Just Eats

Myron's

2011-12-08T06:38:00.002+08:00

Just returned to my blog and was surprised it had been more than a year since my last post. I admit I had a case of tamaditis; will make it my new year's resolution to try to update more often.

Myron's has been at Greenbelt for a long while; had a (not so) recent dinner there and it was good (better than I remembered from my first visit). Our group split a mushroom and cheese appetizer, a salad, steak and chicken (my apologies for the generic description but i blame this on my fuzzy memory given that this dinner was a couple of months back. Will update once i get my hands on a copy of the menu). All the dishes were pretty amazing (particularly the mushroom and cheese thingie) except for the chicken which was quite forgettable. Although price points were on the high side; serving sizes were generous.

Service was excellent, attentive but not stalkerish. Expect to pay upwards of P1000.

Canteen

2010-05-27T17:20:00.002+08:00

Had been planning a meal at Canteen for the longest time, after having discovered the good old chocnut ice cream from Uva still being offered here. Finally got around to it the other day.

I really wanted to say i liked the meal; but I can't. We both ordered fish (mainly because most of the other meals were not available that day; in fact, it seemed they had more items not available than available). She had the miso glazed mahimahi fillet with soy rice; i had the crusted fish fillet with citrus dressing. My friend found her order too salty (I didn't try so I can't comment); my fish, on the other hand, was spoiled (weird and funky smelling and tasting). The restaurant did offer to change the dish, but I kinda lost my appetite (just asked for a tuna sandwich; ate half and gave away the other half).

Masochists that we were, we stayed for coffee and dessert. Having tried the chocnut ice cream previously (which I must add was very good), we opted for the Trailer Park Reeses Peanut Butter and Jelly Monte Cristo and the Bananas Foster with Mantecado Ice Cream. The less said about the Monte Cristo the better (unless you two years old or hugely fanatical for deep fried bread), basically, it was not good. The bananas foster, on the other hand, I am conflicted about; having run out of mantecado, the restaurant served the dessert with chocnut ice cream. It wasn't a good pairing; lumalaban ang chocnut flavor with the caramel sauced bananas. Perhaps with the mantecado, it might have been better.

All in all, a very disappointing meal. Had really high hopes for the restaurant, it being reasonably close to my office. Sigh!

BTW, the restaurant occupies a third of a boutique. The stuff the store carried did look interesting (mix of street and club wear with eco-socio footwear thrown in (the store carried Toms)).

In Mr. Choi's Garden

2010-04-03T21:18:00.003+08:00

We celebrated my mom's Chinese birthday today at Choi's Garden. It was my second time to eat in this Greenhills landmark (highly regrettable but it is rather hard to park in that stretch of road). (For the unaware, Chinese people have two birthdays; one based on the Chinese Lunar calendar, the other on the western Gregorian calendar. We get to celebrate twice in year; it's a good thing.)

We ordered the old staples: sweet and sour pork (yummy! one of my favorites), fish fillet with bean curd, string beans with stir fried pork (another one of my favorites); and cha misua (or misua guisado; another favorite). The sweet and sour pork and the string beans were two of best I've tasted in a while. The pork was crispy and the sauce was perfectly balanced between a bit sour and a bit sweet. This was classic Cantonese style! The string beans were juicy; the minced pork flavorful, salty and spicy. The fish fillet was also perfectly cooked; the fish fillets were moist and the batter was not too thick. The cha misua was not too oily, a bit dry (but I like my cha misua dry) and loaded with sahog (shrimp, chicken and ham! never had ham before in cha misua).

We only had two dimsums, cha siew rice roll (another one of my favorites) and chicken feet (not one of my favorites!), so I really can't comment on the quality and taste. Suffice to say that the cha siew rice roll was not up there on my Go To list (I think the roll was oversteamed as the rice roll was a bit mushy).

All in all, a very enjoyable lunch! The bill came to about P1300 for five persons; pretty reasonable in my opinion. Worth going back to try the other stuff on the menu.

PS. Some of the dishes came out a bit oily. According to my mom, it is common practice for Chinese chefs to splash a little oil on the dishes right before serving. This is to enhance the look of the dish (bright and shiny). I would recommend a word to the waiter (hold the anointing!) IHMO, Chinese food is not suitable for people who are weight challenged who hoping to be not.

Me and Mr. Jones

2010-04-03T21:08:00.003+08:00

Finally was able to grab a seat inside Mr. Jones (who is Mr. Jones anyway?), an upscale diner located along restaurant row in Greenbelt 5. The smallish restaurant only has around 8 tables in airconditioned comfort; more seats are available outside, if one doesn't mind the heat and a rather strong pair of misters (no not bouncers; I meant machines which spray water mist to cool the air through evaporation; end of science lesson) which instead of being pointed skywards, is tilted towards the tables and diners (yummy, finely misted dirty water in your food!). If you are like me and would prefer indoor seating (where it is cool and dry), make sure you either arrive early (11:30ish) or later (after 1pm).

Have had two meals in Mr. Jones and the dishes ranged from good to great. The green salad is a huge bowl of mixed, unusual greens, topped with soft boiled egg, orange slices, olives, grapes, feta cheese, walnuts, and parmesan cheese shavings, served with what I think is a honey balsamic vinaigrette. This was yummy; had it two days straight and still liked it (best salad I've had in a long time). I and my dining companion had the salad split into two; but even this portion size was substantial. If you aren't too hungry, half of this salad would make a fantastic light lunch. In this first meal, we also ordered the bacon-wrapped meat loaf, again split into two. The portions served to us, even halved, were substantial. The meat loaf was moist, but lacked a certain oomph. It was good, but could have been better. The slab of ground meat was served with a mound of mashed potato, baby carrots and haricot verts (green beans, pardon my french).

My second meal (which was exactly 25 hours later) I and another dining companion had the same salad (well, she hadn't tried it and i liked it still), tomato soup, and taco. The tomato soup was thick and creamy (with the addition of cream); it came with a grilled cheese sandwich; the soup alone would have made a satisfying light lunch. I found the soup a tad salty, but not to the extent that I couldn't slurp it down. It was a nice touch that the soup contained alphabet-shaped pasta. The taco was gigantic; a huge quantity of rice, black beans, tomato, onions, cheese, lettuce enveloped by a crispy taco shell (which I think is made by the restaurant; had that homemade quality, which is good). One has the choice of fish or beef; we had beef and what a lot of beef! Whole chunks of grilled steak! The taco was served with tomato and onion salsa, pickled jalapenos, and sour cream. Owing to the impending mess, I always eat my taco salad-style (which just means you break up the taco and mixed everything together, doused with liberal spikes of hot sauce). Yum!

The price points per dish is rather steep (from P300 to P500) but serving sizes are huge. I strongly recommend sharing; splitting with your friends also means you get to try more dishes! For both meals, i spent a shade or two below P500. Service is excellent and the wait staff knowledgable and helpful.

