Note: After spending the entire day writing this essay for school (at the expense of not going to work), I think this deserves a blog entry of its own.
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The late afternoon sun blazes across the enigmatic blue sky over the heart of Santa Cruz, where a few steps away from the busy street of Ongpin stands an old unchanged restaurant unaware of how the modern times changed everything around it. Across the street, at the corner of a busy intersection, only its white-washed walls, a faded old Chinese signage at its side and a huge tasteless billboard advertising a nearby motel are the only landmarks that reveal this place to first time customers. Often hidden in a trail of passing jeepneys and occasional pedicab bikes – which turn the restaurant’s door-less entrance into a terminal, only the sweet faint aroma of a vegetable oil-laden noodles being stir-fried in its exposed underbelly would remind the visitors that Delicious is indeed a genuine Chinese restaurant.
Settling down on the table, the first thing a guest will notice are the glazed red brick walls that seem to be coated with oil. The heavy familiar aroma coming from the open kitchen hung like a thick curtain of smoke, leaving the customers more eager to sample their main dishes. The mood, which reminds me of the restaurants of my childhood, creates a nostalgic feeling as I waited for the waitress to hand the menu. The tables are all worn out, creaky at best; the leatherette seat cover of my aluminum chair have turned dirty white revealing their age; and heavy dust have accumulated outside the steel window grills that a slight breeze may blow away particles to the food I am eating.
However, despite these impressions, one would never fail to notice the huge number of customers who come to this place. One table alone holds a group of colleagues; bottles of beer and a ubiquitous serving of pork, fish and noodles overflow on their table. Opposite them is a stoic elder Chinese reading a mandarin-based newspaper while sipping a cup of tea. Beside me is a couple in their late thirties doing a public display of affection, while enjoying a serving of Siopao and Siomai on their table.
As I observe the customers around me, a waitress wearing a cerise blouse and black trousers came to hand over the menu. This waitress seems to be in a hurry, she keeps on looking at the old Chinese lady manning the cashier’s booth. Being on a tight budget, I asked her their in-house favorites. She suggested that I should try Miki Bihon Guisado or Beef Maki for starters. I ordered them both for they were well within my budget (the miki bihon cost P90, while the beef maki cost P60) after which, she then leaves without clarifying my orders.
Delicious’ long history began nearly 50 years ago, two blocks away from where the present restaurant is standing. According to Zenaida Tan, the present manager of the restaurant, the business is started by her husband’s father as a small eatery along Alonzo Street in Chinatown. People fondly call her father-in-law Tan Aiao, a friendly Chinese immigrant who personally invites onlookers to dine in his restaurant. “Siya pa nga mismo yung nagluluto at nagse-serve sa mga customers niya na mostly Chinese rin.” Says Tan who also told me that the restaurant was named Delicious because of Tan Aiao’s signature enticement to passerbys, “kain ka dito, delicious dito.”
The restaurant gradually expanded over the decades amidst the general Chinese biases against a restaurant business. Many looked down to restaurant owners like Tan Aiao, who continues to struggle to keep the business running despite its high demand of personal time and little profit he gets from it. “Imagine si Tan Aiao gigising ng 5 am everyday para mamalengke then magclo-close shop ng midnight.” Tan Aiao’s children never followed his footstep and opted to start a less demanding enterprise instead.
By mid 70’s Tan Aiao had already passed away. His children, who are successful businessmen themselves are already entertaining the thoughts of selling Delicious’ rights to interested parties. However, Tan’s husband took a second look at his father’s ailing business and decided to run it himself despite receiving no support from his brothers. The customers keep on coming, which are now mostly Filipino employees from Escolta and Santa Cruz. Gradually, the restaurant rebounded and they moved to their present location during the early 80’s.
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The late afternoon sun blazes across the enigmatic blue sky over the heart of Santa Cruz, where a few steps away from the busy street of Ongpin stands an old unchanged restaurant unaware of how the modern times changed everything around it. Across the street, at the corner of a busy intersection, only its white-washed walls, a faded old Chinese signage at its side and a huge tasteless billboard advertising a nearby motel are the only landmarks that reveal this place to first time customers. Often hidden in a trail of passing jeepneys and occasional pedicab bikes – which turn the restaurant’s door-less entrance into a terminal, only the sweet faint aroma of a vegetable oil-laden noodles being stir-fried in its exposed underbelly would remind the visitors that Delicious is indeed a genuine Chinese restaurant.
Settling down on the table, the first thing a guest will notice are the glazed red brick walls that seem to be coated with oil. The heavy familiar aroma coming from the open kitchen hung like a thick curtain of smoke, leaving the customers more eager to sample their main dishes. The mood, which reminds me of the restaurants of my childhood, creates a nostalgic feeling as I waited for the waitress to hand the menu. The tables are all worn out, creaky at best; the leatherette seat cover of my aluminum chair have turned dirty white revealing their age; and heavy dust have accumulated outside the steel window grills that a slight breeze may blow away particles to the food I am eating.
However, despite these impressions, one would never fail to notice the huge number of customers who come to this place. One table alone holds a group of colleagues; bottles of beer and a ubiquitous serving of pork, fish and noodles overflow on their table. Opposite them is a stoic elder Chinese reading a mandarin-based newspaper while sipping a cup of tea. Beside me is a couple in their late thirties doing a public display of affection, while enjoying a serving of Siopao and Siomai on their table.
As I observe the customers around me, a waitress wearing a cerise blouse and black trousers came to hand over the menu. This waitress seems to be in a hurry, she keeps on looking at the old Chinese lady manning the cashier’s booth. Being on a tight budget, I asked her their in-house favorites. She suggested that I should try Miki Bihon Guisado or Beef Maki for starters. I ordered them both for they were well within my budget (the miki bihon cost P90, while the beef maki cost P60) after which, she then leaves without clarifying my orders.
Delicious’ long history began nearly 50 years ago, two blocks away from where the present restaurant is standing. According to Zenaida Tan, the present manager of the restaurant, the business is started by her husband’s father as a small eatery along Alonzo Street in Chinatown. People fondly call her father-in-law Tan Aiao, a friendly Chinese immigrant who personally invites onlookers to dine in his restaurant. “Siya pa nga mismo yung nagluluto at nagse-serve sa mga customers niya na mostly Chinese rin.” Says Tan who also told me that the restaurant was named Delicious because of Tan Aiao’s signature enticement to passerbys, “kain ka dito, delicious dito.”The restaurant gradually expanded over the decades amidst the general Chinese biases against a restaurant business. Many looked down to restaurant owners like Tan Aiao, who continues to struggle to keep the business running despite its high demand of personal time and little profit he gets from it. “Imagine si Tan Aiao gigising ng 5 am everyday para mamalengke then magclo-close shop ng midnight.” Tan Aiao’s children never followed his footstep and opted to start a less demanding enterprise instead.
By mid 70’s Tan Aiao had already passed away. His children, who are successful businessmen themselves are already entertaining the thoughts of selling Delicious’ rights to interested parties. However, Tan’s husband took a second look at his father’s ailing business and decided to run it himself despite receiving no support from his brothers. The customers keep on coming, which are now mostly Filipino employees from Escolta and Santa Cruz. Gradually, the restaurant rebounded and they moved to their present location during the early 80’s.
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