Emporio Armani Caffe

On my recent trip to Ho Chi Minh city (my last visit was in 2009), I saw several improvements already. New malls were starting to pop up like Vincom Centre (office/mall combination). District 7 is fast developing and becoming an urbanized area.

My first visit was actually a leisure trip so I was able to visit the usual tourist spots like Cu chi Tunnel (a must), Notre Dame Cathedral, Hall of Reunification, Central Post Office, etc. This trip was a business trip (I was there to attend the 7th Vietnam ITE, more of this on another post) so I limited my free time to visiting some malls and dining out. One of the restaurants that I knew I had to try was the Emporio Armani Caffe which is located inside Vincom Centre. Opened sometime in July 2010, this is the first and only Emporio Armani Caffe in the Asia Pacific region.

One of the two entrances to the cafe. It is a 2 story establishment and it is beside an Emporio Armani boutique.

Black flooring and walls makes a dark and sombre interior.





Unlimited return to the salad bar is included for the Entree during lunch time. Salad bar includes couscous, pesto penne, veggies and others.


My salad platter. I only had a serving as I didn't want to stuff myself before partaking of the entree.



I decided to order the Chicken Milanese with the delicious Arugula salad since this was one of the cheaper items at 226,000 dong (US$ 11.30 or Php 499)


Saigon Special beer to wash down the food. 66,000 dong (US$ 3.3 or Php 148) for a bottle.


My friend, Ana, ordered the Pork Escalop at 216,000 dong (US$ 10.80 or Php 477)

My other friend, Charmaine, order the Veal Fillet priced at 376,000 dong (US$ 18.80 or Php 831).

Overall, our bill came down to 1,173,480 dong (US$ 58.67 or Php 2,600) or approximately US$ 20 per person for entree, salad and a bottle of local beer.

Personally, as with most branded/signature items, I feel that the pricing is a bit overpriced. You are paying for the brand name obviously which is also an experience by itself. But the taste falls short and is a bit 'bleh' if you ask me. Given a chance, would I go back and dine at Emporio Armani Caffe?...your treat, I definitely would! hehehe but if I had to pay for it, I'd opt for the other cheaper yet better tasting restaurants around town.

Emporio Armani Caffe
70-72 Thanh Ton Street
Ben Nghe Ward
District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnam
Tel (84 8 ) 38247055

The Rotisserie

Aren't there times that you wished you could just take a relaxing and un-hurried dinner with friends with the ambiance of a fine dining restaurant. I do! Which is why for my post birthday treat this year (my birthday is actually in February but we always wait for the group to be complete before we do any celebrations, thus, this dinner happened early part of May), I decided to introduce my friends to The Rotisserie.

According to The Rotisserie's press kit "Preserving a traditional exceptional food and service, Rotisserie is the home of Manila's Prime Rib of Roast Beef and Caesar Salad. Take a stroll down memory lane and reminisce the flair of the Old Manila through Rotiserrie's classic vintage setting"

The Rotisserie has been around for more than 30 years if my memory serves me right and this restaurant used to be THE restaurant to be seen. Nowadays, it seems as if the restaurant has lost all its glory and the young ones would not even be familiar with this restaurant.

Be prepared to spend a bit when you dine at The Rotisserie. Expect to spend at least Php 2,000 or US$ 46 per person, not including the drinks yet. I was fortunate to personally know the Food and Beverage Director as well as the Executive Chef of the hotel and I asked them to prepare a special menu for me and my friends at a very special price (hotel director's privilege which I was able to "borrow").

First off, we had the complimentary bread basket. Remember this is in a fine dining setting so we expected the food to be served one at a time and at a slow pace. It helped that there was an abundance of bread for us to help ourselves and satiate our hunger while waiting for each of the dishes to be presented.

Our soup came out next. Lobster Bisque it was. Very thick and tasty. You immediately know that this is no run-of-the-mill bisque.

