i saw 2-3 branches of this restaurant when i went to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last year. we were supposed to check it out but never found the time to do so. then i saw one branch at the Fort, Taguig last year but never had the chance to visit the restaurant. that's why as soon as i finally had a free time, i suggested to jeddokun for us to check out Secret Recipe.
i like the simple chic interiors of Secret Recipe as well as the play of their basic colors- Red and White, in the entire design of the restaurant. as soon as we were seated, we immediately scanned the menu. it says on the menu that they won awards with their cheesecake recipes and with their lamb dish. i was quite impressed that it prompted me to put my trust right away in the restaurant. we were very excited to taste their dishes and to enjoy the dining experience. so for starters, we ordered soup.
Cream of Mushroom Soup- Php90.00
the Cream of Mushroom Soup that i ordered tasted like the Campbell version. it wasn't as creamy, as strong-flavored and as smooth as Pasto's Zuppa de Funghi. aside from the soup, we also got ourselves Chicken Cornish, Beef Lasagne and Chicken Cordon Bleu.
Chicken Cornish- Php100.00
Beef Lasagne- Php135.00
Chicken Cordon Bleu- Php220.00
the Chicken Cornish was this big Chicken Empanada. my first bite of the cornish brought smile to my face. the dough was soft and sweet. but once we started eating the Chicken Cornish, one bite after another, we noticed that it was just all dough. there was very little trace of the shredded chicken, the carrots, etc. it was big in size but small in filling and flavor. As for the Beef Lasagne, we tasted the rosemary which gave the whole beef mix a little "oomph". the dish was disappointing because it was 90% ground beef + tomato sauce and 10% lasagna sheets. it was almost futile to use the fork because there were no lasagna sheets to cut. might as well use a spoon to scoop up the saucy beef covering the tiny lasagna. what was more surprising was the fact that it tasted like Greenwich's Beef Lasagna.
the Chicken Cordon Bleu was the biggest disappointment of all. as you can see in the photo, it was overcooked, overcooked, overcooked. i could even throw it at jeddokun and he will get a nasty bump in his head because the Cordon Bleu was as hard as rock. i didn't even bother giving the dish back and have them redo it because my dismay over their dishes was too overwhelming and we just lost our appetite.
even though it says on the menu that they've won awards for their cheesecakes and desserts, we were too skeptical and too disappointed to even give their desserts a shot. our dining experience in Secret Recipe wasn't pleasant at all. i don't know if we will ever have the desire to go back to Secret Recipe again.
i just hope Secret Recipe can get to read this entry so they can improve their food and gain more customers. i doubt if jeddokun and i will ever find ourselves inside this restaurant again.
