Gastro Park Kapitolyo Find #7: The Masala Bar

Our desire to stuff ourselves till we burst brought us to our last Gastro Park Kapitolyo food discovery, The Masala Bar. This stall didn’t have a long line when we spotted it. (The ones with long wait are the milkshake stall and SurFries!!!.) It didn’t cross my mind that the store might offer mediocre dishes hence the lack of foodies lingering in front of its store. I just wanted to maximize my Kapitolyo visit. 

Hello, The Masala Bar!

We got the Chicken Tikka Quesadilla (PHP120) as it is easy to be shared and it sounded light, giving us room for drinks or dessert. An order comes with pico de gallo and garlic dip.

The server told us that they will just serve the quesadilla to us. We just have to inform them of where we’re seated. 

Our order arrived in about 10 minutes and it was served warm. 

I dipped my slice in the garlic dip and topped it with pico de gallo and… it was still bland. I had to sparingly drizzle more garlic dip as I was sharing it with my friends. 

I am not sure if we ordered pita with a hint of cheese or Chicken Tikka Quesadilla. I could not taste the chicken or any of the other ingredients. Perhaps they were almost out of ingredients when we placed our order? I have no idea but I’ll buy from the other stalls next time. 

The Masala Bar is located at Gastro Park Kapitolyo, 1st Street, Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City.

Gastro Park Kapitolyo Find #5: The Seventh Element

Though it's cold at night, the scorching afternoon heat  reminds us that summer is near. It is the signal to prepare the bods for the beach but it is also a sign for... ice cream!

Hello, The Seventh Element!

I've read several good reviews about this nitrogen ice cream and it sure made me curious. I promised myself that I'll try this place out when I visit Gastro Park. And I don't break promises. :D

After a hearty meal, T and I decided to cap our lunch with some sweets. I decided to go for Oreo and Cream Cheese while T went for Avocado. Both flavors are their bestsellers.

One cup costs PHP150 and it seems steep compared to its competitors. But since it's the only ice cream stand in Gastro Park, it doesn't really matter to the food park's patrons. 

It took the staff a couple of minutes before serving our cups of ice cream. And when it was finally served, I was a bit disappointed that our cups were not overflowing with ice cream. 
But a spoonful of ice cream changed my disappointment to delight.

Gastro Park Kapitolyo Find #4: Tolyo's Soup n' Grill

While waiting for our orders from Brick Plate and El Phante, T and I checked the other kiosks in Gastro Park and we spotted something interesting... Mexican Bulalo. 

Hello, Tolyo's Soup n' Grill.

We were convinced to try the Mexican Bulalo when we saw "bone marrow" (PHP165, regular | PHP180, with bone marrow). Unfortunately, they were out of the delectable marrow. But since we were still curious with how Mexican Bulalo tastes like, we ordered a bowl. 

The soup was served in less than 10 minutes and my first impression was... it was a small serving for PHP165.

The dish was quite oily and though the broth had a bit of spice, it was still on the bland side hence the need for condiments. (Tolyo's provided us with spiced fish sauce for additional taste but it didn't help much.)  

Wondering why this is called Mexican? There were some beans too in the soup. But it didn't give the dish a distinct taste. 

Sadly, I was not impressed and will not be back to try the other dishes. 

Tolyo's Soup n' Grill is located at Gastro Park, 1st Street, Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City.

Gastro Park Kapitolyo Find #3: Surfries!!

It was a humid day when T and I visited Gastro Park and a drink was a must, especially to help push down our food finds. And then that was when I spotted...Surfries!!

Surfries!!

Were you surprised? Okay, okay, it is a terrible joke. But lame joke aside, I was surprised when the friendly server presented to me the size of the Raspberry Bowl (PHP85) when I asked if it is good for sharing.

The raspberry drink was served in a fishbowl! And for PHP85, it was a steal!!! 

It was not overly sweet and definitely a thirst quencher. This is the perfect drink to be shared with friends who are not "laway-conscious". (We estimated and this is probably 1.5L of raspberry drink.)

When I came back for dinner, I decided to try Kaboom! fries (PHP145). I also order another raspberry bowl to be shared with my friends. We had to wait for 15 minutes or so for the drink though as Surfries!! ran out of fishbowls. (That's how packed Gastro Park is on a Saturday Night!)

The small tray of fries was served in less than 10 minutes. I told the server that I could get the tray from him but he insisted to bring it to our table because... he had to blow torch the cheese. Oooooh. Fanceeeeh!

I liked this dish a lot! Each bite was cheesy and I liked the crunch of the spring onion bits. I didn't get to taste the smoked bacon though. I guess the cheese topping overpowered it. 

I'll definitely try the other fries next time. 

Surfries is located at Gastro Park, 1st Drive, Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City

Gastro Park Kapitolyo Find #2: Brick Plate

Since I hardly frequent Kapitolyo these days, I made sure that I get to try as many dishes as possible from different food establishments. And one of the kiosks that caught my attention was Brick Plate.

Hello, Brick Plate!

I wasn't really hungry when I got to Gastro Park to meet up with T as I just had brunch at Starbucks. (Yes, I know it's a waste of tummy space if you're out on a food trip in search of new food finds.) But the gluttony in me didn't stop me from ordering ribs.

T and I decided to share one Shaker Ribs (PHP180) with No Fail Sauce (or more known as classic BBQ sauce) and instead of rice, we asked the server to replace it with corn and she gladly obliged.

The shake ribs come with two ribs packed with meat. The corn, coleslaw and barbecue sauce come in small plastic containers.

The meat was slightly on the tough side and it was lightly seasoned. It is best enjoyed with the sweet barbecue sauce. I liked the two side dishes as it added crunch and more flavor to the bland ribs. 

Though it's only PHP180, I find it steep for the size and quality.

Brick Plate is located at Gastro Park, 1st Street, Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City.

Gastro Park Kapitolyo Find #1: El Phante

Last Saturday was a crazy food fest. I scheduled to meet my friends for breakfast, lunch and dinner in Kapitolyo as I realized that I have to start visiting the new ones before it starts to become unmanageable. I was so giddy on my way to Kapitolyo but it instantly disappeared when I couldn’t find Kitchen Diaries Café. There were two location pins, one from Waze and another from Instagram. I went to both and circled both areas like Sisa looking for her kids and I just could not find it. Worn out and sweaty, I decided to give the café a call and… apparently, there was a change in management and they have to close down the café indefinitely. It pissed me off! They could have at least announced it or something! Aaargh. Anyway, I made sure that lunch will be awesome as I planned it to be at…

Gastro Park!

This place is the StrEat version of Kapitolyo. Similar to the Maginhawa branch, this small compound houses several small food establishments offering different cuisines. And on top of my list is El Phante which got good rating in looloo.

I was excited to hand the coupons I got from Metro Deal where PHP200 worth of food will be just PHP99. But I failed to take note that the coupons are only valid from Sundays to Thursdays. It was not a big deal since it was my mistake and prices are wallet-friendly.

I then ordered the bestseller Chili Beef Basil Soft Taco (PHP140). Don’t be deceived by the name of the dish. It was just mildly spiced or so what the server claims.

It took roughly 10 minutes for our order to be served and it was… small. What do you expect from PHP140? I was pleased though that despite the small size of the soft taco, there was a generous serving of ground beef.