Sunday, September 28, 2014

Vyne


Nothing can over exaggerate this dining madness that have embedded in my palate and in the nooks and cranny of my brain, hence the simple, unsought of title.  Oh also, be aware that this is not a garden or herb-related article but rather something you will never regret reading.

I didn't mean to beguile you, but I would try to be straight-forward in my judgement on this post.

But before that, I'm aching to give a major shout out to new-blood restaurateurs, who gained their rights to brag about their business, of which J.P. Enriquez belongs.  What's to brag about?  On his collar are dining, drinking and clubbing hot spots that are gaining raves, such as Hyve, Skye and my new esteemed restaurant -Vyne.


You can probably notice the owner's fixation on the letter 'y'. 



Vyne is an inhabitable cosmopolitan bar and lounge provides a bit of playground and cocktail haven in one.


Upon entrance, vibrant wall graffiti will welcome you.  You may get lost getting in for a huge post will be standing right smack at the center pathway, on the left goes to the kitchen and bar, on the right leads to the dining abode.  What I regretted the most was not checking out the al fresco are, the balcony with a great view of the burgeoning BGC. 

Known for their inventive take on tapas and steak, you might have a hard time deciding which one to try first. May I suggest three of the tapas I've tried- Pork Chasu Bun, Thai Scallops, and mini crab cakes. These sounds Asian with a twist. 


The Pork Chasu Bun is a sandwich fried mantao.  You might have an idea if you have tried fried siopao.  However, what made this really special was the OMG-inducing savory pork chasu sandwich in between sliced fried mantao, together with nori strips, leeks and sunny-side up quail eggs, all in sesame mayo dressing.


Elaborately prepared and plated, you'll definitely say WOW to this - Thai Scallops.  The pastry is topped with seared scallop, mango salad with nuoc cham dressing , sambal mayo and crispy catfish.


This one I dedicate for the kid in all of us.  Don't you think the Mini Crab Cakes are cute.  They are like the eyes of some monsters.  You will however like the apple mayo with caviar that is used to dress it up some more.  If you can, try to  eat  all of the elements in one bite, including the pickled radish (the orangey shreds on the photo, but it's actually pink)

For the soup course, try Prawn and Ravioli Laksa.  On the rich and spicy Laksa soup are prawn ravioli, tofu, fried onions, lemon grass and bean sprouts.  I never imagined ravioli could go perfectly with soup, more so with a Laksa soup, but surprisingly it perfectly did.


I thought I was okay with the amuse bouche and laksa soup, until lo and behold, a whole green apple meant to be our salad for the night. 

Make a way to order, Apple and Bleu Cheese Salad. Pure freshness, one whole green apple was seeded, sliced and dressed with honey yogurt and embellished with dried cranberries, bleu cheese crumbs, walnuts and baby arugula.
 

Look at my share:) I love how the tanginess of the apple  subsided with the Greek yogurt and how the bleu cheese put saltiness and oomph to the whole dish while the walnuts and cranberries made such difference in texture.


We also tried another salad for you, it's the East Asian Salad.  It's what I call the busy salad, here's why.  It's a mixed green salad and Asian slaw combined.  The kimchi and Korean rice cake bits made it Korean,  to give that distinction, while the salmon floss and sesame dressing gives it the knock out taste.


I did mention that they ultimately made the place a playground, right?   They have extended the fun and challenge in the kitchen by providing fusion in every dishes.  
For the pasta, here is what we had -Ramen Carbonara.  

As in Ramen and Carbonara in one bite (duh?), 


When you order this, a hot pasta bowl half-filled with angel hair pasta tossed in Miso cream carbonara, pork chasu and shredded onion leaves will be laid on your table first, then the staff will pour over it the Ramen broth.  The sousvide quail egg will magically transform the dish.  After poring the broth, you may mix the egg with the soup and it will make the broth creamy and thick, more like a soupy carbonara sauce.


They also have burgers, on such good choice is the Vyne Burger.  It's a huge 200 g. beef pattie with mushroom ragout, foie gras, bleu cheese and apricot jam, all layered over an opened-up brioche bun.


For a more serious meal, choose from a plethora of fish, chicken and beef menu.  For fish I had tried Pan Seared Sole.   Beautifully plated, your order will have a complete set of meal with pan-seared sole fish, roasted veggies and sweet corn puree.  The green liquid is parsley emulsion, giving the dish an herb-y taste.


Or why not have US Angus Ribeye steak for a cost of P 2,500.  You steak platter can serve up to two persons.  It's 600 g prime rib steak, cooked the way you want it, served with truffle fries, horseradish gremolata, beef jus and fried Brussels sprouts. 



Served with four different sauces - Pinoy barbecue style, pesto, gravy, spicy kimchi sauce.


It was ladies vs. meat night, and with dismay and heavy tummy, we lost the battle.  Look at what happened to the huge steak platter.  Not that we didn't like, in fact we loved how the steak was seasoned and I could still remember how tender every bite was.  It's just that the serving was so huge.

And so we came, and we conquered...

Now time for a dessert, of course...


Our dinner, of course ended sweetly, however, was hinted with a tang from lemon. The Lemon Cheesecake lightly pushed away some of the aftertastes from the different dishes we had and what was left was a clean, lightly sweetened custard-y texture from the cheesecake. Oh yes, aside from the lemon-basil tandem, I'm guessing the head chef played around in the kitchen and have successfully merged custard and cheesecake together.

For the win...

There are a lot to love about Vyne, do check them out at Facebook and find out all the fun the customers are having here.

Before heading down the lobby of the building, I managed to steal one shot of the ceiling lights outside Vyne.





Vyne


Address:  Eighth Floor, W Global Center,
                9th Avenue Corner 30th Street,
                Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City



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