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Chefs' Quarters - Malate version of Duo

I'm happy that Robinsons Manila Midtown is bringing a new life to the restaurant scene in Malate. One interesting concept is Chefs' Quarters which offers fine dining at P200-P400 price range.

What do Le Soufflé Restaurant in Makati, French Corner in Alabang, Duo Steakhouse and Wine Bar in Serendra and Chefs' Quarters in Malate have in common? Answer: the tandem of Larry Cortez and Chef Mauro Arjona. They were pioneers of Le Soufflé, worked with Billy King to setup Voulez Vous now French Corner in Alabang before they decided to setup their own restaurant Duo in Serendra and now, their second restaurant, Chefs’ Quarters in Malate.

We love the concept of great service, good food at a casual dining atmosphere. We recommend the breakfast menu and they are open as early as 7am. There are plenty of parking spaces in Robinson's Manila Midtown and we like to hang out here this holiday season to avoid the crowds.

Chefs' Quarter's Menu
Sharing Appetizers, Salads, Soups | Fish Selection, Pasta & Rice Selection, Desserts | Beef, Lamb & Poultry Selection | Breakfast Menu | Snacks and Pica & Pica |(Photo Menu) Breakfast, Pasta and Rice Selection, Beef, Lamb Poultry | Desserts, Fish Selection, Salads, Sharing Appetizers

Pia Y Damaso's Philippine Colonial Cuisine?

Starters, Salads and Sandwiches | Main Courses, Pasta, Noodles & Rice | Dessert & Pastries, Beverages | Coffee, Tea and Chocolate

Bambi Sy-Gobio of Kookie & Luscious expanded her business into restaurant/ cafe with the soft opening of Restaurante Pia y Damaso @ Greenbelt 5. Pia y Damaso specializes on colonial Philippine cuisine inspired by Noli Me Tangere. According to Bambi, the cuisine is called "comido antigo" and it is probably what Damaso ate, Maria Clara was accustomed to, and what Ibarra and the other young accused subversives found comfort in." (I'm really not sure what this means)

Just a brief review of Noli: Kapitan Tiyago married Pia Alba but for 6 years they were not blessed with a baby. They approached Padre Damaso who suggested that they dance in Obando in front of their three patron saints: St. Pascal Baylon, St. Claire and Our Lady of Salambao. Miraculously, Pia concieved a baby. She died while giving birth to Maria Clara who was named after the Obando patron saints. Rumor has it that Padre Damaso was the father of Maria Clara.

After eating in John and Yoko, or Fish Out of Water or Chateau 1771 in Greenbelt 5, go to Pia Y Damaso for desserts! It has a veranda that overlooks the Greenbelt Church. This would be perfect during the Christmas season. BTW, La Maison Brasserie is also open in Greenbelt 5 but we already had a trauma with how lousy the food was when we celebrated my birthday in Trinoma @ La Maison.

John and Yoko - a SumoSam Upscale Resto

John and Yoko is now celebrating its first month of operation at Greenbelt 5. I'm excited to try it out ever since Greenbelt 5 opened. My excitement led to high expectations which were not met when I found out that it was just an upscale version of SumoSam (by Marvin Agustin and business partners). Essentially, it is SumoSam in Greenbelt 5 with additional menu choices (pizzas,etc..), brilliant branding, snazzy interiors and sexy servers. I liked the Japanese movie projected on the wall which adds "authenticity" to its Japanese inspired Filipino Food.

The John and Yoko concept is very good. In reality, John and Yoko is a Filipino Restaurant pretending to be a Cosmopolitan Japanese place. The head chef is Filipino. If I were to describe John and Yoko, it would be: SumoSam + Omakase + Teriyaki Boy + Snazzy Interiors + Sexy Servers = John and Yoko.

I liked the food because it was suited for the Filipino sweet taste buds. But we hate paying for over-priced food. It would be a good place to have a birthday treat or barkada blowout. I would recommend that you go with family and friends because it would be expensive if you eat only with 2-3 people. Expect to pay P500/ head.

Animo Kozui!

Kozui - The legend of an ever flowing aromatic Water
"There is a legend in Japan which tells of a sacred ever flowing fragrant water in a well that comes all the way from Wakasa Obama City, Fukui Perfecture. The legned goes, Jitchu Kasho asked the gods from all parts of Japan to atten the shunie at Todaiji's Nigatsudo. Onyu Myojin of Wakasa arrived late for the gathering, however, because he had been busy fishing. Mayojin deeply regretted his lateness and by way of apology promised to offer kozui (aromatic water) from Wakasa to Nigatsudo's principal image. With those words, a black and white cormorant flew out of a rock in Nigatsudo and kozui fragrant water began to pour forth from the rock."

