Category: Restaurants

A Japanese Chef cooking Italian dishes?  That’s what Capricciosa is.  It’s amazing that Capricciosa started 31 years ago and already has 150 branches in 6 different countries including the Philippines.

Admittedly, I’m not fond of Italian food.  However, a lot of my friends love pizza and pasta.  I still try out Italian restaurants for the sake of it.  Usually, I’m not impressed but it was a different case for Capricciosa.  I actually liked each and every dish served to us!

What I noticed greatly is the awesome service.  I know that I’ve been commending lots of restaurants with their customer service.  I believe though that Capricciosa went a step further.  The servers were friendly, super warm, super helpful and were all smiles.  I actually like to see servers like that when dining in a restaurant.  I’m glad that Capricciosa does have this great image.  They will go a long way.  With that kind of service, Capricciosa will surely have repeat customers and will continue to be successful.

My friend Christina and I ordered mostly their best-seller dishes.  As both of us were dining for the first time, we might as well get their most loved dishes.  We ordered the following:

• Fresh Garden Salad (Php 365)

Whenever I order salad, I make sure that it’s served with vinaigrette sauce.  I’m never fond of caesar or any other thick dressing.  Capricciosa’s garden salad was delightful!  I love the combination of ingredients in the dish.  There were red grapes, mandarin orange, crabsticks, onions and of course, the lettuce.  A healthy alternative indeed from the usual appetizer that we order.

• Tomato Sauce with Garlic & Peppers (Php 365)

I loveeeeee this red pasta by Capricciosa.  I guess putting tons of garlic in the dish made it so delicious!  This dish has a simple recipe with only garlic, peppers, onions, pasta and tomato sauce as ingredients.  I even took some home and I had the same feeling when I ate it again.  If you love red sauce, then this should be your choice when you go to Capricciosa.

• Capricciosa Pizza (Php 485)

If a menu item is named after the restaurant then you bet that it would be delicious!  Why would a restaurant name a dish the same way right?  Well, we ordered Capricciosa pizza, a house specialty.  It’s an Italian pizza topped with salami, bacon, mushroom and bell peppers.  As it was served to us newly cooked,  it won’t come as a surprise that we liked it!  Yum yum!

• Single Scoop Ice Cream (Php 75)

I’m not sure if Capricciosa’s ice cream is home-made or commercially-made.  They do have 4 flavors available – mango, strawberry, vanilla and chocolate.  We ordered vanilla and strawberry.  Just the right dessert to end a wonderful Italian meal.

Quiz nights are getting popular in the country.  I was actually delighted to see that Capricciosa do host it every week.  I wish I can join one time!  Looks really interesting!  I must find some friends who love trivia and will invite them to go with me to the restaurant one wednesday.

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Ristorante Italiano Capricciosa
G/F Fox Square Building, 53 Connecticut Street, Greenhills, San Juan, Philippines
(02) 744-0689

I’ve always wanted to try out Mongkok Dimsum & Noodles.  However, whenever I pass by Powerplant Mall, the restaurant is always jampacked.  Mongkok Dimsum & Noodles must be that good that they never ran out of customers.

Good thing I discovered that they have a branch in Glorietta 5.  In this branch, they don’t have much customers and they were offering promos left and right to attract customers to go to Mongkok Dimsum & Noodles.  Promos like eat all you can for Php 239.  I don’t want to limit myself to the dishes in the buffet so we decided to go ala carte.

I was with my GameOPS friends who dined there and I was so glad that most of us were available.  It was a great night of chit-chatting and eating.

Contrary to Mongkok’s Rockwell branch, this branch has bigger space.  They even have an area just for smokers.  There were only 4-5 servers when we were there (a tuesday night) but I commend the good service that they give to us even though they’re understaffed.

Mongkok is popular for their dimsum but I was more excited with their rice dishes.  So we ordered both dimsum and rice.  The ff. were our orders:

• Fresh Shrimp Dumpling (Php 75)

We ordered for hakaw but apparently, it’s the same as fresh shrimp dumpling.  If I remember correctly, Mongkok Dimsum currently has a promo via Ensogo with regards to their dimsum.  Today is the deadline if I remember correctly.

