Have you ever wondered where to find the perfect strawberry short cake? If your idea of the perfect strawberry short cake is moist, creamy, and ethereally light with just the right amount of strawberries on top, then wonder no more for you can find just that at Patisserie Kyo.
I saw a shout out on my friend's Facebook about a food tasting at a new Japanese patisserie that had recently opened its doors at BGC. My curiosity piqued, and I just had to check it out for myself. A Japanese patisserie is such a foreign concept to me, I'm ashamed to admit the only thing I was expecting was probably mochi and red bean paste buns. I wasn't entirely wrong, but I was in for a very pleasant surprise as well.
The Japanese bakery cum café can be a tad hard to find. Your landmarks are the Korean Cultural Center Building and the bright orange Union Bank sign. Patisserie Kyo is located on the 2nd floor of the building.
I went in and was greeted by the very bubbly owner Kanako, and her mom, Masako. Masako used to be a very popular food blogger and professional baker in Japan, posting entries about her most recent baking recipes and sharing them with the rest of the world - at least the rest of the world that can read and understand Nihongo, that is. When they moved to the Philippines, she put her recipes to good use, and put up Patisserie Kyo.
After my friend Lucas and fashion blogger Marj Sia arrived, we started the food tasting with a few treats from the bakery: Daifuku Mochi with a sweet Japanese red bean paste center (P60 a piece), delicate slices of Cheese Cake (P500 for a whole), An Pan (P70) a Japanese bun with a Japanese red bean paste center, and Choco Cream Pan (P70) with a homemade chocolate cream filling.
I noticed that all of the so-called sweets aren't so sweet - which is a good thing. They have just the right amount of sweetness without it being overpowering, so you don't get that umay feeling after a couple of bites. I was hesitant about tasting the mochi - it looked so heavy sitting there on the plate - but after taking a bite out of it was surprised at just how light it actually was on the palate.
Masako also treated us to a few savory treats - mini burgers and chicken karaage with rice and nori wraps. Patisserie Kyo imports almost all of the ingredients that they use (the only ingredient they don't import are eggs), so it was no surprise that the bun was feather light and complemented the burger patty, which wasn't at all oily.
I'm not a huge fan of strawberry short cake (I'd pick something smothered in chocolate if I were given the chance), but this made me a convert. We were treated to a generous sliver of the Strawberry Short Cake (P1,200 for a whole) - light chiffon cake is sandwiched between layers of cream and topped with fresh strawberries. This is so good, I cannot even begin to tell you.
Another dessert to look forward to when at Patisserie Kyo is the Green Tea Parfait - generous scoops of Masako's homemade green tea ice cream with a splodge of whipped cream topped with red beans is a simple yet filling dessert. I'm addicted to this stuff, and had to come back for more, so I did!
I came back with Jericho in tow, knowing how he worships anything that comes from the land of the rising sun. I thought I'd introduce him to Miyabi Bread - Masako's premium take on the regular Pullman loaf - something you can eat without having to pop it into the toaster. The bread is creamy and just melts in your mouth, I'd recommend it with a bit of marmalade and your regular cup o' Joe or favorite tea.
I was looking for the nori wraps, but didn't really know what they were called, so asked Masako to surprise me with a dish instead. She served up Chicken Teriyaki and - I forgot what she called it - some really good minced chicken. I have to say I enjoyed the minced chicken more than the teriyaki, and the edamame was a nice crunchy addition to the dish.
Jericho ordered the burger that came with a side salad of fresh, organic tomatoes and potato hash. I made a beeline for the tomatoes, that were ever so slightly salted, and they were delicious.
I love how the burgers at Patisserie Kyo aren't oily, and how all the fresh food just fills you up. I was excited to have Jericho try the strawberry short cake since this was something I know he'd really like.
When mucking around Bonifacio Global City and looking for Japanese food made by a real Japanese baker, you know where to go. They also have lunch specials, so if you want to get Japanese food on a P150 budget, head on over to Patisserie Kyo.
Just mucking around Manila,
www.muckingaroundmanila.com
Follow @_iamkathi on Twitter and Instagram.
Like the Mucking Around Manila fan page.
Patisserie Kyo
+63 917 888 9837
Mancor Corporate Centre, 32nd Street,
Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
