UYE Dinner at Max’s of Manila

After a long day at a conference just down the road, it was certainly a treat to hang out with some of my Unilocal friends and eat a dinner feast at Max’s of Manila. I had been craving Filipino food for so long and was happy to hear about this UYE. Thank you Mel and Jeana for planning a fun night!
While checking in, we were all given information regarding our birthdates and a summary about some classic and exotic Filipino food. As part of our icebreaker for the night, we needed to match every career listed with the people who fit that profession based on their birthdate description. It was fun meeting some new Unilocalers and learning why their specific career matched them or not.
After some mingling, dinner was served family-​style. We had many of the popular Filipino dishes, including lumpia shanghai, fried chicken, crispy pata, pinakbet, chicken adobo, and palabok. So masarap!
We were split up into 5 teams after dinner for a game. I didn’t know how hard it was to whistle after scarfing down a cookie would be until this game! In the end, my team tied with another but everyone walked away with a prize. Go Team Crispy Pata!
This UYE was definitely filled with lots of laughter and fun!

Kami ay nasasabik na maging dito (We are excited to be here)…
What an exciting and delicious evening! We got to meet some new Yeeps and finally got to meet some in real Life. Thanks to the wonderful coordination by Mel B, Jeana and Mog and the fabulous food at Max’s of Manila. It was Mel’s first UYE and he did a fabulous job!
We played an ice breaker game by matching personalities based upon our birthdates. Everyone circulated around the room trying to complete matches on their list of personality categories such as Politicians, Police Officer, Academic, Photographer and Entertainer. Surprisingly, astrological sign (Leo) and birthdate personality identified me as an «Entertainer». What? In the back of my mind, I was horrified to think that we’d have to perform our identity. Phew, luckily, not. There was a huge turnout of 26 people, a special visit by a fellow Unilocaler from California that came together for Filipino cuisine and to celebrate a birthday of Unilocaler Jerrae.
And then, a feast of 6 different Filipino dishes were served…
–Lumpiang Shanghai: A deep-​fried basket was filled with pork filled egg rolls and served with a sweet and sour sauce. It came out to our tables steaming hot and freshly fried.
— Max’s Fried Chicken: This Max’s signature dish. A whole fried chicken was served to us. The meat was tender and juicy while its crisp skin crackled with each bite. A little splash of Jufran Banana Sauce/​Ketchup complimented the chicken.
— Pancit Palabok: Thick rice noodles topped with a sauce of shrimp, ground pork and squid. The sauce was embellished with ground cracklings (chicharon), fried garlic bits, green onions and boiled egg quarters. Fresh cut lemon wedges were served to add some piquantness.
— Crispy Pata: A full portion of crispy fried pork hock (leg) was served. The pork leg was marinated and cooked then deep fried until the skin was crackle-​crisp. A little ramekin of soy-​vinegar dipping sauce was served alongside.
— Pinakbet: A vegetable stew of pork, shrimp, green beans, bittermelon, squash and shrimp paste. Max’s prepared this northern ilocos dish to perfection.
— Classic Chicken Adobo is a Philippine chicken stew that is seasoned with soy, vinegar, garlic and some other spices. The chicken was fork-​tender and well-​seasoned.
— Rice… Fresh, steamed white rice… There was a lot of rice as it is the starch of choice.
After dinner, Mel and Jeana drew raffle tickets for $ 25 gift certificates to several stores such as Gap, Macy’s, and Chili’s. Then, more awesome prizes such as laser-​etched bookmarks were awarded. Everyone was a WINNER!
But, wait… there was still more fun and games afoot. Mel and his co-​hosts devised a game where contestants were grouped into 5 teams. Each person was to represent their team by eating a cinnamon-​spice wafer and then whistle. Man, that wafer was like a soda cracker and it was difficult to whistle but there were some people who managed to chirp out a tune. When all was said and done, the top teams «scooped up» more rewards.
Thank you Mel B, Mog, Jeana, Nadine, Victoria for organizing this successful UYE. Special thanks to Paul, Cathy and Maka for being pillars in Unilocaldom. Thank you to the great kitchen and serving staff of Max’s of Manila.
Salamat!
#321

If life is like a game of chess… and we are the pieces, then Mel is like Bobby Fischer, and we are the pawns at Mel’s Unofficial Unilocal Event (UYE)… Each one of us played a special role in the success of Mel and Jeana’s very First UYE!
From Mel’s simple question in the Talk Thread of
: «What’s your favorite Filipino restaurant?», to everyone’s suggestions, emerged an Epic Event! In my First Year of Unilocalie Life, this was the Most elaborate UYE ever!
It was an honor to go with Mel and Mog to the Site inspection. The advantages of Max’s of Manila were all in place: FREE and ample parking, clean and convenient restroom, private party room, good food, and great service!
I knew that fellow Yeeps would have fun when Mel described some of the games to me. As soon as the Event was posted, I started to «share» the Event with those who may be interested. The response was overwhelming!
Cut to the chase: the BIG Day arrived. Our Fearless Leader, Mel, had instructions for his team: Mog, Victoria A., Jeana, and me. We were to set up at 5pm with our specific duties in hand. Everything went as planned. The birthday/​occupation game; the Door Prizes; and the Fear Factor/​whistling Game were thought out so well!
My assignment was to greet the guests. I always thought it was so cool when the Princes and Princesses would arrive at a fancy ball and have their names announced as they arrived at the door. Well, in our case, we had many Dukes and Duchesses, so why not? It was really fun for me! I got to meet all of the new friends!
Mel’s selection of Thank You gifts were so appropriate! Examples: Terrance Y. (Gold Elite and therefore Most Experienced Unilocaler) received a Star Wars lunch box — a collectable! Doug, our newest Unilocaler was recognized with a cute puppy stuffed animal! I was presented with Hello Kitty & Dear Daniel dressed in McDonald’s uniforms — how did he know?! The most noteworthy acknowledgements went to Mel’s female team — what a wise man to understand relationships!
Logisticswise — there were 3 long tables of ten seats each. Our table split up democratically into 2 sets of 5 eaters. We divided the food equally to prevent fighting… however, some rascally persons (without giving out any names…) started a slap-​happy wave-​actioned motion which ended up with a stunned Paul who opened his eyes widely and claimed that he was an innocent by-​stander! Yeah, right! Paul can blame J — s… (no names given here)…
In regards to the food — everything was excellent because of the helpful guides: Joanne on our half of the table (Maka, Cathy, Paul & me), and Ivy at the other half of the table (Jules, Terrance, Victoria A., and Kristine). Ivy & Joanne are commended for stepping up to the plate and explaining the various delicacies!
Thanks to Jeana for the Door Prizes! Somehow, the best gifts went to the Birthday Girl’s table. Yes — this UYE was actually a birthday party for Jerrae! Sweet! We really enjoyed the gift cards and Koa wood bookmarkers! Everyone got something for attending and those who were on the winning Team got an additional prize!
Mahalo to Jeana & Mel for their generosity & hard work — it sure paid off in fun, new friendships (such as Sivilay from California), laughter, full tummies, and happy memories!