Resto Bites - Kuppa

Since my office moved to Bonifacio Global City, I've been on the hunt for quality but reasonably-priced restaurants. There are a lot of good restaurants there, but the price range is more suited for an executive. That's why my team and I rarely eat out (but that's also because we have a kick-ass cafeteria/food court in our building hehe).

During one of our team lunch-outs, we passed by Kuppa, a coffee place that catches your attention because of the handwritten menu on their windows. It reminded me of the movie Amelie. That day, some of my teammates and I decided to have our dessert there. We tried two cakes, Chocolate Peanut Butter Bombe and lemon cake (I forgot the actual name).

There is so much more to their menu than cakes and coffee, so I decided to come back with Jay to eat there during one of our date nights. Just to set your expectations, I am not a coffee drinker, so although Kuppa is also known for its coffee, there's none of that in this post.

Kuppa has nice interiors, a mix of concrete, brick and wood set against black and white walls. The space has high ceilings with exposed beams and plumbing. There are huge picture windows but the handwritten menu acts like a thin curtain for diners inside. There's a second floor with more seats, and a smoking area as well.

Yummy pastries, chalkboard menu, and nice interiors. I'm sold!

Here's what we ordered:

Water was complimentary, but the bottle is nice so I included it in the photo. :)

I had iced tea and Jay had lemonade. They serve their iced tea with syrup as sweetener, which reminded me of the one served at Chocolate Kiss (in UP Diliman).

I'd like to think I'm more adventurous than Jay when it comes to food. His philosophy is that when he's hungry, he'd like to be sure he's eating good food. We were nearly starving at this point so he opted for the basic bolognese. And I'm glad he did. This is one of the more flavorful spaghetti I've had in a while. The serving is good to share if you're also ordering other entrees.

While we were waiting for our pizza, Jay wanted to order the kebab but the server said it would take a while so we'll just reserve it for our return. There are other interesting entrees too, like the Osso Bucco and Lamb Caldereta. They also have a variety of sandwiches as well as a breakfast menu.

For our pizza, our server recommended the Prosciutto Cotto e Funghi as one of their bestsellers so we tried that. As you can see from the photo, some edges of the crust were burnt, but the rest of the pie was amazing. They didn't scrimp on the mozarella, cooked ham, and mushrooms. When I'm with my more adventurous foodie friends, I'd like to try their signature pizza called Cristina, which has an interesting mix of toppings: mozarella, balsamic, gorgonzola, fig and grapes.

Now, I've mentioned before that I am not a chocolate fan. But I'm more likely to eat chocolate when it's incorporated in another dessert, like a cake. This Chocolate Peanut Butter Bombe has my approval. It's rich, with the right amount of sweetness. A layer of peanut butter is sandwiched between white chocolate mousse and chocolate cake, then encased in chocolate ganache. You'll be licking your dessert forks with this one.

Just like Bob's, Kuppa is a cafe that originated from Bacolod. I wasn't able to pay a visit while I was there, but I'm happy they now have a branch in Manila. It's definitely worth coming back to!

Let me end my post with a shot of this decadence:

Kuppa Roastery & Cafe
31st and 4th
Bonifacio Global City
+632-552-1057

Resto Bites: Sunshine Kitchen

I love eating out, but that habit can be tough on the pocket especially when you want to eat in a good restaurant. To get quality food, sometimes you have to pay a high price. That's why I am so thankful discount websites have sprung like wild mushrooms everywhere! I've gotten so many good deals from those sites be it for health, beauty, and of course, food! It can get addicting though, so make sure you purchase stuff you really need. Everything in moderation. :)

Marye, Ten, and I shared a coupon for Sunshine Kitchen. It was a consumable voucher that allowed us to order items on the regular menu. That was good because usually when restaurants tie up with a discount website, they offer a special set menu. I forgot how much the coupon was, but what we did was pay for the additional cost of our orders.

My first impression when we entered Sunshine Kitchen was that it lacked sunshine. Maybe because we came on a gloomy day, or maybe I was just thinking about a different restaurant. You know, white furniture, bright and cheerful walls, birds chirping. Heh, my bad.

Sunshine Kitchen has brick walls, black tables, and yellow chairs. The sunlight comes from the huge picture windows covered by the restaurant signage in the middle. A bar with high black stools gives a peek into the restaurant's kitchen.

The sunshine comes from the food they serve: flavorful, well-seasoned, and with generous servings. Each dish is worth the price.

