UCC Café Terrace: A Dinner Date with Shobe

Wednesday, December 28, 2011
During Christmas day, my lil sis and I went to Trinoma for some sister bonding and Christmas shopping. This rarely happens since my shobe (little sister) easily gets tired whenever we endlessly roam around the mall. So you can just imagine how happy I was! (Yes, we have a weird relationship. The achie pushes herself to the snobby shobe.)

After a few hours of buying cute things at Landmark and toys (for my godchild) at Toys"R"Us, it was finally time to eat dinner. This is usually the dreaded moment for my shobe. I can walk around the mall for hours just looking and deciding where to eat. However, my lil sis is my exact opposite. She wants to eat right away. With both our stomachs growling already, I just decided to take her to UCC Café Terrace at the mall's lobby level.


I am not a stranger to UCC. In fact, I have already dined in their Terrace, Vienna and Park cafés. However, it's been a long time since I've last graced their Japanese-Western themed restaurant nor have eaten their Asian fusion dishes. (I was not a food blogger back then though, so no reviews for my previous UCC experiences.)


UCC's themed café and restaurants do not only take pride in having a sophisticated and cozy ambiance, or in serving good food. They are even better known for their coffees which are freshly brewed using a siphon coffee maker.


And while I was busy snapping some shots around the café, my sister had already placed an order. She got a rice plate of Chicken Teriyaki Roll (P339) which came with a vegetable salad siding.


My lil sis loves the chicken roll, she says it tasted great especially with the Teriyaki sauce drizzled over the sliced pieces. I took a bite too, and liked the dish as well. It was tasty and really savory, perfect for Christmas. The salad on the side was good too. The vegetables were fresh and the vinaigrette created a perfect harmony of flavors.

My food choice for that night was Salmon Shrimp Omurice (P399) -- a large plate with salmon cubes, shrimp pieces, and a scambled egg-coated curry rice swimming in thick cream.


My order looked filling and it really is. My tummy was not only pleased with the generous portion size, but also with the taste. The salmon was nicely cooked, and it complemented the rest of the ingredients really well. The cream was also very flavorful and brings the whole dish together. However when I already finished all the scrambled egg, cream, salmon and shrimp, the curry rice became a pain to eat. Although it has a curry flavor, it wasn't satisfying enough on its own.


Along with our entrées, we also had drinks. My lil sis had tonsilitis just recenly so she only ordered a glass of Lemon Iced Tea (P129), something to soothe her throat. The tea was freshly made as it came in a hot brewer and was poured by our server into a glass of ice and lemon.

I on the other hand, had to get my dose of caffeine so I ordered coffee. My choice of beverage wasn't any regular coffee though. UCC has a new Japanese coffee drink called Kori Kohi (P195) which uses iced coffee cubes and milk.


My Kori Coffee was first served with a tall glass containing iced coffee cubes, as well as a seperate jar of fresh milk. It was nice pouring the milk all over the coffee cubes as you get to see them melting, turning the white milk into a creamy beige, then to a beautiful caramel brown. The Kori Coffee was also very refreshing and energizing. It's strong coffee but creamier. Just a warning though, the longer you let the drink sit, the more bitter it would taste.

THE VERDICT

This visit to UCC Café Terrace made me crave for more of the restaurant's dishes especially their breakfast menu, pasta offerings and desserts. I have to admit that I find their prices high (especially for a fresh graduate like me), but I guess it is worth shelling out for if you want a consistently great tasting Japanese-Western food and a lovely cup of caffeine from Ueshima Coffee Co.

By the way, if you are interested in dining at any UCC café soon, you might want to check out this good UCC deal at CashCashPinoy. It's a set which includes an order each of Chicken Teriyaki Salad, Bacon, Mushroom & Sausage Spaghetti, Fish Fillet Curry with Rice, Macadamia Sans Rival, Chocolate Ganache and a choice of coffee or soda. I already bought a voucher and I can't wait to have a UCC feast soon.

