Foodie Goodie | Hap Chan Restaurant.

It's our anniversary today! Can't believe my husband and I have been together for 11 long years already. And to celebrate the occasion (despite the husband's physical absence since he's still working overseas), we decided (and by we I mean my son and I) to have lunch at Hap Chan Restaurant. Oh yes, we actually have Hap Chan in San Pablo City. The branch is located at Ultimart, the very first mall here in my hometown.

Hap Chan San Pablo.

The little man and I arrived at the restaurant around 2 pm. A crowd of ten people had just finished eating and was about to leave the restaurant as we stepped in. And within minutes, Yue and I had the place all to ourselves.

Inside Hap Chan.

You get an Asian vibe from the lighting and fixtures - after all, this is a Chinese restaurant.

Bamboo mural and red lanterns.

And like most Chinese restaurants, they served us a complimentary pot of their house tea before our meal.

Jasmine tea.

The little man asking for his cup to be filled with tea, too. :)

Hap Chan has extensive food choices on their menu - dimsum, congee, soup, noodles, vegetables, and classic Chinese dishes. They also have a variety of drinks and desserts, set menus, and rice toppings. I ordered two bowls of rice toppings - one for the little man, one for me - instead of ordering rice and viand platters separately.

Buttered Chicken, Php 130.

The little man had Buttered Chicken - chicken pieces fried in butter, served with vegetables on the side. Yue likes anything chicken, so this dish passed his taste. 

Fish Fillet with Corn Sauce, Php 130.

I, on the other hand, had Fish Fillet with Corn Sauce. While I do appreciate the melt-in-your-mouth tenderness of the fish fillet, I can't seem to fathom the taste of the corn sauce. I was expecting it to taste like creamed corn, but this seemed like it was simply drizzled with Knorr's Crab and Corn soup. 

Hong Kong Lemon Iced Tea.

Good thing I made the right choice of ordering a separate plate of Soyed Tofu. Soft tofu soaked in light soy sauce, this simple yet flavorful dish made up for the somewhat bland taste of my fish fillet. 

Soyed Tofu, Php 80.

By the way, rice toppings come with a free glass of Lemon Iced Tea and a small bowl of Ho To Tay soup. Not bad for Php 130 per order, eh?

Ho To Tay soup.

 The little man loved the soup a lot. He even asked for a refill, much to my surprise. Haha!

Enjoying every slurp. :)

For dessert, the little man ordered Chilled Taho with Sago. He loves 'taho' (silken tofu) just as much as I love regular tofu. Well you know what they say, the apple doesn't fall from the tree. :)

Chilled Taho with Sago, Php 45.

I ordered Butchi, but here's what they served me instead - Bichu ala Mode. Their Butchi is one of the reasons why I wanted to eat at Hap Chan today (I've been craving for Butchi since last week), but alas, our waiter wasn't paying attention and mistook butchi for bichu. 

Bichu ala Mode, Php 75.

I could have refused this bichu and demanded for my butchi, but since the waiter was very apologetic, I let it pass. I shared the ice cream with Yue, and had the bichu wrapped for take-away.  

Selca after our tummy-fill. :)

Despite the order mix-up and my issue with the corn sauce, I can't say the dining experience was bad. Mostly because the little man enjoyed his food at Hap Chan. Halfway through our meal, he was telling me that he'd like to eat at this restaurant again and try the other chicken dishes. Haha! Here's hoping there won't be an order mix-up next time we visit!

Hap Chan San Pablo

Ultimart Plaza, M. Paulino St.,

San Pablo City

(049) 572 3300

Foodie Goodie | Kongnamul Guk (Korean Bean Sprout Soup).

It's 21°C outside, and boy, it sure is chilly. Times like this call for a hot cup of cocoa (complete with marshmallows, hehe) or better yet, a piping hot bowl of soup.

I've been craving for Kongnamul Guk (bean sprout soup) since the other day, but since there's no Korean restaurant within my area, I decided to just learn the recipe and cook it myself. I'm sharing the recipe below, in case you'd like to give this dish a try. It's very easy to make, and the ingredients don't cost that much (they're quite cheap, really). This healthy dish is low in calories and packed with vitamin C. It's great for hang-overs, and when added with the chili flakes, makes a good cure for colds as well.

Kongnamul Guk

Ingredients:
3 cups soybean sprouts
6 cups water
15 pieces dried anchovies
2 tsp garlic, minced
3 Tbsp green onions, chopped
2 tsp salt
1 piece kelp, dried
1 Tbsp gochukaru/red chili pepper flakes (optional)

Procedure:
1. Wash the soybean sprouts. Be sure to remove any spoiled tails (those that are brown in color), and drain them afterwards.
2. In a pot, boil the water on high heat. Add the anchovies and kelp in a strainer, and submerge it into the boiling water.
3. Let it boil with a lid on medium heat for 15 minutes. Skim off the foams. Remove anchovies and kelp from the broth.
4. Add the soybean sprouts into the broth. Boil with a lid on high heat for 10 minutes. Make sure to boil the bean sprouts with a lid. Otherwise it can result in a slightly unpleasant smell.
5. Add the garlic, chopped green onion, and red chili pepper flakes. Let it boil for 1-2 minutes.
6. Season with salt. You may choose to add more, so season it gradually while tasting the soup.
7. Turn off the heat, and serve in a bowl.

Shared with Food Friday and Food Trip Friday.