You've probably noticed that my family and I are huge Korean fans.  When I was invited to the grand launch of Mr. Pizza last month,  just had to go!  


Upon arrival at Greenbelt 3, I could already hear the crowd's cheer echoing all over the place.  I was surrounded by crackles of laughter, faint gasps and thunders of applause as I got nearer to see the Korean Dream Team whirling and tossing pizza dough in the air. 

I guess all those heart-pounding stunts got me hungry as I was more eager to check out Mr. Pizza's selections.
 
The interior has a special vibe that distinguishes it from other pizza parlors.  For one, it has a big screen where you can watch Korean shows.


The tables are set up to cater to small groups.  And, there's a second floor to cater to bigger groups. 


While waiting for your orders, you can watch your pizza being made.  And, if you're wondering if they do those pizza dough tosses all-day, the answer is YES! 

The "On Air" lights doesn't indicate an on-going recording but it ignifies pizza doughs being tossed "On Air".

This is their specialty gold crust being made. 
  
This is the fresh ingredients they use.  You can easily see this portion from the second floor.

Food

Premium

♥ Eggta Regular Egg Tart (900 php)

When the Eggta was served, I already had a hunch that this will be one of the best pizza adventures of my life.  Just look at that!  It has camambert cheese, cranberries, beef steak, cherry tomatoes, onions and an egg tart for crust.  I'm telling you.  You have not lived your life if you haven't tried this!  Must try!!!

 

♥ Seafood Island 2 Regular Gold (900 php)

I don't know what happened to Seafood Island 1, but this is Seafood Island 2.  When they say premium, they really mean it.  See!  It has so many ingredients.  What's special about this is that we had it with Gold crust.  Gold crust mean crust filled with sweet potato paste.  It's really as precious as it sounds.

Classic

Bulgogi Pizza Regular (380 php)

I don't know where else you can find a Bulgogi Pizza so better try it here.  It's sweet and savory that I bet even kids will like it.

Sweety Pizza Regular (380 php)

 They don't have dessert options, but they have this Sweety Pizza.  Its rich and creamy sweet potato texture and sweet and fruity flavor is one of a kind.


Premium Pasta

♥ Crab Carbonara (330 php)

 The Crab Carbonara is one of their best-selling items.  I have to agree with the majority on this.


Classic Spaghetti

♥ Oven Baked Meat Spaghetti (280 php)

 The Oven Baked Meat Spaghetti is on the tangy side - my kind of taste.

Risotto

♥ Bbq Galbi Risotto (330 php)

 If you intend to have rice, I highly recommend the Bbq Galbi Risotto.  Everyone loved this!

Side & Salad

Mozzarella Sticks (230 php)

The Mozzarella Sticks are a classic favorite. 

♥ Ms. Chicken (230 php)

Ms. Chicken is their version of the Korean fried chicken.  I don't know why but they made Ms. Chicken fiercer with a spicy kick than the sweet Mr. Chicken.  I mean shouldn't it be the other way around? =p  Haha!  But, kidding aside, this is so good that you wouldn't mind getting saucy fingers.


Salad

♥ Cajun Salad (230 php)

Of course, my favorite part of the meal is my greens.  The Cajun Salad is so good that even my veggie-averse friends enjoyed it.

Drinks

Citron Ade (80 php), Hallabong Ade (80 php) and ♥ Aloe Ade (80 php)

They also have the Citron Ade, Hallabong Ade and Aloe Ade which is a flavored soda for refreshments.

Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
I can see why Mr. Pizza is the number one pizza chain in Korea.  It's definitely a game changer.  I have never been as impressed with pizza as with Mr. Pizza.  The extravagance of ingredients, the harmonious blend of combinations and the uniqueness of each variation is impressive. 

Don't miscontrue the signage of Aresi Restaurant & Bar to be some ordinary restaurant and bar like me as it is actually an Italian restaurant.

Upon stepping in, you'll find that it has a nice cozy and classy but not too upscale feel.

Food

♥ Aresi Special (385 php)

Seeing the brick oven outside hinted to us that they offered brick-oven pizzas so we ordered two pizza variants.  The first one is the Aresi Special.  Since it carries their name and has the word special on it, we were enticed to try it.  A bite of this sent me to heaven!  I was literally send floating in the air with its savor pepperoni, sweet and crunchy bell peppers and onions, fragrant olives, soft mushroom and delicately crisp and chewy dough consistency.  

♥ Five Cheese (335 php)

As far as cheese pizzas go, Aresi's Five Cheese has successfully left a great impression upon me all because the bleu cheese perfectly blended with the other four cheese.


Pizza Making Process
I specially appreciated their pizza making procedure.  They only cook one pizza at a time so the chef can deliver it's superb quality with precision.
 

Desserts

Vanilla Panna Cotta (135 php)

The texture of the Vanilla Panna Cotta is smooth like a soy bean pudding which I liked.  However, I found it too sweet for my preference. 

Crepe Samurai (155 php)

The Crepe Samurai has perfectly fluffy and smooth crepes with orange caramel glaze and vanilla ice cream.  This is a good version. 

