Triple - O The Legendary Canadian Burger Joint opens in the Philippines

Legendary Canadian Burger Joint “Triple O’s by White Spot” Opens in the Philippines

by ClickTheCity


In 1928, only twenty eight years after burgers were first introduced in North America, Nat Bailey founded White Spot burger joint in Vancouver, Canada. The full-service restaurant is considered to be one of the firsts to introduce drive-in food service in the country. White Spot’s business boomed, and by 1955, they were seeing around “10,000 cars a day and around 110,000 guests a week”.

In 1995, Warren Erhart, President of White Spot Restaurants and Peter Toigo, Managing Director of Shato Holdings Limited that owns White Spot, surveyed Hong Kong for the brand’s expansion in Asia. The spaces available weren’t enough to accommodate White Spot’s requirements. “We decided to pick the signature items and serve it in a smaller, fast-casual environment. It was then when Triple O’s by 

White Spot was born,” Peter narrated.
According to him, the name Triple O’s was derived from shorthand codes of the resto’s order takers way back when it first started. In their slips, X means hold and O means extra. Triple O’s mean extra everything on the burgers—the usual preference of those who frequent the burger joint.
86 years after the first White Spot was constructed, the chain is all set to open its first Triple O’s branch in the Philippines on June 20, 2014, at the 3rd level of SM Megamall Atrium. We took a sneak peek at Triple O’s offerings. Here’s what to expect from the newest burger player in town.

Loooaded Burgers
White Spot owes its longevity in the food industry to Triple O’s burgers—liked, revered, and distinctly remembered by many a Canadians from different generations. Its most popular variants are the Bacon Cheddar Burger (P300 burger only; P390 combo) and the Monty Mushroom Burger (P310 burger only; P410 combo)—both massive enough to satiate a hungry man’s burger craving.

Bacon Cheddar Burger

Burgers at Triple O's have a signature slice of dill pickle atop

During our visit, we sampled the Bacon Cheddar Burger and found the buns soft and sweet. Top crust cracked and its body deflated at a firm grip. The patty, reportedly made from 100% Canadian beef (chuck part), was thin but compact. “No extenders and no preservatives there,” he emphasized. Slightly burnt on the edges, the hickory bacon slices that came with the patty required a stronger chewing. The accompanying skin-on fries—thick and almost unadulterated—filled us up fast.

Asked what sets their burgers apart from what’s available in the market, Warren was quick to answer: “It’s all about the quality and taste.” According to him, albeit Triple O’s is fast-casual, they only use top-notch ingredients in their burgers. They cook in Canola oil, a healthier and more expensive choice than the usual vegetable oil.

Triple “O” Top Secret Sauce
And because almost all of Triple O’s marketing collateral praise their Triple “O” Top Secret Sauce, we devoted full five minutes in figuring it out. Contrary to what we expected (brown, runny, sticky), the sauce that warranted the resto’s name arrived as an unassuming peach-white dollop atop the cheddar slice in the burger. First dip had us guessing homemade mayo plus butter and red pickle mix. Second try had us saying “Thousand Island, but not quite.” It lacks tart so we finally hypothesized mayo + butter + sugar and cayenne or paprika for the tinge of pink,

Extra Triple O sauce

If not in the mood for burgers, get their Dippin Chicken (P100 for 2 pieces)

Looocal Items
Triple O’s menu is based on the core menu in Canada but the Philippine franchisees are allowed to create and sell items that will cater to the local palate. The front liners of the first batch of featured items are Three Cheese Pasta (P165 ala carte; P265 combo) and Buttermilk Fried Chicken (P125 one piece; P175 two pieces).

Three Cheese Pasta

Three Cheese Pasta with Dippin Chicken

Pinky Yee, part of the group that franchised Triple O’s, shared that they believe that the taste profile of the burgers will click with the Filipinos. “We decided to bring the brand to the Philippines and offer something unique for the discriminating palate.” Asked about Triple O’s expansion plan in the Philippines, Pinky answered: “we plan to open three stores in the Philippines this year. The second store will be in SM Aura. The third one, I cannot disclose yet.”
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Triple O’s, located at the 3rd floor of SM Megamall Atrium, will open to the public on Friday, June 20, 2014.