A few months ago, I celebrated my 28th birthday. Yes, I am aware of the fact that this is a very late post. Prior to this, I have celebrated my birthday with my siblings at Woodfire. Anyway, Masseto was one of those restaurants that I have always wanted to try but did not find the right occasion nor company to do so. Alas, for my birthday, I had an excuse.

Dragging my family to the streets of Salcedo Village on a weekday will always prove to be a bit stressful, only because Makati traffic is truly horrible. And even if I practically spent a few years working in the area, I have never quite gotten to scout out Masseto prior to this visit. It was helpful to call the establishment and ask for directions on how to get there and where to park. Anyway, discreetly located along Valero street, was this simple white wall of marble with letter M’s on them. Masseto is split into two spaces, a bar and a restaurant.

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Because of everyone’s busy schedules, I had to begin the celebration of my birthday several days early. Thus this was my party with the baranggay, a.k.a. with my lovely siblings. You see, it is always challenging for me to find a place to eat at because I always want the place to be something I have never tried before yet sensible to my wallet. I was planning to bring them to Tagaytay to finally try Amorama (because I have been wanting to for so long) but we all cannot find enough common time to which we can get together.

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It was my first time to spend Christmas Day and New Year’s Day some place other than my home. But, as they say, your home is where you are loved and last Christmas, it was in Singapore. My Mom and I flew to Singapore to spend the holidays with my brother because the industry he is in demands him to be really busy when all of us normal mortals enjoy our vacation days. And since my brother was working on Christmas Day, we celebrated it sometime between Christmas and January 1st.

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Italian food is one of my weaknesses and although it may be true that everyone can whip out pasta dishes, not everyone can make them very well. That is why when I hear or read that an establishment is amazing at serving Italian dishes, I always want to give it a try. In Va Bene’s case, it took me probably more than two years and an earlier planned dinner that did not push thru because it closed, to satisfy my curiosity.

My friends and I were all set for a pho-night. I do not eat Vietnamese food that often but from my last experience, I liked those noodles very much. Thus, the disappointment when I drove by our target Vietnamese restaurant and read that it was indeed closed and transferring elsewhere. It was probably serendipitous since we ended up at Va Bene. At 8:30 p.m., it was full but thankfully, I only had to wait for a couple of minutes to get seated.

I noticed though that the place was cramped. There was even an instance when the glass of the person 2 tables from us got tumbled by the bag of another customer, accidentally of course. But that was really because the tables were so close to each other.

Anyway, even if I have not started ordering (because sometimes friends make you wait, ya know?! ), I was served with crostini with tomato salsa in olive oil. It was a pretty good gesture not to mention quite a good appetizer to have.

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I had not gone to Fort for a while until last Friday. More establishments have opened at the High Street Central area since I was there last. Rocket Room is a place where you can spend an after-office drink in jazz or (slightly old) pop music. Being there made me feel relaxed and glad that the week was over. I think it is frequented by ex-pats as most of the guests the Friday night I was there were. Also, I suggest going there during happy hour (4pm-8pm everyday – please call to double check) where local beers are buy 1 take 1 and red & white wines as well as the martinis are discounted.

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