When a pop-up restaurant has this kind of pedigree, you know it’s something special.
The Plaza is currently known for their Premium Baked Ham and as the caterer to elite parties, but back in the 60’s to the 80’s, it was the place to have parties (debuts, weddings, conventions, etc..), as my dad tells me 🙂
Dona Engracia Cruz Reyes founded the Aristocrat in 1935, and her son, Jose, a.k.a. Joe, opened The Plaza in Makati in 1966. Aside from their popular catering service, The Plaza also currently has 5 retail outlets around Metro Manila.
You may want to watch this video to learn more about The Plaza’s illustrious history:
And now, Joe’s granddaughter Karla just opened a pop-up restaurant in Rustan’s Makati! Full disclosure: Karla is a friend and I’m so excited for her!
The pop-up is located at the 5th floor of Rustan’s Makati, and we tried some of their specialties the other day.
What makes this pop-up different compared to other The Plaza retail outlets?
The pop-up at Rustan’s Makati is the only place right now where you can enjoy The Plaza’s classic dishes (aside from ordering them for catering).
The other The Plaza retail outlets don’t serve The Plaza’s specialties. They are retail outlets for takeout of The Plaza’s popular Premium Baked Ham and their other frozen items, and they don’t have sit-down dining areas.
THE MENU
At first glance, the dishes might seem expensive, but having tried the food, I can tell that they don’t scrimp on the ingredients. Let me share my favorites below.
THE FOOD
We grazed on some Crispy Kangkong to start:
The kangkong were indeed crispy, but the dip was the standout! We’d scoop up as much dip as we could with our crispy kangkong leaves because we just wanted to eat more of the delicious dip!
Next, we watched our Premium Baked Ham being carved:
The ham was very juicy, which is a good thing, in my opinion. Most hams dry out as soon as they are sliced, but not The Plaza’s; you can see it glistening in the photo. The ham was served with 4 dips:
- Premium glaze
- Gutsy garlic (white)
- Sweet mustard (yellow)
- Wasabe Mayo (green)
All the dips were so delicious that I wanted to drink them! Haha. I loved them all but I liked the wasabi and the sweet mustard the best.
Chicken a la Kiev – a classic dish from the 80’s! If you’ve lived through the eighties, you’ll probably remember this being served at dinner parties. It was a very popular entree at the time, and fortunately, it’s getting a bit of a resurgence the past few years. If you’re unfamiliar with Chicken a la Kiev, it’s rolled up chicken breast that has a butter filling. The whole thing is rolled and breaded to ensure that the butter filling doesn’t ooze out during cooking, and it’s either baked or fried. The butter melts during cooking and oozes out when you slice into the chicken 🙂
My favorite dish is a tie between the Lasagna al Forno and the Boiled Corned Beef!
The lasagna is classic and reminds me so much of the 80s (can you tell I am an 80s baby? 😀 ). It is such a comfort food – it tastes like good lasagna without all the frou-frou people have been adding to lasagna the past two decades. It is meaty, saucy and cheesy, and that is all I need – no herbs or other flavors. It tastes like the lasagna of my childhood and it is amazing!
The Boiled Corned Beef 
. It is made using Angus beef, and the result is almost buttery corned beef that melts in your mouth. I wish they put more slices per order because they’re just so good, I’ll eat them all and still want more 🙂
They also serve a roasted version of the corned beef, which is, of course, a bit drier than the boiled version, but the roasting intensifies the flavor, saltiness and spices of the corned beef. Some of my dining companions preferred the roasted version, but I prefer the boiled version 🙂
The corned beef are served with a horseradish sauce.
And finally, we had the Truffle Pasta, which was tossed in the Parmesan wheel! It was very creamy, and they used real truffle. No truffle oil here! It’s my next favorite after the Lasagna and the Boiled Corned Beef 🙂
LOVE THE FOOD AND WANT TO SERVE IT AT HOME?
You can buy some of their specialties frozen and cook them at home 🙂
SUMMARY
If you miss the classics, now’s your chance to eat your fill (aside from getting them to cater) 🙂 The Plaza Pop-Up will only be there for a limited time, maybe until the end of June, so take this opportunity to visit them!
The food is a little bit more expensive than average, but it’s really good, and it’s simply comfort food for those of us who grew up with these dishes. My favorites are the Lasagna, the Truffle Pasta, and the Boiled Corned Beef 🙂
The Plaza Pop-Up Restaurant
5th Floor, Rustan’s Makati
Website: http://www.theplazacatering.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThePlazaCatering/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theplazainc/
#ThePlazaAtRustans5th
