07/07/2024
A well spent Sunday!
Talk about Wyndell’s Al Fresco all the way!
Just to let everyone know, me and my Family loves a good comfort food, good ambiance and obviously a good service! Wyndell’s is where you want to go! This wasn’t the first time we ate in in this fabulous restaurant, we know that the food is good however their food ranges from P300 – 600 per dish, not the average not like the other restaurants along Marilaque strip.
The first time we ate was in their Alfresco branch in Marikina-Infanta Highway Tanay, Rizal. The security guard greeted us and helped us park our cars properly. And I like how they initially greet you with a smile even with super “tirik ng araw” Sunday. We just finish attending Mass in Regina Rica and went there to eat lunch.
From the entrance there’s a tiny souvenir store and so as treats and snacks that you can buy before going home. There’s an outdoor grill spots for their Unli-samgypsal or Korean BBQ. And on the proper dining area, I like that they assisted us, and ushered us to our seats (at that time we were only 4).
It was amazing, the crew were all smiling, even the kitchen staff that does the grill and all sorts of cooking were also like a very happy people. Although my family prefers an airconditioned place, it really didn’t bother us because of the amazing view of nature and the breath of fresh air. It felt homey but with a touch of elegance. I apologize I was not able to take pictures of the food that we ate during that time I only have a few saved.
For Starters we ordered the Caesar Salad – I love the serving it was enough for the 4 of us. We also liked the freshness of the romaine lettuce and the saltiness coming from the bacon bits however the croutons were just plain. Dressing was good, I liked the saltiness from the anchovies and the peppery flavour of the entire dish.
I remembered ordering Grilled Bangus (650.00) for my mom, first thing I noticed were the grill marks, talk about the perfect grill (only culinary folks would understand), the chard looks on that fish was just a work of art. I also like the freshness of the tomatoes, cucumber and onions. First look (No way this won’t taste good) and that just gave it all, not just a picture-perfect dish, it’s taste? The sourness of the salsa with the Bangus meat – PERFECT COMBINATION! Mom was happy!
The Seafood Marinara (P670.00) wasn’t really the pasta dish that I expected it to be, although there was a few pieces of seafood (Mussles, squid and shrimp), I wasn’t really tasting the tangy and the sweetness of the Marinara Sauce – I wasn’t able to finish it. If I am being ask if I would order it again, I probably won’t.
My Dad ordered, their Tagliatelle Bolognese (P450.00) – He wasn’t too happy as well, he says that the pasta was to soggy and overcooked, the sauce was a little bland. I also noticed that the Garlic bread didn’t really taste garlicy. Funny though, my dad was able to finish it. So, that’s still a good sign, he still liked it.
My sister ordered, Fish and chips (P520.00) , that was the high light during our first visit, I like the crispy fried dory and the tartar sauce was to die for! I knew that they pat dry their white fish because the crispyness of the fish won’t be perfect if the fish is too wet and dipped into a batter. That’s not going to be crispy at all. The Chips during that time was like camote fries which complimented the fish because of the sweetness of the camote fries. That was a 10/10 dish!
For our drinks, Coke Zero (P100.00), Mango shake (P200.00) , Caramel Macchiato (P160.00), Hazelnut (P160.00). The Coffee based Ice blended drinks were ok, what I loved was the Mango Shake, I love sweet drinks, I don’t know if there were fresh fruits but that was a 10/10 for me.
Our second visit (July 7, 2024) I’ve decided to make sure that Wyndell’s is known and very much recommended to all! There is a new branch in Tanay town proper, address is at 54 Manila East Road, Plaza Aldea Tanay, Rizal.
I love the consistency of the security guards helping with the parking space, hand gestures on where to park even when leaving the restaurant, the good service was still there. He continued to help us cross our car off the street. That for me was really a plus! Hand down to Kuya Guard!
