ANTONIO'S

4.85 out of 5 stars

It's strange that I wouldn't write about one of the top 3 restaurants that comes off the top of my head. Of how the sprawling "Spanish hacienda"-esque property reminds you of the olden days where love came in the form of prose on parchment and serenaded melodies. Where you'd drown yourself in the huge red velvet chairs, watching the sunset from the balcony overlooking the Tagaytay landscape. A place where a violin quartet wouldn't feel out of place. Yes, Antonio's has never lost its feel for romance and good food all these years. Chef and proprietor Antonio Agustin “Tony Boy” Escalante has done a great job in building up Antonio's to be a world-class restaurant, as evidenced by placing a spot in the Miele's Guide TWICE.

lower dining area

Apart from its unique and swoon-worthy setting, it is known for its set meal, which includes the House Salad, Soup of the Day, Sorbet, Entree, Dessert and Coffee or Tea. The choice of entree will determine the price of the meal, with an additional charge for appetizers ordered. It has expanded its menu to include over 20 entrees and a full page of the same number of appetizers. Martin and I decided on sharing the Steamed & Nori Wrapped Tempura Scallop, Lemon Confit (250 PhP) appetizer, while he had the Antonio's Trio (1,900 PhP) of beef, lamb and cod and I had the Barbecue Lamb Cutlets with Garlic Risoni (1,650 PhP).

upper dining area

The appetizer only whetted out appetites. It contained two huge pieces of scallop. The steamed scallop was perfectly cooked to a tender texture, giving in to the thrust of a fork, and holding its own own flavor to the tart lemon confit and chiffonade fried spinach garnish. The stark contrast of the nori-encrusted tempura scallop goes to show the various ways of cooking the same ingredient. It was leaner, meatier and was a good accompaniment to the light cilantro pesto sauce. Considering I'm not a fan of cilantro, I nevertheless enjoyed the sauce and didn't leave a drop of it on the plate!

Steamed & Nori Wrapped Tempura Scallop, Lemon Confit (250 PhP)

The salad was a delight, made fresh from their own organic vegetable farm. The mix of arugula and spinach burst with flavor from dried blueberries, radish, walnuts, beet slices and bleu cheese drizzled with a sweet raspberry vinaigrette. This was followed by a robust white onion soup, very thick and foamy and drizzled with olive oil and herbs. I didn't even have the chance to take a picture of the green mango sorbet, it was finished in a matter of seconds!

House Salad

White Onion Soup

The Antonio's Trio (1,900 PhP) was composed of Beef Fillet on Plancha with Black Pepper Sauce, Barbecue Lamb Medallion with Garlic Risoni and Crispy Cod Glazed with Kombu Sauce on Peppered Egg Noodles. Our least favorite was the Beef Fillet. It was actually quite cold and tough around the edges. By far, the best sampler was the Crispy Cod. It's crispy, but did not fall apart and wasn't too oily. The sampler dishes were small (each could probably be finished in three big bites), so it was surprising how Martin was full when he finished his platter.

Antonio's Trio (1,900 PhP)

My Barbecued Lamb Cutlets was good, but I preferred it less glazed over with oil. To be fair, it was very tender and filling with a sweet tangy barbecue sauce. I didn't have room to finish the yummy risoni pasta or the side of buttered cauliflower and broccoli.

Barbecue Lamb Cutlets with Garlic Risoni (1,650 PhP)

Too bad I didn't leave room for the panna cotta. It was a lovely dessert, using real vanilla bean generously peppered around the cream. It quivered to the touch of my dessert spoon, and was lined with a chocolate and caramel sauce. Martin's dessert was an sorbet assortment of local fruits, namely guava, mango and calamansi. It was wonderfully light and refreshing, and unlike me, he finished the whole thing in minutes.

Panna Cotta with Chocolate and Caramel Sauce

Sorbet Mix

All in all, we enjoyed our dinner in Antonio's. Although I enjoyed my first few visits a little more than this one, I can say that the restaurant has been consistent with delivering food and service above par. It is worth noting that the service was faultless, dishes coming in and out unobtrusively, waiters being called with the slightest wave of a hand and they'd easily customize food to your request. Truly, nothing is more ideal than to celebrate a special occasion with an out-of-town trip to Tagaytay, then, of course, having dinner in Antonio's. If you're one of the few that haven't checked this place out, isn't it about time that you give yourself this gastronomic treat?

