La Cabrera beefs up

La Cabrera is one of the most popular restaurants in Argentina. It has opened restaurants in other countries including one in Makati at 6750 Ayala Avenue years ago.

The restaurant has been doing very well that it recently opened another branch at the EDSA Shangri-La Manila. It has taken over the space of the hotel’s former Italian restaurant Papparazzi and renovated it to its cozy steakhouse look now.

Gaston Riveira, chef and owner of La Cabrera Argentina, flew in for the opening of his second Philippine branch.

Cocktails were served before the sit-down dinner. And despite knowing about the steak dinner, I ate five beef empanadas during the cocktails as they were so delicious!

Dinner started with provoleta or grilled provolone cheese.  I noticed that this version was crisp on the outside, soft on the inside, which I preferred over the gooey cheese version I tried at the restaurant’s 6750 branch. One of the owners, Carlo Calma Lorenzana, explained that this is the way Argentines do their provoleta. The restaurant used to serve cheese the gooey way as most Filipinos didn’t like the harder cheese. Now for both branches, diners are given a choice of how they like their provoleta done.

(From left) Randy Libre, Chinkee Koppe, Miguel Vecin, Carmina del Rosario and Anna Tenchavez.

Next on the menu was Caesar salad, and then the mouthwatering meats followed. The Grillados consisted of three cuts of meat:  cuadril or coulotte, entraña or skirt and asado del centro or beef short ribs. All were perfectly cooked by chef Augustin Figueroa. I have to admit I ate a lot of the coulotte and skirt, even after having those empanadas. The beef was juicy and flavorful and did not need any sauce.

The desserts were divine: crepes filled with Argentine dulce de leche and creamed dulce de leche-layered chocolate cookie crusts.  The restaurant’s alfajores is also a must-try. It has different versions but I prefer the original plain variant.

After dinner, dancers performed tango that drew much applause from the appreciative crowd.

EDSA Shangri-La general manager Amit Oberoi said that he was happy that La Cabrera is a new tenant in the hotel. Meanwhile, Gaston mentioned during his speech that though his restaurant does not have a Michelin star, he just wants his diners to be happy. 

Based on the smiles and empty plates in the room that evening, all guests were indeed happy with their meal.

(For reservations or inquiries, call 0967-2367940 or e-mail [email protected]. For more information, check out @lacabreramanila on Facebook and Instagram.)

Ultimate gaming hub

Acer Predator concept store at SM City North EDSA-The Annex.

Steadily gaining popularity in the country is eSports. This rapidly growing segment of the tech market is big enough to become a medal sport at the upcoming 2019 Southeast Asian Games to be held in the Philippines in November.

With this, more and more enthusiasts are in search for devices that will up their gaming experience. Always top of mind in the gaming world is Predator, an Acer brand known for its notebooks, desktops and accessories designed for eSports.

Recently, the 96-sq.-m. Acer Predator concept store was launched at the Cyberzone of SM City North EDSA-The Annex. Acer executives led by managing director Manuel Wong and Predator brand ambassador Alodia Gosiengfiao were present during the event.

Exclusive gaming devices are now available at the concept store.

The concept store, managed by VillMan, one of the brand’s retail partners, offers a complete lineup of futuristic gaming devices like high-performing laptops, desktops, monitors and professional-grade accessories. Also available at the store is the Predator Thronos, a chair that can be customized to become a gamer’s ultimate cave. 

“We want to create an environment where gamers can see incredible possibilities by creating a hub for all their tech needs and giving them an immersive gaming experience,” Predator Philippines marketing and sales director Sue Ong-Lim said.

The store also features a service center to conduct device overhauls and services such as unit diagnostics, driver installation, software repair, memory upgrading and HDD installation.