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| desserts & coffee at The Room Upstairs |
It's quite obscure location in Reposo, Bel-Air, Makati was the reason of this much delayed visit to The Room Upstairs. As I've mentioned on this site quite a few times, I'm very directionally challenged truth be told. I would really need to review the layout of the place via Google Maps especially if I haven't been to that area at all. Asking for directions would only confuse me more. I would have to get a clear picture (visually) of the sideways and hideaways, the nooks and crannies of the thoroughfares that I would need to slip through to get to the place I wanted to visit. Inevitably, one fine sunny Saturday afternoon, I finally decided it's time for me to visit The Room Upstairs.
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| inside TRU |
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| another shot inside TRU |
I must admit, I got myself weirded out as I enter the restaurant cafe and take my seat near the counter. It looked very much like an extravagant furniture showroom rather than a full-fledged cafe (or is it the other way around?). Although it has the same concept (at least that's how I see it) with 14 Four Cafe, this secluded cafe in Rizal has a more homey feel to it while TRU borders to the avant garde. Maybe this out of sync feeling was brought about by the cafe's location within the confines of the LRI Building where posh furniture shops abounds. Although I did spied a foot spa somewhere on the first floor. I guess it's worthy to note that most of the furniture here in The Room Upstairs are for sale. I eavesdropped (though that's not my intention since their voices were within earshot) a conversation between a staff and a female customer discussing the price of a furniture set.
The rather subdued lighting of the restaurant cafe resulted to below par pictures as you can see. But that didn't spoil my appetite and to say that the food here at TRU is outstanding is quite an understatement.
I started my meal with their Sausage & Spinach Cream Of Potato soup (P90.00). I'm not really fond of green leafy vegetables and spinach is one of them. But with this hearty soup, eating spinach becomes "bearable". There's only a few slices of sausage in this soup so biting into one can be quite a delicious surprise.
I almost tempted to order the Chorizo Barbecue Burger. I always get excited whenever I see the word burger appended on the menu but I wanted to try something different this time. So I had the Vietnamese Banh Mi Sandwich (P195.00). At first, I'm scared to try this because I might find the sandwich too dry once I have a taste of it. Fortunately, my fears proved to be unfounded. The roasted pork tenderloin were super soft and tender. The motley crew of vegetables provided nice texture with each bite. It also gave the sandwich an eye pleasing appeal because of the complimenting colors. The sambal aioli provided some delectable spice, giving the sandwich that mouthwatering appeal. The ciabatta bread slices on the other hand were toasted till it's crunchy. I love this sammie to the max!
But the one that stands out for me on this meal at TRU was their Tuyo Pesto (P190.00). One of the creamiest pesto sauce that I came across so far. And the tuyo's inherent saltiness was not at all overpowering but gave the basil pesto sauce a rather complimenting flavor. I'm head over heels with this pasta dish.
I'm also enamored with their Cafe Mocha. It's like sipping a wonderful cup of hot chocolate heavily spiked with caffeine. I really savored this cup immensely.
With the wonderful savory treats that I tried here, missing out to try the dessert at TRU is totally out of the question. I absolutely adore their Linzer Tart. Also known as Linzer Torte, the strawberry filled tart is quite unyielding with the force of my fork so I forgone the use of the utensil and used my bare hands instead. I admired first the beguiling lattice of dough crust on top before I took a large bite. A pleasingly sweet treat this tart was with a little hint of spice. I also love the combination of sweet and tartness flavor of the Lemon Heart Cookies. Alternately biting this with the linzer torte.
The Pistachio Sans Rival was just okay for me. I could be wrong but the buttercream used in this sans rival has a very strong taste of margarine.
I didn't shy away for another cup of coffee so I had the Cappuccino to go with my desserts. I don't know about you, but I do reach a state of felicity whenever I'm having a good cup of coffee and desserts. That's exactly how I felt and such was the case here at TRU.
