Another Date Place

Having invented a special occasion, H and I decided to try out Fig and Olive, a Spanish Mediterranean restaurant and bar (139 H.V. dela Costa, Makati). And finally, I took pictures! They're not that great though since I just used my celphone...

We started off with--what else?--hummus,* and some warm pita bread. I'd never before had hummus this smooth! Moved on to my main course, the beef kebab with couscous** (above). And while I'm a big fan of Mr. Kebab, I must say that this was da bomb! Haha. The meat is served on skewers with red and green bell peppers (which I don't eat and normally pick off my pizza), with some pita bread on the side.

*Hummus is a soft smooth savoury food made from crushed chickpeas, oil, and lemon juice. You generally eat it as some kind of spread for pita bread.
**Couscous is originally from North Africa. I think traditionally it's got crushed wheat, meat, and vegetables. The Fig and Olive version is made of what seemed like tiny grains of rice, tomatoes, and probably a bit of cilantro and lemon.

As is our custom, halfway through our dishes, we traded plates. H had the garlic rosemary marinated grilled chicken (above). It's deliciously garlicky, so much so that you'd just keep eating, not worrying about the bad breath factor. Might not be a good idea for a first date though...but since H and I have been together for years, Boy Bawang breath isn't really an issue! The chicken sits on a bed of lumpy (in a good way!) mashed potatoes and perfectly buttered veggies.

And for dessert, we had the layered creme brulee (above); instead of resting in a traditional white bowl, the creme brulee comes stacked on thin biscuits which taste a lot like crunchy ice cream cones. There's some syrup in there (kind of like jackfruit, but it surprisingly adds to it), and it's surrounded by diced mangoes.

The resto's a relatively good date place, not sappy romantic, good enough for special occasions but still laidback enough to keep you from having this stiff formal air. The menu's divided into a Spanish menu (paella, callos, etc.) and, well, everything else. The main courses would cost, on average, about P400 each. And since we were there on a weeknight, the place wasn't packed, and the waiters were very attentive.

P.S. We always seem to end up seated beside people who just keep going on and on (see previous post about Zucchini's)...and this time it was two guys with incredibly loud voices, like they were talking in a crowded bar.