anyway, it was too long, a couple of the ribs are on top of the batch (top part of the photo).
Tiger Beer P98.00
Oh yes, we had to! This is for my dad. Well, I had a sip too because it’s not everyday I get to try the world famous Tiger Beer. They’ve won several international awards for this beer so we gotta try, right? ^_^
Here’s the Tiger Beer (isn’t it obvious) and they are not shy to let us know it’s World Acclaimed. It was really beer and you’ll get reminded of it everytime you sip it. It’s not for light drinkers, because I think it’s a little too strong. But the taste is really good, I have to admit.
OVERALL
We all enjoyed every bit of the process. I have nothing to complain about Quick Delivery Group Ordering, it was easy and fun. The food arrived on the dot, and was cooked perfectly. I have not a doubt in my mind that if someone needs a recommendation on Asian cuisine they can have delivered at home for the holidays and any day, Banana Leaf Curry House would be top of my list.
Touble Thumbs Up!
Everybody happy!
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Quick Delivery: http://www.quickdelivery.ph/
Delivery Hotline: 2121212
Order Online: www.quickdelivery.ph
Delivery Call Back: Text your landline number or text <ORDER> to (0918)2121212 and they will call you back.
Order Time: Open 24 hours
Delivery Time: 10AM to 10:00PM
* GC provided by QD for blogging purposes but the whole article
is 100% the opinion of the writer and was not influenced by the company.
There’s no better way to start 2011 food blogging than writing about a restaurant we really enjoyed eating at and it’s just probably less than half a kilometer away both from where we live and from where I work! My officemates took me to Hanako Express, located in Moonwalk Parañaque, during my 2nd day at work in the new office. The experience was so good that I knew I had to be back with Mario soon to blog it, and I did, right at that weekend!
About the Shop
It had a “neighborhood-cozy” restaurant feel to it and that’s always a plus factor. Well, one of the reasons it felt so comfortable and pleasant in the shop was probably because it’s right smack in the epicenter of a residential area so we’re practically in a very familiar environment, and right across the street was a church!
Here's how the outside looks from the inside. I forgot to take a snap the other way around but I'll update this article once we go back there again (which will be soon, I bet).
We were comfortable in our cushioned seats and cushioned back rests, in a clean restaurant, with clean floors and nice white walls that made the small space look bigger than what it actually really is. One thing missing is music. There wasn’t anything playing, so we were just listening to the sound of the vehicles passing by the street, or the sound of us (me and Mario) talking to each other. Not that we don’t love to hear ourselves talk, but a background music would have made been better.
Mario settled in pretty quickly with that slightly upturned corner of the lips indicating a really subtle smile.. ^_^ (what the...?!) Anyway, he's looking at something on the other side of the room... What could it be? But before that, spot the Hanako Express signage in the background?This was what he was looking at, and also what influenced him to order Chahan rice. I like the lights.Here's a shot from the center to the kitchen area. It's really just your basic restaurant and I think the brand "Hanako Express" is quite new in the industry so I doubt if there are any other branches yet.
About their Menu
Their menu was very thoughtfully put together. It had a little bit of everything and something for everyone without making the choices too overwhelmingly plenty. It was also pretty impressive with all the photos of the food so you’re not left guessing what you’re getting, although Mario preferred if the ingredients were also on the menu. That’s not really a big deal since everything we asked the crew (about the items on the menu), they were able to answer (of course).
Here's the front of the menu. You have to admit, photos really play a big part in influencing a buyer, in this case, 2 hungry customers!And here's the backside of the menu.
What We Ordered (with mini-boot rating / 5 is the highest):
Chahan Rice (39php)
It was a more affordable version of Yang Chow fried rice and the price was just right.
Plain Rice (15php)
It was normal rice (well, what is normal rice anyway..?). It wasn’t Japanese rice which was what would have been perfect for a Japanese restaurant. Sorry no picture for this… I mean, do I really have to post a photo? Anyway, we ordered it as extra.
Seafood Teppanyaki (139php)
This was the dish that took the gold medal for us. It was just a tiny bit saltier than what we would have preferred but that’s so minor and we still give it a perfect boot rating. It has fish, squid, shrimps, vegetables, and a yummy sauce! We’ll definitely order this one again!
Top view! There's squid! Veggies! Shrimps! and fish (which you can't see from the photo)!
Chicken Teriyaki (89php)
I guess it’s hard to go wrong with a teriyaki dish but I love the fact that the serving was generous. I had more rice than I can finish alone (good thing Mario was there ^_^) and lots of Chicken Teriyaki toppings to share!
Karaage (85php)
I ordered this because I loved Tokyo Tokyo’s Chicken Karaage and I wanted to compare the 2. The Hanako Express version was a little bland for me. It wasn’t as tasteful as what I imagined or thought it would be looking at the photo and the actual dish. It was served with a sauce but I forgot to ask what it was.
Miso (30php)
Another normal dish so normal rating. ^_^
*** The boot rating system is something new that I’m going to start this year. I will rate each dish from 1-5 boots where 5 is the highest so that you’d know right away which ones I recommend.
Overall
We loved the place for 3 major things: the proximity to where we live and they offer delivery!; the reasonable prices; and for offering some of the tastiest dishes in their category of restaurants! We’ll definitely be back, again… and again… and again!
He posed for this thumbs-up photo before we even started eating! I guess it's because the place just gave us a wonderful first impression that we knew we'd be enjoying the food experience!
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Hanako Express
Location: In front of Holy Eucharist Parish Church / Moonwalk Village, Phase 1, Parañaque City
Delivery (Moonwalk, Betterliving and Multinational villages only – for now): 828-0254 / 384-5825
(Marinara-tossed with clams, prawns, mussel, tomatoes and garlic, baked in an aluminum foil)
The Wandering Boots 