I haven't seen my barkada since the last time I came to the Philippines in 2011 and they treated me…read morehere at Cerchio. Located in an indistinct part of the Scout area in Quezon City, Cerchio offers delicious Filipino food. A requirement is their Cherchio's Pork Sisig. I must say that Cerchio really does justice to this infamous Filipino dish. Properly 'crunched' and seasoned, each of the three scoops of sisig is topped by a sunny side quail egg, a really nice touch. We also had some grilled liempo and some prawn dish. They were delicious, but nothing out of the ordinary. Their sisig though is memorably delicious that Cerchio warrants another visit. (Hope to get back to Phil soon!)

One of my favorite places for dinner whenever I'm in that area. I love the elegant interiors, the…read moreattentive staff and most of all, good food. We always start our order with their Singaporean Crispy Squid heads and go on to the "putok bato" part of the menu, Cerchio's Pork Sisig, Oven Baked Crispy Pata, and Grilled Kare-Kare paired with their pineapple fried rice. I've added two new entrees to my favorites recently: Cerchio's Chicken Barbecue and Peri-Peri Chicken. Now I know most people don't comment on dessert in places like this, but I was really surprised on how delightful their strawberry cheesecake was. I only ordered to appease my little girl (who loves all things strawberry and sweet), but I ended up finishing it. The cheesecake really melts in your mouth.

Wild Ginger is one of the quieter restaurants in Power Plant Mall's basement food area. It's never…read morefull when I go there, even when it's dinnertime on a payday - I say this in a good way though! This means you have the staff's attention and you don't need to wait as long for your meals. And the couches they have on the side are really comfy. I could sleep there. Wild Ginger serves affordable Asian food with great quality. Their Roti Prada with Curry Dipping Sauce makes for a great and tasty appetizer, along with their Vietnamese Spring Rolls. I recently tried their Tofu Salad with Peanut Sauce - another quick favorite! Great for those looking for a healthy option. I know a lot of places scrimp on the salad dressing but Wild Ginger smothers their peanut sauce all over this one. Mmm! Since they're on Vietnamese and Thai cuisine, their Pad Thai is a must try. It's good enough for sharing or at least one very hungry person. Most of their main courses also have the peanut sauce theme, including their Kare-kare and Chicken Satay. Their Lemongrass Tea is also really good - I wish they had a bottomless option, because I nearly finished mine in a few sips!

I was a little bit surprised by this restaurant's striking contemporary take on traditional Asian…read morefood. The starters are crowd-pleasers and only give a slight hint to the elegance of the main dishes that they serve. We started off with a very tasty rotti served with a nice creamy curry dip. My main was the pad Thai which was miraculously cooked to perfection. It's a dream lunch, filling without being too heavy, and pretty enough to make my other friends who dined at another place envy.

Went looking for Mang Inasal in Glorietta mall only to find this chicken place that also…read morecharcoals/grills their chicken. Since I was doing an inasal taste test with my one week trip in Manila, my review and score is done after I've tried a few others. Sadly, this was in last place in my inasal taste test with CHE Bacolod chicken house being #1 and Mang Inasal #2 Besides the chicken, I also added a chickeneer which was fried chicken skin as an appetizer. They serve it with vinegar on the side and it was pretty tasty but because when they served it, some of the vinegar had spilled into the chicken skin, thus a few was wet and no longer crispy which made It inedible for me. Turn off. The chicken was dry and also uncooked near the bone where I encountered some part that was still bloody. Based on my one experience, I doubt I will go back to this franchise chicken place since I was not impressed

Service was slow...sat for a while before approached by server...got the breast inasal, probably…read morethe best chicken I've had, juicy full of flavor...good times!!!!5

On my birthday last year, my girlfriend didn't tell me where we were eating, and since she's never…read morefailed me in terms of food before, I let her kidnap me and take me to Maginhawa, where we had what is possible one of the best steak meals I have ever had. Via Antonella's hanger steak is so big it filled half the plate - and the plate itself was immense. The other half was shared by buttered vegetables sauteed to perfection, and mashed potatoes. I may have moaned in ecstacy while eating it, as evidenced by the look of outrage on my girlfriend's face that stayed there the whole meal. Sorry, hunny. It's steak.

