(As featured in 10 Most Awesome New Homegrown Restaurants That Matter in Manila 2016!)
MADE NICE is a New York-inspired restaurant serving Western cuisine with Asian influences. It’s by the Greatful Group made up of young New York-trained Chefs–Jack Flores (29) and wife Gabbi Ramos Flores (22), Toby Panlilio (26), Wren Go (27), and Raulito Fores (26).
Gabbi is the daughter of Neil of Neil’s Kitchen fame, while Raulito comes from the Fores clan of Mamou. It’s inspiring to see the next generation of restaurateurs going back to Manila and contributing to the flourishing vibrant dining scene in their homeland.
The name of the resto is inspired by Daniel Humm and Will Guidara’s “Make It Nice” restaurant group.
My wife and I had a date night with some friends at Made Nice. Here’s a first look into this Supper Club…
MADE NICE SUPPER CLUB
G/F PPI Building 109 Esteban St., Legaspi Village, Makati City
Operating Hours: 6.00pm to 10.00pm
Telephone: +63 995 017 2482
Email: madeniceph@gmail.com
Facebook: Made Nice Supper Club
Instagram: @MadeNicePH
Made Nice is found on the same street as Yardstick along Esteban. There’s no visible big sign except the MN, but you’ll notice a big Elorde sign above it.
Carlo de Jesus purposely designed the ambiance with a Scandinavian feel, with a long communal table in the middle made from cement, giving it a modern NY resto vibe.
Slices of sourdough bread are served with butter to start.
✮ OCTOPUS (P430+). Grilled, Tonnato, Potatoes, Greens.
The octopus meat is massaged to make it tender but still firm. You can easily slice through it and eat it with the creamy tuna sauce with anchovies.
Cooked just right, you’ll definitely enjoy eating it slowly, piece by piece.
✮ AGNOLOTTI (P 300+/ P550+). Sweet Corn, Parmesan, Truffle Oil.
This pasta is fun to eat, bursting with flavors of sweet corn, cheese, and truffle.
Gin Grey (P390+)
The cocktails are a bit expensive and not that impressive.
✮ FOIE GRAS (HOT) (P450+). Pan-seared, Brioche, Orange, Caramel.
Pan-seared foei gras paired with something sweet and citrusy. The foie gras is like a big slice of butter on top of brioche bread!
Proud father Neil with pastry chef Gabbi Ramos Flores, who studied at the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) in New York before returning to Manila.
✮ BEEF (P1,080+). 350g USDA Prime Short Rib, Leeks, Red Wine, Potato Puree.
The short rib is so tender because it is sousvide for 48 hours in its own oil, then grilled on the outside to give it that nice charred flavor.
This is so good that you’ll want to eat every piece of meat (plus the ligaments) off the bone. A must order!
You can ask if you can bring your own wine or order from their limited wine list.
✮ TAGLIOLINI (P350+). Duck yolk, pecorino, parmesan.
The noodles are handmade by Raulito Fores and have a pancit canton-like texture.
This is like Cacio e Pepe meets light Carbonara made creamy with duck egg yolk–simple but delightful.
LAMB (P645+). Roasted Shoulder, Arroz Negro, Aioli, Onions.
Love the paella rice cooked in squid ink and fish stock. It’s their own interpretation of surf ‘n turf but using a gamey lamb contrast with the seafood flavor.
The lamb shoulder was lean and tender but a bit bland.
We love the bright and youthful vibe of this restaurant! Perfect for a Christmas get together with friends. You can book the entire place, which seats 60 pax.
Milk Chocolate (P220+). Dense Chocolate Cake, Dulce de Leche, Malt Ice Cream.
This is Gabbi’s signature dessert. Dense chocolate cake topped with handmade malt ice cream and milk chocolate ganache on a bed of dulce de leche sauce.
Love the contrast of the brown milk chocolate with the dehydrated milk and butter, which resembles a crunchy polvoron. So good!
Chef Jack, Gabbi, Wren, and Toby are just getting started! This is one place I’ll definitely go back to as their culinary creativity matures. Congratulations!
I recommend starting with the Octopus and Agnolotti. If it’s your first time, you must order the Prime Rib Beef and the Tagliolini for your mains. Order the Milk Chocolate for dessert. The serving size is good to share for 2-3 people. Budget about P1,000/head.
This is a nice place to have brunch but I hope they improve their selection of drinks.
Reserve the long communal table if you’re going with your barkada or family of about 8-10 people.
Highly recommended for your next food date!
MADE NICE SUPPER CLUB
G/F PPI Building 109 Esteban St., Legaspi Village, Makati City
Operating Hours: 6.00pm to 10.00pm
Telephone: +63 995 017 2482
Email: madeniceph@gmail.com
Facebook: Made Nice Supper Club
Instagram: @MadeNicePH
Live an Awesome Life,
Founder, www.OurAwesomePlanet.com
Disclosure: Our meal was courtesy of our friend Neil. I wrote this article with my biases, opinions, and insights.
P.S. Make sure to ask Mahal to be the one to take your group photo. He’s so good with the angles and handling the camera.
It’s sous vide ***hat.
Also, the name was ripped off, not inspired.
SAME. All his restaurant reviews have horrible copy, based on poor food knowledge!
The food is quite expensive. The presentation isn’t impressive either. Except for the dessert – it looks delicious! The interior of the restaurant is nicely designed too.
I wonder if this place is any good… I’m sure the food has been americanized since it is in New York to cater to everyone’s taste palette. I can’t wait to eat some real filipino food in the Philippines …
The prices are quite expensive, and very little serving. It must be really good.
We were there last weekend, we feel that the air conditioning is not doing a good job cooling the place, even though we all of them are turned on.
The kitchen ventilation is also weak that you can smell what’s cooking in the whole restaurant even though we are seated farthest from it.
But the food was good
The beef was fantastic! A MUST order! The foie gras was perfect!
How come there’s no comfort room in this restaurant? I don’t get it… a restaurant this pricey should have one… I https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e6d7430db80e7e608394ecdcd2b15a03fd4ebe579c6cd0a834a8d1cd98965f24.jpg had to go out of the establishment to use the toilet..