Anyways, we were kind of worried about getting a good seat for our family because since my mom and my dad are both seniors we wanted to have seats on the first floor instead of the upper floor. But to our surprise we got to the place early before lunch time. My nephew has a good eye for a good design of resto, and immediately when he saw the sign – “THAT’S SO COOL!” he says! I like the simplicity of the design, the easily seen “WYNDELL’S” signage gave the classy, elegant vibes. The huge doors (obviously I prefer huge doors for my body type! HAHA!) But it gave the aesthetic look, the brown and white motif, the gold and wood number stands (although there was a little dust on it), the black accents of the pastry chiller and the transparent kitchen – the kitchen staff was a little crowded, but I like that they always seem clean (I mean who wouldn’t specially that they can be seen easily). The Glass stairs, the wooden steps with black linings, very classic yet it has it's appeal!
I love the assembly line that they had, the sliding window with a wooden accent. That’s something I haven’t seen in any restaurant, normally there’s a block where there’s the bussing in and bussing out area but with Wyndell’s Town, we can see it all! That’s an overall 10/10! I wish my mentors from the hospitality industry would be able to visit this place!
The thing that ticked me off was the chairs, for someone my size, the chair stands hurt a little but not a big deal. I still liked the cushion and style of the chair. If I were to eat on the upper floor, I might be more comfortable because of the Rattan chairs on the upper floor. However, with the couch style, it’s giving me café vibes and not for like heavy dining. I also like how high the ceilings were, and the white paint gave the clean look to it. Very open, very welcoming and very cozy.
The wash area was a little small for that big of an establishment, but the style was simple it had wood gaps to kind of separate the dining area and the wash area. I took a quick photo of the lady’s bathroom; it was clean and straight forward. The outdoor dining was just about 2 tables, if you are to seat outside, I recommend doing it at dinner time or nighttime.
On with the food:
Arugula Salad (P380.00) – The peppery taste of Arugula was the highlight of this salad appetizer, the fresh and crunchy romaine lettuce was a perfect bite, the cherry tomatoes and the julienne carrots combined it one bite was just perfect. The balsamic vinaigrette was also good – perfect start! We did order two of those!
Grilled Oysters with Baked Cheese (P500.00 + P70.00 for cheese) – I can’t even begin to explain dish dish – it was too pricy, but I have no regrets! THIS IS JUST A MUST-TRY! Gresh off the grill – the melted cheese and buttery taste was just out of this world! Anyone that comes to visit please try it! It is worth it!
Dinengdeng with Bangus (P480.00) – Of course, mom’s choice! The soup was really good! I wish it would have been hotter but all good again no complains, just an FYI. I wasn’t sure what green leaves they used I was torn between an alukbati or talbos ng camote, it was a little slimy for my taste (I wasn’t sure if it’s because of the okra but I didn’t get any okra on that dish), the string beans was cooked right not too soggy, the eggplant was clean I wasn’t able to witness any crawling things in it (LOL), the squash was not soggy as well just right for me to get a bite into it. The grilled bangus had a smokey taste, I love that they gave us the meaty part of the fish. Nice, mom enjoyed it.
Sizzling Porkchops (P450.00) – I have to say, Pork Chops is my least favorite part of a pork, because here in the Philippines when you order pork chops, it will be the thinnest slice that you could ever get, and it costs almost 100 pesos per piece. Wyndell’s Sizzling pork chops was amazing, I didn’t see any grilled marks on it but I loved how it was cooked just right, the size was about right, not too thin not too thick. What made it even better was the Pepper Gravy! While it was placed on a sizzling plate, the manager (AL) was kind enough to pour on the gravy for my brother. Overall, this dish was a10/10! I enjoyed it!
Wyndell’s Crispy Fried Chicken with Pepper Gravy 8PCS (P750.00) – Again, the crisp and crunch was still consistent. I love the crunch on the outside and the perfectly cooked and tender chicken, THANK GOD you gave us the good parts! Plus points on that! I don’t know what you guys do with the gravy but I loved the gravy, I guess I like pepper a lot that’s why the gravy was something that I really prefer.
