Joining The VDay Crowd ;)

February 14, 2013

And I thought this year's Valentine's Day would just be normal and uneventful day since we already celebrated it last Monday but surprise, surprise.

Hubby and I opened a box of Bailey's truffles on Valentine's Eve. Actually, I was busy watching koreanovela when hubby suddenly approached me (he slept early) and gave me a kiss. Huh? Oh, Valentine's Day na! Hahaha. Ayan, huli tuloy ako na mas "sweet" si hubby. :P

Then we scheduled a late lunch (to avoid the lunch crowd) at Ristorante delle Mitre because we're craving for some crispy pata and because we are also treating Jade to a belated birthday treat. We missed going to her debut party because hubby and I had a work-related event to attend to that same night and its on the other end of the planet.

We had seafood kare-kare.

Birthday Lunch At Ristorante delle Mitre

C celebrated her birthday lunch at Mitre because we love, love the food there. The crispy pata was our number one priority and laing. We've already tasted the laing and it blends well with the crispy pata. Alas, the kitchen ran out of laing (lots of customers when we arrived at the restaurant). But that's okay since there's still lots on the menu that we haven't tasted ... yet.

Fried Chicken and Fries. Didn't get to taste this because its chicken. But I know its good because I didn't see any leftovers. J was the one who suggested this dish since she saw the same dish come out of the kitchen. Yes, she watches the food that comes out of the kitchen. ;)

Seafood Kare-Kare. We ordered ox tail kare-kare during our last visit but found the sauce was too thick and not enough for 4 pax so we tried the seafood version since we were told that it has more sauce than the ox tail. I like it especially with the bagoong.

Crispy Pata. We had it chopped already so it doesn't really look very crispy pata-ish. Also, the skin was not that crunchy anymore. Maybe its because it arrived early and our group is not complete yet. But still very, very good. Only the bones were left.

Pansit Bihon. Costs P128.00. Good for sharing. The pansit has a lemony taste so no need to use the kalamansi. I think it has some wansoy also but I am not really sure because I can't find any leaves. Or maybe its invisible kinchay. Hahaha. Highly recommended!

Mais Con Yelo. I'm glad it looks appealing. We were almost saying--- oh no! when "I" ordered this (blame our saba con yelo experience at this restaurant) but luckily, it looks okay and delish than the saba counterpart. You can also ask for extra milk. Yey!

Halo-Halo. I'm glad we didn't ask to the waiter to split our two halo-halo into four because the glass they'll use are kinda small (the mais con yelo glass) while they use this big glass for an order of halo-halo. Besides, you can just ask for a small bowl or glass. The first time we ordered this, there's 4 of us who enjoyed it. And yes, we were given extra milk and another. Two thumbs up.

Blueberry Cheesecake. C's birthday cake. And we almost forgot to order her a cake because we were already full. But what's a birthday without a cake, right? So we just ordered a slice of her favorite cheesecake. Yummy! A slice costs P138.00 but they didn't scrimp on ingredients. So cheesy- hehehe. Highly recommended. I'm definitely ordering this again ... SOON.

Happy Lunch!

We were so happy with our Ristorante delle Mitre experience yesterday that we couldn't resist not going back today to sample the lunch menu. It was stressful though when it comes to ordering because of the extensive menu- hahaha. And speaking of menu, it needs a separate entry. You'll find out why! ;)

Crispy Pata. You need to eat this as soon as it lands on your table so that you'll enjoy the crispy skin. What's crispy pata without crispy skin, right? It was flavorful enough that I didn't bother with the dipping sauce (toyo-vinegar). And for the price of P288 + 12% tax, it's more than worth it. There's a larger piece that costs around P350+.

Lechon Paksiw. Sadness. Too sweet with nary a hint of sourness and lechon sauce. I won't be ordering this again. I'd stick to home-cooked lechon paksiw from now on.

Laing. Even if it's not spicy, this is a great pair for the crispy pata. Costs around P150+ for this huge serving. Really huge serving!

Pasta Bolognese. If you're craving for good old-fashioned spaghetti (think childhood memories), then this is it. Sauce is bursting with flavor and the noodles al dente. Two thumbs up.

Halo-Halo Special. I'm not sure if someone can finish this order alone because I know I can't. Luckily, there's three of us to share this wonderfully delicious halo-halo. Also, the ube ice-cream was not that sweet (so there's no umay factor) and it was homemade, too. I didn't check the price though.

Razon's Halo-Halo




We frequent Razon's in Greenhills or the one in Gateway Mall because they serve the best halo-halo here in the Manila. The ice is blended along with the banana and macapuno, then topped with leche flan.

However, after tasting the halo-halo from Razon's in Mexico, Pampanga (Razon's hails from Pampanga), I take back what I said about Razon's being the best halo-halo here in Manila.

WHY???

Because the ingredients from the one that I tasted in Pampanga was very different. First, they used carabao's milk compared to the evaporated milk that's being used here in the Metropolis, and (2) because the one's in the Pampanga branch are more generous with the "halo." Hehe

Razon's In Pampanga

We love Razon's Halo-halo and we always have an order or two whenever we visit the mall. It has a different and creamier texture from the usual halo-halo, and it doesn't have beans. I don't like beans.