Mr. Jones is my current favorite in Greenbelt 5 (also known as the great wasteland; so many restaurants, so many bad and overpriced). I will certainly be back for more; in both visits, i failed to sample dessert owing to the huge size of main courses. The milk shakes (served to the other diners) look fantastic; the breakfast selection also seems inviting (I spent minutes reading the description for a five-stack lemon ricotta blueberry pancake).

Bok Lene - a good thing

2009-05-26T19:46:00.005+08:00

It's always a good thing when one stumbles onto hidden food treasures. Bok Lene (beats me what this means) is one such gem, a smallish hole-in-the-wall chinese restaurant just off the banawe restaurant row (if you are along banawe, coming from quezon avenue, turn left on the retiro traffic light. The restaurant is on the second corner on your right). Literally a mom and son shop with the owner as waitress, cook, and cashier.

We've been back several times after our first visit; this alone is a testament to the restaurant's good food (my family is notoriously hard to please). Among the dishes we liked were the oyster cake, fish filet and tofu hotpot, various dimsums (hakaw, spinach dumpling, shiao long pao, taro puff, and radish cake). A word about the radish cake--Bok Lene's version is one of the best I've had in a very long time. One can order a whole uncooked slab, ready for pan frying at home (in fact, am having a piece right now).

Have also tried their dumpling noodle soup (quite good; the noodle was very soft, almost misua-like) and quick stir fried vegetables. The Yang Chow was also acceptable (reminiscent of the version of downtown restaurants of yore; deep yellow with lots of duck egg). There were some misses, notable among which was the beef tenderloin Chinese style (much to sweet and swimming in sauce).

Price points is at par with the most of the chinese restaurants along banawe (dimsum around P70 to P80; main dishes between P150 to P250). But the friendly service, good food, and generous serving size do make the difference.

Lorenzo's Way

2009-05-20T21:20:00.003+08:00

After that mesa, it was with some trepidation that I suggested to friends we try Lorenzo's Way (yes, another new restaurant in the [infamous] Greenbelt 5). The restaurant is a tribute to the late Larry Cruz, and pulls famous dishes from most of his well-known restaurants.

We had the pinaputok na plapla (malaking tilapia pala), kkk (karekare, what's the third K?), and bacalao. The giant tilapia reminded me of the same dish we had in Mesa; the only difference was that Lorenzo's version came with rice buro while Mesa's came with the four sauces (I chickened out of the buro and asked for the common suka-soy sauce-sibuyas dip). The bacalao, we all agreed, was too too salty (parang kulang sa babad). I recall a show on travel and leisure (can't recall the host chef) but I remembered the interviewed chef of a restaurant in Spain mentioning having soaked the bacalao overnight (or was it two days) with four or five changes of water.

The star of the meal was definitely the karekare. The peanut gravy was de-luscious and married perfectly with the guinisang bagoong and mixed with white rice. Yummy! One always hears this but in this case, it is perfectly true - Sauce pa lang, ....

Service was okay; the waitstaff helpful and attentive but could stand a bit more training. I came early and settled on the KKK as my first choice. However, I was having difficulty coming up with one or two more dishes to complete our order (given the eclectic menu). Asking the waiter proved frustrating and unhelpful as he was recommending baby back ribs, gambas, and paella. Medyo off.

As with most restaurants in GB5, prices are on the high size. However, the restaurant does make up for it with the serving size. For three persons, i think we spent just under P500 per head (including taxes and tip but no drinks). We could have easily fed another person with what we had ordered.

I would take Lorenzo's Way again. There were a good number of dishes which begs to be tried out (the famous knockout knuckles for one; the vegetable dishes and the costillas (beef stew) among others). And with hot, fluffy white rice!

Bawai's: Vietnamese Kitchen

2009-05-02T18:52:00.007+08:00

My two friends and I just had lunch at Bawai's Vietnamese Kitchen in Tagaytay. I had heard and read tremendous things about this restaurant that's not a restaurant (apparently it is in the owner's living room!).

It was a two hourish trip (coupled with a bit of getting lost) but we finally made it to the restaurant/house. A quirk of the restaurant was that you MUST call ahead to reserve and preferably pre-order. Once you get to the restaurant, everything is made clear; the place is tiny (large enough, by my guess, for only about 30 to 40? spread over five tables). When we were there, all tables were full. Someone without a reservation would have had a long wait. Also, it was apparent that the kitchen does not keep much inventory; one runs the risk of not getting a table.

We basically ordered every appetizer on the menu; these were Chao Tom (pounded shrimp on sugarcane skewers), Nem Nuong (grilled vietnamese sausage), Goi Cuon (fresh spring rolls), Cha Gio (fried spring roll), and Banh Cuon (minced pork and mushroom rolls). Among these I liked the Nem Nuong, Goi Cuon, and Banh Cuon the most (and if you must know, I liked the Cha Gio the least).

We also ordered the Pho Bo (beef noodle soup) as our main dish (something light in light of all the appetizers). No complaints here. The flavors were delicate, subtle, the perfect foil for one's personal touches (a little more chili sauce, some hoisin, some more nuoc nam).

We spent a little over P1500 for the meal plus drinks. Definitely worth a return visit (this time to try all of the entrees and noodle dishes!).

BTW, bawai means grandmother in Vietnamese.

Tale of Two Restaurants: Going Under the "Mesa"

2009-05-01T22:45:00.004+08:00

Recently tried two of the newer restaurants in Greenbelt 5 (fast becoming known as the go to place for pretentious, overpriced yet forgettable eateries). Mesa is a contemporary Filipino restaurant, serving traditional dishes with a twist. I really wanted to like the restaurant given the raves by my friend but unfortunately, this was not to be. We had steamed apahap with soy sauce, caramelized garlic pork, laing two ways and the fried tilapia with four sauces. Among the four, only the tilapia and the laing stood out; not that the two dishes were extraordinary, just better than the other two. The fried tilapia came with four different sauces (honey patis, tokwa't baboy sauce, sweet chili, and mango bagoong (not too sure about this last one). This was a fun dish, as it allowed one to play with the flavors of the different sauces. The laing two ways came with sauce (the normal way one would serve laing) and without (dry, with the sauce cooked into the gabi leaves). I didn't like the dry version at first, but i must admit, it kinda grew on me.

The other two dishes were not so great. The fish was overcooked (the flesh was too firm and chalky). Steaming fish is a delicate science with much that can go wrong; if fine chinese restaurants do sometimes get this wrong, Mesa may be forgiven for this misstep. The caramelized garlic pork, however, was a disaster. The first time the order came to our table, the pork was more pork fat than meat (more suited for a carinderia rather than a fine dining establishment; the purchasing manager should be flogged). On the plus side, the wait staff was quick to pick up on our dissatisfication and quickly sent the dish back to the kitchen. Unfortunately, the revamped dish still failed to impress. Despite its name, the pork meat was pale and unappetizing; overriding flavor was sugary sweetness with none of the great garlic flavor. This certainly did not live up to its "signature dish" status.

