Nowadays, when I eat out, I make right-off-the-bat judgments about restaurants based on two things: The food must be tasty and it must be value for money. The ambience and service merely enhance or exacerbate the food's flavor and cost. It's always about the food.
I love taking pictures of good-looking food. I get really TURNED ON, no kidding. For that one reason, I think I may be falling in love with Restaurante Pia Y Damaso. But thank gadness, (most of) their pretty pretty food is yummy, too.
We joined a group of Ladies Who Lunch on 28 January 2011, and we all got to try a variety of dishes. I've always liked Pia Y Damaso's desserts, but I'd never tried the savory part of the menu. We started with some Crisp Cones. Light, refreshing and fun to eat.
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| Crisp cones with crab, corn, tomato relish. Sautéed crab meat, corn and onions stuffed into fried cones with fresh tomato, cucumber, cumin, cinnamon, parsley and lemon juice. |
My seatmate ordered the salad and offered me a taste. I immediately got salad envy. I'm always on the lookout for a decent salad, and any item that says "Malagos" excites me. I would definitely order this next time. The cucumber-ginger drink in the background of this photo was just OK lah. Lately I've been sticking to plain water-- so that I can eat more, hehe.
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| Roasted vegetable tart with shaved Malagos blue goat cheese, pimiento & parsley oil. Grilled red peppers, zucchinis, eggplants, caramelized onions, garlic, Shiitake mushrooms and herbs on a flaky crust with Davao blue cheese. Tubig ni Maria Clara. A cold pitcher of fresh cucumber juice, ginger and citrus water. |
We had three pasta dishes. Well, four, if you count the pumpkin ravioli. (OK, I just have to say that the name "Pumpkin Wonton Ravioli" bothers me. For me, a wonton IS a ravioli. It's like saying "Spring Roll Lumpia", you know what I mean?)
Anyway, the three pasta dishes. I liked them all. Very creative, and the flavor combinations worked unexpectedly well. Tuna roe + fresh tomatoes. Longganisa + corn. Smoked fish + asparagus. A bit crazy, but absolutely delicious. And the wonton/ ravioli? Good, but not great. I thought that it was too sweet, bordering on dessert-like sweet.
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| Tuna egg (bihod) with tapenade, seared blue marlin & fresh tomatoes. Caramelized onions, garlic, tuna egg roe, black olives, sardines, tomatoes, olive oil and seared blue marlin chunks. |
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| Lucban longganisa & roasted pepper pasta. Roasted red peppers, garlic-flavored native sausages, corn kernels, olive oil and tomatoes. |
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| Creamy tinapa, asparagus & fish fillet. Sauteed fish fillet, smoked fish flakes, baby asparagus, tinapa cream-- with onions, leeks, milk and cream. |
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| Pumpkin wonton ravioli. Stuffed wonton with roasted pumpkin and garlic suatéed in browned butter with toasted walnuts. |
I was so disappointed with the paella. Look at it! It's so beautiful. Unfortunately, everything in it was dry and overcooked, and the serving was too tiny for its price. Still, it was a pleasure to look at.
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| Paella Valenciana. Sautéed organic rice in sofrito and olive oil with marinated chicken, pork, prawns, mussels, fish, chorizos and peas. |
We needed more rice, so we ordered the deer tapa and the catfish adobo. Both were quite satisfying-- not the usual, but comforting and flavorful. Everyone raved about the pickled green mango.
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| Smoked tapang usa. Salted deer meat from Nueva Ecija, green mango pickles, roasted pepper omelette on garlic rice. |
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| Catfish adobo rolled in bacon. Adobo-marinated deboned catfish rolled in smoked bacon with sautéed vegetables on garlic rice. |
Ah, dessert. At Pia Y Damaso, I can't help but feel that dessert is the main event.
In my opinion, the single best thing on their menu is the Bibingka Waffle. It encapsulates "subsversive cuisine". Is it a deconstruction of the bibingka? Is it fusion? I don't know and I don't care. It's mind-blowingly scrumptious. We devoured three orders of it.
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| Bibingka waffle. With Malagos goat cheese, quezo de bola, salted egg and coco jam. |
A visit to this restaurant would not be complete without ordering Sisa's Dementia. Is this chocolate cake really worthy of all the hype? Indubitably, yez.
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| Sisa's Dementia. Truffle cake with white chocolate almond pastille, dark chocolate mousse and ganache. |
Earlier I mentioned value for money. This meal was made possible by some group coupons that my lunch-mates bought. The bill came out to about PHP500 (US$11.50) per head, for a group of nine. Not bad.
Other thoughts on Restaurante Pia Y Damaso: I like the place. The decor is colonial cool, and the windows make the lighting perfect for pictures. The service is very good. The staff is knowledgeable and attentive. If the group coupon offer comes up again, I would buy a few, just to try some of the other intriguingly-named dishes. Nga nga beef salad, anyone? How about some Ibarra's Kiss? But even without the discount, I would pay full price for some of the items that I already know are excellent, like the Tapang Usa and the Bibingka Waffle. Oh, and those lovely plates! Nice china makes a nice meal. One last thing that we ordered which nobody liked-- Moorish Lamb Kebab. So ugh that I didn't even bother taking a picture of it. Guys, you might want to think about removing it from your menu.
Here are some related posts:
First time at Pia Y Damaso
Second time at Pia Y Damaso
Food porn at Enchanté
Perfect lighting at Cibo
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