“SEX tayo!” is a statement only Lasallians understand as an invitation to eat. People from other schools, or people in general, will frown upon such invitation.
On the other hand, Lasallians will question Ateneans when the latter mention something about Chinky Chicken and Chris Tiu. Is Chris Tiu a chinky chicken?
“Who in the world are Mang Tootz and Mang Larry?” a Lasallian will ask students from the University of Santo Tomas (UST) and the University of the Philippines- Diliman (UP-Diliman).
DLSU is not the only university with its unique eats and canteen fare. There is an entire world of food catering to students out there, and it is more than just canteen fodder.
Home Sweet Home
The variety of food choices at DLSU is already overwhelming. In Animo Food House, a new Korean stall called Happy House has started a craze among Lasallians. Popular among the students are the Melona brand ice cream, which makes melon bar and fish-shaped ice cream; jampong; jumug and kochi.
Of course, inside Animo, students can go for other choices such as the mojos, kwek kwek, Mongolian rice, Hungarian sausage and many more. That is just in one canteen.
On the other hand, the SPS Student Lounge houses some of the University’s most popular food stalls such as the soft serve ice cream greeting students by the entrance. There are also shawarma and pancit canton.
The most popular stall is definitely the Sumo Bowl where students can buy a P65-meal that can sustain them for the rest of their day in school. A must-try is their chicken tenders.
Outside the campus, McDonald’s is one place to satisfy the hunger, but Taft Avenue stretches on. There are still a lot of restaurants to explore such as Noriter Café or Zark’s Burger.
Moreover, affordable foods can be found at NAIA (New and Improved Agno) along Fidel Reyes St.
For the students having most of their classes at Br. Andrew Gonzales Hall, they can enjoy Green Place’s famous sisig, Nomimono’s Japanese burgers and shakes and all the other food stalls located at the Archer’s Lair.
Blue bird
Katipunan houses branches of Shakey’s, The Old Spaghetti House, KFC, Yellow Cab, Teriyaki Boy and a whole lot more. Despite this array of food choices, Ateneans still enjoy food inside their campus.
One favorite is Bento Express. It serves varieties of beef, chicken, and tofu. The menu is void of any pork items, which may be a good or bad thing for some. Meals without drinks have a fixed cost of P65.
The P20 charge for the meals may be waived upon the return of take-out plastic containers and utensils. The establishment also encourages a BYOB (Bring Your Own Baon) policy for take-outs; customers who bring their own containers for take-out meals get a P20 discount.
Bento Express has a “partner” establishment Juiz Juiz, which serves juice beverages at prices ranging from P15-20.
JGSOM Student Enterprise Center (JSEC) is something uniquely Atenean. The place allows the students to set up and run their own food stalls. According to them, it’s good entrepreneurial practice.
Popular stalls include Granny’s American Diner, Dugong Bughaw and Chinky Chicken, which is owned and run by Chris Tiu. However, the stalls—both in their canteens and JSEC—frequently change.
Mang Larry?
Numerous food establishments have become memorable in the hearts of UP-Diliman students. One of the most famous is The Chocolate Kiss Café at Ang Bahay ng Alumni. It has branches on the first and second floors, with the first floor branch opening at 7AM and closing at 6PM, and the second floor branch opening and closing later than the first branch does. The Chocolate Kiss is most known for its cakes and pastries for a budget range of P100 -500. It also serves traditional Filipino cuisine.
Rodics is also a favorite place, famous for its tapsilog. Beach House, a place famous for its barbeque, is located near their main library.
For a quick snack anywhere in the campus, one can never go wrong with the UP Manininda food stands located all over UP-Diliman. Blogger Ivan Henares wrote that these stands offer cheap but tasty snacks such as lumpiang gulay, turon, banana cue and carioca, taho, monay with cheese, and dirty ice cream. Likewise, there are the usual fishballs, kikiam, squidballs, and isaw stands.
Notably, there is a well-known isawan in campus, Mang Larry’s, which has been grilling since 1986. Mang Larry’s serves isaw manok, isaw baboy, goto, tenga, atay, botsi, balun-balunan, and pork barbeque. It is a favorite of many UP-Diliman students.
In UP–Los Baños, one favorite hangout spot of students is known as the LB Square. Described by blogger Gloria Gamat as a landscaped sunken garden surrounded by food and bar stools, it has much historical significance to the locals.
The LB Square is formerly known as the Grove, which was a line of old residential establishments whose ground floors were converted into students’ eateries, restaurants, or businesses.
Now buzzing with night life, LB Square is also home to international cuisine such as Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese and Western. An interesting place to stay in LB Square is the Crib Tea and Coffee Bar, where one can enjoy coffee with a quiet and relaxing ambience while surfing the net.
Again, who is Mang Tootz?
Along P. Noval Street, just a few steps away from the west gate of UST, lies Mang Tootz, a small but favorite dining place of most Thomasians. On the outside it seems like a typical karinderiya.
Mang Tootz serves cheap but really great traditional favorites such as chicken barbeque, breaded chicken and sisig. What stands out, however, is their Banana Rhum-A; it is like a mini-turon, coated with “the sweetest and best sugar in town” and sesame seeds.
At only three pesos apiece, it is an affordable and tasty treat that one should definitely try out. Though the place is often fully occupied, the friendly proprietors and the casual atmosphere certainly make dining a fulfilling and relaxing experience.
Tried and Tested
The most delectable delights and the must-try dining hangouts have become symbolic of college life. Few things will ever beat cherishing the freedom college brings by indulging in the delicious experience of fulfilling a human need. These munchies are not only special; they are part of student life, reflecting the lifestyle that sets one university apart from the others. After all, “You are what you eat.”
