I needed to get out of the house today, so I invited Grace and Jeroen to dinner.
At first we wanted to eat bone marrow and pancakes (not as a combo) at Malcolm’s Deli but no one was picking up the phone. We didn’t want to go there and be told there are no pancakes and bone marrow tonight.
So we took Jer to 2nd’s, a hidden little restaurant at Bonifacio High Street where mag:net used to be.
It’s my 3rd time here. Oddly enough, the one who introduced me to 2nd’s was my Hong Kong-based friend, the hip and happening The Wanderlister.
The restaurant’s signature dish is Bacon Chicharon. Nothing spectacular really, but ordering it is a must.
What it is basically is crispy batter-fried bacon served with vinegar and a small salad. Jeroen said he wished the bacon was served warm, not room temperature. I may be wrong, but it seemed like the bacon had been precooked some time ago since every table orders it. In which case, maybe they should keep it under a hot lamp or inside the oven?
The onion soup was a disappointment because it was sweet, which French onion soup is not supposed to be. Based on the color of the soup, one can suspect that the sweetness of the soup did not come from onions but something else.
The strongest point of this restaurant is its presentation. The ribeye steak looked so amazing served on this wooden board, with a side of mashed potatoes and buttered vegetables. We were excited to split this into three. However it turned out to be blah. Veggies were good, but potatoes were just ordinary.
Had this with side of garlic and olive pasta, which is OK if you’re vegetarian. Bread was not good.
The sea bass sinigang is also OK if you don’t eat meat (read: diet food). Rice was not good.
We ended with a chocolate lava cake that was lava-less, to tell you frankly. But we finished this dessert, the steak and the bacon chicharon.
Overall, the place looks cool, with a full-house on a Wednesday night, families and good-looking couples. So business must be good. But to sum it up, the food is prettier than it tastes.
Am I coming back for a 4th? Not very soon. 
Read also: Man Eat Manila
2ND’s is on the 2nd level, Wumaco Building 1
Quadrant 3, 9th Avenue, Bonifacio High Street
Tel. 846-5293 • (0917) 500-8828
Originally published at Chuvaness.com. You can comment here or there.