Being raised by a father who frequents Chinese cuisine (every Sunday), I can say I’ve pretty much visited almost every Chinese restaurant, both fast food to fine dining. Most have the same flavor and service. My choice to visit a particular establishment would be its geographic location or for budget reasons.

I’ve recently been introduced to Panciteria Lido located at the Capital Towers along E. Rodriguez in New Manila. The name sounded familiar and true enough, it was one of those restaurants that my family went to in Binondo, Manila. 
Since 1936, this establishment has been serving customers their famous Pugon Roasted Asado and an assortment of Chinese dishes.

The Pugon Roasted Asado was different from what I am usually served in other restaurants. As I took my first bite, I was surprised to find that it wasn’t sweet at all. It was soft, delicate to the palate and there was no sauce to mask its true flavor. It was, however, served separately with their own sauce for customers who prefers it. The secret behind the uniqueness is in its preparation and cooking. As they describe, “it is roasted using an Old Fashioned brick oven (pugon) in just the right amount of heat from firewood.”

The Chami Special was very flavorful, not too salty and not too oily. I’ve never been a fan of oily recipes and I couldn’t have enough of it. This dish can be ordered alone and can fill up any empty stomach.

My favorite of the dishes I’ve tasted would be the Drunken Lechon Macau. Not only do I love pork, the flavor was great paired with their fried rice. Why drunken? It would be more interesting to say that the pig was served liquor until it reaches a drunken state, but the truth is that it is cured for 60 hours and marinated with wine and spices.

Other dishes that one can try would be the Poached Tofu perfect for vegetarians, the chunky Shrimp Balls and steamed fish fillet. Are you full yet? Don’t forget to order their special Lido Syphon brewed coffee, offered since 1994 which uses a 100 year old brewing method of syphoning combined with their own special blend.

If you are in the mood for just a snack or decide to have a late breakfast, pair any of their dishes with their hot chocolate. I’ve personally tried it and to my delight, it was similar to the spanish style that I love. Thick and not too sweet.

A twist to their tradition is the introduction of franchising to their business model. They have now open their doors to investors to support their expansion. With PhP4M, one can start running a branch in no time, a turnkey solution indeed. A typical restaurant will be about 60 square meters. Don’t be fooled with the size though. One is projected to have a daily sales of P25,000 but experience has proven that their branches make over P60,000 to P85,000. ROI is realized after a year and a half.

One other thing that captured my attention was their service. I’ll admit that most Chinese restaurants don’t have great service. But, Lido’s management has taken great lengths to ensure that customer experience is one of its priorities.

New staff is trained on the “12 Service Sequence” that starts from the door, when a customer comes in. A greeting is expected and should be done 1 second from the time they engage in the customer. The number of guests are asked and even how the menu is being shown is included in the training. Say, a 3-fold menu should be opened and presented properly and not simply given. Each process has its own “service level” and timeframes.

A guest card is provided to all customers and included along with the bill. All feedback is given to the manager of the store and forwarded to headquarters. There is accountability on a store level and can be escalated to the owner herself if it doesn’t get fixed. A complainant can give their email address and contact numbers for management to act on it.

Enough said. Time to go and check out Panciteria Lido’s branches to savor their dishes and experience good service. If you’re within the Paranaque area – good news! Their BF homes branch will open on August 8 to serve those living in the South. It’s going to be at the Ground Floor of the JOHVER Bldg 1, 23 President’s Avenue, BF Commercial Plaza, BF Homes, Paranaque City.