John and Yoko

   Most people would prefer an almost empty over a full restaurant because it meant no waiting time for a table and service. We are not most people. When choosing among never-been-there restaurants our gauge is the number of occupied tables inside. This is why we chose John and Yoko over La Maison, both at Greenbelt 5. We felt that the less than five customers inside the latter was not a good sight.

   Tofu steak. You see those brown bits near the spoon? That’s beef. The picture on the menu showed beef strips, certainly more than what was served. What we had was more like ground beef. The tofu was firm and somewhat porous, like the kind used for tokwa’t baboy. For an upscale restaurant  I expected the tofu to be soft, with the consistency of fine custard. Crispy on the outside but soft on the inside. The kind that melts in your mouth. This one you will have to chew, and chew. 

   Ika linguini in tomato. Nothing special. More squid tentacles than meat. I could still taste the flour in the squid breading. Definitely needs improvement. 

   Salmon wasabi cream. We had to try this one because salmon is our favorite fish. If you’re thinking spiciness that seems to de-clog your sinuses you’re in for a disappointment. I think the only wasabi in the dish is in the name. We had to exert more effort than usual to cut the fish. It was dry and not the least bit tasty. My theory is that it was due to its un-freshness. There were three of us sharing this dish but 1/4 slice was left on the plate. I repeat, salmon is our favorite fish. Enough said.

   Green iced tea. Allegedly lemon flavored but does not taste lemon-y at all. It wasn’t a lemonade after all.  Red iced tea. Calamansi flavored. Blue iced tea. Dalandan flavored. Both good ones. The best thing about these iced teas is not only their being bottomless. You can order any flavor and choose a different flavor for refill. I was lucky to have the red iced tea as my first choice because I liked it. Lisette’s was the green iced tea who went through the ordeal of drinking all of it so she can have a refill of the better flavors. I had to taste it too. For this blog. 

   Lesson learned in this food trip: the number of diners inside a restaurant is not always a good gauge of  its food quality.

   Next time we’re at Greenbelt 5 we’ll try La Maison. Regardless of the number of clients inside.

P.S.

   I found that the top portion of our receipt is cut so technically, the receipt does not have the establishment’s name and tax identification number. Whatever. I’m a food critic here. Not a BIR agent.  

Journey

   I spent the whole night watching Arnel Pineda on YouTube. It started when I read Karina’s email announcing that the new vocalist for Journey is a Filipino in the person of Arnel Pineda.

   Journey still exists? Why was there a need for a new vocalist? Where is Steve Perry?

   Journey fans are probably burning me now. Hey, I like their songs but I’m not really a fan.

   As it turns out, Pineda replaced Steve Augeri who replaced Steve Perry.

   Back to my point.

   Videos of Pineda with his band The Zoo doing covers of Journey, Survivor and The Eagles to name a few caught the attention of  Journey guitarist Neal Schon who turned to YouTube to search for a new vocalist. He was invited to audition in August, 2007 and on December 5, 2007 Journey announced in their official website that Pineda is their new lead singer.

   With a Filipino front man I might become a Journey fan. Before that I have to search the lyrics of Running Away by Amo band. I liked that song during the 90’s and I like it again now that the voice behind it is making Filipinos all over the world proud.

   Rock on.

Fish out of water

  We’re back to our Friday routine. We explored Greenbelt 5 and Fish out of water at the 3rd level was the unanimous choice.

Menu at Fish out of water which looks more like a glossy magazine. It also pays tribute to Filipino achievers on the flip side.

    Our appetizer. Fried crab ravioli with white cheese dipping sauce. 

    It turned out that the fried thing was the ravioli as a whole and not just the crab meat inside. This was a pleasant surprise being my first time to eat a crispy ravioli. The mushroom and onions were caramelized which add zest to the meal.

   Grilled Sarangani bay milkfish belly with Lucban longanisa risotto. 

   Lisette and Dondee said this really smelled good. I didn’t smell it, olfaction being my weakest sense. Finding longanisa bits in the risotto was a challenge so you’ll really need the bangus to eat it with. The fish was a little dry but nonetheless delicious. 

   Eggplant zucchini parmigiana on top of aglio oglio spaghetti. 

   So creamy. How can something without meat be that delicious?

   Tuna burger with barbecue mayo. Served with clam and bacon chowder.

   Listed under Kid’s menu, this is delicious but we have doubts if kids will agree. The chowder needs a little more time on the fire to thicken. 

   Our dessert. Trio of creme brulee - pineapple, chocnut and guava. 

   I’m not really a fan of pineapple but this one is good. Just the right sweetness and not too many fibers. Chocnut…. very chocnut-ty. The guava creme brulee was the surprise. If you are from Bicol then you must have tasted the ginataang bayabas -flesh of ripe guava fruit cooked in coconut milk and sugar over low fire. This tastes just like that….with tons of sugar more. 

   We’ll definitely dine again at this restaurant. I just hope they have a proper table cloth and not just some brown paper.