How we Met your Irie

Kids, at one of our lowest years in our lives, our baby restaurant, Irie Gastropubliko was born. We would like to say that the low points in our lives do not and should not hinder us from following our dreams. It is the belief and love of so many things that Irie has been materialized. It's a collaboration of friendship, the love of travel, the love of food, the love of How I Met your Mother (yeah, sorta) that makes this pub legendary for us.

So, kids, this is a story of how we met and made YOUR Irie. :)

For old food lovers in Cebu, Irie is not a new name. This used to be one of our favorite restaurants back then
in Talamban. Our business partner, Jan, owns the place, but he focused on equally must-try and famous
Ilaputi which is more on Asian fusion, something which Irie's theme does not mesh with. 

Irie, for us, is formed in friendship. You can see in this picture one of Cebu's best couples who we are so
blessed to know and to be friends with-- Jan and Karen Rodriguez.
Jan is also our godfather. Lito and him are alike in
most ways-- from food to photography to travels to bodybuilding.
The partnership for Irie is a reflection of such
friendship. 

Chefs are hired for passion and an understanding of Western food.
Our Sous chef also happens to be Lito's bro, Stanly (ngamsh!) who knows his steak, obsessed with his burgers,
knows the missing spices, and nibbles on his ribs.
There could be no one more fitting for this role other than him. 

SETUP
Lito and I are never party people. Our concept of a great night is to be able to mingle with friends, have some bottles of beer (for me!), eat good food and be able to talk without loud music or annoying disco lights. If these are signs of getting older, well, yeah. I guess we are getting older. But that doesn't mean we don't appreciate good food, good company in a good setting. The setup of Irie is designed for people who, more or less, have the same concept of a great night or a great tambay.

When you go inside Irie, notice anything familiar? That's right! More or less, it's like MacLaren's
in HIMYM- How I Met your Mother (barstools coming soon!). Why is it similar? Because MacLaren's happens
to also be a gastropub. A gastropub or a gastrolounge refers to a resto that serves beer and food.

The HIMYM setup gives us the feeling that you can drink beer and talk to friends in an environment
that induces such. Music not so loud, lights not irritating. Just good food and liquor. Remember Barney
saying, "I'll get me some of those chicken wings..  etc." Well, Cebu, we now have our very own MacLaren's. 

Fafagraphy at Irie. On the very first day of Irie, even without formal invites because
of Lito's condition, Fafagraphy went to the pub and shared this experience with us.
Thank you. (not in pic but with us during this night: Mama Mai, Fafa Gerald, Mama Janice,
me! heeheh... ) 

Food

The food in Irie is planned well to suit the needs of those craving for Western food. These are food choices as well that would be great paired with beer or some wine or liquor of your fancy.

My personal search for Cebu's best burger started when I had my fill of New York and Chicago burgers. It has finally come to an end with Irie's Bacongasm Burger. Every bite is a myriad of wonderful tastebud climax from the soft-toasted buttery bun to the fresh and crisp lettuce and onions down to the very perfectly-cooked and juicy beef. Not to mention the bacons that is just waiting for you to bite into it. Ahhh.. Cebu. who ever thought burgers can be made into perfection here?

Now, you can personalize your own burger by adding what you want to be added-- additional
cheese, toppings, etc. Don't you just want to take a bite?

Bestseller-- Chicken Wings! try out the different sauces. 

The fish and chips are to die for! In our travels, the best fish and chips we ever tasted
was the one in Australia. We looked for Cebu's taste counterpart of that yummy goodness.
It was only perfected in Irie. True story.

the Irie ribs-- set aside your spoon and fork and go full hands with our ribs, the best way to enjoy it!
Marinated slowly, the ribs are cooked into perfection. (FYI, we are still withholding this from our menu due to
supplier consistency). 

Pancakes with bacon, and butter. I have never tasted breakfast this good since iHop.
Why wait for iHop to open here when we have iRie? More breakfast choices coming soon!

Grey Goose! My fave vodka. Available at Irie.

So anyway, that's our Irie story, for me and Lito. As I said, it's a collaboration of everything we've imagined. Even though 2012 is one of our lowest years because of the many things that has happened to us, it is also a year of gaining strength, of perseverance, of believing in dreams, of hope. Irie is proof of this.

 I hope that you can come visit at Irie Gastropub-- Skyrise 4, West IT Park. It's open for 24 hours except on Sunday. Come as you are, no dress code required.















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