Sugarleaf: Foods that Nourish

Monday, April 16, 2012
Being a foodie, I've always surrounded myself with carb, fat and sugar-loaded dishes. I also have a great affinity with popcorn, chips and other very tasty but seemingly unhealthy snacks. So although I want to cleanse myself of toxins, I just can't give up the flavors that I've always loved. However, one casual dining restaurant in the name of Sugarleaf proves otherwise.

Sugarleaf

Branding itself as a one-stop shop for a Manileño's organic and healthy product needs, Sugarleaf brings us an opportunity to learn how to eat and live healthily. Although this destination for both the health-conscious and the health-curious has a Greenhills branch, I got to visit its store in Makati City.

Organic Produce

Located at the MediCard Lifestyle Center's ground floor, Sugarleaf welcomes its visitors with an organic food and healthy product mini-mart. There was an organic produce section filled with fruits and vegetables grown without the use of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, and locally sourced from the LaTOP (La Trinidad Organic Practitioners) Multi-Purpose Cooperative farmers.

There were also a meat and poultry selection, an array of healthy cold cuts, a varietiy of whole wheat products, a display of natural vinaigrettes and sauces, and a rack of healthy drinks, as well as other items promoting overall wellness.

Lemuria
Kombucha Healthy Tea
Vegetable Noodles

For sweets lovers, fear not 'cause Sugarleaf also has a selection of vegan ice cream -- Jello's coco kefir ice cream, concocted by none other than our host for our healthy lunch, Mr. Angelo Narciso Songco -- co-owner and marketing & sales manager of Sugarleaf.

 Angelo Narciso Songco Jello's Ice Cream

Now that we've seen what the mini-mart holds, of course it was time to check the 2nd floor and enjoy what Sugarleaf has to offer for our taste buds and bellies. And for a great start to whet our healthy appetite, we had some goody wraps -- Smoked Fish (P238), Chicken (P238) and Crabstick & Mango (P188), all of which were dressed with lemon balm vinaigrette.

Chicken Wrap P238 Smoked Fish Wrap P238
Crabstick & Mango Wrap P188

Both the Smoked Fish Wrap -- Pinoy favorite tinapa with Dijon mustard and herbs, and Chicken Wrap -- free-range chicken with creamy Dijon and herbs, were light yet flavorful. However, my favorite for the goody wraps was the Crabstick & Mango which was a light, fresh and fruity take on the famous California maki.

Salad Dressings Garden Greens P238

Being in a healthy restaurant, it's a no-brainer to have a salad. And to fill us up with organic veggies, we had the Garden Greens (P238), a generous serving of lettuce, beetroot, carrot, red radish and cucumber, which comes with a choice of 3 different vinaigrette -- blueberry, passion fruit and lemon balm. And although I liked all 3 of Sugarleaf's home-made dressings, it's the passion fruit vinaigrette that I enjoyed the most.

Iberico Joselito Belota Chorizo Sandwich P228
Free-Range Chicken Sandwich P158 Turkey Waldorf Sandwich P208

For sandwiches, we got to try the Iberico Joselito Belota Chorizo Sandwich (P228) -- a tasty low-cholesterol Spanish pork sausage mildly spiced with paprika and sandwiched with lettuce and alfalfa sprouts. We also had a bite of the Free-Range Chicken Sandwich (P158) -- organic‐fed chicken chunks, white onion, basil, green apple and sour cream-lime mayonnaise sandwiched in a wheat bagel, and the Turkey Waldorf Sandwich (P208) -- gluten-free turkey, celery, red apple, toasted cashew and kefir‐nutmeg home-made mayo served in a raisin cinnamon bagel.

Freshly-Made Beetroot Fettuccine P128 with Mango and Pesto P148

Although Sugarleaf promotes eating more of fruits and vegetables, they still offer pasta dishes. But instead of using regular wheat pasta, they came up with their own Freshly-Made Fettuccine (P128) which in our trip was made of organic beetroot, and topped with Mango-Pesto Sauce (P148). Unlike the normal fettuccine strands, the beetroot ones were thicker. However flavor-wise, I very much enjoyed this pasta dish without the guilt.

Jello's Vegan Cherry Pistachio and Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

For a sweet ending, we got to try Jello's Vegan Cherry Pistachio and Vegan Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. Having coconut milk and kefir as base, these ice cream flavors lacked the creamy and thick consistency of the regular dairy-filled iced treat. However, although I didn't quite dig the coconuty taste of the Vegan Vanilla Bean, I definitely loved the Vegan Cherry Pistachio flavor. It had a sorbet-like quality with the richness of the cherry and pistachio flavors.

Choco-Banana and Mixed Berry P150 each Malunggay Pineapple Lemongrass Juice

Sugarleaf offers tea, chocolate and coffee as beverages. However, it also carries a variety of healthy and energizing refreshments such as the Choco-Banana Organic Soya-Chia Milkshake (P150) and the Mixed Berry Goody Kefir-Chia Milkshake (P150).

