OUR AWESOME PLANET

Top 10 Awesome Restaurants of the Philippines

More than just serving gourmet food and the right ambiance, these restaurants take the overall dining experience to a higher level
Sunday Inquirer Magazine (September 16, 2007)

What makes restaurants awesome? One would say as long as it serves great food. However, “great food” is subjective and it varies with each person's experience and background. To be considered awesome, restaurants have to take the food and overall dining experience to a higher level. Food that leaves an indelible mark in your taste buds, experience that imprints lasting memories in your mind, and ambiance that carves a special place in one's heart for you to share it with every person that you meet.

Each restaurant is carefully chosen to be prestigiously included in this list. Each one serves gourmet food with the freshest ingredients. It combines nature elements, artifacts or a sense of history in its overall ambiance. Simply, these restaurants have a story to tell which spreads out via word-of-mouth. I can proudly say that you can only find these restaurants ONLY in the Philippines.

KUBLI SPRINGS @ KINABUHAYAN CAFé, DOLORES, QUEZON

The road to Kubli Springs is literally a road less traveled where you'll be glad you decided not to drive your sedan car. Flashlights, candles, mobile phones, and the moon are the only source of light. Occasionally, they would put up Christmas lights connected to portable battery source to make the place special. You will find yourself in the middle of the forest, with boulders as your neighbor. The spring water flows through your feet as you look up and appreciate a clear black sky with twinkling dots. You sit on rocks and make shift benches as you smell the steak grilled on the spot. Ah, this is the perfect time to play the acoustic guitar and sing with the barkada without shame and the fear of disturbing anybody.

For P500/ person, you get fresh salad with flowers, grilled steak, Jay's special rice and fruit platter. The meal ends with friendly Lambanog and special roast of Barako coffee. Water is served from a bamboo "faucet" with mineral water coming from the mountains. Drinking and taking a bath from fresh mineral water is one unique experience. Your dining experience is a mixed emotion of satisfaction, fear, and happiness. Somehow, you wished the night will never end.

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Kinabuhayan Cafe Bed and Breakfast
Tel (042) 565 6828
Jay +63 917 368 0054
Winston +63 917 327 1106

ANTONIO'S, TAGAYTAY

You'll get excited every time you enter the entrance doors of Antonio's. It is like entering a magical portal to a world where any of the food you choose is something worth raving about. The service feels like you are in a six-star hotel where you don't have to worry about anything. Even going to the restroom is a chance to appreciate nature and its beauty. The positive energy in the place encourages conversation and it bears witness to thousands of memorable life stories.

You don't mind waiting for your food because you know that it is being prepared to perfection. The real flavor of the meat and ingredients stands out without any of the sauce overpowering its taste. Any of the wine selections seems to match with the food that you order. My favorite in Antonio's includes the Salad with Foie Gras, the steaks or sea bass dish, and the soufflé dessert to end the night. I envisioned our silver marriage anniversary to be held in Antonio's because of the food, service and its garden.

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Antonio's
Mobile No.: +63917-899-2866

UGU BIGYAN, TIAONG, QUEZON

It still continues to be a secret place in the Tiaong area because Ugu never advertises the place. There are no road signs that points you to it and even their neighbors never realized that such place exist. One of the amazing things about Ugu's Pottery Garden Restaurant is that the entire place is a labor of love of the entire family. They designed everything from the huts, layout of the garden, the pottery designs, and its food concept.

Ugu is known for his dishes namely, Kulawo and Lato. Kulawo is charcoal grilled banana heart with a smokey flavor taste and it taste like Tuna while Lato is seaweed in vinegar. Both are traditional Filipino dishes that you seldom find in Metro Manila. It is home cooked Filipino food artistically presented and served in Ugu Bigyan's signature pottery. I do hope it remains to be a secret.

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Ugu Bigyan
Address: 490 Alvarez Village , Brgy Lusacan, Tiaong, Quezon
Telefax: +63 42 545-9144
Manila #: +632 250-8416

ISLA NABUROT, GUIMARAS

Isla Naburot resort is like wine – the older it is the more exotic it becomes. Electricity is supplied by solar panels that can only support the incandescent bulbs in the room. Your mobile phone will be lucky to survive after one day because there are no charging stations nearby. All you have to do is swim in the clean beach, play sunka, and spend quality time with the family.

The main attraction is doing nothing and eating gourmet Filipino dishes prepared the traditional way. Fresh seafoods are patiently grilled in a way that their natural juices are kept intact inside the meat. You enjoy each meal with home made sinamak vinegar. Fruits are abundant specially the famous Guimaras mangoes. The taste of the food is enhanced by the fresh air environment and by the love of the people cooking it. It is a foodie heaven and I can’t wait to go back this summer.

Isla Naburot
Mobile #: Ana +63920-9275372

LA COCINA de TITA MONING’S, MANILA

As you enter the gates of this old mansion, you can't help but be transported back to the Old Rich ambiance in the Malacanang area. You are welcomed with drinks and pica pica in the patio before starting with the mini-tour of the mansion. You'll be fascinated with the antiques and the old-fashioned design of the living room, bedroom and especially, the bathroom. The dining area is small enough for a big group to easily dominate with their presence and laughter.