The Caesar Salad which was tossed by the maitre d' at the salad tossing station (?). The dressing was perfect as was the generous topping of cheese and bacon bits.

My entree consisted of Roast Beef and Prawns. Now, The Rotisserie has always been known for its Roast Beef and this is where we would find out if the restaurant was able to maintain the perfect way of preparing this dish. I am usually not a fan of steaks or beef for that matter but since this is what the restaurant is famous for. I, of course, would not want to miss the chance of tasting it once again.

Certainly, the roast beef was excellent. Topped with the gravy, it was soft, chewy and delicious. The prawns were also very good and taking their shell off was a breeze. I was the only one presented with this combo dish (my friends were given the roast beef + sea bass combination) since I am allergic to fish.

My friends also enjoyed their roast beef serving. Unfortunately, the sea bass was a disappointment to all. The general consensus was that it was not fresh. A pity since it looked very appetizing.

Last came the dessert. Tiramisu with a side scoop of ice cream. Everyone sang praises for this light and tasteful end to our meal. I expected it to be mediocre but to my pleasant surprise, it was so good that I wanted a second serving.

All in all, it took us more than two hours to finish our meal. I also brought in a bottle of red wine (corkage waived upon my request) to compliment our roast beef. For special occasions, I would highly recommend this restaurant as it oozes of romance and Old World charm as they claim. The price as I mentioned earlier is hefty but in the end, your taste buds are satisfied as only a proper find dining restaurant can satisfy it.

The Rotisserie

3rd Floor, Manila Pavilion Hotel

U.N. Avenue, Ermita, Manila

1000 Philippines

Tel: (63 2) 5261212

Mon-Fri lunch: 1130H to 1500H

Mon-Sat dinner: 1830H to 2230H

Closed on Sundays

Patio Guernica

If you're in the area of Mall of Asia and you suddenly have a craving for Spanish food, where do you go? Patio Guernica of course! I remember the original Guernica located at Remedios and they were quite popular for their Spanish cuisine (at par with Alda's, some say). But now, the old Guernica has long been closed (the original owner passed away and with his passing, the original Guernica also disappeared). Patio Guernica is now owned by the surviving partners of the original Guernica in Malate (this was the story told by the waiter when I asked him why the original Guernica has shut down).

A little background on Patio Guernica taken from their website:

If you are craving for authentic Spanish Cusine and a feel of the old Manila, then head on over to Patio Guernica for a genuine Spanish dining experience relieving a classic cusine for more than a half a century.

Since we wanted to taste some Paella and a fell of the Old Manila, we decided to spend the evening at Patio Guernica.

above picture courtesy of www.patio-guernica.com

above picture courtesy of www.patio-guernica.com

We started off with our complimentary bread roll or in this case it was pan de sal with a side of butter.

Not content with just one, I asked for an extra serving of bread and the waiter readily gave me one with an extra butter as well. My dinner companions were also provided an extra pan de sal and butter.

Since we wanted a simple meal, we jumped to our main course without ordering any soup or salad anymore.

We ordered the Con Carne Paella which is a meat infused paella. Its filled with ham, chorizo, chicken and beef. Its good for 3 to 4 persons and at a price of around Php 700 (US$ 15.90) per order, it is worth it.

The Lengua was also a delicious treat although at only 3 pieces, the cost of Php 350 (US$ 7.95) is a bit hefty in my opinion.

We ended our meal with an on-the-house Leche Flan. Why complimentary? Thanks to our good friend, Perks, who is the Mall Manager of Mall of Asia (it pays to dine with the right people sometimes hehe).

The Leche Flan is actually comprised of six slices which is good for 6 people but since we were gluttons, the 3 of us decided to finish it all (we didn't want to offend the restaurant!). The Leche Flan is very rich, ergo, definitely its very fattening.

All in all, we had a very good meal, albeit an extremely full one. We spend around Php 550 (US$ 12.50) per person and I would say i didn't mind at all.

