Fely J’s – Greenbelt

Charm was away from Pinas for quite a while so she asked if we can have dinner any place that has sinigang. Friday night in Greenbelt meant long queues. The queues were particularly long at Namnam and at Mesa that time. I initially wanted to take her to either so that she can try a different version. Namnam has Shortribs Sinigang sa Pakwan (yes, watermelon) and Mesa has Sinigang na Baboy in Guava and Pineapple (yep, bayabas at pinya).

But as I tried to wait for a table in Mesa, I thought I was being stupid for thinking of deviations of the traditional dish when a balikbayan is most probably craving for something classic. Hence, I called Fely J’s and told them to put us in the waiting list. So I went to the 2nd level of Greenbelt 5 and waited for Charm. Funny, I went to the little girl’s room first and there she was, checking out reflection, nagre-retouch. Same reason why I went there. Hehe.

So, of course we ordered sinigang. There are 2 choices of broth: classic or guava. Naturally, the balikbayan chose the classic. :P We were served kropek (shrimp crackers) as we waited for our dishes to arrive. Even if the place was full, they managed to get the food to our table quickly.

The first to arrive was the piping hot Pork Rib Sinigang (345php). There’s only the pork, kangkong, and gabi that you will see swimming in the tamarind soup. It may not be as loaded with vegetables as the other versions out there, but what’s good about the sinigang here is the soup itself. It’s not overly sour, and you can taste the pinahugasan ng bigas used in it. Pinaghugasan ng bigas as in, you know, the water you used to wash the rice before cooking it? LOL

We paired the sinigang with Tortang Talong with Giniling (175php) or Eggplant Fritata with Ground Pork. This was served with some pickled radish and ketchup. I liked this because the eggplant was grilled first and not just boiled. And, I don’t know about you but I like my torta with Knorr or Kikoman, but the patis with chilies that I used for sinigang sufficed that time. ^_^

And for dessert, we had The Sikreto ni Maria Clara. It’s suman with mangga with macapuno ice cream. I love the textures and sweet/sour goodness of this dessert. This is also my dessert of choice in Abe. Fely J’s, Abe, Lorenzo’s Way, and Cafe Adriatico are some of the restos under the LCJ Group. But who is Fely, you ask. Felicidad de Jesus-Cruz, was the mother of the late restaurateur Larry J. Cruz or LCJ. Ma’am Fely, we like your kitchen. :p

After our Fely J’s dinner, we went to the other side of Greenbelt 5. The balikbayan wanted some Tanduay Ice, but changed her mind when told that Chili’s has a bottomless margarita promo for only 300php. Flavors are the classic lime, mango, and strawberry. You can change flavors every refill. You can even mix ’em flavors. Had some bottomless Tostada Chips (350php) with our margaritas as we gabbed the night away.

Fely J’s Kitchen
2F Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati
728-8878 or 728-8858

Chili’s Bar and Grill
2F Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati
729-2862

// listening to Hardwell – Dare You