FROM DAWN TILL DAWN
A Hungry Man's Diary of the City's More Exotic All-Night Eateries
By Lionel Zivan S. Valdellon

published in RUSH MAGAZINE : NOV 1997

It's a fact of life: you stay up long enough, you get hungry. And it gets worse past mdnight. If you're a night owl like myself, you know what vampires must feel when it's 3 a.m. and you're assailed by fantasies of mouth-watering fondues or braised beef noodles. Thing is, when you're sick of those fast-food joints that dish out the same old burgers, gotos, or tapsilogs, you're faced with a big problem. Where can you find the 24-hour establishment for that out-of-the-ordinary meal?

SEPTEMBER 17, Wednesday 3:15 a.m.
Up past midnight working on a RUSH assignment. The words weren't coming out right. I felt like watching TV but there was nothing new on HBO and the only videotapes in the house were my Unplugged concerts of Bjork and Tori Amos. Not exactly brain fodder for a serious article. Then my stomach grumbled. Good thing my midnight snack partner was awake and looking for a bite. I said, "Hey Ma, let's eat at Whistle Stop." She looked at me like I was crazy. We got there five minutes later, only after I finally told her it was my treat.

Whistle Stop is a one-stop shop with a truly wide variety of food. Everything from Filipino Bistek na Sirloin (P161) and Sinigang na Hipon (P154) to Indian Chicken Curry Rice (P149) and Singaporean Pancit (P119). Ambience is wholesome, well-lit and unpretentious. A big drawback though is pricing, which may seem steep when you realize their servings are quite meager. Still, their kebabs (beef, P195 and chicken, P 161) are super sarap. Besides who else can match their expansive menu at 3:30 a.m.?
___(Branches: 116 Jupiter St.,Makati. Tel:890-4728; Greenmeadows,Libis. Tel:634-4140; Tomas Morato; Shangri-La Plaza carpark)

SEPTEMBER 19, Friday 4:30 a.m.
Went to Euphoria with four stunning Zamboanga girls for a party sponsored by 99.5RT and Finlandia. Boring music. Good thing they had an open bar on Finlandia Cranberry & Pineapple! After dancing and lapping up the free vodka (such cheapskates!), we looked for a cool place to eat that wasn't too out of the way. We were too tipsy and aerobicized to go venturing outside Makati. Ta-dah! Old Swiss Inn was the perfect place.

Old Swiss Inn has a distinctive European feel, from the checkered tablecloths and bright lighting to the waiters' costumes reminiscent of The Sound Of Music. But what an amazing menu! If you like rice dishes, try their Risotto Con Frutti di Marc, a seafood risotto topped with grated cheese, for P253. If you prefer a sausage and potato salad combo, get the Swiss Sausage and Cheese Salad, a merry mix of Cervelat sausage, Swiss cheese and salad for P187. But if you're with a large group, get their Assorted Sausage Platter of pork, schueblig, veal and Hungarian sausages on a bed of sauerkraut for P467.50. Or select your choice of fondue. They also have the Neptune Fondue (shrimp, squid and scallops), P638; the Fondue Bourguignonne (beef tenderloin cubes), P495; or their Waatlander Fondue (bread cubes in melted Swiss cheese), P352.
___(Branches:G/F Olympia Towers, Makati Ave. Cor. Sto.Tomas St., Makati. Tel: 818-0098/ 818-8251 or at The Garden Plaza Hotel, 1030 Belen St., Paco, manila. Tel: 522-4835 to 38/ 522-4841 to 45)

SEPTEMBER 20, Saturday 4:55 a.m.
Right after band practice, some of us went to Episode Café in Malate where a band of jamming percussionists pounded out extended tribal-island rhythms on talking drums and bongos. Yours truly got up and took command of the tambourine. (Can't seem to keep my hands off an instrument during impromptu numbers.) Afterwards, the girls wanted to feast on some bibingka, so we sped off to Makati in search of the famed open-air Kalayaan Street/Makati Avenue all-nighters: Ferino's Bibingka and Rufo's.

Rufo's is the typical tapsi/tocilog place. Just a bit more over-priced than usual. We spent P43.50 for Tapsi or Toci, an extra P5.50 for fried egg and P11.00 for a softdrink. 60 bucks for a filling breakfast? Well, okay. They seem to have lessened the amount of tocino though. The good thing about Rufo's is it takes only five steps to get to Ferino's.
Ferino's Bibingka… now this is a real treat. They have their basic, fluffy bibingka, then present you with an array of toppings, each additional topping representing an added adjective to their menu listing. Thus you have Bibingka Special, Bibingka Extra Special, Bibingka King and so on. We settled for a Bibingka Super, which for P65 gave us the traditional galapong made from two fresh eggs, slices of white cheese, salted eggs on top and fresh butter. And it's served hot from the ovens after a 10-minute wait. Mouth-watering to say the least.
___(Rufo's and Ferino's Bibingka are both located at Kalayaan Ave. corner Makati Avenue, next to International School.)

SEPTEMBER 29, Monday 2 a.m.
Interviewed Agot Isidro recently. It's amazing how she can go on and on about her favorite foods. I remember her describing this magnificent fried rice dish in North Park Noodle House-she had everyone within earshot salivating. Made a mental note to try it. So, tonight, after five hours straight of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (and getting my ass whipped by my girlfriend's 3-hit combos), we both took a past-midnight stroll to the surviving branch of North Park Noodle House, which is along Makati Avenue (the one in Wilson St. burned down).

North Park Noodle House is a bright Chinese place with quick service, high-powered air-conditioning and food that gets cold quick. So you have to eat quickly too (especially if you go there for lunch, because there are lines of people waiting for your seat). They're open 24 hours only on weekends, but on regular days, they're open from 11 a.m. to 3 a.m., which isn't bad. Their best meals are those designed for parties of three or four, such as their Yang Chow Fried Rice (P95), Roast Combination Platter of pork asado, pork and chicken liver, dried pork sausage and duck (P250), and the dry Braised Noodles with Nanking Beef (P100). Actually all their noodle dishes are excellent, so make up an excuse for repeat visits and give each of them a try.
___(Kalayaan cor. Makati Avenue, Makati. Tel:896-3475/ 896-3482/ 896-3490/ 895-3471)

Sometimes I despise having to around a city that's as congested as this one. But then there are days when I realize I'd take the filth of Cubao over any scenic countryside. These are the same days I give thanks that I live in a place where there's always an eatery open and willing to serve me. Anytime.

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