For the more health conscious, Sugarleaf can also make healing juices rich in phyto-nutrients, vitamins, anti-oxidants and minerals. Although not on the menu, the good people from Sugarleaf made us a Malunggay-Pineapple-Lemongrass juice which despite having a hint of bitterness, was a good detoxifying beverage.

THE VERDICT

Although I still can't take out all the carb, fat and sugar from my daily meals, I can definitely start trying to eat and to live healthily especially with the help of the nourishing foods from Sugarleaf. I am also grateful to be given the chance to visit this small but meaningful health buff destination not only for my taste buds' and my belly's satisfaction, but also for the healthy eating and healthy living tidbits I got to learn.

Taste - 4/5
Ambiance - 3.5/5
Service - 4/5
Price - 3.5/5
Overall Value - 4/5


Sugarleaf, Makati
G-2/F, Medicard Lifestyle Center
51 Paseo de Roxas cor. Sen. Gil Puyat Ave.,
Makati City, Metro Manila
Philippines
(02) 812-7323
Official Website
Facebook Page
Twitter

37 comments:

  1. wow. looks like an interesting place. healthy living na ito! :D

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  2. Wow! A resto similar to ECHOcafe. I'll try this soon! Thanks! :)

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  3. The beetroot pasta is the most interesting for me among the dishes you had. I wonder if it's bland on its own like regular pasta or if it has its own innate taste due the beetroot? Plus, I think the red color is very attractive. I would also like to try the ice cream and the milk shakes :D

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  4. Wow, I wish I could visit the place soon! I myself cannot stop eating sweets and other sinful indulgences but I think it would help if I use organic stuff :)

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  5. Wowwwwwwwwwwww!!!!
    Im gonna look for this in Makati
    Keep making food posts so delicious
    greaaaaaaaaaaaat!! :)

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  6. It's good to see Philippines is catching up on organic specialty store. I hope they stack up on gluten-free foods as they are currently the rage nowadays.

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  7. awww, it's my first time to hear about SugarLeaf. i love their products and your photos too! pupuntahan ko yan one of these days. thanks for sharing.

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  8. i love eating vegetables, i buy organically grown vegetables in a weekend market :) i wish to visit sugarleaf, surely i will enjoy and indulge :)

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  9. agree with kero, its great to know pinoy are joining the organic thingy. with giant fasfoods dominating huge malls here in our country, i am not really sure which ones were promoting healthy eating.

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  10. Been wanting to try this place for a while now. Medyo ,alayo nga lang sya sa foot traffic. =)

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  11. I don't like eating vegetables. I know it's healthy but i don't really feel eating veggie. :(

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  12. Wow! Looks so delish! I heard reviews about this place.. I guess its time to visit the place. :)

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  13. Wow, I hope meron dito sa Davao..:)

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  14. I availed of their organic-all-you-can buffet before, it was okay and I enjoyed their dressings but I haven't tried anything else on the menu. Looks yummy! :D

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  15. Mmmm. Everything looks so fresh on the pallette. Nice...kaso makati sayang so far from my office

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  16. A friend of mine works for Medicard. She hasn't told me na may ganyang store pala dyan. It's nice huh. Medyo malayo lang.

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  17. These are healthy foods to consider. I think it is a good place to try for the whole family.

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  18. mahilig din ako sa carb mukhang ok ang establishment na ito , gusto ko din yung mga milkshakes

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  19. omg.. nag grave ako bigla sa salad..........

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  20. As usual, i keep on drooling every time i visit this page :(

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  21. looks so healthy! all of them....is the green papaya concentrate like vinegar or something? I'm gaga over papaya...i miss it na ahaha. This is really a good way to make FIlipinos healthier, we have so much healthy food out there, many prefer pork though ^_^

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  22. This is an interesting store. I wish they have branch in the Ortigas area which is nearer my place.

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  23. I live so near Sugarleaf Wilson branch yet I have not dined there. I only bought the ice cream before and buy my stock of natural sea salt from their store. :) Now I know what to order if I decide to dine in.

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  24. I live so near Sugarleaf Wilson branch yet I have not dined there. I only bought the ice cream before and buy my stock of natural sea salt from their store. :) Now I know what to order if I decide to dine in.

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  25. organic food is what we need today .All farm produce were sprayed with pesticide which is not good for the body .That is why I want to grow my own veggy garden.but i can't do ti this year ,we gonna move to another place,probably next year.Organic food is a bit pricey but worth buying for.

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  26. I'm definitely going here. Lot's of healthy options.

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  27. Sounds inviting! Vegie is healthy :)

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  28. never thought that there is such a place that serve healthy food from main course to dessert. I thought Sugarleaf just serve dessert. Hope there is a nearer branch in Manila

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  29. i'm not a vegie eater but from the way i look of the pix,i would give it a try ...

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