Hearty Lunch Specials and More at Relik Tapas Bar and Lounge
Relik Tapas Bar and Lounge
has proven itself to be an oasis for Manila’s party-savvy folk. Patrons
are often eager to snag tables to rest their liquor on while they dance
the night away. This time, Relik is more than ready to dip its toe into
the pond of daytime dining. Late last year, they began to launch a new
lunch special concept that has quickly become popular with the working
crowd. All these dishes come at an affordable price of P199.
“We started last December,” shares May Liwanag,
Marketing Head. “It hasn’t been very long yet, but some of the items on
this menu have gained some fame among the people who work in the area.
People have limited time and probably a set budget when it comes to
going out for lunch, so we made sure to come up with quick, affordable
but delicious dishes.”
On their lunch special menu, we were able to try the Pork Belly with Salsa Verde and the Grilled Tuna Steak.
The pork belly dish is lovely to behold, with layers of fresh
vegetables, rice, and tender pork belly topped with salsa verde forming a
rainbow-like shape. I was, in particular, very happy with the salsa
verde. It gives the dish a unique, zingy flavour that amplified the
overall taste of the dish. I also found myself falling hard with the
tuna steak, which is a simple dish that speaks of comfort and a little
bit of innovation. A slice of perfectly grilled tuna sits upon a bed of
mashed potatoes and fresh vegetables. I found this quite unusual at
first, as I never really had potatoes with fish before. This combination
turned out to be the most pleasant surprise, as the texture and flavour
of the potato went well with that of the tuna.
Pork Belly with Salsa Verde
Grilled Tuna Steak
Chorizo
Tinta Calamari Negra
One of their specials, the Pez Espada (P550), is
butter-glazed swordfish with garlic and capers, drizzled with lemon and
topped with crispy onions. Given its base, this rather rich dish is full
on flavour and impact. The Arroz Con Pollo (P650) had
us all pleasantly mystified due to how the chicken was cooked. It is
identifiable as a roast, but there was a unique crisp to it that we
could not quite place. The answer to the mystery is that it is a roast
spring chicken cooked in a similar fashion as paella. We couldn’t get
enough of it; even the saffron rice it is served with was attacked with
vigour. Finally, we were able to sample their best-selling Beef Salpicao (P350), marinated beef in all its garlicky goodness. This requires no further praise other than that it is a must-try.
Pez Espada
Arroz Con Pollo
Beef Salpicao
At this point, stuffed with so much savoury goodness, we eagerly moved on to their dessert menu. The Banana Cream Pie (P250)
is sinful goodness in a (fairly deep!) small bowl. It was such a
gratifying experience digging deep into the trenches of bananas, whipped
cream and graham crust to find small treasures like chocolate chips at
the bottom. The Baked Mango Crepe (P160) served as a
great antithesis to its predecessor with its subtler sweetness,
comforting flavour and warm, homey overall feel. We capped the night off
with some of Relik’s specialty drinks: Red Sangria, White Sangria, Classic Mojito, and Mango Mojito.
Banana Cream Pie
Baked Mango Crepe
Thirst quenchers: Relik's Sangrias and Mojitos
Relik continues to herd the night scene by coming up with special themed nights. They have Akoustika Mondays and Fridays, with open mic starting at 9PM. Trivia Tuesdays,
which we managed to catch (and is probably my favourite night event
now), starts at 8PM. Here, one table represents one team, and the goal
of the game is to win a free round of shots for each round won. This is
followed by Unplugged Wednesdays and Tribute Thursdays.
--
Photos by Kat Carpio. Additional images courtesty of Relik.
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