Basil Honey Pepperoni (P610.00) – I love the pizza dough – I Don’t if it’s their thing but there was a good crunch on the dough that made it tasty. The honey I really didn’t like, if it was to contrast the taste of the pepperoni, I prefer to leave out the honey and stick with pepperoni and cheese pizza, the mint taste of basil was not really there. But I get the combination of flavors! We were still able to finish it. Probably a 6/10 for this one.
Margherita (P520.00) – One of our family’s favorite flavors of pizza is Margherita – If asked if this is one of the best, I must be honest, this might not be one of them. Although, my nephew and my brother like it a lot that’s enough for me. I’d say this was 5/10 for me.
Pesto Pasta with Chicken (P450.00) – The nutty and minty flavor of this pasta was amazing, the saltiness of cheese and the perfectly cooked pasta. Loved it and the chicken breast slices! It was oh so so so good! This won’t be the last time I’ll be ordering this dish!
Sweet Style Spaghetti (P400.00) – A little disappointed, the pasta was overcooked, the sauce was bland, there wasn’t really anything special about it. My dad didn’t enjoy it.
Classic Cheeseburger (P370.00) – This was a comfort food! Imagine yourself binge watching or just wanted to relax and eat good food! This is the dish you want to order and just feel good about yourself! The grilled beef patty, the fresh lettuce, the sauce and dressing! I literally died! BEST BURGER SO FAR! KUDOS!
Philly Cheesesteak (P400.00) – Compared to the other Philly’s I tasted; it was a little dry for me. I was expecting the juice drippings from the beef, the cheese was not stretchy. There was too much onion, I wasn’t sure if they were aiming for a caramelized onion, it wasn’t - just plain onions. The camote chips was ok, it wasn’t crispy probably because we didn’t eat it right away.
Drinks were: Iced Affogato (P200.00), Iced Caramel Macchiato (P160.00), Ice Blended Vanilla (P170.00), Mango shake (P200.00) and Coke Zero (P100.00) – Beverages were just your ordinary coffee-based drinks, nothing to savvy – could be improved. The Mango Shake though still takes my breath away!
We had an issue about getting the wrong orders of drinks – So we did order a couple of drinks however we were given a wrong order – not knowing what we got (which it was my fault I didn’t ask what they served us) we found out that we were served the wrong drinks. Jasmine our super sweet waitress – told us that the drinks were free, and it was their fault that they served us the wrong drinks, so they have us the drinks for free (3 extra drinks for us). We figured that who ever made the mistake – they might be charged for the drinks that they incorrectly served. So, what we did is we have them money to cover a little of the wrong drinks that was served because obviously neither of us did it intentionally. The servers were kind enough to explain and compensate – not like in other restaurants they’d blame their customers for drinking or eating the wrong order. DUH!
Speaking of the servers, I want to thank Jasmine for being sweet and kind, for always checking on us. To Al the manager, who was kind enough to serve us food, knowing and finding out what we needed, he also gave me his calling card, offering me and my family an early reservation if we need it. To the funny waiter who created rapport while serving us our food – I like that he did a good job on making us laugh. To MJ who took our cake orders, patiently and willingly, even offered us to seat while we wait for our to-go orders. I appreciate you all!
There’s a few that I’d like to add though, I wish there was a way to avoid the flies from coming in, (there were a couple of times that we had to wave our hand to put away the flies.) Secondly, I always say this to my blog posts or vlogs – I wish that the Philippine Hospitality industries starts considering PWD customers or senior citizens (elderly) when it comes to dining. A lot of our Philippine restaurants lack the initiative to consider accessibility customers. I think it would be awesome to start with those. Not just restaurants even for tiny hostels. I mean, how would they experience what I have if they can’t even dine in. Other than those, Wyndell’s is the best place to go to with your family and friends!
Highly recommended!
Til next time guys!
