Marikina Food Tour 1: HERITAGE TOUR

Last week, I was in the company of super cool people during the first ever Marikina Food Tour organized by yours truly. While driving to our assembly point, I was excited and nervous as to how the food tour would go. I was preparing some activities (like "Ice Breaker") the night before that but after a few minutes into the prep work I decided, well, to let things unfold - the get-to-know, the conversations, and of course the meals. I was extremely happy with the way things turned out for this very first tour (Dong, Gatchie, Jonas, Jefel, Julius, Migs, Nicole and Neil, we made history!). Hope you enjoy the tour as well, through pictures!

Our meet up point was in front of Kapitan Moy. There was a set up for "Alay kay Maria", a Marian Exhibit and Procession celebrated every year.

From L to R: Jefel, Julius, Migs, Jonas, Yours truly, Dong, Gatchie, Nicole and Neil. My sister Rona took the photo this time!

Our first stop was Macky's Goto. We were ten in all in the group, so it was not really a challenge to find a table. We ordered the staples: goto with tokwa't baboy (which I fondly call "tokwa con lechon kawali, hehe), while some ordered Palabok and burgers. We had a great time introducing ourselves to each other, it was fun learning about what these people do as their profession, and amazing how we share this common love for food.

An almost identical photo, with my sis in the middle instead of me, hehe!

We tried going to Rocha's, but the shop was closed. It's just across Macky's, maybe we can try that in the next batch for this Heritage Tour (the tours are having names already... yey!). This photo is taken in front of Frederick's Barbecue's main branch along E. de la Paz. Only 10 PhP per stick and you get really flavorful barbecue!

Recognize this burger? YES! It is the infamous burger of Mama Chit's! So juicy and so yummy, no wonder it became even more popular when covered by media (KrisTV, thank you for featuring Marikina food places!)

The turkey sandwich that Migs ordered was also good. It tasted even better because Migs cut it up in portions and willingly shared it to the rest of the pack. Hooray! I wasn't able to take a photo of the salad though, which Jefel and Julius shared with the table as well.

 Neil and Nicole

 Gatchie and Dong

 Jefel and Julius

 Happy group!

 Mr. Burger at Mama Chit's garden

 Find Mr. Burger! Hehe!

Then we simply crossed the street and bought some pasalubong from Aling Remy's! :-) One of the best puto and kutsinta in Marikina!

 

Then, we walked over to Isabelo Mendoza street to have desserts and coffee at Isabelo Garden (Rustic Mornings, by day). We had no reservations but Chef Portia was very kind to accommodate our group. It was a great venue to wrap up the evening!

 A lot of us ordered the Key Lime Pie. This is SOOOO good. I regret not ordering this. Next time, I'll order two for myself. Hehehe!

The frozen brazo was also delicious. I loved the yellow layer, as usual! Hmmm... maybe I'll order one key lime pie instead... and one frozen brazo! Gotta have both!

Sis ordered the Cookie a la Mode and it took quite a long time to prepare it. Everyone has already finished their desserts and still no cookie a la mode. When the plate finally arrived... oh my. It was really worth the wait! The cookie was so crumbly and warm and buttery with the right amount of sweetness, it was what every cookie dream is about. The ice cream made the dish even more perfect ("perfect" na nga, more pa!).

 Photo c/o Migs

 Photo c/o Dong

I had a really great time with the group, and of course we had a blast with all the delicious food that accompanied us during our trip. I am definitely planning more food tours in the future. Hope to see some of you on our tours! Please visit our Facebook page for more information and other updates. 'Till next time!

More photos from Dong (click here) and Migs (click here). Enjoy!

MACKY'S GOTO
J.P. Rizal St., San Roque, Marikina City
Just a few meters before Our Lady of the Abandoned Church, across BPI Family Savings Bank
(Take the Calumpang Jeepneys)
Munching Budget per person: starts at 20 PhP

MANG FREDERICK'S BARBECUE
Beside San Roque's OUR LADY OF THE ABANDONED CHURCH
San Roque, Marikina City, Metro Manila
With another branch at 129 E. DELA PAZ ST., San Roque, Marikina City
Tel. No.: 6463685
Ihaw-ihaw set up usually starts at noon. :)
Munching Budget per person: starts at 10 PhP

MAMA CHIT'S

278 J.P. Rizal Street, San Roque, Marikina City

Tel. No.: (02) 646-8547

Just across the Shoe Museum, near Our Lady of the Abandoned Church

Visit their Facebook page here.

