The Fatted Calf PH: A New Tagaytay Favorite
Helmed by spouses Jayjay and Rhea Sycip, The Fatted Calf finds its new home in Tagaytay City – and has been on the lips of excited foodies and influencers - so it definitely made it to our list of restaurants to hit during my mom's 60th birthday staycation.
We were welcomed by incredibly stormy weather en route to the restaurant that its warm interiors and friendly staff definitely helped lighten up the mood of our entire party.
Complimentary bread is always a welcome sight – but The Fatted Calf PH’s house dinner rolls were incredibly soft and fluffy – it was so hard to stop myself from getting a second one.
VIETNAMESE SHRIMP BALLS (P450)
We started off with the Vietnamese Shrimp Balls – and I’m pretty sure I wasn’t able to mask my surprised expression after seeing that P450 only got us three shrimp balls – however, the shock of the steep price point will quickly dissipate after having your first heavenly bite of it. Each ball is stuffed with a generous amount of shrimp and comes out perfectly-fried and beautifully golden brown. Each ball is then rolled in fish floss and drizzled with a combination of Japanese mayonnaise and tonkatsu sauce. Definitely – a delight in each (expensive) bite!
THREE MUSHROOM SALAD (P480)
We followed this with their Three Mushroom Salad which tosses a delightful selection of mushrooms in a light honey-garlic vinaigrette and a bed of fresh greens. On my end – this bowl was just alright – personally, the ratio of mushroom to green is perfect; but there’s room for improvement for its vinaigrette.
CRACKLING PORK BELLY (P695)
I do have a weakness for deep-fried pork belly, so I’m naturally biased towards its Crackling Pork Belly – The Fatted Calf PH’s pork belly comes at slightly bigger and thicker slices than what we’re used to – but expect them to be extremely juicy, well-seasoned and topped with to-die-for crunchy skin. It’s paired with delightfully caramelized sweet potato cubes atop a delicious smoked radish puree (probably my first time eating radish puree!). Smear the black garlic spread it comes with to round out the orchestra of flavors on that plate. Truly – this is a genius of a plate – from the ingredients used, to the play on textures, colors and flavors!
THE FATTED CALF’S CRAB CARBONARA (P550)
When this was served on our table, it didn’t really look as visually appealing as the other dishes – but boy, was this pasta dish one of the best I’ve ever tasted. Switching up the traditional guanciale with fresh crab meat and ikura gave the classic dish a refreshing twist. Aided by quality ingredients such as free-range eggs and organic butter, this dish sets the tone on how you do a fusion of cuisines. This was insanely delicious!
“THE” BUKO PIE (P225/slice)
Of course, Buko Pie is the quintessential pasalubong from Tagaytay – so it was exciting to see The Fatted Calf PH spice it up by giving it a salted egg crust. To be honest, I didn’t really taste so much of the salted egg – and was pretty underwhelmed by the crust as it tasted quite similar to what’s typically served – however, its thick layers of coconut meat were amazingly heavenly that the less-than-impressive crust will be forgotten!
The Fatted Calf PH
Tagaytay Nasugbu Highway, Tagaytay City
Date of Visit: July 14, 2023 with Lily Chua, Jared Chua and Jem Chua
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