Menu. Click to Magnify












Antonio's
Barangay Neogan
Tagaytay City, Cavite
(0918) 899-2866
Su, M, T, W, Th, F, Sa: 7:00 am - 9:00 pm

AUBERGINE

My friend told me of this good restaurant in Fort that was connected with a cooking school. I immediately thought Aubergine and led him towards that direction, not knowing that he meant another place! He was too nice to change course, and told me that we should eat there instead, since I’ve been raving about it from here to there. I assured him that Aubergine’s an excellent dinner bet for his first time, and another awesome thing about it is that its kitchen closes at 10pm, later than your usual fine dining.

I don’t know what else there is to say about this, considering that I’ve worshipped this place since it opened and have written about it on occasion. We were quick to decide on what to eat, my friend choosing the Wagyu beef tri tip, while I chose the fish wrapped in bacon with tomato fondue and ravioli (both around 1,200+ PhP). Service was quick and faultless; we were only around 6 customers at that time. On a side note, I’ve noticed that the prices have gone up (The beef tri tip used to be below 1,000 PhP) and that the menu changes at a crawling pace. I guess they have every right to charge an extra premium for such a bustling business, but hopefully they could overhaul some of the dishes instead of change a few of the ingredients of the same order and call it a different thing.

The fish was full of intense and flavorful flavors coming from the rich saffron cream-based sauce, tomato fondue and bacon. I wanted to eat everything and sop up all the sauce with my ravioli, but I stopped myself since my friend didn’t eat his vegetables nor the foie gras. However, I voluntarily didn’t finish my amuse bouche since I found the Brie mousse too sour. Not even the cherry sauce could save it. Below are pictures of our meal.

Sadly, we didn’t have free macaroons or chocolate truffles to close off our meal like we used to. But nevertheless, I still love this place, and would recommend this restaurant to anyone for a truly fine dining experience.

AUBERGINE
beside HSBC, across S&R
32nd and 5th Building
5th Avenue cor. 32nd Street
Fort Bonifacio 1634 Taguig
Philippines
(02) 856-9888
Su, M, T, W, Th, F, Sa: 11:00 am - 2:00 pm
Su, Su, M, T, W, Th, F, Sa: 6:00 pm - 11:00 pm

*Be sure to reserve before dining.

SINN'S

4.5 out of 5 stars

Sinn’s is named after the proprietor of the restaurant, Tomas Sinn, who is also the owner of another award-winning restaurant, Blue Danube. This restaurant is located at the new trendy Wembley Square Centre, where it takes the elegance of fine dining and makes it more approachable by offering affordable prices and professional, friendly service. It actually reminds me of Serendra or Bonifacio High Street Area, where it is newer, smaller and a little more edgy as compared to the VA Waterfront of Cape Town that could be likened to Greenbelt. The concept behind this restaurant is to have it capture the ambience of an upmarket inner city hotspot. It was very successful because of its location, where Wembley Square is located within an industrial site, sort of like NY’s meatpacking district, as well as its interiors with its geometric light fixtures, metal columns and walls layered with wood, mirror and slate.

Interiors

When at Sinn’s, one should also try the Sbar (adjoining the restaurant), where this cocktail lounge offers tapas style snacks and a wide range of classic cocktails and boutique style wines. After your delicious meal, one can go to Sinn’s Deli beside the Sbar, where you can get fresh bread or tapenades to bring home to your loved ones. They also do they do free wine tastings here every Friday from 5-8pm.

Sbar

We started with a Rocket Salad with Crispy Bacon and Pecorino (R 65 / 387.89 PhP). The salad was really tasty, tossed with a light vinaigrette dressing, as well as generous amounts of bacon, pecorino shavings, herbed croutons, cherry tomato halves and alfalfa sprouts. Their alfalfa sprouts look different from ours since the seeded ends are dark, but the taste is very much the same. Rocket leaves are basically arugula, so it is very spicy and nutty and are great raw as salad leaves. Overall though, I think what made this dish delicious was the addition of bacon and cheese. You can’t really go wrong with that, and adding these to a nutritious salad makes the salad more than just tolerable, but enjoyable.

