Beef X Burgers at UP Town Center

Burgers are big yes for me! With Beef X, I expected the best, since I already ate here a few times already. However, my expectations fell a bit flat.

Beef X was formerly known as BIG B burgers. This joint has been around for quite a while. However, they recently opened their UP Town Center branch. The branch served the same burgers as with the others; however, the prices here are way higher!

We had their appetizers called the Saktong Fries and the Poutine ng Ina Mo. These were fries with their own special toppings. One came in cheese and the other had a special sauce. Good thing these were tasty. 

We had their Pink Potion with feelings. This was a juice drink with food coloring that was mixed as it was served to us. The waiter even performed a litany in front of us as we described our feelings to him.

We got to try out 3 of their burgers, namely the Pizza Burger, the standard Beef Bacon Burger, and the Waffle Bun Burger. The Pizza Burger, being their newest creation is a unique twist on the burger. The top bun is shaped like pizza, with mozzarella cheese toppings and baked pepperoni. The burger patty itself is a chunky beef amalgamation with their special Beef X white sauce. There is a generous helping of cheese and lettuce inside. The patty itself had bacon bits which was filled when it was grilled in the kitchen.

The second was the Beef Bacon patty. This is the standard burger. It had the same specs with the pizza burger except that the patty was smaller; and the buns were plain. One had to pay extra to make the patties thicker. 

We had their Waffle Burger. It was the best dish in their menu so far. The Waffle patties were filled with syrup; and these blended well with the patty. It reminded of the Sausage mcmuffin of a famous brand; except that this one was served all day round. I liked the interplay of sweet flavors and the beefy patties. 

The problem with the patties, though, was that it was dry and tad too thin. It didn't look that good on pictures, and the texture wasn't that remarkable. While it did bind well and wasn't soggy; the patties were not that top notch compared to what we expected from an established burger joint. The quality deteriorated a bit. 

However, I believe that this restaurant can improve their burgers in the future. Here's to hoping that they will do.

Game Over PH: an arcade themed bar and restaurant

I never thought that a place where video games, alcohol, and food would actually exist. Now, we have Game Over, a restaurant slash computer shop slash boardgame place slash inuman place. This is the first of its kind in the heart of Quezon City. Upon I arriving, I immediately tried out their Family Computer, Nintendo 64, and Arcade machine upon arrival. 

Come dinner time, I had three bottles of Heineken and a generous helping of some of their best selling dishes. I first tried out their appetizers such as the Beef Nachos and the Spicy Chicken Skin. The latter had a kick due to high-level spiciness; while the Beef Nachos were composed of generous helpings of tortilla chips with a load of cheese and beef. Not bad. 

We then tried their Sisig Pizza. This thin crust selection had sisig and sunny-side up egg toppings on the typical mozzarella. It was quite tasty, yet not too unique or special. After this, however, the dishes became saltier. It started with the Creamy Salmon Pesto Pasta. This was composed of pesto pasta with a slice of stir fried salmon. The salmon was quite salty for my taste.  This was followed by the Salmon Parsillade Rice Topping. It shared the same taste with the pasta, save for the noodles.

We were also treated to a helping of their famous meat dishes such as the Yakiniku Beef Rice Toppings and the Game Over Ribs. The meat  of the former dish was not quite tender; and I had a hard time chewing it. As for the ribs, it was quite soft; but the dish was way too salty for beef ribs. I appreciate the fact that it came with roasted corn and a tasty sauce.

The burgers and salpicao were brimming with flavor; however the salpicao had the same hard-textured meat. The burgers were quite tasty; and it came with a good helping of crisscut fries. I think the burger took the night away.

The flawed viand, however, was compensated with tasty dessert treats. We had the Tiraccino or the Tiramisu Cappuccino. It was a pudding style dessert that had a mocha flavored based and a creamy texture. The Molten Lava Cake was a chocolate cake with a hot filling. Both were quite sweet and appetizing even after a long night of eating.

Game Over is a mixed bag for me. While it has great ambiance, the food still needs some improvement.

Nanbantei: an excellent barbecue place in Makati

Japanese food is also known for having its unique twist on barbecued dishes. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to try it out at Nanbantei, a Yakitori bar located in the heart of Makati. Most of the menu, unlike their other Nanbantei branches, is heavily focused on the barbecued dishes. I found that more than 20 selections are on a stick, ranging from beef, pork, chicken, and even seafood. 

According to the owners, they use authentic Japanese binchotan charcoal, one that is specifically used for making barbecue. It doesn't burn fast or have ashy residue, unlike ordinary variants. Furthermore, the charcoal provides the dish with a stocky, smoky flavor that is distinct in Nanbantei's skewered favorites. 

We started off with a taste of the Kani salad. This appetizer is the usual Crabstick on top of lettuce, mango chunks, and pink mayo, with carrots to boot. It had a mix of a sweet and sour taste. It was accompanied by  the ubiquitous California Maki, which was one of the typical Japanese sushi variants in a restaurant. I don't like sushi, so I can't speak for the quality of the dish. Lastly, we had the Ebi Nigiri. This was a simple variant composed of shrimp atop a rice ball.  I found it quite plain to the taste.

The next selections were much more appetizing. The skewered meals were served hot and fresh off the grill. We started with the Tebasaki. It was a generous helping of chicken wings grilled to perfection. It had a simple marinade, which was not too tasty. Yet the meat itself was tender easy to chew off the bones. We followed up with the Ebi Tempura, which I would say is the best dish to boot in the restaurant. It was the classic fried shrimp with breading; yet this was done with so much excellence. The breading was crispy and crunchy. The shrimp meat was hot and well-fried. 

We then went on to more ambitious dishes. We tried the Aspara Maki, which was pork wrapped on asparagus. It was grilled perfectly, with no burnt edges on the pork. The mix was pretty tasty too. It had this smoky, bitter flavor which gave a garlicky kick. Add to that the juices and fat trimmings, and you have a grilled winner. A solid follow-up was the Shiitake Maki, which was shiitake mushroom wrapped with fatty beef strips. I enjoyed the juicy and tender textures of the mushroom and beef. It also had the smoky, bitter flavor due to the charcoal used.

Another fried favorite was the tori karaage. This Japanese style fried chicken was not too oily for the palate plus it had a crisp and juicy texture.  The servings were also generous. However, I didn't quite enjoy the Ebi Kushi Yaki, which were grilled shrimps. I believe that it had to have more flavor. Plus the shrimps weren't quite fresh. This was compensated by the baby squid or the Yaki Ika. This grilled seafood was pretty generous and fresh at the same time. 

We then ended the main course by having 3 of their skewered bestsellers. The first was the pork yakiniku. This grilled favorite was composed of juicy pork strips grilled with the fat in the strips. The marinade plus the charcoal gave it a full-bodied flavor. I paired this with the Chicken Yakitori, which were composed of chicken chunks freshly grilled. It had an excellent smoky taste too. The most memorable was the beef yakiniku, which was composed of thin beef strips grilled well. It was dripping with its marinade when served. Plus, the beef was served with a golden brown color which made it all the more appetizing. 

We ended the meal with their house special: the avocado ice cream. It was not too sweet and easy on the palate. It was a fitting way to end a hefty experience. 

Nanbantei is truly one of the best kept secrets at the heart of Makati.