#bluepostsboiling

SM City Davao is the first SM mall to open in the city, followed by the more upscale SM Lanang Premier. The new restaurant is located at the ground floor of its new Annex building, right in front of the main central lobby. 

I was met by the generous owners and executives of Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps who gave us such a warm welcome during our stay in Davao. This third branch is their biggest restaurant in Davao so far, and it has entrances both inside the mall and one leading directly outside to the streets.

The restaurant has the same fisherman’s wharf-inspired interiors that you can find in other branches. The only difference is that all the walls are still clean and bare without graffiti. That is surely bound to change in the next few days after they officially open to the public.

The special guests for today’s activities include Chef Rolando Laudico and Chef Jacqueline Laudico, a celebrity chef couple who have appeared in numerous television shows including MasterChef Pinoy Edition. We enjoyed all our wacky conversations with both of them.

Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps boasts of their Sea-to-Table dining experience, sourcing their seafood items directly from crab and shrimp farmers in Zamboanga and Zurigao. They also support these farmers by giving them capital to start their business and buying the products directly from them so that they do not have to export these anymore. 

Before the official program started, guests were served a few appetizers like the Crab Turnover. This is a different kind of empanada as it comes filled with crab meat.

Other items brought out by the servers include Crab Balls, Kamote Fries and Potato Fries. I particularly liked these savory crab balls which are an upgrade to the meat balls we usually encounter.

The program then started with an elegant parade of servers who brought out their signature food-grade wax paper and laid them on the dining tables. They also placed Blue Posts dining bibs on each of the guests which only means one thing, it’s eating time!

A short press conference ensued with the owners and management who gamely answered questions from the media. It was then time for the ceremonial cracking of the crabs! They really do things differently here at Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps.

After pounding the crabs with their hammers, lunch was now officially open! We started with the Pomelo Salad which is a truly Davaoeño dish. This comes with shrimp, pomelo and spring onions with a dash of sourness from the lemon.

One of the popular non-seafood items at Boiling Crabs and Shrimps is the Garlic Pork Ribs. These crunchy and salty fried ribs are doused with loads of garlic and go so well with a dip of vinegar.

But the main attraction at Boiling Crabs and Shrimps will always be their huge crabs!

The restaurant introduced a new special flavor that afternoon, the Salted Egg Crabs. These crabs really taste as good as they look. The garlic and salted egg flavors complement each other and give another delicious way of preparing and eating these amazing crabs. 

I’ve become somewhat of an expert in cracking and peeling crabs. Look at how I de-shelled this crab claw by myself. Given how much crabs I ate during the entire trip, it’s good that I learned a new skill which I will proudly bring back to Manila.

Another new flavor being introduced is the Garlic Lemon Butter Shrimps. Imagine all three flavors and ingredients in one steaming bag of shrimps. The aroma alone will make you want to dig in an ask for second and third servings of rice.

The guests at the media launch were also invited to be the first to write on their graffiti walls. It was time to make the new outlet look like its other branches in Davao so I decorated their wall with my handwriting. Look for my name when you visit their SM City Davao branch.

The day was not yet over because later that evening, Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps hosted a special VIP night at the central lobby just outside the restaurant. Personalities and media guests from Davao were all invited to a huge party where the kitchen had prepared over 350 kilos of crabs!

Guests started arriving as early as 5:00pm and everyone was eager to have a taste of the Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps seafood specialties. 

Together with my travel mates Donny “The Last Don” Elviña, Sharwin “Curiosity Got The Chef” Tee, and Gerry “Dude For Food” San Miguel, we were joined at our table by Chefs Rolando and Jacqueline Laudico for another crab festival.

The Nestle Mixology Bar provided overflowing beverages and juices to all the guests as well. You can mix and match all six flavors of Nestle juices and create your own combinations and concoctions.

The program started with a couple of cultural and regional performances and dances to entertain the audience.

Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps also introduced their new Bucket Lister Club as a treat to all their loyal customers. The Bucket Lister Club Card gives an automatic 10% discount on your total bill plus a free dessert or drink every time you dine. It accumulates points as well which you can use for future purchases. The card can be purchased for P1,499 but you can follow these three easy steps to get your card for FREE!

Congressmen Karlo Nograles led the toast to celebrate the opening of the third and newest branch of Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps in Davao. Together with him on stage was Anthony Ang plus other owners and executives of the restaurant.

They then moved over in front of the restaurant itself to pull the drapes and formally welcome the newest member of the Boiling Crabs and Shrimps family.

It’s time to start the festivities as the Boiling Crabs and Shrimps servers brought out what everyone was waiting for, the crabs! Laid out on each table was their new Salted Egg Crabs which we had for lunch earlier. I’m sure most of the VIP guests are big fans of the restaurant so this new flavor was a surprise treat for them.

Aside from other Blue Posts signature dishes that were also offered, my other favorite was the Garlic Fried Shrimps which are so crunchy that you can eat the entire shrimp from head to tail.

Everyone had a great time devouring all those crabs and shrimps. It was like a town fiesta! We were also serenaded by the soothing voices of Jay-R and Kyla, the country’s esteemed R&B prince and princess, who performed a couple of solo and duet numbers for the guests and the mall audience.

I had a very eventful and truly satisfying Davao food trip with these guys. I have never seen and ate so much crabs in my life! Congratulations to Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps for the successful launch of your third branch in Davao. Another new branch opened in SM Mall of Asia just last week, bringing their total nationwide outlets to five. Three more are expected to open within the next months including branches at Greenhills in March, Seascape Village in April, and SM Megamall in June. So whether you are in Davao or in Manila, “It’s Fun to be Messy” at Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps!

Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps

Ground Floor, SM City Davao Annex, Ecoland Subdivision, Matina, Davao City

www.facebook.com/BluePostsBoiling

Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps wasn’t always a seafood restaurant. This is actually a 23-year old building that used to be called Blue Posts Bar & Billiards which was run by a few college friends. Owners Anthony and Jennifer Ang were eventually inspired by one of their trips to Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco, USA. They saw a similarly-named chain of restaurants offering boiled-in-the-bag Cajun-spiced crawfish, shrimp and mussels. He then brought the idea back to Davao and the rest is history.

The original branch in Davao still retains some of that bar and billiards vibe along with the same fisherman’s wharf design I saw in their Manila branch. This one has a more relaxed and casual ambiance, a place where barkadas can hang out and watch their favorite games while enjoying the seafood specialties. Customers are actually encouraged to write graffiti on the walls and ceilings, a signature design you can find at their Davao branches. It feels more raw, more natural, and not as uptight and strict as other mall branches tend to be.

We were all quite famished by the time we arrived so we settled in and got ready for our first of many sumptuous meals ahead. We had a cup of their appetizing Spicy Gumbo Soup and then went for the Sinuglaw, a quirky fusion of two classic Filipino dishes, kinilaw and grilled liempo topped with green apple.

Next served was their Grilled Native Chicken which has a different taste and flavor. The chicken might be less meatier than the more common commercial chicken, but it has a sharper flavor that you really have to try.

It’s now on to their specialties, which are their humongous crabs. These are all fresh live crabs cooked right on the spot with your choice of cooking preference: the savoury Cajun-flavored Blue Posts Boil, the sweet and spicy Asian Sambal Sauce, and the crunchy and salty Garlic Fried. The crabs and its ingredients are placed inside food-grade boiling bags where the flavors and aromas all mix together to create an unbelievable dining experience. The most popular is the Blue Posts Boil Crabs with a taste of creole and New Orleans cooking and a little bit of spiciness.

Another popular choice is the Garlic Fried Crabs which is brought out in a bucket and laid out on the table. At Boiling Crabs and Shrimps, eating is done communally with your bare hands. The tables are topped with food-grade wax paper so there’s no need for utensils and plates. It’s Fun to be Messy at Boiling Crabs and Shrimps, but don’t worry, you can ask for a spoon to eat your rice with.