Patio Guernica

2nd Floor, Entertainment Mall

SM Mall of Asia

Pasay City

Tel: (+63 2) 8040837

Website: http://www.patio-guernica.com/home.html

Origami

Normally when choosing a restaurant to dine in, we tend to avoid those that are empty of diners. We immediately conclude that the food or service might not be good, hence, no diners. So on the night that my cousin Allen wanted to treat us (rather belatedly but who's complaining) for dinner, we were scouting around the area of Greenbelt 5 in Makati and could not decide which restaurant to dine at. The first time we passed by Origami restaurant and we did not even consider going in since it was empty...as in not a single diner! As we have been scouting for a while already and everybody was hungry and tired, what the heck, why not give Origami a try (nobody has died anyway from eating in a not-good-food restaurant).

Origami (ori=folding, kami=paper) is, of course by the name itself, a Japanese restaurant. Im usually not a fan of Japanese restaurants since I am, honestly, fazed by what to order. Everything on the menu is unfamiliar to me even though I have eaten in numerous Japanese restaurants. Its just that I have to make sure that my companions would know what to order because definitely, i will be of no help when ordering food in a Japanese restaurant.

The interior is typical Japanese in the sense that its design is based on simple lines and feels uncluttered.

The restaurant is really not very big. Enough to make you fell cozy once you enter the air-conditioned section. They do have a sprinkling of outdoor tables should one insist on smoking cancer inducing cigarettes (ex smoker who has successfully quit and would be happy to live in a tobacco/cigarette free world)

Behind the bar/counter, you'll find these diagonal square designs that break the monotony of an all-white wall.

Now on to the food. For starters, we had:

California Maki

Sashimi

And, Unagi Rolls

I was only able to taste the California Maki and it was very good. Add to that that I was already very hungry so if I had a choice, I would have finished the entire Calimaki dish.

I didn't get to try the two other dishes since I am allergic to fish! But my cousins told me they were equally good as well.

Next, we ordered individually and I opted to have the Chicken Teriyaki Bento Box

The chicken teriyaki tasted good but I would have to say there was nothing exceptional about it. (perhaps we have been so used to eating at Teriyaki Boy)

One of my cousins ordered this beef dish and I managed to try a bit of it and it was quite tasty...I wouldn't mind ordering next time I dine at Origami.

For me, one of the most unappetizing dishes that one of my cousins ordered was the seafood curry with rice. For a not at all cheap restaurant, the presentation is indeed lacking. Taste wise, my cousin said it was just ok.

We also ended up sharing a plate of Tempura (shrimp). Sadly, it was not very delish.

Our bill came out to be around Php 3,600 (US$ 81.81) averaging around Php 720 (US$ 16.36) per person (with a round of drinks for everyone). Not exactly cheap if you ask me but at least we almost had the restaurant to ourselves (eventually 4 other people ate at the restaurant but they decided to sit at the smoking section). Service was quite good (I guess it should be since we were the only clients around hehehe). I wouldn't mind going back to Origami though, at least now I know what are the items that I need to order.

Origami Restaurant

Ground Floor

Greenbelt 5

Legaspi Street, Legaspi Village

Makati City

Tel: (+63 2) 5013815 or 5013817

Hong Kong Emperor Seafood Restaurant

It's the second day of the year and after being cooped up inside the house for the entire day yesterday, I couldn't say no to my friend Kim (who's based in Singapore) when he asked us out for brunch (which eventually turned into an early lunch since timing was a bit of a difficulty). We decided to meet up at Mall of Asia because Perks still had to work and we ended up having a dimsum lunch at Hong Kong Emperor Seafood Restaurant. Hong Kong Emperor Seafood Restaurant is actually owned by the same owners of Yakimix (known for their casual Japanese/Chinese buffet) but this one is actually a proper Chinese restaurant.

I was told that just like with the Midas touch that the owners experienced with their Yakimix restaurants, the Hong Kong Emperor is always full of people even if the dimsum prices are a bit on the higher side.

