AMALIA's Spanish Restaurant, Magallanes

AMALIA's Spanish Restaurant in Paseo de Magallanes was a delight to all of us!

We were surprised at our bill because usually, Spanish restaurants are very expensive.

AMALIA's is the perfect Spanish restaurant for groups! :)

A plate of sliced GARLIC BREADS was served while we were still deciding on which dishes to order.

This was nice - crunchy on the ends and soft in the center.

For starters, we planned on having the BAKED OYSTERS. Unfortunately, they ran out of stock :(

It was my favorite in MINGGOY's. 

FYI: CHEF AMALIA JOCSON was the head chef at MINGGOY's before (from what I've heard).

So anyway, we just ordered the following:

CALAMARES FRITOS (Php 175) - YUM!!!!

Deep fried battered squid with honey mustard sauce

CHICKEN CROQUETAS (Php 165)

Deep fried chicken fritters with garlic mayo sauce

This was also yummy but it tasted more like potato croquettes and the sauce was honey mustard and not garlic mayo :)

GAMBAS ALA CASA (Php 195)

Spicy sauteed shrimps in garlic and olive oil

This went really well with the sliced garlic breads :)

We also tried the SOPA DE AJO (Php 80) 

The garlic soup was very appetizing :) 

Definitely a good one to start a meal.

We ordered several main dishes because everything on the menu looked soooo good!

BEEF CALDERETA (Php 285)

Beef stew cooked with potatoes and carrots

This was the group's favorite!  

The beef was very tender and sauce was heavenly!

You MUST order this! :)

POLLO AL AJILLO (Php 265)

Chicken breast fillet with garlic and olive oil

I apologize for the blurred pictures because we wanted to eat already :p

The flavor was richly absorbed by the chicken meat. 

This is best with plain white rice.

LENGUA CON SETAS (Php 285)

Tender ox tongue simmered in red wine, brown sauce and button mushrooms

Another crowd favorite!!! 

The sauce was perfect with the ox tongue and the mashed potato :)

PAELLA NEGRA (Php 260 - good for 2 to 3 persons)

Rice dish with squid cooked in its own ink topped with eggs, green peas and red pimientos

This was just okay. I wish they put more squid ink. 

The Paella Negra in Davao was way better :)

PAELLA ESPANOLA (Php 460 - good for 4 to 5 persons)

Rice dish with chicken, Spanich chorizo, shrimps, mussels, eggs, green peas and red pimientos

This was a winner!!!

No doubt it's AMALIA's BEST-SELLING DISH :)

Looking at this picture makes me want to go back to the restaurant at this very moment.

AMALIA's

Mega Center, Paseo de Magallanes

San Antonio St.

Makati City, Metro Manila

Contact Numbers: 852-1381, 944-6300

BEST TAKOYAKI in InfiniTea, Quezon City

We found the BEST TAKOYAKI in INFINITEA, Quezon City

First, we tried their WINTERMELON MILK TEA (Php 80 - large)

This was 3rd on their BEST SELLER LIST; However, it was way below our expectations.

The drink lacked sweetness and it also lacked in flavor. 

I think they added too much water.

Also, the pearls were a bit hard, not chewy, but hard.

Fortunately, their TAKOYAKI (Php 58) didn't disappoint.

 It took 15-20 minutes to cook but the long wait was worth it!

We had to order another one!!!

The takoyaki was very meaty, served with real tako bits too!

The sauce was great - sweet and tangy mixed with the salty bonito flakes. 

To taste it is to believe!

TIP: If you don't like the Japanese red ginger usually served with the makimono rolls, ask the server to remove the ginger upon ordering.

UPDATE as of Nov 16, 2011

We went back to INFINITEA tonight and we're so glad we tried their other drinks :)

The CARAMEL MILK TEA (Php 85 - large), Assam based, was good especially with the brown sugar jelly.

CHOCOLATE MOUSSE (Php 90 - large) was great! Kids will surely love this drink.

GREEN TEA HAZELNUT (Php 90 - large) was (almost) like Starbuck's green tea frappe.

But our favorite was the SPECIAL ICED TEA (Php 60 - large) -- The Black African Rooibos Tea was the perfect base!!! It was very refreshing and the BASIL SEED was a pleasant surprise too! A MUST TRY!!!!

INFINITEA

D. Tuazon St., Quezon City

(Across St. Theresa's College)