Abe Restaurant, Metro Manila, Philippines
Last Visit: Nov 2008
OVERALL
I've read about this Filipino restaurant - supposedly with Kapampangan cuisine - on newspaper and several websites. It is known as one of the best high-quality restaurant with local flavors, often mentioned along with Fely J or Sentro 1177. So of course I had to try it. Well, the reviews were accurate - it was definitely not a typical Manila Filipino restaurant with crispy pata and boneless bangus (although they do have those too). The overall quality is also good - from fruit shake to dessert everything is solid. If you are ready to venture beyond Gerry's and Max's, this is a good place to try.
FOOD
A good thing about eating in Philippines is that you will very often be able to taste drastically different flavors even if you get dishes with the same name at different restaurants. This one is no exception. There were plenty of surprises - some pleasant, but some not so pleasant, mostly inspiring and uplifting though.
We ordered some typical dishes and some less common ones, which might be Pampangas specialties. The pomegranade sinigang with fish belly proved to be a bit too much for us - it was simply too thick and pomegranade flavor was too powerful. But things got better afterwards.
We then tried the usual crispy pata, but with friend garlic on top and rather chinese-flavor soysauce and grilled tilapia. We then had some less common dishes like curry chicken, adobo rice in bamboo and a spectacular lamb with roaster garlic. All these dishes are nicely done - they look delicious and taste even better, definitely all go very well with rice (ha ha, not a surprise). The flavor is full and carry the obvious country roots, especially on the meat texture - suitable for 90 years old who've lost all their teeth.
The desserts are somewhat plain but reasonably good. The flan is very classic, and the halo-halo is filled with different kinds of beans - if you like beans then it's wonderful. BTW they even take their fruit shakes very seriously - a bartender is pretty much dedicated in making some real amazing shakes from a ton of different fruits that are amazingly good, so do order some shakes. The biggest issue with this restaurant is that it's soooo easy to over indulge yourself, especially as the food, including the drinks and desserts, are all on the heavy side. Other than that, this is a great place to taste a variety of authentic and full cuontry flavors.
SERVICE
Let's see, it's a high-end Filipino restaurant, so what would you expect? Great service of course. There were definitely plenty of people on the floor, and we also got a friendly waiter with very solid English, so no guesswork there. They are relatively decent with attention to detail (not a strenghth for most filipino restaurants), but just like most restaurants the waiters needed help from the guests to find space to put the dishes down. Overall solid and friendly service, but some patience is still required.
AMBIENCE
There's a good reason why many of the famous filipinos in art and literature enjoying hanging out at this place. Like most of the high-end restaurants in Manila, it's extremely tastefully decorated and furnished. This place has plenty of history with a ton of pictures and old 
provencial type of artifacts and art. The atmosphere, just like what its motto says, it's definitely one of partying with friends and family, but it's an elegant kind of casualness. The one in Trinoma seems a bit more lively than the one in Serendra, but both places are good for entertaining your personal guests.
VALUE It's hard to encounter a real bad value while dining in Manila, but if you consider quantity and quality, there are some restaurants that are simply better deal than others. Granted that Abe is a very solid restaurants, its prices are slightly beyond the "normal" range for it's class level, especially that it's expected to be a hang-out type of restaurant.
BOTTOMLINE
If you are tired of having the "usual" Filipino food and have outgrown the tastes at Gerry's or Max's (sorry, picking on them again, they are decent restaurants for a casual meal), this place is definitely worth a try. It will leave an after taste in your mouth and a full stomach for a long time!
BTW
There's a good reason why most people we saw at this restaurant are locals, unlike Fely J and Sentro. You need to be careful with what you order at Abe. Some of the dishes, like the sinigang we had, it's really pretty intense. Unless you are extremely comfortable with country-style Filipino food, else you should stick to the more well-known dishes and ingredients - at least on your first visit.