I may need to try the restaurant again; there are other interesting-sounding dishes on the menu. Another plus is that the dishes are quite reasonably priced, certainly for a Greenbelt 5 restaurant. Despite the giant apahap (more than 700 gms, the smallest that the restaurant had at that time, and the most expensive item among our orders), our total bill was only around P1,300 for three persons.

Tale of Two Restaurants: "Thai Patio"

2009-05-01T22:45:00.003+08:00

It was not a great week for eating out. The second of the two restaurants I tried was Thai Patio, also along the Greenbelt 5 resto strip. I am always up for good Thai food (one of my favorites) so it was with great hope that we made our way to the restaurant. We ordered fresh spring roll, dory in curry sauce, stir fried chicken and basil, tom yum soup with prawn, and pad thai. As you can see, nothing really extraordinarily difficult nor special, just the basics. That made what was served so disappointing. I have had better fresh spring rolls at Pho Hoa, pad thai at Soms, chicken and basil at People Palace.

The bill was also shockingly high (around P2000 for three persons), moreso given the weak dishes. For these prices, one is infinitely better off at People's Palace.

On a lighter side, we moved from tables to a banquette as we thought that the latter would be more comfortable. We had a good laugh as we were literally falling off the seats (they were two narrow; the table was also too narrow; an obvious attempt to fit two banquettes in a limited space). What made matters worse was that the food came in oversized dishes. It was a puzzle how to fit the food on the long, narrow table. Sadly, this was the highlight of the meal.

Thai cuisine is extremely tricky as it seeks to balance several divergent flavors (sweet, salty, spicy, sour, bitter) into a harmonious whole. For much, much better Thai food, please go to Azuthai along Pasay Road, Soms going to Rockwell, and Benjarong in Hotel Nikko.

Terrace at the 5th

2009-01-24T08:48:00.003+08:00

Terrace is one of the newer restaurants in Greenbelt 5 (in the extension, really Greenbelt 1). Terrace purports to serve treasured recipes from well-known home kitchens.

The restaurant has a nice look to it; upscale but homey. However, as with almost all Greenbelt 3 and 5 restaurants, it does get quite noisy, especially if the restaurant is fullish.

The menu was not extensive but I take this as a good thing. I had the short ribs (which was recommended), my other lunchmates had pork belly and the dory fillet. I liked the short rib but it was a tad sweet. However, it was obviously slow-cooked as the beef was quite tender; the drippings were also quite nice. The dish came with the option of white or brown rice; I ordered brown but was served red (one point taken away). Unfortunately, the rice was dry and obviously microwaved (another point deducted). I asked that the rice be changed for white; but this too was dry and nuked (more points na ang minus). It was disappointing that such an upscale restaurant can't cook rice! Another sore point was that the server (perhaps in a bid to be ingratiating) claimed that there would be no charge for the white rice. IMHO, there really should not be a need for this given that the original contract was not fulfilled.

We were there during the restaurant's soft opening; and it showed. The kitchen was quite slow (more than an hour before we got our orders). One of my lunchmates was served her order but it came with white rice. The server whisked it away, supposedly to change the rice. However, the order never reappeared until we all got our orders. Quite obviously, the order was for another table; but I feel the server should have come back to apologize or explain. Replacing red rice for white should not have taken 30 minutes.

We also stayed for coffee and dessert (no, we weren't masochists, one of us wasn't feeling to well and didn't want to move). We ordered the Crepe Gateau, which was stacks of thin crepes, buttered and syruped. I liked it (although one of my lunchmates claim that a better version existed in the Metro Manila dessert universe). However, i did feel it lacked that oomph factor befitting the location and price tag; some fruit compote or dark chocolate shavings would have been welcome.

All in all, a relatively nice place to eat; but I would come back a few months from now, when hopefully the kitchen and staff has worked out all the kinks.

Yummy Yummy Nambantei

2009-01-24T07:59:00.003+08:00

Went back to Nambantei (Greenbelt 3) for lunch. Really like this restaurant, a lot; from the free starters (raw vegetables you dip in soybean paste) to the grilled skewers to the rice. One good thing about eating with new people were the new things one gets to discover. One of my lunchmates ordered edamame (cooked baby soybeans), which I tried for the first time. They were really good, like soft, semi-crunchy green beans, but better for you!

We ordered the platter of mixed meat skewers with additional two skewers of everything (except the corn). My favorites were the bacon-wrapped potato fries, the garlic pork, and the pork-wrapped asparagus. But the big revalation was the chicken wings. In the past, I usually skipped these as I wasn't a big fan of chicken wings elsewhere. I snagged a piece from my lunchmate (who was on his third skewer) for a bite see, out of curiousity. My gods, it was the best thing I've eaten (ok, maybe one of the best) in years. To my dismay, there were none left. Justeats Lesson #11, try everything once!

BTW, a tip I got from that selfish, greedy, chicken-wing glutton was to ask for teriyaki sauce for dipping. The sauce does add a nice sweet, salty dimension to the grilled meats.

CPR at CPK

2009-01-24T07:42:00.002+08:00

Not literally, but after eating California Pizza Kitchen's really, really bad food and seeing what you have to pay for that really, really bad food, anyone would need CPR.

After walking around Greenbelt for ages looking for a restaurant we would agree on, we settled on CPK. This is the newest branch at the Greenbelt 5 extension (I am providing directions so that everyone can steer clear).

We ordered the pepperoni pizza and shanghai noodles. It could be partly our fault for ordering such an off item (chinese at an american pizza joint; we got what we deserved!).

The pizza was nothing great but not too bad; just nothing one would go back for. The lunch killer was the noodles; not only was the sauce to cornstarchy, oily and salty, the noodles were half-cooked. What got my goat was that after inquiring nicely, the waiter came back with a weak explanation that the noodles were cooked correctly according to CPK's exacting standards! HOOEY!

For your mental and physical health, best to avoid this tourist trap of a pizza parlor.

Krispy Kreme Update

2008-12-18T00:51:00.002+08:00

Krispy Kreme has a new, seasonal flavor for December. Caramel Apple Pie, a filled doughnut of apple pie filling with a graham cracker crumb topping. Hands down, this is my doughnut of choice at KK. It is the least sweet of KK's cloying treats and goes extremely well with the instore americano.

Unhappily, the flavor may be discontinued after the holidays. I encourage everyone to run to the nearest KK store and order enough of the Apple Pie doughnut in order to ensure counter permanence.

Christmas Dinner at Chelsea

2008-12-18T00:28:00.003+08:00

Finally got to try Chelsea. Was a bit apprehensive as I had gotten mixed reviews about the restaurant. Luckily, it wasn't as bad as I had imagined.

