Lian Rodriguez
Bench Cafe Greenbelt
Makati City, Philippines — New restaurant concept, Bench Cafe, recently opened their second branch in Greenbelt 3, Makati City.
Bench Cafe has already been making waves in the food scene, ever since the opening of their first branch in Bonifacio Hight Street. The first branch in BGC just turned a year old, and is a big reason for the great anticipation for the opening of the Greenbelt one.
“A lot of people have already visited this branch, even before today’s opening,” said Eric Dee, chief operating officer of Foodee Global Concepts, during the opening event. The Greenbelt 3 branch officially opened last January 29. “People have started walking in during our soft opening last December, enjoying our unique take on Filipino cuisine.”
Bench has always been associated with Pinoy pride and ingenuity, and it seems that they have made a successful transition from fashion into food – by sticking with their identity and passion for exemplifying the Filipino DNA.
Bench Cafe is the brainchild of two pinoy-owned companies – Suyen Corporation, chaired by Ben Chan, and Foodee, run by Rikki and Eric Dee. All the big honchos were present in the January 29 opening of the second branch in Greenbelt. Foodee executive chef Carlo Miguel was also present, and wowed guests with his culinary creations.
We tried Bench Cafe’s Tinapa Cones – small lumpia cones filled with tinapa mousse, an absolute must-try. There was also Sinigang sa Mansanas Pork Belly, which combines green apple and kamias as flavorings, instead of the usual tamarind souring agent.
We also tried Chef Miguel’s Gising-Gising, Bagnet Kare-Kare, and Inasal Liempo. The Dancing Fish Excabeche is especially choice – a butterflied tilapia cooked to a crunchy, crispy consistency. Must-tries also include the Sisig Lettuce Cups with Calamansi Foam and the Crispy Lumpia Cones with Tinapa Mousse and Salsa.
The menu also features Bench/To, which is inspired by bento meals of Japan but reimagined to fit the Filipino tradition of family dining. Combos include the B6 (Dancing Fish, Kaldereta, Crispy Dilis, Bench Salsa, plain rice), the B8 (Lechon Kawali, Laing, Atsara, Bench Salsa, plain rice), and the B12 (Pork BBQ, Gising-Gising, Green Mango Salad, Bench Salsa, plain rice).
After the mains, we had dessert, which consisted mostly of halo-halo, sweets, and coffee, but with a Bench Cafe twist. Try their Halo-Halo, which features six flavors. There’s ube halo-halo, white halo-halo (coconut, nata de coco, leche flan), Mais con yelo, banana con yelo, and mango otap flavor. Our absolute favorite variant is the ginumis, which is made of sago, panucha, and jelly.
Also a must-try is their leche flan, called Flan B. The dish is creamy and very dense, virtually no bubbles at all. The Tsoknut Ice Cream Sandwich is also good – toasted ensaymada filled with tsoknut ice cream.
The third branch is set to open soon in TriNoma Mall, Quezon City
Bench Café is located at the second floor of the newly opened Bench flagship store at 9th Ave. cor. Lane O, Bonifacio High Street, BGC, and at 2/F of Greenbelt 3, Ayala Center Makati. For more updates, follow Bench Café on Facebook and @benchcafeph on Instagram.
Also see: 11 Native Delicacies You Should Taste When in Isabela Province