For appetizers, we had mixed mushroom with poached egg (P280). Two thumbs up for this dish. Even the bread was great.

We also ordered Pasta Al Nero (P410). It's squid ink spaghetti with shrimp, squid, snapper and cream. I love anything pasta, and this was a hit for me. Creamy and tender, it's good for sharing but I have no doubt I can finish it on my own.

Another great dish, this is the 6-hour Slow Roast Porchetta (P450). We also split this among the three of us (their menu says it's good for two), but if you're not too worried about your cholesterol levels, then go ahead and eat it solo. The pork was cooked right, and it has the right mix of crisp and tender, crunchy and juicy. It comes with three dipping sauces, but it's delicious even on its own.

One of the reasons we headed to this restaurant was to try out their "artisanal pizzas," and boy we weren't disappointed. We tried their signature dish, the Sunshine Pizza (P550). It has a bed of marinara sauce topped with Cabanatuan longganisa, porchetta, mozzarella, ricotta, bell peppers, and what we think could only be quail eggs on each slice. Smoky, savory goodness in every bite. This is definitely not from your neighborhood pizza joint.

Oh but the happiness didn't stop there. We finished our delightful meal with two scoops of Key Lime Pie Ice Cream topped with crushed grahams (P240). Ah, I could sing this dessert praises all day! I've mentioned before that I have a different taste when it comes to desserts and sweets, but this, this is definitely my type. It is exactly what you need on a hot summer day: cold, tangy, and refreshing. Actually, you'd want to eat it even if it's cold and raining! I can still taste it in my mouth as I type this. I shall come back for you!

Service was good, the servers efficient and knowledgable of the menu. I won't be surprised if this place is always packed with customers.

Sunshine Kitchen
The Fort Strip
7th Avenue corner Katipunan Circle
Bonifacio Global City, Taguig/Makati City
+632-8472791
+63928-8212625

Resto Bites: Kasbah

For my birthday, I treated my office friends Mariela and Ten to lunch at Kasbah, The Fort. I got a good deal from Groupon, which included a set lunch for four, for only P1600. It was our first time to eat there, and we weren't disappointed.

Kasbah is located at The Fort Strip, near Bonifacio High Street Central. It's the same building where Fitness First, Keg, and URBN are. The huge wooden doors open up to a loft-type space, with high ceilings and natural light coming in from the huge windows. The restaurant, which can probably accommodate up to 50 people,  also has a bar inside and outside seating where the shishas are smoked.

Just a disclaimer for all my restaurant "reviews": As a diner, I am pretty easy to please. I'm not a picky eater who would dissect each and every ingredient. I can be very particular about the service and the cleanliness, but I can eat at a carinderia or at a 5-star hotel restaurant. So when I say the food is bad, it must be really bad.

But no such thing at Kasbah, because we had flavorful Moroccan dishes. The set lunch was for four but since there were only the three of us, we were stuffed!

First we were served the Hummus Harisa, described on the menu as chickpea with tahini puree. The brown stripes you see on the photo are probably paprika, which added a kick to the appetizer. It came with warm sliced pita. The thing with Morrocan dishes is that they are really filling. You can order this and one kebab and you'll be good.

Also part of the set meal was the Tabbouleh salad. This is one of my favorite dishes! Whenever I eat at a restaurant that has it on the menu, I always order it. It's a simple dish of parsley, tomatoes and mint with a lemon dressing. It's so light and refreshing, I can eat this all day! Kasbah serves their Tabbouleh with couscous, which like I said, makes this dish filling. If you're on a diet, this can be your lunch.

Our meal also came with four glasses of iced tea. Kasbah's iced tea isn't your run-of-the-mill variety. It has a nice flavor that can be a tad sweet. But I'd rather have that than the watered-down kind.

Our main course was a platter of chicken, fish and eggplant topped with a mustard sauce. The chicken was stuffed with prunes, but the spices didn't make the dish taste too sweet. Everything was well-seasoned, and the portions were good for four diners.

We were planning to order Lamb Tagine which is one of their specialties, but we were so full from our lunch there was no more space in our tummies (we had too leave room for dessert though)! Service is also efficient and the waiting time between dishes was just right to allow conversations among our group.

On my next visit, maybe I'd get to try their tagine and their kebabs too!

Kasbah is definitely worth coming back to!

Kasbah, The Fort Strip
7th Avenue Corner Katipunan Circle
Fort Global City
Taguig City, Metro Manila
+6325534499
+639172058802