WHETHER your idea of a Valentine’s Day celebration is a nice and quiet romantic dinner for two complete with candlelight or a casual and comfortable dinner where you can simply be yourselves, The Cravings Group has got just the perfect Valentine celebration for you. Lombardi’s sparks romance the Italian way with a tantalizing four-course Lovers’ Special sit-down menu called Mi Completi (You Complete Me), Cravings makes Valentine’s Day a more magical rendezvous for two with a carefully crafted four-course meal and an awesome collection of heart-shaped cakes to choose from, and C2 Classic Cuisine presents three festive Filipino feasts with its Valentine Boodle promotion.
LOMBARDI’S ITALIAN SET MENU
Lombardi’s Authentic Italian Restaurant on the Fourth Level of Shangri-La Plaza beguiles lovestruck couples with Mi Completi, a four-course Italian set menu created by Chef Davide Lombardi priced at Php1,199.
Thoughtfully prepared, it begins with an Aperitivo of Crema Di Funghi Tartufata (cream of mushroom soup with black truffle), progresses to a choice of Starter between Calzone (stuffed pizza) and Linguine Alla Botarga e Gambaretti (dried Italian caviar with tiger prawns in linguine pasta), then a Main Course of Ossobucco Con Gremolata Due Profumi (oven-braised beef shank served on a hot cast iron skillet with a vegetable side and potato gratin), and finishes off with a lovely Dessert of Crema Della Amore (red and white wine colored Panna Cotta).
To complete the romantic Valentine’s meal, Lombardi’s also offers quite an extensive wine selection for dining couples.
The Mi Completi Valentine’s menu is available at Lombardi’s from February 12 to 28. For reservations, call 631-9762.
CRAVINGS’ ROMANTIC RENDEZVOUS
Cravings, one of the metro’s best-loved fine dining restaurants, presents Cravings of the Heart, a promotion that features all the elements of a romantic Valentine’s date — an indulgent four-course menu, freebies and a chance to win movie tickets, and a nice selection of heart-shaped cakes.
For that magical Valentine’s dinner, which can be set as a romantic candlelit dinner for two, the carefully crafted four-course menu of Chef Jojo Derrada begins with Organic Asparagus, Poached Egg, Champagne Emulsion as Starter; and Organic Mushroom Truffle Cappuccino for the Soup course. For the Main Course, the lady and the gentleman get different courses. It’s Chicken Breast Roulade, Spinach Orange, and Rosemary Beurre Blanc for the lady and Baked Salmon Fillet, Wilted Spinach and Orange Rosemary Beurre Blanc for the gentleman. The meal finds a beautiful ending in Warm Chocolate Fondue with Tropical Fruits for Dessert.
As a sweet surprise, dining couples availing of Cravings’ four-course menu for Valentine, which is affordably priced at Php799 per head, gets free love cake pops plus a chance to win a pair of movie tickets.
Cravings also offers a wide range of Valentine cakes that spell chocolate indulgence. Choices are Chocolate Desire (Php1,795), a velvety chocolate cake layered with chocolate icing, topped with M&Ms, bordered by an army of Kitkat chocolate sticks; Heart Smores (Php1,395 for a 10-inch cake, Php750 for a 6-inch cake, and Php99 for a 3-inch cake), which is everyone’s favorite Smores given an amorous, heart-shaped facelift; Heart-shaped Chocolate Caramel Cake (Php1,150), which is layers of moist and dense chocolate cake filled with chocolate fudge and covered with slow-cooked homemade Dulce de Leche icing; Chocolate Delirium (Php1,795), a rich chocolate cake layered with chocolate fudge, topped with a deliriously generous amount of golden Hershey’s Kisses; White Chocolate and Strawberry Mousse Obsession (Php995 for a whole round cake and Php225 for a junior cake), which is a pillowy soft layer of sponge cake topped with smooth and creamy layers of strawberry and white chocolate mousse, accentuated by crisp almond flakes; and Giant Chocolate Caramel Cupcake (Php795), a moist chocolate cupcake base with overwhelming caramel frosting.
Cravings has branches at 287 Katipunan Ave., Quezon City (with telephone number 587-9634), 31st Floor of Fraser Place Manila in Makati (with tel. no. 815-4271), Fifth Level of Shangri-La Plaza in Mandaluyong (with tel. no. 635-6087), and #14 Cluster 2 Molito Lifestyle Bldg. in Alabang (with tel. no. 556-0927).
The Cravings of the Heart menu is available from February 12 to 15, 2015, only.
C2’S FESTIVE FILIPINO FEAST
C2 Classic Cuisine, home of Filipino classic dishes with a contemporary touch, gives a different spirit to Valentine celebrations by creating a Filipino fiesta ambiance with its Valentine Boodle promotion. Yes, boodle as in boodle fight! All three of them. They are set dinners with delectable Filipino dishes laid out on layers of banana leaves and eaten in traditional boodle “kamayan” style.
C2’s Valentine Boodle offers three set boodle menus.
Set A: Love Triangle (Php1,200) is good for 3 and consists of Inihaw na Liempo, Inihaw na Tadyang ng Baka, Inasal na Manok, Pork BBQ, Ensaladang Mangga, Fiesta Rice, Turon ala Mode and Carafe Iced Tea. The Turon ala Mode, of course, is served in a bowl so the melting ice cream will not flow into and mix with the main dishes.
Set B: Barkada Boodle (Php1,600) is good for 5 to 6 and comes complete with Crispy Hito, Lumpiang Shanghai, Calamares, Bagnet, Fried Tofu, Ensaladang Mangga, Kangkong ni Dodong, Fiesta Rice, Leche Flan and Carafe Iced Tea.
Set C: Barkada Boodle (Php1,800) is also good for 5 to 6 persons and is made up of Stuffed Squid, Grilled Tilapia, Halabos na Hipon, Fried Bangus Belly, Ensaladang Mangga, Laing, Kangkong ni Dodong, Chicharon Rice, Buko Pandan and Carafe Iced Tea.
C2’s Valentine Boodle promo is available from February 12 to March 31, 2015, in all C2 Classic Cuisine branches located at the Fifth Level of Shangri-La Plaza in Mandaluyong (with telephone number 636-1510), Robinsons Place Manila (tel. no. 567-2402), The Wharf at Lakefront, Sucat, Parañaque (tel. no. 551-0447), and 18 Missouri St. in Greenhills, San Juan (tel. no. 723-2347).