Steamed Shrimp Dumplings or Hakaw as they are more popularly known. Priced at Php 108 (US$ 2.45) per order, you are provided with 4 healthy sized shrimps that are wrapped in barely-there wanton wrappers.

Steamed Siomai at Php 98 (US$ 2.22) gives you four Chinese dimsum staple. Although you could feel that the ingredients are tightly packed into the wrapper, the taste was a little bit bland.

I've always been partial to radish cakes and the Radish Cake with X.O. Sauce was no exception in providing the great joy in eating radish cake. I like it that its sliced into smaller pieces so one doesn't tire of the taste easily. Php 120 (US$ 2.72) per order.

Kuchay Dumplings at Php 108 (US$ 2.45) are of course, dumplings stuffed with Kuchay vegetables. I love how the vegetable's texture blends in with the smooth texture of the wrapper. Plus it tasted good as well.

Taro Spring Roll at Php 120 (US$ 2.72) per order. Loved the flaky and crispy wrap that covered the almost pasty taro filling.

Asado Rice Roll. This was something that we didn't order but arrived at our table nonetheless. We didn't eat it though so I can't really say if it was good or not. But if you do want to order it, its priced at Php 120 (US$ 2.72) per order.

We also had our birthday Misua noodles. Definitely prefer this over the standard birthday Canton noodles. (forgot to look at the price, my apologies)

And the lechon kawali looking dish. I normally am adverse to this kind of dish since I abhor eating the fat part but when I bit into it, I could hardly feel/taste the fatty part. (forgot to look at the price, my apologies)

In the end, Perks decided to pay for our lunch (thankyouverymuch) and I must say I'm not surprised why the restaurant is always packed. The food was amazingly good. Prices are a bit on the higher side when you compare it to the other Chinese restaurant but it was definitely worth every penny. I didn't feel that the dishes were too oily unlike in the other chinese restaurants.

Hong Kong Emperor Seafood Restaurant

2/F Entertainment Mall, SM Mall of Asia, Ocean Drive

Pasay City, Metro Manila

Philippines

(+ 63 2) 556-9520 to 22

Coriander

Coriander (coriandrum sativum) according to Wikipedia "in food preparation may refer solely to these seeds (as a spice), rather than to the plant itself. The seeds have a lemony citrus flavour when crushed, due to terpenes linalooland pinene. It is described as warm, nutty, spicy, and orange-flavored."

Coriander is also the name of a Singaporean Indian restaurant in Cebu located at Crossroad Arcade. According to the waiter, the owner of the restaurant has been residing in Cebu for seven years now and the restaurant used to be located at the house of the owner. Up until the owner decided to open a proper restaurant at Crossroad this year.

Food items in the menu are mostly spicy. So if you're not particularly fond of spicy food, I suggest dining somewhere else.

For starters we had Veggie Samosa. A puffy pastry stuffed with spicy potatoes and other spices.

We also had Naan bread with curry dip. It somehow reminded me of pita bread. Naan is a very popular type of bread from India and the curry sauce goes perfectly well with the bread.

We also had this potato dish mixed with some spices which tasted really good although I forgot what it was called exactly.

One of the two non spicy food in the menu is the Hainanese Chicken dish which came with a bowl of soup. Since I was raring for Indian food, this was the only dish that I did not try (aside from the Fish Tandoori which is solely for the reason that i don't eat fish!).

Above are two tandoori dishes, Chicken and Fish tandoori to be exact.

Saffron Rice to balance off the spicy dishes that we were partaking of. According to the waiter, a kilo of this type of rice costs Php 300 or US$ 7 per kilo (pricey indeed if you consider that you can buy a low quality rice for Php 20 or US$ 0.45 per kilo)

I love Indian food primarily because of all the spices that they use. So I thoroughly enjoyed my dinner at Coriander plus the fact that i was with excellent company.

The Coriander
Unit M-13 Crossroads
Banilad, Cebu City
Tel: (+ 63 32) 511-1675