Basil: Fine-Dining Thai Dinner (Pasong Tamo Ext Makati)

As a lover of Thai cuisine, Basil has long been on my wishlist.  I was really glad that my cousin chose this place to celebrate Father's Day.  

If you're looking for this place, look out for Roche Bobois Showroom along Pasong Tamo Extension because this is behind it!  We had a hard time looking for this place.  It's a good thing uncle called to instructed us. 

The dining area was huge!  It had brick-colored walls with artistic steel framed mirrors.  There were large Buddha figures.  Each were holding flickering candles.  It had a fountain in the center and many long tables covered in black linen sheets and big wooden and skillfully carved sturdy chairs. 

How odd that we were the only diners that night.  It's as if we reserved the place all for ourselves.  My brother and male cousins were on their annual traveling tradition so we were less than usual.  We occupied just one long table which happened to be on the very center of the dining area. 

P.S.  My apologies I wasn't able to take a photo.  They say that people born in February are moody.  Well, this night I wasn't in the mood to be a shutterbug.  This post would not have been made positive if not for my kind-hearted little sister who volunteered to take some food photos.


Food

Salad & Appetizer

♥ Thai Papaya Salad (255 php)

We loved the Thai Papaya Salad with palm sugar, fish sauce, garlic, chillies, cherry tomatoes, lime juice and crushed peanuts.  It had a dominant sweet peanut flavor. 

♥ Thai Crispy Fish with Green Mango Salad (370 php)

Unlike the Yam pla Duk Fu I've tried before, the Thai Crispy Fish with Green Mango Salad has a solidified crispy catfish.  It was fun to eat together with the very sour green mango strips, onion slices, chillies and cashew nuts.

Fresh Spring Roll (260 php)

The Fresh Spring Roll is one of the most chunky I've encountered so far.  It's got shrimp and ground pork bits with carrots and greens.  It is served with a sweet and sour tamarind sauce.

Soup

♥ Creamy Chicken Soup with Young Tamarind Leaves (315 php)

We tried both the soups that they offered which were served in a similar method.  The Spicy Seafood Soup (350 php) is a traditional Tom Yum soup with shrimps and oyster mushrooms.  We had our soup mild because my cousins are not fond of spicy dishes.  I enjoyed it!

Every one loved the Creamy Chicken Soup with Young Tamarind Leaves.  It was my first time to try this kind of soup.  One slurp and I'm hooked!  Although I liked the Spicy Seafood Soup, I have to agree with the family that this tangy and creamy coconut-based soup is better.

Seafood 

Stir-Fried Fish with Crispy Holy Basil (435 php)

The Stir-Fried Fish with Crispy Holy Basil is fried tilapia fillet in tapioca batter and served with sauteed crispy basil, garlic and chilli.  Love the crunchy texture but the flavor is nothing extraordinary.

Curry

Chicken Green Curry (325 php)

We had two kinds of curry.  The first was the Creamy Pork Curry (325 php).  It had a rich and thick herby (with hints of lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime and coriander) and spiced Panang curry flavor.  Some of my cousins find the flavor too weird for them but I appreciate its distinct taste.  The pork bits was tender too.

The Chicken Green Curry (325 php) was too diluted that we could hardly taste the green curry and coconut milk.  It looked like a soup with chicken and eggplant bit and basil leaves.

Meat & Poultry
We tried the Spicy Wagyu Beef Short Ribs (490 php).  It was so sweet that you the spiciness is tamed to a very manageable tone.  It was tough to chew so I'm quite surprised that they considered that wagyu.

Emerald Chicken (295 php)

The Emerald Chicken is Chicken Pandan or chicken wrapped in pandan leaves and herbs.  This one is bite-sized.  It's pretty good!
 

♥ Chicken with Cashew Nuts (295 php)

I was expecting this to be similar to the one I had in Mango Tree.  But, I guess Basil likes to define it's own distinct Chicken with Cashew Nuts by making them more pleasurable to eat in a crunchy way.  This was not too herby in flavor so the taste is more on the safe side like the Chinese kung pao chicken.  As expected, this was everyone's favorite as it was emptied quickly.

Rice and Noodle

♥ Thai Bagoong Rice (298 php)

Our favorite Thai rice dish is of course the Bagoong Rice.  I liked their Thai Bagoong Rice because it had fried shrimp bits.  The pork is very sweet so the portion is just right as it is intended to be eaten with the rest.
 

♥ Thai Style Fried Noodles (360 php)

Another Thai staple that we usually order is the Pad Thai.  Basil's Thai Style Fried Noodles is one of the best!  The noodles were bouncy and fun to chew.  The tamarind dressing and crushed peanuts blended excellently along with the other tasty ingredients.

Dessert

♥ Sticky Rice with Mango (130 php)

We wanted to try all their desserts but the Sticky Rice with Mango is the only item available. The Sticky Rice with Mango had the most beautiful presentation I have ever seen. Unlike other sticky rice with mango, this had lots of crushed peanuts.  For the price, it was a hefty servings.  Peanut lovers will enjoy this but for me, I still prefer the one with dominant coconut milk flavor.


Drinks
The Thai Milk Tea is the only non-alcoholic beverage available.  It was too sweet!

Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
If you're looking for the most bang for the buck fine-dining Thai experience, Basil is definitely a great choice.  The dishes composed of authentic Thai herbs and spices and other quality ingredients.  The food is affordable given the large portions which is not usual for a Thai and fine dining restaurant.  We were really surprised by it.  We surely missed the presence of the guys when we ended up with so many left overs and take home packages hehe.  However, we felt that therewas a misalignment with their luxurious ambiance and the poor service.  Given that we were the only diners for the night, we found it difficult to call the attention of the servers.  It took too long for them to comply with our requests or some were completely neglected. 

Tsinoy Foodies Review Rating		Basil Menu
Ambiance	★★★★★	Menu 1 |  Menu 2
Taste	★★★★
Service	★★
Price	★★★★
♥=Favorites or Recommended

Basil
Branches	Makati (Behind Roche Bobois Showroom) 2100 Pasong Tamo Ext Magallanes Village,  Makati City, Metro Manila (0916) 438-1543 Katipunan White Plains Ave cor. Katipunan Ave Ugong Norte,  Quezon City, Metro Manila (02) 911-4158
Business Hours	12pm-10pm
Payment Options	Cash
Service Charge	10%
Budget/Person	300-800
Free WiFi	No
Unlocked Foursquare Perks	None
Other

Basil Makati Map  Like This Post? Subscribe here Follow @tsinoyfoodies