It is a treat to enjoy Spanish food cooked from recipes handed down from generations. You will leave La Cocina raving about its paella and its bread pudding. The former could rival the paella’s in Manila’s Spanish restaurants. The latter tastes like milk bread leche flan that melts in your mouth. The service is slow but sure. What is important is that they serve you with a smile and put every effort to make the experience memorable. I never forgot our La Cocina experience ever since January 2005.

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La Cocina
Address: 315 San Rafael Street, San Miguel, Manila Philippines
Telephone Number: (632) 734-2141, 734-2146
Mobile #: (63917) 538-3490

Avenue Q High

Avenue Q - Final Run June 2008. 5 Reasons Why You Should Not Miss the Opening Night of Avenue Q’s Final Run!

I'm still on an Avenue Q high after watching the final dress rehearsals of Avenue Q last night at RCBC. This is the best musical broadway show that I've ever seen since Rent in Manila. They used puppets creatively where you can see the puppeteer holding it. For some reason, it was able to create an illusion where the voice of the actors can be heard coming out of the puppet and their facial expressions were mimic by the puppets. (Or was it the other way around?).

I thought that the show would be offensive because of the vulgar language, the full puppet nudity, and graphic sex scenes. It turns out to be a hilarious and fun show. It has the dramatic theme and vocal prowess of Rent with a Bubble-Gang-like spoof of Sesame Street.

It was a Rachel Alejandro show where she played two totally opposite characters of the virgin Kate Monster and Lucy the Slut. What surprised us most was not her singing prowess (which was expected), but how she was able to bring Kate Monster and Lucy the Slut to life with her facial expressions and body movements. In the bed scene of Kate Monster and Princeton (played by Felix Rivera), I saw Rachel really having fun with the way they were playing out the puppet scene. I can still remember the small boobs of Kate Monster and the funny sound that they were making. I've been listening to the Avenue Q songs for a month now, and Rachel nailed the Kate Monster part and she was able to capture the audience with the allure of Lucy the Slut.

Aiza Sequerra was brilliant in her performance of Gary Coleman. She has a striking similarity with Gary since she was also a childstar. We were all amazed at the clarity of Aiza's voice. Aiza's best moment is when she sang Schadenfreude (pronounced as Shahd-en-froy-de) which means German for happiness in the misfortune of others. I think most Filipinos would be able to relate to this term when you mention Malu Fernandez.

You should never miss Joel Trinidad and Trekkie Monster's Internet is For Porn sequence. Everybody was laughing in the audience and you can see the different kind of laugh coming from the male in the audience. You don't know if they are laughing because of Trekkie's "choreography" or if it hits a nerve somehow. Now we know why Trekkie who spoofs Oscar the grouch in Sesame Street is always in the trash can and gets grouchy whenever he is interrupted.

Frenchie Dy plays the funny Christmas Eve. Despite the fact that she sometimes forget that she should be Japanese (instead of Chinese), she still nailed the part because of how well she delivers her songs and her funny accent and look. We love you Frenchie and you should see her in her outrageous wedding dress.

The last memorable sequence for me is the Rod and Nicky's "Fantasies come true". Just replaced Rod and Nicky with Ernie and Bert and you'll be dying laughing about this bed dream sequence. Rod was played by Felix Rivera and Nicky was played by Joel Trinidad. Bravo!

The final scene where the entire cast sang "For Now", gives me a Rent like chill. The message of the song "Everthing in Life is only For Now" hits me like the "No Day But Today" theme of Rent. You should see Rachel Alejandro acts out Kate Monster and Lucy the Slut one after another by holding the puppets at the same time. I'm amazed on how she can switch with such ease and fun.

Fantastic show. There are only 12 performances starting tonight September 7 until September 23 in RCBC Auditorium.

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Swagat - The Best Indian Food That Filipinos Would Love

As you enter Swagat, it felt like entering into a dining room in a suburban Indian home with Indian decorations and matching indian music to complete the ambiance. How would you know that it is Indian? It felt like it, and Komal with husband Sanjay Khanchandani would make you feel welcome to their home. Swagat means welcome in Hindi.

This place should be called Indian Gourmet because of the fresh and home made ingredients Komal used for the dishes. She makes her own masalas which is "an intricate combination of freshly ground spices and herbs, each combination devised to suit a particular dish." (source: About Swagat). She makes her own yogurt, paneer (cheese) and bakes her own breads. She cooks all the meal herself in Swagat where you can feel how "clean" the food is. Clean in the sense that it is not greasy, the ingredients are not overpowering one another, and you can taste the spices without any unwanted flavorings like MSG.

Swagat deserves the reputation it earned from the foodie community that it is the best authentic Indian Restaurant in Makati today. The best part is, it is affordable with most dishes in the less than P200 range not to mention it is situated at the heart of Legaspi Village in Makati.

If you have not eaten in Swagat, you should try it because it serves the type of Indian food that Filipinos would love.