Shrimps in Asian Sambal Sauce were also served as well as Garlic Fried Shrimps. Drinks were also overflowing because Boiling Crabs and Shrimps offers the Nestea Mixology Bar where you can get unlimited servings of Nestle juices. You can mix and match their six flavors which include Pineapple, Strawberry Red Tea, Orange, Blue Lemonade, Cucumber and Lychee and create your own concoctions. It was such a great lunch and there was just no better way to start our Davao food trip.

After our big lunch, we took a short ride and visited the second branch of Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps which is just a few blocks away at the Lanang Business Park. I thought we were going to eat again but thankfully it was just a viewing of the restaurant. Demand for seats at the original branch is so overwhelming that the owners decided to open a second branch in June 2014, just six months after the opening of the first branch. This is primarily to accommodate the long lines of hungry diners who could not get seats anymore at the J.P. Laurel branch.

Owner Anthony Ang accompanied the group and shared the history and origins of Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps. The third Davao branch will be opening in just two days so he wanted us to join the media activities and VIP night which will both be held tomorrow. He also expressed his excitement with the restaurant’s aggressive expansion in Metro Manila as a second branch recently opened at SM Mall of Asia with three other branches also opening in the next four months.

Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps is not just about seafood. Owners Anthony and Jennifer Ang also run and manage the Open Hand School for Applied Arts, an innovative vocational school for young adults with developmental problems and special needs like autism, ADHD and others. We dropped by the school located at Lot 41-B Tahimik St. in Barrio Obrero. 

The building is owned by the Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps group but they decided to renovate it and open this school last year as part of their advocacy to held children with learning disabilities. They currently have 10 full students who are taught simple responsibilities like organizing their rooms, cleaning, communication skills, and even basic accounting. These training programs are meant to help them integrate into society so that they can be independent and productive members.

Another part of the school features private therapy sessions for younger children who need a little extra care and attention. They currently have 45 therapy students who attend one-on-one sessions 2 to 3 times a week with qualified therapists.

Noben Montederamos is one of their model students who helped tour us around the facility. The students even baked these Chocolate Revel Bars and Macaroons which they usually sell at conventions and events to give them some income. We had a taste of the pastries and they were so good. Noben is actually the first student who will be working as an OJT (On the Job Training) at the Blue Posts commissary and hopefully there will be more to follow.

Continuing our trip around the city, we next headed to the Magsaysay Public Market to get a first hand taste of Davao’s most famous and sometimes dreaded delicacy, the Durian.

I tried drinking a durian-flavored frappe during my last trip to Davao and did not particularly enjoy it, so I was not sure what to expect. I already knew about its funky smell, but I did not know if I would like eating the fruit itself.

After some prodding from my friends, I finally dared to eat a piece of Durian straight from the market. It wasn’t bad at all. If you can get past the smell, it actually tastes and feels like a langka. Now I can say that I actually ate a Durian in Davao.

It was late afternoon and we still had our luggage with us in the van. Finally, it was time to check in our hotel which was just beside SM City Davao in Ecoland.

Home Crest Hotel would be our comfortable abode for the next two nights. We would be mostly out attending various events during our stay, so the hotel was perfect because of its proximity to SM City Davao, which is where the new branch of Boiling Crabs and Shrimps would be opening. We only had a short rest before our next fun activity, dinner!

The same group that owns Blue Posts Crabs and Shrimps also owns another restaurant located inside SM City Davao which caters to Filipino cuisine. Antonio’s Bar & Grill was just a few minutes walk from the hotel and this is where we will be having dinner tonight.

Joining us that evening was the lovely celebrity chef couple, Chef Rolando and Jacqueline Laudico. I have seen Chef Laudico on television and at other food events before, but this is the first time we have been formally introduced. It seems that their morning flight from Manila was extremely delayed so they had to catch up with us for dinner.

