Sweet Bella Cafe used to be my oasis in Burgos Circle. Whenever I would run errands in The Fort, I would come here for comfort food because it’s quiet, relaxing and the service is good. They recently celebrated their 1-year anniversary and I haven’t been in a while so I dragged my brother to join me for lunch.
The menu:
I was in the mood to try their pancakes so I ordered a fresh strawberry pancake for Php160. It was okay. The pancake was not fluffy and it was kind of pasty. The taste was good, the texture was too heavy. It didn’t help that the strawberry syrup weighed down the pancake and made it more “sticky.” I had to scrape it off the plate to get a few bites.
The French Onion Soup my brother ordered was not French Onion Soup. They put soy sauce in the broth because we could taste it and it overpowered everything else. Also, some onions were not cooked all the way. It didn’t taste like French Onion Soup. We were sad about this because brother and I love French Onion Soup. This was really disappointing.
Brother also ordered a Five Cheese Pizza. Please do not order this. The cheese quality and combination they use isn’t good at all. There’s no contrast in the flavor and it does not taste like anything. There’s some sort of white cream on the base. This might be another unidentified type of cheese but it made it nakakasuya.The texture is creamy and it gets lodged in your throat which is not good. It is difficult to finish a slice. I’d rather them put one kind of cheese and have the pizza actually taste good than have 5 cheeses and taste gross.
I usually order the Farfalle Aglio Olio . The pasta, my good old reliable, was still the best part of our meal. While it was oilier than usual and the pasta overcooked, these are misdemeanors compared to our other orders. I like this dish because I think the pesto, chicken and sundried tomatoes complement each other and make for wonderful flavor.
Price – Not cheap. You’re paying for the ambiance and location.
Other dishes I’ve tried in the past:
- Salpicao with steak rice. It was good but hardly worth it for Php450.
- Ham and Cheese Omelette – nothing spectacular.
Overall, I was really disappointed by our experience. I was hoping that my brother would also fall in love with the place but I don’t expect him to. After the quality of our meal, I’m not sure why I like it there now either. I know that Sweet Bella is primarily a desserts place. But still, that shouldn’t excuse them from the responsibility of serving good and quality food. The place and menu has a lot of potential. I hope that in time, things improve.
Sweet Bella Cafe
Burgos Circle, The Fort
http://www.sweetbelladesserts.com/
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So you’ll be taking away one or two of their stars, I presume. Do you ever come across South American cuisine on your culinary adventures? I’m interested to know if this is on the gastronomic radar in your country.
Hey Pete, yes haha. Definitely!
South American food – I WISH! The best we have is food infused with south american influences and flavors but even that is not that great or authentic. I have yet to encounter specialty restaurants though I’m always keeping an eye out. Personally I love Peruvian and Argentinian food and would love to try other countries’ food too. 🙂
Argentine food is indeed excellent even if it’s not too healthy (it seemed to have done for poor Nestor Kirchner). I particularly enjoyed the Cordero Patagionico (barbequed lamb) when I visited the country in 2009. Apparently Uruguay is particularly renowned for its beef. Rather bizarrely, I managed to find a vegetarian restaurant in Calafate (which is where Kirchner experienced his Cardiovascular Event). No doubt Peron would have been appalled but Evita would just have sung, “Don’t cry for me Argentina” while slurping her Malbec…
Hahaha, indeed. 🙂 Thank you for sharing Pete!