G.U.S. NITPICKS!! (v. 13)

FIRELAKE GRILL, TAGAYTAY

Firelake Grill is one of those so-called "destination" restos that have sprouted up in Tagaytay in recent years. Surprisingly it has been around for two years already, as it hasn't had as much publicity as Antonio's or Sonya's Garden, etc.

On this Good Friday lunch, the resto was quite packed. Check out the gorgeous interiors below:



Charming, no?

On to the food.

The free bread bun was pleasantly warm, not hot; and quite a good-sized piece of bread, i must say. I wanted to ask for seconds (and thirds. . .), but thought better of it.




I ordered the lamb chops (see pic above). It was quite flavourful and tasty, although could have been cooked a bit longer. Overall, i'd say it was very good, but definitely not as good as the lamb chops at Antonio's (still no.1 in my book!) and Verbena at Discovery Country Suites.



My sister ordered the fish fillet (i think it was a barramundi) with pasta. I felt it was good, above average, but not really spectacular.

The staff was helpful, efficient, cheerful, even a little "familiar" in the case of this guy David. But he did recommend we order the Blackened Beef Salad with Asian greens, Thai chili dressing and blue cheese (not pictured), which proved to be quite fantastic!

We skipped the desserts, though, as they looked over-elaborate and guaranteed to give one a stomach ache, at least in my opinion. Instead, we had this cheesecake at Burger Bar by Massimo's nearby. It was one of the best cheesecakes i've tasted, its sweet crust in delightful contrast to the sour cream cheese. We gobbled it so fast, we didn't even have the chance to take a picture of it. :-d So, i guess a visit to the original Massimo's is in order.

Firelake Grill also has a fairly extensive list of soups, salads, pastas and steaks. Not cheap, but with its nice interiors, good food and overlooking view of Taal Volcano, it's well worth the drive from Manila.

(Firelake Grill is located at the Cliff House complex, around 100 meters away from the Tagaytay rotunda. It is IMMEDIATELY after Yellow Cab Pizza, on the left side of the road)