Festa del Vino Stop #1: Sauceria

I am no wine connoisseur but I am always fascinated by the elegance this drink adds to any meal. I normally have a glass or two of red wine whenever I indulge in a succulent piece of steak. But McKinley Hill’s Festa del Vino (Wine Festival) exposed me to other pairings and I loved it!

Hello, McKinley Hill!

This bustling area of Taguig is another gem waiting to be explored by foodies. With its numerous establishments offering mouthwatering dishes, you’ll never run out of options. I have to admit though, I am stuck with Nihonkai Tsukiji whenever I visit this place. But thanks to Megaworld Lifestlyle Malls team, I got to explore the other lovely restaurants around the area. 

Our first Festa del Vino food crawl stop was Sauceria, a quaint restaurant that serves comfort dishes such as chicken wings, sandwiches and pizza. During my visit, I was able to try its Char Siu or Roast Pork Pizza (PHP405) along with a glass of Barefoot Merlot’s Dark Berries. We were also given some pork and chicken skewers in classic and chipotle sauces.

The wine served to us came from California and I actually liked that it had light tones of berries and that it wasn’t very strong. It was odd though that I let out some sweat beads while gulping down my share of wine. Then again, it could be because the place was packed with bloggers trying to capture a nice shot of the wine and food served.

I enjoyed the flavorful char siu pizza which went really well with the wine we sampled. It was a beautiful blend of sweet mangoes and salty roast pork. 

Love at First Bite: Nihonkai Tsukiji

I love it when I randomly discover a good restaurant. It makes me feel that I deserve a Dora the Explorer badge or something. Anyway, I felt that two weeks ago when I discovered Nihonkai Tsukiji.

Hello, Nihonkai Tsukiji.

The place isn’t something that you would instantly notice as the signage of this Japanese restaurant is quite discreet.

Upon entering, I noticed the notable attentiveness of the crew. They instantly handed the menu and one Japanese guy (I’m assuming is the owner) pulled a chair for me to put my bag on.

We ordered Salmon Aburi (PHP85/piece), Salmon Sashimi (PHP340), Makunochi Bento (PHP400) and Tempura Moriawase (PHP380).

First served was the salmon aburi and it was great! The cut was generous and the salmon was fresh. R really liked it and wanted to cancel the salmon sashimi for more of the aburi but the chef already prepared the salmon sashimi.  

The salmon sashimi was served next and it was pretty good too. Again, they used fresh salmon.