As quarantine restrictions gradually ease up in the metro, random yet much anticipated thoughts of what and where to eat pops up. A sumptuous flatlay of succulent crabs comes to mind to settle the matter. And for over twenty-three years, there's been one name that always comes top-of-mind...
Large and plump mud crabs prepared in several creative ways have always been the trademark of the iconic seafood restaurant since 1998. The Red Crab Alimango House at Greenbelt 3, one of its many branches in the metro is once again open to welcome customers with dine-in now allowed on a limited capacity with health and safety protocols in place. That special crab feast you've always loved and dreamed of during the quarantine awaits at The Red Crab Alimango House, served fresh from the kitchen.
Like many establishments during the quarantine, The Red Crab Alimango House shifted gears providing take-out and delivery for its specialty dishes. A pivot to food delivery allowed The Red Crab Alimango House to maintain its link with loyal customers remaining relevant in a challenging new normal defined by changing consumer habits such as dining at home, the rise of the food delivery culture and increased online usage (for more on The Red Crab Alimango House and their specialty offerings for convenient take-out and delivery, see my post, Let's Get Crackin' with Succulent Crabs Conveniently Delivered to Your Table From Alimango House by Red Crab). Now that dine-in is allowed, you can enjoy your favorite crab dishes once more at The Red Crab Alimango House reconfigured with social distancing for the new normal.
From its original menu featuring the cherished family recipes of restaurateur Raymund Magdaluyo's mother to dishes inspired by the preferences and named after loyal customers including Ms. Bea's Beehon and the Maritess, the lavish repertoire of specialty crab dishes at The Red Crab Alimango House reflects the twenty-three year culinary journey of the enduring institution.
In tune with the times, The Red Crab Alimango House is ready for the new normal with all the mandatory health and safety protocols as well as provisions for socially-distanced dining in all its restaurants. Things may have changed, but the joys of a well-executed crab feast remains as lavish and memorable as before. And at The Red Crab Alimango House, it's an absolute guarantee.
Once seated, it's time to get crackin'...
Begin your dining experience at The Red Crab Alimango House with their best-selling starters like plump Baked Mussels...
...with Capampangan style Pork Sisig to open up the palate before the mains. The Baked Mussels weave the rich and creamy texture and flavor of cheese with the briny sweetness of the shellfish while the Pork Sisig brings soft, chewy and delicately seared and crunchy textural layers with a savory richness. It's a perfect start at The Red Crab Alimango House, and it just keeps getting better.
A large fat crab is a virtual feast on its own, but The Red Crab Alimango House elevates and transforms the crustacean with its own masterful weave of lavish flavors. Like a blank canvas, the premium crabs are given vibrant splashes of indulgent notes in a colorful palette of pure and real flavors. Crabs aren't the easiest to source and store, more so with live crabs. For an establishment built on good quality crabs, consistency is key maintaining a loyal customer base. Twenty-three long years in the business is proof of The Red Crab Alimango House's uncompromising commitment to serving superior quality crabs every day with every dish. Let's build your succulent crab lay with some of the best-selling specialties and new inspired creations for the ultimate crab feast...
The Red Crab Alimango House takes your palate on a rich regional culinary tour of local flavors with the Bicolano-inspired Toasted Coconut Crab in coconut broth, combining the nutty sweetness of coconut with the fresh and clean succulent notes of juicy crab meat. Like all of The Red Crab Alimango House's specialty crab dishes, the sauce becomes an integral part of the experience. The coconut broth, infused with the delicate richness of the crab lays even more flavors building a base of rich notes.
The coconut adds a buttery finish to the dish, perfectly complementing without overwhelming the succulent crab meat. And the sweetness of the crab meat just punches through with each bite, lining the palate with a lingering briny richness. Be sure to add some of that sauce to your bowl of steamed white rice for even more flavors.
The medley of fresh herbs, chili, kangkong and sesame oil come together in with the sweet, nutty and mildly spicy Malaysian Chili Crab delivering a fresh burst of flavorful notes. The flavors are bolder and more pronounced layered with a soothing heat from the fiery chili, but the fresh and clean notes of the crab still comes through. At The Red Crab Alimango House, the specialty crab dishes are perfectly balanced allowing diners to enjoy the subtle and even nuanced flavors of the crab meat.
The sauce is darker and thicker delivering deep intense and sharp flavors from the herbs, chili and sesame oil recreating exotic Southeast Asian flavors. The fresh kangkong or water spinach adds a fresh crispness with sweet hints to temper the chili finished by the nutty notes of the sesame oil. More complex with vibrant layers of flavors, the Malaysian Chili Crab is another masterfully executed dish at The Red Crab Alimango House.
