U T O P I A: Because Something Good Always Happens :) Nomnomnom

This was painted on their walls

So again, during our regular after Sunday Mass dinners, my batchmate suggested we go to Nomnomnom. A vegan restaurant along E. Rodriguez corner Tomas Morato. She had been there a couple of days ago with the kids from school to cook. She was raving about the ravioli and tinapa pizza. The owners were parents from the school where she works. Actually, we’ve been through quite a number of restaurants where her students’ parents are the owners. :P She also told me that Tomato Kick and Nomnomnom have the same owners only that TK is a matu (drinking) place and Nomnomnom is a lot different.

Since I’ve always liked the food in TK and my batchmate has been raving about Nomnomnom for the past days we’ve been together, I said yes. J haha! Talk about a very wise decision.

Nomnomnom is very different from TK. Pola and I agreed that it would be a very nice date place. J haha! Well for one, I like privacy and my first statement was “ok dito ah. Tago, hindi madaling ma-spottan.” But that’s just me kidding. :P Seriously, I am never really fond of crowds, as much as possible I avoid jam-packed areas. They give me a headache and it makes me nauseous. (Yeah, only God knows why I don’t get sick to my stomach whenever my friends and I hit attica every Friday! This is probably one of the reasons why I rarely go to clubs.) Going back, they have a warm, close to home ambience. It was a feel good place. J No wonder it’s called “Nomnomnom Happy Food”.

By definition “nom nom nom” according to my fifth grade teacher is a figure of speech called onomatopoeia. It is when sounds are used as words to describe an action. According to the Urban Dictionary, it represents a sound made when someone is eating or chewing something and is really enjoying it. It also refers to the sound of cookie monster while munching on his cookies. All three definitions refer to enjoying delicious food. Nomnomnom got me raving! Pola and I ordered Enchilada, which according to the menu was a “Mexican version of Lasagna, made with flour, tortilla, filled with Kangkong cream & cheese topped with enchilada sauce”. We also ordered Malinomnom, a bestseller! It had tinapa, kesong puti, red egg and shallots. It was really good.

Why?

I’m a carnivore. I like meat. Period. But our meal tonight didn’t have any hint of meat at all but I enjoyed it. The Enchilada was kangkong filled. And my story of the kangkong also known as the cabbage swamp go way back 3^rd year high school. You see, my chemistry teacher, for reasons I forgot, told us that water convolvulus or swamp cabbages also grew in rivers or in damp areas where informal settlers without a “normal” toilet bowl lived. So there, I won’t even elaborate anymore. I have stopped eating kangkong since then. It was only in college when I started eating kangkong again but only when it was the following:

1. Crispy kangkong with dip cooked by someone I know,

2. Dencio’s Adobong Kangkong,

3. Mom’s kangkong in her sinigang.

In all these instances I would always ask where they bought the plant and how many times they washed and boiled it for cooking. Fine. I’m weird like that. And I couldn’t tell Pola my food issues because she’d tease me and call me “Madam” once again. So going back to tonight’s meal, just the smell whetted my appetite. And with the first bite, I forgot all my unresolved issues with the swamp cabbage. Haha! I just kept on saying “batch! Ang yummy! Omg! I have to learn how to do this.” :P

Then the Malinomnom arrived. And yes, I don’t eat tinapa and red egg, and I have no mother freakin idea what shallots are. The only topping I was actually looking forward to was the kesong puti, which smelled, well, awful but still yummy because it’s cheese. :P haha! People say, I’m maarte and pihikan when it comes to food. My mom would give sermons on how I refuse to eat food served on the table. For the longest time, I have never agreed with this, because clearly, my body fats prove otherwise, right? Anyway, I don’t know why I don’t eat tinapa but I do know why red/salted egg has been a no-no for me. Its’ texture is kinda weird and it smells weird too. It’s not fish related but it’s “malansa” for me. I just don’t like the smell and maybe it’s an acquired taste. (And I can’t believe why a lot of people actually, like it.) But moving forward, Malinomnom was divine! The tinapa, the red egg, the kesong puti, and the shallots were a perfect fit. What a great pizza innovation. J It was sapid, piquant and I loved it with their chilli oil. And there wasn’t any sign of the red egg’s awful smell. Yey! Nomnomnom, you got me to eat food I didn't like! Kuddos for you!!!!

Since Pola and I were full, due to the carbo loading we just did, we decided not to get dessert anymore. I also figured, since we came from Moonleaf before hearing mass and we had sweets there, not getting dessert was ok. The meals were still perfect. J

Because something good always happens. Thanks Nomnomnom!

too bad i don't eat talong :P

the ravioli Pola was craving for

P.S

And I now know what shallots are. :P They are commonly mistaken as onions but they are actually species of their own kind. They have a mild taste that combines the flavor of a sweet onion with a touch of garlic. (thanks Magic Valley Growers)

P.P.S

This is nothing compared to other food blogs and food reviews. These are just food as described by my taste buds in coordination with my “happy tummy”. J