February 6, 2008
Frey is in the country for vacation. As a tradition we are having dinner together. More like a feast actually. I am sure you will agree after reading this blog.
He chose greenbelt 5 because it was still under construction during his last vacation. Lisette and I are inwardly thanking him because we assumed we were dining at Heat, which we don’t really fancy. We are Spiral fanatics. We decided on La Maison at third level because it is the resto where all seven of us have never been to. And probably so I can blog about it.
Milan and I shared this Caesar salad. Nope, we didn’t ask for split serving. This is really the whole serving. While the menu says it is "close to the original" I call it the Caesar salad of the lazy. I prefer a caesar’s with bacon bits on it, not strips. Aren’t croutons supposed to be cubes? That’s a bread stick on the plate. Focusing on the taste, the casear’s at Hyatt is miles ahead. It is Milan’s epitome of Caesar salad. Mine is probably that of Friday’s.
Tomato Chowder. Creamy and not tomato-sour. I could finish the whole serving but there are other food waiting.
This Corn quesadilla came free with the order of steak. It feels good to find a use for the complimentary card that has took up wallet space for more than a month. I should add that that complimentary card was given when we ditched La Maison for John and Yoko which was a big mistake. Please see my previous blog on John and Yoko.
This Creamy wine mussels also was complimentary with every order of Barkada Ribs. Again, because we had a complimentary card. This came with a glass of red wine. I should start collecting complimentary cards,shouldn’t I? I love anything with cream on it, this one included. I preferred dipping my bread on the cream rather than the balsamic and olive oil on the left.
Complimentary bread. No complimentary card this time. That black heart-shaped thing is bread with squid ink. Not a stone to keep the breads warm. You aren’t the only one fooled.
Baby back barkada ribs. This is just a bigger serving of baby back ribs. Hence the name barkada ribs. A friend who doesn’t want to be quoted has misgivings about the name. We think it is obvious that La Maison is marketing to the upscale crowd. Why use the term "barkada"? It sounds so jologs. I prefer using "family" on bigger servings.
Cooked just right, the meat is so tender you won’t have difficulty separating it from the bone. The menu says " the biggest ribs in town" and good for 4-5 persons. Believe it. Specially if you ordered lots of other food.
Spare ribs ala maison. Some found this sweet. I didn’t mind. I love sweets even if they’re meat. I like the ribs better though.
Rib eye steak. Ryan’s order which he did not really eat. I’m not saying it tastes bad. He had intestinal flu he’s afraid to eat plenty. Beats me why he ordered steak.
Seafood marinara (solo serving). There it goes again. Solo. I’m beginning to think that La Maison in in dilemma whether to be upscale or not so it is like titrating the dosage. Can somebody please tell me if denim placemats and menu are upscale?
Frey making a face behind our refreshments. His and Milan’s calamansi juices were so sour you can make sinigang on them. I was happy with my jumbo apple carrot shake and so was Lisette with her jumbo mango shake (with milk) and Ryan with jumbo mango shake (without milk).
We rarely have dessert in the same restaurant as dinner but La Maison’s dessert list looked promising we decided to give it a try.
Strawberry cheesecake. I like a cheesecake that kind of melts in your mouth. This is not one of those. It is firm and I could still taste the flour.
Churros con chocolate. Cooked on the outside, raw on the inside. It doesn’t even have a consistent shape. Don’t let that chocolate fool you. It is thin and bland.
Apple pie ala mode. Needs improvement. Lots of it.
And the winner is….. Creme brulee. The only La Maison dessert worthy of commendation. It is even better than their bestseller Choco lovers cake (which I forgot to take a picture of). It is not advisable, however, to go there just for creme brulee.
It is the House of Steaks, Ribs and Seafoods.
I would like to point out that it is hot inside La Maison we had to ask for an electric fan. Here is the culprit. The lights may be nice but they block the circulation of air coming from the vent. By the time the air goes down to the diners, it has already been warmed by the lights.