Taste - 4.5/5
Ambiance - 4.5/5
Service - 4.5/5
Price - 3/5
Overall Value - 4/5


UCC Café Terrace, Trinoma
Lobby Level Trinoma, North Ave. cor. EDSA
Quezon City, Metro Manila
Philippines
(02) 900-6518
Official Website (Japan)

28 comments:

  1. I can't believe that what I am seeing is actually in manila. :D My lord I would love to use your blog as my guide when I come back to visit with boyf. :P Isusumpa noon pilipinas pag wala akong napakain o napakitang maganda :))

    ReplyDelete
  2. @Angela Ricardo: Let me know when you'll be visiting Manila soon.. :) There are new attractions, parks, malls and food destinations that you can take your boyf.. ^^ I can make you a list! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. that Kori Coffee is something I wanna try!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I wanna try this sumi. i want a new taste... THanks for the review

    ReplyDelete
  5. Not much of a UCC fan here (had a really watered down and expensive iced coffee there once) but love their branches in SG. They have the best pasta, cookies and creme shake and Christmas logs, ever! =)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wow those pictures made me drool! I wish I could eat on that resto too!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I haven't tried UCC. This is a Japanese chain? Wow!

    ReplyDelete
  8. That Kori coffee looks really good! (Although I will probably experiment with that at home first. :P). We used to go to UCC more and what we'd always get is the seafood risotto. Their servings are usually big enough to feed 2 people. :D

    ReplyDelete
  9. I love UCC too. I like their omurice and curry selections. Never tried the kori kohi coffee before. It's a unique concept. I love the blue mountain coffee at UCC though.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hey sis! I thought I saw you at the MMFF Awards Night, so it was not you. Kamukha mo lang pala.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I miss sisterly bonding... :( I should take my siblings to UCC Cafe sometime soon.

    http://wonderwomanrises.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  12. super creamy yung order mo sis....yummmy! type ko yung bonsai plant sa corner....:)

    Belated Merry Christmas po pala...have a fabulous New Year ahead!

    ReplyDelete
  13. the chicken roll looks very delicious. Malapit lang ako sa trinoma pero di ko pa natry ang food dito. Thanks for a great review

    ReplyDelete
  14. I find UCC food prices a tad bit overpriced but their coffee is definitely top notch, levels above Starbucks.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I've dined in UCC before and I love their coffee! Too bad I was advised to cut back on caffeine. :(

    Anyway, I've tried their Omurice too and it was delish. But, they've got a few overpriced items on their menu. Reminds me that we need to go back so we can blog about them too. We forgot to bring our cameras the last time. :D

    ReplyDelete
  16. I am loyal to Coffee Bean but we sometimes dine at UCC - of course the main reason is the siphon brewed coffee. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  17. I'm definitely giving that a try next time I go for UCC ... the coffee ice cube is a must!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Sodium Erythorbate *nom nom nom nom*December 30, 2011 at 10:54 PM

    Almost every Sunday after mass we go to UCC for breakfast, and I most certainly recommend their breakfast set rather than that of lunch/dinner especially the veal and or corned beef..nom nom nom nom nom..... xp Ow and by the way, you can ask for breakfast set even if it is already dinner time, I should know... I usually do it =p

    ReplyDelete
  19. @Sodium Erythorbate *nom nom nom nom*: I know that too, since I was with you when you asked for their breakfast menu during dinner.. XD I want to try their bfast items soon.. :)

    ReplyDelete
  20. I've eaten breakfast at UCC before (we had the omelets), and although I loved the food as much as you did, I also found the price prohibitive. Good thing my boyfriend paid haha.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I wanna try that Kori coffee too!Can't wait to sip it! Pricey but it seems that you really enjoyed those yummy foods.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Your orders look so delicious. I remember seeing one of their branches in Tomas Morato and I think I will have to go there sometime soon just to eat that omurice. It look so yummy!!

    ReplyDelete
  23. great review, i will visit UCC Trinonma soon, i have appointment in qc this coming january 14, 2012.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Sodium Erythorbate *nom nom nom nom*January 2, 2012 at 11:36 PM

    @Sumi Go Really?? YOU WERE?!?! oh my gosh how come I didn't know that?! You're creepin me out... LOLOLOL XD

    ReplyDelete
  25. Your plants is the very quintessence of a porch garden. It gets unavoidable to shield your blooming and green plants from the singing warmth. WPC Terrassendielen

    ReplyDelete
  26. Wow!! This truly was a great Dinner Date with Shobe!!
    These pictures made me drool..!!
    pick up lines to use on girls

    ReplyDelete
  27. A tutor in the elementary school program may be read this post here required if the child is behind in one or more subjects, or there are separate gaps in knowledge. It happens and vice versa: the child grasps on the fly and wants to know more than they give in the classroom at school.

    ReplyDelete
  28. The primary inquiries individuals will pose when you discuss stair climbing is: might somebody at any point truly get in shape by basically utilizing stairs? www.accuratestairs.ca

    ReplyDelete

Powered by Blogger.