From Japanese ramen and Singaporean rice dishes to freshly baked loaves from a Marikina institution — here’s what’s new at SM’s East Metro malls this season.
SM Supermalls has been quietly filling in the gaps across its East Metro properties, and the cumulative effect is worth a proper sweep. Over the past few months, a string of new dining and retail openings has landed across SM Center Antipolo Downtown, SM City San Mateo, SM City Masinag, and SM City Marikina — covering enough ground that you’d need a few separate afternoons to do it all justice.
What’s new in Antipolo and San Mateo
SM Center Antipolo Downtown picks up two additions that point in opposite directions. Clarisse brings an accessories boutique aimed at younger shoppers, stocked with jewelry and fashion pieces sized for girls who take their personal style seriously. On the other end of the floor, 7 Luxe arrives with branded luggage, bags, and shoes — the kind of finds that make more sense browsed in person than ordered online.
Over in San Mateo, the pull is almost entirely food. Mesa — known for elevated takes on classic Filipino dishes — brings the kind of family-meal energy that suits a long Saturday. Conti’s Bakeshop, a reliable name for celebration cakes and pastries, fills in the dessert gap on the second level.
Masinag gets gold and bread
SM City Masinag adds two openings that cover opposite ends of any shopping list. Everglowi deals in gold and silver jewelry — understated, daily-wear pieces that sit comfortably between occasion and habit. Bulawan Panaderya handles the other kind of daily ritual: fresh bread, pastries, and café drinks that make a good excuse to slow down mid-mall.
Marikina’s new hallway earns its own trip
The most concentrated run of new openings is at SM City Marikina, where a newly built hallway has become a small dining destination. Pedal Cafe anchors the quieter end of the strip — a spot for coffee and a breather between stops. Mylene’s Bakeshop, a name Marikina locals have known for years, now has a mall presence, bringing its bestsellers out of the neighborhood and into a broader rotation.
The global flavors are there too. Ramen Nagi draws the predictable crowd with its customizable bowls — the queue at peak hours tells its own story. Wangfu arrives with bold Singaporean-inspired dishes, the kind of menu that holds up well for a sit-down lunch. Cibo rounds things out with Italian standards, a comfortable fallback for post-shopping dinners that don’t require a decision.
There’s no single reason to visit any one of these malls right now — which is part of the point. Each property is filling out at its own pace, and the East Metro circuit is starting to feel like something worth planning around rather than defaulting to.
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