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| MAX and moi at Mario's |
Valentine's Day may be over and done with, but I'm sure a lot of us would want to keep all that love and romance alive 24/7.
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| Tuscany platter |
Perhaps violin music, a candlelit dinner and a great bottle of wine spells romance for some. In our household, nothing spells love like great food. Usually, it's awesome home cooked meals that are appreciated. But on those special days, one can count on Mario's Restaurant.
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| step inside ... |
Opened in the 70's here in Baguio City, the flavors were so good that another one was opened a decade later in Quezon City. The one we've got here is conveniently located along Upper Session Road.
Continental cuisine covers much of their menu selections. My personal faves are their Spanish dishes and US choice cut steaks. They also make huge and appetizing salads. A must try is their Crepes Jubilee (or, as described in their menu (mango, banana or strawberry (when in season) bathed in fine liqueurs and flamed over ice cream).
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| some salad we requested for that's not on the menu |
**Quick tidbit on steaks in general: There are 3 kinds of beef grade; Prime, Choice and Select. Prime indicates that the meat cut has a moderately abundant amount of marbling, Choice means it's got a moderate amount of marbling and Select to indicate a slight marbling on the steak. For the curious, marbling is the streaks of fat found on lean meat).
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| Surtido de Tapas: spicy chicken wings, chorizo, drunken shrimps and fried squid rings w/ 3 sauces |
Reservations are only hard to come by during the holidays, on Valentines and graduation season. Usually, you could easily get a table for one, 2 or six at a moment's notice. They usually have Sunday lunch buffets that vary. Here's their website for contact details as well as their menu.
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| chicken and sausage jambalaya |
We had our Valentine's lunch date (with our 3 year old) at Mario's this year. Despite having a special menu for the date, nothing speaks to us more than eating tripe and tongue on a February 14.
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| lengua con setas |
For those imagining the worst, I had my fave, Lengua Con Setas or tender ox tongue boiled in wine sauce with mushrooms and olives. Phil had Callos Madrilena or a tripe Spanish styled stew with it's delicious tomato based sauce, potatoes and garbanzo beans.
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| Callos |
MAX just had mashed potatoes and gravy that's why he managed to tuck in more than half a slice of Banoffee Pie. I also included some food pics from previous visits to the place.
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| better late than never...our banoffee pie |
Another thing about Mario's that makes it a great place to head out to is the service. fast, efficient and quite intuitive, over-tipping is a common practice. The ambiance itself is cozy, intimate yet comfortable enough for a casual meal. Parking is rarely a problem, although one might have to park across the street on those "crowded" days I mentioned above.
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| some skewered seafood |
You can also have made to order cakes for all occasions. Their chocolate cakes are simply to die for!
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| a complimentary V-day gift from Mario's... |
You can always be assured of a great and a good time at Mario's.
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| ...that used to have four dark chocolate and peppermint truffles in them :) |
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| satisfied customers (still have to find our latest pic together at Mario's) |
From
TMW, may all your wanderings be better than ours.
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