Al fresco dining in the city

MANILA, Philippines – Haven’t you noticed how much ambiance contributes to an eating experience? How a beautiful view, somehow, makes the food, if not taste better, than at least feel more enjoyable to the palate? How a nice breeze whets the appetite even more? How greenery lulls us into appreciating our food more? This is probably the point of Skygarden, the new al fresco dining area in SM North Edsa that combines the serenity of nature with art and sculpture to create a truly enjoyable eating experience, all throughout the day. Aside from the provision of abundant greenery, the Skygarden gives a lofty view of EDSA and its surroundings and, though it’s not proven by experts to improve the appetite, it does make for great dining conversation.

Garden specialties Agave Mexican Cantina: Ole! Ole!

All-you-can-drink margarita the whole day for only P295? If that doesn’t sound like the ultimate invite for playing hooky on a slow, rainy weekday, what does?. Agave, the new chain of Mexican restaurants in the metro finds a cozy spot in the corner of SM North Edsa’s Skygarden, right in the corner of one of the main access points, and with a great view of greenery and a fountain garden — perfect for enjoying the margarita near-giveaway or a bucket of beer (P279 and inclusive of chips and salsa) after work.

The alcohol is not the restaurant’s only draw. An extensive menu includes great contemporary Mexican fare. Favorite include the Yucatan skewers, three sticks of grilled chicken, beef and shrimp served on a bed of rice and greens. More greens can be had with the taco salad. Served in a sculpted tortilla wrap, the abundant salad has corn, beans, olives, sour cream and your choice of meat over some juicy lettuce. Sour cream and a ranch dip top it all off. A dessert fare fave and a definite must-try is the fried ice cream. Think ice cream tempura or ice cream with an added crunch. Just don’t mix with the beer, perhaps.

Agave: 912-6989Ineng’s Special BBQ: Grilled to perfection

You can’t beat a P65 sit-down lunch that comes with a serving of liempo bbq, rice, breezy al fresco dining and a view of art amongst greenery. Welcome to Ineng’s Special BBQ, source of what some may argue the tastiest and meatiest pork BBQ sticks in the metro. This time, however, instead of being in an outdoor kiosk or a weekend market, Ineng’s takes up residence in a mall, offering not just quality food but excellent surroundings as well.

Up for chow grabs, aside from their best-selling 12-inch special pork BBQ, are grilled fish (choose between the boneless bangus or the tilapia) and their budget rice meals which pairs rice with a BBQ meat dish, either liempo, chicken or their specialty longganiza BBQ. Extras, to add more savor to your meal, are the budbod rice, a tasty-looking fried rice mix with egg and BBQ bits; Ineng’s Laing, their own version of the Bicol dish and ensaladang talong. As for dessert, nothing but classic Pinoy favorites are available, from leche flan to mais con yelo.

“We’ve upgraded street food,”says Richard Santiago, owner and one-half of the duo that created the special sauce for the BBQ. (His wife, Michelle, is the other half and Ineng herself.) The upgrade, thankfully, doesn’t reflect in the price. Ineng’s Special BBQ: 515-9872

Coffeeworks: Cozy corner

This should be the perfect place to enjoy the Skygarden’s free WiFi service. Raw, concrete walls, understated décor, earth tones and comfy couches house good, strong coffee and desserts, which are both needed make a coffee house a regular hang-out.

Even during these rainy days, it’s still recommended to try their blended coffee drinks. White choco and hazelnut frappes are mainstays in most coffee houses but Coffeeworks has other flavors such as Almond Roca and cookies and cream to excite the sweet tooth.

For non-dessert fare, the cozy nook also has panini sandwiches worth looking into — the ham and cheese panini serves as great comfort food. Fruit smoothies, teas and hot chocolate drinks are also come-ons. Coffee Works: fax only 332-0954

Marina: A fresh take on taste

It’s a bit strange for a seafood restaurant to have a chicken dish as one of its specialties but you realize why with your first taste of Marina’s Binakol na Manok, a soup of native chicken (very tender) cooked in bamboo stalks with coconut strips, potataoes and tomatoes. It’s the Ilonggo version of tinola and is very tasty.

But then, Marina is still a seafood restaurant and, aside from the surprise chicken soup find, you would definitely go here for their fresh catch fare. Their baked oysters with cheese and garlic would be reason enough to go there but their grilled bulgan (sea bass) with sweet and sour sauce is reason to stay. Marina: 357-2361

Padi’s Point: In the circle of friends

The ultimate barkada hang-out takes up a huge space, both indoor and al fresco at the Skygarden. Here, the restaurant chain’s classic sisig dishes as well as their grilled specialties can be enjoyed on a raised setting overlooking, well, EDSA. (How’s that for novelty?) The view is actually best enjoyed at night, which is really the restaurant’s busiest hours. In fact, this particular branch is open until 2 am daily.

The menu is still the same as with all Padi’s Point branches: a lot of easy-to-eat appetizers, grilled local fare and dishes created for barkadas, such as the Party of Six, a great dish that presents squid, tilapia, liempo, chicken, pork and bangus skewered on standing metal sticks. The Barrio Feast is practically the same spread, only with fried options and served on a wooden plate. Other appetizing options are the grilled tuna belly, tuna sisig, flavored BBQ (choose from Homestyle, spicy or teriyaki) and for the health conscious or the happy hour vegetarian, sizzling tofu.

