Hermanos Tapas and Deli Bar is located along Julia Vargas Avenue in Ortigas. It’s inside the Home Depot compound along with other new restaurants and bars people would usually hang out on a typical Friday night. Hermanos opened last February. They invited over some friends and bloggers to try out their food. Gail and I needed to unwind at that time so we decided to check it out.

The place is not too big and yet it’s very classy. Everything you see inside have a Spanish touch to it – from the big entrance door, walls made of bricks, aged picture frames, wooden tables and benches, etc. They adorned the whole place with old yellow-lit lamps which can be very romantic. The second floor seems to be the main dining area. And there’s also tables outside where you can hang out with friends drinking beer while eating one of their Tapas de Kastinoy dishes.

Hermanos offers traditional Spanish food and wine as well Filipino delicacies. During the event, we got to try most of their famous dishes like their famous Tapang Usa de Katipunan (P250) served with wine vinegar – very tasty, and (Vigan) Longganiza de la Revolucion (P280). My favorite was the Boquirones ala Ibarra (P250) which was very similar to the kinilaw. Here are some of the photos I took:

Bola-Bola Paella dela Guerra (Deep fried breaded paella rice with chili tomato sauce) – P150.

Gambas de las Islas (Shrimp sauteed in garlic, chili and olive oil) – P290.

Overall, I find the food very exquisitely pleasing to the taste buds. Or in other words, very flavorsome. In most restaurants I’ve been too, there would always be food that I like and do not like. But over at Hermanos, nothing was boring. All the the dishes I got to “taste test” were delicious. They also serve red and white wine (P100 per glass), and an assortment of cervezas (or beer).

The price may be a bit pricey but not overpriced because the food is excellent. You can check out their menu over here to see for yourself. Hermanos Tapas and Deli Bar is the the kinda of place businessmen and yuppies would love to go to and eat really good food. It can also be a good place to have a romantic dinner for some.

Tapas Filipinas Hermanos Deli and Bar
Unit 104 Bldg C Ortigas Home Depot Complex
Doña Julia Vargas Ave., Ortigas Center, Pasig city
Phone: (+632) 706-4978
Website: http://hermanosdelibar.multiply.com/

You can learn more about Hermanos over at the FoodBlog.ph. The event was featured in QTV and here’s a video clip of it:

I wasn’t too familiar with Moroccan cuisine so I didn’t know what to expect. Moroccan food use an assortment of spices including mint, olives, paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg, chillies, lavender, and saffron which is considered as the most expensive spice out there. It was dinner time when we arrived at Kasbah.

While waiting for our food to be cooked, we tried out their freshly baked Hummus that you eat along with three different kinds of dips. Their signature drink is called Fez which tastes a lot like a mojito because of the vodka and mint blended with iced tea. (Speaking of Fez, you can check out their ‘Fezbook’ account here. They don’t have a website yet.)

A blurry image of the Fez.

Different blends of dips for the Hummus.

The food were served in special dome-shaped Moroccan pots called tajines (or tagines). Apparently, this is where they cook the food as well. A tajine somewhat resembles a convection oven so it keeps the food moist and bursting with flavors. We got to taste some of Kasbah’s specialties like the Beef Tajine – the meat was very tasty and tender, Chicken Tajine – not as spicy as I expected, Moroccan Grilled Shrimp – very juicy and a bit spicy, and Seafood Saffron Tajine – very rich in flavor. Too bad their best-seller Lamb Tajine was not available at that time but we were able to sample Lamb and Seafood Kebabs.

Those are some large, nasty Moroccan Grilled Shrimps… yummy!

Nope, that’s not Chicken Curry. It just looks like one.

Seafood Saffron Tajine. It looks and sound expensive, but it’s worth it.

Overall, it was a very hearty dinner we all enjoyed. Very exquisite. Very different. Truly Moroccan. At the end of it all, we were served with Moroccan Mint Tea. And like all the Moroccan dishes we have sampled, this mint tea tasted uniquely different. It was cleansing and addictive because of the combination of sweetness and mint. I kept coming back for more cups while everyone was busy chit-chatting.

As for the place, what more can I say. It’s very Moroccan, duh! You have blue tables and chairs, tajine pots all over the place, brass Moroccan lamps, and even the little things like the ashtrays and curtains all have that Moroccan look and feel.

Kasbah Moroccan Bar and Restaurant in Boracay (Station 1)

The people in Kasbah including the owners (Donna and Martin) are very friendly. If you’re planning to go to Boracay and want try eating at a place that is something out of the ordinary, then you should try dining at Kasbah Moroccan Bar and Restaurant. If you have any questions, you can get in touch with Evelyn Pena (Operations Manager) at 0923-3533803 or email them at kasbahboracay@gmail.com.

Eric of Byahilo.com wearing a Fez hat while drinking Fez.