Rastro @ Burgos Circle
Our ‘abuelos’ and ‘abuelas’ (grandfathers and grandmothers) relate old Spanish food to their childhood. During their time, food in the country are not global yet compared to our generation now. Home-cooked foods were recipes they learned from ancestors or from their provinces, depending on where they grew up. Limited types of cuisine in their homes. Spanish food resembles itself to a classic cuisine in the Filipino culture. It was the “sosyal” and “in” food before. Now that we are more immersed into various cuisines from left to right, I’d say Spanish cuisine didn’t lose its demand in the Philippines. Until now, Spanish food is still known as a classic favorite passed from their generation to our generation.
My visit to Rastro backtracked me to what our grandparents used to eat much like Paella, a traditional family favorite. I love the fine presentation of every Spanish snack and main dish. I noticed a little tweak of 21st century way of cooking into classic Spanish cooking that worked to achieve the Spanish style Rastro is aiming for.
The Food:
Paella Catalana (Small - Php 490; Medium - Php 950; Large - P1,350) - Who wouldn’t want those burnt edges of a traditional Spanish Paella Catalana? I always target grabbing a spoonful of burnt Paella portions. This Paella was pretty ‘ok’ for me. I couldn’t say great because the edges was not necessarily that burnt, as I was expecting. Also, I’d be wanting more seafoods mixed on my order.
Paella Negra (Small - Php450, Medium - Php850; Large - Php1,200) - Take one big bite into your mouth and expect a grungy look when you smile. :D The squid ink stains after every bite. It is one of my favorites at Rastro because of its twist of lime, seafoods and aioli sauce on top. However, I don’t recommend eating this during a meeting or your first date. Make it to a point you have a napkin right beside you to wipe off those black ink that stains your lips and teeth. Think twice before ordering Paella Negra.
”Comfort is at the core of Maple menu.” They limit their menu to dishes that will define comfort to your bellies. From its name Maple, obviously the key ingredient they use is maple syrup. Through the use of their primary and main ingredient, maple syrup, customers of Maple wouldn’t leave the place without experiencing high-quality type of maple-based comfort meals. 
Blueberry and Cream Cheese Pancake Tower (Php 450) - Can you try guessing how many layers of pancakes this is? This tower of pancakes are layered with blueberries and cream cheese in between. Every piece of pancake is loaded with flavors of blueberry and cream cheese. The batter of pancakes itself is way better than the famous franchise pancake people are raving about. According to Maple, they way they cook their pancakes is similar to how you do souffles. That makes their pancakes stand out. Oh, the answer to how many layers of buttermilk pancakes is 6. 
Maple Buttermilk Pancakes (Php 275) - Simple layers of light pancakes with powdered sugar dispersed on the plate. The distinct ingredient that will make this simple pancakes turn sophisticated is the pure maple syrup, which you can get at Maple as well. Just add Php 75 for a small container of pure maple syrup. After trying the pure maple syrup, my standards in eating my pancakes went up one notch higher. I now know the difference of eating over-the-counter maple syrup and pure maple syrup on my pancakes. 
We were welcomed at Bonfire by choosing our preferred beverages. I didn’t choose anything special or unusual, simple fruit shake is good enough for me. As a matter of fact, water alone is the best drink I could partner with any dish. Often times, I like to experiment with different beverages to partner with my meals. Let’s just say, depends what the mood is.
The Shrimp, Mango and Alfalfa Salad (Php 185) - Starting the dinner with a plate of salad sets the mood right. Shrimp, mango, crab stick and alfalfa all mixed up sounds good and tastes good as well. The ingredients are all safe for a plate of salad, nothing edgy and new. One plate could feed about 2 persons. 
Bonfire Grilled Chicken Pizza (Php 295) - Compared to CPK’s bbq chicken pizza, I’d still hit the button for CPK. But that doesn’t mean I’m not cheering for Bonfire’s version. I love the sweet and smoked barbecue sauce lightly scattered on the thin-crusted pizza. The chicken barbecue chunks on top of mozzarella cheese absolutely got me wanting for more. For its price, a casual dining over sangria and pizza is not a splurge at all. 
