A MANO, with its freshly made “by hand” promise, is a faithfully Italian Restaurant by Amado Fores that emerged after the pandemic lockdown as the best and go-to restaurant that’s uniquely Rockwell.
We had two criteria when we were choosing a restaurant where we could meet with our friends to discuss post-election blues—yummy food and an al fresco area for safe dining. It was a toss between a newly opened restaurant and a tried-and-tested resto with food that people craved for during the lockdowns like A Mano.
The awesome thing about A Mano is that almost all of the dishes in the menu are quite good, and it’s hard to choose which ones to order.
We ended up ordering the most raved about dishes, and our discussion was always interrupted whenever a new dish was served because we had to savor it while hot.
A MANO
Fresh and Faithful Italian
R1 Powerplant Mall, Makati, Philippines
Telephone: +63 917 552 6266
Email: ciao@amano.ph
Instagram: @amano.ph
Facebook: a mano
Website: amano.pickup.ph
Operating Hours: 11:00am to 9:00pm
(until 10pm on Friday/Saturday and 11pm on Sunday)
Related Blog Posts:
· A MANO // Best Restaurant in Rockwell (Review) (2022)
· a mano: Best New Italian Restaurant in Manila! (2019)
ANTIPASTI (STARTERS)
Cheese-filled Thin Crust Ligurian Flatbread
(Class with Stracchino) ₱590
(Truffle Cream and Prosciutto di Parma) ₱790
A must order and uniquely A Mano.
It was like a really thin crust pizza and you could taste the flavors of the charred cheese on the thin flatbread. Both the Stracchino and the Truffle cream and Prosciutto di Parma were quite good.
Margarita’s Meatball
Who woudn’t want to taste the meatballs made by Amado’s mom?
Just how they enjoy it in Italy—with tomatoey flavors and good meaty balls.
PRIMI (PASTA)
(an Italian living in Japan)
Japanese Uni, Ikura, Nori
This uni pasta is a must order, creamy and full of umami flavors from the uni, ikura (shrimp eggs) and nori. Our favorite!
Cream, Parmigiano-Reggiano
Big raviolo pasta with oozing egg yolk. Best to eat while hot.
Ricotta and Spinach-filled Ravioli, Butter, Sage
A favorite among the kids because it was easy to share—with a pillowy soft pasta filled with ricotta and spinach and lots of butter sauce.
Butter, 14-month Parmigiano-Regiano
The fettuccine was tossed table side with just butter and cheese absorbed by the flat noodles. Yum! Yum! Yum!
Clams, White Wine, Garlic, Italian Parsley, EVOO
A decent vongole with lots of clams and white wine sauce. You have to eat this while it is hot.
PIZZE (PIZZA)
Tomato Sauce, Mozzarela di Bufala, basil, EVOO
You can also order their Neapolitan-style pizza with a soft center and charred crust. We liked its simple flavors of tomato and cheese.
SECONDI (MAINS)
Tuscan Butter Chicken, Rosemary
The Tuscan Butter Chicken was served in sizzling butter. 🙂
(Some of the chicken parts were salty so make sure to check.)
Whole Fish baked in Parchment Paper, Lemon, Capers, Italian Tomatoes, EVOO
The whole fish was served with the extra drama of unboxing the parchment paper and deboning the fish which the server did with ease. It tasted healthy with flavors of herbs, tomato and olive oil. Sarap nito!
Roast Rack of Lamb, Parmigiano-Reggiano and Rosemary Crust
The rack of lamb was also one of the highlights. It was served as a whole rack which when sliced off, revealed medium cooked meat with a rosemary flavored crust. Good to share with 3-5 people.
DOLCI (DESSERTS)
Classic Panna Cotta, Honeycomb, Pistachio
The panna cotta was done well, not too sweet with a gelatinous Leche flan-like texture. The honey comb texture and the pistachio bits cut through the plain panna cotta flavors.
The Burrata Gelato is already iconic. We often went to Amano after eating at Ramen Ron for a satisfying finish. We like it as is but you can also enjoy it with honey comb for a sweet crunch.
FINAL THOUGHTS
A Mano was the perfect place for a post pandemic reunion with foodie friends who have already been to A Mano and some who went for the first time. Both the adults and kids loved it.
Only thing was that the food was quite distracting, often interrupting the discussion every time each dish was served because we had to savor each one.
Our favorites were:
✅ Focaccia di Recco with truffle cream and Prosciutto di Parma
✅ Spaghetti alla Giapponese (Japanese Uni)
✅ Polio al Burro (Tuscan Butter Chicken)
✅ Pesce Al Cartoccio (Whole Fish Baked in Parchment Paper)
✅ Buratta Gelato with Honeycomb
Budget ₱1,500/head for a full Italian experience.
Indeed, it is the best restaurant and, at the same time, uniquely Rockwell. Congrats Amado and A Mano team for a well-deserved success throughout the pandemic.
A MANO
Fresh and Faithful Italian
R1 Powerplant Mall, Makati, Philippines
Telephone: +63 917 552 6266
Email: ciao@amano.ph
Instagram: @amano.ph
Facebook: a mano
Website: amano.pickup.ph
Operating Hours: 11:00am to 9:00pm
(until 10pm on Friday/Saturday and 11pm on Sunday)
Related Blog Posts:
· A MANO // Best Restaurant in Rockwell (Review) (2022)
· a mano: Best New Italian Restaurant in Manila! (2019)
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Disclosure: We paid for our meal. I wrote this article with my biases, opinions and insights.
P.S. I love that they serve cold towels when you dine al fresco to cool off in humid weather.
