Urban Pantry opens in Promenade Greenhills
MANILA, Philippines - A newly opened food-store concept, Urban Pantry, offers a choice selection of fine local and imported products, handpicked by the store’s owners, and found only in the most discerning homemaker’s pantry. Designed just like a pantry in the modern home, the store aims to be a friendly one-stop shop for kitchen essentials and homemade goodies.
The inspiration for Urban Pantry is today’s busy homemaker, who does not have the luxury of whipping up the perfect sauce, spread, or finished product entirely from scratch.
The sister tandem of Carina Ong and Clarisse Ong-Tiu emphasizes their personal touch in choosing the products. “Growing up, our mom was very traditional in a lot of ways, one of which was ensuring she personally prepared delicious, nutritious food for us. This is the same value we bring in these busier times. We go beyond the traditional deli foodstuffs, beyond cured meats, cheeses, things in boxes — to offer wholesome, tasty food that we personally use,” says Carina and Clarisse.
In addition to ensuring that the products are delicious and wholesome, they are also very relevant — meaning they are either ready-to-cook or ready-to-eat, all very simple to use, and also versatile. For instance, people don’t need to buy all the ingredients to make a home-style spaghetti sauce from scratch because the Urban Pantry line has already done it for them. Using the Urban Pantry Korean Bulgogi marinade, homemakers can prepare this dish in no time. Another bestseller, the Smoked Bangus in Chili Oil, can be eaten with rice and egg for breakfast but also can be mixed into pasta or paired with kesong puti and pandesal.
“Our method of curating is simple: if we don’t eat it, we won’t sell it,” the sisters add. “Most of the products we offer, we have been using for a long time, even before the idea of the store came about. We are excited to share these finds with other people to bring into their own homes and love just as much as we do.”
Urban Pantry is located on the ground floor of Greenhills Promenade 3. The store will hold a friends-and-family launch on July 26.