Antonio’s Bar & Grill is not just your typical Filipino restaurant like Gerry’s or Dencio’s. They have very unique dishes as well as familiar ones that we all enjoyed. The Durian Buko Shake is a refreshing way of familiarizing our taste buds with the durian flavor. For appetizers, they served the Kinilaw sa Itlog na Maalat (upper right), Antonio's Bulalo (lower right), and Antonio's Pinakbet (lower left).

I like their version of the Crispy Tuna Belly which is somewhat similar to the Garlic Tuna Belly of Boiling Crabs and Shrimps. The skin in very crunchy but the tuna remains tender and tasty.

One unique dish we had was the Crispy Bangus sa Inadobong Kangkong sa Gata. The creamy and savory sauce went well with the fried bangus and I ate my fair share of this.

You can’t go wrong with Inihaw na Pusit and this is always a welcome addition to the table.

The Pinaputok na Manok is a deep fried seasoned chicken wrapped in pandan leaves before being carved and served.

Another interesting item was the Inihaw na Porkchop sa Gata at Sili. This grilled porkchop is cooked in a spicy coconut sauce that brings out all the flavors. For desserts, they brought out all their specialties which include the Suman sa Gata at Mangga, Ube Halaya, Buko Salad, and Turones Ube. 

It was just the first day of our Davao food trip but we were so stuffed from all the delicious treats that came our way. We had a lot of fun during dinner, especially as Chef Laudico entertained us with his wild and very expressive stories. We eventually had to leave because the mall was already closing. Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps will be hosting a media launch and a very special VIP night tomorrow for their new Davao branch, so we all went back to the hotel to rest and get ready for another exciting day ahead (Read Part 2 here).

Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps

J. P. Laurel Avenue, Bajada, Lanang, Davao City

(82) 221-8360 / (82) 295-9022

www.facebook.com/BluePostsBoiling

Blue Posts CEO Anthony Ang brings his signature Cajun sauce to Manila and excited diners can’t wait to experience what many Davao foodies have long been raving about. He got his inspiration from the similarly-named chain of restaurants in the USA offering boiled-in-the-bag Cajun-spiced crawfish, shrimp and mussels. He brought along the idea to Davao and opened his first Boiling Crabs and Shrimps branch at J.P. Laurel Avenue in 2013.

Similar to the two branches in Davao, the restaurant is designed like a fisherman’s wharf, a sign of its many wonderful delights from the sea. The casual dining restaurant can comfortably accommodate around 80 to 100 customers. They even have a Freedom Wall where guests can write down what they feel and just express themselves.

These utensils are the only items you will find on your table. Boiling Crabs and Shrimps encourages its diners use their bare hands when handling the crabs and shrimps to fully experience the joy of eating. Better remove your rings and jewelry because it will definitely get messy. There are no plates as well because your food will be placed right in front of you on top of the wax-paper so it will really be a messy bonding moment with your family and friends.

But don’t worry because the food will make you forget about your messy hands. They will give you plastic spoons and forks to use for your rice, or disposable plastic gloves for those who really don’t want to get their hands dirty. I put on my Boiling Crabs bib and got ready for a feast of crabs, shrimps and so much more.

We started with their Spicy Gumbo Soup (P189), a thick and warm tomato and Cajun-based soup with a combination of shrimp, chicken sausage, sweet corn and baby potatoes. The serving cup may look simple, but the hearty broth is rich and creamy, definitely one of the best gumbo dishes I have ever tried. It is not really too spicy so it is just right for me.

Next up was the Sinuglaw (P434) a quirky fusion of two classic Filipino dishes, kinilaw and grilled liempo, then topped with green apple. The sour tasting liempo is quite an unusual flavor so Manila foodies will get a surprising introduction to this interesting dish.

The Garlic Tuna Belly (P419) has tuna topped with loads and loads of crunchy garlic bits. I have never seen tuna served like this and it is really a delight to encounter these familiar items presented in a different way.