• 4 Treasure Roll (Php 65)

A very unique dimsum.  I guess they called it four treasure because the dimsum includes 4 treasured ingredients.  Using the noodles to enclose all the ingredients into one was a nice touch!  Very cute!

• Yang Chow Fried Rice (Php 230)

Bea told me that Mongkok’s Yang Chow is the best!  I followed her advice and the server even mentioned that their Yang Chow is the best seller too!  It didn’t disappoint.  The rice was actually good with all the ingredients in there.  I heard though that Mongkok puts a lot of MSG in their dishes.  Hope it’s not true.

• Salt & Pepper Tofu (Php 170)

Mongkok’s fried tofu was the winner dish that night.  It actually just took a few minutes before we finished the dish.  My gosh!  The reason for it is because the tofu in spite of being crispy on the outside was actually soft  inside.  The vinegar was perfect for the tofu to dip in too!  Loved it!

• Beef Tenderloin Chinese Style (Php 250)

I hope this picture of Beef Tenderloin makes you hungry coz in reality, it really will.  This dish was wonderfully cooked.  I loved the tenderness of the beef plus the sweetness of the sauce.  I knew I shouldn’t have eaten so much but I find the dish very unique and it was actually good!  A must order! 🙂

• Seafood with Taosi (Php 260)

I was asked what the taosi is when we were eating this dish.  It’s basically black bean sauce that the seafood was cooked with.  The black bean sauce gave the dish this yummy salty flavor.  It’s usually diluted in water so the dish won’t be as salty.

Overall, I now understand why a lot of people eat at Mongkok Dimsum & Noodles.  Their food is definitely delicious plus the service is nice too!  I just hope that more people will discover their branch at Gloretta 5 and it will be as successful as their Rockwell branch.

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Mongkok Dimsum & Noodles
3rd Level, Glorietta 5, Ayala Center, Makati City, Philippines
(02) 501-3065

My friend and I were starving as we haven’t had breakfast that saturday.  We wouldn’t want to spend more time travelling so decided to have lunch nearby.  I immediately remembered one of my favorite Chinese restaurants, Coral Garden.

I asked my friend if it’s okay to eat there but the ambiance wouldn’t be that nice as most restaurants.  She agreed as I swore that the food is good and that she won’t regret it 😛

Coral Garden is located at Banawe avenue where car repair shops are located.  I actually thought that it might close some day.  I was, however, pleasantly surprised to see that they’ve renovated.

Whew!  Now I know that Coral Garden will stay for long in Quezon City.  I can go there whenever I want to!

Service is pretty fast in Coral Garden.  We didn’t have to wait long for our food orders.  Like the time that we had lunch, we were already starving.  We were just glad that for only a few minutes wait, the food were served.

• Salted Fish Fried Rice (Php 210)

From all the restaurants that I’ve been to, there are only 2 restaurants which I consider have the best fried rice.  One of them is Coral Garden.  I can literally eat their fried rice without any other dishes and I can still feel that I’ve eaten something awesome.  Their salted fish fried rice is my favorite!

• Sizzling Spareribs (Php 325)

Whenever I order spareribs, I always prefer the salt & pepper one.  It was my friend’s preference to order the sizzling spareribs.  I was just pleasantly surprised how good it was!  The red sauce with tons of garlic were delightful!  The pork was fatty, I must say, but it’s that part that’s really delicious!

• Crispy Bean Curd (Php 240)

Coral Garden is known for their delicious crispy bean curd.  You’ll never fail to see this dish in every table of customers in the restaurant.  Their tofu is the Japanese soft one but the real secret is Coral Garden’s sweet black sauce.  I still cannot figure out what the ingredients in the sauce are.  But the sauce was just too good that I sometimes just pour a whole spoonful of it in my every bite of crispy bean curd.

• French Beans & Shitake in XO Sauce (Php 260)

The newest item in the Coral Garden menu.  It was highly recommended by the server when we requested for recommendation of a vegetable dish.  It’s basically french beans with shitake mushrooms cooked with XO sauce.  If you’re wondering what XO sauce is, it’s a seafood sauce that’s spicy.  I loved this dish!

