Just a few fuzzy snapshots for those of you wondering if we have all survived another marketmanila.com eyeball…
But first, the hiccups. Half a dozen folks flying in from Manila were all on the same morning flight that was seriously delayed by bad weather in Manila. A television show that called just a day before to shoot a segment of their show at the restaurant were part of the passenger list on that same plane, so they showed up nearly 3 hours late, after giving us several kind updates about their progress… I managed to break my Canon G10 camera somehow. I didn’t take ANY photos because I was so busy. Got into a car and careened from the restaurant to the eyeball location only to get stuck in a serious and unexpected traffic jam. The car overheated and many guests arrived at the site before Marketman did…
…but miraculously, everything seemed to turn out well anyway. Best of all, despite all the rain and stormy weather, and practically gale winds in Cebu yesterday, it turned out to be a really hot and humid day with clear skies and not a drop of rain. I have a few more photos, from The Teen and others, so I will post those as soon as I recover. :)
Many, many thanks to all of you who came to lunch and dinner from near and far. I hope you all had a good meal and a great time. A special thanks to Artisan Chocolatier who baked and brought these WONDERFUL cupcakes for all of the lunch and dinner guests. How fabulous are they?! More on the eyeball(s) soon… Meanwhile, if any guests took photos and posted them publicly, please leave a link for readers. Thanks and good night!
72 Responses
Thank you very much. Needless to say, the food was great.
Inggit ako :( I will just feast myself on these pictures and be waiting for the rest. That cupcake by Artisan looks fab. Double inggit :(
well done, MM! as usual, you managed to pull off the party pretty well. and you must have done a big favor to the weather gods again, hehehe! :) i’ve been dying to attend your eyeballs but something always comes my way. like this time, im supposed to leave the country june24 only to get cancelled due to the weather. anyways, im looking forward to your next posts and pictures!
oh, how wonderful!!! the guests made it inspite of the bad weather! thanks for the initial photos, MM. I’m sure there will be a lot more photo links soon. Artisan, such exquisite cupcakes! are those fresh flowers, MM? they look like Lotus blossoms..someday, I’ll be able to attend the Eyeballs–it’s in my “bucket list”..
It is so good to finally put a face to MM. Yesterday afternoon, I dropped by after my husband learned from another friend how good your dinuguan was. He had it there earlier. I brought home 3 fast meals, all yummy. We will be going back this week to try another favorite, sisig. Btw, your containers for take out are sturdy and also nice to look at, so vastly superior to the usual styro.
Congrats MM. Thank you to the efficient lady who
took care of me and gave me chicharon plus a big discount. Sorry I didnt get her name. You were all so busy.
I usually just lurk but coming out of the woodworks to give MM kudos for this- blog.
those lotus flowers and pods looks good :D i really love your floral arrangement taste . . .
It put me into a most satisfying food coma :-) oink oink :-)
was sooooo jealous! Hope my family could attend one of your coming eyeballs! Really really nice!
Thanks very mucho MM, family and crew! Mwah!
MM, patent that sisig stuffed squid! Quick quick! It was an ABSOLUTE WINNER! As well as the lechon de leche :-D if I had just not brought someone with me, I would have partaken more :-D
It looks like everyone had a great time, MM!
I can see Ging seems to have had too good a time.
Hi MM, went there last night @ mango ave. I love the dinuguan, it has a distinct and a unique taste, nothing but the best. Thanks!
Thank you Marketman and family!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i really enjoyed last nights dinner, not just the food but meeting new foodies.
Thanks you also MM staff, thanks so much… esp the kinilaw boys.
Lovely outdoor setting especially the flower arrangements..Artisan’s cupcake look divine!!!!!
Sana next time makasama na ako. That cupcake looks really good!
What a lucky lucky bunch of diners! I’m sure you had a great feast.
And the cupcake is so cute! :)
Congrats to you MM! Still wishing for the day a “Zubuchon Grille & Cafe” will come to Manila :)))
I just got home from Cebu. MM, thanks very much for the great lunch which was on the house on Eyeball Day (June 25) and for the dinner. Lee, Chrisb, Anne and I shared a table. We attended the restaurant blessing and will post the pictures .Early on, Lee and I agreed to share the food and split the bill — lechon red curry, mongo guisado, lechon binagoongan, iba shake and rice. Chrisb ordered a zubuchon meal and lechon sinigang. But Joan brought a plate of adobo and MM brought a platter of fried rice. When we asked for the bill, we were informed that it was on the house. I felt guilty not paying for the lunch.
was waiting for this post–wondering how did it all go–congratulations!
