MCDONALD'S MCRIB IS NOW IN THE PHILIPPINES!

             Everyone knows that I'm a burger fanatic, right? And I never hid the fact that I'm a big fan of McDonald's. Back in 1998, I was in a trip with my cousins, and we did a tour of United States. During one of our stopovers, I was so famished that I decided to grab something from the nearest McDonald's to tide me over till dinner time. It was then that I tried the somewhat mythical "McRib". 

       I say "Mythical" because it never stays in the menu for very long. Much like a Unicorn, everyone talks about how beautiful and wonderful it is, but no one can actually seem to grab a hold of it. I recall going back to McDonald's a few days later and to much my utter disappointment, discovering that it was gone. I swore to my cousins that I was with that it was true. 

       Whenever we would talk about the McRib, I would drift off, and tell a tale of love found, and then lost in a one fleeting moment. I asked myself, when would I be able to hold that delectable sandwich in my hands again.. Maybe it was never meant to be.. Or maybe it was just a dream. 

    Well it's time to wake up and smell the BBQ Sauce! 

       I'm writing to you with tears in my eyes, and I am proud to announce that the McRib is finally available in the Philippines!!!!

When my friend, Chef Ian of Sebastians tagged me in his facebook picture of the menu, I thought he was at the Airport in Hong Kong or Singapore. But when I saw the price list was in pesos, I knew this was for real!

  

        Yes, finally, the McRib is finally available in the Philippines! And guess what? It has brought a long a friend with him, in the form of McDo's Glazed BBQ Pork Rice! 

       In case you were wondering, the McRib is responsible for me slathering every McDonald's Burger I eat with McNuggets BBQ Sauce, a habit that I carry on to this very day (I actually have a stash of McDonald's BBQ sauce in my ref!!).

       If you're wondering what exactly the McRib is, it's a pork patty slathered in a smokey-sweet BBQ sauce, then tucked between a lightly dusted five inch Roll, and topped with pickles and chopped onions. It got its name because when it was invented, it was meant to look like a rack of ribs (umm... nailed it?). 

        The Filipino version doesn't have the same robust smokey punch that I remember, and is a tad bit sweeter. For those who aren't not fans of sweet-meets-savory, the acid on the pickles give a nice balance to it. Although personally, I preferred it sans the pickles. This is something I would definitely order again! And for the price, (P129 Small Value Meal/P150 Medium Value Meal/P167 Large Value Meal), I think it's a really great deal!!

        Rina being the rice girl that she is, opted for the Glazed Pork BBQ With Rice Meal (P110 with a drink). Obviously conceived for the rice loving Pinoy in mind (*cough cough* Rina *cough cough*), This makes use of the BBQ Sauce coated Pork Patty, but with a rice option. 

          Rina enjoyed the meat melding with the BBQ sauce but the patty was a little tougher than she would have preferred. I didn't have that problem with the patty, so perhaps it was an isolated incident, or perhaps I ate a little too ravenously to notice. 

    

             Ok now here's the deal. The McRib is here for a limited time only, but if the response is good, then there's a chance they might do a nationwide roll out! 

Here are the McDo Branches In The Philippines that have The McRib:

1. SM North EDSA 2. SM Southmall 3. Quad 3 4. Gateway Mall 5. Trinoma M1 6. T.M. Kalaw 7. J.P Rizal 8. Tycoon Centre 9. Baclaran Redemptorist 10. People Support 11. SM Fairview 12. SM Megamall 13. Greenbelt 14. Guadalupe 15. Eton Centris 16. New Glorietta 17. Shangri-La 18. MDC 100 19. Tutuban Prime Block 20. MCU

Go out and try it.. Let me know what you think!