Cecille Ysmael presenting the 1kg USDA Prime Angus Porterhouse (P2,500+), good for sharing for 4 people or more. Ask for chimichuri, and you will feel like royalty when eating this dish.
Cecille Ysmael (of Thai @ Silk fame), together with Ching Cruz, Carol M. Garcia, Ivy and Cynthia Almario, Menchu Soriano and Maricris Zobel, is creating a new “genre” of restaurants called Fine Home Cooking. Essentially, the formula is: home-cooked recipe + distinguished family name + wealthy home ambiance. This is one level higher than Conti’s, Angel’s Kitchen or Cookbook Kitchen.
There’s a feeling of privilege in enjoying the kind of food that they serve to their distinguished guests at home, usually on the terrace, with a view of the greenery. One can’t even start to criticize this kind of cooking because it would be impolite to do so. When you get invited to someone’s home for dinner, would you criticize their food? Of course not. You appreciate it and respect the kind of flavor and taste your hosts offer.
The Terrace at 5th prides itself on its USDA Prime Angus Porterhouse and the USDA Prime Angus Rib Eye (P2,600+ for 700g and P1,400 for 350g). All steaks are served with Terrace special herbed butter and sauces like béarnaise, pepper sauce, mushroom gravy, red wine or Peter Luger.
The Terrace at 5th Menu (Still on soft opening until January 23)
Appetizers, Salads, Soups, and Pasta | Entrees, From the Grill, Sides, Sauces, and Desserts | Champagne and Sparkling Wine, White Wines, Red Wines, House Wines | Bottled Water & Sodas, Fruit Juices & Shakes, Coffee & Tea, Liquors and Alcoholic Beverages | The Story of The Terrace at 5th
Most of the recipes came from Cecille Ysmael, but each of the ladies contributed home recipes, which is usually specified in the menu.
Provoleta con Chimichuri (P340+). Melted Provolone cheese topped with chimichuri sauce and served with garlic bread. Recommended!
This is a recipe from Cecille that introduced me to chimichuri, which I thought was just ordinary pesto. I was looking for a definition of chimichuri but could not find any.
3 medium cloves garlic
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4-1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 to 1 tbsp sugar (I like the larger amount with the basil)
1/2-1 tsp cayenne pepper
Salt to taste
Cynthia’s Amazing Artichoke Dip (P280). Served with melba toast.
This is a lighter and more enjoyable version of the Artichoke dip. It is a bit drier than the CPK Artichoke dip we used to love. This appetizer is good enough for four (like the group I was with then).
This was a significant day for me. I met with Professor Ricky Lim of AIM, Regnard Raquedan of AIM blogger fame and Jayvee Fernandez of abuggedlife. We shared a common vision of transforming the Asian Institute of Management (AIM MBA School) into being the foremost recognized educational institution for Internet Marketing and Social Marketing in South East Asia.
Cecille’s Chicken & Pork Adobo Flakes (P395+). Crispy shredded chicken and pork served with garlic rice and homemade atchara.
Regnard ordered this cute rendition of the chicken and pork adobo flakes. Since this was a business meeting, it was a bit awkward for me to get a piece of this and taste it.
I ordered this dessert made of small scoops of mangoes with ice cream in the middle. It was too sweet. I felt like I was eating sugar with every bite. I would pass on this dessert next time.
I like the overall green, grassy ambiance, which projects a “terrace feel” throughout the restaurant. Even the restroom reflects that feeling. It is one of the coolest I’ve seen — with grills, mirror and plants surrounding the walls.
From http://www.cookthink.com – What does chimichurri mean?
An Argentine condiment used to accompany grilled steak and other meats, chimichurri is a pesto-like sauce made from onions, garlic, parsley, dried oregano, salt, cayenne pepper, oil and vinegar. It is best made fresh, but it is also occasionally available in dehydrated and bottled versions.
Legend has it that chimichurri was invented by a traveling Brit of some sort, its odd name a bastardization of possible inventors Jimmy McCurry, Jimmy Curry or James C. Hurray. Now a popular accompaniment throughout Latin America, it is often called the ketchup of Argentina.
Yup Steak with Chimichurri is awesome. Had these almost everyday for more than 3 weeks in Buenos Aires.
Steak there is so good, I actually didn;t need any sauce, just a tiny sprinkle of salt and pepper, Steak is almost like “tuyo” in BA, they have it everyday.
Sorry didn’t see your question there regarding chimichurri.
Very popular in the Andes Region in South America, particulary Argentina. I studied in Buenos Aires in 2003.
It is a pesto derived condiment, keep in mind pesto just means sauce in Italian anyway. Given the Spanish and Italian influences on Argentinian cuisine and culture, it’s not hard to imagine that the sauce had its start from some Italian nonna’s recipe, minus the pinenuts but a lot of other herbs and spices to add to it and they ended up with a kind of salsa verde that has made its way into the culinary landscape.
hi anton! i found this at http://www.recipelink.com/mf/0/18338:
“An Argentine asado or barbecue is not authentic without this delicious marinade called chimichuri. it is similar to a multi spiced vinaigrette and is given an earthier tone with the addition of saffron.”
thanks for the tray couture certificate last november (?). all the best to you and your family!
Hi Anton!
The chimichuri based on the recipe is like gremolata. Only instead of using lemon juice for the acid it uses red wine vinegar.
These condiments are so rustic yet so delish!
