Tara na sa Manna

Eating at a Korean Restaurant doesn’t need to be a pricey affair. Now, if you’ve got 500 to 1000 pesos on you, you can have a great time at Manna.

There’s currently two that we know of although we’re not sure if the third one at Roxas is still operating. There’s one at SM Lanang Sky Garden and another one in front of Grand Regal Hotel

So what’s a great meal to have at Manna?

Try the jukgejang. At 300 pesos you get this large bowl of red stew that’s filled to the brim with beef, vegetables and mushrooms. You can choose to adjust the spiciness level by telling the waiter how you want your jukgejang done.

Try the mandoo as well. We had ours fried although you can choose to have it boiled too if fried food isn’t what you’d prefer.

Jukgejang is a hearty stew that is best to eat on a rainy day. Think of it as a spicy comfort food that’s best eaten hot.

Mandoo on the other hand is like a cross between a dumpling and a lumpia shanghai. If they made love to each other they’d have a love child called Mandoo.

While waiting you can enjoy the side dishes they serve like Kimchi, bean sprouts, dried fish or sweet potatoes. You get 6 side dishes and you can have it refilled if the wait takes longer than usual or you’re as voracious as I am and you go through all six within seconds.

And here’s another great thing about Manna:

If you don’t know how to eat using chopsticks, the manager is nice enough to teach you. We’ve seen her do it on several occasions and she’s very patient and helpful unlike some managers in some food establishments who can’t seem to be bothered. A perfect example of humility. I think she’s Korean too.

From Monday to Friday they have this promo where you can have a full meal at only 99 pesos. It’s basically a smaller serving of some of their choice dishes like the jukgejang, bibimbap and others. So instead of the usual serving which is good for 2 to 3 persons you get a serving that’s good for one person at less than a hundred pesos. It’s basically a great way to sample their meals.

Manna’s kimchi is also one of the best if not the best in Davao. Although we haven’t tried Gui-Gui and Gogi Gui yet so that opinion might change.

we haven’t tried the other entrees on the menu and we really have to sample their samgyopsal because we need to compare it with Itaewon’s offering.

The verdict:

Tara na sa Manna!