MENU: SOMS

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Street treat
By Margaux Salcedo
Inquirer
Last updated 04:01am (Mla time) 09/09/2007
MANILA, Philippines - In a gathering at a chi-chi and very pricey restaurant, I once overheard a guest comment, “Maganda dito. Iimbitahin ko si misis. Yayayain ko siya mag-appetizer (This is a beautiful place. I’ll take the missus here. I’ll invite her for appetizers).”

It was so funny I found myself laughing out loud. But it’s painful, too, because what guy in his right mind would want to scrimp on someone he loves? (Okay, don’t answer that. But you know what I mean ... ) The point is, you shouldn’t have to spend an arm and a leg for good food. They should rather be offered at commensurate, not murderous, prices. In fact, charging P1,000 for a meal should be considered an inhumane act against the Third World consumer (!) because it is just painful to see such delicious food presented to you at prices you can’t afford.

And sometimes you just want to EAT. No need for air conditioning or expensive utensils or waiters who speak English. You just want good food—something filling, tasty and reasonably priced—period.

Enter Soms, a Thai restaurant on N. Garcia Street (formerly Reposo) in Makati. I had heard of this hole-in-the-wall maybe a year ago from designer and musician friends. At the time, Soms was just a garage carinderia on Alger Street parallel to Rockwell Drive. My friends raved about their find: “Cheap eats sa Rockwell gillage (gilid ng village),” they said, “Authentic Thai and dirt cheap, as in TWO pesos for extra rice!” Sure, the rice came with flies (flying about, not in the bowl of course), and it could be sweat-dripping hot if you came for lunch. But for that good a meal, at less than P100, it was totally worth it, they said.

Not one to jump on a food trend, however, I only tried it out a year later, when the more accessible Reposo branch opened. My friends and I were fans of Daddy Nicks back in the day when Soms took over the old grillery, I decided it was time to pay the rising star a visit.

A survey of the restaurant from the outside and immediately as you enter shows why the price for ambience has been slashed from the bill. They didn’t change much from the old Daddy Nicks, except that they painted the walls orange and played with tiles and fake bricks. Hanging speakers are still wrapped in (now dusty) plastic, which reminded me of that funny e-mail that went around back in the day, about how to tell if you are Filipino (answer: if your sofa set still has its plastic covers “para hindi madumihan”). They have Christmas vines from maybe two Christmases ago. There is a Sacred Heart statue behind the bar, amusingly stationed beside San Miguel. During one visit, I noticed that the pinlight above our table was being held to the ceiling by nothing but really dusty tape that it literally could have fallen on my head. And—here’s the most endearing kicker—during the hours when they’re not airing “Eat Bulaga” (plus points for being Kapuso!), “Total Eclipse of the Heart” plays in the background! “Turn around, every now and then …”

I notice that on each visit, practically all the tables are occupied—by locals and foreigners alike. Clearly, the karaoke music does not matter. No one comes to Soms expecting fancy fare. Instead, its loyal clientele and their friends come to this simple station for a taste of Thailand the way they had it when they were last there: on the street, at dirt cheap prices.

At Soms, the customer comes for the food, and the restaurant satisfies by offering dishes that both the experienced traveler and the backpacker would appreciate. The Tom Yam soup, a hot and sour shrimp soup that you must start with, hits the right note on sour, mellowed by the flavor of the lemon grass that they mix in to make it the right blend of Thai. The Bagoong Fried Rice, which you can enjoy as a meal on its own, oozes with flavor from the bagoong (shrimp paste), and comes with thin slices of green mango on the side, to balance the bagoong’s salty with the mango’s sour, and it helps that they throw in a couple of pieces of meat and scrambled eggs as well, just like they do in Thailand. At only P98, I see this dish achieving legendary status in the Fave Cheap Eats List, joining the league of Cable Car Fried Rice (’80s babies, unite!).

You can skip the spring rolls (P92), which makes for just a regular, uneventful spring. Alternatively, the catfish salad (P150) is a fine way to whet your appetite before hitting your main dish. I had the catfish salad at People’s Palace (P340) the following day to compare, and noted that aside from the size (the one at People’s Palace has a more generous amount of the fish), presentation, and the general ambience of the Palace, the difference is not glaring at all. If you are picky, you will notice that the flavors in the Palace salad are more cohesive and heightened, and I gather this is from the sheer quality of the ingredients used, like the use of lime at the Palace versus calamansi at Soms. But like the difference between the sinigang of a five star hotel and that of your mother, just remember that when it comes down to it, for the most part, momma knows best.

Especially if your momma is an authentic Thai chef whose parents used to cook for the king of Thailand, selected because of the way they made their award-winning chili sauces. Well, he’s not a momma but owner and chef Parinya Pattamadilok is a Thai national and used to be chef at Sukhothai. This probably explains why their curries at Soms are remarkable. The menu offers a stoplight of curries (red, yellow and green) in descending levels of spice. These go for just P102, but if you add any of the meats (written as “B, P, C, S” on the menu for beef, pork, chicken or shrimp), it comes up to P150. (Take note of this because the fact that there’s an additional P48 is not written on the menu.) I had a beef green curry that I thoroughly enjoyed. The meat was tender and it was just mildly spicy. Perfect with plain white rice. The men might want two full bowls and the red curry instead of the green.

Not as impressive, though, was one of the most basic of Thai streetfoods: the Pad Thai. Although it is a best value meal, going at just P102, with an additional P48 for the meats, and twice the size of Pad Thai at more expensive restaurants, this one was more mellow in bite although it contained the basic ingredients a Pad Thai must have, such as ground nuts, eggs, tofu, and bean sprouts. It is also a little more on the oily side, compared to the slightly drier Pad Thai that you might be used to. But at just a little over P100, it’s a really good deal. I’m almost convinced that to demand any more might be considered inhumane treatment of the chef and restaurateur.

In between bites, don’t forget to take a sip of their Thai tea, milky but light. It’s only P30, very refreshing and distinctly flavored. I really enjoyed it, which is quite impressive because I’ve never really been a fan of milk tea!

After visiting a couple of times, I understand now why Soms has become such a hit with artists and travelers. At Soms, it’s not about how you look but about who you are. It brings it back to basics. Never mind that the lights might fall into your Bagoong Rice. Never mind that periwinkle is hideous with peach (you’ll know what I mean when you see the walls). What’s important is that the bagoong rice is hugely satisfying. And that anyone, not just the well-heeled, can have a taste of it!

Soms. 1766 N. Garcia cor. Milagros Streets, Makati (between JP Rizal and Kalayaan). Take out available at 729-7489 or 0927-4406391. Attire: Casual / Come as you are. Atmosphere: Relaxed. Parking: Difficult. Handicapped: Ground floor level accessibility.