When it comes to paella, most Filipinos believe that the quintessential Spanish rice dish should only be served on special occasions. Casa Paella is shaking things up by making every mealtime a celebration with their vibrant fare.

Taste

The stall serves two varieties of the rice dish. The Paella Valenciana is known as the original paella, named after the Spanish coastal city where it hails from. Their version features a colorful medley of chicken, green peas, hard boiled egg slices, mussels, and tomatoes that are mixed with yellow rice. While its presentation lands the attention of your appetite, the abundance of ingredients isn’t enough to make up for its blandness.

The Paella Negra, on the other hand, is a special variety that relies on squid ink for its mouth-watering taste. It’s a brave menu choice for a school stall as the recipe requires ingredients that are hard to come by. Their risk has paid off, as it has become their best-seller. With a generous serving of chewy squid rings and shallots paired with the squid ink’s extra zest, it’s a lot tastier than the Valenciana. Unfortunately, it’s still lacking in terms of taste for it to be considered flavorful.

Although paella claims the name of the stall, the beef salpicao with garlic rice is surprisingly the tastiest item on the menu. The beef cubes are tender and they are marinated in a delicious, garlicky sauce that bursts in your mouth. The sauce is also delightfully mixed into the rice; however, there isn’t enough of it to completely satisfy you.

For sides, you’re given the choice of garlic mushrooms, Spanish bread, and apple crumble. The apple crumble is definitely the best side out of the three. Served hot and fresh, it’s a sweet and cinnamon-y dessert that is a satisfying end to your meal.

Concept

The owners behind Casa Paella were determined to go for a specialized Spanish cuisine, similar in concept to that of 2017-2018 JSEC stall Barchurro. They decided that paella would be a perfect fit because it had never been done before in JSEC.

Making paella is a very meticulous process. It begins with carefully concocting a savory broth and mixing in various meat and seafood to the rice. With this in mind, the owners wanted to make sure that their stall would serve quality food. The ‘special occasion dish’ reputation that it has also challenged them as people wouldn’t think of it as everyday food. After experimenting with a lot of recipes, they finally settled on what they have now: A paella with a flavor that is reminiscent of comfort food.

Value for Money

Because of the quality ingredients, both the Php 110 solo meal and Php 140/150 combo meal are pricier than usual school dishes. These price points may be worth it depending on which item you get. However, you could do better with a restaurant meal at the same price.

Final Verdict

For its bravery in venturing with an ambitious concept, Casa Paella is worth a try. There is room for improvement in their promising lineup of dishes and, when it happens, one can only imagine how delightfully tasty it will be.

Rating: 3.5/5