Selena Gomez’s Boyfriend Just Found Out What Happens When You Trash Jollibee

Music producer and Selena Gomez’s boyfriend Benny Blanco, who has gained increasing fame on social media for his cannabis-fueled hot takes, drew ire from Filipino food fans for his recent inflammatory review of cult-favorite Filipino fried chicken chain Jollibee. In a follow-up video posted a day later, Blanco tried to walk back some of his comments and even lauded the fast-food chain’s fried chicken sandwich.

It all started on March 1, when Blanco posted a TikTok video for what he claimed would be his first time trying Jollibee, a Philippines-based fast-food chain serving fried chicken, burgers, and beloved sides like Filipino spaghetti and adobo rice. Blanco, who is based in Los Angeles, appears to be trying food from the Beverly Boulevard location of Jollibee in East Hollywood. At the start of the clip, he attempts to qualify his alleged authority on the cuisine by saying that his stepmother is Filipino and that he grew up eating the food.

As the review proceeds, he begins to trash Jollibee, calling the gravy-dipped chicken “soggy” and saying the rice “tasted like butt.” He also, somewhat confoundingly, dips the fried chicken in the chain’s pineapple drink. But maybe his worst take was on Jollibee’s spaghetti, a known Filipino preparation that uses hot dogs, sweet tomato sauce, and cheddar cheese. Blanco blurts some profane insults about the smell of the dish before taking a bite and then spitting out the noodles over the container.

TikTok commenters were quick to defend the chain, its food, and its standing as the Philippines’ most popular fast-food restaurant. The next day, on March 2, Blanco tried to mend things by praising the chain’s fried chicken sandwich and ordering more traditional dishes like lumpia, longganisa, grilled chicken, and pancit from Kuya Lord and another unnamed LA restaurant in a lame attempt to show he harbored no ill will toward Filipino cuisine. Blanco, who seems to consider himself a dining authority in Los Angeles, is releasing a dinner party-focused cookbook called Open Wide: A Cookbook for Friends and often posts cooking videos with food content creators and influencers.

Of course, if Blanco needs more recommendations on quality Filipino food in Los Angeles, he could enjoy the fantastic rotisserie chicken and pork belly from Lasita in Chinatown, the hefty combo plates at Big Boi in Sawtelle Japantown, the glistening grilled skewers at Dollar Hits in Historic Filipinotown, or maybe the Filipino American barbecue at the Park’s Finest. If all else fails, there’s the immense buffet from Artesia’s Mekeni’s Pinoy Pride that draws lines of hungry revelers every week.