Out of Hong Kong, back in Manila. Despite the superhorrendous traffic during the Christmas season, Manila is still THE place to be. Correction. It is the ONLY place to be. But Hong Kong is also my home, and to counter withdrawal symptoms that may happen, I spend my first dinner in town with girlfriends from Hong Kong, CJ and Cathy. We are all home.
We miss Manila.
We miss the food in Manila.
And this is how much.
Chorizo stewed in red wine – tasty, meaty, not too salty. I quite like it.
Camembert with caramelized onions on fluted bread – anything sweet pleases me, so I love this. Shucks, I am SO easy.
Garlic sautéed shrimp the modern way – you are right again, Dad. Sometimes traditional is better. This modern version lacks flavor. Not impressed.
Spanish salami croquettes – cheesy and potato-ey goodness, but not greatness. Still, a plate is not enough so we order its fraternal twin.
Crab Croquettes – The Lesser Twin. What crab?? Where??
And this is what happens when the photographer is still hungry after all that tapas… Bad paella photos. Sorry!
Black Squid Paella – quite good but Casa Armas does it better.
Picadillo Paella – just ok
Chuletón, Angus beef prime rib grilled according to the method of Villagodio - The waitress asks us how we like our steak done. We say medium rare. She arranges the meat on a salt-sprinkled plate over the fire and then leaves. Duh?? So we get a few pieces of overcooked steak, because, you know, we girls are too pretty undomesticated to do simple tasks such as cooking and flipping. Haha! Joke! When cooked medium rare, the steak is tender and juicy.
Barramundi – overcooked, but the yummy mashed potato makes up for it.
Tuna in Tomato Sauce – I have doubts about this dish, I think cooked tuna is effin boring, but our server highly recommends it and does so repetitively, so I give in. %$@&#!!!!! This tuna is not only effin boring, it is fishy and the effin boring tomato sauce doesn’t do much to mask the effin fishiness. A woman’s instincts. ALWAYS true. ALL the time.
We finish all that food.
What??
REAL women CAN eat.
JP, Philip, CJ, Me, Cathy, Chase
Oh, the three men? They are just there to entertain and order wine for us. Philip says to me, “If food is your expertise, wine is mine.” Ooohhh. And the bottle he picks is excellent. How can I not like eating with this guy? Chase picks one, too, and gets some verbal lashing from the boys. It’s not really that bad, but the first bottle is just a lot better. Chase, please arrange another dinner and redeem yourself. :)
Chase and Philip
Good food, good company, feel-good buzz from a bottle of Chase's and bottles and bottles of Philip’s, and a good friend who picks up the tab at the end of the meal. Thank you, Philip, for the lovely dinner!
February again?
Tapella - G/F, Greenbelt 5, Legaspi Street, Legaspi Village, Makati, Metro Manila. +632-757-2710
