The P99 feast

Originality always comes with a price. The price of a meal usually reflects the time taken to research on the origins of the food, the painstaking attempts to perfect recipes and to present the flavors of a certain region.

When partaking of genuine French cuisine, for example, chances are you’ll be paying a hefty price for your dinner.

George Pua, owner of Kwang Tong restaurant, disagrees with this notion, stating that, "Just because you want good, original food doesn’t mean you should pay a lot."

True to form, Kwang Tong, one of his many projects, is a restaurant that offers Cantonese cuisine – cooked fresh just as you order it and at a very reasonable price.

"Since it’s our first anniversary, we decided to celebrate it by offering our customers a really good deal," Pua says.

Good deal, indeed. This first year celebratory promo, which is good until September, is the P99 meal. Set meals for four people cost only P99 per person. And when they say meal, they mean it. A set usually includes fried rice, noodles, vegetables, two viands and buchi to finish. While they work hard to offer affordable meals for customers, they never scrimp, always using fresh produce of excellent quality.

A complete meal awaits all, with food brought to your table piping hot in generous portions.

The birthday noodles, one of the offerings in the P99 meal, are hearty and tasty, with lots of seafood and vegetables. As soon as you dig into it, the consistency of the noodle, cooked to perfection, the delicate flavor of the seasoning and the rounded aroma of seafood and vegetables make every bite a filling one.

For vegetarians, the sizzling tofu is satisfying and flavorful, as opposed to the lackluster offerings in other Chinese restaurants. Drizzled with teriyaki sauce and served on a hot plate, it is crisp on the outside and soft and delicate on the inside. It’s got great texture, one you’ll appreciate as soon as you bite into it. None of that soggy tofu stuff here.

Their mapo tofu, a tofu dish mixed with meat, which in other places is often too spicy, is made just right here. It’s got that homemade taste to it, one Pua attributes to his mother. "She always cooked these great Cantonese dishes. We’ve been trying to perfect it here in Kwang Tong ever since." Well, they’ve come close.

Vegetables, an important part of everyone’s diet, are not ignored here, too. Most restaurants treat vegetable dishes grudgingly, perhaps in response to many consumers’ dislike for such healthy food. But the people at Kwang Tong treat veggies with the respect they deserve, offering garlic kangkong to appease their health-conscious customers. Cooked over a high fire for a short time to keep the texture of the greens crisp and light and tossed in garlic to highlight its fresh flavor, the garlic kangkong is a delight to eat, and when accompanied by the noodles and tofu, offers a great contrast to the different textures in the set meal.

Another treat is the sweet and sour pork. Considered a clichéd dish by many, Kwang Tong’s version is not the same tired dish you often taste in fast-food Chinese places. You know it, the one that leaves you wrinkling your nose and has you doubting your love for Chinese food. Instead, the pork is tender and sweet with just a slight tang that some might consider sour. Hearty and savory, it pulls the meal together and keeps you asking for more.

Surprisingly, a set meal can leave you unbelievably full. With numerous dishes on offer per meal, it’s certainly not for the weak of appetite.

While most restaurants go for delicate meals that come with hefty price tags, Kwang Tong takes the high road and offers the same great food at a price that won’t make diners go hungry.

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Kwang Tong is located at the second floor of Glorietta 4, beside Oakwood Suites. For inquiries and reservations, call 814-0945 and 814-0952.