Companies in the Philippines are required by law to give 13th month pay, equivalent to a month’s salary, to employees every December. While private endeavors tend to stick to the letter of the law, government ministries are more charitable. Aside from the mandated 13th month, there are also performance bonuses and Christmas bonuses given to civil servants in the spirit of the season.
Employees usually reserve a significant chunk of the 13th month pay for physical gifts and monetary presents (aguinaldo) for their godchildren (inaanak). Some allocate a portion to savings, another to investments, and another portion for free spending.
However, I took the chance to try out a lot of other dishes I haven’t tried before as soon as I got my 13th month pay. Thus, you have this post. With the exception of two, all the food here were from restaurants in Eastwood City. Rest assured that I still have money left over, and I have a significant amount of cash in my savings account to tide me over for a long time.
TOP ROW
1. Todd English House Special Rice Plate, Pound by Todd English
2. Chocolate Chip Cookie Skillet, Pound by Todd English
3. Spicy Lechon (1/2 Kilo), Rico’s Lechon
MIDDLE ROW
4. Seafood Pho, Pho Hoa
5. Chicken and Rib Platter, Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken
6. Adobong Kangkong, Rico’s Lechon
BOTTOM ROW
7. Fresh Spring Rolls, Pho Hoa
8. Salmon Skin Roll, Tokyo Bubble Tea
9. Chicken Katsu Omurice, Tokyo Bubble Tea
Until the next entry, bon appetit!
The Monching's Guide 
Chicken and rib looks nice 🙂 In Indo we get two additional bonus payouts – Eid al-Fitr and Christmas
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And a really good combination, too. You won’t run out of protein!
Good to know that you guys get an Aidilfitri bonus, aside from a Christmas one! In the Philippine setting, the 13th month is mandatory – but some generous companies top it up with either a 14th month compensation (the actual Christmas bonus) or groceries.
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Alam ko I did this too. Hahaha.
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Diba? You worked hard for 11 months, so you deserve to enjoy the fruits of your labor. 🙂
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Rico’s lechon looks so yummy. I haven’t tried it yet. Monch, na-try mo na yung tiger sugar? Is it worth the hype?
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True on that; Rico’s Lechon can actually go toe-to-toe with Zubuchon. Lamang lang si Zubu sa headstart – nauna siya dito sa Manila. (On a side note, si CnT Lechon na lang ang kulang! XD)
For Tiger Sugar, I haven’t tried it yet – and truth be told, I prefer na pahupain muna yung hype. 🙂 May branch na nga sila sa Eastwood Mall, but the blockbuster queues discourage me.
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Nako, wala pa ako nattry na mga lechon 😛 Have to try soon kasi mukhang masarap talaga. 🙂
Me too! I want to try pero grabe yung hype pa. Wala ba siyang non-peak times? I miss working at Eastwood and having the malls to myself during weekdays/off peak hours 😛
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Saan ka ba malapit? If you’re from the south, Rico’s just opened a new branch in MOA and Zubuchon’s flagship branch is in Makati. 🙂
Kung sa bandang north ka, Rico’s has two locations (Tiendesitas and UP Town Center), tapos may Zubuchon sa Megamall and Eton Centris. Oh, and Eastwood has a Zubuchon too! 😀
Yung sa Tiger Sugar, di na ako nagtangka. I surmise na pagka-open siguro mainam pumila, but I wouldn’t want to waste time para lang sa isang baso ng milk tea. Besides, there’s Happy Lemon, Cha Tuk Chak, Chatime, and Coco Milk Tea nearby!
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