Zao

As with Momo and Banapple (yes I haven't blogged the latter yet), this place is one of my staple favorites. And as you've noticed (or not), I love Eastwood for packing so much nice food (and non-food) places in a much compact space than Ayala or Ortigas.

Obviously, I had to revisit these places because I've only started blogging recently :D

So how can I pass up the chance to blog my favorites?

Zao

(Zao in Facebook)

Location: Eastwood Mall, Eastwood City, Libis, QC

How to get there:

If coming from Cubao, take a jeep that goes to IPI or De Castro.

If coming from Ortigas, take a jeep that goes to De Castro or Jenny's. Go down at IPI then take a jeep that goes to Cubao. Tell the driver to drop you off at Eastwood (Citibank) then you need to walk in to get to Eastwood proper itself. The Eastwood Mall is across Stackers.

Zao is on the 2nd floor, West Wing, at the terrace. You can take the escalator on the left side of the mall entrance. It leads straight to it. It's beside Red Mango.

Zao means "to live" in Vietnamese. I'd say that would be very appropriate for a restaurant as food is a basic necessity to live. Oh what's more is that Zao makes it worthwhile to live by letting you taste delicious food.

Zao though, is on the middle to expensive side. Casual dining for your Viet hunger. I'd say Pho Hoa would be on the slightly cheaper side but they actually have different specialties and varieties. I've noticed that Zao borders more on the meat and grilled side of things whilst Pho on the noodly side of things.

Zao prices range average 200 and above.

Name: Grilled Vietnamese Satay Chicken

Price: 185php

Nope, it's not barbeque, it's satay :)

Actually at first glance, I thought these were pork. Somehow I thought, it had fat inserted in between the meat and it looked stuffed and juicy. Well, it actually didn't matter because it IS stuffed and juicy regardless :) . The size of the satay is good compared to the usual I've tried that's spread thin across the stick. Then all that packed taste in the meat are only released when you actually bite the meat. The meat's not tough and it falls easily off the stick. On the side, they've got a slightly sweet vinegar and atchara that you can use to douse a bit of the taste with contrast. Really good :)

Name: Wagyu Beef

Price: 995php

oohhh wagyu

This is the first time I've ever tried wagyu beef. By the way, wagyu is not a way of cooking beef. It's a breed of cow that have been genetically and purposefully grown to have increased meat marbling (how the fat is spread across the meat) and richer, more tender tasting meat. Obviously, these make the beef the most expensive there is. Anyways, so I had to know if it really is worth the spend.

To tell you frankly, I was expecting that "melts in your mouth" experience that most people say about wagyu. The problem was I didn't experience it with this. I don't know if that's with the doneness or the authenticity of the meat being wagyu or maybe the rumors are wrong. So my check on wagyu maybe inaccurate :P

But was it worth it? Yes. Actually, to tell you, for this price, I'd say the serving size is quite big compared to some steak houses I know (that charge ridiculously for meat) and the quality of the meat is something you can actually feel and taste (provided you don't eat it in piggy mode haha). And as expected, the taste of meat is packed in. Actually, you won't taste much of the marinate, it's all beefy, meaty taste :) It's a bit on the sweet side (mostly due to the doneness we chose: medium-rare). The fat is very soft and thin that it somewhat acted as the sponge for the packed juiciness of the beef. Just not to ruin the experience, I didn't dip it in the provisioned vinegar sauce and atchara.

Name: Saigon Fried Rice

Price: 215php

Looks appetizing...

Honestly, Zao has not failed me with any of their food that I've tried. Much like with Banapple or Pho Hoa. But this one has to be my first. It's not that BAD but it was just so-so from a place that I love so much for consistency in deliciousness. It's a bit plain in taste and the sausages don't really stand out. There were also very small lumps of salt that I tasted making the taste uneven for the rice itself. The rice is not dry which is good but I was expecting more from the price and how it looks. Serving size is commendable though. Nevertheless, this has not lessened my love for this place :)

All in all, it may be expensive for most, but these are places that I would recommend to anyone, anytime for any occasion when there's a budget. It hasn't failed me and will continue to be one of my favorite food places ever. :)

Keep it up Zao!

~2GBTG!