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Showing posts with label a veneto pizzeria ristorante. Show all posts
Showing posts with label a veneto pizzeria ristorante. Show all posts

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Bonus food!

What is "bonus food"? As far as my friend Leslie and I are concerned, it's what we traditionally eat whenever we receive a bonus at work, about twice a year (sometimes more :)). We started this "tradition" eight years ago when we became friends upon my entry to the company. And there's only one restaurant we traditionally go to for our ceremonial lunch or afternoon meal (I can't say snacks because we have a heavy, hearty meal each time. :)). It's A Veneto Pizzeria Ristorante, which has a branch that is walking distance from our office in Quezon City. All these years, we've had the same things on our plates - pizza and pasta. Not that A Veneto serves only these, no, they also have hot and cold hero sandwiches, chicken, mussels, calzone, salads,  and desserts. If my memory serves me right, we've been having the same pizza and pasta variety, too - Plain Nut-Pesto which we share and a slice of New York-style pizza for me and Vegetarian for my friend. 
I've dined at A Veneto in the company of other friends and also some of my kids and tried other food there but the pesto pasta and New York pizza are my absolute favorites. What I really like about A Veneto is that they don't scrimp on ingredients to give their patrons great-tasting food. This, however, once served as a downside for me. I was with my other co-worker/friend Chie and we shared an order of A Veneto's Oil and Garlic with Shrimps Pasta. One thing that solicited "wow" from me was the abundance of shrimps with which our pasta came. Talk about shrimp galore! Hours after indulging, however, there I was with a headache caused by an elevated blood pressure! I've shied away from
Oil and Garlic with Shrimps Pasta from then on. 
Now let's talk about my favorites - first, the Pesto Pasta. At A Veneto, it's soo delicious you'll forget it's healthy too! Lots of basil - which I love for its flavor and load of Vitamins A and C, calcium, iron and magnesium - and olive oil, which is one of the healthiest oils on earth, so every strand of noodle is moist and savory. As for the New York Pizza, it's got lots of ham, pepperoni, beef, onions and bell pepper. Whew! Describing these makes me crave! Darn! :)
Anyway, on our latest gastronomic outing at A Veneto earlier this week, my friend and I had dessert, too (why hadn't we for years?) aside from Plain Nut-Pesto and pizza - Blueberry Cheesecake which we shared. We both loved that a serving of it was quite big and could be contently shared by two persons. It was yummy, with the just the right sweetness to end a perfect meal. One thing, though. I didn't like that it was served on a disposable tub. Methinks they should have put in on a shallow ceramic bowl for better presentation. By the way, my perennial favorite drink at A Veneto is lemonade and I had it again this time. On other times, I had a cup of brewed coffee. 
Aside from the food, ambiance and service at A Veneto are good, too. Need I say A Veneto is one of my favorite restaurants? Till the next bonus!

New York Pizza, P100 per slice/P580, 16"; P420, 14"; P260, 10"
Vegetarian Pizza, P100 per slice/P580, 16"; P420, 14"; P260, 10"





Plain Nut-Pesto Pasta, P200, good for sharing.
My plate.
Blueberry Cheesecake, P90. It's big enough for sharing!
My half of the Blueberry Cheesecake.

Lemonade, P65.









Saturday, March 31, 2012

Pesto-rrific!

Creamy chicken spaghetti (Dec. 24, 2011)
Penne with spicy meat sauce
(March 25, 2012)










I've long planned to try making pesto but was never able to do it. Pesto is on top on my list of pasta favorites and it's quite ironic that I've never gotten around to actually making it. Over the years, I've tried many pasta recipes and modesty aside, my friends and kids loved most of them. Yesterday, my daughter beat me to making pesto. And was I impressed! She made not just good pesto, it was a near-perfect pesto! The basil leaves' flavor was not too intense, but worked to a nice balance of taste with the nuts and other spices.  My daughter might as well give some restaurants a run for their money with her pesto! One pizza-pasta restaurant that, for me, serves good pesto is a Veneto Pizzeria Ristorante, which has a branch a stone's throw away from our office in QC. And my daughter's version of pesto comes close to what it serves.  Attagirl!