a bite of brownie

I have been hearing a lot of good reviews for Olio, and I can honestly say that the deserve every single award that they received over the past 6 years after my visit here one day ago.

 It was in a somewhat secluded area of Crossroads just between Mexican restaurant and that disco bar place near the end of the strip. So far so good, we were the first people to come over and check out the place.

It was well kept and very pleasing, not to mention the ambiance of the place is serene with songs from times gone by playing in the background.

When we got there, we were seated promptly and had the servers on stand by as we browsed through the menu. Everything was fancy and pricey, but thankfully there was an ongoing promo for their US Corn Fed Angus Rib Eye steak. So we had two,  a side of aglio olio, baked potato, and some unsweetened shakes to complement our already delicious food. To finish the meal, we got a chocolate soufflé.



Olio
Crossroads Cebu

Verdict:
A: 5/5

The food was very delicious. The steak was cooked to perfection and the sides were just right. It was an affordable steak, buy one take one free rib eye for 1.5k. It's even cheaper and juicier than David's steakhouse. The baked potato goes well with the meat I had. Pasta was al dente just the ways we liked it. I haven't had a Soufflé in my life, but it was decent enough and it rose from the cup it was in. So I guess it's good enough? There's a lot of alcohol beverages here. Some of the dishes never go down below 450 So better prepare a well fed wallet before bringing your date here.

Oh, did I mention that they have freshly baked bread? Plus fountains inside the restaurant. How cool is that?

Still part of the Abaca group of companies, Phat Pho specializes in Vietnamese and Thai cuisine, served with a modern twist for the contemporary diner. We visited the restaurant twice and both visits I could say that I was not disappointed. Situated near its siblings at Crossroads, this restaurant opens its doors to its patrons at dusk and goodness me, due to the limited amount of space, it is suggested that people should arrive early before their patrons flood in by the throng.

They have very little on the menu, most of it were made up of different flavored pho bowls while the others were appetizers and pica-pica. Here are some of the things we ordered:

Goi Cuon (vegetable, grilled pork, chilled shrimp)
Pho bowl
Pork in Lettuce cups
Spring Rolls
Chicken wings
Grilled pork tenders

What I really liked most about this restaurant is that the chefs listen to customer feedback and alter the menu to their taste. The proof of this is when we visited the first time and found that the peanut sauce was too sweet and too smooth, we brought this up to the chef and suggested that it would be nicer if it was a little more textured and less sweet. Lo and behold, the next day, we were able to enjoy a new an improved dish, to our proposition.

If I were to choose between which of the three Goi Cuons was the most delicious, I would probably vote for the grilled pork, in favor of the meat being cooked and seasoned as opposed to bland but refreshing hint the shrimp offered. Pho here is delicious, and you could probably share a bowl with a friend because the regular serving is good enough for two. The pork in lettuce cups was one of the ever changing dishes on the daily specials, which, although messy to eat, was delicious. Pork tenders were well cooked and juicy, perfectly cooked if you ask me. Their chicken wings shine with just the right amount of sweetness and sourness and saltiness, plus the serving size was plenty enough too.


 Phat Pho
Crossroads Banilad



Verdict:
A: 4.75/5
One of the few deserving modern restaurants in the market that serves good food. It would be nice if they expanded the menu.

I was a little put off by the people who serve customers in this place because the menu was shoved into our hands by their main waiter. I personally found this rude and unaccommodating because it felt impersonal and without desire to serve.The food on the menu didn't look appetizing either and everything on the menu seems simple enough to make at home. Sister decided to get us a pitcher of CMC (cucumber, mint, calamansi) to go on the side of the Aligue pasta and "prawn" pasta as well as the pork steak slathered with mushroom gravy. We were mislead when they mentioned prawn in the pasta, because we were a huge size of shrimp. Much to our dismay, there was at least 10 pieces of small local shrimp while the serving side of the dish.

I'll give them plus points for the steak cut fries, I just love them given the rarity of the restaurants serving these cuts. The pork steak, I didn't appreciate so much. It had vegetables, sure, but I'm afraid it wasn't exceptional. The pasta's serving size seems small too and it didn't look like it will feed a
couple of people (unlike that Greek place where the servings are huge!)

Anyhow, Fudge seems to be a dessert place to me because the desserts all look delicious. We got a lava cake to end the meal, a good order to save our otherwise disappointing experience. It was warm and moist and almost buttery at the center, with a slight hint of dark brown chocolate. It was also topped with a cool scoop of vanilla ice cream to complement the warm treat.






Fudge
Ayala Center Cebu



Verdict:
A: 2/5

It was an ok enough experience. I am slightly disappointed with the food. They should have specialized in desserts or better yet, hired a good chef for food. Needs a lot of work.