One of the original dishes inspired by the recipe of Raymund Magdaluyo's mother, the Lakambini takes on the fiesta classic with crabs cooked adobo style with fish sauce and crab fat. Imagine a fresh and succulent large crab gently simmering in its own roe and herbs and you get the picture. The crab fat just adds an indulgent and velvety smooth texture and flavor to the dish, balanced by the underlying deep hints of the fish sauce.
Thickened by the crab fat, the sauce evenly drapes the crab with unctuous buttery flavors enriching your dining experience. Fresh spring onions bring contrasting notes to the dish cleansing the palate, allowing you to enjoy the subtle flavors of the succulent crab meat. It's a dish with unrestrained flavors, and The Red Crab Alimango House pulls out all the stops with this one.
The flavors of the large crab are kicked up by the crab fat for an elegant mouth feel, releasing an intense richness with each succulent bite. That sauce works well with steamed white rice as well.
From down south, the Chavacano Curry Crab with its distinctive yellow hue is a sweet and mildly spiced dish slathered in a thick ginger and turmeric-infused curry. The succulent crab and curry pairing is another flavorful combo by The Red Crab Alimango House, and the curry sauce alone is a winner. The thick and creamy sauce covers the crab evenly down to the crevices so you get the deep savory and earthy flavors of the curry.
The Chavacano Curry isn't an overpowering curry, it's velvety and buttery texture gives it an indulgent smoothness. The play on sweet and subtle spice with the gentle sharpness from the turmeric and ginger highlights the dish, but like all of their dishes, the crab remains the undisputed star of the dish.
Each crab dish at The Red Crab Alimango House also has an interesting story behind it, like the Crab Maritess named after Maritess Revilla-Araneta who asked the kitchen to prepare the crabs in olive oil with loads of crunchy garlic and chilies. Since then, it's been one of their bestsellers. And why not, the crunch of the garlic, the soothing heat from the chilies, the rich nutty and rounded notes from the olive oil and the sweetness of the plump crab just comes together in a seamless blend. Elegance in its pure simplicity using the finest and freshest ingredients for real flavors works all the time.
Grab a spoonful of garlic along with a big lump of crab meat draped in olive oil and experience pure bliss. The deceptive simplicity of the dish with olive oil, garlic and chili enhances the mild succulent notes of the crab bringing out its flavors with a silky smooth finish. It's dishes like this that weave colorful stories to The Red Crab Alimango House.
Another loyal customer's favorite is offered, named after the matriarch of one of the country's prominent families. An inventive take on the Singaporean classic, Ms. Bea's Beehon combines rice noodles in a light garlic ginger broth made creamier with milk and chorizo. The crab lends its own richness to the dish, pairing well with the soft noodles and the creamy broth. The hints of garlic and ginger brings bright flavors to the dish while the smoky and savory chorizo adds depth for another unique flavor experience.
The addition of chorizo is a novel spin on the iconic Singaporean version to complete the flavors with mild salty hints to complement the rich broth and sweet crab meat. The dish then becomes a unique crab experience you can only find at The Red Crab Alimango House.
The noodles and creamy broth brings a festive vibe to any table or celebration, and just one of many tasty offerings at The Red Crab Alimango House.
Despite over twenty-three years in the business, the kitchens at The Red Crab Alimango House never stops improving their specialty dishes. The Talipapa, a playfully inventive crab dish cooked in olive oil with tuyo, tinapa flakes and cherry tomatoes takes your palate to the familiar wet markets with bountiful offerings of dried fish is one example. Recently tweaked with the addition of lemon lime soda to temper the bold salty notes of the tuyo and tinapa flakes, the end result is a smoother and balanced dish. The nutty hints of garlic and cherry tomatoes completes the complex layers of flavors.
The comfortingly familiar flavors weave sweet, salty and tart flavors in a single bite, finished by the olive oil. The freshness of the crabs make it easy to crack, and prying the lumps of crab meat even from the deepest crevices comes out clean...
...from one claw...
...to the next. These are definitely some of the best crabs in the metro.
The ultimate crab lay, reimagined by The Red Crab Alimango House. If you wish to dine in the comfort of your home, The Red Crab Alimango House goes to you with their special platters in 1 Kg (2pcs at 500 g each) to 2.5 Kg (5 pcs) options (see more on my earlier post, Let's Get Crackin' with Succulent Crabs Conveniently Delivered to Your Table from Alimango House by Red Crab).
The lasting impact of the quarantine experience will continue to change and transform our daily routine with the exception of one thing, you can still experience and enjoy the the very best crab dishes at The Red Crab Alimango House. Dine in, take-out or delivery, let The Red Crab Alimango House spin colorful new stories to your dining experience with their wide array of specialty offerings in this new normal.
The Red Crab Alimango House is located at Level 2, Greenbelt 3, Legazpi Street, Makati or call 7757 4129 for inquiries. You can also check out their FB Page at https://www.facebook.com/RedCrabPH/ for more updates.
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