Putting this out there for anyone who wants to read it. :) Hope you like it.
Octopus and Shrimp Ceviche
After a crazy weekend, it's always good to eat fresh at the start of the week. Tucking into this ceviche of pulpo, prawns, roasted peppers, aji amarillo, and citrusy orange notes - found weekends of October at #PatriciosCevicheria (one of our more unique restaurant offerings, I think!) Check it!
Patricio's Cevicheria
28 Bayani Road, BGC, Taguig +632 998 7274
With Chefs Robby Goco, Nicco Santos and JP Anglo
Once in awhile, I am blessed to get lumped with rock star chefs like these.
In this case, I did a shoot for a magazine with these gents: Robby Goco (Cyma, Green Pastures), Nicco Santos (Your Local) & JP Anglo (Sarsa).
Our assignment: cook modern renditions of Pinoy food, incorporating these really killer products from French company Oliviers & Co. - makers of fine olive oils, vinegars, and others - and serve it to this bunch of pretty ladies -- all close friends, and Planaforma instructors. Pressure!
It didn't prove to be too bad, of course - our willing subjects ate well and laughed heartily. To the eyes and ears of cooks, guests who send back empty plates and who sound like they're having fun is pure gold.
Gazpacho y Yulo
I wound up doing a cold soup - I love me some gazpacho - so mine was inspired by "Ensaladang Talong": using the elements of talong, sibuyas, and kamatis -- I made a base of eggplant soup, put in some local mozzarella, heirloom tomatoes tossed in Oliviers & Co. basil olive oil, wing beans, spring onion sprouts and micro tatsoi from Malipayon Farms, and finally a glug of aged Balsamic. Turned out pretty nice if I do say so myself.
Being plugged into the food scene, I hear stuff really fast.
Like when Heston Blumenthal came to Manila and was spotted in Rambla over at Rockwell? (Hold your breath – he was on holidays or a stopover or something) That spread like wild fire and before I knew it I was stalking him. Just kidding.
I first saw Nate Appleman’s pics on JP Anglo’s Instagram feed. “Holy cow,” I thought, “what’s he doing here?”
Nate Appleman
I knew him as the guy behind bustling San Francisco restaurant A16, a gig that led him to win a James Beard Award for Rising Chef. Lately he’s been working for Chipotle, a quick service restaurant that I Love. Yes, with a capital “L”. Of course I was curious what he was doing in Manila! Who wouldn’t be?
So imagine my surprise when I was told I was taking him out one night for dinner (Thanks Ines for hooking us up), and that he had been coming here for over 10 years already (he’s married to an Ilongga from Bacolod.)
I was feeling just a bit pressured because I wanted to feed him well and leave a good first impression. I started to relax the minute I met him. One mustn’t get too star struck with celebrity chefs – after all, celeb chefs are a creation of the media. Most of the time, they’re just like you and me – except way more popular and on TV.
His thoughts on things Manila – things were changing, he could see. And he loved that technologies like Uber were on board here – a sure sign that things were going to become more efficient: all fantastic things to my ears. That says to me that people are watching, and people are interested.
I had planned an evening of restaurant and bar hopping, but as it turns out, this early riser and runner tucked himself in early, so we wound up in the Legaspi Village area.
Hotspot Your Local fed us both with food and with pure buzz, as it was hopping (mind you, this was Wednesday night!). It’s only been my second time to eat there, but it was a place one can easily crush on: the vibe was incredible. My seatmate Mr Nate looked surprised --- he didn’t know places like this existed in Manila. After dinner, off we went to Yardstick next door for a quick coffee and a bit of quiet after YL, and finally a peek at The Curator.
Good times, indeed.
Welcome to my first ever capsule review! Realizing that I DO NOT have to go so deep into a restaurant and write some voluminous review, I’ve come up with this - thus enabling me to put more content on this little blog (hehehe!). I’ve divided it into three parts: The Good, The Bad, and The Swangit.I promise to be concise and meaty. Just like me. :P
Enjoy!
