Dinner at Estero

Yep you read that right! We ate at Estero.

1. No, it's not what you think.

2. It's really not what you think. HAHAHA

Before proceeding, a little background first.

Being engineering students we often have projects requiring us to buy from the place where you can buy almost anything electronics related, RAON. So one night me and my friends found ourselves buying at raon and then one of my friends asked "Kakain ba tayo" Of course bawal tumanggi because malas. HAHA Then I had the idea to take them to Estero. For those of you who don't know Estero Fast Food or "Estero" for short, It is a place where you can find a couple of stores that serve authentic Chinese stir fry and and other freshly cooked foods. It is located just outside of Binondo and just at the bottom of the Ongpin north bridge. And yes, as the name suggests, It is located just beside an estero (Canal)

'Map of Quiapo area and pinned is Estero Fast food'

Now, I have always wanted to bring them there ever since my family ate there a couple of years ago but I have forgotten where it was located. Thank God that just recently another friend of mine, Liezelle, took me there and FINALLY I was back. Of course I memorized the route going there. So ayun nga, I told them I will bring them there but I only know how to get to the place by walking there, but they decided to take a tricycle instead(ang tatamad nyo eh no haha). Sadly the driver was not familiar with the place so I just guided him there (Sana talaga nag lakad nalang tayo haha)

'Okja, Daddy, and luis when we ate here 2 years ago. Mukha akong may sakit'

'Faces only good food can make. From right to left: Mommy Beng, Mama Ria, Luis'

'Liezelle and I at LGA Fast food. This was lunch time'

When we got there we had choices of where to eat and we chose LGA Fast Food It is the third of the stalls located there and this is where me and Liezelle ate. Menus where given and since there was 4 of us in the group we decided that each one of us would order a dish so we would have a lot to choose from. The menu was packed with different dishes neatly organized by which meat is used, they had frogs (Yes, Frogs. Frog legs to be exact), rice, soups, etc... everything was in budget so we proceeded with ordering. I ordered Chicken in Garlic Sauce, Ava ordered FROG LEGS in Garlic sauce also (Their garlic sauce IS SO DAMN GOOD), Sheen ordered Hototay Soup which is a kind of soup that is a medley of different ingredients like egg, chicken, seafood, vegetables, etc... , and Josiah ordered the Garlic rice which is good for 4 people (Yes, garlic again. It just went perfectly with all the other dishes we ordered.) There was about 15 minutes waiting time before the food was served. This varies depending on how many people are eating there. One thing good about this place is that you can see your food being cooked since the kitchen is an open kitchen and the seats are just outside of it. Also you can see the fresh food displayed just outside of the kitchen which is where you can choose what to eat! (Parang turo-turo lang sya frens). Once the came, the mandatory photoshoot commenced (kaya lumalamig pagkain frens eh), then finally we indulged ourselves with good food and great company. The servers where also very nice and accommodating to your needs which is a plus factor in almost any restaurant.

'From Right to Left, Sheen, Ava, Josiah, and Okja'

'This is what will welcome you when you come to the place, To the right are the food stalls of which you can choose from.'

'Fun Fact: This is where I first ate frog. These are frog legs in garlic sauce'

'This is the Chicken in garlic sauce. My mouth is watering just posting about this.'

'Left: Chicken in garlic sauce. Top: Frog legs in garlic sauce. Bottom: Garlic Rice. Right: Hototay soup'

Some of you might think, "Yuck kadiri sa estero sya kumain", "Hala, Baka ambaho dun", or "Parang hindi masarap kumain dun katabi ka ng kanal, ewwww kadirdir", well as I said in the beginning: It's not what you think. You wont even notice that you are eating beside an estero. I think now they made efforts to clean up the place (Don't take my word for this) You won't smell anything remotely close to a canal. The only thing you can smell is the smell of good food being cooked. So get your asses off of the chair and go to estero now and tell me what you think.

DETAILS:

What: Estero Fast Food

Where: Just outside of Binondo, just after Ongpin North Bridge (Google maps mo kung nahihirapan ka haha)

When: Lunch and dinner time. I am not sure kung 24 hours sila ask them nalang when you get there.

How to get there: 14 minutes walk from Quiapo Church

14 - 16 minutes walk from LRT Recto Station

You can ride a tricycle from quiapo area to go there but I don't think lahat sila familiar.

Use waze.

What to order: They have a wide array of foods to choose from, there is beef, pork, chicken, frogs, etc... Also they have a variety of soups you can choose from.

BUDGET: 100 to 200 pesos per dish, depending on the size. For a group of 4 people we spent more or less 800 pesos.

What Else: I think you can drink beer here. As to what I remember there were people drinking there. To be safe, just ask them :)

Photos courtesy of Ava Lopez, Liezelle Pinque, and Maria Rita Nadres