Ted's Oldtimer Lapaz Batchoy - Makati

Leaving home is hard, and leaving the food that I grew up enjoying is even harder. One of the hardest things for me to find in the Metro is a great bowl of Lapaz Batchoy. Sure, a lot of restaurants here can serve batchoy, but none of them evoke pleasant childhood memories better than Ted's Oldtimer Lapaz Batchoy. While it is hard enough to find a good bowl of batchoy here, it is even harder for me to find a Ted's restaurant. But when the craving comes, my family and make sure to drop by Glorietta 4 food court to get some. I prefer to go for the Special Batchoy. While it is the smallest of the varieties, I don't have to worry about liver slices (like in Super Special) or extra pieces of offal (in the Extra Super). The Special consists of noodles, pork, scallions, chicharon, and garlic, all in a delicious golden broth. Here's how I eat my batchoy: 1) NEVER include the caramelized onions that come by default with the dish. The sweet yet smoky texture, while... read more

Leaving home is hard, and leaving the food that I grew up enjoying is even harder. One of the hardest things for me to find in the Metro is a great bowl of Lapaz Batchoy. Sure, a lot of restaurants here can serve batchoy, but none of them evoke pleasant childhood memories better than Ted's Oldtimer Lapaz Batchoy. While it is hard enough to find a good bowl of batchoy here, it is even harder for me to find a Ted's restaurant. But when the craving comes, my family and make sure to drop by Glorietta 4 food court to get some. I prefer to go for the Special Batchoy. While it is the smallest of the varieties, I don't have to worry about liver slices (like in Super Special) or extra pieces of offal (in the Extra Super). The Special consists of noodles, pork, scallions, chicharon, and garlic, all in a delicious golden broth. Here's how I eat my batchoy: 1) NEVER include the caramelized onions that come by default with the dish. The sweet yet smoky texture, while good at other times, does not match the dominant salty and peppery taste of the dish. 2) NEVER include an egg when offered. I'm not sure if the egg option is raw or hardboiled, but I prefer to leave it out. Hardboiled eggs ARE served in some places back home, but the flavor of egg generally does not go well with the broth in my opinion. 3) ALWAYS be generous with the soy sauce and the black pepper on your broth. The darker the broth, the better. The saltier, the better. I like it because it forces me to attack the meat and noodles after a few spoonfuls of broth. I always go for the broth first as it helps cook the noodles, making them chewy and easier to handle. A little variety never hurt the diner. 4) Speaking of variety, ALWAYS order some puto with the batchoy. The soft rice cake helps kill off the extra saltiness in the mouth after eating. I've seen some people dip the puto into their batchoy, but I prefer to keep it clean. It's there for variety, for contrast. There are times when blandness helps when overwhelmed with flavor, after all. And before I go off into a faux-philosophical tirade, I would like to dream of the next bowl coming around the corner. I only hope it comes sooner than later.