Aldous ate the World

Dwntown & Halsted is a bar known for its impressive selection of cocktails and hard drinks. Little do art enthusiasts know they had a massive amount of artwork done on their walls too. The best part is they also have sumptuous food selections by Chef Marco Legasto. Check these out:



We started off the night with their version of Gin mixed with Cucumber and Sugar. This drink is my type of cocktail. In fact, I had 4 of it that night. It was that good. Never mind the hangover I got the next morning.
 


For starters, everyone got a sip of their mushroom soup. From the first taste, I could sense it was made from the freshest mushrooms in the land.



Among the 3 skewers they served, my favorite was by far the Lengua Skewers. I may be a bit biased though since lengua is my favorite food of them all. Seeing it in skewers is like a dream come true. I applaud Chef Marco for this wonderful creation.








If you're in the mood for something healthy, their Chicken Tikka Wraps will satisfy your cravings. I loved the fact that it came with potato chips too.



The perfect pulutan for a long night is their crispy pork knuckles. It's cooked just the way I like my crispy pata which is crunchy on the outside and tasty on the inside. I loved every bit of it and I find myself craving for it up to this day.







Their chorizo pasta is perfect to go along with their meat dishes. I'm not that big of a pasta lover but this one got me hooked in.
 



Their ribs is very tender. It also comes with mashed potatoes and an assortment of veggies. I just wish it was a half slab but it was just a quarter. :(



Drenched in pesto carbonara is their seafood pasta. I loved the mix of seafood in this one as you have shrimps, clams, squid and a whole lot more.



Finally, the dessert was phenomenal. I mean who wouldn't like a chocnut and cheese combination, right? In fact, I thought it had some sort of magic in it. I took a tiny slice and when I ate that, the cake was gone!

Overall, I'll definitely be back here the next time I'm in BGC (which might now be often bc of D&H) and up for some drinks!

When I look at the chicken selections, I'd always be tempted to order the Chicken Marsala. Its sauce is extremely addicting.


I'm a big fan of rissotto and this dish is full of creamy mushroom goodness. It's not only one of my favorite dishes of Mama Lou's but one of my favorite dishes period.
 


Their Vesuvio is what dreams are made of. Yes, it's seriously that good. It's hands down the best pasta dish I have ever tasted.



One of the dishes that I was eager to try was the Rosemary Lamb Rack. You have to use their cutting knife to cut the meat. The best part of it all is the meat is very tender and tasty too. 
 


Their prawns were very creamy and I'm not complaining. In fact, it's just the way I like my shrimps. The mashed potato and veggies were like the icing on the cake on this fabulous dish. I'd definitely order this dish again. It's worth every penny.

Last weekend was not an ordinary weekend as it was the team building of the sexiest blogger group of the planet - The Team Aldous. We chose a posh and stylish place to hold our team building, none other than Raffi's Way. It's located at Tagaytay which is just a 2-hour drive from the city. We were actually planning team building activities like a sack race, an egg race and longest line. Unfortunately, it was raining cats and dogs the entire weekend so none of that happened.
 

When we first arrived, one of the staff members Lyn toured us. The villa has 4 Airconditioned bedrooms with hot and cold shower bathrooms
 a.    Room 1 : Master Suite
-       1 Queen sized bed
-       1 Bathtub
-       1 Toilet and Bath
-       Double sink
-       Flat Screen Tv
-       Space for extra Matress
-       Vanity Areal

b.    Deluxe Room 2
-       1 Queen Sized Bed
-       1 Toilet and Bath

 c.     Deluxe Room 3
-       1 Queen Sized Bed
-       1 Toilet and Bath

d.    Room 4: Family Room
-       1 Queen Sized bed
-       2 Single Beds
-       Space for extra matress
-       1 Toilet and Bath



It's a shame how nobody took a dip into the private swimming pool since the water was so cold. I'm sure it would be a different story if we went here during summertime.



If you want to bring your own food to cook, that's fine. They have a fully-equipped kitchen too. When I mean fully-equipped I mean it as it's stuffed with all the kitchen utensils and equipment you can think of.






Their staff members are very friendly and accommodating. I actually had one of them buy rose petals for picture taking in the bathtub and he surprisingly obliged. After a long drive, I was hesitant to do it myself.



The living room with sunroof had a great view of Taal Volcano. I could seriously picture myself spending hours looking at that nice view while thinking what I'm doing with my life.
 





I actually took a picture of their dining table after we made a mess of it the night before. We had a nice drinking session as it ended up being a mini Palace Pool Club as some were already dancing on the table. Yep, they were grooving to JB's "Despacito" all night long. On a side not, the dining table is good for 11 pax.



Overall, we had a pretty awesome team building experience thanks to this awesome villa. I highly recommend companies to hold their team building here. Of course, you may have to book in advance because it tends to get fully booked on weekends.

Rates: Weekdays Php 30,000
Weekends Php 35,000 (Fri. - Sat, Sat. - Sun., Sun. - Mon.)
Good for 12-15pax
Additional Php 1,000 for every exceeding adult
Additional Php 500 for every exceeding kid 6 yrs old and below
Additional Php 800 for every exceeding adult who will not be sleeping (Day guest: anytime from 2pm-12midnight only)
Toddlers are free
For reservations, contact 09178750202.

Me and my girlfriend Sassa recently saw Toruk: The First Flight and what a great time we had. She also volunteered to make the review so she is my humble guest for this blog post. 

Enjoy!