We had the whole roast chicken, the green apple and walnut salad, 5 cheese macaroni, cheese and bacon, and the Sausage and Meatball Rigatoni. The chicken was excellent value for money; at P650ish, it was enough to feed four to six. The chicken, however, I felt lacked flavor.

The salad was another value for money order. The huge portion served six as an appetizer. My only request would be for more apple and walnut and less of the salad. BTW, the salad green was baby arugula, one of my current favorites.

The 5 Cheese Macaroni, Cheese, and Bacon (I'm not making this up; this is what was written on the menu) looked small but again the portion size will serve two as a light lunch and four as a side. The Mac was a brilliant orange but tasted pretty good. But if i had to pick a winner for the meal it would have been the rigatoni. Again the dish would have been enough for two to four (large serving sizes must be a signature of the restaurant). The meatball was flavorful and the pasta was dotted with chunks of tomatoes.

For dessert, we had the restaurant's famous Chocnut Valrhona Cake. The cake was really good; it wouldn't win any awards for good looks (initial impressions were of dryness and crumb). But each bite was full of choco goodness (of the highest quality). I really liked the cake (so much so that I'm including it in my list of favorites, the only chocolate cake so far); but at P310/slice, I'd have to think twice before i re-indulge.

Coffee was a letdown; the restaurant serves the Illy (italian) brand of coffee but something must have gotten lost in the translation.

All in all, a pretty good meal. Good value for a restaurant in Serendra (the land of overpriced, overconceptualized food). P500 to P600 per head.

Lengua de Gato

2008-12-16T22:07:00.002+08:00

Am eating one of the best lengua de gato I've ever had. It came in a big, white plastic tub (akin to the old one gallon ice cream containers), no label, no idea who makes it or where one can buy more (must buy more!)

The lengua are paper thin, irregularly shaped and sized, some are a darker hue, others a pale cousin.

Chocolate Kiss Kiss

2008-11-22T19:59:00.002+08:00

Paid another visit to Chocolate Kiss along Roces Avenue in Quezon City. If you recall, my first few visits were a disaster. Lousy food and worst, lousy desserts. Blame my loyalty to my alma mater, but I just had to try the restaurant again.

The good news is, the Queso Chiffon and Dayap Cake are excellent. The Queso Chiffon has loads of quezo de bola shavings; IMHO, the perfect counterpoint to the sweet icing and dessert.

The Dayap Cake was a transformed beauty. I recall the first time I tried this cake, it had masses of boiled icing (the white, egg white icing of the birthday cakes of yore). The overzealous baker had overzested, adding the bitter pith into the icing. This version was nothing to write home about.

The new and improved Dayap Cake has dayap curd filling and the boiled icing is now a thin shell of its former self. I really liked this cake (although I think it would be better with a buttercream icing, instead of that infernal boiled icing).

The only disappointment was the Devil's Food Cake. Not only did the cake lack that dense, chocolate taste, the baker also apparently thought to transfer the masses of boiled icing to this forgettable dessert.

By the way, the coffee was swell.

Enoteca Galileo

2008-10-24T23:01:00.002+08:00

Enoteca literally means "wine depositary" and Enoteca Galileo certainly had the feel of one. A smallish restaurant along Pasong Tamo Extension with unusually large tables, one is literally surrounded by wine and aperitif.

On to the food. I had the set meal of cold cuts, cheese, bread and dip, a choice of pasta, wine and coffee. It was a feast. I particularly enjoyed the cold cuts, cheeses (provolone and mozarella) and the pasta (aglio olio with pepperoncino). The bread and dip, however, were redundant since the restaurant does give you these as a free starter. They did change the bread and dip which was to have accompanied the set meal with mushroom soup. The white wine was also quite good; the first glass was not chilled but the server must have realized this as she offered me a second glass (chilled) for free! I managed to get quite tipsy this lunchtime.

My lunchmates ordered T-Bone steak which was not surprisingly not very good (we were in a italian deli). Others ordered the pasta genovese (pesto).

We finished with coffee and gelato. Coffee was excellent; good enough to take black. The gelato, however, was disappointing; it lacked the smooth, creamy texture of what i think gelato should have. Rather, the ice cream was quite frozen, studded with ice crystals.

Service was a bit inattentive; we stood around waiting for a table for a few minutes with servers running around us, basically ignoring us. Apparently, the restaurant was not used to having too many customers at one time. However, I must say that service did improve as the meal progressed.

Pricing was moderate (my set meal was P500, all in). However, my lunchmates felt the steak was overpriced (at P600), probably influence by their dislike for it.

Mickey's Deli

2008-08-21T23:26:00.003+08:00

I should really call this series of blogs as the Lost Meals. Might be old age but I forget to write about meals I've had in a number of restaurants, this one included.

Anyways, have been to Mickey's several times and the dishes were consistently good (with the exception of an unusually textured meat loaf, evocative of pick firm tofu).

Must try are the Nurnburger sausage (actually all their sausages are good, no wonder given that Mickey the German chef, formerly of the Hyatt), the pates. Serving size is large and must be shared; same goes for the side dishes (I couldn't even finish half of the potato side dish I ordered).

The restaurant also has an excellent deli counter, wonderful for browsing, and better for eating!

BTW attached to the deli is the upscale French Baker (can't recall the name). Prices are a tad higher than French Baker but the breads are way better. Be sure to order a sampler of bread (comes with pate; ask for butter!)

People Palace three

2008-08-14T20:37:00.002+08:00

Just had to update you guys on my third visit to People Palace last week. I was rereading my first article on the restaurant and I must confess, it was probably my orders which accounted for the unenjoyable experience.

Subsequent visits since that first time have been more than fine. Most dishes ordered were quite good, substantial, although prices remain quite daunting. And I think they have the best sticky rice with mango.

A Tale of Two Meals: Apahap sa Azuthai

2008-08-13T22:33:00.010+08:00

The second meal was lunch at Azuthai, the new Thai restaurant at the ground floor of the Milky Way building along Pasay Road. I had also heard many good things about the restaurant, so I was pretty excited to try it.

I wasn't disappointed. We had the papaya salad, the pomelo shrimp salad, apahap in tamarind sauce, penang beef curry, morning glory (kangkong!), and the ever reliable, ever present pad thai. I loved the salad and the apahap. The sauce of the curry was excellent but the beef was rather tasteless. The kangkong was also a winner. I do recommend one orders plain white rice, better to sop up the sauces.

I just had to try the desserts. The water chestnuts in coconut milk was a streamlined halohalo with the dyed water chestnuts providing crunch. The mango with sticky rice was also quite good (but I thought the one in People Palace was a tad better). I didn't care too much for the Tako, but it might appeal to the less sugar-inclined.

Prices are on the steep side but not to heights set by PP or Silk. Service was excellent; but don't believe the nice serbidora when she says mild is spicy enough. I was skeptical but unfortunately, she did manage to convince us to stay on the safe side.

