Love sinking your teeth into mouthwatering sandwiches and comfort food favorites? Head to Alley, a restaurant at The Grove by Rockwell in Pasig with a solid lineup of food and drink that would be right up your alley.
Alley is a restaurant inspired by the travels and food experiences of one of its owners, Butz Tenchavez. He shares that on a recent trip to Europe, he discovered the best sandwiches in the smallest nooks and crannies in towns, small stores discreetly located along alleys serving the bready comfort food. Alley wants to bring in the goodness of flavor-packed sandwiches and fill up customers well, and prove that these savory dishes aren't just for light snacking–they can be as hefty as your standard rice meal. From fine sandwiches, they expanded their menu to bar bites, comfort grub like pasta and meaty main courses, and for the parched, a slew of signature cocktails. Thirdy Dolatre headlines the restaurant's kitchen, the young chef showcasing as much local ingredients and produce as possible, and making food from scratch like their breads, dressings, and sauces.
Before sinking your teeth into their sammies, try a couple of Alley's appetizers like the Fresh Pork Chicharrones (P189), fried upon order, served with orange and star anise vinegar to give your requisite tangy dipping sauce some fragrance and different waves of sweet and spice. Dolatre's local spin on the classic beignet is utterly addicting — have some of the Queso de Bola Beignets (P199) topped with powdered sugar, served warm and comforting the way these French doughnuts always win one's heart. It's savory and sweet, a great combination that revs up the appetite for more.
Sandwiches at Alley are impressive, and most definitely an upgrade from one's childhood lunchbox treats. Their take on the Egg Salad (P249) sandwich, for example, is familiar with new nuances that make this one worth ordering — brioche bun is made in-house, and served with with romaine lettuce, and mustard dressing. It's definitely not like my childhood egg salad baon heavy on mayo and light on the actual egg slices, and sandwiched in between supermarket white bread. Fried chicken sandwich is also available at Alley, and theirs is the Firebird (P379), a spicy version of crispy beer battered fried chicken on brioche bun that comes with homemade pickled chilies coleslaw and spicy aioli. What suprisingly stood out for me was a sandwich that is inspired by an Italian salad: Caprese Sandwich (P279) takes the classic salad and makes it a warm toasty sandwich. If you love tomatoes, then this one is right up your alley as well — slices of fresh beefsteak tomatoes meet homemade basil pesto spread on crunchy multigrain bread. All these ingredients meld together with goat cheese, then finished with a balsamic reduction drizzle. This sandwich proves it is meatless yet glorious in every big and juicy bite. This one is just a daily special, Chef Thirdy says, but the off-menu sandwich can be requested by customers as long as they have the large tomatoes in stock.
Pastas here are also comforting, satisfying al dente cravings coated in lipsmacking sauce. Their 4 Cheese Mac (P279) is inspired by the chef's recent trip to San Francisco. He dined at a restaurant called Homeroom, where all their products are mac and cheese. "Since we make our own pimiento, we included that into our version of mac and cheese," Thirdy shares. Their take combines house-made cheese pimiento, cheddar, mozzarella, and parmesan, and is topped with toasted homemade breadcrumbs. If the craving for sandwiches or pasta eludes you, then have some of their Slow Cooked Pork Belly (P389). The secret to getting such a succulent fork-tender belly is brining the pork for 24 hours, then slow-cooking for two days. The pork belly is coated with a sweet and tangy orange-balsamic gastrique, served on a bed of creamy polenta, and topped with a fennel-cabbage slaw.
For those seeking the sweet and salty combination for dessert, try their Chocolate Crème Brûlée (P259) with Pasuquin sea salt (a local sea salt from Ilocos Norte) and olive oil. Cracking the caramelized layer of this dessert with the spoon is so satisfying, and taking spoonfuls to eat is just as blissful. But before calling it a day, order Alley's Financier (P249) served with freshly whipped maple cream to make your stay even better. Their warm, hot off the oven almond cake made my eyes roll up to the heavens on my first bite — nothing beats well made and freshly baked cakes, and these little ones are just perfectly moist on the inside, with a delicious crunch on the outside. It takes fifteen minutes to make, so be a little patient. Trust me, the wait (and the calorie intake) is absolutely worth it.
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Visit Alley at the ground floor of The Grove Retail Row, The Grove by Rockwell, 117 E. Rodriguez Jr. Avenue, Pasig. The restaurant is open Monday to Saturday from 11am to 1am, and Sunday from 11am to 11pm. Call (02) 532 3928, follow on Facebook and Instagram (AlleyRestaurantPH).
