Chinese restaurant chain opens 1st Makati branch with ‘Piso Feast’

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MANILA, Philippines — For its opening month, a Chinese restaurant chain specializing in Cantonese food is offering select dishes for only “piso” (one peso).

Chinese restaurant chain King Chef recently opened its first ever Makati branch in Alphaland Makati Place, the brand’s eighth branch.

As part of its opening promotions, the restaurant is offering its Deep-Fried Salad Seafood Roll, one of dishes unique to the chain, for P1, for every minimum spend of P2,500. 

Marites Ang, King Chef President and Chief Executive Officer, clarified to Philstar.com that the Piso Feast started with Deep-Fried Salad Seafood Roll, but other select items and bestsellers on the menu are also off for grabs for the price of piso. These include dishes that are originally worth P400 to P500 per order – but only one dish can be bought for piso per P2,500 transaction.

Also only for this month, the Makati branch is holding a Seafood Festival wherein there would be 30 to 50% discounts on live seafood. 

“First and foremost, we’ve been getting a lot of requests to open in Makati way back before pandemic hit… ‘Yung Mandaluyong branch, they (our customers) tell us, dinadayo pa namin dito, pero taga-Makati kami. So please, open in Makati,” Ang explained why the chain chose its eighth branch location.

Like other branches, the Makati branch would roll out new dishes four times a year. Ang said Sichuan dishes are particularly becoming more popular among Filipinos because Chinese street food like Malatang and those slightly spicy ones are gaining traction among local palates. 

For first timers, Ang recommended any of their dim sum. “Because it’s something that we’re well-known for. They say, it’s what makes us a cut above the rest.”

She also invited diners to take advantage of their dim sum promo and Happy Hours, which are 2 to 5 p.m. and 8:30 to 10 p.m. 

Apart from dim sum, she also vouched for the roasted Peking duck and round-table Lauriant feast, which according to her, are ideal for celebrations like birthdays and the upcoming graduation season.

Besides the crunchy Deep-Fried Salad Seafood Roll, also unique to the restaurant are Eight Spices Spareribs, Suahe in Tea Leaves, and last year’s cook-off challenge winner, Steamed Chicken in Lotus Leaves, a Sichuan-inspired dish.

Seafood is served fresh every day, thanks to the restaurant’s own giant aquariums, where suppliers dock live seafood such as the bestseller lapu-lapu; river shrimps or suahe; crabs and lobster, which is available for pre-order or special requests because it is very temperature-sensitive, said Ang.

According to her, the 420-square-meter restaurant has a 90 seating capacity and three private rooms for celebrations. 

Like other branches, the Makati restaurant follows the brand’s signature touches of gold and modern latticework accents.

“It also speaks about the personality of the brand. The gold is a traditional symbol for prosperity, wealth. For that side, we retain our tradition, but at the same time, we use modern touches because we’re also running it in a very modern way,” she explained.

But what sets the Makati store apart from other branches, she noted, was the different market profile. While other branches are usually full on weekends to cater to families, it is the opposite for the Makati restaurant.

“At first, we were hesitant because we were used to serving families, communities, but this is a CBD (central business district) area. But then, listening to our customers, when we found an opportunity to open here… I said, ‘Okay, let’s try.’ Then actually, I’m so happy that the same formula for success, the authentic Cantonese food, accommodating and personalized service, also works (in Makati) as well,” she shared.

“Ang usual sa ibang store namin, talagang tumatambay sila – kain, kuwentuhan, talagang hinahanapan kami ng coffee. Dito, hindi. ‘Pag 11 a.m., very light ‘yung tao. Pagdating ng 12, hindi mo alam kung saan sila galing. Pupunuin ka nila. Basta oras ng kain, kakain sila. And then ‘pag tapos na sila kumain, aalis na sila. Hindi sila tumatambay. So ibang iba ang profile ng market.” — Video by Deni Bernardo; video editing by Chyna Merin

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