Souv!

Gyro V

Doner Haus

Monique had a quick beef kebab at Hole-In-The-Wall for just under P300.  The shop, aptly called Doner Haus, made a stuffed wrap filled with greens and some specialty sauce. Unfortunately, if you haven't tried it yet, you won't find the store there anymore--it's merely a pop-up shop that has an expiry date.

Kos

I've been very happy that the foodie scene in Metro Manila has been spiced up with so many new eating places.  Thirty years ago, you'd have only a handful of good places to dine in, aside from the restaurants at the five-star hotels.  Today, just go any mall, and you can find a fairly decent restaurant to dine in; these may not be as fancy as those at the hotels, but you can get value-for-money anyway.  My theory is that a lot of our countrymen have gone to work in various kitchens abroad, both on land and at sea, and the knowledge of how to run a good kitchen has already been absorbed.  A lot of these chefs come back to Manila, very confident of bringing fresh dining concepts to the local market.

Who would have thought that an ouzeri (Greek Tavern) would make it to Manila?  The dining experience in the island of Kos is replicated in the UP Town Center, and it seems that I'll forever be a fan of their souvlaki.  Monique and I started with a round of Pitsiladis Ouzo, which turns louche when mixed with water (I think this is an effect of the anise).  We ordered some artichoke-cheese dip, and we were very happy with the "unli-bread" concept that the restaurant had; we just kept the bread coming in!

The chicken gyro wasn't bad, but I felt that it needed more stuffing to be worth the money. The moussaka was quite good though, it was rich and flavorful.  The grand prize of the evening?  You guessed it right--lamb souvlaki!  This is one aroma that I distinctly remember enjoying in Manhattan, that of grilled roadside souvlaki, and it was a pleasure to have it once more right next to home.  So far, this is the only version of souvlaki that I have truly enjoyed in Manila.

We spent something like P750 per head, but that was including the alcohol.  The lamb souvlaki is around P500 and if you are on a budget, this can be shared by two people (you can probably get by with P350 per head).  The interiors are clean and bright, and the staff give you very pleasant service.

Azzuro

The Century Mall in Kalayaan St. in Makati opened a few months back without much funfare.  It's a nice cozy mall, not too huge to be noisy and crowded, nor too small to be boring.  Monique and I had some time to  roam around, and by mid-afternoon, our tummies called for some heavy merienda.  This time we tried Azzurro, simple Mediterranean food--squash soup, pasta and callos.  I wouldn't say it was fancy, but these dishes weren't bad at all.  I was told that the restaurant used to occupy space at the nearby A Venue, but that outlet catered more to the hotel guests, while this new location would be more accessible to the general public.  Prepare around P400 per person.

Balkan

Cyma Greek Taverna

I was informed of a last minute change for a lunch meeting just 20 minutes prior to start--apparently the staff had told me that the lunch to be held at the EDSA Shangri-la hotel, when the actual location was the Shangri-la Mall.  It was a good thing that the mall was just a few steps away.  We had lunch at Cyma Greek Taverna, which is located on restaurant row at level 6.

Salad and soup came in large portions (salad was shared), and my lamb souvlaki was smokin' right off the grill.  It wasn't as tender as I would have wanted it to be though (for P500 a plate, I expected better lamb cuts).  We wound up with some desserts (I had lava cake), and I'd estimate that my host spent something like P900 to P1,000 per head (we were 4).  One thing to note is that the waiters come out the kitchen with a booming "Oopah" which is like a big "Yehey!" or "Hurray!" so don't get startled.

Greeka Kouzina

For some reasons, our well made plans to eat at Greeka Kouzina along P. Guevara St. in San Juan never came to fruition.  One time we decided to go to a nearby restaurant instead, and another time, there was no parking space available (a big drawback of dining in this restaurant) that we decided to abandon the idea altogether.  Last week, however, Monique and I purposely arrived before sunset, and we easily found a spot to park.

We ordered a light dinner--lamb meatballs, moussaka, and a beef gyro.  These were flavorful and came in hot ad freshly made.  I found the gyro filling a bit on the sparse end, I would have wanted the sandwich to be stuffed with more beef bits, garlic yogurt and feta cheese, and maybe even some french fries...

Our spending came to around P350 per head, but we just had tap water, so I would guess that with drinks, your tab for snacks could go up to maybe P400 per head.  For a full course meal, probably budget something like P900 per head--they have lots of veal and lamb dishes, which looked quite appetizing (the lamb meat roast reportedly just falls off the bone).