My friends, get your P200 ready and start trooping to these places.

Everything At Steak Restaurant

The scrumptious chicken dinner you see at the top is the boneless chicken barbecue dinner from Everything At Steak, a small restaurant along P. Guevara St in San Juan, Metro Manila, and it only costs P145.00 (US$3.22) including taxes. It’s a steal, I know. I keep ordering this every time I visit. The pasta dish is a bigger portion than you think. For the Filipino appetite, this is a very heavy meal. Did I mention it goes with rice? (burp)

The Original Singapore Chicken Rice

You don’t have to travel to Singapore to taste the real thing. I only travel to Cubao to taste authentic Hainanese Chicken Rice. Shopwise Cubao, to be exact. At this restaurant, you can have a full order of Singapore Chicken Rice for only P95.00 (US$ 2.11) or P105 (US$2.33) if you want it to go with a tall glass of cool Calamansi juice (Philippine lemon). The explosion of flavors is wonderful. You MUST try this when you’re in Cubao.

Beijing Hand-Pulled Noodles

Also at San Juan City, along Jose Abad St., this gem of a restaurant can actually feed two people for P200 pesos. One order of dumplings (8 large pieces) is only P75 (US$1.67) and some of their noodle dishes that are so big they can be good for two people, sells for only P150 (US$ 3.33). For something so good, the prices are insane! Incidentally, I saw Congresswoman Imee Marcos dine there with her staff. I was in awe at how someone so influential eat without inhibitions at this small Chinese noodle shop. Well, if it’s good enough for a congresswoman, it’s good enough for me!

S & R Membership Shopping

Don’t be intimidated by the words “membership”. Though you do need to be a member to shop there, you always get a day pass if you just want to try it out. Seen here is their garlic shrimp pizza, which I so love. The slices are way bigger than the usual pizza slices we know. One slice is P99 (US$2.20) but it’s so big it’s good enough for two people. The soda? Drink all you can for P39 (US$0.85). The quality of the food is very good and the portions are very large. With the high-quality goods at really dirt-cheap prices, you’d WANT to be a member too. Check out their homepage for more details.

Little Ongpin Panciteria

It’s a wonderful little place along Maysilo Road, right across Mandaluyong City Hall. It’s air conditioned, free parking, and fast service. The Chami (egg noodles) that you see at the top is good for two or three people, depending on their appetites and sells for only P150 (US$3.33) You can’t beat that. The noodles are served piping hot and all you need is a cold glass of soda or alkaline water (which is what I’d rather have). Your P200 can be good enough for two people indeed!

If you have any more suggestions, just leave a comment. God knows we need to know all the cheap eating places. Sa hirap ng buhay ngayon, pwede tayong sumaya’t mabusog sa P200!

I love this place. Food is authentic, cheap and addicting! As if I fell in love at first sight, I can’t stop thinking about the chicken rice. I live in Makati, which is not exactly next-door neighbors with Cubao, but I come here anyway. Been doing so for the past week. Since I first tried their chicken, I went back several times the following week. Why shouldn’t I? Every order of Singapore Chicken Rice is only P95 (US$2.06)! Compared to other restaurants, it’s authentic Chicken Rice at the best possible value. If you try their Chicken Rice, I know you will come back too.

I know, the rice doesn’t look appetizing, but don’t be fooled by it. The taste is wonderful because the rice was prepared using flavorful chicken stock, rather than plain water. Served with pounded ginger and chilis as complimenting sauces, the pickled vegetables were a delightful surprise and brought out the richness of the chicken. I found the broth fascinating because it tasted like rich chicken broth without the bouillon or MSG. None of their food tasted anything like MSG or the usual Chinese fare. It was all great tasting real chicken goodness without the oil and the fat. I hate white meat but if it’s Singapore Chicken Rice, I’d say ‘bring it on!’

The original name is Hainanese Chicken Rice, because it was popularized in Southeast Asia by immigrants from Hainan, China. Chef Seetoh once said that Singapore Chicken Rice came from a Hainanese chef who lived in Singapore and eventually the Singaporeans adopted it as part of their local cuisine. The shiny gel you see on the chicken is made by dipping the cooked chicken in ice water to prevent further cooking. The cold temperature creates that jelly coating which seals in all the flavor, so expect your Singapore Chicken Rice to be served with cool chicken but with warm rice.

How to eat Nasi Lemak

This restaurant also serves Nasi Lemak (rice cooked in coconut cream). A regular Malaysian breakfast item, you can have Nasi Lemak the whole day for as little as P35 (US$0.76)! It’s crazy, I tell you. For the uninitiated, as I was, here’s a video of how to properly eat Nasi Lemak.

Until the owner showed us to how eat Nasi Lemak, I never knew how. I thought it was eaten like the way we eat rice; separated the rice from everything else. However, after the Nasi Lemak is mixed, indeed the taste is so much better.

Singapore Chicken Rice is located at Unit 51 of the Shopwise Building inside the Araneta Center in Cubao. I urge you all to try it. Incidentally, they have a promo now: Free one order of Singapore Chicken Rice if you buy two orders. Ergo, for the price of two, you will get three. NOT BAD! Do try it out. This promo is good for the month of February, 2010 only.

By the way, the curry and the other stuff tastes great too and are just as inexpensive.

I love the Laksa. Really good!

Pancit Chino. I love this!