Because Divisoria is the country’s center for cheap China goods, it’s also the country’s biggest gathering of the local kuripot.

The cataclysmic traffic around the area is proof that a majority of their most ardent customers are car-driving kuripots who can actually purchase the real thing but still choose to go cheap. This is the essence of the kuripot; the same thing that brought about the birth of fried rice.

Fried rice, which is notably a very Asian dish, is a product of thrift. Because we don’t like to spend more for food (which is actually good because we don’t waste), we gather all our leftovers and have them all party in a gigantic wok complete with a bouncing food effect.

Just about every single Asian country has a form of fried rice—Nasi Goreng from Indonesia, Yang Chow from China, and notoriously, Knorr Fried Rice from the Philippines.

Our little dish today here is a food hack of a local Japanese fried rice classic—Kimpura’s mixed fried rice.

Sitting around 2 meter wide teppanyaki tables for the last two to three decades, this dish has been riling up tongues and noses as it’s masterfully cooked by a dual-spatula-wielding chef in front of you. Because of such an inspiring preparatory show, you won’t be satisfied with one bowl especially with the coveted Japanese rice being used.

If this made you hungry, you can try heading to Kimpura and ordering a bowl of this for about 90 to 100 pesos. For the same amount though, you can cook 4 times the amount and feed your family. Your choice.