Introduced to me by my college ex MB (SE), I loved Pepato and their Pan-roasted Chilean Sea Bass, Bistecca Florentina-style US Angus steak, Roasted Bone Marrow among other things. Frequenting Cibo during post-college years with MB who’s the real fan, I’ve basically tired everything in their menu but one thing I never grew tired of is Cibo’s Pasta Dela Terra, which I have tried to replicate at home. For a good long season, it was my comfort food and would order it to-go alongside Pasto’s crostini with chicken liver pate and tomato balsamic salsa –those days in the past when I could go carbo-loading and not gain a pound since I worked out 3-4x a week.

I was excited to try Gaita Fores’ Grace Park since its opening but couldn’t bear a Makati drive during weekdays in fear of horrible traffic. Good thing a Saturday evening opened up looking like it was full of promise.

Grace Park is a farm-to-table concept restaurant that changes its menu from time to time while retaining the favorites. Jorge Yulo designed the restaurant’s eclectic interiors that had mismatched chairs, tables, unfinished walls / ceilings, beautiful chandelier, bricks, and other eye-catching fragmentary details in an industrial loft-style design.

On the Table

Cioppino P280

An Italian-American seafood stew which has fragments of shrimps, scallops, clams, mussels and crab meat usually seasoned with oregano, thyme and basil in a tomato, garlic and wine base.

The cioppino had a well-balanced acidity, sweetness, and depth. The richness of the broth heightened by the presence of the clams and while the shrimp head (locally known as Ulang or freshwater prawn) serves as a beautiful accent, the seafood left unshelled gives an extra flavor.

The bread was firm enough to absorb parts of the cioppino without all turning soggy. Don’t wear white as you might get splats on your dress trying to nip on the seashells and get every meat out.

Mushroom Filled, Asiago Cream P280

I was initially piqued to get the Sardine Spread (P250) since I loved Fores’ Bangus Mousse at Café Bola but decided to try something new instead. I got crazy with Asiago cheese last year and kept trying to make grilled 4-cheese sandwiches using Asiago as one of the main mellow, smoother, nuttier and aged cheeses.

This app was actually mushroom variants cooked tempura-style. It had a good batter, crunchy and light, but avoiding anything deep fried lately, this felt quite oily for me, but compensated somehow by the Asiago cream.

Muscovada Beef Belly P

The top layer had smoked sweet caramelized crusting, with its fat glistening amidst the tender beefy meat. It was delightfully melting tender, only needing a few munch while the corn and French beans insert color and a stronger crunch.

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