Orange Whisk is not an easy to find restaurant.
In fact, if my friend Chef Anna of Pink Wasabi, was not such a big fan herself in posting some of the dishes and desserts that Chefs Isiah and Korinne put together on a daily basis, I might never have heard of the place because it’s like a hidden gem in the Better Living Subdivision.
The main dining room is simple and comfortable. You can see the chalkboard menu which changes virtually every day based on what Chef I prepares.
Whenever Chef Anna would post her pics of the dishes and desserts that she was enjoying at Orange Whisk, I couldn’t help but wonder where this place was! I wanted to go and check it out for myself!
Recently, I was able to enjoy a lunch that all three Chefs collaborated on. I was able to enjoy this meal with my friends Patty and Joei. This lunch was just a little different than the ordinary Pinoy fare from your neighborhood restaurant. The Orange Whisk team was just coming off some Gold and Bronze medals from The Philippine Culinary Cup, so they were hot to serve us some of their winning dishes. We not only got to try the winning dishes of this year’s competition, we were also able to try quite a few of the previous winning dishes of Chef Isiah.
Isol salad with Hearts of Palm and Cucumber tossed in a Key Lime and Japanese Mayo dressing with Cilantro
Many of you who are repeat visitors here to the blog know that I’m not always as adventurous as Nino would like me to be, in trying new foods. His palate is a little more educated than mine in the sense that I have issues with certain textures. It is exactly for this reason that I have never tried Isol. (Isol=Chicken Butt. YES. Chicken Butt.)
Even when Chef Isiah was explaining the dishes to us, I was having second thoughts and wondering how I was going to get out of eating ISOL. Good thing it was crispy fried! I was able to try more than one piece š AND I really enjoyed the hearts of palm salad that it was served with. I think my issues would surface if it was gelatinous…I’m not sure I like anything that is gelatinous…except maybe Jell-O. (and no, I don’t want to know what’s in Jell-O, so please don’t tell me.)
Aubergines in Char Smoked Coconut Cream Sauce
Pan grilled eggplant gave this dish the perfect finish for me. I LOVE eggplant. This was eggplant done right. I could have eaten the entire plate and called it a meal. The creamy smoky coconut cream sauce balanced the earthy grilled eggplant steaks. Done.
Steamed King Fish in a Crispy Mashed Soy Bean Sauce
Next came the King Fish. I’m getting better at removing the edible parts of a whole fish, but I have yet to perfect it. Hopefully, I can master that soon. This topping on the fish was delish…I just didn’t care for all the little bones. I know it would change this dish drastically if it were served with a fillet instead of a whole fish…
Grilled Mustard Tuna Loin in a Bacon Saffron Cream Sauce
One thing that Nino noticed was that all the dishes had a dramatically different sauce. Then when I started thinking about it, I realized that that’s probably why I liked everything so much. I like different sauces and I like to change things up. So all the very different sauces suit me.
Wagyu Saikoro Steak in a Blue Ginger Sauce
Usually, when it comes to the really expensive cuts of meat all you have to do is salt and pepper them. This Wagyu steak melted in my mouth…it was like cutting butter, so soft, so easy to eat, and then it had this sweet soy based sauce. The sauce wasn’t heavy at all, which was good because when you’re eating Wagyu, you want to taste the steak!
Braised Butabara Steak in Blue Cheese Tomato Red Wine Sauce
This was another dish with a very interesting sauce!
This Dessert Sampler was so good I wish I could have had two plates. Clockwise: Black Sesame Panna Cotta with Strawberries, Chewy Choco Walut Bar, White Chocolate Spoon with Dark Chocolate Mousse, Reggies Cheese Kashi Maki from Pink Wasabi, and Sticky Date Pudding
You know there is always room for dessert. Sometimes even more than one.
My favorite?
THIS. BLACK. SESAME. PANNA. COTTA.
But simply because I can’t choose ONE dessert?
It’s this one too:
Reggies Cheese Kashi Maki from Pink Wasabi was the perfect combination of sweet and salty, crumbly and creamy. I don’t know how Parmigiano Reggiano works with chocolate…BUT IT DOES.
Thank you for having us Chefs!
Pictured L-R: Timmy, Joei, Patty, Tristan, Bong, Chef Korrine, Chef Isiah, and myself.
Orange Whisk is now serving Kashi Maki from Pink Wasabi!
Orange Whisk
35 Michael Rua St.,
Betterliving Subdivision
1711 ParaƱaque
02-501-6454
Oh this was fun! And an adventure! Our first isol š
We can proudly recall the moment we ate it together, Joei š But I really don’t think I can do betamax. :-/
I’ll gladly have your share of betamax. š See you girls this weekend! Yay!
Phew. Glad we dodged that bullet! Thanks for taking one for the team Patty š
Oh, my pleasure. It really, really is hahahaha! š