Raffles Makati celebrates 365 days of Mireio.
In-honor of its first year anniversary, the Provençal-inspired upscale brasserie will be serving a selection of its popular dishes this December 8 to 12, 2017 from 12 to 10:30 PM continuously at PHP 365 nett.
Savor select French Mediterranean favorites for lunch and dinner at the special anniversary rate.
Appetizers include the signature smoked salmon tartare with Granny Smith apple and Dijon mustard cream; classic tomato tart with clams and escargot, garnished with rocket salad and parmesan cheese; and soup of green lentil with pan-seared foie gras and truffle oil.
For the main course, choose from a selection of Provençal slow-cooked oxtail parmentier, traditional herb-crusted jackfish on ratatouille, and orzo with king prawns flambéed in Pastis and star anise cream.
End it with apple tart tatin topped with vanilla ice cream, lavender crème brûlée for a taste of Provence, and 65% Maraicabo chocolate mousse with truffle and hazelnut crunch.
For more information and reservations, call 795 0707 or email mireio.makati@raffles.com.
Christmas Eve dinner used to be something that families prepared for weeks in advance. I still have fond memories of lechon and turkey at my Lola Paying’s.
My lola is no longer with us but I can still have a great Christmas spread for my family by ordering dishes from one of our favorite restaurants.
Cibo di Marghi introduces Food To Go for Christmas, which includes some of my favorite dishes, including Beef Tenderloin “Tagliata al Rosmarino” and Chilean Sea Bass or Norwegian Salmon “al Sale” or baked in salt crust.
Other dishes available are Timballo al Forno
Classic Baked Lasagna
Roast Chicken all’Aglio Olio e Rosmarino
Slow–Roast Beef Belly
Roast Half Carcass of Lamb
Tiramisù Croccante di Marghi and Crepe Millefoglie
And more
Orders must be placed at least three days in advance.
To order, call (02) 729-0030 or (0917) 513-8932 or email cibodimarghi@margaritafores.com.
You may pick up your orders at Cibo di Marghi’s commissary in Whitespace, Makati City.
Payment is upon pickup.
To know more follow them on Facebook or Instagram @cibodimarghi.
When I was a kid, my favorite bread was called “potpot.”
We used to live on Hemady Street in Quezon City where this man would pass by on his bike in the afternoon, with two giant tin drums on either side, filled with all kinds of bread.
Potpot was a sweet part of my childhood. It was five centavos a piece and I haven’t been able to find it since.
Long gone are the bike-riding bread vendors, but quaint little bread shops can still be found in local neighborhoods. Now you can buy all kinds of bread in chains around the mall.
What makes Panaderya Toyo special for me is, first of all, how it looks.
I was drawn to its interiors, imagined and created by Architect Arts Serrano.
Because it was conceptualized by the same people behind Toyo Eatery, which I love, you know this isn’t your typical bakery.
For one, Panaderya Toyo has its bread on display in the middle of the store and in limited quantities, instead of heaps.
It has tables and chairs for those who would like to have their bread with coffee. They have fillings or palaman if you want something extra. Your sourdough could be topped with scrambled eggs and eggplant, and when you bite into it, there are unexpected flavors and textures, such as crispy dulong (silver fish) and shallots.
The breads, made by Panaderya Toyo head baker Richie Manapat, aren’t your usual, too.
Most of the breads are sourdough, except for the bicho-bicho, or the twisted Filipino version of doughnuts.
The breads, which include pan de sal, pan casero, baguette and buttermilk loaf, are all crunchy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. The recipes use real butter instead of just margarine or oil.
Richie is very passionate about breads and baking.
“The style of bread making in the Philippines is very Americanized. Lots of white bread. People are afraid to make breads this dark and crusty,” said Richie, who studied culinary arts but is a self-taught baker.
Panaderya Toyo breads, said Richie, are rustic. He compared it to breads baked in European villages in the old days.
“We don’t use additives or preservatives. The bread is wholesome. We use bleach-free flour. You don’t want to eat bleach.”
