Satinka Naturals Bistro Review – Best Little Secret in Makati

Before you start wondering what Satinka Naturals is, just let me start by telling you that it’s one of the best little secret restaurants I’ve come across.

WHAT IS SATINKA NATURALS?

When I was invited to Satinka Naturals, I had to wonder what kind of food it served. I had no idea what Satinka means – I thought it was probably Sanskrit and that it was going to be some Eat, Pray, Love ashram kind of place.

I’m partly right in that real, organic food plays a big role in Satinka’s food, and I’m also wrong because the place is not Bali-inspired.

Satinka Naturals is actually based on Kalinga / Igorot culture. All their vegetables are organic and sourced from farms up North that are still using traditional farming methods. The chicken that they use is also organic. If you’re thinking that organic food is bland and boring, you can’t be more wrong! Read on, because Satinka’s food is AH-MAZING!

Satinka Naturals’ owners want to share the Kalinga’s mountain culture to people who are stuck in the urban jungle. They want to encourage people to adopt a healthy lifestyle by eating real food and using natural products. Their prices are very reasonable because they want their food and products to be attainable by the average person. If we can’t go to the mountains, Satinka Naturals will bring the mountains to us  As they say, Experience a piece of the moutains in the city at Satinka Naturals.

Satinka Naturals started in 2007 selling natural, handcrafted skincare and homecare products. Last year, they started this little bistro cafe at the corner of Kamagong St. and Chino Roces Ave. (formerly called Pasong Tamo) in Makati.

It does not look very inspiring from the outside – it looks like a neighborhood corner cafe. It’s actually quite small, and seats maybe a max of 30 people (there’s a second floor). The vibe is low-key and “indie”. It’s the type of place that has poetry nights on Saturdays. It’s very casual, but cozy. Don’t worry, it’s air-conditioned! There’s a platform area where you can choose to sit on pillows on the floor, so come prepared to take off your shoes, and wear something comfortable that allows you to sit cross-legged and relax.

THE FOOD

All the dishes are Satinka’s creations. Satinka Naturals is owned by Satinka and her husband, Shaler. Satinka cooks the food. She is self-taught at cooking but she is so artistic and naturally talented in the kitchen!

I don’t know where to start. All the food was amazingly delicious! It’s also all-natural, with no MSG, artificial flavors or preservatives.

This Brined Chicken Rosemary Adobo (P289) is one of the best adobo I’ve ever had. It’s marinated for 2 hours, brined for 2 hours and baked for 4 hours; bignay wine is used to add flavor. Natural soy sauce is used, which is less salty and has no chemical additives. The vinegar used is apple cider vingear. OMG, the sauce of this adobo is a heady, savoury explosion of flavor. It is slightly salty, slightly sour, tart, but balanced with a barely noticeable sweetness. This should be on your must-try list! Here it is served with red rice.

I also really liked this Chicken with Parmesan Bechamel Sauce (P349). The chicken is stuffed with kesong puti, roasted bell peppers, organic basil. The wine parmesan bechamel sauce is sooooo good I would have loved to lick the plate clean!

This Chicken Honey Mustard (P249) is also very good, especially if you like honey mustard, and most of us do! It uses local wild raw honey, mustard and fresh parsley. It’s a safe choice if you’re not feeling adventurous.

If you like Greek food, you’ll appreciate this Greek Platter (P298) that has some chicken flavored with their signature blend of Greek spices, red rice, salad, hummus and some spiced mint beef patties slow-cooked in black olives, tomato sauce and mustard. Satinka really knows how to use herbs & spices to make your taste buds come alive! Greek food is her specialty.

This Vegan Platter (P289) has vegan patties and vegan beetroot balls on fresh marinana sauce, and raw zucchini pasta. The balls are made using beets! And here I thought beets were only good for Russian salad!  Even though this dish is all vegan, it’s so savoury you’d believe it has meat!

This is the Vegetarian/Vegan Afritada (P180). The afritada is made with gluten-free vegetables, stuffed with tofu, eggplant & chickpeas, slow cooked in tomato sauce with a pinch of oregano and chili flakes. Served with roasted potato and carrots on the side and red mountain rice. Everything is natural. They don’t use any vegemeat or similar substitutes at Satinka Naturals.

This is the Cream Cheese Chicken Pasta (P210), which was very creamy and rich, but still somehow managed to be healthy and delicious!

There is another pasta dish I really liked which I missed taking a picture of – it’s the Vegetarian Herbed Pesto Pasta (P229). I don’t normally like pesto, but I liked Satinka’s Herbed Pesto because it just tasted so fresh – the spinach wasn’t even bitter, and she was generous with the black olives.

For dessert, we had this Mango Cheesecake (P220). It’s so smooth and creamy but very light. Later, I found out the secret was the use of yogurt! Ask for some mint leaves and try taking bites of the desserts with some mint (one of our friends suggested this). I find that the mint helps open up the flavor of the cheesecake more and adds a nice finish. Please do the same with the Vegan Tiramisu below.

The Vegan Tiramisu (P220) is made including a mix of seeds and nuts. Try it for something different – it’s really good, too. Again, try it with the mint leaves 

Coffee

Please try their Kalinga coffee! It’s organic, and it’s not as bitter. They serve muscovado sugar with it, or you can also ask for stevia.

SUMMARY

I cannot recommend this place enough! It’s a simple bistro and looks unassuming from the outside, but Satinka Naturals serves amazing food at very reasonable prices. Come on, where can you find delicious, healthy, organic, natural food for about P150-300 per dish? Serving sizes are also big enough. I am definitely going back and have not stopped telling my friends and family about this place!

They have free Wifi, too! Parking is available! You can park at the lot right next door to Satinka Naturals along Kamagong St.

You can also buy some of their products like dates honey, natural colognes, scalp serums, Ayurvedic body scrubs, etc… that are on display on the ground floor.

Satinka Naturals
1137 Kamagong St. corner Chino Roces Ave., San Antonio Village, Makati
Contact #: 0927 761 9799
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Satinka-Naturals/239244612921980
Instagram: https://instagram.com/satinka_naturals/
OPEN: 10 AM – 10 PM