Dining Snippets: Relish Luxe Café x Ossu x A Bite of Hunan
RELISH LUXE CAFÉ
My mom and sister used to frequent Relish Hello Happiness here in Quezon City. Whenever I join them though, I never really got the hoopla behind its famous Crispy Sisig. However, ever since I started working near its Ortigas branch, aptly named Relish Luxe Café, owing to its fancy all-day brunch interiors, I started gaining appreciation for it. Most of its dishes come packaged with a side already and are intended for a solo serving; however, the actual serving size proves otherwise. Its immensely juicy Roast Chicken for example, comes with a half serving of chicken; while its melt-in-your-mouth Slow Roasted Beef Belly comes with an option for two or three slices.
BAKED SALMON (P580)
Its Baked Salmon dish easily blows Conti’s signature Baked Salmon off the map. The gorgeously hued salmon was carefully prepared to achieve a perfectly crisp skin, with all the juices still in the meat. It’s smothered with melted cheese and came with an option to top it off with a light sour cream mousse to lend a much welcome balance in flavor. It’s served with one of the creamiest mashed potatoes I’ve ever tasted. This dish is way more filling than it appears to be. No matter how hard I tried, I wasn’t able to finish those divine mashed potatoes.
RELISH CHORI GAMBAS (P525)
Its Relish Chori Gambas is also a masterpiece waiting to be devoured. A cup of garlic rice serves as the perfect vessel to scoop up all the tasty garlicky oil which contains all the spicy drippings of the sliced chorizo. You’d definitely have fun wiping this dish clean.
Relish Luxe Café
GF Citadines Millenium Ortigas, Ortigas Avenue, Pasig City
Dates of Visit: November 16, 2018 and December 28, 2018
OSSU
Any new restaurant opening in Robinsons Magnolia is guaranteed to spark *joy* for someone who frequents the mall a little way too much. Although I’m happy that most of the restaurants are doing well enough to stay in the same spot since the mall opened, there are times that I can't help but crave for a little bit of variety or 'new-ness' in it.
GYOZA (P220)
Enter Ossu. Replacing Sizzling Pepper Steak (this particular branch didn’t make it to the concept re-branding to Sizzlin’ Steak), Ossu offers an odd mix of Japanese and Taiwanese selections. We ordered the Gyoza, which were truly forgettable save for the fact that they were burnt.
MAPO TOFU (P318) and BEEF RAMEN (P288)
Its Mapo Tofu leaned on the more fiery side; and when topped with rice, makes for a pretty delicious combination. It’s a hearty and filling dish that’s enough to satiate a craving, but not enough to delight especially when compared to Ping Pong Diplomacy’s Not Mapo Tofu. Its Beef Ramen more closely resembles a Beef Noodle Soup rather than a Beef Ramen. That honestly wouldn't be a problem if it wasn't bland to begin with.
Ossu
3F, Robinsons Magnolia, Doña Hemady St., Quezon City
Date of Visit: December 29, 2018 with Lily Chua
A BITE OF HUNAN
I’ve always had a higher tolerance for spicy food than most people so when I read about the fiery cuisine served up by A Bite of Hunan, it immediately landed on my must-try list. When my dad mentioned that his business partners from Mainland China enjoyed their dining experience there, arrangements were quickly made for the rest of the family to try it.
SPICY PORK WITH CHILI
Its elaborate interiors make for a swanky ambiance; albeit a bit dark. Most of its dishes contained ‘spicy’ in their names, so you know that the restaurant means spicy business. Rice is served in buckets with (much-welcome) unlimited refills to help temper the heat.
PORK RIBS WITH CUMIN (P580)
We ordered two types of pork dishes. The Spicy Pork featured thinly sliced pork yakiniku slices tossed in garlic which were served with large green chili peppers. The spice level of this dish is extremely low as the chili peppers used are the ones which you can pleasantly bite through without breaking into a sweat; making it a perfect entry-level dish for this fiery meal.
On the other hand, the Pork Ribs with Cumin did not show any restraint in its use of spices. Cumin takes an acquired taste; however, I believe that the restaurant went a bit overboard with it that even I couldn’t eat a lot of those ribs. It was good, but not good enough for me to trade my Salt and Pepper Spareribs with.
SPICY CRAB (P188/100g)
The Spicy Crab was a bit underwhelming. It came with a light chili sauce that didn’t really appeal to my palate. To be fair, the crabs were cooked well; but I guess I’m just more used to the Singaporean Chili Crab.
SALTY SPICY SHRIMP (P1280)
The Salty Spicy Shrimp was a complete rip-off. Armed with a steep price tag, I was expecting to be served with plump juicy shrimps. To my dismay, we were served with regular-sized shrimps which were overcooked. Flavor wise though, it uses the same spices you’d normally see in a Salt and Pepper dish in a Cantonese restaurant; so you know it’s match made in heaven with rice.
TOSSED PRESERVED EGG WITH PEPPERS (P280)
Ultimately, the best dish for me was the appetizer that we ordered. The Tossed Preserved Egg with Peppers came served inside a mortar and pestle as it’s intended to be mashed before eating. As that didn’t sound appealing to us, we just opted to skip the entire mashing process. Scooping up the century egg pieces smothered in the sweet juices of the roasted bell peppers was a sloppy messy business, but once it’s inside your mouth, the harmony of its flavors is simply magical.
A Bite of Hunan
UG, Circuit Lane, Ayala Malls Circuit, Olympia, Makati City
Date of Visit: December 30, 2018 with Wilson Chua, Lily Chua, Jared Chua and Jem Chua