Toyo Eatery executive chef Jordy Navarra met Richie when the latter had dinner with Margarita Fores at the restaurant. Since then, Richie has helped bake Toyo Eatery’s breads, including their famous Tocino Bread.
“We’ve been doing our Tocino Bread for a long time but Richie helped professionalize our bread program,” said Jordy.
For me, what makes Panaderya Toyo a must-visit is its visual appeal, with interiors fashioned out of mango tree wood and walls in plain-gray cement.
The bakery is divided into sections. There is the open bread-making area with the equipment. Then, there’s the bread display which reminds me of the glass box in church, where they keep the Black Nazarene (but that’s just me). Then, there are the tables and a long counter which chairs—the best area for me, if you are alone.
Panaderya Toyo is at The Alley, Karrivin, 2316 Chino Roces Avenue, Makati City
Open Tuesday to Saturday from from 11 AM to 6:30 PM
To know more, follow them on Instragram @panaderyatoyo
When Vatos Urban Tacos first opened in Seoul in 2011, the lines were so long that the wait sometimes lasted for three hours.
Even CNN called Vatos “a near miracle” in Seoul because of the perfect combination of Korean and Mexican cuisine. The restaurant has three locations in Korea now and two in Singapore.
Vatos finally opened last January 2018 in the Philippines, at the Net Park Building, 5th Avenue in BGC.
My sister Diday is the Philippine business partner of Vatos. She and her husband Leo discovered the restaurant in Singapore, where two of their children live.
We sat down with Shinhan Sid Kim, one of three Korean-American co-founders of Vatos, who explained how Korean-Mexican fusion isn’t actually strange and how the two cuisines are similar.
“I grew up in California where my father owned an appliance store and he had some Mexican employees. My father would bring his Korean lunch prepared by my mother and the employees would bring their lunch, too. They’d share their lunches. I grew up eating kimchi with almost anything, including tacos, burritos and other Mexican food.”
Koreans and Mexicans both like wrapping their food. Koreans eat meat wrapped in vegetable leaves while Mexicans have their tortillas and taco shells. Both nationalities love chilies.
Vatos’ first location was a dilapidated building in Itaewon, Seoul. The interiors were hip and trendy, with lighting coming from different angles—but nothing too bright or too white. The walls are red bricks that seem to be falling apart. The tables have reworked faucets on the side where you can also hang your bags.
“Vatos has been designed as a place where people can eat, drink and chill. The interior have to be awesome but the food has to be even more so, because people won’t come back if the place is cool but the food is bad,” said Sid.
The look for Vatos’ interiors is the same, whether you’re in Seoul, Singapore or Manila.
Among their bestsellers are Carnitas Kimchi Fries, or fries covered with braised pork carnitas, sautéed kimchi and melted cheese with sour cream, hot sauce, cilantro and onions as toppings.
Sid said the dish was inspired by two Korean dishes—Gamja-tang or pork spine stew, which is cooked with potatoes, and samgyeopsal or grilled pork belly, which is enjoyed with kimchi.
The Honey Tequila Chicken Wings is Vatos’ version of the popular Korean fried chicken. Chicken wings are coated in sweet and spicy tequila sauce and served with battered jalapenos and blue cheese dipping sauce.
The Wagyu Galbi Short Rib Tacos are marinated short ribs, ssamjang aioli, Asian slaw, cilantro, chopped onions and roasted sesame seeds.
Vatos has a full menu that includes tacos, quesadillas, salads, burritos and burrito bowls. They even have a dessert of Nutella Tacos topped with vanilla ice cream.
Definitely worth mentioning are the drinks and cocktails at Vatos.
There are Vatos’ Ritas (they’re served with an inverted beer bottle), Authentic Margaritas, Frozen Margaritas, Makgeolitas (tequila with makgeolli, a rice wine) and local and imported beers.
Vatos is not a bar nor is it only a restaurant.
“One thing about Vatos is that it caters to all kinds of people. We get young people, families with children and even grandparents,” said Sid.
Vatos Urban Tacos is at Net Park Building, 5th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City.
For more information, call 246-9069 local 186 or follow them on Instagram @vatosphilippines.
