Upon entrance, I was welcomed by Steve Magdaraog, the managing partner of Il Ponticello. He offered me drinks and introduced me to his wife, Imy, and the executive chef, Panky Lopez whom I’m very pleased to meet. Then he told me a quick background about the restaurant. Since 1998, Il Ponticello (known to the locals here as “Ponti” for short) has been popularized as a dining and night out spot in Salcedo Village, Makati serving authentic Italian cuisine. Late last year, the restaurant business has been revived with Steve’s group taking over.
Well, it’s good to know that Ponti has kept its venue at the heart of the Makati business district where employees, yuppies, expats, students and travelers all come along after a busy and tiring day to take their load off and stuff themselves with great food and beverages.
I’m privileged to be invited here to taste the best of its revamped “modernized Italian” menu and experience its cool ambiance with the country’s most awesome bloggers I know, thanks to Boss Spanky. 🙂
Review of Il Ponticello (Salcedo Village, Makati City)
Ambiance: ★★★★★
The design of the room was done pretty neatly, with modern touches everywhere. Purple is my favorite color so the theme of the place got me fired up easily. Oh, the vibe can be contagious.
There’s a long comfy couch with pillows at one side, while the rest of the dining floor is filled with sturdy dining furniture.
Behind thick curtains, a private dining area (maybe a function hall for special events) is still ongoing construction, but we had a sneak peek and found that it also looked sleek and glamorous. In that regard, Il Ponticello gave the impression of a classy bar and restaurant, a good interpretation of a modern Italian joint.
Food: ★★★★★
We had a superb meal which took about four hours, starting from the antipasti, followed by wonderful selections and variations of pasta, pizza, mains and desserts. So yes, it was a blast. 😀
Antipasti
We first feasted on the Portobello Alla Griglia (PhP 490) which essentially was a dish that screamed CHEESE and MUSHROOMS. There are appetizers and there are great appetizers. Obviously this one lands as the latter. Seeing how good it is (with grilled portobello, mozzarella di bufala, smoked ricotta, poached cherry tomatoes, and evoo) won’t make you dare skip.
A plate of mozarella bites pan fried in butter and balsamic reduction, the Mozzarella in Carrozza (PhP 290) (in English, “mozzarella in carriage”) was loaded with gooey cheese delight inside. Lightly fried, it tasted buttery and not too starchy.
Pasta
The Lasagna Carbonara (PhP 420) is a combination of two favorites in one. A staple on Il Ponticello’s pasta menu, this creamy delight was made with homemade lasagna, mozzarella cream, pancetta tesa strips and grana padano. For a rather wild and creative change, this pasta was topped with egg yolk that can be popped and mixed. Result was a more flavorful lasagna carbonara that’s almost out-of-the-world delicious.
Another legendary pasta dish from Il Ponticello was the Crema di Tartufo (PhP 450), which featured a serious love affair of truffle and mushrooms, pappardelle, cream, truffle paste, truffle oil and porcini mushrooms. The powerful aroma of truffle and mushrooms had me licking my lips and the sight of the rich pasta had me drooling. 😯 I’d remember Crema de Tartufo as one of my favorites! It was perfect.
The tomato-based Gnocchi Amatriciana (PhP 390) tasted simple and straightforward. It consisted of homemade potato and semolina gnocchi, thick cut panceta and grana padano cheese. The cute bite-sized pillows of gnocchi were soft and each had a delicate kick of spice. You also can’t go wrong with this on your table.
Pizza
Can you believe that Rotolo (PhP 480) falls under the category of “pizza”? I couldn’t. I’ve always known pizza as an oven-baked flat bread that usually goes into the shape of a circle, rectangle or even square and oval in some pizzerias or pizza restaurants. So I was struck upon learning that there exists a rolled pizza stuffed with mortadella, ricotta cheese, tomato cream sauce topped with dollops of pesto and it’s called Rotolo. 😛 Yeah, you may call me ignorant for that matter! But hey, it’s great to learn something new—and sharing it, right? I’m in love with the pesto on top. ♥
If you are a fan of ham and cheese, the Pizza Valdostana (PhP 520) is the pizza that must be kept at the table for the entirety of your meal. It’s composed of parma ham, gorgonzola cream, mozarella and baby aragula. This pizza was lovely, with the ham so thick and the cheese not stingy. High fives all around.
Deliciously delicate misto of tartufo and fresh mushrooms, mushroom cream sauce, mozzarella cheese and truffle oil—mix everything and you get the Pizza Tartufo (PhP 520). The truffle oil in Tartufo smelled divine and played a major role in whetting my appetite. Oh, if I could, I would have unhinged my jaw like a snake to take more slices of this pizza all at once (but we know I can’t do that, haha).
