JUST this year, my partners and I ventured into a brand new business. The canteen business is a scary and yet challenging undertaking to get into. Scary, because the only way to overcome that fear is through experience and challenging, because there is satisfaction in seeing contented clients. But once in a while, you also encounter some unhappy customers.

Anyway, after a few months, one can more or less gauge the likes and dislikes of the diners. You also discover items that are popular among your clientele that might do well in the outside market. From my daily observation, I feel that one or two of our items will make it big in the fast food malls. One of the most popular item is a dish we call stir fry. This dish has four varieties. We have beef, pork chicken and vegetarian stir fry.

The dish is prepared by using a flat top or a hamburger grill. You heat some butter and sauté some pre-weighed and marinated strips of meat (chicken, pork, hotdog or beef). This is grilled until done and a large cup of rice is put on top. We then pour in a half a cup of a secret sauce that will blend these flavors and bring out a dish that is different and I believe caters to the Pinoy palate. The sauce is made with soy sauce and other Asian sauces and is a bit sweet. It tastes like a nice toasted Mongolian barbecue dish. For a minimal fee of P10, you can have a cup of fresh vegetables added or have it straight vegetarian. Simple, inexpensive and really delicious!

Another item very popular among diners is the dish called Katsudon. These are crunchy chunks of breaded pork or chicken, heated with some sweet sauce, topped with some vegetables and heated with some scrambled eggs. As soon as the egg is cooked, it is topped over hot piping rice. A very simple dish that is also a hit among the dinners. These dishes have been the best sellers since we opened.

Since all this can only be experienced in the canteen, I decided to offer both in my outlets at the food court of Robinsons Galleria in Ortigas and Edsa. Galing Galing Express carries both. I am confident, that given a chance, the dishes will also be a hit in the fast food malls. Both are prepared in front of the customer so aside from having a show, you are assured a hot dish. I have been very excited about the prospects of this new product but like a Cinderella before the ball, it has not attracted much attention yet. I have taken this bold step to promote it confident that it too will find many contented diners.

For many weeks, my salmon belly disappeared on our counters. Well, they too are back. They are non fattening and unbelievably delicious. Check them out!