There probably is no place like Metro Manila, where, with its vast space, malls proliferate in sheer dizzying speed. This conurbation such as the National Capital Region of the Philippines has 15 cities and the municipality of Pateros. Henry Sy's SM Malls and the Gokongwei's Robinsons Malls are ubiquitous. I was able to visit the newly opened
Light Mall which is basically an
SMDC residential complex of hundreds of condominium units. To make this new community functional, a mini-mall has been incorporated into this residential space, making it convenient for everyone.
"
Light" because the commercial space is limited to
2 levels, the mini-mall has "
Savemore" (for your supermarket needs) which also carries a
Bills Payment and a
Foreign Exchange counter. There are 2 BDO ATM machines and a Security Bank machine at the 2nd floor. At the time of my visit, the BDO ATM beside the Bills Payment isn't operational just yet.
The ground floor's right wing has gadgets and cyber needs, and even a
CD-R King. At the end of the hall is a
Savemore supermarket. At the 2nd level, there's a
Watson's, a Medical City Clinic, an
Ace Hardware, a
National Bookstore (which is yet to open); a Shakey's, Brownies, Mister Donut, and a
Formosa Bakery selling Taiwanese pastries and cakes. There's
no SM Department Store here, but there'a a
cineplex with 3 small theaters (probably the
smallest SM Cineplex in the country) with very limited seating (think 4-5 rows).
One place that's worth visiting here is the newly opened
Chef Lau's Pugon Roasters. In its infancy, this fast food-styled restaurant is already selling to SRO crowd. Yes, despite its very limited seats, there's a considerable queue "
lusting" after their best seller, the
Pugon Roasted Fried Chicken (aside from their sizzling chicken sisig) at a measly PhP99 price (without the drinks). We couldn't resist ordering it, alongside a "
Pork Liempo Roast" said to taste like "
lechon". They also have a "
Chicken Liver Surprise", at PhP79 only. The
verdict: my pugon-roasted (furnace) chicken wasn't something I'd be back for, or the
lechon liempo roast for that matter. But I will definitely try the chicken croquettes, the chicken liver, the pancit lucban and the fried chicken adobo -
if I have the patience to join the queue. Check their menu and you'd know there's plenty of options to choose from.
I was thinking, this mall would somehow eat into the clientele that
Robinson's Pioneer (which is just 2 blocks away)
is currently enjoying. Such is the nature of commerce, and if for anything, competition is good for the consumers. The place isn't quite done yet, with some floors outside that are yet to be completed. There's a 4 or 5 level parking but we weren't allowed to drive up the ramp. They're probably for the exclusive use of the residents of their units. We had to settle for the exceedingly limited outside-parking at the back of the building (check the photo).
The now-operational
Light Mall spells convenience when we need to pay our bills, rush into a new movie not available at Robinson's Pioneer (The Forum), or try out a new dish from
Chef Lau's Pugon Roast or the interesting-looking
Eduardo's Restaurant. There's also an LBC shop and a
Quantum Gaming arcade. If north-bound traffic to Megamall or Galleria is hellish, Light Mall will suffice. The second level also has a direct link to
MRT's Boni station.
This is the
Eye in the Sky!
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| Pugon Roast Chicken |
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| Lechon Liempo Roast |
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| Mango Cheese Cake at PhP120 a slice. |
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| Chef Lau's Pugon Roast menu. |
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| Eduardo's has affordable steaks among other stuff. |
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| The Baikery. Note the spelling with "i" between "bake". |
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| This Taiwanese bakery has delectable looking bread, cakes and pastries. |
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| I am reminded of the Australian cake, the Pavlova to a certain degree. |
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| List of shops and services at the Light Mall. |
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| Fern Country en route to the outside parking at the back of the building. |
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| Second photo above shows parking as you turn right to Madison Street from Edsa, then right again to the open parking. |
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| Light Mall and Residences. This photo only courtesy of SM Megamall's website. |
