Bristol Street was a long boring lenght of street that cuts through North Fairview and Lagro subdivision. In the early 80's the stretch of Bristol Street coming out of the Lagro entrance to Regalado Avenue was a vacant grassy area and was known for being a favorite salvage dump site. Such notoriety eventually faded as North Fairview started populating the area. Gone were the tall grass and in its place are the various commercial establishments such as eateries, a couple of garages, an AMA university, gyms, and spas. But before all these was the TriMoShawarma Co.
I believe that it was the very first eatery along that stretch. Located a couple of houses after entering the Lagro gate, the TriMoShawarma Co. was an instant hit! The people of Lagro got introduced to the SHAWARMA---a Middle Eastern delicacy that comprises of a shredded beef, onion, cucumber, and tomato wrapped in a thick pita bread---and they fell in love with it! Its popularity eventually went beyond Lagro and soon patrons from as far as Bulacan and the outskirts of Fairview were flocking to the rickety garage operation!
For the longest time TriMo monopolized the food industry at Bristol Street. But as time went by, rival businesses began to build along this strip. There's now Greenjoy Pizza, Tata Tasyo Tapsilogan/Mr. Liempo, and a rival shawarma joint---Kebab House---along with three milk tea houses.
Well before we go on comparing TriMo with the rest of the gang, allow me to tell you why, in my opinion, it has dominated the food wars at Bristol Street.
Food. When I first had my first bite of Shawarma at this place it was like a breath of fresh air. With my palate accustomed to burgers, fries and pizza, the exotic taste of this Middle-eastern delicacy was a welcome change. The shredded beef blended well with the vegetables and the garlic sauce is to die for! I have not tasted garlic sauce before this and it blew my mind. The pita bread also provided for another foreign taste that struck my fancy. The only food wrapper that I was used to was lumpia wrapper but unlike it the pita bread provided for a hefty bite.
Service. During their early years, an order of shawarma took time. This is because of their food preparation process and lack of manpower planning. They have since added more people to man their kitchen and shifted from shredding their beef to grounding them. Now, you don't need to wait that long to get your bite of shawarma.
Cleanliness and Condition. OMG! When TriMo started, it was just a garage set up. They have the assembly table, the beef spit and a cooler to keep the softdrinks chilled. Every now and then you could see cockroaches gallivanting around. But the customers doesn't seem to care any less. Being from the food industry I found this appalling and stopped my patronage of this establishment. They did make improvements in this area and a bigger dining area too. So far, I have had no chance encounters with any creepy crawlers.
Value for money. I can't remember exactly when I first got a taste of shawarma at TriMo but it only cost Php 35 for the regular and Php 40 for all meat. Now, it's Php 65. I liked the original better with the shredded beef because it provided texture. However, with the higher demand and the volume of transaction, they had to shift to grinding the beef to speed up production. It also seemed that they changed to an inferior pita bread. Other than these changes, their shawarma still lives up to the generous beef filling and their signature garlic sauce and provides for one satiating meal.
So how does these new players fare versus TriMo?
Kebab House. A direct competitor given its food offering. Since I only had the chance to taste their shawarma, let's stick to this product for comparison.
@ Php 65 Kebab House's shawarma can sure pack a punch! Big chunks of shredded beef, veggies, wrapped in a thick pita bread. The only thing I did not like was the taste. I'm not sure if it is the original shawarma recipe but it tasted bland to me. Either the Kebab owner did not scope the success factor of TriMo or its an audacious decision on their end to trust the product that they have. That was Mcdonald's mistake when they entered the Philippine market. They pushed the American taste to the Pinoy not knowing that we like our food flavorful.
Kebab House does have their own customer base (which I assume are friends of the owner since he often times sits with them) but incomparable to the transaction count generated by Tri-Mo.
If you're dining there and you have asthma, I suggest you pick the table farthest from their kitchen since the place lack the exhaust power (meron nga ba?) to
Greenjoy Pizza. In terms of taste, this place reminds me of Greenwich Pizza when it was just starting. I order the Ham and Cheese thin crust pizza which is not all that bad at Php 180 (family size). I also like their Double Cheeze Burger @ Php 35 with its generous serving of coleslaw. If you're craving for burger and don't want to go to SM, I suggest you try this one.
Greenjoy have a big dining area but not much diners. This maybe the reason why they are always clean. Malamang mas malakas sila sa delivery; otherwise they should have closed shop by now.
Tata Tasyo Tapsilogan/Mr. Liempo. Me and my wife had a craving for tapa one night and tried out this place. In a nutshell---it was a disappointment in terms of value for money. Very little serving. Another disappointment is the wait time of 15 minutes only to be served with a cold product! The only thing going for this place is that it is a new establishment with a clean dining area.
The VERDICT: Trimo still win hands down.
They just had a major facelift some time ago and no longer looks like the rickety garage operatings of old. They now look very respectable. They even have a party area for those who wants to celebrate with karaoke and shawarma! Well, maybe, just maybe, Kris Aquino will take notice and feature them in her morning show!
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