Ging, I was wondering if you were around last night. We were seated at the same place we were two years ago. We were at one end of the first long table as you approach the outdoor terrace. Lee, Chrisb, Edmund and Ley, Carpenter Girl and her brother, Anne and I were seated together. I kept on saying, “I wonder if Ging Berdon is around.” Others asked, “Is Ging the medical doctor?” I replied, “No, she a vet.”
Ah, Marketman’s Table looks great. Unlike I get better pictures of the food, I can only comment on the flowers. MM, where did you get the lotus flowers, they’re gorgeous! And Artisan Chocolatier, congratulations on the cupcakes, perfect accompaniment to what I’m sure was a sinfully calorie-laden meal.
Here are some photos from my phone. Please excuse the quality of the night shots.
httpss://picasaweb.google.com/100224535659817727809/4thMarketManilaEyeballCebu?authkey=Gv1sRgCMDxvuC9oojVPQ&feat=directlink
@Moni, we were at the end, near the drinks table. We were seated together with Mr and Mrs Artisan Chocolatier and Jude Bacalso. I was planning to go around but the food and the conversation got the better of me. Hahahaha!
@Footloose, yeeeaahh! Hahaha
Needless to say, the food was excellent, and the company even more so. I regret only 1 thing, Marketman- not trying the paella. I was just too full to take another bite. My pacing didn’t work! Anne is the grand champion- she was still going for biko and suman long after I finished. It was great meeting Joan, Lee, Moni, Anne, Belinda, Karen, Adrian, Edmund and Ley. @Ley- that was a pretty decent conversation we managed before Moni told you I didn’t speak a word of Cebuano!
bettyQ: See what we are missing? I’m telling you. GRRRR!!!
@chrisb, there was a chili Zubuchon and a chicken stuffed Zubuchon? Oh why did we arrive late?
MM, is there dinuguan in your outlet at the Mactan airport? may connecting flight ako and i want to know beforehand.
@ ging, yes! How late were you? the zubuchon with 2 chickens inside was served later, I think just before the paella. The chili zubuchon was cut up second, after the truffled lechon de leche :)
Hope to be part of the next EB. Looking forward to seeing more pictures. It looks like it was a lovely evening of delicious food and meeting new people.
Last night was food heaven! I haven’t fully recuperated from the food coma. It was really nice meeting MM and the family as it was my first (and definitely won’t be the last) lechon eyeball. It was also great meeting moni, chris b. lee, anne (the pacing champion!) Edmund and Ley and the rest of the readers. M, the truffle lechon was to die for! I also loved the sisig and the fresh kinilaw with dayap. I’m so glad i got the opportunity to do this, can’t wait for the next one :)
@ChristB Those photos are great, thank you. How about Lee’s and others?
I may not have attended the eyeball but I will be in Cebu 2nd week of July and will certainly go to Zubuchon restaurant and try the new lechon recipes! Can’t wait :)))))
buti nga fuzzy ang pictures! inggit kasi ako! i never thought i would have to miss this zubu eyeball ;-(
waiting for more pictures and stories. MM, i can see you did something wonderful with lotus buds. where did you get so many? i see them only in the Bangkok markets and temples.
Artisan Chocolatier, those are classy cupcakes!
that tall arrangement with the reeds and lotus buds is stunning!
Thank you very much MM and family for the lunch yesterday. It was so kind of u to have it for free. Im super busog! The food was great. And It was also an oppurtunity for me to meet other followers of markeman blog ( Moni, Lee , Chris and Ella and her adorable daughter Andy). I’ve told my friends in Facebook to dropby Zubuchon restaurant at One Mango.
@footloose, Lee is staying an extra day and is still chillaxing in cebu (I should’ve done the same!) so maybe he’ll post his photos tomorrow.
And I forgot to mention in my earlier comment, I met artisan too (and mrs. artisan) who turns out, is a relative of my catering partner =) and Eva too! and the members of what Lee calls the Negros contingent =)
kudos to MM, Mrs MM, the Teen and the crew. oh, what a great day June 25th is…looking forward to chow down (lol) all what is offered in the menu @ the restaurant…i cannot wait for my vacation…. Cebu, here i come… and to all the the people who’ve attended the lunch, dinner i envy you :P…inggit na inggit ako…
What an amazing dinner party. And yes, the lotus centerpiece is stunning!
