SPOT.ph Roadtest: Can Romantic Baboy x 7-Eleven Satisfy Your Samgyup Cravings?

(SPOT.ph) Any 7-Eleven regular knows that the go-to for a quick meal are the convenience store's rows of chilled ready-to-heat-and-eat plates. And when it's an extra special day or you just want to treat yourself, you can be a little bit fancier and go the Chef's Creations route. Well, here's a new reason to head to 7-Eleven, stat: They've pulled in samgyup-fave Romantic Baboy for three new plates to try.

The new line of eats is dubbed Romantic Baboy Korean Meals. It doesn't get anymore straight to the point then that. There are three dishes to choose from: Japchae (P89), Bibimbap (P99), and the main event, Cheesy Samgyupsal Set (P149). Samgyup has pretty much become a necessary bonding meal for Pinoys, so no doubt these plates could be your next comfort eat. The question is, though, do they taste good enough to become your next go-to?

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What do the 7-11 x Romantic Baboy Korean Meals taste like?

7-11 x Romantic Baboy Korean Meals: Japchae

The Japchae and the Bibimbap both come in plastic bowls. For this noodle one, you pop it in the microwave for a quick 30 seconds, according to the packaging. Looks-wise, we can't complain; we've got a hefty serving of hefty noodles in the middle, carrot slices, cabbages, strips of bell pepper, a few fatty pork slices, and, we have to say, a few too little sesame seeds for our liking. Still, the glass noodles had that oily sheen we've come to know and love. 

The japchae is marked as a side dish so you can get this alongside the Bibimbap or Samgyupsal set or as a quick merienda. Heating it up brought out that sweet-savory scent, and the taste didn't disappoint either. Chewy, thicc, oily glass noodles came together with the veg just right, alongside some bite from the pork bits. Just be sure to eat it right away as the bell pepper means it might not sit well outside for too long. 

Verdict: The japchae was a good start, with a light taste that'd work great for when you want something to eat but aren't particularly hungry. For P89, it's an okay deal. If you want to amp it up, you can easily take it home and throw in more veg, meat, and a whole lot more sesame seeds. 

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7-11 x Romantic Baboy Korean Meals: Bibimbap

On to this heartier bowl. You've got all the goodies together: rice, eggs, seaweed, carrots, bits of mushroom and lettuce, and a few slices of beef bulgogi—what really makes this work though has to be the sweet and spicy sauce with sesame seeds and what seems to be chili oil. It tastes very much like it has gochujang as base. Pro tip: remove the lettuce and seaweed before heating to avoid getting them soggy. 

As with any bibimbap, mix it all really well to get the intended flavor. For this bowl, we say smother it in that sauce to get to the next level. On its own, it's an okay bowl with chewy yet tender-enough beef strips, but with the sauce, you get more flavor for your buck, so to speak. Our only real lament here is the rice to fixins' ratio. It won't be a problem if you're the type to like a mountain of rice to an anthill of viand, but if not, well, you may find this bowl lacking in the flavor department. Which is why we point once more to the gochujang. 

Verdict: Tasty with a great mix of ingredients; lacking in the rice-to-ulam ratio. For P99 though, we can't complain. 

Also read: The SPOT.ph Guide to Korean Food

7-11 x Romantic Baboy Korean Meals: Cheesy Samgyupsal Set

She's a beaut. Who doesn't love a neatly partitioned meal box, after all? The Romantic Baboy memories really hit once you see the cheese all melted on top of the pork slices and rice. And hey, don't discount the sidings: meaty fish cake slices with carrot, saucy kimchi (crunchy as long as you don't include it in the microwave, yet sadly for us, carries the mildest of heat), and slices of soft omelette kept bright with bits of bell pepper. 

A good minute in the microwave had the cheese melting; eaten with the thin and fatty pork slices and rice, it might be a little cloying for those who eat their samgyup with lettuce and other banchan. So we welcome back the saving grace: the sauce. According to our taste buds, it's the same gochujang-base sauce as the bibimbap, so it mixes well with the pork, rice, and cheese to keep things bright.

Verdict: Of course, reheated meat will never taste as good as that fresh-off-the-grill at your fave samgyup place, but if a quick lunch fix is all you need, you might find an added layer of comfort and familiarity here. 

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