Anton, I asked a friend of mine, Rosinia Campos, who is half Ecuadorian-half Argentinian about chimichurri and this is what she says (seems there are tales around the origins of the name of this sauce):
Chimichurri means nothing in spanish, and intrigued by your question I googled its meaning. There are different theories, but most popular seems to be: some english speaking colonizers (scottish was mentioned) that added a curry sauce to the meat told argentines “give me the curry,” which over time resulted in chimichurri.
Hope that helps…
All the best,
Rosinia
The menu looks interesting… Definitely worth a visit. I’ve been wondering about Greenbelt 5’s restaurant scene and if there really is a place there that’s worth getting excited about. This COULD be it, I hope.
The drinks seem a bit pricey though. Even the wine list is a tad over-priced. P1,700 for Monkey Bay? Come on…
nice to see you again, anton. now i feel pressured to write something about the dessert after you linked me back! 🙂
hi anton! i have alread viewing your blogs for almost one week and its really great and helping me for my birthday surprise plan for my boyfriend. by reading the 10 best fine dining restaurants in manila, i now have an idea of what it would turn out. ive chosen la cocina de tita moning. my only problem is that i cant decide what menu is the best there to eat aside from what you have recommended, which was the bread pudding. please recommend other dishes that we can eat there. thanks!
A nice place for plotting the transforming of the Asian Institute of Management…;-)
Hi Anton, have you heard of 145 Steakhouse in Tomas Morato? I was there last week and my food experience was great. The Wagyu Carpaccio was kinda sweet though like they used a 30-year-old balsamic on it. Plus foie gras with champagne..yumyum! They mainly serve Prime Angus beef so we had that too. 145 Steakhouse is (in my opinion) one of the finest in QC so far.
terrace at 5th restaurant has very beautiful interiors talaga…it’s perfect for bridal showers and even for an intimate 18th bday celebration.
galing talagah nila atelier almario.
and for the the food – the menu features a few selections only. but i did try their artichoke, terrace salad, rib eye lady’s cut and crabmeat pasta and gateau de crepe for dessert….whoa you might be wondering how i managed to finish all these – i did so with the help of my best friend jinky…..we both loved what we had….masarappp1
sana lang they add more vegetables and fish dishes…. more power to Terrace at 5th!!!
hi Anton,
i thoroughly enjoyed my visit to The Terrace at 5th – Cecille is such a nice, non-ma-arte, earthy lady with a fine hand in the kitchen (I’m not surprised that long-time bachelor Louie Ysmael ended up with her – she’s a lovable woman and a good cook!). what did i order when i dropped by? the tomato al l’ouvo, which is a nicely herbed tomato egg-drop soup – very tasty!, maricris (zobel)’s laing pasta – what an inordinate creation and a winner of a dish, which I paired with the slow-cooked confit of pork belly – pucha, i think my restless search for THE pork-with-a-crunch dish in manila has ended when i devoured this concoction of cecille’s. this is actually a creation of hers and her sous chef, ron manalo,a talented young chef who used to be in the kitchen of mezzaluna. this is cooked slowly for 12 hours in low temperature. i have such an avarice for lechon skin – that’s the only thing (aside from adobo) that i want to have, but this dish of cecille and ron manalo’s is SO damn good, that i eat every morsel of the delicious pink-tender pork meat, along of course with the crown jewels – the two strips of utterly crumbly crispy pork skin. i love this dish and im going back again to make a go for the grilled US short ribs and ching cruz’s sole meunierre, two of my other favorites, which cecille says are likewise the two most-ordered dishes in The Terrace, along with the pork belly. definitely one of my current favorites for a heavy meal in a restaurant in manila!
Thanks for the comment Teddy! Ang sarap naman and I’ll try all your other
recommendation when we go back to Terrace. Holy Week pa naman, and
nakakagutom yung comment mo.
Thanks again and Ingats!
it took me some months before i was able to dine again at terrace… i was informed by the resto manager that chef cecille revise their menu every 3 months, so last july 18 i was keen on having my lunch there, however, forgetting to call for reservations, dyahe talaga that they had an exclusive event pala for no less than President GMA, and the Prime Minister of Bahrain…but even then i took my seat on their al fresco area. i ordered their cheesesteak sandwich and the vongole pasta….OMG these were extremely good and very filling….masarap ang food dito, not at all pricey kase masarap naman talaga! wish ko lang expand pa nila ang menu….pls add add pa some more vegetarian dishes…..
ate there over lunch today salivating over the corned beef which was unfortunately phased out of the menu :-L. decided to have the hainanese chicken instead and my colleague, the soft shell crab sandwich. hohum. i’ve had better. entrees were nothing extraordinary and wont be on my top 10.
the panna coffee was lovely though.
i wish they’d return the corned beef there. everything in the menu’s fun to eat!
i noticed that this resto is not open during lunch time? only dinner time onwards?
gosh. expensivo much! really, i’ve dined at other restos having the same theme and concept(home cooking), some of their (other restos) food is much better than terrace’s. though terrace also has great food. bread with provolone was yummy!!! thumbs up for the steak really (though i only had their fillet mignon). dessert, i’ll pass. drinks: expensivooooo!
The fact that the restaurant is situated in GREENBELT 5, you can’t really expect their prices to be PHP 20 for dessert or whatever. “Expensivo”? Not in the Greenbelt 5 area.
Howdy just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The text inn your content seem to be runing offf the sxreen in Internet explorer.
I’m not sure if this is a format issue or something too do with web browser
compatibility but I figured I’d post to leet you know. The
style and dewsign look great though! Hope you geet the problem resolved soon.
Many thanks