For the entire month of February since Panagbenga 2017 celebration started, this strawberry shawarma has been the talk of the town. Who wouldn’t be surprised to hear vendors shout “Strawberry shawarma po!” for the first time in your life? And because it is something very new and very out of the ordinary, it is sure a hit!
Strawberries are Baguio’s best friends. With over millions of fresh and sweet-tasting strawberries grown all over the Cordillera region, it is not surprising to know that strawberry dishes are everywhere. Strawberry cakes are usual. Just when you think strawberry taho is the most unusual Baguio original food made out of strawberry, strawberry shawarma comes along.
Blessed Twins To Five: The First Ever Strawberry Shawarma in the Philippines
The very first strawberry shawarma that locals and tourists got to taste and love is by Mr. and Mrs. Dominador and Rosemarie Subido Sr. under the name “Blessed Twins to Five Strawberry Shawarma.” The couple proudly announce that they are the very first to file the business in the country.
Being a cook by profession, Dominador says he wanted to put up something innovative and something that would stand out from the competition. “At first, we were thinking of the regular shawarma. But we wanted to do something unique. [So when we had strawberry shawarma,] our help shouted ‘strawberry shawarma’ and that’s when people started coming in. That’s when we said, this is it, this is the product that will make us unique.”
Strawberry Shawarma, How it’s made
How is strawberry shawarma different from the usual ones that we now aside from the fact that it has real strawberries? How is it made? Mr. Subido says the secret (well not really a secret now) is that he marinades the beef with blended fresh strawberry fruits. This is the reason why the beef is sort of pinkish.
And because our chef wants make the product own up to its name, the pita bread they have is also strawberry flavored. One thing more, the sauce they put to taste is also made of strawberry too. Wow, there are too much strawberry elements in a single roll of shawarma!
A Business Rooted in Faith
The name “Blessed Twins to Five” alone gives us an idea of religiosity. This is true with our Christian proprietors. Mrs. Rosemarie Subido tells us that their business was put up not merely for their family to earn a living. Another reason why they come up with such business is because they wanted to give more tithes to their church as they are devoted Born Again Christians. They believe that through imparting tithes to their church, they get to help the needy which is their real passion.
The couple could not help but impart to us how grateful they are to the Lord for giving them such success in the business. “We really pray to the Lord that he would bless us and this strawberry shawarma business.” says Mrs. Subido.
The name “Blessed twins to Five” means their blessed seven children, of which the last two are twins.
The Future of Strawberry Shawarma, Where To Find Them
Today, strawberry shawarma has one stall located at Mines View Park view deck area. It started on Jan. 2017 and did not earn total publicity until last February when they put up a stall at Burnham Park’s market encounter and another one at Session Road in celebration for the Panagbenga festival. Since Panagbenga festival is now over, the two stalls are now put down.
While this may sadden all of us, we can still visit their main store located at Mines View Park. And since our very own strawberry shawarma has been making noise, Mr. Dominador happily announces their plans in the future to set up more stalls in town and most probably even outside Baguio.
When it comes to the taste, the food is really phenomenal. Daniel Pacsay, a Baguio local and currently a student of Saint Louis University who has become a regular buyer for weeks now, can testify to that. “This strawberry shawarma is really delicious. It’s something new and you can really taste the strawberry flavor in its meat. This means strawberry shawarma is not only loved by tourists. Even Baguio locals love it!”
While we all believe the savory taste of strawberry shawarma couldn’t get any better, Mr. Dominador Subido confessed that they are only starting, therefore they are still looking for more ways to improve everything overtime. He even said of thinking of experimenting on more food like strawberry sisig and the like in the future! Pilipinas Popcorn could not wait any longer for that. We are sure the feeling is mutual for all food lovers out there!