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Tucked away in a cozy part of Ras Ruman, parallel to the Ashrafs Store, the 10 Cups Restaurant is becoming a regular haunt for diners seeking authentic Filipino fare.
The newly-opened restaurant caters mostly to Filipino working professionals who wish to get a 'taste of home'.
Owner Conchita Baldago, known as Suzanne to friends, explains that the idea to open the restaurant gathered momentum after conversations with colleagues who work for her company, Reem Wedding Services.
The mother-of-three, 44, said: "Members of staff who live in Ras Ruman often mentioned about the lack of Filipino restaurants in the area. There appeared to be a gap in the market for Filipino as well as Arabic dishes which working people could enjoy at affordable prices."
10 Cups Restaurant recruited two chefs, individual masters of the two cuisines. The main Filipino attraction is Head Chef Wency Jacutina, 36. He boasts more than 15 years of culinary experience and has worked with the renowned Max's Restaurant back in the Philippines.
Regular diners say Chef Wency conjures up the 'perfect fried chicken' that the Filipino community in particular adores. Suzanne added: "Most Filipinos love the food at Max's and hence our customers are big fans of Chef Wency's creations.
"He is extremely dedicated to the kitchen and works very long hours to keep the diners happy. He is here at the restaurant daily from 9am until closing time at 2am. He is very precious to us."
Chef Wency worked with the Hot Pot Restaurant in Bahrain as a cook prior to taking up the head chef challenge at 10 Cups.
He said: "I have always enjoyed cooking. I would watch my mother cook as a child and after school I went to a culinary school to learn more about the art."
The restaurant also offers Chinese and Indonesian food occasionally. The outlet is decorated in bright and contemporary colours and designs and also features a karaoke room upstairs alongside a buffet area.
Suzanne's nephew, Roy Anthony currently manages the restaurant. Its peculiar name came about following a communication cock-up whilst it was being registered. The original plan was to call it Thin Cups but somehow the name got lost in translation and became 10 Cups!
Here Chef Wency shares the recipe of a popular rice and beef dish with GulfWeekly readers.
Beef with broccoli toppings on rice
Ingredients
Tenderloin beef, thinly sliced 100gms
Corn flour 1 tbsp
Sesame oil 1/2 tbsp
Broccoli 6 oz
Carrots cut in strips 1
Crushed garlic 1 small
Crushed ginger 1 oz
Beef stock 1/2 cup
Soy sauce 1/2 tbsp
Oyster sauce 1/4 tbsp
Brown sugar 1/8 tbsp
Spring onions 2 sprigs
Steamed rice 1 cup
Preparation:
Heat the sesame oil in a wok or a non-stick pan. Add the tenderloin and stir fry over brisk heat for three minutes. Remove and set aside.
Add the broccoli, spring onions, carrots, ginger, garlic and beef stock to the wok and cover and simmer for three minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring until all the stock has reduced.
Mix the soy sauce, oyster sauce and brown sugar together and add the stock with beef and cook for two to three minutes, stirring continuously. Sprinkle spoon of spring onion.
Serve on top of rice and sprinkle sesame seeds.