I almost forgot, we had Thai take out a couple of weeks ago; equally good and loads more inexpensive. More on the next blog.

Take Out Thai from SOMS

2008-08-13T22:33:00.009+08:00

I had almost forgotten about our Thai take out from Soms (somewhere near the dog and cat hospital, going to Rockwell) some weeks back. If you are looking for five star taste at three star prices, Soms is for you.

We had a ton of food and I don't think it was all that expensive (sorry folks, libre kaya I don't know the actual cost). Two curries (beef and chicken), bagoong rice, kangkong, and the (oh no, its...) pad thai (dramatic pause), in a bilao!

Soms is supposedly a small carinderia-type, owned by a Thai transplant. I must confess I haven't been to the restaurant but I have heard it described as tables spilling onto the sidewalk and street. It's a BYOB kind of place, but the price can't be beat.

A Tale of Two Meals: Steak at Mamou

2008-08-13T22:33:00.006+08:00

Had two very good meals recently. First off was dinner at Mamou; I had wanted to try this restaurant for a very long time now. Good reviews all around, and everyone recommended the steak. It didn't disappoint, the serving was substantial with five of us sharing the twin. However, I was not that impressed with the sidings.

We also shared two pastas, the alio with labuyo flakes (spaghetti al dente swimming in a pool of garlicky olive oil and specked with chili - my personal favorite) and the Batac Bolognese (also very good, tomato based with batac longanisa).

The desserts, however, were not up to par with the main courses. I didn't care too much for the pecan pie (the corn syrup center was too thick and gummy); the dark chocolate sans rival also didn't inspire. The key lime pie was okay, just a tad sweet. Desserts came with schlagsahne (german whipped cream); we failed miserably trying to pronounce the word correctly, but it did provide hours of entertainment.

The restaurant isn't very big so reservations are a must. On a Tuesday night, the place was packed. The owner did tell us her personal favorites, namely the steak (which we tried), and the roast chicken and pork. At least I have a reason to go back.

Fish out of Water

2008-05-26T23:12:00.009+08:00

Fish Out of Water is one of the new restaurants in Greenbelt 5. As the name suggests, it specializes in seafood given new twists (fusion cuisine). The restaurant is part of the Red Crab group, of the famed crab buffet in Greenbelt 3. Apparently a good number of the restaurants in Ayala's new mall have more pedestrian pedigrees. Pia y Damaso is really Kookie Luscious in Rizalian clothing (I think the same desserts are available in KL at lower prices). John and Yoko is Sumo Sam all dressed up (I found this out when we passed by the restaurant just as the waitstaff were bringing out take-away in Sumo Sam plastic bags). Zuni is Duo.

We had danggit salad, stuffed kalabasa blossoms, lapulapu filet, and twiced cooked pork belly. Don't laugh, but the dish that stood out was the pork belly, in a seafood restaurant!

The danggit salad was an ordinary salad with danggit pieces thrown in. Cascada actually has a better version with tinapa and mango. The squash blossoms would have benefited from a lighter batter; as it was served, it was heavy and a bit oily. The lapulapu filet was roundly ignored (it was rather bland).

Solihiya

2008-05-26T23:12:00.006+08:00

Solihiya is one of the new restaurants in Greenbelt 5 and specializes in fancified panciteria food. I am a great fan of good panciteria food, and I really wanted to like the restaurant (I had been batting almost zero in my food trip in Greenbelt 5; with most restaurants I've tried having been expensive and not really that good).

We ordered the shrimp diablo (my memory gap is widening); I do remember the diablo part since the dish was covered with sauteed chilies. Supposedly spicy shrimp popcorns (cornflour battered pieces of shrimp), the dish had neither shrimp nor spice. It felt like we were eating fried batterballs.

We also ordered kangkong with chinese bagoong; I found it salty but then again, what would you expect with bagoong. But my friends liked it.

Our last dish was steamed fish fillet. It came late, like thirty minutes after we had almost polished off the two orders which came ahead. It was very apparent that the waiter had forgotten to put in the order in the first place; the dish could not have taken more than five minutes to cook. The waiter gave some flimsy excuse that the fish delivery was late that day (a likely story). What was disappointing, however, was that the owner or manager was right beside us when all of this was transpiring (our table was next to his hidden office) and he pointedly ignored us. No apologies, no we'll do better next time. Just as disappointing was that the fish was not worth the wait; bland and pasty white, it lacked the umami usually found in chinese steamed fish. (We slathered on the soy sauce and sesame oil to no avail; the fish was internally bland).

While waiting for our orders, we were served a trio of appetizers. Pickled singkamas, spicy sweet dilis, and pickled quail egg. It is a testament to the restaurant that the appetizers were the highlight of our meal.

Solihiya is just one of a long list of restaurants in Greenbelt 5 that have failed to live up to expectations. It should not come as a surprise now given the mall's fantastically low batting average for its restaurants (expensive but unsatisfying food, more pretention than substance).

BTW, solihiya apparently means the woven rattan used to cover chairs. The restaurant used woven plastic strips to evoke the natural wicker, a foreboding of things to come?

Flopjacks

2008-05-26T23:12:00.003+08:00

The restaurant's real name is Flapjacks and it's one of the newer restaurants in Greenbelt (where good restaurants go to die). As the name suggests, it specializes in pancakes and diner food.

I am big fan of breakfast food; I honestly think breakfast should rank among the world's great cuisine. So it was with great anticipation that I set lunch at Flop... I mean Flapjacks (having a coupon for free pancakes also figured highly in the decision-making process).

We ordered salpicao, pork chop and country fried steak. I would have wanted to say that the food was great; but I would be fibbing. The salpicao was tough and bland, lacking the strong garlic taste; the pork chop was tough and bland (clearly overcooked, which was not hard to do since it had been pounded thin in an effort to extend a small cut of meat into something grander); the country fried steak was bland and lacked steak (really, it tasted more like breaded breading). Blandness seems to be an unhappy trend (which we banished with liberal doses of salty seasoning).

I'd give Flopjacks a good six months or as a good friend of mine would put it, a good candidate for closure.

BTW, the flapjacks were fine.

Fely J: Redux

2008-04-10T23:54:00.002+08:00

I had the chance to revisit Fely J (someone treated a whole bunch of us for lunch; as a rule, I tend not to object to a particular venue if I am the treatee). However, I did manage to steer them clear of most of the disasters from my first visit, except for the tilapia, which on this second visit was actually good (at least better than the first time I tried it).

This time around, we had the vegetables in gata, crispy pata with bawang, tortang talong, sapang (hope i got the name right) spicy squid, and the lumpiang ubod along with the tilapia. Unfortunately, I remain underwhelmed. The cripy pata with tons of toasted bawang looked incredibly appetizing. Unfortunately, although the trotter was quite meaty, the skin was disappointingly chewy. The garlic accompaniment was also toasted with something I couldn't quite pinpoint; I much preferred the purity of bawang. Overall, the lack of crisp was a major letdown. I mean, the whole point of a crispy pata is that it should live up to its name and be darn crispy!