• Black and White Gulaman (Php 70)

A combination of my two favorite drink ingredients: black gulaman and almond gulaman.  The two different ingredients put together, I can say, is a perfect combination!  This drink can also be considered a dessert.  I, however, always use Coral Garden’s black and white gulaman as a drink.

I might just drop by Coral Garden tomorrow to order take out.  I remember that I called the restaurant one time to order for delivery but was too shocked to find out that the minimum amount is Php 800!!!!  I cannot eat that much in a single meal alone!  I wonder if they’ve changed this rule though as it was months ago since I inquired about their delivery.  I hope it changed.  I’ll ask when I go back to Coral Garden.  I’m sure it won’t be long.  The salted fish fried rice is calling me already hahaha!

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Coral Garden
96 Banawe Street, between Quezon Avenue & E. Rodriguez across Children’s Memorial Hospital, Quezon City, Philippines
(02) 711-0255

There was a time in 2008 when I always go to Shanghai Hand-Pulled Noodles to get my fix of beef noodles.  However, when the restaurant decided to move to a new location, I didn’t get the chance to visit it until last week.  Their new location is a bit far compared to before but the place is bigger and has better parking space.

I admit I missed it.  I’ve always known that Shanghai Hand-Pulled Noodles serve very good noodle soups considering how generous they put the toppings in the dish.  Not to forget the cheap price!  A great value for money, indeed.

I wondered after 3 years, is the food still the same?  After dining at Shanghai Hand-Pulled Noodles last week, I can answer a definite yes!  My favorite beef noodle was as good as before!

I still ordered the same menu item but this time around, we also tried out an appetizer.

Here’s the list of our orders:

• Wong Lo Kat (Php 40)

If Coke is the Filipino’s favorite soft drink then Wong Lo Kat is China’s version of it.  It’s basically a herbal drink.  I tried this once in a restaurant.  After that, I never fail to order it whenever I discover that a restaurant serves it.

• Jellyfish with Century Egg (Php 85)

Unfortunately, this dish was a big disappointment.  I guess they dipped the jellyfish too much on the sauce 🙁

• Dry Shanghai Beef Noodle (Php 90)

Some people don’t appreciate noodle soup, just like my friend, so she ordered Dry Shanghai Beef Noodle.  It’s basically the same Shanghai Beef Noodle but this time around, the soup was separated from the dish.  I tasted it and I actually liked it too!  I might just order this next time.  All types of noodle soups being served in Shanghai Hand-Pulled Noodles have this option at no additional cost.  So you can take your pick.

• Shanghai Beef Noodle (Php 90)

Same as the above menu item but I ordered the traditional noodle soup.  I really like Shanghai Hand-Pulled Noodles’ dishes.  Their noodles are created in-house.  What I really appreciate the most is their generous serving of the beef.  Even the small-sized beef noodle is more than enough to satisfy my hunger 🙂

I feel sad that there weren’t too much people dining in the restaurant when we ate there.  I really hope it wasn’t the case during other days as I want to go back to Shanghai Hand-Pulled Noodles really soon.

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Shanghai Hand-Pulled Noodles
411 N.S. Amoranto Street corner D. Tuazon Street, Sta Mesa Heights, Quezon City, Philippines
(02) 743-0286

I was set to meet a long-lost friend of mine and other friends.  They asked me to decide which restaurant to go to as they are aware that I blog a lot about food.  I wanted to try out a new restaurant because I rarely write about a restaurant twice in HeaRty’s Haven.

I asked from friends in Plurk if they could provide some suggestions of good restaurants in Tomas Morato.  Most, if not all, suggested Restaurant Uno.  It’s actually ironic that I never heard of it.  I asked for directions and found out that Restaurant Uno is tucked inside Scout Fuentabella Street near Tomas Morato Street.

I followed my friends’ recommendation and we met up at Restaurant Uno yesterday.

Parking was a bit of a challenge.  Luckily, there was a space available at the left side of the restaurant.  As I observed, the owner of Restaurant Uno converted the apartment into a restaurant.

