Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Flavours Gastronomica: Penafrancia’s Culinary Miracle (Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 2)

Flavours Gastronomica 
Penafrancia’s Culinary Miracle
(Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 2) 


The opening of Flavors Gastronomica Restaurant 
in CBD 2, is a miracle of the Lady of Penafrancia that
happened this fiesta season in Naga City’s culinary front.



It is difficult find the right words to describe how delicious
is the food in this simple but elegantly designed restaurant,

 

…that reminds me of the modern spick and span designs
that I see in some contemporary European Restaurants.


The chairs were comfortable,



…the high ceilingsand the light colored
wall create an airy look on the interiors.




The menu written on blackboards,


…and a display of lovely silver and porcelain European
 inspired tea pots on the cupboard create an old world  feel
 to the otherwise ‘avant garde’ setting of the restaurant.


Cooking with flavorful spices is the restaurant’s forte,
and this the kind of cooking that Nagueno diners deserve,
and this is the kind of restaurant that Naga City needs.



We started our dinner with Potato and Crab Chowder.
It was made of pureed potato, where one could still feel
and bite some tasty bits and pieces of potatoes from the
patato brunoise adding texture to the very creamy soup,
blending with leeks, pesto oil and morsels of crab meat.

 

The delicious soup was a prelude for one of the best
dining experiences that my family ever had in our lives.


First to be served was the Rosemary and Thyme Porkchop.
This tasty dish is made with a slab of grilled tender pork chop
flavored with the minty astringent taste and aromatic Rosemary
perfectly blending with the sharp  savory after taste of Thyme.
I was topped with Madagascar Sauce and served with rice.


The New Zealand Rib Eye Steak is the best steak dish
 in the city that I have ever tasted to far. The tender, juicy
beef was grilled to a medium rare perfection and was served
with a heady pepper cream and Madagascar Sauce and rice.



The Peppered Salmon was so delicious and was flawlessly
grilled without losing its natural juices. My daughter raved
about how delicious the tangy Lemon and Butter Sauce was.


It was served with Flavour’s Pasta
which was also very delicious.


My wife ordered a Baked Salmon with Crusted Pesto.
and it was a succulent awesomely baked salmon bursting
with the delightful flavors and aroma coming from pesto
topping that congealed into a flavorful crust after baking.



It was served with  Aioli that had a perfect 
blending of bitingly sharp and tangy flavors.


The Cinammon Pork Kebabs was their most impressive dish.
We have never thought that cinnamon would go well with pork
and no other barbecue versions ever smelled better than this.


The Chef used sugar cane as skewers that made that made the pork
sweet but not sickeningly sweet as the regular Pinoy pork barbecues.
The mild sweetness from the sugar cane and the sweet- smelling
cinnamon tasted so naturally with the perfectly grilled lean pork.


Most of Flavour’s a la carte dishes comes with a choice
of rice or pasta, but I would like to make a special mention
about the very delicious  herbed rice that they serve.


The dishes were also served with Fresh Vegetable Salad
as a side dish and the vinaigrette had a perfect sweet-
sour- tangy taste that even young kids would love.


The restaurant also had a wide choice of
healthy drinks like the Kalamansi Juice,


…and the Healthy Green Juice
which is made of fresh zucchini.

 

We ordered Strawberry Cheesecake, for dessert. It
was very delicious as it wasn’t so sweet and not as salty
compared to the regular New York style cheesecakes.



They also served a complimentary herbed tea
and was a perfect conclusion to a satisfying
dinner in this wonderful new restaurant.



I asked the waiter on who the chef was as we
wanted to thank him for the delicious meal. He
came to our table and we learned that young chef
grows fresh ingredients in his herb garden in Pili. 


Flavours Gastronomica is located way off the
popular Magsaysay Strip and stands by its lonesome
as the only restaurant at the entry way of CBD 2,


…but I hope Naguenoes would go beyond the too greasy,
 too salty, too sweet regular Pinoy fares-  discover the
wonderful flavors of healthy herbs and fresh spices  and

7 comments:

  1. A bit pricey, I bet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have not actually encountered a pricey restaurant in Naga City yet. Unfortunately I do not review and keep a price list of the restaurant I reviewed in this blog, and I do not intend to do so.

      But I think spent about the same amount when we dined in Shakey’s and Yellow Cab and also comparable to most of the regular restaurants in Naga City.

      You will be surprised, even the posh Café Plazuela in Avenue Plaza hotel is fairly affordable to most Naguenos.

      This is the beauty of dining in Naga City- compared to other major cities in the Philippines, everything is affordable.

      Delete
    2. basing from your posts in this blog, what you refer as 'affordable' is not affordable to regular Naguenos.

      Delete
    3. Hi. Thank you for reading my blog.

      I really don't know how one would define a regular Nagueno as I am a regular Nagueno.

      With all these newer commercial industries generating competitive job opportunities, malls and posh restaurants sprouting all over the city, you might be underestimating what a 'regular Nagueno' can afford these days.

      Delete
  2. I don't care about the food but that Emerald Cut Diamond ring casts a hypnotic spell on me. I have to have one of those. I have to have one. OMG. I'm dreaming. Ha. Ha. Ha.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Edna.

      The hypnosis might have confused you. An emerald is an emerald, no matter how you cut it, it would not turn to a diamond. Diamond is a diamond.

      A ring does not cast a hypnotic spell unless it is worn by a witch. It is my beautiful wife wearing it.

      Still, I thank you for regularly reading my blog, and constantly commenting on the rings you sea.

      I'm amused by your child- like excitement whenever you see a ring on somebody's finger.

      Delete
    2. Haist. Men no matter how educated and no matter how brilliant are dummys when it comes to women's needs and interests. They do not speak the same language. lol. Anyway, I'm addicted to your blog. You write smoothly and and simply and makes reading easy and pleasurable.

      Delete