Family Valentine Dinner at Neil’s Kitchen, Glorietta

I’ve read sooo many good reviews about this restaurant in Alabang. Good food, good ambiance, perfect for all kinds of dinner dates with our loved ones. However, it’s too far from our place (probably will cost me 700php+ per Grab trip) so I wasn’t able to visit the restaurant with my family.

So I was super excited when I learned they’re opening a branch in Glorietta, Makati, where I and my family usually go when we’re bored at home. I mean yey andito na yung sinasabi nilang masarap! Plus my sister really loved the food there and in fact suggested it for our next family food trip.

Sitting just beside the exit from Glorietta Cinema to Top of the Glo, Niel’s Kitchen almost got the advantage of luring the hungry guests. It could have been better if they used smaller pots of plants (not sure if this is the mall’s choice or theirs’) to make the restaurant’s Instagrammable feature more visible to the guests walking along the area.

However, Niel’s Kitchen took advantage of it to make the restaurant look more homey, like you are dining at your garden. The interior as well got a very nice ambiance for guests who prefer air-conditioned room. They also have a small area for private dinners that can hold up to around 10 guests.

The fam, especially my parents, love Filipino food. So it’s good that all their menu items are great for every Pinoy taste, inspired by foreign cuisines like spanish paella and tempura. They also have different variants of soup such as sinigang and our most-loved bulalo.

For appetizer, I recommend their Tokwa’t Baboy – not too saucy which keeps a good job making the tofu crispy. All the fried ingredients including the chunks of pork are also drained perfectly that would make you think they didn’t use any oil at all.

Each serving is good for 2-3 pax, however, because of having many food choices, we managed to limit our order to one serving of Tokwa’t Baboy for 5 adults (and one toddler, Mnemosyne).

Their Calamari though is what Mnemo liked more. It’s simply a deep-fried squid covered with flour, but Niel’s was waaayy tastier than usual. Guess it’s better as a Pinoy pulutan though.

For the main dish, since my dad is trying to skip pork and beef for now, we tried the Paella Valenciana served with three pieces of Spanich Tempura and saffron aioli. I am a big fan of aiolis but I didn’t like the saffron version (sorry, Chef Niel!) of it. The tempura was good, though. What I liked most from this dish is the paella which I didn’t expect to be that tasty and yummy.

What I ordered for myself (and also for sharing hahaha) is this T-Bone Tapa. It is served with Truffle Rice, but it’s best with a cup of garlic rice. The Truffle Rice is separately good, as is also a little sweet that it’s almost taking away your craving for the T-Bone (urrggh).

Perfect doneness of the T-Bone is medium well. Making it perfectly tender and juicy and super delicious.

Normally, soups are consumed bas appetizer, just before or while eating your main dish. This bowl of Bulalo is one of the bests so far among all the restaurants I’ve been into within Metro Manila. (Suggest a restaurant to make me think otherwise!) If you are going to Niel’s this one is a must-have. Super yummy while it’s hot!

To wrap up your dinner, they have yummy Pinoy desserts that you’ll surely love: fried suman, puto bumbong, turon, and maja.