Go global on your lunch break at Araneta City
For its month-long Araneta City Lunch Festival, more than 60 restaurants across the commercial district are offering specially curated lunch sets, with meals starting at ₱399.
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For its month-long Araneta City Lunch Festival, more than 60 restaurants across the commercial district are offering specially curated lunch sets, with meals starting at ₱399.
SEAFOOD FOR LUNCH. Tempura, baby calamari and seafood sisig served with steamed rice are among Seafood 8’s offerings for the Araneta City Lunch Festival at Gateway Mall 2. The month-long dining celebration features special lunch sets from participating restaurants, with meals starting at P399.
James Elmer Pacala for DAILY TRIBUNE
CHINESE COMFORT. 18 Jade’s Braised Beef and Radish Set pairs tender beef, white radish, bean curd and seasonal vegetables with steamed jasmine rice, a radish appetizer and chicken broth soup.
SWEET AND SAVORY. 18 Jade’s Mango Sweet & Sour Pork Set combines pork belly, mango, red onion and bell peppers in a sweet-and-sour sauce, served with rice, a radish appetizer and chicken broth soup.
JAPAN FAVES. Unagi Yukimitsu’s Chicken Teriyaki Yasai features glazed chicken teriyaki over vegetables, accompanied by Japanese rice and miso soup as part of its Araneta City Lunch Festival offering.
James Elmer Pacala for DAILY TRIBUNE
Lunch is often dictated by three things: time, appetite and budget. At Araneta City, however, the midday meal can get a little more adventurous.
For its month-long Araneta City Lunch Festival, more than 60 restaurants across the commercial district are offering specially curated lunch sets, with meals starting at ₱399.
DAILY TRIBUNE got a taste of the festival during a restaurant crawl at Gateway Mall 2, hopping from seafood and Filipino-inspired fare to Chinese comfort food and Japanese favorites.
The crawl brought us to three participating restaurants — Seafood 8, 18 Jade and Unagi Yukimitsu — with each stop offering a different take on the midday meal.
Flavors of the sea
At Seafood 8, seafood takes center stage while familiar sides of steamed rice, atsara and miso soup round out the meal.
Diners can choose from Tempura with Steamed Rice and Atsara, Baby Calamari with Steamed Rice and Atsara, or Seafood Sisig with Steamed Rice and Atsara.
The three dishes cater to different cravings. The tempura delivers the familiar light crunch of battered seafood, while the baby calamari offers a heartier bite. The seafood sisig, meanwhile, gives the Filipino favorite a seafood spin, with octopus taking the starring role.
The tangy atsara provides a welcome contrast to the richer seafood, cleansing the palate between bites, while the rice and miso soup turn each dish into a filling lunch set.
Chinese comfort food
The next stop shifted the experience toward Chinese flavors at 18 Jade on Level 4 of Gateway Mall 2.
Its festival menu includes the Braised Beef and Radish Set, featuring remarkably tender beef with white radish, bean curd and seasonal vegetables, served with steamed jasmine rice, a radish appetizer and chicken broth soup.
For something brighter and sweeter, there is the Mango Sweet & Sour Pork Set, combining pork belly, mango, red onion and assorted bell peppers in sweet-and-sour sauce. that comes with the same rice, appetizer and soup combination.
Both are priced at ₱399 but offer noticeably different flavor profiles. The braised beef is warm, savory and comforting, while the mango lends a fruity sweetness and slight freshness to the familiar sweet-and-sour pork.
Japan favorites
Our final stop was Unagi Yukimitsu, where the Lunch Festival offering comes in the form of a neatly arranged Japanese set meal.
The Chicken Teriyaki Yasai brings together chicken teriyaki, Japanese rice, miso soup and seasonal fruit — a straightforward combination that covers savory, sweet and comforting flavors in one tray.
Rather than ordering several dishes to share, the individually portioned set provides practically everything needed for a complete lunch.
After three stops, that may be the clearest appeal of the festival: diners do not necessarily have to choose between affordability and variety.
With more than 60 participating restaurants, the Araneta City Lunch Festival turns the everyday question of “What’s for lunch?” into an opportunity to explore different cuisines without venturing far from one destination.
And with special sets starting at ₱399, trying somewhere different for lunch does not necessarily have to be reserved for a special occasion.