It was my lobster's birthday and knowing his weakness for grilled animal carcass, particularly…read morebeef, I took him to Via Antonella. I was trying to prove to him that Maginhawa is awesome, and Quezon City is the best place in which to live. He was whining about how far it is the whole time, but he shut up immediately when they served him his steak. He had their signature Hanger Steak, while I had a more manageable-sized steak and mushroom meal. I don't know why they call it a hanger steak, but it may be because it's the size of an actual clothes hanger, and my lobster downed it with so much love on his face I actually felt a bit jealous. The place was also almost always empty, which meant the staff were very hands on. We were the only ones there at a time, and we felt very cared for.

This is a restaurant that honors Filipino history and culture. If you look around the restaurant…read moreyou'll see art on the walls. If you're an international traveler who wants an intro to Filipino food, this restaurant would be a good pick. They actually highlight classic Filipino cuisine with informational signage. I appreciated how the food is presented at each station with different pots, platewear, and heating elements. It's a good use of space and design. The food was ok. I think Medley Buffet at Okada is better in selection and quality. It was still a nice experience though. Plus if you stay at Conrad Manila it's really convenient. Buffets are popular in the Philippines. I actually prefer buffets over à la carte restaurants while on vacation. This restaurant met that need.

Food service and ambiance are all great- I love their sections for Juice bar where I usually take…read morethe customized juice with basil, chia seeds pudding. The all around Filipino serving of breakfast- tapa on the house c/o Chefs - Cyril and Louie.

As the name implies, this restaurant aims to make you feel as if you are eating food cooked by your…read morebeloved lola. The place surely helps toward achieving their desired effect. Local hardwood railings and native accents are in abundance. The tables are the high backed variety that we frequently see in old houses. The food is almost exclusively native dishes. I say almost because they serve cream dory in white sauce and I'm pretty sure that's not a local dish. Standouts are their Kare-kare and Baked Tahong. They also have Ginataang Tilapia which I rarely see in restaurants nowadays. And whatever happens, don't leave without trying their Halo-halo. The have many ingredients that you can experiment with to help you beat the heat of the tropics. Delicious Filipino dishes that are affordable and you can eat in a homey environment. This is what Lola Maria offers for those who want to relive those days when our lolas would cook for her favorite apos.

There are few spots I tend to hit when in Mandaluyong. This is one of them. The service is…read moreexcellent. The food is masarap (yummy). I especially like to come here for lunch as the buffet is great. This is not the over the top 100 options type of buffet common to Manila these days. This is old school buffet with local cuisine. Try this spot, you will not be disappointed.

The strong smell of steak and burgers is what greets me whenever I pass by the restaurant. It…read moreeither gets me hyped up or makes me dizzy. For one of those times when I found the scent to be appetizing, I decided to try it out. They give you the freedom to make your own burger, but I just went with one that's available on the menu. I chose the Bleu burger, and it was quite satisfying and tasty. The burger was big enough that I had some difficulty biting into it. Also, the smooth bleu cheese and the soft caramelized onions were the perfect contrast to the crunchy fried leeks in the middle of the burger which blended well with the seasonings of the patty. I also ordered their Chocolate Truffled Caked Shake as an afterthought. It's supposedly a milkshake with some cake blended in. I know that it sounds so delicious, but I suggest that you think twice before ordering one for yourself. In my opinion, it's a little too expensive for its small serving and ordinary taste. Their milkshakes aside, I'd give 8 Cuts a thumbs up.

I have heard many things about 8 Cuts, many of which are positive reviews, Metro Manila can never…read morereally have enough burger joints as they all come in different shapes, sizes, tastes and prices. 8 Cuts has done a great job introducing itself to the market of meat-eaters. I'm not surprised that they continue to have a steady flow of loyal customers due to the consistent quality of their food. I like my burgers plain and simple, without any special add-ons or sauces. Fortunately, the order taker at 8 Cuts new just what to recommend. I love how the juices of the burger patty naturally come out on the first bite. The aroma of real beef patty is heavenly to me. Unfortunately, the patties offered by 8 Cuts are quite small, as I prefer the patty to be bigger than the bun. Nevertheless, 8 Cuts serves great tasting burgers that are of great quality. Don't forget the fries!

Back for Sunday lunch and finally snagged a table! Even though we didn't get the best seat in the…read morehouse, we didn't mind--we were strictly here for the food. The quality is as consistent as ever; the tempura remains a total standout. This is one of only two restaurants we trust whenever we're in Dampa. Highly recommended, and we definitely plan on making this a more frequent stop next year!