I hesitated a bit when I arrived at the entrance.  I wondered if it really was the door in front of me hahaha!  Anyhow, I got it right.  Whew!  It must have been embarrassing if I got it wrong 😛

The design of Restaurant Uno is very traditional.  You can see wooden tables, wooden chairs, clean table cloths and big windows.  Most of the light coming in are from the outside.  It gives a homey feeling.  Somehow, we stayed for 3 hours which explains how cozy Restaurant Uno is.

We were first served bread.  While we browse through the menu, we can already taste the freshly-baked bread by Restaurant Uno.  You can also buy if you like to bring some home.  The bread being served in the restaurant when you dine in is free though.  You can get more servings too if you like more.  Butter was provided on the side as well.

I was told that Restaurant Uno changes their menu quite often.  However, all feedback that I got are all positive which means that the food is really good.  I knew then that we would have a good dining experience.  Seeing also so many people dining in the restaurant proves that.

We had the following:

• Fresh Calamansi Juice (Php 60)

I was planning to order fresh fruit shakes but I was plain shocked when I was told that Restaurant Uno doesn’t have it.  I ended up with fresh calamansi juice which was great still.  I love anything fresh.  I’ve been drinking too much soda nowadays.

• Orange, Feta, Olives, and Chickpea Fatoush with Lime Coriander Dressing (Php 290)

There were only 2 choices available in the menu: this orange salad and the tuna sashimi salad.  I’m not a fan of raw food and I refuse to eat raw.  I shared that concern with my friends so we ended up with this yummy salad.  Honestly, just by looking at the dish, you can already see how delicious it is.  When I tried it, I was so satisfied.  The combination of the ingredients was perfect.  The dressing was poured all over the dish that each spoonful of the salad was flavorful.  I still hated the olives and opted to separate it.

• Baked Salmon Fillet “Jambalaya” (Php 510)

I’m not fond of Salmon but Restaurant Uno’s salmon was made of awesome!  I actually never thought salmon this thick can have such great flavors.  What was more intriguing is that the salmon wasn’t dry at all.  I wonder how the chef did it but this was admirable.  The vegetables and jambalaya rice complements well with the salmon.  Can I say it again?  This salmon was made of awesome, AWESOME!  Yummy!

• Roasted Breast of French Duck with Limoncello and Ginger Gastrique (Php 710)

When I got to taste this dish, I was already writing Restaurant Uno in my mind as one of my go-to restaurants in Tomas Morato.  Gee, this duck was heavenly.  I appreciate that they sliced it up thinly.  I’m not sure if this was baked but the temperature of the meat was perfect.  It was perfectly cooked, not raw and not overdone.  How lovely!

• Shrimp with Lemon, Capers, Garlic and Paprika (Php 290)

While I loved this shrimp pasta, I was thinking it lacked sauce.  I remember that if I get to eat homemade spaghetti, I always make it a point to put so many sauce in the pasta.  So I guess my comment earlier is mostly personal preference.  My friends loved this dish.  You can see that Restaurant Uno was generous with the shrimps.  Not a bad dish at all!

• Butter Rhum Cake (Php 55)

I’m surprised as to how reasonably priced the cakes are.  Come to think of it, I kinda felt it’s underpriced considering how delicious the desserts are.  Well, not for the butter rhum cake as I didn’t like it.  It wasn’t tasty as I thought.  It wasn’t sweet too as I thought it would be.

• Creme Brulee (Php 45)

Nothing special but it’s the creme brulee that we all love.

• Cheesecake (Php 65)

I was expecting something different but I was pleasantly surprised after I tasted it.  It was definitely a genuine cheesecake and shall I say, this should be how a cheesecake is.  Full of cheese and baked to perfection.  This is a must-order!  I bet this menu item stays in Restaurant Uno.  I believe only their main entree selection changes quarterly.

Delicious food, cozy ambiance and great company of friends.  What else can you ask for in a meal?

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Restaurant Uno
195-C Tomas Morato corner Scout Fuentabella, Quezon City
(02) 374-0774