Who: The restaurant is run by Chef Nicco Santos (Your Local), ably assisted by Chef Queenie Villar. Chef Nicco has also partnered with restaurateur Charles Paw (Hole in the Wall, Freezer Burn among others)
What: Chef-driven restaurant serving modern takes on Peranakan Cuisine
When: Open for Dinner, 6 to 10 pm (Reservations recommended and you can call (02) 946-3815)
Where: Ground Floor, Net Park Building, 5th Ave Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. Parking available at Fort Strip (in front) or at Net Park Building
How: Service is mostly pretty good. I went during the early months of the restaurant, where they alternately assign staff to the kitchen or the front of the house to allow them to all experience the work. When the restaurant got busy, there were understandable lulls in the service, like slight confusion in table reservations or a glass of water forgotten, but mostly the staff members were competent, knowledgeable and friendly. I never expect perfect service, but I truly appreciate staffs that try. They do.
Most interesting dishes I liked:
Fried Egg Salad – The best part of a fried egg apart from a runny yolk, is the crunchy bits and the salad has the crunchy bits in spades. Very balanced flavors and textures from this dish and that’s what I look for in dishes.
Beet Root Paneer – I am filled with abject terror every time I order a vegetarian dish, much more so when it includes beets (I had a traumatic experience with beets in kitchen, so sue me) but this dish was bonkers level good! Rich, creamy and satisfying, the earthiness (aka lasang lupa) of the beets are toned down perfectly and the paneer gives you a texture that makes you not miss meat so much. This could be the only dish in the Philippines featuring beets that I like.
Beef Short Ribs (Nam Tok) – Well, it truly is hard to screw up a beef short rib dish and while I liked this the first time I had it, I appreciated that the chefs kept tweaking the dish to improve it. The third time I had it was the best time I had it, so kudos. Sweet and salty and tender and really, what else do you need after that?
Why: The service I am confident will keep improving as I saw the entire team kept getting better as the weeks went on. I see a healthy work atmosphere in this restaurant which usually means the staff has the drive to get better. I love the small menu as it ensures mastery and I wait in anticipation for new dishes that will surely come. I am confident that Chefs Nicco and Queenie will continue to create dishes that are Peranakan, strongly-flavored, bright and balanced, so I will be back.
Deets: I visited the restaurant 3 times, each with a different group of chefs. We were recognized but no special treatment (which I like) and we paid for our food each time.
