Gastronomic finds south of the metro

We’ve had too much business on our plate, dear readers, so how about some real food?

Residents from the south must really relish the idea of how so many restaurants and bake shops have sprouted in the area.  BF Homes in Parañaque, for one, has spawned some good ones. Conti’s started out there as a bake shop, and they have acquired a slew of hard-core loyalists because of their excellent cakes which do not come cheap. So, they easily branched out to a good-sized restaurant in no time, and the original store in BF along main thoroughfare Aguirre Avenue gets full even on weekdays.

With a TV show that has, for its format, an equal part of “business and leisure”, our team is always on the lookout for new finds that we can share with our loyal viewers.  Our segment, Food Trip has been one of our most steadfast and elicits the most comments from our leisure viewers.

One of our latest finds is Tito Chef in BF Homes Parañaque, along President’s Avenue right across Tahanan Village and we got to meet the amiable owner/chef Menoy Gimenez who personally created the entire menu in his restaurant.

Interestingly, he acquired the lease of this rather large property from a retired couple who built this home in 1971 and who are now “empty-nesting”, their children all married off with their own families. When you enter the restaurant, which is very well appointed by the way, one can recognize the divisions of this once fine home. The main dining area used to be the living room; just a few steps up is another dining area with two function rooms. A few steps down to the basement is Tito Chef’s culinary store where you can find everything from good cookware to plates, glassware, knives and even hard-bound cookbooks. Just off the main dining area is the veranda which they have converted to another private air-conditioned area that seats 20 — very charming indeed. And to the right of the main dining is a little nook for their baked items — a refrigerated cake display shows off such mean offerings like strawberry short cake and dark banoffee pie. They bake their own cookies and my wife regularly buys her biscotti here which she says tastes mildly of anise for dunking in her morning coffee.

Tito Chef is definitely a bistro, but Chef Menoy qualifies it as a community-based bistro that has a cross-continental menu. With that, he means that there is a little of something for everyone — if different people in the group carve for something Asian, or has a yearning for pasta or paella, they can indulge their liking. He has wisely centered on the bistro theme and says he is not offering Pinoy cuisine for the moment – he leaves that to the Filipino home experts who have their own arguably “best adobo or best kare-kare”. The cuisine, though, remains home-spun, and the ambience is both relaxing and comfortable.

One Sunday morning, my wife brought the family there for what she thought was Sunday breakfast buffet.  They do not serve buffets at all here, but on weekends they have what they call Great Weekend Breakfasts which is a treat for the family. Their only concession to buffets is their Wine Buffet from Wednesday to Friday, 3–6 p.m. where you get served three reds and three whites along with some great tapas.

Some of their best sellers include the tender, fall-off the bone Osso Bucco Milanese which my son opted for that Sunday, the marrow intact in the shank, juicy and saucy. Another one is the Aussie Lamb Paella, a nice take from the regular paella and a whole meal in itself with generous chunks of lamb. And yet another one is the cedar-grilled salmon which is light yet filling, healthy and flavorful. Oh yes, Tito Chef makes everything in-house- from the bread to the sausages and cakes.

More finds south of the metro

We’re still in BF Homes in Parañaque, and another great find is the twin stores of Manna Bakery and Kaffe Yen.

Manna, of course has biblical origins meaning bread from heaven, and it is in this context that owner Rosemarie Rafael has named her bakery for the blessing that it means to her. Manna bakes its own bread and other offerings like the large muffins, wheat and regular pan de sal, baguettes, focaccia, non-dairy and no-sugar bakery products daily and without preservatives, so she advises her healthy buyers to freeze the unconsumed bread after two days, after which they can toast them for excellent results.

Manna Bakery started out with an interesting story.  Rosemary used to run a recruitment company that sent bakers and chefs for employment to Australia.  One of the bakers failed the English test, and the lady prevailed on him to stay in the country and work for her.  Initially, he just baked trays and trays of pan de sal which turned out to be very good, thus Manna was born.

Just across Manna Bakery is its sister company, Kaffe Yen.  With a tag line that says “Thai Food and More”, one knows what to expect – Asian cuisine.

The executive chef is Thai — Chef Hof — and two very young Filipino assistant chefs, Paolo and Ralph, work alongside him to come out with budget-priced Asian food. The chicken sate, which the young chefs shared are first fried slightly, then grilled to finish it off, cost P149, complete with rice and greens.  No kidding. The fish cake (three large pieces) which is very popular in Thailand also cost P149.

Their Pad Thai, though, as claimed by Chef Hof, is different from the usual offered in other Thai restaurants and thus costs a bit more — P239, which is still a steal. Their Lotus of the Sea, a mixed sea food concoction served in a shell costs P289, the most expensive of the lot.

The executive chef also recommends their baked ham for Christmas which people literally line up for during the holidays. And on Sunday nights, they have the Special Sunday treat, which is for you to find out.

Mabuhay!!! Be proud to be a Filipino.

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