---
title: Pares and mami
url: https://karigurashijourney.com/en/notes/pares-and-mami/
lang: en
journey: https://karigurashijourney.com/en/episodes/mactan/
---

# Pares and mami

A little of each town’s story　/　Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu

Pares is beef asado braised in sweet soy sauce, served with garlic rice and beef broth; the name literally means "pairs," from the practice of pairing the beef with rice and soup. The term is credited to a small eatery that opened in Quezon City in 1979. Mami is a Filipino noodle soup of wheat noodles topped with chicken, beef, pork or wonton. It is often said to have begun when Chinese immigrant Ma Mon Luk started selling noodles in chicken broth in Binondo, Manila, in 1920, though the dish probably existed before him. Pares mami brings the two together.

## This moment in the journey: Pares mami, full of beef flavor

For lunch, I wanted to enjoy a homely taste at a local eatery. I stepped into a pares diner with a yellow sign. When I sat down at a red table, a cat peeked over from the other side.

What arrived was pares mami: pares, beef braised in sweet soy sauce, combined with mami, a noodle soup that is something like ramen in the Philippines. The soup, scattered with green onion, was full of the flavor of beef yet light, and it soaked right into me.

The tender, stewed beef was delicious too. For someone who loves slow-cooked food, it was irresistible. At my feet, an orange tabby was waiting for scraps.

![Pares mami topped with beef and green onion](https://karigurashijourney.com/img/mactan/s65-1200.jpg)
- Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pares_(food)
- Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mami_soup

Read this scene in the full journey: https://karigurashijourney.com/en/episodes/mactan/