I was in RP this morning to do some official tasks and when all these tasks are not yet done when the clock struck 12, I decided to take my lunch there. I was torn between Mexicali and TGIF when I thought of Secret Recipe. I have tried their fruit cake and their shepherd's pie but I have yet to try their other offers. So I went to the upper most floor of the Midtown wing browsed Secret Recipe's menu. I was approached by one of their attendants and I asked about their specialty when it comes to their pasta offerings. She told me that Carbonara is their best-seller and followed by the Meatballs Spaghetti. But these two are, well, priced a little over what I prefer and I was afraid that I might not be able to finish it. She then recommended their Mushroom Chicken main dish but I don't feel like eating rice, and is craving for pasta instead so I ordered their Spaghetti Bolognese. Then, as I thought it won't be "wise" for me to leave the place without trying their infamous cheesecakes, I ordered a slice of Marble Cheesecake, which is according to their menu, is the awardee of the Best Cheesecake award. Then, just to have something to go with it, I ordered a cup of Cappuccino.
When I sat down to one of their plush sofa chairs, I was introduced to their menu. After ordering, my glass of warm water was served to me with a little caution of its temperature. I was looking at this glass of water that do not come to me as warm and decided to try it. It was indeed just a little bit warm. But at least its not cold. A few seconds after, the attendant approached me and gave me a copy of today's papers and a couple of magazines. I appreciated that since I do not have any book with me today and I figured that my food will be cooked as ordered. One thing that I noticed is that their water glass is not that squeaky clean, at least the bottom outside part of it. The inside is clean, and I do not see any dirt so I figured it will be okay.
Now let's start with the Spaghetti Bolognese. When it was served to me, the first thing that I noticed is that it is piping hot. And I mean, piping hot. So I let it cool down a little bit while I read the papers. When I noticed that the smoke has already subsided a little, I put down the papers and turned my attention to my food. I wouldn't want it to turn cold so I started to dig in. At the first look, its as if the meat sauce is not enough. But the melted cheese on top of it is just of the right amount. When I tried to stir in the meat sauce to the pasta, I noticed water-like sauce at the bottom of the plate. I thought the sauce was a little bit watery for my taste. When I took my first bite, I appreciated that the pasta was perfectly cooked. The sauce is real meaty. It has ground meat in there, and slices of button mushrooms. As I eat, I noticed that the watery sauce was replaced by a thicker consistency. I think its because the meat of the sauce was suspended on top of the pasta when it was poured on it so when you stir everything, the meat and mushrooms finally join the liquid portion of the sauce in union. One thing that didn't sit well with my tastebuds is that it was a little bland. I think it needed a little bit more salt. Also, the sauce was leaning towards the Asian side, which is very natural since Secret Recipe is a Malaysian origin. But I prefer my pasta sauce prepared with a little creaminess. I think a splash of milk or cream on the Bolognese sauce will make the dish taste better, not to mention aromatic.
When the Marble Cheesecake was served, I thought, there's nothing special on it. How come it won the Best Cheesecake award? The Cheesecake has marbles on top of it and the rest is visually of no extraordinary eye candy. Curious, I took a small bite. That Cheesecake is the lightest cheesecake I have ever tasted. It literally melts in your mouth. And there's no "sawa" factor the way cheesecakes are supposed to possess. The marbles on top of the cheesecake, I do not know how it was supposed to serve it's purpose because I can barely taste it. If there's something to taste. The crust is different though. They use oat-based crusts. So the cheesecake is not sweet at all. Although, I would want the oats on the crust to give a slight crunch because this one is chewy and is not crunchy at all. I think a crunchy oat crust will give this cake a pleasant texture all in all.
The Cappuccino on the other hand has nothing special, its just a plain cup of Cappuccino although the serving is slightly bigger than others'. So yeah, if you were to ask me if I will go back to Secret Recipe, you bet, I definitely will. No questions asked.
When I sat down to one of their plush sofa chairs, I was introduced to their menu. After ordering, my glass of warm water was served to me with a little caution of its temperature. I was looking at this glass of water that do not come to me as warm and decided to try it. It was indeed just a little bit warm. But at least its not cold. A few seconds after, the attendant approached me and gave me a copy of today's papers and a couple of magazines. I appreciated that since I do not have any book with me today and I figured that my food will be cooked as ordered. One thing that I noticed is that their water glass is not that squeaky clean, at least the bottom outside part of it. The inside is clean, and I do not see any dirt so I figured it will be okay.
Now let's start with the Spaghetti Bolognese. When it was served to me, the first thing that I noticed is that it is piping hot. And I mean, piping hot. So I let it cool down a little bit while I read the papers. When I noticed that the smoke has already subsided a little, I put down the papers and turned my attention to my food. I wouldn't want it to turn cold so I started to dig in. At the first look, its as if the meat sauce is not enough. But the melted cheese on top of it is just of the right amount. When I tried to stir in the meat sauce to the pasta, I noticed water-like sauce at the bottom of the plate. I thought the sauce was a little bit watery for my taste. When I took my first bite, I appreciated that the pasta was perfectly cooked. The sauce is real meaty. It has ground meat in there, and slices of button mushrooms. As I eat, I noticed that the watery sauce was replaced by a thicker consistency. I think its because the meat of the sauce was suspended on top of the pasta when it was poured on it so when you stir everything, the meat and mushrooms finally join the liquid portion of the sauce in union. One thing that didn't sit well with my tastebuds is that it was a little bland. I think it needed a little bit more salt. Also, the sauce was leaning towards the Asian side, which is very natural since Secret Recipe is a Malaysian origin. But I prefer my pasta sauce prepared with a little creaminess. I think a splash of milk or cream on the Bolognese sauce will make the dish taste better, not to mention aromatic.
When the Marble Cheesecake was served, I thought, there's nothing special on it. How come it won the Best Cheesecake award? The Cheesecake has marbles on top of it and the rest is visually of no extraordinary eye candy. Curious, I took a small bite. That Cheesecake is the lightest cheesecake I have ever tasted. It literally melts in your mouth. And there's no "sawa" factor the way cheesecakes are supposed to possess. The marbles on top of the cheesecake, I do not know how it was supposed to serve it's purpose because I can barely taste it. If there's something to taste. The crust is different though. They use oat-based crusts. So the cheesecake is not sweet at all. Although, I would want the oats on the crust to give a slight crunch because this one is chewy and is not crunchy at all. I think a crunchy oat crust will give this cake a pleasant texture all in all.
The Cappuccino on the other hand has nothing special, its just a plain cup of Cappuccino although the serving is slightly bigger than others'. So yeah, if you were to ask me if I will go back to Secret Recipe, you bet, I definitely will. No questions asked.
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