First Bite: Atelier Vivanda

I yearned to visit Atelier Vivanda ever since I saw an Instagram post about its grand opening and the fact that it is a two-star Michelin restaurant. I wanted to have dinner there for Valentine's but I was a bit too late to make a reservation. Luckily, R's dad decided to celebrate his birthday there (and it was just one day ahead of mine). Yay! 

Hello, Atelier Vivanda!

It is... not as fancy as I thought. I read a bit about the restaurant and it sounded so formal hence I was surprised that the place is pretty casual. I also had this impression that the place is huge and majestic. But the place is quite small. In fact, it is very cramped.

R and I headed straight to the second floor where R's sister reserved a table for everyone. The space upstairs seemed to be even more cramped. The waiters can't avoid bumping into the diners' chairs or backs and it is never pleasant to experience this.

Anyway, R and I opted to get the set menu for PHP1,900. It comes with an entree, mains, unlimited side dishes and dessert. I got Potato Soup for my appetizer, Vendee Yellow Chicken Breast for main, and Custard for dessert. R went with Whole Cooked Foie Gras, Black Angus Hampe, and Crème Brûlée. The server who assisted us offered to let us try all their potato side dishes.

Since the place was packed when we visited, it took them quite a long time to serve our dishes. It was almost 20 minutes in when the appetizers arrived. 

I was not impressed with R's foie gras. It was a bit dry and seemed like a solidified foie gras pate. 

I loved my soup though. It was thick and rich. Serving was also very generous. Actually, a bit too generous as it was too heavy as an appetizer. It was delightfully creamy with lovely tanginess from the Comté cheese and tinge of saltiness from the smoked haddock. 

In about 20 minutes, our mains were served.

R's black Angus steak seemed to be a bit small and rather thin but taste-wise, it did not disappoint. Cooked medium, the meat was succulent and nicely seasoned. 

It was flavorful enough for you to also appreciate the natural flavor of the meat. 

A Glutton Favorite: Amici

Don’t you just love sibling bonding, especially when the word shopping is involved? But things can get really messy when you’re just given 3 hours to attend mass, shop, and have lunch.

3 hours to do three different things. You might think that it is long enough but I take food shopping seriously and I enjoy entering food stores to sniff and let out a loud aaah~ given that what they were cooking or baking smells delightful.

My sister and I agreed that we will first shop for a bit, then eat and finally attend mass at 2:30 p.m.. Fight!

After 30 minutes of walking around Forever 21, I felt my tummy begging for mercy and grumbling, “Feed me!” So, I looked for my sister and convinced her that it was time to have lunch with puppy eyes. (Fine, it looked more like eyes that will murder someone. I just can’t do that whole begging prettily style.)

I was eyeing Kebab Factory for I miss its Chicken Mast but my sister needed to be dragged inside the restaurant first before she agrees and I just do not have the energy to do so. Then light seemed to hit my eyes and saw… Amici. My sister loves pizza. This will do.

 

We instantly grabbed a table and ordered the following: Crema di Zucca (PHP134), Mozzarella Fritto (PHP220), Al Quattro Formaggi (PHP348), Linguine al Salmone Cremoso (PHP298), Mango Felicity (PHP80) and Brazo de Mercedes (PHP65). We also ordered one pitcher of coke just for the two of us.

Rub at First Sight: Rub Ribs & BBQ

Ribs. Who doesn’t love them? Even those on a diet cannot resist the big slab of oh so good meat with overflowing barbeque sauce. I could testify. I momentarily forgot my diet--at least for a good 2 hours.

 

Finally, Rub Ribs! I’ve been hearing a lot of good reviews about this place. I know three colleagues who could not stop raving about it and I just have to try it. Actually, the reason why we had a “rib lunch out” today was because of my colleague’s addiction to the place.

The place was quite small and parking was a bit difficult that we had to park on the other side of the street. The place also has another side business—SMILE intervention center.

We were all very hungry so we ordered within 2 minutes. I ordered the Singles—half slab with one side dish (I ordered Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes) and plain rice (PHP190), an additional side dish of Buttered Vegetables (PHP65) Soup of the Day—Cream of Potato Soup (PHP100), and Fried Oreos with Vanilla Ice Cream (PHP140).