Munching Budget per person: starts at 100 PhP

ALING REMY'S SPECIAL DELICIOUS PUTO AND KUTSINTA
229 J.P. Rizal Street, San Roque, Marikina City, Metro Manila
Tel. No.: (02) 467 9806 / 09163191811
Munching Budget per person: starts at 65 PhP
 

ISABELO GARDEN RESTAURANT
Isabelo Mendoza Street, San Roque, Marikina City
RESERVATION is a must via http://www.isabelogarden.com/
Munching Budget per person: starts at 500 PhP


Marikina, aking hirang.

Roni

ISABELO GARDEN RESTAURANT

Discovering Isabelo Garden Restaurant in Marikina is like getting lost somewhere in the forest and suddenly discovering a wooden house with a chimney, the smell of a feast suddenly fills the air, the trees light up with fireflies, and you can hear the lovely voice of a fairy singing - in this case it's Portia of Isabelo. Upon entering the silver gate we were greeted by trees carefully decorated with colorful lights, leading to the entrance to the restaurant where you feel you are stepping into a different world.

I think our timing was great: dinner. All the lights are on, all you can hear is the faint sound of classical music and bottles clinking.

Philip, the ever-diligent receptionist cum waiter, led us to our sweet little corner. The walls are adorned by old family photos (c/o the legendary J.P. Rizal Studio, and yes, still operating!), empty perfume bottles, cute vintage items, porcelain, figurines, and of course, beautiful paintings of Portia's Mom.

After a few minutes, the lovely chef and hostess Portia welcomed us and gave us a brief background on how the restaurant started. She was originally working in the (money-abundant) field of advertising, but like we all know, when your heart isn't there, you will always go to where it belongs. In Portia's case, it is cooking and setting up her own restaurant. Great move dear. :)

I know you have all been waiting for this, so this is what we ordered:

For the appetizer, we ordered the dish that according to Portia, "started it all": the SPINACH AND ARTICHOKE DIP (350 PhP). She began baking this goodie and selling it to family and friends in microwaveable containers. That night we had our share of this tasty dish. Served bubbling and hot with toasted Ciabatta bread, Portia's Spinach and Artichoke dip is a creamy, cheesy, and truly stomach-opening winner.

We ordered Lemon Parslied Garlic Rice (210 PhP, good for 5 persons) for the upcoming entrées...

...first of which are the STUFFED PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS (525 PhP). It has a delicious sauce that complements the stuffing and the taste of the mushroom. We loved it! (You can read more about Portobello Mushrooms here.)

And here comes the Star of the Night: the ROAST PORK CRACKLING (1250 PhP). I believe Portia pours in so much love in cooking this one. It is pork cooked via pugon for six (6) hours! The meat is so tender and juicy, the fat sticky and the skin crunchy and then melts in your mouth. Haaay! It is served with four (4) signature special sauces: Red Wine Vinegar, Apple Sauce, Mango Chutney, and Marinara. All were hits for me and Sweetie.

The order doesn't end there of course. Disclaimer: We did NOT finish everything, we had more than enough to take home to our families. We just wanted to try a bit of all the bestsellers (hihi, palusot).

And then the QUATTRO FORMAGGI PIZZA (450 PhP) comes in. Thin, cripsy crust, loaded with four types of cheese. We really love how the flavor of the Blue Cheese really stood out. We almost finished the whole pizza! Served with Chili Oil, this pizza is one of the best quattro formaggi I have ever tasted.

You can also add "peperoncino" (chili + olive oil) to your dishes:

We took more gulps of the iced tea we ordered to get ready for dessert (yes, there is always room for dessert). To "cap off" our meal as Portia says, we had Yoghurt Sorbet with Fresh Fruits and Walnut Streusel (200 PhP), and Mango Float (110 PhP)! Mango was the fruit of the night, oh yeah!

The yoghurt sorbet was soooo good it did not last for more than five minutes.

The Mango Float had this really creamy ice cream base, a little like refrigerator cake because of the presence of Graham crumbs. It was topped with chocolate syrup. So yummy!

Our dining experience in Isabelo will always be one of the most memorable. The place is great, the food is excellent, the service impeccable, and the chef / hostess has been very accomodating.

We will definitely dine again SOON in Isabelo. :)

ISABELO GARDEN RESTAURANT
Isabelo Mendoza Street, San Roque, Marikina City
RESERVATION is a must via http://www.isabelogarden.com/
Munching Budget per person: starts at 500 PhP

My map of Isabelo made with love (Click on the image to enlarge):

Marikina, aking hirang.

Roni