Sumptuous Sundays: Stockton Place

So this is the myth, huh? So why am I calling it a myth? It is because I have friends who would always bring up this restaurant whenever we're talking about restaurants with really awesome food and they'd sing nothing but praises for it, plus I got three or four press invites last year with this restaurant as the chosen venue (but I wasn't able to attend a single one). Stockton Place must be so legendary that everyone just wants to be (and eat) in this place.

To verify (or dispel) this myth, the BF and I set out on a food crusade in the holidays of last year to find out why Stockton Place got a lot of people talking.

Now I tasted why everyone loves this place.

Stockton Place is a small restaurant tucked in one of the old buildings along Legazpi, Makati. It doesn't have a bold, loud sign-in fact, you may even miss it if it's your first time to go to the place. If you are familiar with Asian Institute of Management (AIM), Stockton Place is right at the corner of the first street at the back of this school.

PRICE: Salad starts at P450; Soup starts at P250.00; Pasta starts at P370.00; Entree starts at P500.00; Dessert starts at P350.00

Since the place is small, it can get full quite easily so reserving a table would be a great option especially during Friday and Saturday nights. I didn't take photos of the inside portion of the restaurant as there were a lot of people when we visited and I felt that they didn't want to be part of my photos-privacy is everyone's concern and I respect that. Also, they limit the reservation + stay to two hours only to make way for the other guests. I don't mind this rule (and I am in favor of it too) as it's just common courtesy.

So let's now check out some of the restaurant's top- selling dishes. Ready to get hungry? Click READ MORE now! :)

Butternut Squash Soup

- Creamy squash soup with Hazelnut and Bacon Crumble, and Goat Cheese Tortellini.

The soup is served in this manner and one order can be split into two persons-I would suggest that because this soup is on the heavy side and I'm sure you don't want it to take so much of your tummy space right before the starter and entree arrive.

This soup is really lovely. It's a balanced dish of sweetness and saltiness, and I loved that the Hazelnut and Bacon crumble would surprise my mouth every now and then as I sipped the soup.

Foie Gras Salad

- One of the best salads I have ever tasted! The bed of greens and light Foie Gras shavings were enhanced by that sumptuous Peanut Butter puree. It was so simple but so good!

Seared Scallops

- One of my favorite seafood meats is Scallop, but unfortunately, it's so bland and a lil' hard to season and cook. I appreciate that this dish has perfectly seared Scallops and they tasted so juicy, and that tart Lime Creme Fraiche proved to be the perfect sauce for it. The caramelized Tomato tart in the middle provided that much needed sweet break from all that savory taste, but oftentimes, I found it too sweet and it was drowning the clean taste of the scallops and lime creme fraiche dip. I can do without the tomato tart to be honest, but I will order this dish again the next time I'm here because this is one of the best scallops I've ever tasted.

Crispy Pork Belly

- The dark, purplish sauce that the Pork Belly is sitting on is Cherry Pork Sauce, the tiny dots on the side are Onion Puree, and the 'swipe' is Pommery Mashed Potato (love!). This ultra juicy Pork Belly is so tender that you can break it with just a fork and it's oozing with freshly roasted goodness that I almost had everything to myself and forgotten that my BF liked it too. :p I love how well- balanced this dish is and even if every single element in the plate stood out, they still managed to compliment each other.

Prime Grade Rib Eye Steak

- The moment this dish arrived in our table, I was suddenly reminded of the HUGE steaks I had in Sydney, Australia. It's like the biggest steak portion I have had here in Manila! The crispy potatoes on the side tasted like they were laced with Truffle Oil and they went so well with the lightly basted steak. In terms of taste, this is one of the best steaks I've had here in Manila and even if the price is "Golden", it's justified because Stockton Place won't cheat you on the size and taste. One serving can feed up to 4 people!

Cheesecake

- I haven't been to Paris (yet), but this dessert just looked so French! It's got a small cheesecake in the middle, but don't be deceived because even if it's small, it's oozing with flavor. The cheesecake was crowned by fresh fruits (Yes! Even the Blueberries were fresh, not from the can!) and rested on top of a semi- sweet Graham Crumble. It's got the right sweetness, but if you've got a sweet tooth like me, one serving may not be enough. :p

Chocolate Marquise

- We wanted to have something that's a lil' sweeter than the Cheesecake and settled for Chocolate Marquise: Tiny logs of soft, melting milk chocolate with creme anglaise and fresh strawberry slices. Just like the Cheesecake, this dessert has an appeal of its own.

Our experience at Stockton Place was nothing short of wonderful: Great, great food, great, great plating, and great, great service. The waiters were very polite, attentive, and they knew very well the correct order of serving the orders-perhaps it also helped that the place wasn't so big to begin with, thus every customer was just within reach and every situation was under control. For rice lovers, bad news because they don't serve rice, but I assure you, you won't look for rice once you try their food! I'm actually scheduling a second trip to this restaurant! :)

Must- Try At Stockton Place:

1. Prime Grade Rib Eye Steak

2. Seared Scallops

3. Foie Gras Salad

4. Cheesecake

Stockton Place is located at 227 Salcedo Cor. Gamboa sts., Legazpi Village, Makati City.