The Good:
I am in agreement with C that the interiors of this place are easily in the top three of all the new wave of ramen joints. It’s classy looking and modern - very Japanese - and I for one am quite the fan of Japanese aesthetics.
The service was good too – the wait staff were attentive without hovering around you, and the orders came really quickly. You can go in and out of here in an hour or even less.
I ordered some Black Garlic Tonkotsu ramen, essentially their house specialty tonkotsu (pork stock) broth with a lashing of roasted garlic oil. Some people don’t get this, and may even find it “bitter”, but I guess it’s a base to base casis. :) I thought it was interesting – tasty even – and was content with it. An extra order of ajitama (soft boiled egg) was sweetish, custardy and properly made, and was a nice contrast to the broth.
Our companion ordered a Spicy Tobanjan Tonkotsu – a tonkotsu base with tobanjan paste, which added an appealing zing of spice and even some acidity. If I ever found myself here again, that’s an order I’d consider.
Their gyoza was a bit of a revelation – it was actually dribbling juices as you munched on it (much like a Shanghainese xiao long bao), as I think excellent gyoza should be. Not too garlic heavy, and crispy skinned, it’s a recommended side to your ramen.
Tori karaage (aka Japanese fried chicken), with a splash of lemon, was relatively grease free, crispy and tender even. I can imagine coming here just for this and some rice.
The Bad:
We also had an order of teriyaki chicken wings. In fairness to the waitress, she confessed they were on the smaller side.
When they arrived, I had to snicker – they were a bit beyond small. They looked like fried toothpicks!
I’m guessing they lopped off most of the meat to make some karaage or whatever other uses for chicken the kitchen had – but still. It wasn’t annoying, really.. it was FUNNY!
And to top if all off – it didn’t taste bad either.
Dual purpose food: teriyaki wing appetizers/toothpicks. There’s an idea for you!
The Swangit:
Well, to be honest the house tonkotsu broth on it’s own was kinda blah. It didn’t have a big punch, considering it was a pork stock that was supposed to be boiled for hours. There was a fishy taste to it (though I do understand that each broth is a different creature, and some do use fish bones or dried shrimp or whatever else to add flavor), which I don’t usually mind, but all in all it just didn’t do it for me (nor for the other two in my table that ordered it.. wrinkly noses and all.) With added seasonings like the roasted garlic oil or the tobanjan paste it amped up, but of course it would be better if the base were already kick ass on its own.
The ugliest thing here, for me, was the noodles. All these new ramen joints are going out of their way to ensure a top notch carb experience – a lot even importing expensive machines just to produce the good stuff. Now I don’t mind if you’re not that hardcore and use packaged noodles or you buy your noodles from elsewhere – as always it’s about managing expectations.
The thing with this place was they bothered to specifically asked you how you wanted your noodles. Immediately I chimed in: “firm please. Al dente.” As did everyone in our table. When the bowls showed up and us hungry peeps started slurping, it was soft and mushy – across the board. I ain’t gonna hate on ‘em for this – maybe it was a mistake.. whatever – but I won’t lie: it’s disappointing, especially since this is supposed to be some Japanese chain who knows their stuff, coming into town at a time when ramen is the hot shit dish of the year. If they continue on like this, they will get left behind. And I would never want that for anyone – it’s a huge undertaking to open a restaurant, much more a specialty restaurant like this.
I would like to root for them to have a steady crowd, but they have stuff going against them. Already I’ve heard many grumblings about their broth and their noodles ---- which to me essentially IS ramen. So, powers that be, please please do something – the ball is in your court.
SM Aura Premier Branch:
2/F SM Aura Premier , McKinley Parkway
McKinley Hill, Taguig
Shangri La Mall Branch:
5th Level, Shangri-la Plaza Mall Shaw Blvd. cor. EDSA, Mandaluyong
Phone Number (+63 2) 477-8333