"To commemorate this legend, Omizutori rite is performed every year. Kosui (aromatic water) is drawn from the Wakasa well in the akaiya, a place within Nigatsudo that contains the temple's sacred wells. The rite is led by 11 torchbearers and when the water is drawn, a blare of conch shells resound to announces the services climax."

Kozui Menu
Healthy Sandwiches and Soup | Soup and Fresh Fita Wraps | Fresh Japanese Salad | Japanese Eats | Chilled Asian Noodle Salads | Donburi Rice Bowls | Hummus and Soba

Beverages and Dessert Menu
Kozui's Eight Premium Green Tea | Lemon Green Teaz | Kozui Tea Latte | Fruit Blend Korichio | Matcha Cream Korichio | Fruit Teaz | Anmitsu | Fresh Ice Cream

Related Post: The Temple for Tea Lovers by Lori

Kozui Green Tea deserves all the raves it is getting these days from all the foodies. I must admit our drive to Tomas Morato from Malate was all worth it. I have to commend Kozui for the great marketing of its equity "healthy and green tea." All the Japanese fusion food you choose from its menu is worth raving about. Best of all, it is a locally conceptualize Japanese tea cafe by Anthony So that can beat Coffee Tea Leaf and can be as popular as Starbucks given the right investments.

I guess the best things in life are colored GREEN :) Animo Kozui!!

Haagen Dazs Fondue in SM Mall of Asia!

Fondue. (P760 net) Haagen Dazs Original. Perfect for sharing with that special someone. Luscious fondue scoops -- Choc Choc Chip, Coffee, Macadamia Nut, Strawberry ice cream served with slices of fresh seasonal fruits, crunchy nuts and baked pastries, accompanied by a warm pot of rich chocolate sauce.

We were patiently waiting for the opening of the first company owned Haagen Dazs ice cream store in SM Mall of Asia. It finally opened to the public last November 11, Sunday. We saw the Haagen Dazs promotion from Circuit Magazine where the first 5 person who will present the October issue would get a free Fondue! (When we ate yesterday, we were the second to redeem it)

Unfortunately, it was not yet available on its opening day so we had to go back again with Aidan to enjoy our Fondue. We let Aidan visit us in the hospital to see syoti Josh because he was already wondering where we were after sleeping for two straight nights without his parents. After the visit, I surprised Aidan with a Haagen Dazs fondue in SM Mall of Asia.

What makes this Haagen Dazs MOA Store special? Rumor has it that the Haagen Dazs company was not happy with the current franchisee of Haagen Dazs so they decided to bring the overall brand experience to life themselves. Most of the interior design elements are imported and the menu is one of the finest menu I have ever seen.

The MOA store is the only Haagen Dazs store which offers a medley of ice creations in its distinctive collections:
Haagen Dazs Original -- introduces you to our iconic creations offering unique ways of experiencing the perfect Haagen Daz moment. Fondue is part of this Original collection.
Ultimate Indulgence Creations -- a perfect combination of the rich and creamy ice cream with scrumptious pastries
Pure Pleasure Creations -- brings recipes the features harmonious combinations of ice cream flavors with various sauces and toppings.

This is my perfect Haagen Dazs moment: Dipping the Haagen Dazs ice cream balls in the hot Calebaut Belgian Chocolate dip, then letting the chocolate solidifies before eating the entire chocolate covered ice cream!

The only thing is, it costs P760 for the fondue set and it would be perfect for a group of 6. The fondue comes with seasonal fruits like apple, strawberries and bananas. It also comes with pastries baked from Betty Crocket recipes.

Fish Out of Water, First @ Greenbelt 5

"Fish Out of Water is Red Crab's venture into a more sophisticated seafood dining experience. But more than that, it is our small way of paying tribute to a nation of voyagers and conquerors. It is our way of saluting how great people from a small nation can embrace and champion global colors, flavors, cultures and ways of lives."

The concept of this pioneering restaurant in Greenbelt 5 was quite admirable. It is a tribute to Filipinos who were very successful outside the Philippines and brought pride to our country. All of us have our own fish-out-of-water stories of our balikbayan relatives. Like the story of my brother, Lorenz who is a successful SAP consultant in the U.S. and met his lovely wife, Carmina in Singles for Christ in LA. This is a positive look at Filipinos who chose to migrate in the outside the Philippines in search of a better future.

