2nd Floor Dining Area

1950 Restaurant takes its setting in a 2-storey American Contemporary house of the Santaromana Family which offers a spacious dining area and sufficient parking.  


It delivers a warn and vintage vibe brought about by the merger of newly furnished interiors  with the old furniture and fixtures.

Food
The food fare in is 1950 Restaurant Modern fusion inspired from the travels and familial recipes of Santaromana family.  You'll surely find the menu selections quite intriguing. 

Soil 

♥ Kale Soba (400 php)

While the Kale Soba makes used of the Japanese Green Tea Soba (or buckwheat noodles), it is depicted like an Italian Pasta.  Thus, the Soba is engulfed in cashew cream Alfredo sauce and topped with wild mushrooms.  The flavor was sophisticated yet wonderfully pleasing!

Caesar Salad (400 php)

We found that there's not much distinction with 1950's Caesar Salad from the usual fare.  The grilling process was not evident in terms of taste and texture. 

Land

Buttermilk Fried Chicken Bites (300 php)

Sea

♥ Grilled Octopus (325 php)

The Grilled Octopus is a work of art.  Somehow the subtleness of all components highlighted the tender Grilled Octopus.

Lobster Bisque (600 php)

The Lobster Bisque delivered a foretaste and aftertaste of cream rather than lobster or crab which made us wonder if we didn't mix it enough.  

Filipino Classic

Baked Hipon and Laing (375 php)

The Baked Hipon and Laing had a a rich and creamy coconut milk with a light spiciness.  Some of my companions were yearning for the sharp spicy kick.  Well, we reckon the interpretation here is more on harmonious blend rather than dominant spiciness.

♥ Adobo Classics (350 php)

The Adobo Classics offers four (4) kinds of adobo: Adobo Classics sa Gata, Chicken Adobong Tagalog, Pork Belly Adobo sa Dilaw and Adobo sa Flakes.

Sweets

Bavarian Cake (280 php)

The desserts at 1950 were all very pleasing to the eyes.  But, it failed to followthrough for the other aspects.  When it comes to pastry, it is a given that the texture was too bring comfort.  Well, the Bavarian Cake like the other desserts we tried were all too dry.

Molten Lava Cake (280 php)

The Molten Lava Cake looks really impressive.  However, it wasn't oozing with molten lava as we cut into it.  It was too dry for our liking.

Baked Alaska (280 php)

This is the loveliest Baked Alaska we've ever encountered.  Those who love sweets will definitely appreciate the fluffy meringue that shelters the strawberry ice cream and chocolate crumble.  The sourness of the strawberry and blueberries offered a great contrast to the sweetness.  While the strawberry ice cream complemented the chocolate crumble well.

White Chocolate Blondie (280 php)

The White Chocolate Blondie was our least favorite among the desserts.  It was a huge chunk that was dry and tough to chew.  

Toasted Ensaymada (80 php)

This is the first time we encountered an ensaymada that did not captivate us to finish in one seating... The Toasted Ensaymada is better when dipped in the hot chocolate and topped with candied bacon bits.  However, even then it isn't anything spectacular.


Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
Oh 1950 Restaurant, the concept seems fun and timeless.  Yet, it wasn't so evident in the execution of the dishes. Perhaps, we need another visit to know you better...

One our favorite sisterly bonding is watching movies.  So one time, me and little sis reserved our tickets at Glorietta 4.  Due to our tight schedule, we opted for a quick dinner at the Glorietta 4 Food Choices.  That is actually our usual practice when confronted with a similar circumstance because the food options there are by far better than the usual mall food courts. 

Having dined at Go Greek! before, I suggested that we eat there.  It's a sister company of Cyma.  But, the price here is cheaper although the choices are limited. 

Being the elder sister, its customary that I'm the one to treat her so yes price was a consideration in the selection. =p  But, I also assured that it would pass her high standards or she'll make endless parinig (remarks) until we reach home for sure.

So I let her choose what she wants.

So the dishes are mostly displayed and preheated or re-roasted prior to serving.  We waited 10 minutes for our orders to be grilled. They adopt a self service style which is typical with food courts.

Food

Gyros

♥ Chicken Gyros (115 php)

My sister chose the Chicken Gyros.  She was quite pleased with the tenderness and tastiness of the slow-roasted chicken bits (said to be fillet).  The pita bread is warm and soft too.  But, we both agreed that the yogurt sauce is a little watery.

