restaurant review: bistro luneta

pansin nyo parang kain ako ng kain lately? =) next week may bago ulit akong irereview, farmer brown naman ang pangalan.

chel and t and i decided to give bistro luneta a shot. we've read good things about the place so we decided to drive down to this filipino restaurant in san mateo that serves traditional filipino dishes prepared and presented in unconventional ways.

when we walked into the restaurant, chel's first comment was, 'kahit talaga gawin mong sosyal ang filipino food, may amoy parin.' true that. we can still smell the garlic in the air, but it's not too overpowering. you wont leave the place smelling like the food you eat. kelan ka ba naman nag gisa ng bawang na di nangamoy, di ba?

we ordered one appetizer, the bangus maki, to share between us three. it's milkfish sushi with tomato, onion and salted egg, dipped in tempura batter then deep fried. fried sushi is always a winner in my book. the bangus maki is good because the sweet soy sauce drizzled on top balances the taste between sweet and salty. the exterior of the maki is crisp and the inside is tender. a great play on texture. although this isn't really a filipino dish, it's good to see sushi made from 'filipino' ingredients.

Bangus Maki

for our entree, here is what we ordered:

chel got the bistek luneta: grilled flat iron steak in a citrus soy sauce with garlic mashed potatoes. it was a thick cut of steak, very tender and cooked to a perfect medium. the sauce was too tart. i didn't really taste the citrus, but tasted a lot of reduced balsamic vinegar...really way too sour and tart. the steak without the sauce was better. the mashed potatoes were good too although they could have been more generous with the serving.

Bistek Luneta

t got the kare kare presented beautifully as the picture below shows. it taste like regular kare kare and served with a side of bagoong. the meat is very tender, the sauce is thick and sweet and peanut-y. masarap sya! according to chel, it's the best kare kare she's had that is not made from our household. (naks!) i didn't get a chance to taste the veggies but they looked great to me.

Kare Kare

i ordered the salpicao. whenever i go out to eat at a filipino restaurant and i see that the salpicao is on the menu, i always order it. i LOVE salpicao. there's something about the oily garlicy goodness in this dish that makes my mouth water. i tried the salpicao at kuya's in san bruno but was dissappointed by the taste. but at bistro, ay ang sarap! the best salpicao i've had before this was in malate years and years ago. buti naman ngayon, i found a place to go to when i need my salpicao fix. =) the salpicao was served with blue potato chips which was light and crispy, not salty at all. my only complaint was that the meat in my salpicao was extremely fatty. 1/3 of the meat was actually fat. (kaya malasa talaga) i was tempted to just eat them but i knew i was going to regret that later on so i sliced the fat away and ate the leaner parts. it would have been perfect with a bowl full of rice, tapos isasabaw mo yung mantika ng salpicao. ay yay yay! pero tatlong maliit subo lang ng kanin ang ginawa ko. it was a struggle not to eat more rice pero i have to behave. i ate 2/3s of the chips and was very satisfied with my meal.

Salpicao

for dessert, the 3 of us shared an order of churros manila which is churros with hot Manila chocolate and seasonal fruit. ano yung Manila chocolate? ewan ko rin! but it was good. that one order is perfect for 3 people kasi they give you 6 pieces of churros to dunk in that warm chocolate. (no picture because i just dove into dessert and forgot to snap a photo)

parking is free in the small lot behind the restaurant (you have to go around the block to see it).

over all i give this restaurant a 3 out of 5 spoons. i will go back to this restaurant over boulevard. the food is really good but i do understand why the older, more traditional pinoys would not like it. kasi madalas ang gusto natin e yung sandamakmak na pagkain. pag kumain tayo, galit galit talaga! parang bibitayin na! pero here at bistro, the pace is slower, more relaxed. it's a great place to out on a date. may pagka romantic, madilim, and warm ang environment. you don't feel rushed to finish your meal and pay for your food. while we were there, we only saw two other filipinos eating. the rest were caucasian and chinese.

i really want this place to thrive! it can still use some improvement, like the very sour sauce on the bistek, but they are on to something really good.

so if you're not filipino and would like an introduction to filipino food, you can go here. after you've been acclimated to the taste and smells, go to patio filipino. then if you're feeling like you are ready for the real deal, go to fil-am, kuya's, pampanga's or better yet, go to TSELOGS, the brand new tapsihan set to open in may. this is chel's restaurant and guaranteed to be delicious! yung iba dito recipe ko and others close to her. so in a couple of months i will be writing a very biased restaurant review of tselogs. =)