What is behind Ugbo food hub's popularity?

Rowegie Abanto, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="ABS-CBN News" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/05/18/20230518-ugbo-food-hub-1.jpg"/><figcaption>Foods being sold in Ugbo food market. <em>ABS-CBN News</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA — At the raging stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, al fresco dining proved to be a hit. Three years later, outdoor dining has remained popular.</p><p>But on Ugbo Street in Tondo, Manila, many food stalls are also banking on social media and vloggers to sustain their success.</p><p>Geraldine Ortillano, who came from Pasig when she visited the now-famous street in the Manila district, said that social media hype led her to visit the food crawl.</p><p>&quot;Sa vloggers, sa TikTok,&quot; Ortillano told ABS-CBN News on Tuesday as she and her workmates ordered ice cream near the avenue&#x27;s entrance.</p><p>The sentiment was shared by most visitors who ABS-CBN News interviewed during that day. </p><p>On <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/search/video?q=ugbo&amp;t=1684348779677">TikTok</a>, videos featuring Ugbo food stands are raking in thousands to millions of views. The street has also become viral on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/search/?q=UGBO">Facebook</a>; A single video posted in April has so far been watched 10 million times. </p><p>Since 2020, micro-influencers, social media personalities, and foreigners are filming the food stops in the area for content, vendors say. </p><p>In November, YouTuber Zeinab Harake, with 13.5 million subscribers on the platform, vlogged the viral street. The video has received 2.2 million views as of posting. </p><p>Angeline Quinto also featured the food stalls on her YouTube account, with comedienne Ethel Booba being the latest personality to visit the area, according to the vendors. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/02/24/23/how-to-keep-viewers-entertained-informed-on-tiktok">No picking fights: How creators can keep viewers entertained, informed on TikTok</a></li></ul><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="ABS-CBN News" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/05/18/20230518-ugbo-food-hub-2.jpg"/><figcaption>Entrance of Ugbo Street in Tondo, Manila. ABS-CBN News</figcaption></figure></div><div><strong>VARIETY </strong></div><p>Kyla Salinas, who lives in Tondo, told ABS-CBN News that Ugbo is already known as a food market even before its pandemic boom, thanks to its decades-old lechon stalls. </p><p>&quot;Matagal na siyang nag-start. Siguro lumaki lang ‘yung fan base ng mismong lugar na ito nung marami nang food vloggers ang pumunta. Tapos &#x27;yung ibang food vloggers din nagyayaya pa ng ibang food vloggers tapos nagpupunta rin dito,&quot; Salinas said. </p><p>&quot;Kasi pampadagdag views. Masarap naman daw po siya,&quot; she added.</p><p>From Korean to Japanese to Filipino food, Ugbo Street has a great variety of food choices whose prices mostly start at less than P100: corn dog and rice cake such as spicy tteokbokki; crispy tempura and kani salad; sizzling sisig, bulalo, fresh lumpia, homemade siomai, and fried rice; grilled squids and scallops; and skewered pork, beef, and tuna belly.</p><p>Other stalls offer ice cream rolls, fresh fruit drinks and shakes, fluffy pancakes and crepes, pizza and pasta, as well as the famous &quot;magic ice cream&quot; — pop rice balls floating on smoky liquid nitrogen.</p><div><strong>ATTRACTION</strong></div><p>How cuisine is presented and marketed by vendors in Ugbo made it not just a food crawl but also an attraction. </p><p>In one stall, seafoods teeming with flavor are grilled over a blazing fire along the street. In another, a vendor shows off his skills using a wok, as fried rice is being tossed before customers holding up their cameras and smartphones.</p><p>Sherwin Himor, 24, credited the strong sales of his &quot;giant&quot; siomai to his quirkiness. He sells at least 300 to 400 pieces of siomai a day. &quot;Nakilala na &#x27;yung siomai dahil sa kabalasubasan ko,&quot; he said. </p><p>From time to time, he would throw jokes at prospective customers to get their attention. &quot;Ito &#x27;yung giant siomai, &#x27;yung daks na siomai,&quot; he tells them, with some grinning at him.</p><p>In a nearby inasal restaurant, the staff employs a similar tact. They would convince patrons using their charm and jokes. &quot;Ang kagandahan dito ma&#x27;am puwede kang kumain nang naka-helmet,&quot; a server jokingly tells a group as he points to the menu. &quot;Pag na-badtrip ka puwede kang magwala.&quot;</p><div><strong>UNMATCHED</strong></div><p>Similar food kiosks have mushroomed around Tondo and elsewhere, trying to imitate Ugbo&#x27;s success. </p><p>But bucheron seller Raquel Dionisio believes that Ugbo street foods are unmatched because of the wide selection it delivers.</p><p>&quot;Marami nang gumaya, kaya lang hindi nila mahigitan. Ito &#x27;yung pinakasikat na pilit nilang ginagaya,&quot; said the 44-year-old vendor.</p><p>&quot;Hindi nila kayang higitan kasi nga andito na lahat ng klase ng pagkain halos lahat ikaw na lang talaga mamimili kung saan mo gustong kumain,&quot; she said.</p><p>Dionisio added that profit is guaranteed when one puts up a store in the area. </p><p>&quot;Napakaimposible kasing ma-zero ka dito kahit tabi-tabi kami rito. Imposibleng ma-zero ka sa dami ng tao na &#x27;yan,&quot; said Dionisio.</p><p>But when asked about how long they&#x27;ll be allowed to do business in Ugbo, she said: &quot;Di ba wala namang forever? Lahat naman talaga may hangganan.&quot; </p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2621131" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

How cuisine is presented in Ugbo made it not just a food crawl but also an attraction. 

What is behind Ugbo food hub's popularity? | ABS-CBN

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What is behind Ugbo food hub's popularity?

What is behind Ugbo food hub's popularity?

Rowegie Abanto,

ABS-CBN News

Published May 18, 2023 08:44 PM PHT

|

Updated May 19, 2023 06:21 PM PHT

Read More:

Ugbo

Tondo

food

night market

night food market

Manila

TikTok

YouTube

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