Philippines: XO 46 Heritage Bistro
We had one splurge meal while in Manila. On our last night in the Philippines, we made our way to XO 46 Heritage Bistro:
Luckily, no reservations were needed and we were immediately seated at a table. Besides our group, there weren't any tourists inside. Most of the patrons seemed to be either local or on business trips.
The interior looked rather elegant in an old school way:
The menu was entirely in Tagalog, which left us kind of overwhelmed. We attempted to Google as much as we could, but finally we just turned imploring eyes on our server. She didn't speak a lot of English, so she went to grab someone who could. This gentleman turned out to be super helpful and everything he described sounded so delicious that we ended up over-ordering.
As per usual.
The meal started with some complimentary snacks. There were these popped corn kernels that were slightly sweet:
And also these sweet glutinous rice balls of different flavors:
In typical us fashion, the five of us took careful bites out of each ball so that we could try every single flavor.
We couldn't resist getting a lychee and coconut smoothie (P 185 / $3.64):
Even before the dishes arrived, we had a feeling we were in trouble. Our instincts proved correct as plate after plate were placed on our table, the portions of which were quite alarming.
First there was the pinakbet ng laoag (P 395 / $7.77):
This savory dish came loaded with pork, okra, string beans, and other veggies.
The tahong con chorizo (P 385 / $7.57) or mussels sauteed in olive oil with picante chorizo had a slight kick and a beautiful sauce:
The second we heard ceviche, we knew we had to order the kilawin na taniguigue sa dayap (P 365 / $7.18):
The fresh tanguigue or mackerel came cured in lime and was tangy and delicious.
We went a bit crazy with the fish because we also ordered the paksiw na bangus (P 385 / $7.57):
The texture of the milkfish was so soft and lovely.
The fish trend continued with sinigang na salmon sa miso (P 525 / $10.32):
Now, we expected sinigang to be sour, but we'd never had sinigang as sour as this one before. It was a bit too sour for T and CV, but I actually enjoyed it.
As if that wasn't enough food, we also got the adobong baka sa bawang (P 575 / $11.31) or beef adobo:
We knew we would need rice, but there was so many kinds of rice, all of which sounded delicious, that we couldn't choose just one. We really should've chosen just one.
But how could we have turned down bagoong (shrimp paste) rice (P 265 / $5.21)? We certainly didn't expect it to come in this giant boat platter though:
It was quickly followed by the aligue (crab paste) rice (P 280 / $5.51), which also came in a giant boat platter:
Both were so good, we could've eaten them without anything else. But with the amount of food we ordered, we barely made a dent in them by the end of the meal:
We really wish we could've taken the leftovers to-go, but we were flying out the next morning and there would've been no opportunity for us to finish it.
Sadness.
Everything we had at XO 46 Heritage was pretty damn amazing. The price is a bit high by local standards, but compared to what we get in the States, it's so cheap. The food was delicious, the service was attentive, and overall, it was the perfect way to close out our last full day in the Philippines.
And with this, I'm finally done posting about my Taiwan/Philippines trip! Thank the Lord. For a while there I wasn't sure I was going to make it.
Don't even think of reminding me how far behind I still am.
XO 46 Heritage Bistro
Ground Floor, Le Grand Building, 130 Valero Street, Salcedo Village
Makati City, Philippines
+63 2 553 6632
Luckily, no reservations were needed and we were immediately seated at a table. Besides our group, there weren't any tourists inside. Most of the patrons seemed to be either local or on business trips.
The interior looked rather elegant in an old school way:
The menu was entirely in Tagalog, which left us kind of overwhelmed. We attempted to Google as much as we could, but finally we just turned imploring eyes on our server. She didn't speak a lot of English, so she went to grab someone who could. This gentleman turned out to be super helpful and everything he described sounded so delicious that we ended up over-ordering.
As per usual.
The meal started with some complimentary snacks. There were these popped corn kernels that were slightly sweet:
And also these sweet glutinous rice balls of different flavors:
In typical us fashion, the five of us took careful bites out of each ball so that we could try every single flavor.
We couldn't resist getting a lychee and coconut smoothie (P 185 / $3.64):
Even before the dishes arrived, we had a feeling we were in trouble. Our instincts proved correct as plate after plate were placed on our table, the portions of which were quite alarming.
First there was the pinakbet ng laoag (P 395 / $7.77):
This savory dish came loaded with pork, okra, string beans, and other veggies.
The tahong con chorizo (P 385 / $7.57) or mussels sauteed in olive oil with picante chorizo had a slight kick and a beautiful sauce:
The second we heard ceviche, we knew we had to order the kilawin na taniguigue sa dayap (P 365 / $7.18):
The fresh tanguigue or mackerel came cured in lime and was tangy and delicious.
We went a bit crazy with the fish because we also ordered the paksiw na bangus (P 385 / $7.57):
The fish trend continued with sinigang na salmon sa miso (P 525 / $10.32):
Now, we expected sinigang to be sour, but we'd never had sinigang as sour as this one before. It was a bit too sour for T and CV, but I actually enjoyed it.
As if that wasn't enough food, we also got the adobong baka sa bawang (P 575 / $11.31) or beef adobo:
We knew we would need rice, but there was so many kinds of rice, all of which sounded delicious, that we couldn't choose just one. We really should've chosen just one.
But how could we have turned down bagoong (shrimp paste) rice (P 265 / $5.21)? We certainly didn't expect it to come in this giant boat platter though:
It was quickly followed by the aligue (crab paste) rice (P 280 / $5.51), which also came in a giant boat platter:
Both were so good, we could've eaten them without anything else. But with the amount of food we ordered, we barely made a dent in them by the end of the meal:
We really wish we could've taken the leftovers to-go, but we were flying out the next morning and there would've been no opportunity for us to finish it.
Sadness.
Everything we had at XO 46 Heritage was pretty damn amazing. The price is a bit high by local standards, but compared to what we get in the States, it's so cheap. The food was delicious, the service was attentive, and overall, it was the perfect way to close out our last full day in the Philippines.
And with this, I'm finally done posting about my Taiwan/Philippines trip! Thank the Lord. For a while there I wasn't sure I was going to make it.
Don't even think of reminding me how far behind I still am.
XO 46 Heritage Bistro
Ground Floor, Le Grand Building, 130 Valero Street, Salcedo Village
Makati City, Philippines
+63 2 553 6632
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