So, when was the last time you dipped your fish balls into some sweet-and-sour sauce (no second dipping, please!) or sank your teeth into a turon filled with langka (sugar-glazed banana spring roll with jackfruit) or grabbed a bag of hot peanuts from a street vendor or gobbled up a glass of warm taho with sago pearls drizzled with sweet syrup from the magtataho?

Perhaps not too long ago?  As for me, I had my fill of my favorite sinful street foods all in one place just last week at SM Hypermarket’s Streetfood Festival.

Eats all here! SM Hypermarket brings together all the street foods Pinoys love at its first-ever street-food festival. After all, for a lot of Pinoys, street food is not just meant to soothe a rumbling tummy. And it’s not just delicious, affordable, and convenient. It’s a cherished Pinoy cultural tradition that we associate with precious moments, like waking up to the cries of the magtataho wafting in the early morning breeze or the whole barkada sharing tons of laughter over stick after stick of fish balls.

This year, SM Hypermarket’s Streetfood Festival went to five SM malls: SM Fairview last August, SM Valenzuela and SM Bicutan last September, SM Molino last October, and SM Mall of Asia this November.

So, what’s cooking at the Streetfood Festival? Over 40 booths feature delicious eats and treats, and irresistible deals and promos. This is one food trip where you’re bound to discover something to tickle your imagination and tease your taste buds at every stop. Care for spicy boneless Cebu lechon, Mama Sita’s chicken caldereta, Burgerrito, Adoburrito, Chickadilla, bacon-mushroom nachos, chili con nachos, a sardine rice meal and karne norte rice meal (only P45 each), potato fritters, or cheesy corn kernels (only P20)?

“We want to engage our customers in an event that’s close to their hearts (and certainly, their stomachs),” says Frances Corsiga of SM Hypermarket’s marketing communications group, “from all-time favorite local street foods turon, isaw, tokneneng, kwek kwek, and vegetable lumpia to international foods like takoyaki balls (round grilled pancakes with octopus in a soft center), tacos and nachos. Everyone just loves to eat street foods. And the good news is you can recreate your street-food experience at home, what with the great deals on favorite food buys from our partner brands.”

To delight the tummy and warm the heart are mouthwatering specialties from SM Eats, Cebu Lechon Belly, and Southern Dairy. Plus popular food paradise Baga Manila brings not only grilled Pinoy delights but also American burgers and pancakes, Vietnamese spring rolls, Japanese sushi and tempura, Korean bibimbap, Mexican tacos and nachos, Mediterranean steaks, and Middle Eastern shawarma.

Street foods may not exactly enjoy a good reputation, but Baga Manila, street-food event partner and food operator, shares, “We assure food safety to our customers because we observe and practice proper food handling and safekeeping. From the preparation of the fresh ingredients and cooking of the food specialties, to transporting them to our trading places, traders are taught to observe and practice proper hand-washing and cleaning of the food containers, using hand gloves so as not to contaminate food, to keeping food in the right temperature up to the time it is served to our customers. Traders and staff are also required to seek health clearances before they start at Baga Manila.”

Taking street food to a whole new level, SM Hypermarket also assures us, “SM Eats is SM Markets’ very own food provider, which has been operational since 2012. It adheres to strict standards of safety and proper food handling, which are reflected in the food we serve at SM Eats. The other food tenants are reputable food businesses known for serving delicious, good-quality food.”

Spicing up the event were celebrity chefs Sandy Daza, Rob Pengson, Boy Logro and Menoy Gimenez, who held cooking demos of different dishes, from impressive potlucks to no-fuss kiddie merienda.

Of course, for a dash of entertainment, showbiz celebrities Xian Lim, Betong, Love Añover, Mario Mortel, and Diego Loyzaga graced the grand finale at SM MOA while Purefoods PBA hotshots Mark Pingris, Ian Sangalang, and Allein Maliksi had photo ops with their fans and enjoyed the street-food offerings themselves.

And to add more sizzle to the pot, buying Knorr bundled packs with free cooking oil entitled shoppers to a chance to win a P100,000 shopping spree at SM Hypermarket. And the very lucky winner is Joven Amores of Mandaluyong City.

The Streetfood Festival’s grand finale was sponsored by Nestle, Unilever, Purefoods, CDO, Del Monte, Alaska, Farm Fresh, Frabelle, P&G, Bounty Fresh, RFM Selecta, Delimondo, Tulip, Mama Sita, Kopiko, and Minute Maid.

Josie Tamayo, SM Hypermarket SVP for merchandising, remarks, “We are really very happy to get to celebrate the street-food culture with our shoppers. Everyone’s just enjoying everything, from the promos to the delicious food. We actually can’t wait for next year’s street-food festival. We guarantee that it’s going to be bigger with more brands and more food offerings for everyone to enjoy.”

We can only gush with a burp, “Eats incredible!”