Greek Kebab

♥ Seafood Kebab (135 php)

I, on the other hand, chose the Seafood Kebab.  It was fish kebab with salates (salad), pita, hot sauce and yogurt sauce.  I thought this is a more fulfilling and balanced meal than the gyros.  The fish kebab was not dry too which I liked.


Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
Go Greek! is the most affordable Greek option you can find in the Metro.  The quality is what you pay for though.  Can't say that the ingredients are fresh but, at least the food is served hot.

My family likes to join the hype.  Whenever they'd see a restaurant all packed with long lines, they'll make sure to try it out too!  And so for the past few 3 weeks, we've been trying to reserve a slot in Green Pastures at Shangri-la Plaza East Wing to no avail.  Alas!  Somehow, we managed to dine in last week. 


I've always been a fan of Chef Robby Gocco's restaurants.  And, I'm also an advocate of healthy and natural living.  Just to share with you, one of my best guy friends eats only organic and natural foods and I've witnessed his drastic improvement in a short span of time.  Ever since, I've been trying to make my way to that heathy road as much as I can but errmm... living with a family who believe in the YOLO (you only leave once) principle makes it quite tough.  Finally, there's a midway to it with this first organic farm to table concept.  I hope more restaurants adopt this so it will encourage farmers to go organic and thereby creating a wider and more sustainable organic supply chain.  Well, anyway I'll proceed with the food.  For more information on organic farming, check out Spread Organic Agriculture in the Philippines.  It's a cool non-profit group. 

Food

Soup
I'd like to note that I did not appreciate the plating of the soup.  It took too much space being big and flat.  It also made the soup colder in a quicker amount of time.

♥ Green Pasture Minestrone (190 php)

The Green Pasture Minestrone is a clear soup with zuchinni, yellow squash, cannelinni beans, kale, cabbage, parmigiano, rinds and extra virgin olive oil.  As expected from Chef Robby's restaurants, its always simple yet with the freshest ingredients.  You could taste a refreshing sweetness of nature with this dish.  

Harvest Chowder (185 php)

The Harvest Chowder was a river shrimp, squash, bacon, potatoes and corn in light cream.  We all preferred the Green Pasture Minestrone over this perhaps because it seemed good but no impact.

Small Plates

House Made Cheese (560 php/2 cheeses)

Our server recommended that we try the House Made Cheese.  We chose 2 out of their 3 options.  We got the ♥ Ricotta (cow's milk, made fresh daily with onion jam and roasted garlic) and ♥ Stracciatella (Buffalo milk pulled fresh daily with extra virgin olive oil and arugula).  To enjoy your toast, apply the roasted garlic on your toasted bread before adding the Ricotta.  This had a sweeter notes to it because of the onion jam which is similar to a caramelized version.  The Stracciatella was highly praised by everyone.  It worked wonderfully with the arugula too. 

Fun Health Fact: (Told you I'm a health geek) Buffalo or carabao milk has less cholesterol than cow's milk so it's a better option for those who have cardio-vascular problems.  It also doesn't trigger food allergies as much. 

♥ Pinoy Egg (125 php)

I've heard a lot of raves over the Pinoy Egg so I insisted that it be ordered.  The Pinoy Egg is a 5-minute free range duck eggs wrapped in homemade longanisa over fiddlehead fern salad.  It is probably a pinoy interpretation of the Scotch Egg. 

♥ Pinoy Egg (125 php)

I really loved the Pinoy Egg.  It was cooked runny too.  Lucky for me, my family didn't like it as much so I swiped two plates of this clean.  Yes, even the fiddlehead fern salad was delicious for me!

Fun Health Fact: Duck eggs are superior to chicken eggs in terms of nutrients.  It is a good source of Omega 3 fatty acids and alkaline too.

Signature Salads

♥ Farmhouse Salad (550 php)

The Farmhouse Salad is a big wooden bowlful of shredded kale, chopped romaine, konbu roast chicken, mambo goat cheese, hard-boiled eggs, dinelli bacon, corn, ripe mangoes, grape tomatoes in honey mustard dill vinaigrette.  Through the years, my mom has chanted Cyma's Roka Salata as the best salad for her.  But from that dinner on, it is the Farmhouse Salad.


