You had me at "truffle dirty rice".
I met Karen Caballero, owner of Fowl Mouth Lady, at one swim training session a few months ago. She and I have common triathlete friends, and I was surprised to learn that apart from her duties for the national Sepak Takraw team, she runs a food business based in Marikina.
And just recently, one of her posts on social media mentioned my magic word — truffle, of course — so I told her that I was a truffle lover and food enthusiast.
The next thing I knew, over the ASEAN Summit break, I was sent two dishes for me to sample; in fact, Karen personally brought them to my house.
I began by opening both containers and examining what were in each of them.
Fowl Mouth Lady
Garlic Spaghettini (PhP 160) and Badass Mofo (PhP 230) with Truffle Dirty Rice (upgrade of PhP 60)
The Badass Mofo caught my attention instantly because of the aromatic sauce coating the pork and chicken bits. According to Karen, both kinds of meat were cooked sous vide; true enough, the layered flavors and tenderness of each bite were locked in with this cooking technique. She and Locavore chef Mikel Zaguirre collaborated on this in order to ensure the best quality and flavor for their take on peri-peri-style cooking.
This particular dish is a combination of Fowl Mouth Lady's Chicken Peri-Peri Bowl and Pork Mofongo. I appreciated how she packed that container with the best of what she had to offer so that I could savor every nuance of flavor and texture.
I quite liked the savoriness of both kinds of meat, as well as the sauce. Rich, but not overpoweringly so, and every bite had a melt-in-your-mouth tenderness. The side salad was a good contrast, providing a freshness and coolness against the "weightiness" of the protein. It also came with two other sauce options, chimichurri and chili (I prefered the chimichurri).
However, what I was looking for was the flavor of the truffle rice. Because, in my opinion (and as my food posts would show), truffle is life. I missed that subtle earthiness that only truffle can give, which I felt the sauce of the meat could easily overwhelm.
So I decided to try taking a bite of the rice without any other viand or element with it; it was then that I was able to fully appreciate its flavor and texture. It had just the right softness, just the right hint of truffle. Perhaps if it came with a less loaded accompanying viand or meat, the dirty truffle rice would shine (and rightly so, for an upgrade of PhP 60).
And then I moved on to the second dish.
Normally, this kind of pasta is offered to customers as an alternative for rice, but it can also be ordered as a standalone dish.
I was expecting this Garlic Spaghettini to have that umay factor (no direct English translation, but it's one where you get sick/tired of the flavor after several bites; usually because the flavor of a dish is either too one-dimensional or too rich), which can sometimes happen with a lot of oil-based dishes. Thankfully, with several squeezes of the lemon that came with the meal, its acidity cut through the flavor of the pasta. It ended up tasting both savory and sweet, the sweetness of the lemon zest counteracting the saltiness of the garlic bits. Needless to say, I found myself enjoying this dish a whole lot.
Each seemingly small container was filled to brim; I certainly couldn't have finished either dish by myself. Thankfully I had some family members (and my brother's friends) to help me enjoy them!
As a fan of food (and a fellow multisport athlete), I'm excited to see how Karen and her team will continue to grow Fowl Mouth Lady; this business could potentially have lots of loyal customers, especially since they recently started delivering packed meals to other cities with the help of Lalamove.
The next time you have a craving for tender and flavorful meat, it's time that you "cry fowl" and give Fowl Mouth Lady a call!
I quite liked the savoriness of both kinds of meat, as well as the sauce. Rich, but not overpoweringly so, and every bite had a melt-in-your-mouth tenderness. The side salad was a good contrast, providing a freshness and coolness against the "weightiness" of the protein. It also came with two other sauce options, chimichurri and chili (I prefered the chimichurri).
However, what I was looking for was the flavor of the truffle rice. Because, in my opinion (and as my food posts would show), truffle is life. I missed that subtle earthiness that only truffle can give, which I felt the sauce of the meat could easily overwhelm.
So I decided to try taking a bite of the rice without any other viand or element with it; it was then that I was able to fully appreciate its flavor and texture. It had just the right softness, just the right hint of truffle. Perhaps if it came with a less loaded accompanying viand or meat, the dirty truffle rice would shine (and rightly so, for an upgrade of PhP 60).
And then I moved on to the second dish.
Normally, this kind of pasta is offered to customers as an alternative for rice, but it can also be ordered as a standalone dish.
I was expecting this Garlic Spaghettini to have that umay factor (no direct English translation, but it's one where you get sick/tired of the flavor after several bites; usually because the flavor of a dish is either too one-dimensional or too rich), which can sometimes happen with a lot of oil-based dishes. Thankfully, with several squeezes of the lemon that came with the meal, its acidity cut through the flavor of the pasta. It ended up tasting both savory and sweet, the sweetness of the lemon zest counteracting the saltiness of the garlic bits. Needless to say, I found myself enjoying this dish a whole lot.
Each seemingly small container was filled to brim; I certainly couldn't have finished either dish by myself. Thankfully I had some family members (and my brother's friends) to help me enjoy them!
As a fan of food (and a fellow multisport athlete), I'm excited to see how Karen and her team will continue to grow Fowl Mouth Lady; this business could potentially have lots of loyal customers, especially since they recently started delivering packed meals to other cities with the help of Lalamove.
The next time you have a craving for tender and flavorful meat, it's time that you "cry fowl" and give Fowl Mouth Lady a call!
The Truck Park,
Mayor Gil Fernando Avenue, Marikina City
(+63917) 5310301
