A HOMEY CELEBRATION / JULY 15,2008 =)

In direct contrast to the big-budget, action-packed (from wake/knee-boarding, silly!) anniversary out-of-town trip last year that saw Hubby Sweet and I celebrating our 1st with a run in Lago and with a weekend stay at The Boutique, this year’s anniversary was spent more quietly.

That’s partly due to the fact that a big chunk of the anniversary budget went to the acquisition of Buster J, who has single-handedly made House Pioneer an even greater joy to come home to—despite the occasional poop & pee accidents, and the occasional sleepless periods resulting from him nudging the Hubby and me in the middle of the night to (horrors!) play.

“No more playing, Buster. Time to sleep,” I would mumble, barely awake as I roll him on his back and lull him (!) to sleep with a tummy rub. On occasion, the Hubby and I would be sleeping soundly in a tight embrace, only to be disturbed by a hairy face gently nestling itself on my neck (which would then mean having Hubby Sweet go nose to nose with a mini-Schnauzer, hahaha). It’s Buster Johnson wanting to join the midnight group hug. Suskupo! Hay….=D

Yes, the Hubby can even now officially use the excuse “the dog ate my….” without necessarily lying, after he accidentally left some important business docs by the printer before stepping out, only to find half of it gnawed up to smithereens along with the newspapers that we usually lay out for Buster J’s “comfort needs”. Yes, Buster J has turned House Pioneer upside-down and, for some strange reason, we’re…uh…happy about it. Haha. =D

Now, I had originally wanted to at least take the day off, but the crazy sched in the office made it impossible for me to do so. I had an FGD scheduled at 7:00 a.m., which I decided to skip and delegate in favor of a whole-day meeting with the Marketing Leadership Team and The Boss. And so it goes that Hubby Sweet and I just made arrangements to go with a quiet dinner somewhere we’ve never been to before. Plans to try 22 Prime @ the Discovery Suites were immediately scrapped in light of the MLT meeting and the “fearless forecast” that it would end no earlier than 7:00 p.m. With Serendra just two blocks away, we decided it was the perfect time to try Mamou’s Kitchen.

I have heard only good things about Mamou’s Kitchen. I also heard that they’re into “home-cooking”. It’s just that, I suppose, this type of home-cooking is only usually done in the hallowed halls of society’s upper echelons. Haha! I had mistakenly retained that “Mamou” refers to some elderly tita of the Aranetas, and that the menu served in the restaurant are meals usually served in the the Araneta Center Bahay na Bato (or is it Puti?). Basta, the ancestral home of the Aranetas, the Fores and the Roxases! Being the closet social-climber that I am (haha), that particular bit of trivia intrigued me. =)

The Hubby picked me up at 7:30 p.m. on the dot. Our reservation was for the 8:30 “second serving”. I opened the passenger door to find a huge bouquet of pink carnations, roses, mums and green flowers (I don’t know what they’re called) on a bed of tiny white ones. Love, love, LOVE (!) these kinds of arrangements. I prefer them to the all-rose bouquets. (Oh, but I think I already mentioned that before. =)) It’s just that they seem more fresh. More original. Less ostentatious. =)

We got to Mamou’s Kitchen in time to find some of the smaller tables free, despite the fact that we were about 40 minutes early. Yey! =) Imagine my surprise though to find out that Mamou is sooooo NOT an ancient tita, but a young, 30-something Malou Fores! (Yes, sister-in-law to the Gaita. =)) According to one of the articles posted on the wall, Mamou was apparently a name her nephew used to call her; for some strange reason, he can’t say Malou. Mamou stuck, and the rest, as they say, is history. (Hmmmmnnnn…..now, imagine if I had been culinary proficient! I could open a restaurant named Nangnang or Tita Toy. Haha! Uh…I think not. =))

As with all restaurants in Serendra, Mamou’s Kitchen is practically just a cozy nook that can sit no more than 50 people at a time. It’s both chic and homey with the dark wood and red leather upholstery blending well with the stainless steel counters, the wine bottles, the colorful glass vases and the upright chiller filled with steaks right in the middle of the dining area. I also liked that their tables and chairs were lower than the standard height—instantly raising the uniqueness level a notch higher. (I liked them, of course, because I’m petite. However, since the Hubby, who is 5’10” and all, did not complain, I suppose I can safely assume that it is not an issue with tall people as well. =))

Malou was there when we went. I’ve been told she is actually always there, supervising the kitchen, doing the cooking, running around serving dishes and chatting with the guests—as she would, I suppose, in her own home. The staff was very efficient and friendly. They were also very knowledgeable about the dishes, quickly answering our questions (or quickly running to the kitchen for the correct answers in case they didn’t know.)

Mamou is eager to please. The Hubby and I, for e.g., decided that we wanted to try both the Steak AND the Roast Pork & Chicken—the dishes that Mamou’s Kitchen is most known for. Instead of ordering the “sharing steak” size, therefore, we decided to just go with the single steak size (400g, around 14oz?), which when you think about it is really good enough for two. The steak goes with two sidings, and we decided to pair it with corn pudding and creamy spinach. Thing is, I like my steak medium-rare; the Hubby likes his medium-well. We asked if it was possible to cut the steak in half, and cook each half according to our very different preferences. After checking, the waiter came back and affirmed that, yes, it can be done. Yey! =) Soon after, however, Malou came out of the kitchen and I instantly went into panic mode, thinking that, “Oh, no! She’s going to tell me that cutting the steak up is a sacrilege and that it just ain’t done in the homes of the upper crust!” (Yes,I am prone to over-imagination, hahaha) Malou, however, simply went out to explain that she will not be cutting up the steak because “it’s sayang” so what she will do is cook it first to medium rare, then return the other portion until it is medium-well, etc., etc.. I did not understand much how she was going to do it. I suppose I was just happy that we will be getting what we want without having to sacrifice--as she put it--“the quality” of the steak. =D

