Scrumptious Spanish Dishes, Mario's Way! - RinaZ

Rain enjoying her Minnie balloon I bought for her from the streets of Tomas Morato :-)

            It's funny, because I have been familiar with the restaurant Mario's for as long as I can remember, but I never really recall actually dining there. Don't ask why because I'm not sure why either. And when we recently got the chance to try their specials at their branch in Tomas Morato with our little baby girl Rain, I questioned myself more. Their dishes truly are special in their own Mario's way!

          

           Marios has a simple but definitely classy Spanish feel to it's interiors. It's a place where you can have intimate dinners but at the same time a nice place where you can treat your family to a hearty meal! 

          

We started lunch with Mario’s signature Ceasar Salad (P255). You might be thinking, what’s the big deal about a starter Caesar Salad? Well, Mario’s Caesar Salad, is THE BEST Caesar Salad I have ever tasted! It’s so special that they even prepare it table side! 

After tediously making the dressing, it's tossed with fresh lettuce!

 It's then drizzled with bacon and Parmesan cheese! Yum! For the complete step by step, check it out here at Rina's Rainbow!

I took a sip from our friend’s Cucumber Mint Slush. And to my surprise it was quite refreshing! The taste of the cucumber is not as strong and the drink itself is not too sweet. Just right.

Everyone ordered their own dishes and so we didn’t get to try all of it. But here are the photos nonetheless:

Gambas Con Chorizo (P345) is also one of their signature dishes. Shrimps and chorizo combined in garlic olive oil. What’s not to love?

The Millenium Platter (P245). Enjoy a meal of garlic rice, two eggs, and Danggit + Vigan Longanisa! They also have a Daing na Bangus and Chicken Pork Adobo. Choose your pick!

They have Steak and Eggs (P290)! Can't go wrong!

Of course they also have Batangas Beef Tapa (P220) for tapsi lovers!

(FRIED CRABS NA MAY KALABASA SA SIDE)

Soft Shell Crabs in Coco Cream Sauce (P495) looked really good as well! This is one of Mario’s Seasonal Dishes. It is served with plain rice and vegetable of the day.

The Barbecue Spare Ribs (P400) is a sight to behold. Marinated and smothered in Mario’s very own barbecue sauce and served with garlic rice.

I ordered the Filet Mignon (P640) because I saw the description that it was wrapped in bacon, but completely forgetting the fact that filet mignon has zero fat. Pure lean meat. But I still enjoyed it nonetheless especially the mashed potatoes and the bacon.

Another beautiful classic is the Rack of Lamb (P850). Cooked charbroiled and then served with port mint sauce. This one’s pricey but for sure the quality will give justice to it. (I didn’t get to taste sorry!) This is actually one of Mario’s specialties!

The Chicken Parmesan (P350) also looks promising. Looks like a really good creamy comfort food! When I saw this I admit I actually wished I ordered this instead. I just hope they used thigh part instead of breast haha! I’m a red meat kind of person. The chicken breast is topped with a creamy cheese sauce, and fettuccini al burro. 

They also have a steak version which is the Steak Bearnaise (P635). It’s a top grade tenderloin steak served with fettuccine al burro.

And last but not the least, our favorite! Included in the Chef’s Special menu: The creamy and very flavourful Three Mushroom Pasta in Black Truffle Oil with Bacon! Richie is a fan of oil-based pastas (basically because he can’t eat tomato-based ones because of his hyper-acidity). The bacon serving is not bad too! Huge chunks actually. It’s dishes like this that deserves to be framed and displayed. (Oh by the way it also has Shiitake, button, and oyster mushrooms. Was so focused on the bacon that I forgot to mention that. After all it IS called Three Mushroom Pasta haha!)

Okay... this is not a photo of the eye of Sauron or a fire breathing dragon. This is actually DESSERT TIME! And there’s only one way to have an awesome dessert, and that is to do it FLAMBE style! (Ole!!!)

They have three types of famous flambes, Crepes Suzette, Fruit Crepes, and Jubilee (P350) which is what we had. It’s mango, banana or strawberry (depending on season), immersed in liqueurs and then flamed over a delicious vanilla ice cream! All of their flambés are good for two. An inexpensive but very impressive dessert to offer your date! (pogi points!)

Trust me when I say that ordering in Mario’s is hard as everything looks delicious! Mario’s years of experience is apparent in their dishes. You really get what you pay for!  Can’t wait to try their Great Sunday Lunch Buffet! You can check for their latest promotions here. (http://www.marios.com.ph/promo.php)

         Here are just some more mala-"family" photos of our fun luncheon at Marios! but it's not a photo of me, Richie, and Rain. They're photos of our fun blogger friends and adorable Rizzo, the son of the one and only Marty and Tin of Mad Meats who was able to join us that day! Fun fun fun!:-)

Rizzo and Tito Spanky (Pwede na Spanks! hehehe)

Rizzo and Tito Gerry

Having a discussion on what else to order hahaha!

