Since mom and brother were away on a Tagaytay sojourn, I took the opportunity to ask my dad out to date night. We’re both carnivores so 22 Prime was my instant choice. I’ve read lots of reviews about it and it comes highly rated, on this guide and that ranking etc etc. While such ratings have some truth, I still wanted to try it myself.
First, the location, terrific views. It’s located on the 22nd floor of the Discovery Suites hotel in Ortigas. Your views are of the Ortigas malls (Podium, Megamall, Shang). You see EDSA in the distance and the buildings lit up at night. It’s quite pretty. It’s also convenient to us since I live near. I won’t need to go all the way to Greenbelt, The Fort, etc to get good steak.
Podium from Above
We observed the construction on top of Podium. All these guys working through the night to get this building finished. I think it will be another condominium complex. (as if we need more apartment buildings….)
I wish I owned this parking lot in between ADB and Podium.
The restaurant ambiance is quiet or loud, depending on where you sit and what day of the night it is. On Fridays, they have a lounge singer and/or band. The restaurant itself shares space with a bar/lounge that has a pool table. I imagine this can get kind of loud or rowdy if there’s a lot of people. That was the part that dad and I didn’t like because it didn’t feel so much like a restaurant as much as it felt like a bar.
Salad Bar
The lighting was too dim for my taste. I wasn’t expecting the restaurant to look the way it did. I thought it would be a lot brighter and more modern so I was thrown off guard by this dark, “old-man-cigar-and-poker-room” sort of vibe. I had difficulty reading the menu and you will see from my photos that it was kind of dark.
The Menu: Starters || Seafood & Salad Bar ||Steaks & Other than Beef || Sides || Surf and Turf || Slow Cooked Perfection
Bread basket with Chicken Liver Pate, Tomato something and Garlic Herb Butter – The Breadsticks weren’t good but the bread itself was nice and warm. The spreads were okay. The tomato was the best. But only because the other two weren’t that good. They’re okay as tummy fillers. However, don’t eat too much of this since you’ll need space for the main courses.
Appetizer – CHEESE BREAD – The reviews raved about this so I was anxious to try it. Man. It was delicious. If you are a cheese lover or a mouse at heart (hehe I am), this is the dish for you. There’s a bunch of different kinds of cheese on here, they sprinkle it with pink peppercorns for good flavor (breaks up the cheesiness) and it comes with a side salad of salad and tangy vinaigrette. Ok honestly though, when they first served it, I thought I could eat the entire order by myself but I was wrong. I only ate two and that already filled me up. I was not suya naman but I couldn’t finish more than two pieces, that’s for sure.
Surf and Turf (P1950) – I didn’t want to think anymore so I just ordered this. For this amount, they serve you a full portion of the soup of the day, 22 Prime Cesar Salad, a 200g Ribeye with three sides and two prawns, a glass of wine and dessert platter. This sounded like the best of all worlds to me so I ordered it without hesitation.
Soup of the Day – Ginger Carrot – Here it is pictured with my cellphone to give you an idea of the size of this bowl. The girl said that the portions were good for one but I coulda fed two people with this soup. It was good actually! I purposely did not finish it because I was already close to full (that freakin cheese bread!) and I wanted to save space.
Salad – 22Prime Cesar Salad – It’s regular Cesar Salad. Nothing special. The only difference are the bleu cheese wontons that they serve with it. Those are the best because one bite = oozing mouthful of bleu cheese. For a bleu cheese lover like me, this was terrific. I’m about to make these at home.
Before the steak, they allow you to select a steak knife. Choose your weapon wisely. I don’t know the difference but I guess there must be something otherwise they wouldn’t go through this trouble.
Main – Angus Ribeye + Prawns // Sides: Mushrooms, Baked Potato, Grilled Tomato // Sauces: Peppercorn and Red Wine –
Steak was grilled to perfection. It was seasoned beautifully, I barely dipped into these two sauces. Sauces themselves were okay. (Dad and I have this saying that if you need the sauces or steak sauce, it’s not a good steak.) Prawns were a good addition but in hindsight, I could’ve done without them. Sides are crucial to any steak experience so I have to comment on the merits of these sides. I exchanged the “Tagaytay Vegetables” for Mushrooms and I love shrooms (not the drugs) so I gave myself a pat on the back for this swap. The mushrooms were yummy. The baked potato was not your traditional baked potato, it was stuffed with mashed potatoes with chives and stuff. It was okay. I was already carbed-out by this point. The tomato was good for tangyness. Their plating included mashed potatoes also so I tried this also and they were classic mashed potatoes.
Dessert – Trio sampler, chocolate cake, chocolate panna cotta and caramel something – I was beyond full at this point so I took nibbles of each but that was it. They’re forgettable, not bad, not amazing either. Just… typical?
Dad’s food – Lobster Bisque starter (looked a lot like my soup so I didn’t photograph). He also ordered a T-Bone. He liked the food, he was satisfied by the steak and praised the flavor and doneness (I know this isn’t a word but for lack of a better way to describe it) of the meat.
Total Pocket Damage – Php5,082.24 My Surf & Turf was P1950. Dad’s T-Bone was also P1950 if I’m not mistaken. Add the price of the Cheese Bread (P200+) and Lobster Bisque. (P300+) He ordered a coffee as well (P100+). Add Service Charge and Tax.
The Verdict – This place has really good potential. I’d go back. While I don’t know if I’d necessarily agree with the guides about it being the best, especially since the ambiance to me was kind of.. off. I was certainly impressed with the steak. That’s the most important thing right?
Know Before You Go :
- Make reservations. Ask for seats near the window. Such table real estate is scarce so make sure you specify this to the host when you call.
- Portions are satisfyingly large. Good to share, I think. I hope this never changes. They definitely don’t shortchange you in this department. Big thumbs up from me.
- Dresscode – smart casual. Though they let some people play billiards with shorts and t-shirts which destroyed the atmosphere.
- It’s good for a business lunch or meeting since we’re told a lot of businessmen go there as a result to its proximity to ADB and other large companies.
22 Prime
22nd Floor, Discovery Suites Hotel (across Podium), Ortigas
Tel #: 7196822 // 7196888
FB Page : https://www.facebook.com/22Prime
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