Rey BelenIt was time for an evening of Vietnamese food treat at Aquaknox last week. This vietnamese restaurant is located in San Lorenzo, Makati.
THE INTERIOR
The place is very well decorated. With simple yet attractive paintings, right lighting and a few accessories to highlight the Viet-touch makes anyone feel the mood for something nice.
Aquaknox is a two-storey restaurant with a very inviting set-up inside. The lights, painting and tables were properly designed to make a soothing feeling while in the resto.
THE FOOD
For starters I tasted their Goi Cuon – fresh spring rolls with shrimp, pork, lettuce and noodles. This one is appetizing the appeal on the tongue is quite different. Though, I just don’t like the after taste of the mint that was added to it, but generally it is great. Especially with the peanut-rich sauce – similar to a local “Lumpiang Sariwa”
Goi Buoi voi Tom Nuong is a pomelo salad with grilled shrimps, cabbage, cucumber, carrots and Asian basil. Nuon Man is a vietnamese dipping fish sauce. This salad is one of a kind. The unique blend of the ingredients is fabulous. I like how all the ingredients blend in the mouth. It is best to try it all together with the nuon man (dip) to make that flavorful taste on the tongue.
I tried to it this salad’s ingredients separately without the dip, it’s not that good. But it’s at its best taken together. Really great. The bitter, sweet, sour blend of this dish is just different – a good kind of different.
Mi Bo Kho – beef brisket stew with egg noodles, potato, carrots, onion. Let not the looks deceive you. With all the residue of the soup on the side, believe me, it’s not spicy. This beef stew is really a nice soup to go along with any meal. The tasty blend of the beef blended with, ginger, I think, makes this soup just exciting, making me want to sip more of it.
Ca Che Kho Tieu is catfish simmered in caramelized pepper sauce with green onions and bean sprouts. It was my first time to actually eat a catfish. And with this kind of cooking, you will find it worth the try. I like how the sauce was done. It made the catfish’ skin taste like “longganisa”, a juicy flavor to that. Though, I wanted to chew the food right away, I was always on a halt, since, it was still a fish, lots of bones to take care of 😉
Cari Ga is chicken curry with potatoes, carrots and onion, bell pepper and eggplant. This is their counterpart of our curry. Their curry was good, though, personally, I didn’t find anything new or unusual to it. But if you’re a “curry-loving” foodie, then this one will go along with you well.
THE VERDICT
Overall, Aquaknox is somewhere you can try contemporary vietnamese dishes. I love the way they present the food (plating) and the ambience of the place. Somewhere you can relax while eating with family and friends.
Based on the dishes that I personally tried, I highly recommend the spring roll (Goi Cuon), pomelo salad (Goi Buoi voi Tom Nuong) and the beef brisket stew (Mi Bo Kho).
EDITOR’S NOTE: I was invited along with other online food reviewers to taste Aquaknox. Personally, I won’t comment on their service, since I am an expected reviewer.
Rey Belen
