Lessons sometimes can be painful but we all learn from them. When we opened Wooden Spoon almost six years ago, we became an overnight success.

We did so well, we opened a branch at Power Plant Mall in Makati. Our third was in Barrio Kapitolyo, Pasig, which did very well in the beginning but after a year or two, I noticed business kept going down.

What did I learn from this? No matter how good your food is, people forget you’re around unless they see and are reminded you’re there.

Bottom line? Location, location, location! And parking! That’s something I also learned as a real estate agent in San Francisco.

Today, I have a new restaurant, Casa Daza, at UP Town Center, Katipunan, Quezon City. There is a lot of parking! Good food? You decide. Even if the location is not that great, we still do quite well.

I’ve also added what has become a bestseller in malls, our own empanada and siopao.

Speaking of location and parking, there are a few establishments in Barrio Kapitolyo area that are worth a visit but it is so difficult to find parking.

Authentic

Warung is an Indonesian restaurant. I love Indonesian food when done the authentic way.

How do I know it’s authentic? I see many diners who look like Pinoys but are wearing batik shirts. The presence of Indonesian nationals at Warung, for me, says a lot.

Some balikbayan friends wanted to test my restaurant choices. I took them to Warung. It wasn’t only my guests who enjoyed, I was glad to go back because I had forgotten how good Warung is.

I was given the task of ordering. We started with murtabak— crispy pan-fried crepes stuffed with egg, ground beef and onion leeks. Delicious! Next came chicken satay, beef rendang, nasi goreng, bakmi goreng and kangkong.

The chicken satay was topped with fried onions on a bed of peanut sauce. Outstanding! The beef rendang was tender, extremely tasty and also delicious. Both the rice of nasi goreng and the noodles were topped with fried egg. Also super yummy!

For dessert, we had another murtabak, this time with sweet filling that was also very good. We also tried two kinds of Indonesian-style halo-halo, chendol (or kachang) and a super white ice dessert. Both outstanding!

This has to be one of the best meals of the year for me. Like I always tell people, there’s only one way to find out! Check it out and you decide.

Happy eating!

Warung Indonesian restaurant, 83 East Capitol Drive, Barrio Kapitolyo, Pasig; tel. 0917-8009158, 0917-5347089.