The Room Upstairs closes early. I was advised by one of the staff that they'll be closing in about 15 minutes as I nibble the last of my heart shaped lemon cookie. That would be quarter to 6PM on my cellphone's clock. I find that quite early. Probably because they follow the operating hours of the LRI building but I'm not exactly sure. One thing is sure though, I'll be back to TRU to try their other signature dishes. Most especially their Russian tea cookies and Jan Hagel (almond cookies).
2/F LRI Business Plaza
210 N. Garcia St., Bel Air, Makati
899-9318
theroomupstairs.com.ph
Facebook Page
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| sausage & spinach cream of potato |
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| Vietnamese Bahn Mi sammie & soup |
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| Bahn Mi sammie (up close) |
The rather subdued lighting of the restaurant cafe resulted to below par pictures as you can see. But that didn't spoil my appetite and to say that the food here at TRU is outstanding is quite an understatement.
I started my meal with their Sausage & Spinach Cream Of Potato soup (P90.00). I'm not really fond of green leafy vegetables and spinach is one of them. But with this hearty soup, eating spinach becomes "bearable". There's only a few slices of sausage in this soup so biting into one can be quite a delicious surprise.
I almost tempted to order the Chorizo Barbecue Burger. I always get excited whenever I see the word burger appended on the menu but I wanted to try something different this time. So I had the Vietnamese Banh Mi Sandwich (P195.00). At first, I'm scared to try this because I might find the sandwich too dry once I have a taste of it. Fortunately, my fears proved to be unfounded. The roasted pork tenderloin were super soft and tender. The motley crew of vegetables provided nice texture with each bite. It also gave the sandwich an eye pleasing appeal because of the complimenting colors. The sambal aioli provided some delectable spice, giving the sandwich that mouthwatering appeal. The ciabatta bread slices on the other hand were toasted till it's crunchy. I love this sammie to the max!
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| Tuyo Pesto |
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| Cafe Mocha |
But the one that stands out for me on this meal at TRU was their Tuyo Pesto (P190.00). One of the creamiest pesto sauce that I came across so far. And the tuyo's inherent saltiness was not at all overpowering but gave the basil pesto sauce a rather complimenting flavor. I'm head over heels with this pasta dish.
I'm also enamored with their Cafe Mocha. It's like sipping a wonderful cup of hot chocolate heavily spiked with caffeine. I really savored this cup immensely.
 |
| lemon heart cookies & Linzer tart |
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| pistachio sans rival |
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| cappuccino |
With the wonderful savory treats that I tried here, missing out to try the dessert at TRU is totally out of the question. I absolutely adore their Linzer Tart. Also known as Linzer Torte, the strawberry filled tart is quite unyielding with the force of my fork so I forgone the use of the utensil and used my bare hands instead. I admired first the beguiling lattice of dough crust on top before I took a large bite. A pleasingly sweet treat this tart was with a little hint of spice. I also love the combination of sweet and tartness flavor of the Lemon Heart Cookies. Alternately biting this with the linzer torte.
The Pistachio Sans Rival was just okay for me. I could be wrong but the buttercream used in this sans rival has a very strong taste of margarine.
I didn't shy away for another cup of coffee so I had the Cappuccino to go with my desserts. I don't know about you, but I do reach a state of felicity whenever I'm having a good cup of coffee and desserts. That's exactly how I felt and such was the case here at TRU.
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| The Room Upstairs, LRI Building |
The Room Upstairs closes early. I was advised by one of the staff that they'll be closing in about 15 minutes as I nibble the last of my heart shaped lemon cookie. That would be quarter to 6PM on my cellphone's clock. I find that quite early. Probably because they follow the operating hours of the LRI building but I'm not exactly sure. One thing is sure though, I'll be back to TRU to try their other signature dishes. Most especially their Russian tea cookies and Jan Hagel (almond cookies).
2/F LRI Business Plaza
210 N. Garcia St., Bel Air, Makati
899-9318
theroomupstairs.com.ph
Facebook Page
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