Fun Health Fact: Our human body is designed to appreciate variety in food so we can gather an assortment of vitamins and nutrients so the more new stuff we intake, the more we are rewarded with dopamine pleasure.

Meat and Bread

Vegetarian Burger that Doesn't Suck! (295 php)

The Vegetarian Burger that Doesn't Suck! is made of organic chickpea, mushroom, leeks, celery, battered eggplant, homemade cheddar cheese and lettuce. It is served with potato fries.  Well, it didn't live up to its name for me.  I didn't like its dryness.  Well at least potato bun was soft. 

Commandable Mains

Roast Organic Chicken (595 php)

The Roast Organic Chicken was lightly sweet and refreshing.  It was so juicy and oozing with juicy and so soft that it almost falls of the bone.

♥ Braised Oxtail (525 php)

Well, maybe not the  Braised Oxtail is not the healthiest option but we loved this!

Organic Coffee

Mt. Matutum (105 php)

Mt. Matutum from south cotabato coffee beans has a nice light spice to it. 



Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
We really enjoyed our healthy dinner at Green Pastures.  I'm totally in for their growing success.  Their dishes are truly the finest and freshest quality.  Serving size is good for sharing so bring some company.  The dishes were served all at the same time without much waiting time.  But, it was difficult to find follow-through assistance.  It would have been nice if they were attentive enough to get their big empty plates from time to time. 

I have to admit, I'm not well acquainted with Greek cuisine as there are hardly any Greek restaurants in the country.  A family favorite for Greek food is Cyma Greek Taverna.  They often dine here whenever they miss Greek food.  So when I blurted out upon passing by at their Shangri-la Plaza branch that I haven't tried Cyma yet, there were shocked and quickly decided to dine there. 

The place was packeed so we were seated outside.  But that's okay because a few minutes after we sat down, singer Rico Blanco dined at the next table. 

Too bad because the interiors were dazzling yet simple with white and blue motif like the santorini in Greece.

Food

Orektika (Appetizers)

♥Loukanika (330 php)

The family insists that I order one of the items with "OPA" for a memorable first time dining experience at Cyma so I chose the Loukanika.  After a long wait, the waiter walked near our place with a flaming sizzling plate.  The weird thing was that he was not facing our table so we couldn't tell if it was for our table or the other table. @_@  Still facing the other table, he shouted "OPA!" and then served it on our table. LOL! XD

♥ Loukanika (330 php)

After the flames when off, we were able to recognize our  three pieces of greek sausages with a huge square feta cheese topped with oregano.  It also had sauteed sweet onion and  peppers on the side.

Grilled

♥ Manitaria (250 php)

The Manitaria is my moms favorite!  It is a bowlful of portabello mushroom slices cooked with Extra Virgin Olive Oil and drizzled with  balsamic syrup and topped with herbs.  It is served with Greek pita bread.  The portabello mushroom was bursting in smokey flavor.  We all enjoyed every bit of it. 

Salates (Salads)

♥ Roka Salata To Share (495 php)

My mom declares the Roka Salata  as the best  salad she has ever tried in her lifetime.  She orders this everytime she dines at Cyma.  It has fresh aragula (roka), chopped romaine lettuce, sundried tomatoes, candied walnuts and shaved parmigiano reggiano served with traditional greek vinaigrette.  I share the same sentiments as my mom on this!  It is definitely a sensational salad that is difficult to get over.  

Cyma Specialties

Ladera (Vegetables)

♥ Meatless Moussaka (250 php)

The moussaka, aside from gyro, is probably a Greek dish that is most familiar to me so I ordered the Meatless Moussaka.   This is the first time for me to try a meatless one.  We were all impressed by the smoothness in terms of the texture and the savory flavors from the sauteed eggplants, green lentils, baked potatoes, tofu and onion bits and tomato puree.    

Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
Cyma Greek Taverna is a great place for quality Greek dishes.  It will be the best place to start for those unacquainted with Greek cuisine.  Since it offers a wide menu of dishes, it is also perfect for those who want to venture more.  I'll try to be more adventurous and explore more of their offering on my next visit.  Service is good and the pricing is reasonable given their serving size as well as quality and freshness of the ingredients.