Filling

Late at night...
Really late
Actually early morning
Really early
Time to go home ...
But my stomach is grumbling

There are few places in Makati that are open 24 hours to partyphiles or drinkophiles like me. Some are expensive as in Peninsula Lobby and Old Swiss Inn - some are incredibly fastfood, as in McDo ...
And some are very interesting - as in Filling Station.

Filling Station is an American-style diner located right smack in the middle of P.Burgos St - that's "girlie" street to you.
Competing with the neon lights that beautify the otherwise plain looking women (and men that look like women - or maybe women that look like men) is an oasis of retro that is an island of "normalcy" in a sea of kink and sleaze.
No pole dancing here - nor tabletop tango ...
Just hamburgers, pizza, pasta, hot dogs ... a full Americana menu served by Betty Boop waitresses.

Resist the ogling at the questionable genders that wave to you through the glass and focus on the place.
It's interiors are a throwback to the 1950's with American memorabilia in such density that it is difficult to visually ingest it all in one sweep.

There are faux gas filler pumps (hence Filling Station ....)

Scattered all over are Elvis, Superman, Batman, Marilyn Monroe paraphernalia and more ...
Just loads and loads of stuff

Gheeez - there are even 1960's television sets that are still working.
Take a seat on the obligatory diner stools or sink into vintage diner booth seats.
Pool tables with vintage Tiffany type lamps mix it up with car parts, old motorcycles, old phones, record players and stuff - more stuff than I have ever seen in one place.
The child in my old body was energized just by being there...

On a late night - dehydrated by alcohol and craving for calories - this is my spot.
It should be yours too...
Look for their amiable manager Gilbert.

Fill 'er up please .....

Filling Station

5012 P. Burgos St.

Makati City

(63-2) 8972053

Simple

July 28 is Hamburger Day in the United States.

Yup ...

There is such a day.

If you google this you will actually stumble into sites that will allow you to send e-cards in celebration of this meaty day.

Empathizing with my American friends, I have started to do my hamburger rounds - a nostalgic trip to old hamburger haunts that I have sorely missed in favor of my fine dining sojourns.

Hamburgers ...

There is agreement that the 1st hamburgers were in fact meat slabs from the city of Hamburg in Germany brought to the New World where it evolved into ground beef patties on buns. Who , where or when this evolution took place is subject to debate but it is clear that hamburgers are the most popular sandwich food in the world today

True to it's copycat character, we in the Philippines have allowed ourselves to love the fastfood McDos, Wendy's etc. - while entrepinoys have created our own local versions of beef patties with fillers and additives that we allow to pass for burgers but really are a far cry from the original grilled ground beef burgers as they were meant to be. Gourmet burgers as offered by fine dining restaurants on the other hand are fusioned culinarily with other tastes and are less "burger" than they are beef meals ...

Besides they are incredulously expensive.

The best bets seem to in be in what are referred to as "mid-tier" burgers. Here we find the wonderfully all beef and truly grilled - BigBrothers, Hot Shots, Flamers and my current winning fave - WHAMBurger.

WHAMBurger - 78pesos

WHAMBurger with cheese - 96pesos

WHAM Burger is juicy, all beef and grilled to your liking.

Lasang beef, lasang grilled ...

Thats the way its supposed to be.

Simple

Tapos

You have a few more days - get in the burger mood.

Celebrate Hamburger Day with a WHAM.

(Now if only we could lobby our comedic Pinoy pols for a Kwek-kwek Day or perhaps a Tokneneng Week ... )

WHAM Burger

201 Blue Ridge Ave.,

Katipunan Extension

Bgy. Milagrosa, Quezon City

912-9426