Visayas Ave. sizzles with The Food Hive

 Food parks are the "in" thing these days in the foodie scene, aren't they? They're all over my Facebook feed as many of my young friends go to them with their group of friends and post enviable, drool-worthy pictures. Huge crowds are often seen in these parks, and people have reasons going: food choices are many, prices are reasonable, the ambiance is casual and fun and conducive to hanging out with friends. Most close down very late at night or even early in the morning, making these places food the perfect "gimmick" spots for the 
millennials and the yuppies.  
Happily, in Visayas Ave. where I go to work, there are now two food parks. Grub Hub opened in November 2016 while the other, called The Food Hive, started operating around middle of January 2017. My daughter, friends and I wasted no time and immediately tried the food offered at this newbie, and we were 
delighted at our discoveries. 
These were our orders and the stalls where we scored them: 

Bubble Wraps
Specialty: Egg waffles that can be had plain or with fillings

Chicken Bubble Wraps, P185. 

Yummy-looking and yummy for real, only, the fried chicken fillet was too salty. I removed the batter and it tasted a lot better. The bubble waffle was delicious, I could eat it on its own, 
with a dab of butter, perhaps.

Yordanovi
Specialty: Bulgarian dishes

Kepapche, P169. 

These grilled minced and spiced meat formed into sausages called kepapche (or kebapche) are much like the Mediterranean kebab both in taste and appearance. The chef who prepared it was Bulgarian so maybe, that's how they call kebab? The meat was mildly spiced but still very flavorful and went nicely with a cup of rice. Kepapche, the chef said, was supposed to be served with potatoes but they still weren't done preparing them, I was apologetically told. No regrets, though, 
I was starving and needed rice!

Pappare Ristoranti
Specialty: Pasta-to-go

Reginette ala Pesto, P195. 

I loved this, it was delicious! The pesto sauce had a delicate balance of saltiness and basil flavor. I only wished there was a piece of garlic toast on the side. And it was fun eating pasta from an upside-down pyramid carton using chopsticks! You can eat while holding the cone if that's how you like it, but you could get and use a wooden mount for convenience. 

La Carnita
Specialty: Mexican food

Grilled Nachos ala Bomba - P195.

This is a huge order of nachos that can be shared by two to three people. This is not your ordinary nachos, however, as it is said to be the first ever grilled one ever made available in a foodie place. When an order is placed, melted cheese sauce, mozzarella and cheddar are pan-grilled together then poured over nacho chips, as you watch drooling. Hehe.. 

Crispy Taco - P90.

This one's really good and quite unlike most tacos I've had in other places. I can't figure out what exactly makes it taste different but it's obvious that La Carnita has its own distinct and stand-out recipe. The taco does not bank on a generous topping of cheese to be tasty, but on the spices themselves that give so much flavor to the meat. The meat, by the way, isn't ground but cut up into small chunks. Well, that's what "carnita" means in Mexico -- roasted or braised meat cut into small pieces. 

Soft Taco - P90.

Friend's order that I didn't bother to pay attention to because I was deep into my crunchy Taco. I guess she liked this one as I didn't hear any complaint.

Juicifi 
Specialty: Iced tea and other drinks

Strawberry Tea, Grande - P95; Cucumber Basil w/ Lemon, tall - P75. 

Juicifi is the only stall inside Food Hive that exclusively offers refreshments. Their Cucumber Basil with Lemon Juice is very refreshing and not to mention, healthy! However, I wanted to have iced coffee on that particular visit but was told it wasn't available yet although it's in the menu. I hope I could have it already on my next visit.

In and around The Food Hive

Upper Level

View from the second level

The Food Hive is at #80 Visayas Ave., Diliman, QC

As I said, food parks are the trend nowadays and new ones open up every so often. But I see what sets The Food Hive apart from the others: the dishes are all of high and good quality. Why? Because the stalls are owned not by just any businessmen but by chefs, some of them already a household name being celebrities. There's Po Bo (short for Potato Bomb) that is owned by Chef Rosebud Benitez and serves potato dishes. There's also Wingfather that serves chicken wings in various flavors and owned by Chef Luigi Muhlach, the son of Janice de Belen and Aga Muhlach. Also, there's Blaze, which offers sisig, among others, that is owned by Chef Ed Bugia -- the man behind Pino and Pi Breakfast and Pies, among his other ventures. And the list goes on.

I hope to try the food offered by the other stalls soon. It's a good thing I could go to The Food Hive anytime I want during work days as our office is just a stone's throw away.

