Another guest article by a good friend, Patty Soliman. This time, it's about great food.
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Isabelo Garden Restaurant
By Patty Soliman
This is a very long overdue post. I found previous
pictures from our February Family Event and I must say this is something I
mustn’t fail to share. I arranged a post-wedding celebration for my cousin
Evangel and his wife, Carmi who flew all the way from Vancouver. It took me
sometime to find a place that would make this family get-together be memorable for everyone. Again, a big thanks to
Google for helping me find this secret garden restaurant situated at the very
heart of Marikina City.
I’ve coordinated several weddings at Our Lady of the Abandoned Parish Church
before, not knowing that there is a garden restaurant nearby that matches my
taste palate. Well, savoring for European delicacies particularly Italian
dishes is always my kind of treat and I immediately fell in love with the line
of menu owner Portia Baluyot prepared for her Isabelo Garden Restaurant.
Looking at the menu and the rustic garden restaurant from the website, I
immediately made reservation for the family all 35 of us for this romantic
celebration.
You will be surprised that no signage or anything that will tell if it’s the
restaurant you are looking for. Well, that’s how secret the place is. We knew
that we are on the right place following the map we printed from Google and a
call from the owner herself. A courteous guard who stands at the rustic grill
gate welcomes us as we enter the place. The restaurant is an old house which
Ms. Portia said owned by her grandparents. The garden was stylized with shabby
chic and some memorabilia from the family’s collections and tables for 2-6
people placed around the garden. A perfect place if a man plans to have wedding
proposal. Tivoli lights adorned on each trees and with some acoustic music
complimenting this romantic place. Every restaurant is also being judged not
only for the food but the restroom as well. This restaurant has a powder room
that can be like your bedroom for the huge size and cleanliness.
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| Roasted pork crackling |
Isabelo Garden Restaurant is much different from other restaurants that we know. In this particular restaurant, you need to order, online at least 2 days ahead. The restaurant opens during dinner time only. Portia cooks only pre-ordered food. Most of the food were cooked slowly through “pugon” and I must say, this delectable dishes are so tasteful. Choosing for the menu is quite challenging since I wanted to try everything. So to keep me focus and followed a certain budget, I decided to order what was Portia’s best-sellers.
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| Chcolate mud pie |
For the appetizer, I ordered Spinach Artichoke Dip. The family
liked it as well. Before the main dish, we are served with Caesar Salad. For
the main course, I ordered for everyone Roasted Pork Crackling with 4 types of
dips to choose. And yes, this is so heavenly that we all enjoy the crispiness
of the skin and the tenderness of the meat. Ms. Portia said she cooked it in
“pugon” for 3 hours. This Beef Bourguignon is also so tender and ah, so yummy!
The Orange-Herb Chicken was not that popular to the group, but it was something
we also enjoyed. Lemon Parslied Garlic Rice also complimented the entire menu.
The kids also enjoyed their Isabelo Lokal Bolognese and Parmigiano Carbonara.
Desserts were Chocolate Mud Pie and Key Lime Pie, also best-sellers of this
restaurant.
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| Orange herb chicken |
My assessment, two-thumbs up! And for everyone who were there as well. I know
the couple, Vangel and Carmi appreciated everyone’s presence and yes, the food
served. I’m grateful everyone had great time enjoying this celebration. And
with that, I plan to bring some friends to join me taste their new portion of
the restaurant, “Rustic Mornings at Isabelo” which offers breakfast meals from
8am-4pm that doesn’t need for pre-order and reservation. I encourage everyone
to visit the place and experience what this eastside of the Metro offers. Just
like my family, I know, you’ll have 2-thumbs up too.
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| Key lime pie |
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| Author rightmost |
See also previous articles by Patty:
This is my room. It has a complete kitchen facilities –
stove, cooking pans, plates, knives, spoon and fork, cups, etc. They are all
inside those cabinets. So if people want to cook their own food, they can buy
raw food in nearby shops outside the resort, walking distance, and cook inside
their guest room.
The dinning table, which became my work area. There is
wifi everywhere in the hotel – guest rooms, lobby, meeting rooms, grand
ballroom.
The bathroom with two showers but no bath tub. Nice and cool. I like the warm water of course, it was still cold in Korea last month. 
The buffet breakfast restaurant of the Resort wing. Nice food. The cakes, cookies, other food on display though, are not part of the breakfast, for sale separately.
