A slice of the Mediterranean at Ayala Center Cebu

MANILA, Philippines - If the name Cyma sounds Greek to you, it’s because it is a Greek restaurant. This unpretentious, no-nonsense Greek resto offers light and invigorating fare that’s enough to warm the heart and the belly.

At Cyma, your salad days are just beginning. For the EAT Dining Festival, Cyma whips up a light and refreshing Greek Summer Salad for the STAR.

“It’s watermelon and lamb salad with feta cheese, black olives, sunflower seeds, and fresh mint,” describes chef Jerry Mindajao.

Cyma is famous for its salads that offer mouthwatering healthy options as well as lamb dishes. “We get a lot of customers from Fitness First whose last stop before going home is Cyma,” says Jerry. “Our Greek Summer Salad is a favorite of our male clients to get the protein they need for energy and bring back the fluids they lost after working out.”

 Of course at Cyma, G/F, The Terraces, Ayala Center Cebu, you’ll love the dishes the Greeks love to eat. Like the souvlaki (Greek shish kabobs) that’s got the freshest meats, seafoods, and veggies grilled over seasoned hardwood fires and served with grilled warm pita bread and salad. Or the most marvelous moussaka (sautéed eggplant with mince meat), a popular Eastern Mediterranean dish. Or a generous gyro (roasted meat dish with tomato, onion, tzatziki sauce (strained yogurt mixed with cucumber, garlic, salt, olive oil, pepper, lemon juice, parsley, etc.), wrapped in pita bread.

For a sweet ending to a memorable Greek food trip, try Cyma’s cheesecake with cinnamon, walnuts, and honey. Or its other famous glyka (dessert) — flaming mango with vanilla ice cream, a scintillating fire-and-ice combination.

With our tummies brimming with joy, we can only gush, “Opa!” Let’s party and dance!

From Greece, we go to Italy — I mean two Italian restos Idea Italia and La Tegola Cucina Italiana. Catch a whiff of Florence or Sicily or Venice when you dine at Idea Italia at Level 1, Paseo Marina, Ayala Center Cebu.

 When they put up La Tegola Cucina Italiana back in 2000, owners Mary Sol Malasomma and Italian master chef Alfredo Malasomma wanted to serve a variety of Italian food and wines. They envisioned a fine dining resto with a romantic, relaxing ambience fit for business people, families, friends, couples, and even working people who want to unwind after a hard day’s work.

 Idea Italia and La Tegola are the places to go for great Italian food capped by a bracing cup of espresso or your favorite coffee. Surely, rich Italian food nourishes the body and nurtures the soul.

 For the EAT Dining Festival, Idea Italia has fashioned out a brilliant dish called Pasta Alla Stella Di Pesce (Pasta Star Seafoods), a linguine pasta with assorted seafoods, olive oil with fresh tomato and basil. On the other hand, La Tegola has come up with a simply delish STAR dish called Pasta Alla Stella Di Nivire (Pasta Star-Venire), penne pasta with assorted vegetables, sundried tomato, Italian sausage, and mozzarella cheese baked in an oven.

Truly STAR-rific!