Rocket Salad with Crispy Bacon and Pecorino (R 65 / 387.89 PhP)

For main, we had two Grilled Prawns (R 99 / 590.78 PhP), Fillet of Salmon (R 119 / 710.13 PhP) and Prime Aged Karan Beef Sirloin (R 99 / 590.78 PhP). All were beautifully decorated, but the Grilled Prawns were the least attractive, even if it did have an interesting flavor. Taking from Indian influence, it was basically eight prawns served with a light curry sauce and curried basmati rice. It tasted better than it looked, though, and was very light and healthy, where the shrimps did not drown in the rich yellow curry sauce.

Grilled Prawns (R 99 / 590.78 PhP)

The Fillet of Salmon was grilled to perfection and served on a whole grain mustard mash and Hollandaise sauce. It was decorated with the same black sesame lavash as in the prawns, forest mushrooms, beet chips and a protea flower, Africa’s national flower. This dish may be even more luscious and fatty than the prawns, as the hollandaise was poured all over the base of the plate.

Fillet of Salmon (R 119 / 710.13 PhP)

I liked my Prime Aged Karan Beef Sirloin the best. You had a choice of rösti (German/Austrian potato patties) or French fries and a selection of these sauces: wild porcini mushroom, Dijon mustard, garlic butter or red wine. I chose the rösti with red wine sauce. Karan beef is basically an integrated beef production organisation in Africa, much like America’s USDA. The steak was juicy medium well, and sopped up the red wine sauce beautifully. It came with a side of porcini mushrooms, 3 rösti patties and a whole grilled onion. The meaty taste of the steak, with the creamy mushroom side order, piquant flavor of the red wine and the sweetness of the onion woke up all the taste sensations in my mouth. Not only was there a good flavor explosion but also a combination of texture, with a thoughtful touch of crispy string sweet potatoes on top as garnish.

Prime Aged Karan Beef Sirloin (R 99 / 590.78 PhP)

Sinn’s is not only a great dive to eat in, but is also cool to be seen in. I would head back to this restaurant in a heartbeat next time I’d take a trip to Cape Town!

Menu. Click below to magnify.


















Wembley Square
McKenzie Street
Gardens
8001
Cape Town, South Africa
Open from 9 am to 11 pm

UPDATE

Aubergine 4.8 - 5 stars

I need not describe Aubergine yet again because of my last review on it, which was already quite exhaustive (to read/reread the previous Aubergine entry, click here). Needless to say, in my next visits here (three, to be in fact), it has remained consistent in providing excellent meals and service. Although there may be others who disagree, I prefer to stick to visits I personally experienced (which, fortunately for me, have been all good). Of course, everyone is free to voice out their own opinions, and I would gladly message any replies that would need my response.

I'll only talk of my most recent visit, because this was the only time I brought out a camera, and I still remember the taste quite vividly. In the next resto reviews to come, I may be inaccurate with the details because the restos waiting to be reviewed have been sitting on a backburner due to the heavy load of my "day job." If only I could do this for a living, I'd be in foodie heaven! *wishful thinking* But enough of my rambling, and back to Aubergine.

When my friend, Anna, and I went to the resto on a Saturday night, the place was packed. I forgot to reserve, which is why we got the bar tables near the chef's window. Even if we were on high chairs and tables, we didn't mind since it wasn't so uncomfortable, plus we got an unobstructed view of the kitchen where you can see the ISCAHM people prepare your food in front of you. (see pic to the upper left)

The complimentary bread and creamed butter was the same as before, as they served it with their signature mascarpone cheese and eggplant spread (that looked like pate, but tasted way better). The bread was kind of tough, though.

Our amuse bouche (the chef's gustatory calling card) for that evening was a breaded fried vegetable ball. Even if it sounded strange, your misgivings would be dispelled when you eat that tiny morsel. I wasn't really sure what vegetable it was, but the flavors were so intense, and I loved scooping it up from its bed of diced cucumber with mint and yogurt, dotted with tomato coulis.

