Da Curious

i was introduced to the world of jollibee this weekend (to be pronounced jolly-bee not jolie-bee as i initially thought) and apparently it's all the rage in the philippines. ive never even heard of it before and had no idea this existed here in the bay area but it really is like entering a whole new world.

saturday when jon g had a craving for fried chicken my first response was oh kfc is right down the street but little did i know that it was jollibee he was craving. he assured me it was the greatest thing on earth, i mean it's got to be right if we're driving thirty minutes out of the city for some fried chicken so i go only to be in a state of bewilderment for the next hour.

first off - it really is a fast food place. think in n out but with a picture of a squirrel (i think it's a squirrel) greeting you as you enter and the entire place was filled with filipinos. i really had no idea. and it just so happened that while we were there, half the place was closed off for a kid's birthday party complete with loud filipino music blaring out of a radio.

the menu consisted of literally just spaghetti and fried chicken. there's this red pork dish with egg that i like a lot but surprisingly enough they only served it during breakfast hours. breakfast hours! i was like who eats this in the morning but then again what do i know? and i got pretty excited because there was this boba drink on the menu but the only two flavors were taro and coconut which aren't my favorites but i had to try. so we order what else, the spaghetti and fried chicken along with my boba drink and this would be my first foray into filipino spaghetti.

i never even knew there was such a thing as filipino spaghetti but it's really good. it's sweeter and has bits of hot dogs in it and the fried chicken was nice and crisp too - i won't dare to compare to kfc here and the best part was it came with gravy and a little white container which i naturally assumed would be mashed potatoes but it was rice. oh my goodness - rice at a fast food restaurant? maybe this is the greatest place on earth.

but i spend the next thirty minutes while eating trying to figure this all out. apparently there's three of these jollibee's here and how is it that i never knew this existed? it's "comforting" and "reminds him of home" as jon g told me and i wonder - is this his 99 ranch for me? have i found the filipino equivalent? i left the place with a confused look on my face and almost felt as if i should of walked out with a balloon in hand as i felt like i had just visited an amusement park or something.

i guess you do learn something new everyday.