The Chicken Rice Shop

Meet Bok bok bok!!! 

(that's just my name for her)

Let us open with this super lady comfortably sitting on the table. You might be wondering what she is doing outside of her nesting cage? She works over time here to give you the full service of serving you your spoons and forks, and her kids too (mind you)! Sweet huh? and pretty cool right?! First time I saw it, I didn't expect that this would be the utensil caddy. What I thought was that it was just a piece of art on the table! What a great accent to the place, gives you the whole chicken vibe and because it is also a great table ware.

Chicken Rice Shop at the Ground floor of Robinson's Ermita

The first time I've tried this place out was at my beloved Alma Mater, UST. There are billions of places to choose from but still when you've been there a while everything starts to look the same. My barkada and I got so tired of the food that we eventually resorted to "packed lunch". Reminded me of my grade school to high school life scenario. But it took off the everyday pressure of WHERE TO EAT. That was what I loved about my barkada. Easy to sustain, not high maintenance. The usual Mcdo, Jollibee, KFC, Wendys got too close to home. Nothing was new. No new dish to try. No new adventure to finish.

It was a good thing that new doors still opened in UST. FINALLY! After 4 freaking years of basically eating at the same place over and over again! New things came and they are still coming!

I am crazy about Rufo's Longganisa, and just when I've graduated that they decided to open one up at P. Noval St.! Boo! So unfair. I see UST "native foods" are slowly turning into a DLSU kind of food joints. Partly bad, partly good. I still can't move on from the fact that there are still new restaurants opening as you read.

Just before graduation 2013, my dormie and I decided to treat ourselves to a grand dinner to welcome ourselves to the hardship we are gonna be sustaining for the coming 3 months. Barely made it alive. Good thing we've packed up fats to burn. The Chicken Rice Shop was definitely something new to the Philippines and to UST. I was glad that I got to eat at TCRS with my good pal Mon! My first impression was great because I got to spend it with my good friend.

It's the little things in life like spending the whole day with your friend. Talking about life's what not's and life's misery. Misery loves company they say, but our misery was good misery. Misery of how to eat all the chicken up. We were so full when we were done!

UST's was the first branch I personally saw, next to Harbour Square and finally at Robinson's Ermita. We were strolling around Rob Ermita and I know that my mom and dad hasn't tried this place out yet so I really wanted to eat there. Plus dining with them means more chicken for me! School has it's budget. The good "A" word. ALLOWANCE. It means I can't eat to my hearts gluttenous desires.

Being a student at UST. Food isn't really that expensive if you know where to eat for the right price. My dormie and I have this secret little place we like to go to when craving for chicken. For P50.00 we get to eat in peace. Eat well and be merry. But at TCRS it's x3! But it was a different place. A different kind of vibe. A different kind of food. Although, still chicken at the end of the day.

A meal for P200.00 is pretty expensive for a UST student for me. I don't know about others. Since all the food chains surrounding UST are pretty affordable. Non the less, we still should eat like a queen once in a while. Right? This is the perfect place to go to when you want chicken! They are the CHICKEN RICE SHOP for heaven's sake!

They lived up to the expectation, my expectation. There are times in my life when I know that I suffer from gluttony! GUILTY GUILTY GUILTY! I am crazy for chicken. Chicken=Gravy. But here there is no need for gravy. The chicken itself has it's own sauce. They usually serve you with 3 different types of sauces. It is up to you which you want to use. But I use them all! Here is a photo of what to expect.

TCRS Savory Sauces

There came a point in my life when my yaya cooked nothing but chicken for me at home. I thought I was tough. Tough to the point that I can eat the same thing I like everyday but I was not. I cracked. I wouldn't order anything that has to do with chicken in restaurants knowing that that would be the thing my yaya cooks for me when I get home. I even stopped craving for Jollibe's Crispy Chicken skin!

What I love about The Chicken rice shop is that it has a variety of chicken. They have roasted chicken, hainanese chicken, honey barbecue chicken and curry chicken. They only thing they lack is fried chicken! I love this place. I was hoping that someday that they would actually have a solo platter where they serve all types of chicken just for one person. I know. TAKAW right? But don't you just have these moments where you want a taste of everything on the menu? Since this place serves a lot of chicken and is the CHICKEN RICE SHOP, why not serve all the chicken at once? :) If they do, will somebody please inform me, Please and Thank You!

Since there were 5 of us dining that night. I decided that the "FAMILY DELIGHT'' was the way to go. It would be good for 4 persons. Since there was 5 of us, we decided that we should order another platter or so.

For P968.00 Family delight B has

• Quarter portion of chicken
• Half portion of honey BBQ chicken
• Medium rice platter
• 4 pcs. Nyonya Pai Tee
• Ipoh Bean Sprouts
• 1 Big soup
• 1 Pitcher of Iced Tea

Ipoh Bean Sprouts

These are like mutant bean sprouts! Huge! It is really good. But whenever I see bean sprouts I would always remember our high school chemistry experiment when we grew the seeds. Amazeballs. I know it sound ridiculous but it is really something to see. You get a different perspective of what it really is and what it has been before it reached your plate.

4 pcs. Nyonya Pai Tee

There were only 4 pieces. I know. One for each for 4 persons. So 1 had to be cheated out of the count and I was the poor one. Nah, didn't matter because I have already tasted their Nyonya and it was good. Kind of a mini taco, kinda fried vegetable lumpia with chicken, imported style.

For Ala carte its 4 pieces by the way is P88.00. So it is P22.00 per piece! Kind of pricey? Yeah.. For 6 pieces it is P108.00, so it would be P18.00 per piece. Uhm.. wish it could go lower. :) haha!

Medium rice platter

I was right about the rice, it would be too big for the 5 of us. Since we all don't eat much rice. But for those who like rice. It is just enough for 4 persons.

Honey BBQ Chicken

This is my super ultimate absolutely really my favorite out of all their dishes. It is sweet, juicy, moist chicken. Absolute best. Looks like asado but it is a chicken in disguise. :) Trust me! You'll like it!

Hainanese Chicken

There are so many places claiming to be serving the best hainanese chicken. This place packs a great hainanese chicken too for less that the prices of other "ultimate" hainanese restaurants. The chicken is soft and flavorful.

All servings come with the 3 sauces below. The middle one is my "chinese biased" favorite a.k.a. the ginger sauce! Great for everything and anything. Not so much for the breathe after. Haha the right one is the chili sauce for the more fisty tongue. The left one is I think the black sauce? or the chicken serving sauce? It's both sweet and syrupy, I love this in my hainanese chicken :)

TCRS Savory Sauces

I give a 10 thumbs up if I had 10 thumbs to The Chicken Rice Shop for serving such perfectly cooked and marinated chickens to the customer and the first of it's kind here.

I just loved how happy I am when devouring the HONEY BBQ CHICKEN! It's my favorite amongst all. But still I am the biggest fan of Hainanese Chicken and the best I've tried was at WEE NAM KEE. Killer big expensive servings, worth the penny!

Speaking about servings. Although TCRS has great chickens, the serving was the only flaw for me. It isn't that great for me. It was just a so so, it might be because I am more of a viand than rice type of person. But still it could have been packed with a little bit more. For less than a whole chicken for P968.00 our family delight, a little pricey. But I would still go back for that sweet old BBQ chicken! At first they all thought it was asado, but it isn't. ITS ALL CHICKEN!!

Sad to report that all chickens were consumed during the making of this blog. :(

'Til next time!