Food, Restaurants

Come On, Let’s Kanin!!!

It’s such a shame that I’ve been living in Sta.Rosa for so many years, and that I’ve gotten so used to the old Sta.Rosa that I’ve forgotten to roam around my city (YES! We are now a city! Tough!) to experience the new establishments that have sprouted like mushrooms from the wee-wee of a doggy (eeewww!!! Ehehehe). One such “sprouting zone” is the area of Paseo de Sta. Rosa, where new stores open each month. I’ve only been there a couple of times (or more… maybe thrice, hahaha… oh the shame!), but hey, it’s a challenge for a commuter like myself to just stroll around the area (yeah, so I’m defensive, hahaha) so I usually wait until an opportunity presents itself, giving me enough reason to borrow my sister and our car (sorry, no can drive lah!..spoken in my best Singaporean accent) to get there.

I’d been hearing a lot about this restaurant called Kanin Club from Betty, and because of the name, the first vision that popped into my mind were images of food served in that restaurant called Toppings (remember that fast food chain? I think they had one in QUAD, yesss, old skul!). Well, I finally made it to Kanin Club a few weeks ago for an assignment (don’t forget to grab a copy of the January edition of Food & Beverage magazine to read more about Kanin Club and other “must dine” restaurants! Shameless plugging!!!). Good thing I brought along my sister and brother-in-law… aside from the free ride, I got two extra tummies to help me finish the food that was served!

I met up with Chef Anthony Mendoza, the owner and head chef of Kanin Club, and his wife Emely. Chef Anthony is an outdoors man (as you can quickly deduce from his deep tan), and he’s into mountain biking along with his business partners, co-owners Tony Cancio and Mariel Luna of Café Breton. The idea for Kanin Club actually was born out of this hobby: when they used to hang out at Breton in Paseo after their usual biking trips in Tagaytay, people kept coming to the restaurant (which specializes in crepes, by the way) asking for rice! So they hatched the brilliant idea of taking the unit beside Breton and using it for a restaurant that would nourish everybody’s hankering for kanin and ulam (and everything in between).

Kanin Club could well be the busiest restaurant in Paseo de Sta.Rosa (and soon in Westgate Filinvest in Alabang, woohoo!). Its specialty is Filipino food, but often with a twist. We were served a feast good for at least six hungry people, when there were just three of us! Good thing Chef Anthony and Ms. Emely joined us, but even so, there was enough left for take out, so I was able to bring some Crispy Dinuguan home to my nanay.

Ah yes, the Crispy Dinuguan (P120; it says just Dinuguan on the menu, but they’ll know what you mean when you ask for Crispy Dinuguan)… it has the power to turn all dinuguan cynics ‘round, and both Chef Anthony and Ms. Emely can attest to that. It was served to us really crunchy, and I was too scared to eat a lot of it, not because of any health issues (this dish is not advisable to the health conscious but hoy, life is too darn short, enjoy!), but the fact that one of my brackets (I’m a metal mouth thank you very much) might chip again. Other than that little hesitation, this dish will take you to heaven, cholesterol heaven.

The Sinigang Na Tadyang (P245) was also one of the best dishes we tried, and I’m a really big fan of sinigang, especially when the soup is sour enough to make you squint, in a good way (think Datu Puti’s mukhasim). Before we even got to taste the sinigang, I could already smell how sour it was. Chef Anthony tried it and proclaimed it good enough for everyone to try, and believe me, we were not disappointed.

The food kept on coming… it was exquisitely good torture, I’m telling you. Aside from the first two dishes, we also had the excellent Tapa ni Ana (P125), created with a tapa marinade concocted by a friend of the Mendoza’s named… you guessed it… Ana.

Then there’s the Loaded Fried Rice (P120) that has everything from Chinese sausage to crab meat, scrambled eggs, and green peas; the Thai Green Mango Salad (P115), which causes an explosion of different flavors in your mouth with each forkful; the ever-classic Chicken Curry (P140); the not so Spicy Tahong (P145) and the Sigarilyas Express (P100, their version of Bicol Express), both of which, surprisingly, I liked, even though I’m really not that big on spicy food.

As if that wasn’t enough, the meal was topped off with desert, one of the Kanin Club’s special recipes called Turon KC a la Mode (P82). Imagine a turon and halo halo in one… turon fried together with your usual halo halo ingredients and a scoop of ice cream on the side, jjjjooooyyyy!!! Just look at the picture and see how crazy wonderful that is!

To top off my ecstatic ramblings, here are a few important things to remember when you’re going to Kanin Club:

• Kanin Club is open every day from 11AM to 2PM, then it resumes operations from 5:30PM to 9:30PM.
• It fills up really fast!!! We were there at around 11:30, and the restaurant was almost full. Come noon, there was already a long list of people waiting to be seated. Trust me, come early!
• They don’t accept reservations and they don’t cater.
• Just wait for the celebrities… wait for it… wait… there!!!
• It’s not expensive, tama lang. :)
• Eat light before eating at Kanin Club (this is totally self explanatory).
• Enjoy!!!

Kanin Club
Paseo de Sta. Rosa,
Sta. Rosa, Laguna
(049) 544-0332
Restaurant hours: 11AM to 2PM, 5:30PM to 9:30PM

Tags: filipino food, kanin club, laguna, paseo de sta rosa, restaurants, sta rosa

« Previous Post: Decorations to Die For at Aling Mila’s - It’s a scream!

Next Post: La Trobada: Fusing Tagaytay Charm and Mind-blowing Pinoy Cuisine »