Ramly is a name synonymous with burger tepi jalan (Street burgers) in Malaysia, so much so that any street burger, even those from other brands, is sometimes referred to as a “Ramly burger”.

The Philippines has its own version – Angel’s Burger. The two brands actually share many similarities: Ramly started off as a humble kiosk in 1979, as did Angel’s Burger in 1997. Ramly’s owner, Ramly bin Mokni, struggled in the early days, as burgers were not popular among Malaysians in the 1980s. Likewise, Angel Burger founders Joseph and Vicky Mojica also faced financial difficulties in the early stages, which forced them to work in the United States for a period of time to try and save their fledging business. Today, both are household names with their own street food empires.

Having heard their story, I was curious to see how Angel’s Burger tasted like, and how they came to be such a beloved Filipino street food icon. Thankfully, with over 1,000 branches all across the Philippines, finding a kiosk wasn’t difficult – you can find them at almost every other street corner in Manila.

One of the major selling points of Angel’s Burger is their price, which is very affordable. The menu only has a couple of items, which makes it easy for the servers to churn out orders. They also have a perpetual Buy 1 Take 1 promo for some of their items – such as their Cheesy Burger Sandwich (P50 – RM4.19/USD0.90) and Cheesy Hotdog Sandwich (P37 – 3.10 /USD0.67). The egg sandwich is the cheapest offering at just P20.

It took awhile for the ate behind the counter to rustle up our orders, as there were many people waiting for their food. It was fascinating to watch the speed at which she worked; placing multiple thin meat patties onto the griddle, rolling the hot dogs around to make sure they were thoroughly cooked, then scooping them up onto toasty buns.

Since we still had dinner at home, we got two cheesy burger sandwiches to try. As you can see, they are extremely simple: just a meat patty sandwiched between two buns, with a slab of processed cheese on top and a smattering of ketchup + mayo.

N had always joked about the first bite being ‘pure air’ – and now I know why. The patty is tiny, covering only half of the bun. But then again, considering the price, I think it’s fair that they cut back on the size. The beef patty actually wasn’t bad at all; it was juicy and well seasoned, and the buns were warm and toasty. It’s the kind of processed street food snack that you grab while on the way back from work just to fill up your stomach before dinner.

It’s not the healthiest, but just like Ramly, which we Malaysians crave whenever we go overseas -simply because it’s part and parcel of our culture/diet growing up – I can see Angel’s Burger being this nostalgic street food that Filipinos would crave when they’re away from home.

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PS2:  All food reviews are at own expense unless otherwise stated. Views here are my own and are based on my personal experience. They are not meant to endorse or disparage businesses in any way.