Yen Yen is Yum Yum!

When we hear the words 'street food', we usually think of food carts that wander around the streets. We associate these street foods to foods like fish balls, squid balls, kikiams, tokneneng, balot, one day old, and the like. We call them street foods because obviously, we find them being sold at streets almost everywhere in the Metro. However, these street foods have also been associated to numerous diseases such as diarrhea, food poisoning, and hepatitis. This is because of the 'dirty' stuff street vendors use. Sometimes, they use cooking oil which has been used a lot of times, or not-so-safe ingredients such as double dead meat or 'magic sugar', rendering the food unsafe for the stomach. If this is so, then why do people still flock these food carts to buy these unsafe foods? The answer is pure and simple, street foods are very delicious that resisting them is a hard task to accomplish. However, not all street foods are unsafe to eat. In fact, we found one food place that sells delicious and clean dishes that you will surely love.

 We found a delicious food place at Quezon City. It is located at Granada street at Gilmore. You can reach the place by riding the the LRT Line 2 and going down at the Gilmore station. But, you will still have to walk a long way to reach the place. It is much better to go there from EDSA, as it is just around 10 minutes from Greenhills Shopping Center. The name of the place is Yen Yen Taiwan Street Food. It doesn't look like a street food place at all. Plus, the food they serve does not resemble street food. But, they're absolutely delicious.

The place is just small. There are around 4-5 tables that can accommodate around 20 persons. The people there are very friendly and are attentive to our orders. They are very courteous and they make suggestions as to what would please your appetite. Most of the dishes there are delicious, though. So, you really won't have a hard time choosing what you will eat. Not only are the dishes delicious, they are also very affordable. Most, if not all of the dishes are less than 200 pesos. So, you'll really have your money's worth at Yen Yen.

Excited to know what we tried? Well, here goes (Each meal comes with a free bowl of soup):

Green Iced Tea, 28 php

Glutton Guy and Glutton Girl: Nothing beats a cool and refreshing iced tea. We have always ordered this as our drink whenever we eat out. To make it different this time, we got a green iced tea for a drink. Green tea, based on what we know, is actually healthier than regular iced tea. The color just changed, but the taste is still the same. It is very cool and very refreshing. It's perfect with a delicious meal at Yen Yen. : )

Fried Wontons (8 pcs.), 88 php


Glutton Guy: I ordered fried wontons for appetizer. According to the menu, it's one of their best-sellers. I didn't hesitate to try it because I'm a fan of wontons. I usually order this with noodles. The fried ones are very different. It tasted like lumpiang shanghai. The fried wrapper was very crunchy while the filling inside was hot and delicious. However, it didn't really stick to me. It was just an okay dish. It might be a best-seller, but I really didn't fall in love with this dish. : )


Glutton Girl: The fried wontons were very delicious. It's very different from the wontons that I usually taste at other restaurants. They have a very crunchy outside which I liked a lot. I didn't like the sauce, though. It tasted more like ketchup with water. I didn't really like the taste, so I ate the wontons without any sauce. However, without the sauce, it still tasted delicious. I liked it very much.

Pork Chop Rice, 88 php (Topping), 128 php (Meal)


Glutton Girl: I ordered Yen Yen's pork chop meal because it's one of their best-sellers. It is also one of the dishes that is being advertised in their posters. No wonder it's a best-seller. The pork chop was very very delicious. The breading they used was very flavorful. It was very crunchy, which means that the pork was cooked perfectly. The inside was tender and very soft. It wasn't difficult to chew at all. What I liked about the pork chop was that it was mostly meat and less of the fat and the bones. The rice was also a lot. The sauce was the same as the wontons, so I didn't dare try it with the pork chop. It was a well-seasoned pork. I liked it very much. It's absolutely a must-try at Yen Yen.

Crispy Fish Fillet Rice, 158 php


Glutton Guy: I ordered their fish fillet. I was surprised when they served it to me. It was a big slab of fish fillet with a lot of rice as well. The fish fillet was very crunchy outside while the fish inside was very hot, fluffy, and soft. I also didn't like the sauce because it gave the fish a very unappealing taste. It's still perfect without the sauce. It might be 158 pesos, but the serving is really big. The stir fried noodles on the side was also delicious. The vegetables had that crunch as well which I liked a lot. You should also try this dish at Yen Yen. You will definitely have your stomachs full with their crispy fish fillet meal. : )




Yen Yen may not be street food material, but they have one thing in common. They both offer affordable and delicious foods that are sure to be tried again and again and again. We only tasted a few of their dishes. But, we're pretty sure that most of the dishes are worth trying even though we haven't tried them yet. It might be a difficult place to find, but finding it is worth it when you try their delectable dishes. If Taiwan had street foods like this, I'm on the first flight there. One ticket to Taiwan, please!

Rating: Buddhalicious!
(Yen Yen Taiwan Street Food is located at 96 Granada street, Gilmore, Quezon City. It's just beside an auto shop. Like we have said in our blog, it's easier to get there from EDSA. Just go straight along Ortigas Avenue, pass Greenhills, and straight when you reach the intersection of Ortigas Avenue and Santolan Road. If you follow these directions, you can find it on your left side.)