OAP: "A Tale of Two Art Cafes in A.Venue"

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Tuesday, September 23, 2008

A Tale of Two Art Cafes in A.Venue

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A.Venue Restaurant Reviews in OAP
Fluke
A Tale of Two Art Cafes in A.Venue
Gasthof - Home of Boracay's Famous Baby Back Ribs!
Burger Avenue's Ridiculous Challenge
Foccacia, A Slice of Italy in A.Venue Mall

I've been checking out A.Venue mall lately and this is one of the places in Makati that is less crowded during lunch or dinner time. I would like to share with you our experience on two of the Art Cafes in A.Venue. Botong's Restobar and Artina Gallery Cafe both feature paintings of different artists as part of their overall ambiance. It is interesting to go there on a regular day or if you just want to get out of the business district crowd.

Artina Gallery Cafe @ A. Venue

Artina claims that their food is based on classic French cooking techniques. The food is more western fusion with salads, pastas, and sandwiches ranging from P150-250 and main entrees from P350-400. Check out --> Artina Gallery Cafe Menu. It tries to recreate a garden type ambiance with the use of heavy iron black chairs and different plant accents. The art gallery display is the main highlight of the resto featuring Artist Jose Guillermo Cristobal Naval's paintings.

Mesclun with Italian Vinaigrette with crisp phyllo-stuffed mushrooms (P190+). We liked this lumpia variation with fresh greens salad.

Trio of Mushrooms with Hint of Fresh Herbs ( P 135+). Too mushroom in taste but this is how we like our mushroom soup.

Risotto with al Funghi with Fragrant Truffle Oil and Shaved Parmigiano (P 220+). You can't go wrong with this risotto with truffle oil. This reminded me of the same dish we enjoyed at Sala.

Classic Beef Pot Roast with Vegetables and Mushroom Jus Lie (P380+). Tender beef cubes with sweet vegetables.

Grilled Salmon Fillet with Citrin Risotto, Pesto Glaze, and Grilled Vegetables (P360+). Our salmon was a bit mushy either because of the way it was cooked or the quality of the salmon meat was not good.

LemonGrass Tea (P70+). Lemongrass tea is quite common these days and it is quite easy to do this. Order this if you are looking for a refreshing drink.

Artina Gallery Cafe
Ground Level, A. Venue Mall
Makati Ave. cor. Juan Luna St.Website: Artina Hotel Suite Website
Phone Number: +632 729-8983

Botong's Restobar @ A.Venue

Botong's Restobar was named after Botong Francisco but the place serves as an exhibit hall for different artists. I don't like the all black theme which includes waiters in black uniform. Botong serves Filipino cuisine that tries to be different by adding a twist to the ingredients (to justify its price perhaps?).
Starters, Appetizer, Soup, Pasta,
Vegetables, Entrees, Desserts, Grill, Sizzling, Dessert, Drinks
Drinks and Wine

Spicy Bulalo Soup (P360+) If you are craving for a spicy bulalo then check this out at Botong's resto cafe.

Pinakbet with Lechon Kawali (P170+)
I arrived from an Ilocos Norte trip when we tried this so it would be unfair to compare this with the Pinakbet with Bagnet (which is way better). I love my pinakbet with huge chunks of crispy meat.

Botong's Restobar has a mezzanine and a third floor (photo above). The black sofa and white walls were intentional to bring out the colors of the paintings.

I asked Aidan what he likes among the paintings and he pointed the UFO paintings.

Botong's Restobar
7829 A.Venue Lifestyle Center
Ground Level, Avenue Mall
Makati Avenue, Makati CIty
Telephone: +632 756-0346
Mobile: +63 918 2380059 (c/o Mayi Mirabueno)

September 23, 2008 in 37. The Best of Makati, Restaurants | Permalink | Save to del.icio.us | Digg This | Email this post

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