Feel the Aroma of Aracama!

Once again, A and I were invited to come and join OpenRice PH's Eat's A Date event. This time it was sited in Aracama in Fort Bonifacio. Along with our OpenRice buddies , Mickey and Zeti, we took off to this exclusive restaurant.  

 

A & E <3

Ambiance: The restaurant had a very classy ambiance. It was indeed high-class but for me, Filipino cuisine is not that fit for this kind of dining ambiance. The place was very elegant, inside and out. It had a high ceiling on the first floor and a very spacious area on the second floor. 

The restaurant was in touch with nature, really. The wallpapers were designed with leaves and the whole place had plants and ferns all over. The interiors are made of wood and each table had little pots with miniature plants on them. Ventilation was really good and you could sell the aroma of nature.

The place had three bars which was very amusing. There's one on the first floor and two on the second floor. It had a complete set of some of the finest wines and spirits. 

The balcony view was relaxing though. Overlooking some buildings and some grassland areas, this place is a good venue for family meetings and gatherings. 

Now let us take a look at some of their food.

Malunggay Mozzarella Dip 

For Php 195.00 you can give yourself this creamy, somehow cheesy Spinach & vitamin fortified brulee with crostinis for scooping. This dish was not bitter as you expect it to be. It was creamy though but for me I didn't taste anything special about this dish.

Fish Balls 

Now this is one dish you normally see on the streets. Aracama took it home and transformed it to one extra-ordinary dish. For Php 175.00 you get this home-made street food treat along with three dips. The fishball was soft, yummy and surprisingly, it doesn't have the stench taste of fish. It had a neutral taste and it is most encouraged you dip it in the sauces.

[1] Sweet and sour - Are you kidding me? It isn't sweet nor sour. Really.

[2] Salted vinegar - I didn't like it that much cause it taste like ordinary vinegar.

[3] Sweet soy sauce - Best dip I say. It possess that bizarre, tingling feeling most people seek in sweet sauces.

 

Manok sa Tanglad 

This is a lemongrass chicken BBQ with sweet-sour garlic dip & cucumber-cilantro ensalado. And for a reasonable price of Php 380.00 you can get this sumptuous BBq chicken. Basically, it's roasted chicken with some atsara and condiments on the side. This dish is very juicy and you can really taste lemon grass with each bite. The cucumber sauce on the other hand, goes very nicely with the dry atsara on the side. I prefer chicken more than any kind of meat in this world so this review can be a little bit biased. :)

Miso Sea Bass 

This is the chef's signature dish of Yore, grilled fillet of white miso marinated sea bass. And for the very low price of only Php 990.00, you can get this delicate dish into your tummy. The fish was very soft and it isn't too sweet nor too salty. No wonder this dish costs a lot. Every bite is was golden (literally) and you can really savor the freshness of the fish. 

 Binagoongang Baboy 

It's pork belly simmered in tomatoes, shrimp paste with green mango relish. It's not your native Filipino Binagoongang Baboy for this one has less bagoong. I noted how tender the pork was and it wasn't too greasy. The dish is planted on some kangkong leaves which added more flavor to the dish. Overall, this dish tasted really good. You can get it for a price of Php 375.00

Kalo Kalo

Negrense style fried rice in garlic achuete oil. Our Filipino dining experience at Aracama wouldn't be complete without rice! And of course, this style of fried rice really hit the spot! For Php 110.00, you this wonderful native garlic fried rice.

Dulce Gatas + Bunuelos

Oh this is the sweet caramelized gooey dulce de leche with warm fried pastries. And for Php 230.00 you get a can of Dulce Gatas along with some delicious pastries. They say the condensada was caramelized for 2 hours, making the mixture very sweet and creamy. It stands alone well without the pastries.

I recommend you do this when you order this dessert! It tastes like yema cream puffs! :)

Service: Nothing beats Filipino hospitality and Aracama does well in preserving this Filipino trait. The waiters were very accomodating and friendly. Everywhere you go, a smiling waiter awaits your order/inquiry. Also, they were all knowledgeable on the food that they serve and are ready to answer anything you ask about the food. Too bad I couldn't tweet about the place when we were there. Unfortunately, they had poor wifi service.