Padi’s chow is good enough but what really makes the place so happening are their beer barrels (comes with choices of appetizers and food for less than P1,000) and their cocktail towers, a tall, rounded glass dispenser that can be filled with your choice of poison: beer, zombie or anything else that assure you and your buddies don’t leave without that perfect buzz. Padi’s Point : 332-2794

Garden delights Cello’s Doughnuts and Dips: Round we go

You don’t have to eat a doughnut and visibly tremble from too much sugar intake. This, Cello’s proves heartily. Their doughnuts, aside from being less cavity-inducing, are also softer than the usual. And the flavors are more varied as well. They have choco mint, peanut butter and blueberry cream cheese, but it’s the simple cheese and Oreo doughnuts that sell the most, the former a fave because of how the cheese tames down a doughnut’s usual sugar-filled existence.

But if you want to kick your sweet tooth into action, opt for the dips. Choices include Toblerone, Nutella, dark Belgian chocolate and dulce de leche. Sinful? Yes. Worth it? Oh, yes. Cello’s Doughnunts and Dips: fax only - 928-2649

Do-Eat Cotton Candy: Go soft on me

Cotton candy has not changed much from the soft, sticky poof balls of our birthday party past. And why should it? The ultra-sweet treat is the ultimate kiddie indulgence — and adults are known to give in to it as well. Do-Eat Cotton Candy is a little shack dedicated to the party staple. Girls behind the counter do nothing but spin thin strands of striated sugar into fluffy balls in sweet pastel colors. The usual flavors are there: bubblegum, strawberry and blueberry. But there new ones also: banana split, mango-peach, toffee, passion fruit and chocolate, among others. And then there are flavors that only kids can appreciate: Tiger Blood and Blue Goo. Make the trip to discover what these are all about. Cotton Candy: fax only  823-6426

Frost Bite: Pinoy flavor

Locally-made designer ice cream is finally making it’s mark, partly spearheaded by Fruits in Cream (FIC) ice cream. Now, the ice cream brand is not just promoting locally-made, it’s also pushing local flavors as well, or what we have come to know as sorbetero flavors. But, instead of selling from a metal street cart, FIC has Frost Bite as a vehicle.

Frost Bite ice cream house offers FIC’s Pinoy flavors such as macapuno, nangkasuy, ube, guinumis, queso and even durian and dresses them up in extremely cute presentations. Chocnut ice cream is scooped atop a warm coffee bun, drizzled with chocolate syrup and sprinkled with more crumbled Chocnut candy. A scoop of macapuno is paired with puto bumbong and centered onto a waffle bowl. Bibingka mix is ingeniously made into waffles and topped with queso ice cream, toasted coconut and coco jam. It’s Pinoy ice cream at it’s best, served with a global take.

Green Mango: I can’t believe its non-fat

Yogurt and its promotion of live bacteria culture’s health possibilities seem to be all the rage these days and Green Mango takes up the trend but gives it their own spin with flavored options and a price tag that’s considerably lower than other yogurt houses: a little over P50 for a hefty serving that already comes with three toppings. Choose from fruits (it is operated by the Fruit Magic peeps, after all), nuts and candy sprinkles to spruce up your non-fat dessert. But with strawberry and chocolate flavors, eating Green Mango yogurt as sans the toppings will leave you out in the cold. Green Mango: fax only 364-3621

Kitchen of Cakes and Coffee: Power duo

Cake and coffee are not entirely inseparable but each does benefit from the presence of the other. And in a kitchen that serves nothing but coffee, cakes and other pastry treats, you can’t help but have both. This kitchen, in particular, is known for their Choco Decadent cake, an ultra-moist number that is as sinful, but not as sweet, as it looks. The Mango Torte is also a best-seller as well as their cheesecakes. Musts also include their different sylvannas variants, which include peanut butter, chocolate and red velvet.

And don’t skip on the caffeine brew. You’ll regret it if you do. Kitchen of Coffee and Cakes: telefax 363-7418 or 412-3358

Tita Lynn’s Suman: Wrap stars

Don’t take the suman for granted. As Tita Lynn’s Suman proves, there is a lot that can be done to banana leaf-wrapped sticky rice. It can be flavored, for one. And this temple to the native delicacy has 14 flavors for the suman alone, all of them incorporating local fruits and ingredients. The best-selling suman is the cocomas (coconut and muscovado sugar) but Tita Lynn’s also has ube suman, langka, yema, macapuno, manga, chocolate and mais macapuno.

To sweeten the experience even more, you can get the suman bites with chocolate dip, a rich, thick sweetener that gives the ultimate high. Or you can opt for the Sumandue (Tita Lynn’s version of chocolate fondue), which takes the choco and suman combo one step further and pairs it with melon and mango chunks.

For the diabetic and health-conscious, Tita Lynn conscientiously created Red Benguet, a special suman made of red rice and Splenda. Tita Lyn’s Suman: 842-1753