We were to meet some friends at Café Ilang-Ilang of the Manila Hotel last December for our annual Christmas lunch and reunion. However, we underestimated the travel time and arrived late for our appointment. Our friends were almost done eating lunch, however, we were hungry, so we decided to order food at the lobby lounge of the Manila Hotel.
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| The Manila Hotel Lobby Lounge |
Looking at the menu, we surmised the price of the food to be quite reasonable. Hindi sya kasing expensive like in other hotels. Plus, we were already famished since we left home early.
We just ordered a whole four-cheese pizza for sharing and a plate of spaghetti with meatball. We didn’t want to order too much and then realize later on that the food was bland or plain.
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| Four-cheese pizza |
When the food came, we tried the pizza first. It was actually delicious; the crust wasn’t too thick, and the cheese toppings were generous. Kalasa rin naman nya yung mga four-cheese pizza sa ibang restaurants tapos yun nga, hindi rin naman sya super mahal kaya na-enjoy naming ito.
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| Spaghetti with meatballs |
Meanwhile, the spaghetti with meatballs was also good. Ito yung usual na Italian-style spaghetti na more on the tart side because of the tomatoes. Masarap din yung giant meatball, meaty sya and flavorful. Yun nga lang, medyo nabitin ako sa meatballs, probably because we were really hungry at that time.
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| The Manila Hotel Lobby Lounge |
On another note, I like the old-world charm of the Manila Hotel. Sobrang vintage ng hotel, in fact, maski yung mga restrooms makaluma yung pagka-design nya. I’m talking about the walls na made mostly of wood, then yung lighting na parang classic vintage talaga ang dating.
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| Christmas tree at the Manila Hotel Lobby Lounge |
Pati yung lobby, literal na your eyes will feast on the beautiful details of the interiors of the hotel. At that time, marami daw celebrities na nag check in because of the Metro Manila Film Festival parade, kaya super busy sa hotel. And then because it was the Christmas season, maraming yuletide decors sa lobby.
Even the façade looks classic; maganda and parang you will be transported back to a different era. Pati nga yung uniform ng mga receptionists and bell boys sa door, makaluma rin ang design (think Katipunero style).
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