191 Tomas Morato Ave. cor. Scout Gandia

Quezon City

Telephone Numbers:

372.0360 / 415.3887 / 376.6210

Fax Number:

372.0352

Email Address:

mariosqc@marios.com.ph

  

UNDER COVA NIGHTS.. TAPAS Y SANGRIAS

Convicted Pigophile

           I don't know if you know this boring tidbit about me, but I'm a notorious introvert. There's absolutely no chance that you would see me at a bar or a super club in the evenings. Maybe it's because I don't drink. Call me corny and all that, but alcohol hurts my throat and no matter how hard I try, the darn stuff just won't go down. 

          When I was invited to go to Cova Tapas Y Sangrias, I had some slight apprehensions, because everyone I had asked about Cova, always replied, "You should try their Sangria!" or "They have a great selection of wines!". It was only when my buddy Spanky assured me that he wouldn't let the night pass without making sure our bellies were filled to the brim with delicious food that I realized that Cova was more than just a late night drinking spot. 

         Their Spanish food is pretty phenomenal too

DINNER AT CASA ARMAS

     Casa Armas is one of those restaurants that I've passed by over and over again, yet for some reason I had never tried it yet. When I lived in Makati, I'd walk past it all the time in Greenbelt. When I was staying in Ortigas, I'd see it whenever I'd go to Podium. 


    However, when I was invited to dinner at Casa Armas by my buddy Spanky Enriquez to give their dishes a try, I didnt think twice. Not just because I'm a fan of free food, but because of Casa Armas reputation as one of the top restaurants of choice when it comes to Spanish Cuisine.    
     

TAPAS TIME AT BASTY'S

          The biggest drawback of coming from a family that specializes in the art of cooking Spanish cuisine is that it's very difficult to find a restaurant that impresses me. The extensive culinary knowledge of my legendary Grandmother was passed down to my mother and her sisters, who in turn did their best to impart their wisdom to their children. These are cooking techniques that have been used from generation to generation, for classic Spanish dishes such as Paella, Lengua and Gambas. My mom could whip out some of the best these dishes you would ever try. Can you imagine restaurant quality food.. As your home cooked meal.. on a daily basis? (My dreams of having a Ryan Reynolds physique never had a chance) 


       In a nutshell, that explains why it took me over a year to blog about my first Spanish restaurant. 


         Though I was absent the day my mom taught my sisters and brother how to cook, the love of food which has become my family's most valued inherent trait lives (arguably the strongest) inside of me. So after receiving a free voucher from the wonderful people at The group buying site Groupon Philippines for a dinner at Basty's (Thanks Joey and Kev!) as their token of appreciation for becoming a finalist in the Philippine Blog Awards, I thought it was the perfect time to do my first post on a Spanish restaurant.

A TASTE OF BUENISIMO

       The First official post of the new adventures of The Pickiest Eater In The World, with Photography by RinaZ! See the difference! (Maybe next time I can find a way to do this in 3D hehe)

By Cafe Ysabel.. so you know they know their stuff.

                   Given my love for food, it's quite normal for friends to go up to me with suggestions for places to eat. My good buddy Joel, or "My Giant" as I more lovingly call him because he's a foot taller than me, (Meaning he's freakishly tall.. not that I'm, you know.. ridiculously short.. OK, fine. it's a combination of both. Happy now?) never fails to mention Buenisimo whenever we talk about food. (Of course he called it "Bellisimo", which turned out to be a totally different restaurant) He raved about their awesome food, generous portioning and the reasonable prices, saying it was a favorite of his daughter Gwen. The last time we went to a restaurant that was one of Gwen's favorites, the said restaurant ended up becoming an instant favorite of our group as well (I don't want to mention the name for future post purposes), so hearing his daughter's stamp of approval, immediately piqued my interest.

                  Not that little Gwen (As of writing she's not yet taller than me, but who knows what'll happen by next week) is some "Paul the Octopus" of food, but that's just how pleased with the first restaurant that got her endorsement. So one fine Saturday morning, Rina and I headed off once again to Eastwood (Which has apparently become one of our favorite malls, based on the number of posts in the past and coming up) to find Buenisimo. Rina was excited more than usual because, as mentioned earlier, this would be her first Official Pickiest Eater "assignment".

                 And I gotta say, the pix really look amazing.. (great job, babe!)