One item that does look familiar is the Native Chicken (P389). The meat is a little more tough than the usual chicken but it does have a different taste and flavor to what we are used to. If you want some meat to go with your seafood then this should be your order.

Another unique idea at Boiling Crabs and Shrimps is the Nestle Mixology Bar offering bottomless combinations of Nestle juices for only P69. Choose from among six classic flavors including Pineapple, Strawberry Red Tea, Orange, Blue Lemonade, Cucumber and Lychee and you have an almost unlimited selection of Nestle mixology combos to choose from.

These colorful juices can all be yours together with your seafood feast. You can also order bottomless iced tea or sodas for the same price, or get the single-serve Watermelon Mansi (P65) with a refreshing combination of watermelon shake and calamansi.

Glen Laurence Lee is the man responsible for bringing the Boiling Crabs franchise to Manila as he has partnered with Blue Posts and plans to open several more braches across the metro. He is been a big fan of Boiling Crabs and Shrimps in Davao so he wants to share his delicious experience here.

The main attraction for the media preview is finally presented to the waiting crowds - the crabs! Mind you, these are not dead frozen crabs. They are all fresh live crabs cooked right on the spot with your choice of cooking preference. The crabs have seasonal market prices so while they may be a little bit pricey, the taste and experience will make it all worth it.

There are basically three cooking choices for the crabs - the savoury Cajun-flavored Blue Posts Boil, the sweet and spicy Asian Sambal Sauce, and the crunchy and salty Garlic Fried. The crabs are cooked by placing them and all the ingredients inside food-grade boiling bags where the flavors and aromas all mix together to create an unbelievable dining experience. The crabs are brought out in a bucket and then laid out on your table.

The most popular cooking style is the Blue Posts Boil where the freshest catch are boiled and lathered in their signature Blue Posts Cajun sauce. There is a little bit of spiciness to the sauce but you can really get a taste of creole cooking and New Orleans with this very tasty flavor. The crabs are also served with corn on the cob, potatoes and sausages.

You can act like The Mighty Thor for one day and hammer away at your crabs for an easier time. I like to de-shell my crabs all at once before diving in to my feast of crab meat and seafood.

The perfect way to eat at Boiling Crabs and Shrimps is put some of the sauce on top of your rice so that you can really get all of the flavors and juices. No one will judge you if you want to use your hands because everyone else is getting messy as well.

Another cooking preference is to have your crabs Garlic Fried to perfection. The server will place your fried crabs on top of your table so be quick before someone else gets your share. These crabs are coated in their special Blue Posts batter before being deep fried into this lovely result. The skin is so much easier to break and the garlicky flavors are very prominent with this cooking style. I would probably order this one again when I go back.

You can also choose to have your crabs cooked in Sambal Sauce, a fusion of Malay and Indonesian flavors with a Blue Posts touch. This is better for the spicy-food lovers out there and it packs the most heat out of the three. Diners can actually adjust the level of spiciness for their seafood choices, from Regular, Mild, or Hot & Spicy so have it done the way you want it.

Don’t forget about the shrimps though, as Boiling Crabs and Shrimps also offers fresh and flavorful Garlic Fried Shrimps (P573/lb). These are so crispy that you can just bite off the entire shrimp without having to peel off their skin. You can also have your shrimps cooked in Blue Posts Boil or Sambal sauces.

After all those crabs and shrimps inside my tummy, the refreshing Pomelo Cream with Corn (P89) is a good way to finish my seafood extravaganza. These have Nata de Coco topped with pomelo, corn, cream and pinipig.

Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps definitely deserves its reputation as Davao’s most popular seafood restaurant. While the prices are not cheap, they really bring out the freshest seafood catch and their signature Blue Posts Boil will make you come back with your friends and family again and again. Now that the restaurant is finally open at SM City North EDSA, I am already planning a return trip. It is time for Manila to get messy at Blue Posts Boiling Crabs and Shrimps.

BLUE POSTS BOILING CRABS & SHRIMPS

4/F The Block, SM City North EDSA, Quezon City

922-9934