The squid was (it tasted to me) a pale version of the original Indonesian(?); reworked to appeal to the Filipino palate. Bland and tough, the dish was not memorable. (I wish restaurants would stop fiddling with recipes to cater to Filipino tastebuds; I would much prefer unfamiliar authencity to bland reinterpretation). The simple vegetable dishes stood out among our orders. The lumpiang ubod is the kind with the sauce built in; quite good and not too sweet. The vegetables in gata and the tortang talong were also quite tasty. But then again, it is not saying very much if all the kitchen can whip up are the basic gulay dishes.

I also had the chance to sample the desserts; we had the bayabas pie, cassava cake, and something intriguingly called Secreto ni Maria Clara. I didn't care too much for the bayabas pie (which was admittedly a healthy serving size); it was an apple pie in disguise, sans the apple (I would have preferred the apple). The cassava cake was soft but lack that certain oomph. As for the much vaunted Secreto (served for 25 years), it was just mango and sticky rice with macapuno sherbet, and not a very good version, I might add. The dessert might have been a mind-blowing decades ago, but nowadays, you can get the same at a number of good Thai and pan-Asian restaurants (try the mango and sticky rice in People Palace, mucho better).

Overall, the restaurant still failed to impress. (As an aside, have anyone else noticed that the restaurants in Greenbelt 5 are generally not very good? particularly given the price points. I've tried quite a few but not one stands out. Oh well, there are still a good number I haven't tried so there's hope).

Fely J

2008-04-05T09:25:00.002+08:00

Fely J is a new restaurant in Greenbelt 5 serving an eclectic menu of Filipino and Asian dishes. The restaurant is part of the LJC group of restaurants, which, upon my discovery (the group had cleverly printed all their restaurants on the paper placemat), had raised a red flag (too many forgettable meals in different LJC restaurants). However, since we were seated and my friends had already ordered (I arrived late), I decided to give the new kid on the block a chance.

I knew I should have trusted my instincts; the meal was really not very good. We ordered the dilis rice, sisig, kadyos, and the tilapia with plum sauce. The recommended (by the waitstaff) dilis rice reads nice (fried crispy dilis on rice) but the execution fell short. The oil from the crispy fish had soaked through the rice, resulting in a heavy, oily mess (one hopes they used olive oil). The dilis itself was tasteless, pure texture, no substance. Not a very pleasant dish; we left half untouched.

The sisig was the smallest sisig I had ever seen, the serving was literally the size of a saucer plate (yung patungan ng coffee cup). The dish was also quite oily (I know, you order sisig, you should expect oil). The kadyos was an unusual dish, a regional specialty of Iloilo consisting of pata and langka in soup base (flavored I think with star anise). It must be the manileno in me, I really couldn't appreciate it. To an ilonggo it might be comfort food, but to me, it was pork and langka in a pool of oily, brownish liquid. Finally we come to the tilapia, fried and smothered with the sweet plum sauce. It takes great skill to ruin what was basically a very simple dish, but the restaurant managed somehow. Really, you can get better in any decent chinese restaurant. (Oil seems to be a signature element of the restaurant).

We couldn't wait to leave and seek comfort in dessert (thank goodness for Classic Confections).

Service was good (that's a certainly a plus), but I found the restaurant to be incredibly noisy (seems to be a common problem with Greenbelt restaurants). Pricing was also okay given the location (I don't mean cheap though, P1500 for three persons).

Overall, recommend you look elsewhere for your Pan-Asian food fix.

Take Away from Banapple

2008-03-01T08:34:00.002+08:00

Part two of my banapple adventure. After lunch, I bought take away: two muffins, a chicken pie, and a slice of apple pie.

Finally got through eating the lot, and again, I had some issues. As with the lunch portions, banapple's claim to fame seems to be its serving sizes. The chicken pie was huge; the muffins and the apple pie slice weren't too tiny, either.

However, of the four, I only really like the Orange Poppy Seed Muffin. I couldn't decide which of the remaining three was the worst; they were all pretty not good. The blueberry muffin (with non-existent blueberries except for a schmear of blueberry filling on top) was dry. The apple pie had equal parts crust, topping and apples (which were a strange dark color); one would have wished that an apple pie would have more apple than carbohydrate. The chicken pie had a strange, unidentifiable filling. The brown colored mush could have been chicken (as the restaurant claimed), but it could have stunt-doubled for tuna or some mystery meat. Inedible. I'm taking back my first statement, I think the chicken(?) pie was the worst.

Banapple

2008-02-28T18:19:00.002+08:00

Banapple; a contraction of banana and apple. Also a quaint and cramped restaurant along Katipunan which apparently built its fame on its banana toffee cream pie.

I (we) happened upon this hole-in-the-wall restaurant coming from a wake and going back to the office. The decision to stop was cemented when one passenger praised the pie as the best he's had.

The restaurant was homey; food was okay (yes just okay) but portions are huge! Great value for money (we of the Makati lunch set marveled at the price and portion).

The main event, of course, was the banoffee pie. Two huge slices were served (again, if one was used to the puny servings one gets in Makati restaurants, Banapple's portion sizes are gianormous!). Unfortunately, as much as I wanted to love the pie, I only just liked it. I haven't tried the other desserts (apart from a take-away apple pie slice, which is still sitting in my fridge) but I wouldn't go out of my way to.

All in all, a good everyday, value for money, restaurant.

Krispy Kreme

2007-08-09T20:17:00.000+08:00

Krispy Kremes were my Holy Grail of desserts. My friends would regale me of stories of their many Krispyriences, evoking tremendous envy.

So it was with great joy that I greeted news of the opening of the first store in Fort Bonifacio. Luckily for me, my officemates managed to get their hands on a few of the original glazed.

I remember my first bite; I also remember my first thought...it's so very (pause for dramatic effect) SWEET! Not bad, but nothing great. And very, very sweet!

BTW. For all you sugar junkies, Krispy Kreme has a stall inside the BPI Head Office in Makati all of August (weekdays only). With such easy access, I've decided on a mad and diabetic quest to sample as many of the doughnut varieties as there are on display. So far, I've tried and liked the dark chocolate and new york cheesecake. Would recommend passing on the Reeses Pieces and Chocolate Iced Custard. The worst was the Powdered Strawberry.

BBTW. I think they are also planning to open an outlet in the Jaka Building (along Ayala) sometime September or October.

People's Palace 2

2007-08-09T20:01:00.001+08:00

(Have been quite remiss in updating the blog; was pretty shocked to see that my last entry was way back in 2005!)

Recently went back to People's Palace; balikbayan friend of mine chose this restaurant over two others. Given my previous experience, I had low expectations.

