750 Florentino Torres Street , Santa Cruz, Manila, Philippines
Ambos Mundos
Whenever we have some foreign , local guest, students and convention guests from other parts of the country. We would try this restaurant in the heart of downtown Manila.
menus are written in black board
Ambos Mundos means BOTH World I must say , not just The best of East and West but the best of Asia, Latin America and Europe ! The restaurant was founded in 1888 making it one of the oldest still existing in Manila.
students from Cavite province
I am very happy for this batch of students successfully defended their thesis and graduated few months ago. One of them also collects postcards and stamps which is a common denominator of our hobby. The team leader was the one who contacted me for a day tour of old restaurants that are located in Manila.
group of students from Del La Salle Univesity and College of Saint Benile and their balikbayan uncle from the United States
lawyers from the United States , Singapore , stamp collectors , heritage advocate
We would always pay this restaurant a visit , This is one of Manila’s best kept secrets . I personally thinks that what makes this good restaurant is it maintained its old world charm amid the hustle and bustle of modern metropolis . We did a tour with some Postcrossing Philippines Eye Ball 2011
Some of the restaurant specialties
This seafood paella is a MUST for those people who crave for Filipino- Mexican- Spanish dish. According to some of my international guests and culinary chef, The Ambos Mundos variety had richer , more flavorful and more appealing to the eyes compared to their Cuban, Mexican , Peruvian and even Colombian paella.
The local counterpart had shrimps, mussels ( tahong ) , clam ( tulya ), shrimps, chunks of pork meat , hard boiled eggs and topped with marine crabs / blue crab ( alimasag ). I do not think that they add saffron in the dish. The rice had some tomato sauce , This is a bit different.
The only downgrade is the marine crab / blue crab which does not have much meat . The rice is a little bit mushy and It would take between 20 minutes to 30 minutes before they can serve the paella dish .
Paella – Small cost around Php 650 large Php 1,250
Lengua estofado with camote ( deep fried) in special sauce ( Ox tongue with sliced sweet potato ( deep fried ) in special sauce )
This is another dish which originated from Latin America and Spain . The Ambos Mundos version had thick sauce and sweet potatoes ( deep fried) .
Lumpiang ubod with think sauce
Lumpiang Ubod is a type of spring roll that uses local coconut palm heart as the main ingredient -( julienne, allumette or thinly sliced ) with carrots, picama ,ground pork , shrimps and fresh lettuce wrapped in crepe . It come with thick sauce and crush peanuts .
Foreigner guests and balikbayans would compare the price and its taste between a commercialized version and this version still wins hands-down.
Related article: lumpiang ubod ng niyog
Lumpiang Shanghai ala Ambos Mundos
Lumpiang Shanghai ala Ambos Mundos – This is one of our favorite menus along with its asado and fried chicken . It is meaty and prefect combination to their chili paste , matching calamansi ( local citrus fruit ) and a little bit of soy sauce !
Pork Asado ala Ambos Mundos- This is another MUST Try, Since it takes a long time preparing the asado , This is sold per kilo basis, smallest order is 250 grams or 1/4 kilo . It had a special sauce
Yang Chow Fried Rice– Morisqueta Tostada is a Hispanized fried rice derived from the Chinese.
Kare-Kare – It is kind of ox tail stew with peanut sauce ,vegetables, which include (but are not limited to): eggplant, pechay , string beans and with shrimp paste .
Nido Oriental Soup– This is not the authentic bird’s nest soup which uses swiftlet’s nest made of saliva ( balinsasayaw ) as the main ingredient, They used pork soft tendons ( litid ng baboy ) with quail eggs, chicken eggs, corn starch and flour to thicken the soup.
Since early 2013 , Wah Sun / Sun Wah is closed , customers can order their menus at Ambos Mundos . Asado , Yang Chow Fried Rice are specialties of Wah Sun
How to get There :
The location of the new restaurant is near Claro M. Recto Avenue and about 5 minutes walking distance from LRT line 1 ( Doroteo Jose station ) and about 8 to 15 minutes walking distance from LRT line 2 ( Recto- Isetann station).
Among this restaurant long list of celebrity clientele includes Dolphy, Chiquito ,German Moreno, Philip Salvador, Alona Alegre, Pacquito Diaz, Rene Saguisag among others.
Operations: Open Everyday from 8:00am to 9:00pm except Holy Week
Address:750- 752 Florentino Torres St., Sta. Cruz , Manila 1003 ,Philippines
Filed under: Food | Tagged: Ambos Mundos, Food, Lengua Estofado, lumpiang shanghai, lumpiang ubod, Manila, Paella, Pork Asado, Santa Cruz |
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