The menu has been modified somewhat, and I guess some of the prices have also gone up because they can afford to do so at this time. The favorites have stayed on the menu, starting with the duck confit (760 now 850 PhP), the Wagyu beef tri tip (980 now 1,100 PhP), the Chilean sea bass (980 now 1,100 PhP) and the baked pesto and horseradish encrusted lapu-lapu (660 now 720 PhP). They've replaced the grilled tuna steak nicoise with coriander and ginger flavored tuna steak, the gindara with lobster tail and fried scallops and the over-roasted chicken with US Cornish game hen, to name a few. Since I've tried all of the regulars but the confit, I chose that dish, while my friend Anna picked the US Cornish game hen.

The food took awhile, and the staff were quick to apologize for its lateness due to the heavy crowd of customers. It's a good thing we weren't ravenous, and kept up our heavy banter of conversation since I haven't met up with her since her side trip to France.

We weren't disappointed with the wait, as our food came to with a grand flourish. The presentation took our breath away, and I have always marveled at their intricate presentation. Anna's US Cornish game hen two ways (690 PhP) is an oven roasted leg stuffed with mushrooms and foie gras and grilled breast served on sauteed spinach, rosemary flavored potato gratin and Grand Marnier jus. I didn't get to taste her chicken, though she was raving about its flavor, being cooked two different ways. I did get to try her gratin, which was flavored in rosemary, and gave that wonderful je ne sais quoi, the delicate aftertaste of the herb lingering in the back of your tongue past the cream, cheese and potatoes. It went well with everything, even dipped in froth and the Grand Marnier jus, blending acid and starch in a merry mix of savory flavors.

US Cornish game hen two ways (690 PhP)

My French Duck Confit (850 PhP) was served with creamed brussel sprouts and parsley marbled potatoes. Confit is a cooking method that renders the duck in its own fat (considering that duck is pretty fatty anyways), and they cooked the duck to perfection. The skin was even and crispy, and the meat was so succulent, that I couldn't stop eating. The food even made me stop talking, which is quite a feat for a chatterbox like me. I also loved the brussel sprouts, and how it didn't taste bitter as I normally expect it to be....but hey, it was creamed, so you can mask a lot of unwanted flavors that way, I guess. However, I found the potatoes too sparse, as well as the duck's own jus, with the cream overpowering the rest of the flavors. They also seem to decorate most of their dishes with the same technique to the foam, which may be novel in some but not all the dishes.

French Duck Confit (850 PhP)

Even with that critique, I loved my food, and it won't stop me from going back here again when they have a menu overhaul. The service was top-notch, and I was even embarrassed that Chef Schallenberg asked on how our food was during two "extenuating" circumstances --- one, I was mid-conversation with a client on the phone, and the next I was chewing on a mouthful of duck! I had to garble out a "delicious" and really, it wasn't just lip service.

complimentary pralines

click to magnify MENU. Degustacion to the right.

AUBERGINE
beside HSBC, across S&R
32nd and 5th Building
5th Avenue cor. 32nd Street
Fort Bonifacio 1634 Taguig
Philippines
(02) 856-9888
Su, M, T, W, Th, F, Sa: 11:00 am - 2:00 pm
Su, Su, M, T, W, Th, F, Sa: 6:00 pm - 11:00 pm

*Be sure to reserve before dining.

RED and ELBERT'S STEAKROOM

Elbert's 4.5 stars
Red 5 stars

Think of the top 5 upscale restos in Manila, and you're bound to hear either "Red" or "Elbert's Steakroom." I just happened to join these two because they both specialize in steak, and they're both fantastic date places in different ways. Let's compare and contrast (I know it's a redundant phrase, i know, hehe) these two, since a lot of bloggers have already done their own reviews on it, to wit:

Elbert's
http://www.ourawesomeplanet.com/awesome/2007/08/elberts-steak-r.html
http://sillingtonhouse.blogspot.com/2007/11/elberts-steak-room-dont-judge.html

Red
http://dessertcomesfirst.com/?p=120
http://allanko.com/2008/08/11/red-makati-shangrila.aspx

1. The Ambience

RED
Red conjures up wide, modern spaces, with high ceilings and wall-to-ceiling glass windows giving a spectacular view of a meticulously maintained tropical garden. Everything is in white, and kept to a bare minimum, from the walls, to the tables, linen and plates. It serves as a contrast to the bold red carpeted pathway and high chairs that aren't only beautiful to look at, but also so comfy to sit in. Certainly, apart from its obvious red theme, this place is the perfect canvas for rich colors brought to life by its food.