The restaurant is a high-end version of Red Crab with a simple well lighted ambiance, wavy ceiling and a kitchen with circle windows that resembled those in the submarine. The service crew was friendly and you can easily feel at home despite its modern ambiance.

The food is a fusion of Kapampangan and European/ Mediterranean cuisine. I must admit, it was an interesting mix and the concept works. We ate on the first day of their opening and the appetizers, entrees were quite good. We ordered the Set Menu for lunch (because their ala carte was not yet available) which were reasonably priced for a 5-course meal with a serving size that may be good for two people.

Fish Out of Water Menu
Appetizers | Oysters, Soups and Salads | Entrees | Entrees and Kids Menu | Deserts and Beverages | Beverages and Wine | Set Menu

Fish Out of Water Stories. We don't know most of these stories and thanks to Red Crab for immortalizing these stories in the restaurant. Do you have your own Fish-out-of-water story?

Manila Men - First Filipinos in America
Enrique - First Around the Globe
Lilia Clemente - Wonder Woman of Wall Street
Carlos Bulosan - Foremost Novelist of the Fil-Am Experience
Vicky Manalo Draves - Two Time Olympic Gold Winner
Pancho Villa - First Asian World Flyweight Boxing Champion
Jose Aruego - Well -loved Children's Book Illustrator
Pacita Abad - Ivatan Gypsy Artist
Byron Acohido & Alex Tizon - Pulitzer Prize Winning Journalists
Peter Aduja - First High-Ranking US Public Official
Cristeta Comerford - Toque of the Town

Sala's Makati Reincarnation

As we bid goodbye to Lumiere, we welcome Sala to Makati which replaced Lumiere in its Locsin Bldg location. Most Filipinos think that the move of Sala from Malate to Makati marks the death of Malate as a happening place. Sala was the longest running fine dining restaurant in Malate. The death of Malate would be a blog topic I would like to discuss in a separate post (let me know if you have opinions on this) .

Sala opens two restaurant in Makati. The fine dining restaurant is located in the Locsin Bldg near PLDT along Makati Ave. while the Sala Bistro will open soon at Greenbelt in the former location of Global Cafe. I can't wait for the Bistro to open because this is where they will have their Sunday Champagne Jazz Brunch.

Swiss Chef Colin Mackay runs the fine dining restaurant with a few partners. They are only open for lunch and dinner on weekdays and only dinner on Saturdays. The menu changes occasionally based on the available freshest ingredients:

Sala Main Menu (Changes Occasionally)
Wine List Page 1 and Page 2
After Dinner... a few single malts
Dessert Menu
Executive Lunch Menu

We celebrated Rache's birthday last October 1 in Sala. Be prepared with a budget of P1,000/ head for food and a few more for wine. When we arrived, we saw a lot of foreigners and the place was full on a Monday night. We told Aidan to behave because some people don't appreciate children running around in a fine dining restaurant. It was a special night for a special lady, so Sala was a special place to celebrate it.

The only thing with Sala is that the place is "cold". You don't get the warm welcome feeling from a fine dining restaurant. I told them that we are celebrating my wife's birthday and they don't even give anything special for it. Not even a candle for our dessert. The prices seemed to be high intentionally to screen out people who cannot afford from the people who belongs to their target market. Maybe that is why my food shots were uninspired and a little pinkish violet....

Opus Restobar, Metrowalk

I got interviewed in the Living it Up show on Qtv with Raymond Gutierrez and they showed me a list of restaurants that they will feature in that episode. I got curious with one resto in the list called Opus restobar owned by Danielle Lee. This newly opened restobar located in Metrowalk serves Filipino Fusion Food which reminded me of Filos kind of dishes in the Fort area. We wasted no time to check the place out.

The verdict, the Filipino dishes are something worth driving for all the way to Metrowalk. However, the entire place is a smoking area. If you eat here, you'll smell like smoke after. I thought it was illegal to have an entire air conditioned place to be a smoking area but apparently these kind of places are starting to come back. The food is highly recommended but the place is not your ideal place to bring a date or your family (who doesn't smoke). Good thing is you can eat in one of the Metrowalk restaurants and you can order food from Opus and they will deliver it to you. Our compliments to Chef Blanche Pontiveros for the excellent Filipino fusion dishes.