Friuli Trattoria: Part 2 of The Great Maginhawa Food Trip

This post is the second of a five-part series called The Great Maginhawa Food Trip.

Part 1: Tomato Kick
Part 2: Friuli Trattoria
Part 3: Cocina Juan

Part 4: Sancho Churreria
Part 5: Cha Dao Tea Place

Our second installment in The Great Maginhawa Food Trip is all about Friuli Trattoria, a cute little Italian cafe that serves pizza, pasta and desserts, and prides themselves on their "Genuine Italian Cooking".

According to our ever-reliable source Wikipedia, Friuli is actually a region in northeastern Italy famous for their local cheese, cured meats and wine, while Trattoria refers to a small casual dining restaurant where "prices are low, and the emphasis is on a steady clientele rather than on haute cuisine. The food is modest but plentiful (mostly following regional and local recipes) and in some instances is even served family-style (i.e. at common tables)." With this, I'd have to say Friuli Trattoria definitely lives up to the standards of its namesake. The staff service is informal and friendly. The interiors are warm and cozy with the checkered tablecloths and the Italian themed decor. The food is excellent, as I shall soon further expound. And this is a place I'm sure I'll want to go to again and again.

It's a-me, Mario!

Tomato Kick: Part 1 of The Great Maginhawa Food Trip

If you live in the Quezon City area, you've probably heard of Maginhawa Street, that artist-culture-foodie haven located in UP Village, Quezon City. A nice quiet street by day, a crowded youth hub by night, this place boasts some of the most unique food finds this side of town!

Because Maginhawa's not-so-hidden treasures cannot be contained into one post, I'll be covering five of Maginhawa's best in this series which I dub The Great Maginhawa Food Trip. (Which, I know, is a ridiculous title, but there are just no other words fit to describe the sheer awesomeness of the Maginhawa experience.)

Just a quick teaser of the upcoming posts in the series ;)

This post is the first of a five-part series called The Great Maginhawa Food Trip.
Part 1: Tomato Kick
Part 2: Friuli Trattoria
Part 3: Cocina Juan

Part 4: Sancho Churreria
Part 5: Cha Dao Tea Place

For this post, we'll be starting off with one of the most well-known spots in Maginhawa: Tomato Kick.

A popular watering hole for students of the University of the Philippines, Tomato Kick has a laidback casual vibe that makes it the perfect hang-out. When you see the sign, you'll probably have trouble finding the entrance as we did, but it's actually on the second floor.

Affordable Fine Dining at Chef's Quarter

One day, my father suddenly had a craving for steak. We don't have steak very often, because of the cost and also because my family loves seafood more than meat. However, we do like a good steak once in a while, and it was up to me to find a nice nearby restaurant for us to enjoy some fine dining.

A few Internet searches led me to a restaurant in Robinson's Place Manila called "Chefs' Quarter." I've never heard of the restaurant, despite having been to RP plenty of times before, and when we finally found the restaurant, I realized why. Instead of being inside with all the other food establishments, Chef's Quarter is located outside, and there is no inside entrance. In short, you have to get out of the mall in order to get to the restaurant. No wonder I've never seen it before.

Despite the unfortunate location, its reputation is still enough to attract a hefty customer base, as I had seen from the many positive reviews on its Munchpunch.com page.

Modern Korea: Chicken Bonchon and Caffe Ti-amo

I was recently in Greenbelt 1 with my family to watch "Joy Luck Club," an excellent play by Repertory Philippines. We decided to grab some dinner afterwards and my aunt recommended Chicken Bonchon, a new chicken franchise from Korea that also has branches in New York.

After dinner, we had some gelato at Caffe Ti-amo, also another Korean chain. It was franchised by Jollibee and is now opening several branches around Metro Manila. They serve coffee, pastries, and of course, yummy gelato!

More under the cut!

One More Chance at Bellini's

Hello there! It's been a while since I posted, but as promised, I'll be telling you about a special restaurant this time. So it was my first time to go to the Cubao Expo for a project in school (I didn't even know such a place existed before, and of course, food will always be part of any adventure haha), and boy, it was really a hidden place with full of really interesting stuff! There isn't much light in the entrance which was why we missed it at first, and the place is alive around 4 to 7 pm, because that's the time that the different stores selling really unique one-of-a-kind clothes and shoes are all open. It's really like a village from a different time all on its own. Then we stumbled upon Bellini's, which my friend said was where John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo shot a scene in their movie One More Chance. Intriguing, huh? We thought so too haha that's why we ate there even if we already ate dinner!

Bellini's Ambiance

This is the exact table where John Lloyd and Bea Alonzo sat, according to the chef

Trip to Greenbelt (Flapjack + Gelatissimo)

I went out with some friends to eat brunch at Flapjacks. Of course, when we hear Flapjacks, the first thing that comes to mind are their pancakes-- soft pancakes with your choice of topping and drizzled with syrup. What better way to start your day? But being the person who doesn't always go for the norm, I ate pasta for brunch hahaha.

Chicken Stuffed Parmigiana

I'm glad that what they offer is not just purely pasta since that would have been an overload of carbohydrate, instead they balance it with protein as well.Yeah, I do consider that haha, pretty weird huh? The breaded chicken breasts are tender with a good dose of cheese inside. And the linguine pasta is cooked just right.

The Comfort Food of Conti's Pastry Shop & Restaurant

If you've lived in Manila for at least a year, I'm pretty sure you must have heard of Conti's. According to their website, they started out as a simple family restaurant in Paranaque, but now have several branches all over Metro Manila. Isn't that the most ideal dream ever?

Conti's Baked Salmon

Greek Lunch at Cyma, Italian Dessert at Gelatissimo Cafe

Today, I was able to catch Harry Potter 7-1 with a couple of friends at Trinoma, and of course, I couldn't pass up the chance to have some yummy food as well! We ended up having a late lunch at Cyma, a Greek restaurant which offers an almost authentic experience of Greek cuisine.

Just entering Cyma makes you feel like you're entering another world. The place gives off a very Mediterranean ambience. Apparently, the branch at Greenbelt is small and less spacious, but feels more like a cozy Greek taverna where you could just imagine the food-loving Greeks gathering together for a sumptuous feast.

Inside Cyma

Open kitchen at Cyma

But enough talking about other people's sumptuous feasts. It's time for our own feast! :)