Meranti Hotel

Meranti is the hotel that fried chicken built. Sort of.

The maiden boutique hotel of the Max’s Group Inc. (the company that has brought sarap to the bones Max’s chicken to Filipinos), Meranti is an ideal place for city staycation in Quezon City area. It is located almost just across the iconic first Max’s Restaurant established within the vicinity of Tomas Morato.

Meranti was named after a natural wood species from Malaysia and Indonesia that is identical to Philippine mahogany.  The meranti wood is lightweight, durable, an excellent exterior grade product. Just like the wood furnishings that are of superior quality, used in the hotel.

The hotel lobby looks chic and elegant with its modern drop log lights that look like giant golden cocoons (or glowing cylindrical tubes), comfy sofa and Kenneth Cobonpue rattan wicker chairs.

While waiting for the completion of check-in process, I was served a refreshing welcome drink sago at gulaman. I also found a copy of a coffee table book about the delectable history of Max’s. It is interesting to know that the famous fried chicken was a special creation by Maximo “Max” Gimenez’ niece Ruby upon the request of GIs who frequent Max’s little café way back in 1945, during the American occupation period in the country.

The mezzanine is where the business center and an open small function hall are located.

Standard and deluxe rooms are spacious and equipped with amenities that anyone, particularly techies would especially enjoy.

The memory foam pocketed beds is covered in luxurious Egyptian cotton linen with a 400 thread count. The bathroom has a rain shower head with bath essentials that have cool names. There’s a complimentary tea and instant coffee. But the real steal, aside from the free wifi, is the flat screen smart TV where guests can directly access YouTube, Facebook, or Spotify. It also has a screen mirroring capacity, where I got to view on the TV screen anything I browse on my tablet (including my Insta gallery).

I was also touched by the small but commendable gesture of the housekeeping team who made an extra effort to leave a personalized note along with yummy yema balls, which tastes better than Max’s candy bars.

I was expecting that the hotel’s in-house restaurant would be Max’s but instead it is Maple, another upscale restaurant member of the Max’s Group. Maple offers a decent, scrumptious buffet breakfast selection of garden salad, bread with jams, cheese and peanut butter, coffee, orange juice and pink lychee lemonade, rice, corned beef, tocino, daing na bangus, pansit, and fresh fruits.   

The transparent partly glass encased and chlorine-free swimming pool at the hotel’s penthouse is a favorite photo spot among family staycationers.

The roofdeck is a nice tambayan place, offering a panoramic view of the city skyline where the towers of the two biggest rival TV networks in the country can be seen.

It made me reflect… that rivalry always happens, and life eternally presents us with two choices or more. But in choosing, I don’t have to rip myself into pieces just to keep others whole.

Meranti Hotel

#82 Sct. Castor, Brgy. Laging Handa

Quezon City

Tel. No.: 376-6340 to 42