Surprisingly, I had a pretty good meal (perhaps because my friends did the ordering). The catfish salad was good; so was the bagoong rice (I know, the usuals but sometimes, you just want to eat the old and familiar).

The curry was fantastic; I imagined it would have been loads better if we had not fiddled with the heat (my lunchmates were pepper-shy). So it was no surprise that our last dish was a relatively tame chicken with cashew and basil; it was still good though.

Rounding out the meal was a too-die-for mango and sticky rice.

What hasn't changed was the cost! For a party of five, we spent about P1,000 a head (yikes!).

People's Palace

2005-12-01T17:18:00.000+08:00

No, this blog isn't about the Marcos's unfinished rest house in Tagaytay. People's Palace is the new Thai restaurant in Greenbelt, beside Via Mare. The restaurant is unusual/memorable if only for the fact that it does not allow walk-in customers (or at least that's what my friend who made the reservation said). I find all of this a little too pretentious; a heavy baggage for any restaurant to carry.

This plus the hefty price tag (our table spent over P3,300 for a party of four) may account for this less than positive review. In my terribly biased opinion, any restaurant that requires reservations and charges close to hotel prices better deliver on the food. At best, the food was forgettable; at worst, oily, flavorless, crappy, expensive, pretentious food.

People's Palace is supposedly the new "in" place to dine in Greenbelt; this should have clued me in on the overall dining experience. As is normally the case in these types of restaurants, food quality correlates negatively with the difficulty for a diner to eat in these places.

I must confess that my friend at another table enjoyed her meal; upon discussion, I found that their table ordered different dishes. I may revisit this review if I get a chance to eat at PP again; however, I wouldn't hold my breath.

Coffee and me

2005-11-15T16:08:00.000+08:00

I am a coffee fanatic; there was a time when my intake reached four to five cups by lunchtime. (Note the past tense; I cut down on my daily caffeine infusion after a particularly nasty episode of coronary palpitations following my fifth cup of coffee).

Since I only take at most two cups of coffee a day, I try to make sure that these are fairly good cups. The profusion of coffeehouses is a godsend in the Metro Manilan's search for the better-than-average joe.

I never took to the frappa-blended-shaken-cino supersweet blended coffees; I like my coffee black, sometimes with a little muscovado, sometimes with a little milk. (A note to all non-dairy creamer users, your creamer is mainly hydrogenated oils and glucose, read the label; you're better off with milk and sugar). Here's a tip I read or heard somewhere, always order an Americano or its equivalent (espresso with water), that way you're always sure that your coffee is freshly ground and brewed.

Some of my favorite coffees were had at Seattle's (I like it better than Starbucks); Bizu (nice coffee, terrific desserts but heart-stoppingly expensive; has anyone else noticed that their desserts are shrinking); UCC and its rival Kohikan (I hope I spelled that right, Kohikan is in Promenade in Greenhills; try their Sumibi coffee); Segafreddo (did i spell that right? great coffee; good food too; super vongole with white wine sauce); Coffee Bean and Cafe Breton also have nice cups; likewise the Nescafe cafes (which contrary to initial expectations, do not serve instant coffees; they do sell bottles of instant coffee, though).

Some my more memorably forgettable cups were at Bo's (in Glorietta, I think it's a Cebuano import, should have stayed in Cebu); Tropical Hut (came with the breakfast, should have left it; come to think of it, all fast food coffees are pretty bad); Chocolate Kiss (see previous post); Dulcinea (black death); Mister Donut (only good thing about it is that it's one of the cheapest cups of brewed coffee around); the Nescafe vending machines (one of the cheapest cups of instant coffees around).

I am pretty ambivalent about Figaro (never liked their barako coffee, I always said there was a good reason why the use of that bean is dying out). Don't really like Starbucks, too (just not that impressed).

Let me know if you know of any other good coffee places; willing to try anyplace once.

Lastly, would like to give a holler to Marketman and Blair Mitch; thanks for leaving your comments. Good to know that there are fellow foodies out their reading my (infrequently updated) blog! Thanks!

I Scream

2005-09-20T09:23:00.000+08:00

For ice cream that is (but you already knew that). Ice cream is definitely one of my favorite desserts; smooth and creamy, cold and sweet, what could be better to cool you down (but if you must know, this is a fallacy, as the high sugar content in ice cream would have the opposite effect).

I go local for my ice cream (mainly because I can't afford to buy the imported stuff on a regular basis). Fruits in Ice Cream was started by former employees of Magnolia; the brand used to be available only via home-based distributors but lately, I have seen it in supermarkets. Strawberry, halo-halo, caramelo, vanilla and dulce the leche are quite good; can't stand the green tea, though.

Newly reissued Magnolia is also another current favorite. The texture is not as nice as FIC but still better than the commercial brands. Flavor choices are limited still, but offhand can recommend the chocolate and the strawberry.

Arce is the old standby; quality remains good and the flavor choices are unique; I do find Arce a bit sweet, though. Most flavors are good; the sherbets (sorbets?) are an excellent fat free choice (although quite heavy on the sugar). Heard good reviews about the atis, but strangely, have yet to try some.

Amici (see previous post) has homemade gelato, which are a welcome alternative to the store-bought brands. There are other gelaterias in the city, but I don't think any comes close to the incredible value you can get at Amici (here's a tip, Amici gelato is also available at Waltermart Pasong Tamo, near the supermarket entrance; curiously, pricing here is cheaper than the main outlet, go figure?!).

Moving to the worst of the bunch, I particularly detest Nestle ice cream. Airy, gummy, and flavorless, this is the ice cream for people who prefer Jello (given the amount of carrageenan in the ice cream). One can use Nestle for science experiments (try watching a scoop of Nestle ice cream melt). I also don't care too much for Selecta; I find it too sweet and too airy (manufacturers whip air into commercial ice cream to bulk up the product).

There are some boutique ice cream that has eluded my tastebuds. I remember reading an article about a brand of homemade ice cream, available only via delivery. Unfortunately, I lost the article and cannot recall the name of the ice cream. All I remember is that is costs about as much as the Haagen Dazs's and the Dreyer's.

Big "Bad" Buddha

2005-09-15T10:11:00.000+08:00

Am recovering from another pretty bad meal from Big Buddha (Superbowl in a devolved incarnation). My past experiences in that hellhole of a restaurant were never good, so it was with a decided lack of anticipation that I ate at that restaurant again after several years. (I was outvoted).

My premonition proved accurate; the best part of the meal was the free kropek and the bottomless soft drink. One can get a far better meal at any panciteria in downtown Manila (Sincerity Cafe is a favorite; make sure you order the oyster cake and the fried chicken). The meal was also pretty expensive (around P300), considering the quality of the meal.

If you ever have a hankering for a Chinese meal, I strongly suggest that you look elsewhere (even Luk Yuen).