view from the bar area
(c/o Allanko)

the lobby

interiors at day

my family being seated

ELBERT'S
The first thing that comes to mind even before entering this place is their intention to make it obscure, much like an exclusive gentleman's club. The steak room is housed in this dingy old building, where you have to walk three flights of stairs to reach it. The first time I ate here was with my family, and my parents were almost going to walk back down because they started to have doubts about its existence upon trodding on the second floor. But just when you think that you made a mistake, an entire red wall opens to this small, secret room. Albeit its lack of square feet, it is spacious enough to sit 15-20 comfortably. It is literally a room, but the interiors are so rich, from the ornate leather chairs and chandeliers, to the wooden paneling of everything that they can make into wood (ceilings, floors, cabinets, you name it). Since this place already has its own stock of wines to complement the steak, the only thing lacking to truly make it a "man's" room would be a cigar area to lounge in.

Red wall from the outside
(c/o Anton)

Gentleman's Club interiors

Bar Area

my family in the inside corner table

2. The Food

RED
In general, the each food can stand on its own. This place can cater to all types of people, from health-conscious vegetarians to down-and dirty carnivores. The menu is divided into three categories: starters, entrees and desserts, and though most would just head straight for the steak, their other viands are just as good as (but of course never better than) the steak.

Before anything else, their complimentary bread is one whole loaf of crusty potato bread with whole bits of potato and what seems like pimiento inside. It came with a creamy and cheesy spread that fit the bread to a tee, along with butter, if you want to make it even more decadent.

My sister, Gia, got the "Duo of Duck Foie Gras" as a starter. When Gia's foie gras came, she was dismayed that the other piece was chilled, and she ate it quick so that can leisurely savor the seared piece.

As we went on to the entrée, I got the U.S. Chilled Beef Fillet (1980 PhP), Gia got the U.S. Chilled New York Strip (2200 PhP), while the rest of the family (Georgia. Gayle, Mom and Dad got the U.S. Prime Rib Eye (1490 PhP). Gia and I got the chilled steaks because I read about it from Lori’s site who also got to interview the chef, as written down:

“Presently, Red is the only restaurant in the country that serves chilled steaks. How different is chilled from frozen beef? “Like night and day,” affirms Chef Romine. “The most important part about serving a chilled steak is you know exactly the shelf life of the steak. It’s 45 days for a chilled, vacuum-packed steak. With frozen steaks sometimes, you never really know how they were handled. For chilled steaks, you know how long it’s been aged, you know how long it’s been handled, you know how fresh it is. We’re bringing it in (from the US) twice a month because demand’s been so strong. A frozen steak is great if it’s been properly handled and properly thawed out. But with a chilled steak, it’s never been frozen. With a frozen steak, it develops a thin film and when you thaw it out, the blood comes out and the juices. With chilled meat, it never really bleeds when you grill it until you slice it.”

U.S. Chilled Beef Fillet (1980 PhP)

U.S. Chilled New York Strip (2200 PhP)

U.S. Prime Rib Eye (1490 PhP)

The chilled steaks definitely taste different from the normal ones. It tastes fresher, and is denser. When you look at the pic, and when I first saw it, I felt shortchanged since it seemed too small. But actually, it is quite thick, one of the thickest steaks I've ever cut through, and by the time I was finished, I was ready to burst.

The menu is short and simple, but extensive enough to cover a whole gamut of cooking styles. They change their menu after a few months, so it's like visiting a whole new restaurant on your next visit. For example, I've taken a few pictures from Lori's site (http://dessertcomesfirst.com/?p=392) and Allan's site (http://allanko.com/2008/08/11/red-makati-shangrila.aspx) to show you how varied their food could range. Note that most of these weren't on the menu, so we must've all gone at different times:

lobster roll (P325), a visually riveting dish of minced lobster and pear formed into a sushi roll. The individual portions are misted with a hot and sour jus which sit contentedly on mint oil, a flavor component echoed by the garnish of shredded mint leaves. It is at once crunchy, soft, zesty. (c/o Lori)

pan fried foie gras with milk risotto
(c/o Allanko)

