Though expandable, our stomachs, which usually measure about 12 inches long and 6 inches wide (at its widest point), with a capacity of 1 quarter (or 0.94 liters in an adult), can only take in so much.

To find out how much our tummies could really hold, we recently went on a food trip at

Amaretti Mango Salad

Held at Hossein, a restaurant on the third level of the mall that serves west Asian cuisine (Persian, Indian, Arabian, Malaysian), the gastronomic fair featured an array of appetizing dishes prepared by Hossein’s, Casa Armas, Recipes, Crustasia, Good Earth, CPK, Cabalen, Madison Grill, Zong, La Maison, Haiku, Abe, and Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, to name a few.

Overwhelmed by the range of food choices set on the long table, we began our "mission" by sampling Haiku’s offerings.

One of Haiku’s bestsellers is their salad, which is made of shredded lettuce, cabbage, cucumber, and wakame with tuna chunks and crabsticks sprinkled with sesame seeds and potato strings with dressing. For appetizers, the Haiku-style Tuna Sashimi with strips of tuna seared with sesame oil and ginger and garlic is a must-try.

From Japanese, we switched to Indian cuisine for the main entrée. We tried Hossein’s plain Biryani Rice as well as the steamed rice with saffron, Palak Paneer (spinach with white cheese), mixed zabbi curry, and roasted lamb.

Though everything was very rich in flavor, what we liked the most was the Supreme Kebab, a combination of lamb chop, lamb kebab, shrimp tendori, saffron chicken, tomatoes, and onions with saffron and biryani rice.

Though we often enjoy Filipino food at home, we still weren’t able to refuse the inviting Gising-gising, Crispy Tilapia, Spicy Squid, and General’s Chicken prepared by Recipes. Cabalen, for their part, served their signature Kare-kare, while Abe’s Chicken Supreme and Tamarind Shake surely stuffed our stomachs!

Casa Armas Paellea Valenciana

CPK likewise sent its famous Chicken Marsala and California Maki, while Crustasia served its popular Singaporean Chili Crab and Vietnamese Seafood Paella (served in bamboo).

Good Earth contributed Prawns with Crab Eggs and Seafood Chow Mein, and Casa Armas cooked up its signature Paella Valenciana, Callos, and Pescado en Salsa Verde.

Just when we thought we’d completed our mission, the hosts—Trinoma’s Mark Sablan (deputy GM) and Menchie Viyuda-Dizon (marketing supervisor)— challenged us to eat some more at La Maison. Already satisfied with the extensive meal we had, we still accepted the invitation. However, we insisted that we would only have coffee and dessert.

So to cap our food trip experience in Trinoma, we indulged in La Maison’s sinful Choco Lover’s Cake, Crème Brulee, and Baked Cheese Cake.

Then again, we would’ve definitely tried La Maison’s famous ribs, steaks, and seafood specials if there were space left in our tummies!

Thus, we realized that each of us feasted on over 30 different dishes (in small portions), not to mention the sweet stuff we tried! Perhaps, that’s the maximum capacity of our stomachs.

For more food choices, visit Trinoma, which houses over 100 food and beverage outlets, on Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) corner North Avenue, Q.C. For commuters taking the MRT, get off at the last station (North Avenue). This has a connecting bridge that leads to the mall from the MRT station.