MANILA - Focusing on a product is good, but improving upon a tried-and-tested concept is even better.

That's exactly what Jigger Glavez did when he launched the Bread Bag Pandesal Bar along Julio Vargas Avenue at the Ortigas Home Depot area.

Knowing full well that pandesal is a staple meal for many Filipinos, Glavez took his family's Casa Marcos pandesal recipe and took it to the next level. Aside from selling freshly baked pandesal in dozens (choose from wholewheat or plain white bread), the Bread Bag offers gourmet sandwiches in 100-gram pandesal form.

Bread Bag specialties include Kesong Puti (soft white cheese made from carabao's milk) and adobo flakes, home-made corned beef piled with scrambled eggs and garlic mayo, and chicken schnitzel with gravy, tomato, and basil pesto sauce.

Served piping hot from a traditional clay oven, the 12 sandwich varieties are priced from P88 to P111 and served with fresh sweet potato chips and special dips.

The pandesal bar serves soups served in a bread bowl and tasty desserts like Pandesal pudding. They also have hot chocolate and coffee for drinks, all at a small but cozy store, which Glavez envisioned to be a place where people can stay and chat with friends or have a quick and peaceful break from work.

Although simple and hearty, the pandesal sandwiches are products of a series of food tastings and expert advice from chef consultants. "If you want a quick and filling lunch or dinner at a reasonable price, what more can you ask for?" Glavez said.

This simple menu has drawn many call center agents and office crowds to the Bread Bar from 7 a.m. to 3 a.m, or home delivery requests within the Ortigas area. In fact, the enterprise was so successful, that Glavez is planning to open another store within the year.

With all the formulas for success, Glavez said that when opening a restaurant in these tough times, it is crucial to be remembered. "Consider what customers want and the location you're opening it in. Most importantly, use a concept that's something different to get them interested," he said. -- Kristine Servando, abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak

For inquiries or deliveries, call the Bread Bag Pandesal Bar at (02) 703-7784.