My VDay at Isabelo's

Last Saturday, my boyfriend and I celebrated Valentine's Day a day early and chose a restaurant that would allow us to escape the sure hullabaloo at the more popular restaurants and malls. We ate at Isabelo's in Marikina.

Portia, the owner, even prepared a special treat for us for all the diners. They got musicians to serenade us with live music. It was really very nice and romantic. Add the nice music to the very calm and serene ambiance of the restaurant and it was the perfect venue for a quiet and romantic Valentine's day date.

My boyfriend and I arrived a bit early so there was just another couple besides us at the time but the place quickly filled up within the next hour. They had a full house and everyone was eager to eat Isabelo's scrumptious offerings.

Art and I ordered one of their best sellers the Spinach and Artichoke dip as a starter. This is my personal favorite! The flavors are just right in this very appetizing dip and the bread is also toasted to perfection and goes very well with the dip. We already ordered this the first time we went there and I just had to have it again this time.

Next up was our main course dishes! The Isabelo Lokal Bolognese and my boyfriend's personal favorite the Double Smoked Bacon Pizza!

I'm such a fan of tomato based pasta and most especially the simple bolognese sauce. With Isabelo's version of the bolognese, I think they hit it right out of the park. I love how delicate the flavors of the pasta was. Not too salty. Not too tart. The flavor of the meat didn't overpower the pasta either. All the flavors just all melded together in perfect taste heaven. I love love loved it!

My boyfriend could say enough about the pizza, on the other hand. I loved the pizza, too, but my boyfriend has special dibs in this department because he loves anything with bacon and the fact that this was "double bacon" made it a double treat for him. I loved the ingredients that they used for this pizza. The cheese was super yummy and melt in your mouth. Combine that with the sinful taste of bacon, which by the way is not your run of the mill grocery bacon - at least it didn't taste like it - and you've got a winner. No wonder it's also one of their best sellers. We'll definitely keep coming back for more... and more... and more...

Last but not the least are the desserts. We ordered the watermelon sorbet (a must-have when you go to Isabelo's) and the frozen mango dessert. I forgot to take a "before" picture of the watermelon sorbet because we were just so excited to dig in. I really love the watermelon sorbet because it was just so refreshingly light and the combination of the watermelon and lemon just cleanses your palette right up and caps up the perfect dinner. The frozen mango dessert on the other hand is a refreshingly different take on the usual mango icebox cake. It's also a must try. It's creamy. It's chocolatey and sinfully yummy. What's not to like?

We'll definitely come back soon. I can definitely see myself craving for these delectable treats very very soon!

Isabelo's Restaurant is located in Marikina.
You can find their menu, make reservations and find a location map right at their webpage by clicking here or by pasting this link on your browser: http://isabelogardenrestaurant.weebly.com