Re-Connect with Family, Friends and Fab Dishes at Sobremesa by Chef Benjo Tuason

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Dining becomes more delightful when you are with family or friends. It becomes a lot more enjoyable if you are able to converse with them while enjoying a sumptuous meal may it be during anytime of the day at home or at our favorite restaurant.

However, conversations are quickly becoming a thing of the past because of our digital or online lifestyle where we spend most of our time focusing on our smartphones or tablets to check our SMS messages, e-mails or updates on our social media pages. The downside of being conveniently connected is we become Physically disconnected.

It's becomes a laughing matter when family or friends communicate with other through their devices even when they are just a few meters apart. But can you blame us if we find it easier to send our messages with our powerful devices which can do more like take photos or videos of our food?

Photo opportunities with Instagrammable dishes or parts of the restaurant, selfies or groupies with our companions, with the chef(s) and almost everything. It makes us creative and artistic, and we get to share our experience with a lot more people all over the world.

But there's this restaurant which tries to put us on break with the rest of the connected world and keep our attention with the people we are with at the moment. We are given the chance to lock our devices for a while so we could physically connect with our dining companions, and who knows, maybe with the rest of the people around us who are also enjoying the meals at Sobremesa.

The novel "No Phone Challenge" asks visitors to lock the phones in a cage until the end of the meal, in exchange for a free dessert.

Sobremesa offers South American and Filipino inspired dishes prepared by Head Chef and Part-Owner Chef Benjo Tuason. But aside from the celebrity chef whom I first met at the equally popular Urbn Bar & Kitchen and Relik Restaurant & Bar, the restaurant is also partly owned by celebrity siblings Daniel and Vanessa Matsunaga. This means you could get opportunities to see them, and their celebrity friends, at certain occasions. Chef Benjo was telling us Daniel once brought his co-stars from the TV reality competition "I Can Do It" for dinner. I'm sure that will happen again and again soon especially knowing the siblings has a lot more equally famous friends from showbiz, business and even politics.

The restaurant is a business venture by The Menu Group (TMG). TMG was established in 2015 by a group of passionate restaurateurs dedicated in coming up with restaurant ventures that feature exciting cuisines which caters to diverse variety of markets. It is the brains behind 3 other new restaurants situated in popular and up-and-coming spots in Ortigas and Mandaluyong - Sangkap by Chef Raymar Reyes at Portico Alveo, Sasa Asian Cuisine at Estancia Mall, Capitol Commons, and Splice Events Place & Restaurants at The Portal, Greenfield District.

Chef Benjo served us many of their specialties from starters to desserts, including their main entrees:

Shrimp Ceviche Salad (P250)

The Shrimp Ceviche Salad offers a fresh dining start as it boosts your appetite for more. Many would often skip salad starters to save on their budget but you would surely regret it if you skimp on this tasty treat.

Selection of Cured Meats (P495)

You'll never go wrong with the filling Selection of Cured Meats that's good for a big group. It consists of Chorizo Pamplona, Salchicon, Vela De Lomo and Chorizo De Bilbao. This combo of meats goes perfectly well with wine, and maybe cheese, so it's not only for starters but also to best to end the day conversing with friends.
 

Queso Fundido (P320)

The Queso Fundido is a delicious mix of three melted cheeses, chorizo, garlic and tequila served with homemade square-shaped chips. It feels great to continuously dip in and bite until they all disappear. But still, there's always that "dyahe" piece that keeps remaining on the plate since everyone is to ashamed to pick up the last piece. Both the cheese concoction and the chips complement each other.

 

Bulalo Estofado (P490)

The Bulalo Estofado, a dish passed on to the chef by his mother, remains my favorite dish at Sobremesa. Its distinctive taste is very unique that you won't find the same meal that even comes close to the delightful taste bud experience. I would keep on ordering this dish on every visit. Promise!

Peruvian Roasted Chicken (P380 half, P700 whole)

The Peruvian Roasted Chicken is not your typical roasted chicken. Again, it offers a different taste compared to the rest of the roasted chickens out there. Price-wise, you won't regret ordering this dish for sharing. I assure you everyone would be pleased with this spiced chicken treat.

Stir-Fried Beef and Peppers (P250)

Among their rice meals is the Stir-Fried Beef and Peppers. I believe it can also come with a poached egg as part of their various lunch meals that are well-suited for the budget. It's definitely a lot better than the Tapa dish we all know.

Australian Rib-Eye Steak (A La Carte - P600 at approx.250 grams, UnliSteak - P750))

Tender and mouth-watering Australian Rib-Eye Steak which can be taken either coffee-crusted, herbed, or salt and pepper-rubbed. It's also available in Unli-Steak promo where the highest number of meals so far reached up to 7 servings. Would you like to beat the current score?

Cuban Pork Chops

The Cuban Pork Chops with garlic mashed potato and caramelized onions is really filling. Every bite is quite satisfying. I love Pork Chops however they are cooked but I would always appreciate the meat to be tender at every bite. Sobremesa is able to accomplish that.

Deep Fried Pork belly (P250)

Rice meals are also available as part of their lunch menu like their Deep Fried Pork Belly with Corn Salsa as side dish plus a dip for added taste. Priced at P250, that's fine with everyone's budget at the particular part of the Metro where offices are all over.

Mango Cheesecake (P230)

The Mango Cheesecake will make you want more than just a portion of this yummy dessert. They surely left the best for last for it will be a very memorable treat for everyone. Cheesecake goodness from start to end.

Lecheroon (P200)

I've guessed it right. The Lecheroon is a combination of the popular Leche Plan and Macaroon where you get a combination of taste of the two all-time favorites. The eyes won't reveal at first, but as soon as you tasted it, you'll be delighted with the highly-sumptuous experience as the texture and sweetness starts to linger.

But aside from their fab dishes, rice meals, and Unli-Steak promo, Sobremesa obviously has a lot more to offer like their group bundle promo which allows you to enjoy discounted prices to further save on the budget. They also accept reservations for events, meetings and intimate gatherings.

Group bundles of 4pax (P1600) and 8pax (P2800) features Sobremesa's best-selling dishes.

They also have all kinds of liquors at their bar for those who want more reasons to celebrate. The restaurant ahs a line of signature cocktails, with unlimited Patron and P70 cocktail promos.

Bloggers enjoying the meals at Sobremesa

We would like to thank Chef Benjo for having us and personally orienting us about Sobremesa and their specialty dishes. We would higly recommend the restaurant to everyone who wants both affordable and satisfying meals.

Chef Benjo Tuason

As what the restaurant encourages their customers to have, our conversation with Chef Benjo made the lunch treat a lot more interesting as he reveals all those interesting facts. Sure enough, going offline every now and then  would allow you better interaction with your loved ones, may they be part of the family, your relatives, colleagues from work, business partners, long-time friends, or everyone you wish to become more intimate with. Nothing beats personally chatting than all those retweets, comments, shares, etc., online.

After all, nowadays most misunderstandings are brought about by miscommunication and lost-in-translation in the online world. We need to disconnect to truly connect.

Visit Sobremesa at the Sapphire Bloc, Ortigas Center Pasig. It is open from 11 am to 2 pm and 5 pm to 12 mn. Contact 09064452559 for reservations.

Get to know more about Sobremesa at https://www.facebook.com/sobremesaph

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