MM, congratulations! Will some of the food mentioned by those who attended the eyeball eventually be sold in Zubuchon (chili lechon, truffle lechon, lechon stuffed with chicken, etc)??? Thanks to the enticing pictures of the lechon and comments from everyone, esp Footloose (yup, that’s right) I managed to get the hubby to commit to spending the holidays in the Phil (instead of visiting the kids in the US hahaha) so Cebu is in our itinerary, specifically Zubuchon. I’m thrilled to bits that there’s a pasalubong counter…And the best part – the kids will join us in Cebu! Thanks chrisb!
Truffled Lechon?! O_O OMG! Sinful! Argh! Wish to taste em soon!
Hi Everyone, the Teen is thrilled that so many have mentioned the flowers… she and her mom did them while I was doing “activity 2” on opening day (more on that later)…
So so sorry to have missed it! Am dreaming of the lechon now! Next time…til then, bravo on a successful eyeball!!! :)
For those of us enjoying the eyeball from faraway – congratulations MM and family and crew, would have given an arm and a leg to meet some of the folks who converse on this blog!
Here are photos I took of the blessing and lunch at Zubuchon @ One Mango and just before the Eyeball dinner:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/monina_escalada/sets/72157627054103592/
the busy life had me stuck in some gray environment so i wasn’t able to see the opening of Zubuchon. i literally ran so i could catch up dinner with the MM fans. to say it, dinner time was not even enough because i was running late, again, for work!
but i am glad to see some repeat eyeballers(?) who have become my online friends- Lee and Moni.
what i really missed was the kitchen during the last eyeball. since i was late everything was set when i arrived. but i now had in mind the paella MM-style. thank you sir.
my post on the Eyeball Dinner: https://edikdolotina.blogspot.com/2011/06/another-chance-of-seeing-marketman.html
@Moni great pictures too though no evenings shots. I wager you were busy. Still missing Lee’s.
Shall just take comfort in the thought that there will still be a next time… right? :o
Footloose, I didn’t attempt to take evening shots with my camera. I missed some of the shots I asked Lee to take using my camera. I bet he was still dazed from our scrumptious lunch so he failed to click the camera all the way through. Hahaha.
I’ve seen my brod and sis on the pictures, congrats Marketman!
It was really an awesome night, thanks for organizing this MM. Sharing with you some pictures I took last Saturday. I so loved the food that night, that I just had to go to your Mango outlet the next day and add some of your goodies in my checked in luggage. The trip to Cebu was so much worth it and finally getting to meet you and the other readers as well. Looking forward to the next one:-)
httpss://picasaweb.google.com/113416998572448516732/Cebu?authkey=Gv1sRgCJDnifTwwN6XQw&feat=directlink
Hello! I had a great time in Cebu…great food and dinner…and I love the lotus arrangement…I didn’t know that you need to “help” them bloom by manually peeling them off their bud state..thanks Mrs. MM for the information…. :-)
I met a lot of friends (Lee, Chris B, Carpenter Girl, Adrian (her brother), Moni, Edmund, Ley, et al) and had a lot of fun sharing comments and experiences…the food is exemplary…I enjoyed the biko, paella and spicy lechon…Thanks to Joan, you’re so friendly…Artisan, I love the cupcakes!
MM, I enjoyed listening to your stories…it makes me proud to be a follower of you blog… :-)
Till the next EB!
PS
I’ll be creating a flicker account so I can share the pictures…I’ll post the link in a few days…
Reg and I had a really nice time! Thanks MM, and to your family and the very warm staff! And of course to Joan! And to all the foodies we’ve met kain tayo ulit! Thank you for giving us the reason to visit cebu asap… it was our first time and it was a blast! We had a very sumptuous weekend vacation. And the pasalubongs we bought were very happily consumed!
Here’s a link to the photos we took:
https://eloisamercadogutierrez.smugmug.com/Event/Zubuchon-Eyeball-Lunch-and/17761107_gC2vFW#1356235795_CbgFmBC
MM, please plan another eyeball soon :)
@jo-ker and aisa, beautiful pictures of delicious subjects. Thank you for sharing.
Wow Anne.. you still had room left for the Paella? The last thing I ate was half an ear of corn.
