Eating food that's too hot has never been a problem
I was going to my girlfriend’s house one quiet Sunday afternoon. The taxi went down the street where Happon Ramen House was located. Out of affinity for the small ramen […]
I was going to my girlfriend’s house one quiet Sunday afternoon. The taxi went down the street where Happon Ramen House was located. Out of affinity for the small ramen place I decided to look up from my iPad to take a peak if it was still full of diners. I was treated to a surprise! A new restaurant has opened just beside it! This was how I came to know about House of Burgis.
Naturally I was excited and immediately told Haziel about it. She then asked me, what kind of food do they serve? I had no idea. Being the seasoned team leader of a reputable insurance company that I am, I provided her an answer that shows confidence despite not knowing ish: “I’ll get back to you on that”.
I did some digging around (Zomato) and immediately found an item on their menu that would get Haziel pumped about the place. That, my dear friends, is a grilled T-Bone steak meal. Yes, if you all don’t know already, my petite girlfriend has a big appetite and loves to eat meat.
Two people made up the staff: The guy cooks; The girl does everything else. I’m not really sure but I think they’re also the owners.
The place has no airconditioning and doesn’t really have good ventilation. You probably would want to get the table near the entrance or the one outside. The place looks really good. Just a white wall on one side and some writings on the adjacent one that serves as design, restaurant sign, and menu all in one. It also has a lot of wood fixtures from the bar to the cork table tops. But it’s really small. I imagine if it was full of people it would be cramped.
We were the only ones here on this night by the way and it was a Monday night. It was a US Holiday.
Haziel already knew what she was getting and I decided on the 1/2 pound burger. But I was also very much curious about the churros. How were they? Well let’s get right down to that!
Red Iced Tea
So I wanted to buy a beer but they couldn’t sell yet because they haven’t gotten their liquor license. That’s why, to tell you the truth and out of sheer disappointment, I forgot the actual name of the drink. We did love it, however. It wasn’t too sweet and tasted like raspberries. I also love the use of jars as the vessel. You definitely must have this when you’re here. Very refreshing.
T-Bone Steak
Haziel was super excited about the T-Bone steak which may have been the problem. The expection was too high and thus our reaction was probably not that fair to House of Burgis. For one thing, this piece of meat was thin and had a lot of fat on to it (you can actually see it on the picture). Another thing is that it is a bit salty. And lastly, even the veggies and the gravy were salty. Only the damn rice was not salty in this dish. Was that on purpose? Huh!
The meat is so thin they don’t even bother asking you how you want it cooked. And in all fairness, they were still able to keep it rare with a great crust. That boy’s got some grilling skills!
1/2 pound burger
We’ve already established that the guy has some skillson the grill and it shows further on the burger. This thick patty had just a good crust and was still very much juicy and rare inside medium rare inside! Also, the seasoning on this one was spot on! I guess this must be his specialty?
They’ve already got the patty down to a T, why not step it up with the other parts? Look closely and my bun actually has some very suspicious dark spots on it. The cheese just looks sad compared to all that meat. I would have loved if that was oozing on the meat. The veg were fresh but looked like an afterthought.
It’s about 160 Php so yeah I should be thankful that I got that awesome patty. But they were so close to awesomeness that I can’t move on! Sayang!
Churros (eaten at home)
Here in the Philippines I love Churros from two places: Dulcinea and Taco Bell. I have tried S&R and I don’t like it. This I also don’t like but what the hell. It’s near and it’s cheap.
The Churros itself is dry. It’s deep-fried, I know, and I definitely got the oil in each bite. But the dough itself was really dry and needed some more seasoning. The chocolate dip was a tad watery.
Bonus: Happon Ramen House, revisited! (And why we took the Churros home)
Come on. With the place being right next to Happon Ramen House I knew I had to go here and get myself an order of the chicken karaage. Haziel was also not satisfied with the thin piece of meat she got so she went ahead and ordered a spicy paitan ramen.
The karaage were still very awesome! I burned the roof my mouth when I tried to eat one upon serving as I was so excited to gobble them up! The Paitan was also just as good though I still wish that the soup was thicker.
Ruminations…
House of Burgis doesn’t offer anything special. It also has a very small menu. It does give the local community here another dining option. I’m probably just comparing it too much to other places I’ve been to so I’m a bit harsh. I’m pretty sure a kid who lives within the area will appreciate the food here especially since it’s so affordable.
I won’t recommend all of Metro Manila to come to House of Burgis. You all will be bitterly disappointed having braved the awful traffic just to get normal food. But people in the community will be well fed by the tandem of House of Burgis and Happon Ramen House here at the corner of Cepeda and Divino. I’ll probably be dining with you here one day and none of y’all will even it! Think about that Metro Manila!
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