Dining out freely is one of the things we miss the most about life pre-pandemic. We miss visiting our favorite restaurants with our friends and just dining out leisurely. One Pinay shares our sentiments, so she and her boyfriend decided to do a little experiment. According to Steph Shi, she and her boyfriend used to dine out a lot, especially when traveling together before the pandemic. Here’s what they did:
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My boyfriend had the idea of ordering food for me for an entire day via GrabFood. He said it’d be like a whole day outdoors, since I’d get to eat different things, like how it is when traveling (or just going to the mall). It’s such a 2020 gimmick that I immediately said yes. I was excited and curious about his picks because he knows me so well. I wanted to see if he can still surprise me.
Spoiler alert: He exceeded my expectations! Here’s everything he ordered for me and the stories behind them:
Restaurant: Army Navy
Dish: Tapa + Breakfast Burrito
Difficulty for the BF: Easy
There aren’t a lot of breakfast places in my area. It’s a good thing my BF found Army Navy, since they open at 8 a.m. and could deliver food early enough. He ordered Tapa (tapsilog)—one of my favorite breakfast foods (and my usual order at our beach trips)—and Breakfast Burrito (he knows I’ve been craving a good burrito for months now). I was especially happy about the Tapa, because the egg was runny; it was perfect for mixing with the garlic rice—this is really the best part of any silog for me. As expected with Army Navy, the servings were big, so I was able to share the food with my family.
I loved this combo so much, I'm considering ordering it again for myself. Good thing that I can schedule food deliveries with GrabFood's Scheduled Orders. This feature lets me place orders in advance simply by changing the delivery time. No late tapas for this girl!
Restaurant: Italianni’s
Dish: Eggplant Parmigiana
Difficulty for the BF: Medium (for me) + Easy (for his family)
My BF knows that Italian is my favorite cuisine. He told me after the challenge that he was initially overwhelmed by the many choices for Italian restaurants in GrabFood before he finally chose to go for Italianni's. But then, he wasn’t sure if he should get pasta + pizza (our usual combination when dining out and ordering in), or something else entirely. He was considering the space in our ref at home, since a family friend had sent my family a huge box of pizza yesterday, and we still had spaghetti that my mom had cooked last night.
He ended up choosing the Eggplant Parmigiana, because he knows I love my vegetables roasted or baked, and that as much as possible, I try to add more greens into my diet. It’s no surprise that the Eggplant Parmigiana is a winner. I love the tanginess of the tomato sauce and the kick of the herbs; the oozing cheese is just TDF.
Apparently, my BF also had food delivered via GrabFood for his family. Since his family lives near Glorietta 2, he was able to try GrabKitchen and order a full meal for them. All the dishes from partner restaurants appeared on the GrabKitchen menu, so it was easy to select food and drinks from different establishments then order in one go. He ordered Balsamic Greens Salad from Mean Greens, California Maki from Omakase, and Half Boneless Chicken (7 Pieces) from 24 Chicken. For drinks, there was 3 Buddies from Coco, and for dessert, Banana Choco Chips Loaf from My Hometown Baked Goods. And his family liked them all. NGL, I wish I got to try GrabKitchen too for a good variety of yummy dishes and drinks in one meal (and one delivery fee!).
Restaurant: Krispy Kreme
Dish: 2 boxes of donuts
Difficulty for the BF: Easy
The guilty pleasure! One box is enough, but two is a real treat. I want to say I wish he hadn’t ordered donuts, but I’m happy he did. LOL!
Restaurant: Ooma
Dish: Kani Salad + Tendon + Unagi Mentaiko Aburi Maki
Difficulty for the BF: Medium
My family and I like Japanese food (and we often order Japanese food for dinner). So my BF doing the same for us proves he knows even my family’s routine, taste, and lifestyle well. Luckily, Ooma is of many restaurants now doing Long Distance Delivery via GrabFood. We were able to enjoy their food even though we're not quite near the establishment.
The Kani Salad was a welcome choice, again for having more vegetables in our diet. My family loves tempura, so a tempura dish was in order. It’s interesting that he went with Tendon instead of an Ebi Tempura Platter though. He told me that he wasn’t sure if he should order something just for me or for my whole family, so he went with Tendon thinking my family could still share that, without making me feel like I don’t have my own meal.
My favorite in his dinner order is the Unagi Mentaiko Aburi Maki—although I didn’t know it had mentaiko (cod roe) dressing at first. I love unagi, and it’s something I’ve been trying to get my BF to appreciate. But he told me he ordered the dish for the mentaiko. Suddenly, memories of a takas trip flashed in my mind (and our haunt for the best, budget-friendly mentaiko dish); I couldn’t help smiling to myself as I ate with my family.
This concept of ordering a day’s worth of food for loved ones is surprisingly fun and heart-warming. (My BF confessed he was nervous though!) I think it should be a thing. It’s honestly something I can see myself doing for him, since ordering meals on GrabFood is convenient while still being very personal. It helps that practically every day, GrabFood has special offers for some of the country’s most popular restaurants; it’s a great deal. Many of the establishments can now do long-distance deliveries, giving everyone the chance to try a new restaurant or enjoy an old favorite. The choices are practically endless.
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Explore a vast selection of food and restaurants when you access GrabFood via the Grab app. Even better: Mix and match orders via Grab Kitchen or avail of long-distance deliveries for more food options. You can also take advantage of flash sales during GrabFood's anniversary celeb until December 6.
Download the Grab app now to start ordering food for yourself and your loved ones. Learn more about the 50 percent off deals here and follow GrabFood PH on Facebook.