Maginhawa Street, Quezon City Restaurant Row: Make Your Own Degustacion

Maginhawa Street is the ideal place to practice the art of grazing. You can create your own tasting menu by walking the length of the street, stopping at spots that draw your attention, picking up a few bites, and moving on to the next one. I knew the perfect company for such an adventure—my foodie family consisting of my nephew Joakim and nieces Joanna, Jenna and Julia.

We checked out the area last Saturday evening when the rains stopped. Parking is limited and mostly street-side so my brother had to play driver.



Our first stop was Sancho, a churreria that, I was told, is a fixture at school fairs. I found the chocolate dip a bit watered down but the churros were reminiscent of Dulcinea’s (the standard, as far I’m concerned). That is to say they were good. When we later joined my sister in law at the same place, she said the hot cocoa was remarkably good.

We walked to the next establishment that caught our attention, Theo’s, a café with a good selection of baked goods. I chose the cookie shots with milk, remembering Chuvaness’s blog feature on Dominique Ansel’s cookie shots in Tokyo. Now I must go to Cookie Bar in Kapitolyo to sample what is considered our best local version.

My foodie family finished off every single shot, even what was supposed to be my share, but I managed a bite of the cookie, which was crumbly and sweet. It’s a fun way to enjoy dessert and a sure hit among the kids.

Our main agenda that evening was StrEAT Maginhawa Food Park, which featured an assembly of food trucks offering a variety of snacks that were impossible to exhaust on a single night. The place appeared like a social hub of sorts among those so-called millennials who must have seen the Instagram potential of the spot.

Even before we arrived in Maginhawa, Joanna had been talking non-stop about a milkshake topped with cotton candy that was available in one of the snack joints on StrEAT. She immediately spotted  The Lost Bread, and joined the long queue together with Jenna. After 15 minutes or so, barkers announced that they had to allow their machine to rest and cut off the line at the customer just in front of Joanna.

Luckily, I had Joaki and Julia line up for the hotdogs at Schimdt’s, which had a manageable and fast-moving queue.

We tried each hotdog variety. I liked the wagamama, although I would have wanted some wasabi kick. Julia loved the Seattledog. My brother preferred the Julius, which was also Joaki’s choice. I don’t remember having a taste of the Coney Island chilli dog and the Aucklander.

Joanna and Jenna found a calligrapher and had their names done.



After StrEAT, we headed back to Sancho’s where my sister in law was waiting for us and for the Paella Valenciana she ordered. We found the paella to have a nice crust (socarrat), which my brother and I enjoy. The lengua was tasty as well; we took some home, together with an order of beef salpicao.

My foodie family can’t wait for our next visit. We'll try to come earlier and allot more time for grazing.

I really wanted to try the poutine but they ran out of gravy.

I'll make time for a cappuccino.

Or some pasta and a glass of white.

If you decide to go to Maginhawa, don’t tackle the street by your lonesome. Bring an appetite and a throng of people with the same, and have a bite each of your picks for a degustacion of your own making, done at your own pace.