Visayas Ave. comes alive with Grub Hub

Visayas Ave. in Quezon City has practically been my second home as I have worked here for almost 13 years now. Though it's not exactly near our residence, I love this place and wouldn't want to trade it for any other in the metro. For one thing, because there's a lot of spaces planted with plants and trees here, pollution isn't much of a problem. I love going out of the office to take a walk after it rains to take in 

the fresh smell of wet grass! 

What's more, the whole stretch of the road is fast becoming an "eat street" with a lot of restaurants opening up in the past few months. Now, there are even two food parks to embark on a food trip in -- one opened last November while the other one is yet to start its operation as of this writing. 

On the first working day of 2017, my daughter and I went to the already open food park called Grub Hub at the corner of Visayas Ave. and Congressional Ave. This place is very impressive - well thought out, I could say because of its clean lay-out and orderliness. The colorful murals speak of the owners' artsiness and give vibrance to the park. I love, too that there are two mini bahay kubo or nipa huts that can seat four people each. I'm a rural person, that is why. I love anything that reminds me of my coastal hometown in Quezon province. This week, I went back there twice, with my youngest child the first time and with an office friend on the second, so I was able to try 

more offers from the other stalls. 

There is about a dozen food stalls at Grub Hub offering various cuisines like American (burgers, fries, waffles, etc.); Italian (pizza, pasta), Mediterranean (kebab, shawarma rice), Japanese (sushi, etc.) and Filipino (bagnet, inihaw na isaw, etc.) 
So far, these are what we've had:

California Rolls from Aji Sushi, P89. 

Taco Lumpia from Mrs. Lumpia, P159. 

Assorted "ihaw-ihaw" (barbecue) from Mang Larry's, P10. each

Tinapa Lumpia from Mrs. Lumpia, P129. 

Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings from St. Mick's Wing Bar, P180.

Chicha Bagnet from Chica's Chicharronia, P165.

Beef Shawarma Rice from Mrs. Lumpia, P145.

                    Banana Caramel Waffle from Vinsky Big Tummiez, P120. 

                           Filled Churros from Vinsky Big Tummiez, P115.
               

                      Lust vanilla milkshake from Wicked Kitchen, P170.

                                                 Some of the stalls inside Grub Hub

                                      In and around the food park 

                                             Air-conditioned area                                         

                                                                 Open-air back area

             Grub Hub on Visayas Ave. corner Congressional Ave., Quezon City

We loved the Shawarma Rice from Mrs. Lumpia but forgive me for saying I thought the Tinapa Lumpia was a hoax because while it was indeed flaked fish that was inside the fried rolls, there wasn't any of the smokey flavor of "tinapa" (smoked fish). Maybe they ran out of it? In that case, they should just have said it was not available. Tinapa is one of my top favorite all-day breakfast fares and I was so looking forward to having it lumpia-style so it was disappointing to learn I got duped. 

Thankfully, my daughter loved the Shawarma rice, which I tasted and approved of. Days later, my son and I ordered the Taco Lumpia also from Mrs. Lumpia and we both loved it, having lots of meat and cheese toppings. We thought, however, that it was wrongly named. It should have been Nachos Lumpia or Lumpia Nachos because it was nachos using fried lumpia wrapper instead of corn chips.

Anyway, the fried chicken wings from St. Mick's Wing Bar lacked in oomph because there wasn't any crunch to it like it had been cooked for some time before it was served or it wasn't fried long enough, but at least the garlic parmesan flavor 
was present and it was good.
Mang Larry's is of course that popular ihaw-ihaw (barbecue) stall at UP Diliman and its patrons are surely happy to find it here, too, at Grub Hub. My daughter and I loved the "isaw" (chicken intestines) and "tenga" (pig's ear) bathed in lip-smacking, spiced vinegar. I saw fellow diners in the other tables having lots of these ihaw-ihaw with beer. Perfect match, I know, although I shun alcohol. 
My friend ordered the bagnet with rice and had churros for dessert. She said the bagnet was good with crackly skin. She wanted her churros with vanilla filling but it wasn't on the menu so she settled for chocolate and cheese. 
I had the Banana Caramel Waffle topped with a scoop of green tea-flavored ice cream and felt the sweet guilt afterwards. Tee-hee. The lovely milkshake adorned with a beautiful marshmallow crown and unicorn lollipop was my son's and he raved about it for being not too sweet but uber delicious!
I must admit that some of the food we've tried at Grub Hub aren't great but good enough to fill up. However, the place itself compensates for the lack in the taste department. There's good feel all around because there is art, nature (there's plants and trees although some are faux) and yes, nipa huts, which, for me, give the place a relaxing vibe. Overall, I consider Grub Hub a great food destination to bring family and friends over for a time to bond and catch up over a meal. 
Fortunately for me, I could be there any work day!