UBS EB @ Ayala Triangle

I flew to Manila last December 29 and had a chance to finally meet Lennel and Weng in person. These two  were former colleagues of mine in UBS but we only ever met in the Pinoy sa UBS chatroom then added each other in Facebook. Lennel had planned the “grand EB” for all those who would be flying to Manila for the holidays (Lennel is based in Japan; Weng in Singapore like me). I was the one who suggested the meeting place. I had read a lot of people raving about Ayala Triangle, so I got curious about that. When we got there, the place was crowded. When we got to Kanin Club we were #32 in the queue and the number being called was 8. I said it was okay to go elsewhere, but then a friend of Lennel’s saw him there and told him that the place was “worth the wait” so we waited like for an hour or so. While waiting, I ordered a glass of dalandan juice and was surprised when they served it to me in a giant glass. It wasn’t fresh, though, just the concentrated kind, so I was disappointed. Next time I’ll just have the lemon iced tea which tastes like calamansi.

We finally got seated after so long. I only wanted to try the much hyped about crispy dinuguan but my two OFW buddies had other plans and ordered food good enough for people twice our size – seven dishes, can you believe it? There wasn’t enough room in our four-seater table that they had to put in an extension. Beware the balikbayan who misses Filipino food. @__@

Seven dishes for three people

The crispy dinuguan had a delicious sauce but I’m not a fan of the crispy texture. I still like my dinuguan the traditional way. Same goes for the crispy pork liempo.  My favorites of the night were the singanag na sinigang and the pinaputok na tilapia. I liked the interesting concept of the “dried sinigang” in the form of sinigang-flavored fried rice, certainly the first of its kind that I’ve encountered. I usually pour sinigang soup on to my rice and the fact that they sort of did that for me with this rice was great. You could order just that with no need of viand. In Lennel’s words – “kanin pa lang, ulam na.” The presentation was also interesting. There was just a few of it left that I had wrapped for my breakfast the next day. Meanwhile, Weng and I both loved the fish and finished it all. It was so fresh and crispy yet fluffy and tasted just perfect dipped in soy sauce with vinegar and spices.

sinangag na sinigang

Pinaputok na tilapia

We obviously couldn’t finish everything, so we had the leftovers wrapped up. When the bill came, Lennel said that since it was a surprisingly small amount (below P2000 for all that), he would shoulder the bill. Isn’t he awfully nice? He actually gave Japan t-shirts and calendars to Weng and me earlier and then, when a couple of kids came along peddling roses, he bought one for Weng and me too. What a nice guy. 🙂

Roses for Weng and me from Lennel. So sweet!

We left Kanin Club and checked out Banapple, which is also quite famous. We were already so full so we just decided to take out some of their cakes. I asked what their bestseller was and got told that it was the banoffee pie, so I ordered one. I tried it the next day and thought that while I loved its soft fluffy texture, I wasn’t a fan of its overly sweet taste. Or maybe I’ve just gotten used to the not-so-sweet pastries in Singapore.

Banapple’s bestseller

When we walked out, I saw Golden Spoon next door. I’m a huge fan of yogurt and had read rave reviews about this place too, so, despite being stuffed, I couldn’t leave without trying this. So in I went and tried out the Belgian chocolate flavor. I was amused that their spoons are indeed golden. The reviews were right – this yogurt doesn’t taste like yogurt at all! In fact it tastes like gelato. Yum! But, once again, I found it too sweet. Singapore, what have you done to my sweet tooth??

We saw that Ayala Triangle had been lit up in lights while we were eating. We were supposed to take a photo with the lights but then just before we could walk over and pose, they turned them off. Hmph. Well at least I was able to take a picture of the lights themselves.

Well that was certainly a fun night. I enjoyed the company of old-yet-new friends and loved the food. I’m so glad I wasn’t a “drawing” and showed up at the meet-up. 😉