‘Tis the season to be chubby, fa la la la la, la la la la….
Christmas time is always so busy. There’s parties, reunions and celebrations left and right. Traffic is torture, food is in abundance and people are shopping like it’s the end of the world. (Pun intended since 12/21/2012 turned out to be false.)
It was pretty quiet for my family this year. We were so busy with the business, construction and other holiday festivities that it didn’t really feel like Christmas for us. However, we of course still made time to celebrate Mom and Dad’s 29th Anniversary… and eat. And eat. And eat.
We trekked over to Tivoli in the Mandarin Oriental for an intimate dinner.
Brother and I pre-meal
Bread is endless and delicious.
Starter is Beef Bourguignon with Truffle Mashed Potatoes – Good for two bites, we wanted more of this!
My starter was the Mushroom Cappucino with Pancetta and Chestnut Foam. Very mushroomy. They give you a lot of soup so this would be good to share. It’s okay, nothing spectacular. I wish they put more pancetta which gave the soup a saltiness that it lacked.
Brother got the Tivoli signature salad. He didn’t wanna share so I guess it was delicious. It is not at all good for those on a diet. There’s foie gras, lobster tail and scallops. It’s decadent and worth telling your diet to go on a day off. My brother shared approximately three bites with me and I concur. It is, indeed, delicious.
Dad and Mum got the Lobster Bisque. No comment here (didn’t try it.)
Palette Cleansing but none of us recall what this was. Not that it matters because they probably change it every time
Goofing off with the decor while waiting for our main courses.
Brother got Lambchops as his main course. Again, no comment because I didn’t try it.
My dad and I got the Ribeye. I’m not sure I would say the steak was amazing. Granted, it had good flavor and a nice marbling to it. Quite tender and cooked just right. But it wasn’t love at first bite. I got mine with truffled mashed potatoes and he ordered a baked potato. I used his baked potato toppings to garnish my truffled mash to give it more flavor and texture.
Mom got this gorgeous looking plate of fish topped with caviar.
We were all stuffed and ready to pass on dessert. But they gave us a complimentary cake which was wonderful of them. We didn’t even tell them the occasion, they just overheard and viola! cake!
The damage:
Tivoli’s definitely worth a visit. It’s good for special occasions and those moments when you want to indulge. The portions are large enough to share and the service is impeccable. Expect to drop a lot of cash so plan accordingly.
TIVOLI @ The Mandarin Oriental
+63 (2) 750 8888 ex. 2431
http://www.mandarinoriental.com/manila/fine-dining/the-tivoli/
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