Lugaw Network elevates the humble congee
A restaurant in bucolic San Jose City, Nueva Ecija has taken the humble lugaw or congee out of the carinderia into a coffee shop setting complete with mood lights, Portuguese tiles and framed vintage posters.
Lugaw Network, located at 597 Bonifacio corner Cervantes St., Caloocan, San Jose City, Nueva Ecija, transports you away from its countryside surroundings to a place of subdued elegance.
Its black and gray interiors exude class, whether you’re enjoying its lugaw seafood or sharing tokwa’t baboy with friends.
Customers can readily afford the prices, which range from P12 to P45 per item, while gazing at photos from another world, and dreaming of going there.
All items on the menu are MSG ( monosodium glutamate)-free and servings per big bowl are generous.
Lugaw Network’s owners — brothers Nobel and Marlo Gabasan — try out each recipe in a test kitchen before including it in the menu.
As a result, customers have rewarded them with continued patronage for four straight years.
“At first, all I wanted was to come up with something that would take care of our daily expenses,” recalls Marlo. “The space was small. The counter and the dining area were confined to one space.”
Their kitchen experiments did more than survive the usual six-month life span of businesses in the province — they thrived. Soon they added new items like the seafood-filled Lugaw Network Special, chicha lugaw and others. Now, there are long tables outside the restaurant and customers can move freely.
Other soup restaurants have come and gone in San Jose City, but Lugaw Network has remained.
The bottom line, says Nobel, is service. Never scrimp on portions. Give customers only the best. They’ll reward you with their loyalty and make your business last for years.