THE SETTING: Located in the heart of the Makati business district, just a few flights of stairs from Valero Street upwards to Fraser Place Building at Streetside. Le Bistro Vert is a welcoming place, with its high ceiling, cool colors and large windows lending a feeling of being inside a greenhouse. There is a loft for private dining and special occasions and tables outside for al fresco dining.
I can vividly recall how creamy the Nankin Tofu tasted even though I had sampled it sometime ago. The texture was velvety-creamy, almost custard-like. The flavor of pumpkin rich but not overwhelmingly so. That it was, like most Japanese fare, picture-pretty with a garnishing of prawn, asparagus and wasabi, only made the eating all the more memorable.
When traveling to the north, making a stopover in Pampanga is always a sensible decision. And why not? Kapampangans are really known for their rich food tradition. But eating takes on a deeper, and should I say cultural, meaning when you make a stop at Bale Dutung. Tucked in a residential village, the place looks more like a house than a restaurant which it actually is, being the abode of chef/cook/artist Claude Tayag and his wife, Maryanne. That said, the treatment we got was more akin to dining in a friend’s house.