Fruit Platter (295 php)

The Fruit Platter is a large plateful of ripe mangoes, banana (underneath the mangoes), oranges, pineapple and watermelon.

Apple Crumble (185 php)

I found the crumbs of he Apple Crumble to be quite addictive!  The consistency reminds me of Rowena's which I love.  The stewed apple is a bit too sweet for me but it's okay since I tamed it down with the vanilla ice cream.

♥ Chocolate Lava Cake (285 php)

Everyone was going loco over the rich, moist gooey goodness of the Chocolate Lava Cake.  My companions didn't even want to share.
 
Drinks

Shakes

Strawberry Shake (65 php)

Since all our other shake orders were fresh, I thought the Strawberry Shake would be fresh too but it wasn't.  It tasted like super sweet cough syrup which didn't appeal to me.

Frozen Cocktails

Strawberry Margarita Virgin (No alcohol) (115 php)

The Strawberry Margarita is similar to the shake but with a more shaved ice consistency.


Coffee Coolers

♥ Frozen Java-Java (105 php)

The Frozen Java-Java is so delicious!  I loved that it has a strong coffee flavor and very fine crushed ice blend.  The vanilla ice cream adds to the guilt and comfort which I don't mind having. =)



Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
I'd gladly visit Aresi Restaurant & Bar for it's brick oven pizza anytime!  I'm really impressed with their quality as such a bargain price too.

Mad for Pizza opened in at the second floor of Il Terrazzo a few weeks ago.  I've always wanted to check out Il Terrazzo so I gave it a go.


You can actually see from its clear glass the pizza topping option board.

Food
The name "Mad for Pizza" lead me to assume that it was pizzeria offering only pizzas.  When in fact, it has so much more to offer.

Starters

♥ Nachos (178 php)

I'll let the photos do the talking with the Nachos.  As you can see it has everything. =)

Salad

House Salad (158 php)

The House Salad has sliced eggs, peaches, tomatoes and lettuce in garlic mayonnaise dressing.

Pasta

Beef Stew Pasta (188 php)

The Beef Stew Pasta is a manly meaty rigatoni pasta dish with Angus beef belly chunks in a tasty herbed tomato-based sauce.

Main Dish

Classic Fish and Chips (198 php)

The Classic Fish and Chips is breaded dory fish fillet with vanilla essence served with fries.  The sweet lemon dip is a great complement.

♥ Tenesse Pork Spare Ribs (268 php)

The Tenesse Pork Spare Ribs is delicious!  It was mildy spicy, sweet, tangy, herby and savory.  The meat was tender too.  For the price, it's such a bargain.

Amboy (198 php)

The Amboy is Angus Beef Belly in thick sweet, salty and herbed adobo sauce.  It's strong flavors makes a compatible viand with the onion and tomato topped rice.


Create Your Own Pizza
What really drew us in was the Create Your Own Pizza concept.  For only 280 php, you get to create your own 10-inch (yes! that's huge and good for sharing) pizza with lots of quality toppings.
According to this board, Step 1 gives you 4 doughs to choose from: 1. Classic Dough, 2. Herb Dough 3. Garlic Parmesan Dough 4. Spinach Dough.  Step 2 allowed you to choose from 4 sauces: 1. House Pizza Sauce 2. Roasted Garlic Alfredo 3. Fra Diablo 4. Diablo.  Then Step 3: You can choose among the 40 toppings.

The way it works is that you will be given an order form at your table where you can do the Step 1 and Step 2.  Then the server will usher you to the open kitchen to do Step 3.


So you just point whatever topping you want.  Some toppings listed were not available during our visit.  But, they have more than those listed too like how the Italian Sausage are actually five types of sausages.


We were really delighted by with the variety of topping selections.
 

Ready For the Oven!

♥ Create Your Own Pizza (280 php)

I had it made oblong for a thinner and crunchier texture for no additional charge.  I'll honest.  My guy buds said there's some oddness to it.  But, the blending of the quality cheeses was so good that it was swiped clean.

Ready to Order

Justin's Favorite (250 php)

The Justin's Favorite has mozzarella, parmesa, cheddar cheese, pepperoni, bacon, sausage and meatball crumble.  In terms of toppings and flavors, I'd give this a thumbs up.  But, the dough was dry and not chewy enough for me.


Desserts

Panna Cotta (88 php) and Bannoffee Cubbler (88 php)

The Panna Cotta is a refreshing peachy meal ender.  The Bannoffee Cubbler is a more sweeter choice.

Beverages

Salted Caramel Milk Shake (95 php)

I was surprised by the size of the Salted Caramel Milk Shake.  It was very affordable but it was too overwhelmingly sweet that finishing it seemed impossible for me.

Frozen Iced Tea (88 php)

The frothy Frozen Iced Tea is the ideal refreshment for me.  The blend is just right.

Update (June 1, 2015): This branch is now closed.  But, I hear they will be reopening in SM Manila.

Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
Mad For Pizza is a new addition to food places where you can hang out with friends.  The dishes and drinks are affordable and served in portions that are good for sharing.  Other than the cool Create Your Own Experience, you should try their other dishes too.  I've been told they'll have a bar and serve aloholic beverages soon too.