Dining Snippets: Honolulu Café x Café Breton x La Condessa Café and Lounge

HONOLULU CAFÉ

It’s been years since my last visit to Honolulu Café so I was pretty surprised at how stacked its menu is now – it now comes with more rice toppings and main dishes. As we were there for lunch, we leaned towards ordering more from its hot dishes than its pastries but I couldn’t resist ordering a cup of its HK Style Coffee with Condensed Milk to kick-start our meal.

HK STYLE COFFEE WITH CONDENSED MILK (P130)

Honolulu's HK Style Coffee is one of the better ones in Manila as the strong coffee flavor isn’t drowned out by the condensed milk. One can opt to have this iced or hot.

CURRY FISH BALL (P268)

One dish that I recall ordering from its original menu iteration was the Curry Fish Ball – it’s meant to be an appetizer but it’s definitely a good idea to pair this with a cup of rice as the fish balls – even in their lonesome are already tasty but are further amped up in flavor once you eat it with the fragrant curry sauce it comes with.

THREE ROASTED MEAT TREASURES SET (P388)

We ordered the Three Roasted Meat Treasures Set – slices of barbecued pork, roasted pork belly and soy chicken over a platter of rice at an impressive price of P388 for something that’s perfect for sharing. Definitely an affordable plate of classic HK-style roasted meats – not the best in quality definitely, but significantly better than popular chains such as Tai Koo.

BROCCOLI SHRIMP

The Broccoli Shrimp dish was part of its seasonal menu – and I was pleasantly surprised that it came with plump shrimps and a generous serving of broccoli flowers. It’s served in a classic stir-fry style with oyster sauce with bell peppers tossed in, but it was perfectly done which made it enjoyable to eat.

SWEET AND SOUR PORK (P368)

The Sweet and Sour Pork was a filling addition to the meal – not the crunchiest, but it’s a dependable and decent main dish to add to your orders.

HK STYLE DRIED NOODLE WITH CHICKEN IN SPRING ONION SAUCE (P268)

The surprise star of our meal was the HK Style Dried Noodle with Chicken in Spring Onion Sauce – its spring onion sauce isn’t the prettiest but boy was it packed with so much flavor! The chicken strips boast of crisp skin and juicy meat as they lay atop a bed of chewy firm noodles. I absolutely adored this dish so must – a definite must-try!

Honolulu Café

Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati City

Date of Visit: February 19, 2023 with Wilson Chua, Lily Chua, Jared Chua and Jem Chua

CAFÉ BRETON

Café Breton has always been a beloved staple of my family – numerous desserts (and second dinners) were spent in its now-closed Tomas Morato branch (they moved to Robinsons Magnolia), and several cups of double-shot cappuccinos shared with my mom while taking a shopping break in their Trinoma branch.

HAMBURCREPE (P365)

It has a spectacularly wide selection of sweet and savory crepes (which explains why sometimes dessert becomes a second dinner for us instead) that settling on just one crepe would definitely be a struggle. A reliable favorite of mine would be the Hamburcrepe – it’s an open face crepe layered with rows of spinach, melted cheese, sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onions, its hefty and delicious burger patty and fresh tomatoes. For a crepe place, its burger patty can easily rival other burger restaurants’!

Café Breton

Date of Visit: February 25, 2023 with Lily Chua

LA CONDESSA CAFÉ AND LOUNGE

I love the gorgeous interiors that welcome you to La Condessa Café and Lounge – the attention to detail and sophisticated design make you feel like you’re in an upscale bar.

When we dined there, the restaurant was still in its soft opening so it had a relatively narrow selection which filled up only a couple of pages on their clipboard – since then, it has added more menu options for its diners.

LYCHEE PROSECCO (P349)

Despite it being on soft opening, La Condessa already has an interesting line up of drinks available on that night – both alcoholic and non-alcoholic – they do have picture-worthy coffee curations on the menu but since we were there for dinner, I opted for a glass of its Lychee Prosecco – the bubbly was sweet enough for my liking and came with delicious lychee pieces.

XATO (P379)

The Xato is a head-turning salad; thanks to its gorgeously fried over-the-top nori chips that you toss in with fresh greens and torched corn with a lovely dressing topped with hazelnuts and almonds. It tastes as good as it looks!

MARINARA (P499)

We opted for the Marinara pasta – a pomodoro-based mixed seafood pasta which unfortunately lacked in flavor. Its serving size was hefty and came with a generous serving of seafood; however, hopefully they can improve on its sauce.

BEEF ASADOR (STRIPLOIN – P2299/RIBEYE – P2499)

For our main dish, we had the Beef Asador - La Condessa gives you an option between two cuts – the striploin or ribeye; both come with chimichurri, roasted vegetables and smashed potatoes. It was a decent steak platter – well-cooked and well-seasoned medium steak – with delicious sides. I’m just not a big fan of the chimichurri sauce it came with.

Overall though, it’s a place that I’d love to keep going back to (and lounge in for hours with friends) since it’s that warm and accommodating. I do hope that its other menu items would taste better though!

La Condessa Café and Lounge

Date of Visit: March 1, 2023 with Lily Chua and Jared Chua