Review: Mary Grace Cafe

Hello friends! Welcome to yet another restaurant/cafe review

For some time now, I've been seeing Mary Grace in kiosks. Since it was a kiosk, it generally didn't appeal to me and I have ignored it for the past few years. Last Sunday, April 12, 2015, my bestfriend, Mabs, recommended it to me since I  was craving for something light to eat. 

They don't really have a restaurant, but they have extended their kiosk at Robinson's Manila to have an "outdoor" Cafe.

The restaurant was very open, with planters giving it "division". It was something that has put me off of this place. But since it overlooked the Midtown Activity Center, it didn't really matter to me at that time. 

photo from website

Although the  seating area lacked that bit of cafe intimiacy, the place had a homey look. Mismatched chairs of white metal wrought iron made the cafe look like it was in another dimension

Each table was unique. Square wooden tables topped with glass. What made it unique was the sweet handwritten letters, cute photos, stationary and other kitsch that was placed underneath the table. It reminded me of "grandma's house" if my grand mother's house was fancy! They had lovely centerpiece tables and what caught my interest was the seashells painted purple and arranged to look like freshly cut hydrangea! 

The table setup was adorable too! unlike most restaurant cafes that offer placemats for their guests, Mary Grace offered doilys for their drinks!

I love doilys. They're very pretty, but you can't buy them in stores. 

Although their signature items are the ensaymada and cheese rolls (which we didn't try), we did get to taste their cakes, pasta and sandwich, and all I can say is, THEY SHOULD BOAST THEIR FOOD MORE!!

Their food is like a special niche, something you'd probably just try for the sake of trying new, and you will end up regretting not trying them out before! Their pasta is just right and very flavorful! and this is from someone who has very high standards in terms of pasta. I usually prefer my own cooking to most restaurants since I usually end up frustrated and sad, but Mary Grace Cafe know how to make a very good tasting pasta. Something you would crave for when down.

And don't get me started with the cakes

I've never had a strawberry shortcake before. I often see them in animes, where the heroine would be eating that huge slice of happiness, given to her by a date. When I saw the cake, it really remindeed me of that signature anime cake... 

Since it was plastered on shows, I wanted to try one for YEARS 

And here is Mary Grace's STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE

210 php per price

It looks way happier than this gif!!

Every bite had strawberries! Plus the vanilla cream blended everything together. It wasn't overly sweet like most artificially flavored cake, so I really loved this one!

Their Chocolate truffle was also very good! I'm not a fan of Chocolate cakes though, but the cake was super moist, and very flavorful. 

Most cakes make me sick after a few bites, but Mary Grace knows just how to make the right balance!

I also love their staff. They have a small crew but I noticed they're very attentive! They kept our drinks refilled and they're very attentive! They're very friendly too! Unlike Shakey's where you've caught every crew's attention and yet they only listen to your needs, not attend to it.

If I were to rate this shop, I'd give it a perfect 5! I've stopped minding the "outdoor cafe" style, since that has its own charm. 

I would recommend this shop for business meetings, (no outlet for laptops though) study cafe and dates. The place didn't give you a "please eat as quickly as you can" vibe, and left us alone. Even though we were done eating, and they have cleared all plates, the staff still attended us, like we just got there.

It doesn't have that sweet cozy incandescent lighting fixture perfect for a romantic dinner dates, but it's great if you prefer a daytime permanently afternoon tea time dates!

A good crew, good food and a niche cafe, that is what Mary Grace is all about. 

Review: Cara Mia Gelateria

On April 12, 2015, I went with my best friends to have a taste of Cara Mia at Robinsons Ermita. Since it was really hot, I was really in the mood for something cold! Something interesting, "Cara Mia" is Italian for "my dear" and they serve Italian ice cream (Gelato)

The place had a lovely modern setting with incandescent lighting, so it was really cozy. We spent around two hours at the place so I can say it really is!

It was my first time in the place so it took me a long time to decide while at the counter, but I went with a gelato cake and an ice cream.

new flavor... apple Pie

The gelato is served in a paper cup with an adorable plastic spoon. I'm estimating the 1 scoop is around 1.5 cup. The cup is full and heaping, so it's really worth your money.

And as a bonus, since I tried a new flavor, they give you one scoop free of any of their old flavors! We're lucky to be there for their promo!


we got this one for a freebie

photo from Cara Mia website

The Mango Berry Medley, But it was in a cup. The mango taste really blends so well with the cream!

My best friend got a chocolate one

photo from Cara Mia website

I can't recall what the flavor was. But it looked totally awesome and yummy.

The gelato really hold their names well. The apple Pie tasted like an apple pie ala mode, blended all together in a scoop while the Mango Berry Medley tasted like a very creamy mango, with a generous amount of blue berries!

For the cakes, we got the Mango Passion and Rouge

Mango Passion

Rouge

And  I am very happy. I got the rouge and it really was scrumptious! They didn't inform me, but there's a thin layer of sponge cake just above the graham layer. It was triple layer of strawberry, blueberry and vanilla. all presented in an adorable little plate, and garnished, with such adorable-ness.

155 php of happiness

150 php of mango love

The crew was very sweet and accommodating. They know their products very well, which is a plus for me! They didn't serve service water though, but they do serve drinks.

All in all, I think Cara Mia Gelateria is one of those under rated places. Most Gelatos are very expensive, so I was surprised that they served each scoop at less than a 90 php. (most serve at 95php) and they were very generous with the serving. What I love the most are the gelato cakes! each slice is HUGE, and I will definitely trade their cake for a Starbucks cake/drinl. Rouge is the most expensive slice by the way, so if you're in a mood for dessert while you're on a date or if you're catching up with your friends, but don't really want to spend a lot of money, I would definitely recommend this place!