Main
The Chilean Seabass in Bottiglia (PhP 1400) was served with pan roasted Chilean seabass, prawn broth, mussels, clams, Napoletana Piccante sausage, finished and served in a mason jar. With crispy skin, the seabass had a little fishy taste but I appreciated that the texture was firm, silky and overall pleasant. The fish’s flesh was moist and as it was swimming in the sauce, the flavor bursts through in each bite.
in the jar…
Ponti’s Presto was for me one of the most visually stimulating dish probably because of my love for prawns (with shells already cracked open ready for eating). 😛 Together in one plate, the grilled prawns, cherry tomatoes, fried basil, garlic confit and trofie pesto worked nicely. The grilled prawns were plump, butterflied and cooked to perfection.
The porchetta appeared to me as “bread” from afar. Funny I only realized it’s not the moment it’s chopped before our eyes. The Signature Porchetta alla Romana (PhP 390 for solo – 2 Thick Slices Porchetta Carving, Pilaf Rice, Pommery Mustard Sauce; PhP 1200 for whole – 1 Kg Whole Roast Carving and Pommery Mustard Sauce) is slow-roasted pork belly seasoned with fennel and garlic served with pommery mustard sauce.
If you’re planning to dine in at Il Ponticello, it’s absolutely mandatory that you try this traditional Italian dish. The porchetta was so tender and moist, with skin beautifully crispy. It was so yummy that I didn’t mind eating pork this time. 🙂
Last (but not the least) we sampled on the mains category was the Flat Iron Steak (PhP 590)—USDA choice flat iron steak with garlic mashed potatoes and summer salad. Everyone tried this, and everyone approved! The beef was super tender and packed with flavor. I found myself nodding and smiling. I’m sure my mom would like this at lot, too.
Desserts
No matter how full we were, we still we gotta have some room for desserts. First on the lineup was what dreams are made of: Tiramisu (PhP 290)—savoiardi, zabaglione, amaretto, ristretto and cocoa powder. Decadent, fluffy, creamy and chocolate-y, this tiramisu was the best I had in this lifetime. It had just the right amount of sweet, so it’s easy to be tempted to stab a fork and eat the cake down to the last bite. The cake was accompanied by a Nutellino, which basically consisted of nutella and vodka. Talk about power shots. Wow! 😀
The Caramello di Semolina (PhP 290), made with white bread, semolina, cream, butter, eggs, caramel and ice cream, was also good but it wasn’t to my particular liking.
One thing that can’t be missed at Il Ponticello is their Cannoli (PhP 290). This mini taco-looking pastry was made with crispy cinnamon pastry shell stuffed with ricotta cream, dark chocolate morsels, nuts, powdered sugar. I liked that it produced a good crunch sound effect and the filling had a gentle flavor.
Wiggling sexy, the Cheesecake Panna Cotta (PhP 290) offered an elegant tang with cheesecake crumble and caramel sauce. Its crumbly smoothness can’t be beaten. The taste was just clean and simple, one that won’t push you deliriously over the edge of a food coma.
More jiggly and creamier than the cheesecake panna cotta, the Dark Chocolate Panna Cotta with Salted Caramel served with chocolate soil, caramel cream and sea salt was melt-in-your-mouth heaven. It contained 72% dark chocolate and with the salty sweet combo, this had a life span of not more than a minute on our table. So good!
We’re already zombies (death by the chocolate goodness) but the Budino Al Cioccolato (PhP 390) was calling out and begging to be eaten, so it was devoured in silence. We’ve just run out for words. A touch warm, the chocolate lava pudding was moist and the richness was intensified. It’s presented with vanilla cream, amarena cherries and caramel sauce and it’s hardly possible to resist.
Price for Value: ★★★★☆
Sure, Il Ponticello is generally expensive, but food prices are reasonable for the quality and ingenuity. Spending a little more for food that you can thoroughly enjoy is okay once in a while. If you can’t handle paying out alone, having a complete and satisfying meal here will be manageable if you go with a bigger group and order plenty of food to share so you can also share the bill. 🙂
Note: The grand opening will be on this Friday, October 24, 2014, so watch out!
[schema type=”review” url=”https://www.facebook.com/ilponticellomakati” name=”Il Ponticello” description=”2/F Antel Corporate Center, 121 Valero Street, Near V.A. Rufino Street, Salcedo Village, Makati City” rev_name=”For inquiries, call 02 5539971, 9949512 or +63 9497608731″ author=”Rochkirstin Santos” pubdate=”2014-10-22″ user_review=”14″ min_review=”0″ max_review=”15″ ]
Operating hours:
Lunch: Monday – Friday 11:30AM – 2:00PM
Dinner: Monday – Thursday 6:00pm-12:00AM and Friday and Saturday 6:00pm-2:00AM
Dress Code:
Smart Casual (No slippers and shorts)
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