One random night, uncle invited us for dinner to one of his latest discoveries: Sky Deck View Bar at The Bayleaf Hotel.  He said he was invited over there for a business meeting and since the view is worth-sharing, he thought of treating us there.

Even though we are Manila residents, we just found out about The Bayleaf Hotel.  Since Intramuros is small, we didn't have a hard time finding it.  Parking slots are limited so we had to park outside The Bayleaf Hotel compound. 

Going up the flight of stairs, we already got a glimpse of the view.

Uncle was right!  The ambiance is indeed stunning.  


The service is slow and it was difficult to call the attention of the servers but we didn't mind.  We kept ourselves occupied with the view.

I dont think there's any place in Manila that can offer a beautiful sight of the city.

Food

Appetizers

♥ Quesong Puti Fondue (365 php)

For starters, we had the Quesong Puti Fondue.  We loved the local white cheese sprinkled with salted fish flakes.  It is a great dip for the crunchy garlic bread.

Fresh Salad

♥ Shrimp and Pomelo (390 php)

The Shrimp and Pomelo is an asian inspired salad with greens, Davao pomelo and green mango.  It had a fish sauce-based dressing.

Main Course

Beef Tenderloin Fillet (750 php)

The Beef Tenderloin Fillet is so tender.  This is definitely worth it!

♥ Seabass Nori (400 php)

The Seabass Nori is another hit among us.


Heritage (comes with rice)

Bayleaf Bagnet Classic (400 php)

My family is originally from Ilocos so our standard for bagnet and pinakbet is quite high.  And, the Bayleaf Bagnet Classic passed with flying colors.

♥ Classic Beef Kare Kare (470 php)

The Classic Beef Kare Kare is so tasty.  This will make you want to have more rice!

Beef Tenderloin "Bistek" (490 php)

The Beef Tenderloin "Bistek" is also good.

Pasta

Seafood (450 php)

The Seafood is good but it was robbed of the spotlight by the other dishes.


Desserts

"Our" Crepe Suzette (270 php)

Nothing special with the "Our" Crepe Suzette.

♥ Ensaymada Pudding (240 php)

The Ensaymada Pudding was highly recommended by our server.

♥ Ensaymada Pudding (240 php)

Indeed, the Ensaymada Pudding is a must try!

♥ The Chocolate Wall (300 php)

The Chocolate Wall is so beautifully plated.  The chocolate mousse is rich.  I found the caramel to be superfluous as it is already sweet enough.

Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
The Manila City view makes the dining experience at Sky Deck View Bar totally worth it!  The price is reasonable for such a unique rooftop experience.  The food is pretty good too.  Overall, I highly recommend this place.  It made me appreciate Manila more.

A few weeks ago, me and my friends had a spontaneous getaway to Club Balai Isabel in Talisay Batangas.  There are a lot of activities that you can do there, one of which is eating! And, I'm excited to share our dining experience at Terraza Cafe.

Terraza Cafe is open air so there's no air-conditioning.  It exudes a homey vibe with its cabin interior and wooden tables and chairs.

There are three dining areas available: main dining area, function room and pool side.


My pick would be the pool side and here's why.  Just ask for a candle to keep the flies away.

Food

Salad and Appetizers

House Salad (240 php)

We started with a healthy House Salad.  Everything is fresh: greens and fruits.  What brings granduer to this simple looking dish is their home made kamias dressing.  It bring a refreshing tropical and citrus delight. 

Hearty Soups and Stews 

Bulalo (475 php)

One of my favorite soups is Bulalo.  The Bulalo is a pre-hispanic bone and marrow broth originating in Southern Luzon.  I'm not just a fan of bone broth for it's rich savory concentrated flavor but also for it's health benefits.  Way before bone broth has become a trend thanks to Paleo and Gaps diet, pre-historic records shows that it has always been known as an elixer around the world.  That is why we Filipinos have the Bulalo, Koreans have the Seolleongtang, Japanese have the Tonkotsu Ramen, French have the Consome and Italians have the Brodo.

Batangas is well known for it's Batangas Beef so having Bulalo to this pioneering city is a wise choice.  Terraza Cafe's is one of the best one I've had.  The chunky tender beef, melt in your mouth marrow and warm and rich broth is simply comfort food for the soul.  

Kalderetang Kambing (430 php)

I've been eating Kalderetang Kambing and it is only this time that I've seen one with grated cheddar cheese on top.  It made the dish more balanced and its a contrast to slight gamey flavor of the goat that didn't escape my senses.

Kare-kare (450 php)

One of the dishes that really got us into munching more is the Kare-kare.

Grilled and Fried Corner 

Chicken Inasal (300 php)

The Chicken Inasal is tasty but I'd enjoy it more if it was more tender and juicy.

Balai Lechon Liempo (380 php)

The quickest one to be emptied is the Balai Lechon Liempo.

Balai Bagnet (360 php)

How can you resist this beautiful Balai Bagnet?  For the price, this enormous chunk of delectable fat and tender meat is quite a steal. 

Sisig (300 php)

Gorgeously slathered with egg and mayonnaise, the mild spicy chewy Sisig was well-appreciated.
 
Seafood

Salt & Pepper Seafood (280 php)

The Salt & Pepper Seafood isn't exactly how I expected it to be.  It was more like sweet and spicy for me.  The seafood: squid, shrimp and dory is all similarly battered so it's difficult to distinguish one from another unless you bite into it. 

Tilapia na may Minatamis na Sampalok (250 php)

The secret to the sweetness of the Tilapia na may Minatamis na Sampalok is that they use fresh and live tilapia.  The tilipia cubes are so soft that they almost dissolve once popped into my mouth.  
 
Vegetables

Grilled Eggplant (185 php)

It took some time getting used to consuming the Grilled Eggplant.  Our local tongues are used to eating grilled eggplants with bagoong (shrimp paste).  If you love curry, you'll find liking in balai's special spicy coconut cream sauce that serves as a dip.

Buffet

If the resort is almost fully occupied, they offer a buffet.  Breakfast is included in the accommodation.


The menu changes.  But I'm quite please that whether it's breakfast, lunch or dinner,  there's fresh fruits available.  We noticed that the items we ordered ala carte were also candidates for the buffet selection.  There are also a minimum of 5 viands to choose from in addition to the salad, fruits and other desserts.  Some of the desserts we loved are their Mango Buko Loco and Churros.


There's a live station too.  During breakfast, you can order omelet with toppings of your choice.  For lunch and dinner, it becomes a pasta station.  I love their pasta!


So here's my breakfast place with a bowl of cereal.


I also had a warm bowl of champorado, a slice of puto and a hot cup of brewed coffee.  The puto is so delicious!  

During dinner time, there's a live band and wonderful lights set up all over the trees by the pool making it a cozy atmosphere.

Drinks

Health is Wealth (140 php) and Mango Shake (140 php)

I really liked their fresh and healthy drinks.  Everything we had was very refreshing and not too sweetened.

Tip: Aside from eating, you might wanna check out my Top 12 Suggested Activities To Do at Club Balai Isabel. 



Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
Terraza Cafe is offers reasonably priced delicious dishes served in generous portions.  I consider this food heaven a great complement to everything else in Club Balai Isabel.