Another foodie destination

As we still try to steer away from the current much intriguing business scene, which some people consider though I refuse to believe, is predicated on who you know rather that what you can offer, we spotlight another gastronomic destination.

This time around, our roving Business & Leisure crew found themselves again in bustling Marikina City to try out a Korean restaurant. If you are a foodie, you must have found yourself in

Lilac Street in Marikina City at one time or another. This street is fast becoming a food avenue in this city and many start-ups have found a home in it.

Now here comes another wonderful discovery right here at Lilac, the

Mi Dai (pronounced as “mee dye”) restaurant, a decidedly Korean restaurant. The Goalberto family, Kapampangans who love to eat and lean toward Korean food own the place. They decided to open it after realizing that they are foodies anyway, so why not? They decided on Marikina because it would be the only one in the entire area that would offer what they had in mind to specialize in. Another co-owner, Sebastien Goalberto, who is the operations manager of Mi Dai, confirms that their first restaurant was in Rainbow Street, also in Marikina City. Business wasn’t as brisk then, so they decided to move to Lilac Street.

The Goalberto family professes a love for Korean food. The whole family enjoy their Korean food sorties and decided to build a food business around their passion.

The name Mi Dai comes from the first names of Sebastien’s siblings, but upon further research, they found out that Mi Dai means “greatness” in Korean, so they happily decided to name their restaurant Mi Dai.

The restaurant is cool and pleasant, exactly the ambience that they wanted to create. The staff greet each customer in Korean to set the friendly mood. A happy ambience is the concept behind Mi Dai. In their first Korean restaurant they offered unlimited

samgyupsal only. Here at Mi Dai in Lilac St., the owners decided to offer buffet dining to complement their unlimited samgyupsal. For the buffet alone, where there is a wide array of hot and cold dishes, soup, vegetables, beef and pork, the price is incredibly low—it costs P299 only per person. For the unlimited pork samgyupsal only, one pays P369; for the combination pork and beef plus the buffet, the price is only P499.

If you get a close look at the slices of pork of their famous samgyupsal you will find them deliciously pink and white, ready for grilling.

This comes with all the side dishes like hot kimchi which opens the appetite and goes well with the grilled meats. Other side dishes are veggies and other dips.

If you check out the buffet, – there is the iconic Korean fried chicken that is sweet, crunchy and tastes of sesame seeds. They have a wide array of hot Korean specialties. They have hot soups and healthy salads to start your meal.

Restaurant operations start at 11:00 a.m. up to 3:00 p.m. and resumes at 5:00 p.m up to 10:00 p.m. The restaurant can comfortably seat 120 persons at any given time. Because the Korean food craze has caught up with the

Marikenos, the Goalberto family is now entertaining inquiries for franchising or just plain expansion of the brand.

So if you happen to find yourself in this part of the city, check out Mi Dai, a Korean restaurant in Lilac St. in Marikina City. Mabuhay!!! Be proud to be a Filipino. For comments: (email) sunshine.television@yahoo.com (web) www.businessandleisure.ph