Our drinks were served soon after we ordered--in practically no time at all. Watermelon Shake for me. Dalandan Crush for the Hubby. (No, the Hubby and I are NOT wine-drinkers. =)) Taking the first sip from each of our chosen bevs was particularly refreshing. Maybe it was the homey feel despite the obvious air of opulence. Maybe it was the the natural sweet taste of a cool drink after a long and hectic day at work. Maybe it was me and the Hubby out on a "real and proper date" for the first time in, uh, months. Haha. =) The drinks were definitely a good start.

Freshly-baked dinner rolls were served next. There was an option for those who prefer white rolls, as well as for those who prefer whole wheat rolls. Regardless of type, they were all very soft, chewy and warm. At first bite, I’m pretty sure I died and went to bread heaven. The rolls were—to borrow a line from an iconic ad campaign--“Uhmmm…Uhmmm….Good!" (^_^). They were, hands-down, the best dinner rolls I have ever tasted in my life! The Hubby and I finished them off in no time. On her way back to the Kitchen, Malou asked if we would like some more. How I wish I could have said, “YES!”, but I really wanted to leave room for the rest of the meal so I sadly declined. =(

In addition to the main dishes, the Hubby wanted something to warm his tummy. It was, after all, a rainy day. =) He decided to go with a half-order of Oriental Noodle Soup. (I wonder though what they use as reference for the serving sizes as this "half-serving" is actually big enough for the Hubby and me. =)) 'Am not entirely sure what the origin of the recipe was, but I'm guessing Vietnamese judging fromt the rice noodles and the little green stalks that give off a nutty-peppery taste, but I could be wrong because the soup was actually a bit spicy-sour (similar to Tom Yum). While it was good--especially after we added the Chili Sauce that Malou recommended--I suppose I was just not in the mood for soup, so I was not too hot about it. I wanted the meat. The steak. The beef! =D

The main dishes came soon enough and were served after Hubby Sweet finished off his soup. The Steak came first. Wonderfully marbled, perfectly charred, lying in a bed of olive oil and steak drippings. Half was bright red (my portion), while the other was amazingly medium-well. With it came the corn pudding and the creamy spinach. It took all of the Hubby's willpower NOT to devour the steak as I took pictures for the blog. Hahaha. =D

The Roasted Chicken & Pork were actually served almost at the same time, but I'd rather savor the steak first. It was juicy, cooked perfectly. It was the kind that can make you go, "Yes, this is sooooooooo worth it." =) The sidings were OK, but I'd have to be honest about the fact that the next time we go to Mamou's Kitchen, we'd probably order a different set entirely. The corn pudding was good, but it was too sweet to go with the steak. (It was almost like dessert!) The creamy spinach, while good, was also to...uh...creamy for my taste. I needed something to balance and complement the "richness" of the beef, and the sidings we chose were not exactly right for my purpose. That said, I decided to forego the sidings, and chose to eat the steak instead with the red rice and black beans that were served with the Roasted Chicken and Pork.

Ah, yes...the Roasted Chicken and Pork. Citrusy, herby. I can't exactly put my finger on what they put in the marinade to make it taste that good, but yes, it was absolutely divine. One can actually choose to get an all pork or all chicken platter. The Hubby and I unanimously decided that the next time we go, we'd go for the all-pork version. While the chicken was good, the pork is just sooooooo much better. Now, the entire plate did not make for a a pretty picture. I mean, it was a hodge-podge of chicken, pork and a mountain of red rice topped with sweet onions, cinnamon-caramel crusted banana fritters and black beans. It had a definite Cuban influence. Notwithstanding the absence of any hoity-toity foodstyling, there should be no argument here. The Roast Chicken & Pork is a winner! At P395, it was also relatively "budget-friendly". Soooooooooooo good. Sooooooooooo worth it. =)

Now, we had wanted to go for the whole shebang complete with the dessert, but we could not even finish the dishes we ordered. 'Am not sure if we ate too quickly or if we're now used to smaller portions given our new resolve to eat healthier or if the servings looked deceptively manageable until the combination of the different food settled in our stomachs. Before we could finish everything, both the Hubby and I were ready to burst at the seams. (Me more than him, haha...hay....=)) We would therefore have to go back to Mamou's Kitchen another day so that the Hubby can taste the heavenly Pecan Pie (which I had had the good fortune of earlier tasting with The Boss and the MLT), and so I can satisfy my curiousity regarding MK's much-talked-about-and-raved-about Key Lime Pie. =)

So there! A relatively low-key second anniversary celebration. =) The best part is coming home to an enthusiastic Buster J who couldn't stop running to and fro, bouncing up and down in obvious glee that the Hubby and I were home. Yey! =) I tried to get a picture of him with the flowers and the Mamou doggy bag for posterity, but it was all for naught. I couldn't get him to sit still long enough. Hay! Yes, yes. I suppose, he'd really rather get up and smell the flowers. Haha! 'D

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If you want to try out Mamou's Kitchen, it would be best to reserve your seats before you go. For dinner, they have "two seatings". The first is from 6:30-8:20 p.m.; the second is from 8:30-closing time. I don't know what the seating scheds are for lunch.

Call 8563569 or 0917-8162668 for reservations. =)