Chocolate Kiss

2005-09-08T11:28:00.000+08:00

It was probably nostalgia and fuzzy memories that I (along with hordes of UP alumni) hold Chocolate Kiss (restaurant and bakeshop) in high esteem. So a soon-to-open sign along Roces Ave. was greeted with great anticipation.

I was quick to try out their cake offerings; I would have liked to say that everything (and I tried almost everything) was superb, but I would have been insincere. The truth was Chocolate Kiss was best left a (good/hazy) memory.

The dayap chiffon cake was a study in contrast, a bland cake matched with a bitter dayap filling (due likely to an overzealous zester), topped with an abominable and oversweet boiled white icing (the icing made of whipped egg white and powdered sugar or sugar syrup, more often seen on children's birthday cakes). This icing must be a house specialty as this also tops the Devil's Chocolate Cake (dry, dense and bland). The Kahlua Butter Cake and the carrot cake were forgettable. The Prune Cake was passable, but I do have a soft spot for pruney cakes in general.

All in all, i wouldn't go out of my way to eat cake at Chocolate Kiss Roces. BTW, coffee was swill.

Azzuro

2005-09-05T14:22:00.000+08:00

Tucked away in a side street in Makati, is a restaurant made popular by its incredibly reasonable lunch buffet. For only P195, one gets soup, salad, two main dishes, a vegetable, and a dessert. Have been there twice and food is generally good. I only wish there were more dessert choices, maybe some fresh fruits?

It was on my second visit that I had another episode of lactose intolerance (although I didn't know it was lactose intolerance at the time). I felt really bad about an hour or two after that particular meal; at first, I thought I was poisoned (had nausea, stomach ache, bloat, gas and diarrhea). Then I realized that what I was going through was exactly what I had experienced a few weeks back. At that time, it was an over-indulgence of cheesecake (Hyatt, very good baked cheesecake); at Azzuro, it was the seafood shepherd's pie (very good, not withstanding its ill effects on my digestive system) and the creme brulee (small, but packed with all the good bad stuff).

It seems that most Asians are lactose intolerant (which is an inability to fully digest lactose, the sugar in milk). Lactose intolerance also increases in severity as one ages. So overindulgence plus old age, spells pain and discomfort. There is no cure, except for abstinence, moderation or those enzyme drops. However, all is not lost to the lactose intolerant; most afflicted can tolerate a glass of milk a day. Cheeses, yogurt and ice cream remain within the digestive reach.

Havana

2005-09-05T13:54:00.000+08:00

Cafe Havana was the narrow choice for an office lunch last week; the fact that it was in Greenbelt (near the office) had a big hand in the decision. Expectations were relatively high since good things had been heard about the place.

Food was good; moreso since this was a buffet lunch (in general one walks away from a buffet full but not sated). Choices were quite varied (literally, as the spread took inspiration from several cuisines; this was surprising since one would have expected food from the caribbean; it could be that the breadth of dishes from this area would not have a buffet made, at least a buffet that would sell). I liked the seafood chowder, the appetizers, and the carving, which a particularly crunchy lechon kawali (yum!).

Dessert was simple; a welcome break from the rich dishes which had preceded it. Fresh fruit (including those small, sweet pineapples, mango sago, and an ube cake which the hostess claimed was homemade (maybe but perhaps by the commissary of Red Ribbon).

At P400+, the tab is not unreasonable. Service is tolerable (my standards have dropped considerably; I am resigned with the lousy service in most restaurants).

Amici

2005-08-25T10:14:00.000+08:00

Friends in italian, it's also a nondescript cafeteria (literally) near Don Bosco which serves some of the best pasta and pizza in the city. One would expect no less since the restaurant is run by Salesians of Don Bosco. The restaurant uses mostly imported ingredients from the homeland, thus, food is wonderfully authentic.

For first time visitors, the set up in the restaurant can be a bit confusing. The pasta station is located in the newly built extension (if you are entering from the Pasay Road entrance, this is what you see first). The pizza station used to be a window on the side, near where the pizza ovens are located; but I think they have since relocated the order-taking to the gelato/beverage bar.

Amici makes its own gelato or Italian ice cream (I must admit, when I first started going to the restaurant, the ice cream was the big thing; there was no pizza or pasta station, only the regular cafeteria fare which is still being served today). Wonderfully inexpensive (at least when compared against other gelaterias), the ice cream has a smooth, milky texture; my personal favorites are the strawberry, chocolate chip, hazelnut, and blueberry. Amici also has a scooping station across the street in the new Waltermart along Pasong Tamo.

Parking is non-existent; we usually park at the church or across the street in Makati Cinema Square (or MCS to rabid collectors of less than authentic DVDs). The proximity of the two does make for a rather pleasant lunchbreak.

Java Man

2005-08-25T10:06:00.000+08:00

One of the nicest places to eat in Makati is Java Man in Powerbooks Greenbelt. Anyone who is a foodie and bibliophile, the cafe would be the closest thing to heaven on earth.

The restaurant serves the usual pasta and sandwich fare; but prices are reasonable and portions are large. The panini and the wraps are quite good (particularly the three cheese panini, the spanish sardines panini and the mediterrean shrimp wrap). Seating is a bit of a problem if you get there at the start of the lunchtime rush, but the crowd thins quickly.

Oh, coffee is good too.

Just Desserts

2005-08-17T14:56:00.000+08:00

I love desserts. No meal is complete without some sugar. In fact, I gauge how good any buffet is by the quality and variety of the dessert offered. Nothing can do more to ruin a meal than lousy desserts.

I tend not to like chocolate based desserts. I'd eat the stuff; but if you give me a choice between any chocolate dessert and a cream puff, I'd pick the puff.

I do like fruit desserts; particularly apple pie, which has been a long-time favorite. Which brings us to the rational for this post; I can't seem to find a pie I like. I've tried the Sugarhouse version; it's okay but not what I'm looking for. I want the American (as opposed to the "French") version; basically, a butter-rich double crust pie with lots of apples, flavored with cinnamon, sugar, butter, and good vanilla. If anyone can point me to such a pie, I would be eternally grateful.

Bollywood

2005-08-17T14:49:00.000+08:00

Stumbled onto Bollywood in Greenbelt 3 on one of my walkabouts in that most customer-unfriendly mall. Bollywood is the new Indian restaurant owned/operated by the LJC group (its about time that a new restaurant, any new restaurant opened in the Greenbelt mall; unfortunately, the restaurants in Greenbelt have generally not aged well).

The restaurant has a lunchtime buffet which we tried. The selection was quite good; there were a few that were quite spicy but my lunchmate claims that the heat had been tempered for the Filipino palate. I loved the nan bread, and the chicken masala (which was mild); thumbs up also for the lamb and the vegetable dishes.

A word of warning, though, the immense quantity and the mix of spices may wreak havoc on your digestive system; with potentially disastrous results. I believe this is a result of a lack of acclimatization, which can be remedied by repeated visits to this and similar establishments.

Pricing is a bit high, P395+. Coffee and drinks are not included.