Here are some shots I took while there was still daylight. This was the area where the truffled lechon the leche and the Zubuliempo were After that I totally forgot that I had a camera the moment I pinched a crisp piece of truffle lechon skin.
https://givemetravelfunds.wordpress.com/2011/06/27/no-words-needed-for-this-post/
This little piggy went to MarketManila’s lechon EB… and stuffed myself silly! :)
Thank you MM & family & crew, it was an exquisite spread in a beautiful setting. I’m hard-pressed to identify my favourite lechon incarnation of the evening — the chili was spicy enough to give a little kick but not set one’s tongue on fire; truffle’s usually a complex flavour and difficult to carry through on such a large canvass but it worked very well on the piglet; thought herb butter might be too delicate to combine with a roast pig but it wasn’t; and I’ll never look at white meat the same way again, a lechon-infused chicken is something else. And the zubuliempo was just as you described. Wow, pig heaven :) specially liked the fresh kinilaw and inihaw na mais too.
I have to ask – did you do something to drive the mosquitoes away? They usually feast on me in any outdoor venue no matter how much repellant I use so it was a pleasant surprise not to be nibbled on so vigorously.
—
Artisan Chocolatier, yummy cupcakes!
hopefully will be able to attend one of these EB’s. inggit!
Thank you so much Marketman and family! Special thanks too to Joan and the rest of the crew! I had such a great time. It was wonderful seeing (and tasting!) all the food I’ve been reading in the blog and more. It was also great to meet other followers of marketmanila. Can’t wait to go back to Cebu.
Thanks to all those who shared pictures. I’m dying of envy…
I also like the Teen’s sense of style – very well put together. Her haircut is so chic. She exudes confidence.
thanks and congratulations for the dinner MM, i had a great nights sleep due to the over eating… wish there are many eyeball dinner more to come…
@chrisb and lee, guys, cant see u in facebook. apparently, there are tons of peiple bearing the same name u gave me hahaha, how would i know which 1 is which? -adrian
@Adrian, I messaged you on FB. You’ll see Lee in my friends list. If that doesn’t work, try adding /ChrisC.Bautista at the end of FB address.
thanks for sharing EB tidbits … kakainggit talaga ! i feel hungry just by looking at the pictures !!!
kudos to the teen & mrs m … the arrangements are indeed lovely :)
congrats, mm … another successful EB … we’re hoping to visit your restaurant someday
@TheFrustratedCook (CarpenterGirl’s brother) I’m in Facebook actively tormenting my friends with photos of my Zubuchon experience.
@Irene. The chili lechon was excellent! Not too overpowering. Little bursts of spice jostling for space in your taste buds with the savory goodness of pork. I am really amazed with the way Marketman and his crew prepare kinilaw with the freshest fish and amazing spices. The only way to get a fresher kinilaw is to dive amidst a school of tanguigue with a mouthful of spices and hoping to have a bite sharp, strong and fast enough.
Towards the end of the meal, I struggled and forced myself to have enough space to manage half an ear of corn and it was enough to send me dreaming of sweet cornfields and butter streams in my claustrophobic pensionne room. I missed tasting the paella but really would have wanted to smuggle that huge paellera back to the pension for a midnight snack or for breakfast the next day if it was a possibility.
My only regret was in not being able to get to know all those who were there. It was really difficult to socialize and meet and know all of the guests especially with an oily upper lip, extremely distended gut, uncontrollable burps, and a dazed catatonic state that only allow visions of happy flying crisp pork skin merging with chocolate clouds made out of Artisan’s cupcakes.
@Lee, it was indeed! Kept about different versions of chili lechon in Manila and in Cebu, so am happy to have started off with MM’s. Will measure the others against it, but maybe in a month or so :) Brought colleagues from our Cebu office to Zubuchon for lunch Monday and then flew back to Manila with fresh lechon for lunch with another set of colleagues (plus an assortment of frozen Zubuchon goodies for the house), so feeling a bit pork-ed out at the moment.
Think I was able to try everything at the dinner, staggering at the end with a baby portion of paella and half an ear of corn :)
Sorry as well I wasn’t able to chat much with everyone else. The sight of the lechons in all their glory was kind of hypnotic.
Here are the photos:
https://s1140.photobucket.com/albums/n569/bartolomea1/
thanks for the links to the photos!! it’s the closest thing i can get to being there. =)
Here’s a post and photos on what I had for lunch at Zubuchon:
https://givemetravelfunds.wordpress.com/2011/06/30/zubuchon/
@Lee, Aha, finalmente but well worth the wait.
@footloose. thanks for the wait! hope to see you in the near future in another Marketmanila eyeball. Paging BettyQ et al.
here is my post and photos of the amazing floral arrangement and the altar of pork before it was loaded with goodies.
https://givemetravelfunds.wordpress.com/2011/07/01/before-the-pork-came-marching-in/