Chilean sea bass with cauliflower puree, red caviar and champagne foam
(c/o Allanko)

fried valrhona chocolate moelieux bonbon.jpg
(c/o Allanko)

Red dessert sampler
(c/o Lori)

ELBERT'S
If you're anything but a carnivore, skip this place. This restaurants centers on one type of food and that alone: steak. (Yes, they do have seafood, but it isn’t listed down, and I’m not sure if they prepare it as well). As a matter of fact, all the other courses just play a supporting role to the steak, which is the climax of this whole gastronomic experience. But of course, since this is a review, I’ll take you through every course leading to their crowning glory.

Their bread basket has one loaf that flutes out like a puff pastry fan, very light and chewy and served with soft herbed butter.

The salad was simple but delicious; mixed greens with bell peppers, onion and cherry tomatoes tossed in a simple Asian vinaigrette with mild ginger undertones.

The pumpkin soup was also thick with cream (yum!) and decorated with seasoned croutons. Really, they tease you with these courses just enough for you to salivate for the steak.

The whole family got the “Super” Prime Grade Ribeye (2,900 PhP), and it was heavenly! It almost cut through like butter, and the meat was velvety when you ate it. It was also huge, and I never got to finish everything in one sitting. Never do you order meat to be well done in this place, because you never get to appreciate the quality of the meat when it’s that burnt. The taste is rich, needing no more additives. But when requested, they still provide you with sauces: (from upper left clockwise) red wine and shallots, béarnaise, au jus, and peppercorn. Because there was a lot of marbling in the meat, there was also more fat, though.

Along with the steak picture are also side dish choices of (from left to right): traditional pommes frites (or French fries, in other words), truffled mash potatoes, porcini mushroom risotto and creamed spinach. Each cost 150 PhP each. And unlike Red, these side dishes are good, but pretty plain and served in small plates which can serve only one. Like I said, if you’re not getting steak, just don’t go here.

food other people got were the following (c/o Anton):

Steamed Salmon (600 PhP)

Filet Mignon (1,600 PhP)

New York Strip (2,300 PhP)

3. The Service

RED
Just like the Shangri-la chain of hotels, Red’s service is impeccable. Dishes are taken out unobtrusively, food is brought promptly and your water glass is never empty. In all the times I’ve been here, I’ve always been treated like a VIP, which is how any other person would feel with that much waiter-to-customer ratio.

ELBERT’S
The first time I was here was with my family. They were very courteous and prompt, but the food came in so slowly. We even had to talk to the waiter several times so that they’d bring the steak out.
The second time I was here was with a date, and they weren’t as nice; we didn’t even have the free dessert plates they usually give out! Sorry to say, but I think you get better treatment if you look like a CEO or you’re with a huge family.

4. The Price
Red and Elbert’s have one thing similar about them: they’re both heavy on the wallet. Make sure to have at least three thousand per person to make sure you don’t end up washing the dishes. Red’s steak is cheaper than Elbert’s, but their appetizers and soups are understandably more expensive, where the starters don’t even have any price listed in its menu! Elbert’s, on the other hand, already has the soup and salad complimentary with the steak. You only need to pay extra for the sides, your drinks and perhaps your dessert.

5. The Verdict
If I had to choose between the two, I’d choose RED. Not only are the choices more varied for all kinds of palates, but they change their menu every 3 months, so you’ll feel like visiting a new place every time you revisit. The ambiance is also unrestricting, very clean and modern, while the service is a lot better. I’m not discounting ELBERT’S, which I would also rate with nearly five stars. For sure, if you’ve never eaten in Elbert’s, you NEED to go there cos it’s a whole new different experience, from their secret room up to their ginormous steaks.

Hope this article whets your appetites into trying steak that is out of the ordinary. Happy eating!

MENUS (click to magnify)

Red

Elbert's

RED
Lobby Level, Makati Shangri-la, Manila
Ayala Avenue, Makati City
8400884

Elbert's Steak Room
3/F Sagittarius Bldg, 11 HV De La Costa Salcedo, Makati
339-3363 or check out www.steakroom.com
info@steakroom.com or reservations@steakroom.com
M, T, W, Th, F, Sa: 7:00 pm - 11:00 pm