"As you walk and eat and travel, be where you are. Otherwise you will miss most of your life." -BUDDHA

Friday, March 16, 2012

I Eat 'N Run





YUMMY! isn't it?

How did you react when you first saw this food pic? Does this burger had you at hello? Seriously? Tell me how did you find it . . .
How about when someone asks you to have a Pizza, Burger and Pasta with him/her? How do you visualize the setting in which you're about to indulge those favorite snack of yours? Isn't it you were expecting to have those items in a cozy fine dining restaurant or maybe in a quick service diner? What if I tell you that I recently had that sized up burger posted above in just one of the outskirts of San Juan City. Will you buy that idea? I am not kidding! Actually I was invited at this humble little shop called EAT 'N RUN by two of my new found girlfriends. We were hosted by their guy friend who happens to be the sole owner of this store. Get to know this place better and its simple snack offerings by first, learning it thru my snapshots and second by doing yourself some favor in including this place in your bucketlist of next cheap-eating destination. 

Here's the actual photo of the place from quite afar. It was midday and people are starting to visit the small store selling pizza, burger and of course pasta!
ENR is beside a salon and is situated in a residential area crowded also with nearby schools and offices.  Buying crowd  are predominantly students from Xavier school, residents of Little Baguio and some office workers coming from nearby buildings. Store opens around 9 AM up to 7PM daily. The owner is in the process of considering to have it on until wee hours of the morning. The store is still infant as it was just recently opened about a couple of months ago as another food business venture. There were about 5  high chairs without backrest available and a long slim table like the ones we saw in convenience store, only that at  EAT 'N RUN is elevated to cater those who is cool with eating quick snacks while standing :) Therefore, it is more of a take out counter than a sit-down eatery.

Here's the menu of the stand alone mini store composed basically of the first three adorable fast food items plus hotdogs, add-ons and beverages. Are those items pricey in your own point of view? Well, judge it in the following shots :) Will you? But  before that allow me to tell you who prepares the food and how it is being prepared. The owner of this place has only 1-2 people to man the store on an entire day. Someone he shares confidence in running the business, someone who is loyal enough to take care of it with or without him on sight. His staff/s are trained and knows exactly what they are doing. Grooming is okay.

 All items on the menu are prepared on a cook-to-order basis in order to protect the quality of the food. Something which we regularly see in our favorite burger stalls, right?

Patties are made basically of beef and are purely home-made. Done by the owner himself. He shared me that he prepared a batch of patty daily which is just good enough for the day's average daily quantity sold. So it is guaranteed fresh and free from any other form of adulteration and more so contamination. By the way he studied culinary arts so he exactly knows what is best when it comes to food handling, storage and preparation. However, same goes true with the sauces used for pastas.

Are you ready with my EAT 'N RUN experience? . . .Aww I missed this big time. My stomach's gurgling as I am writing this blog. How embarrassing!

Beef Italian Pasta (P50) and Creamy White Sauce Pasta (P60)

The Beef Italian Pasta is not your average pasta that one usually buys in kanto or karinderia and to me that fact feels kinda weird. It was beefy as expected with a tinge of herb flavor when sauce blended really well with the well done pasta. Cheese was a bit overportioned so I asked Mr. Morgan of the portioning tool used; and he gladly remarked that they are using 1 tablespoon for the cheesefood (or maybe a quickmelt cheese)
On the other hand, same holds true with its White Sauce counterpart, still not your average pasta. It was totally creamy and bacon-y with a peppery note. For the allotted price for each of the pasta dish I do consider it worth it. Price is comparable with those of fast food restaurants but this one is better compared to them all. Really! No sugar-coating involved here :))

I am not yet finished yet in feeding myself with the styro-packed pasta goodness when he arrives with another delish snack. . .Meet Mr. Morgan Cueson, the person behind this newly-opened humble eating place in Little Baguio San Juan City.  Visit him and his eating hub and experience how to run after his offerings.
Does he look familiar to you? Maybe yes, maybe no. Without beating around
the bush, he co-owns a boulangerie and patisserie located in Wilson Street in
San Juan named AZUCAR.
So what is he holding and his brimming smile about? Oh I remember! It is because of this. . .




 Cheeseburger (2 patties) (P90)

I know this plate formed a lot question in your mind that needs answers in an instant. Yes the two-tier beef patty burger comes with a regular size fries with catsup and mayonnaise. Drink not included. They do no use plate when serving unless you request for it. Burgers were cooked without the need for oil as it was cooked in its own fat in a corrugated griddle, hence its corrugated cooked and slightly burnt appearance. Veggies such as cucumber and tomato were fresh. As you can see in the photo there was only one sliced cheese sandwiched between patties. I am a chees-y person. Therefore I would love to have another slice maybe at the topmost part after assembling the vegetable slices. Fries were sourced outside and the brand speaks of  high-quality shoestring. There was little to no salt in taste which is likely my preference to skip hypertension in the future. Fries strips were cooked just right in an oil which is clean and definitely free from acrolein, a substance in used oil which causes cancer. 


Downside:   The space. It is small but yet crowded. Expected it to be a bit more expansive.
                     Staff. Might experience under manning or lack of manpower when peak hour sets in. 
                     Menu. I was expecting there's one or more value meal for a more maka-masa appeal :)

Upside:       Superior taste especially in pastas. Great offerings trapped in a an inept location.
                    Cool logo. Catchy name for a snack hub.
                    Just right location with mid to heavy foot traffic.
             

You might notice I missed one of the hub's core product.Yup I  have not tasted any of their pizza variant but will definitely try it soon! :)) I can now judge it is tasty. 




Burp! Now I am lost for words to say for literally I eat and run. Lol!  Thanks Chef!







EAT 'N RUN
614 Gen. S. De Jesus St.
Little Baguio, San Juan City

Metro Manila

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