Road-Testing Relik Tapas Bar and Lounge

Living 10 minutes away from Bonifacio Global City, it's hard to believe that I have yet to explore the nooks and crannies it has in store. It's really cool that amidst the sleek modernized building there are restaurants for workers and yuppies to go to during lunchbreak or after a long day's work. Located at the second floor of CommerCenter Building, Relik Tapas Bar and Lounge takes you away from the busy concrete pavement or neutral-colored office desk you are five days a week to a very chill place that takes inspiration from old-world c

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I've always passed by CommerCenter building on my way home from S&R or whenever I need to go to St. Lukes. It's a very modern-looking building actually, complete with a touch-screen elevator which took me like a few minutes in order to figure it out (me and technology - meh). It's quite a different world inside though - warm mood lighting, furniture made from hundred-year-old wood, restored antiques as decor, and brick walls which remind me of home.

When you say lounge, it's not like a place with a floor poked on too much stilettos. Go inside, it's open during lunchtime and it's really a place to chill with good food, good company, and if you do drink, a glass of wine.

Sampling out the dishes is indeed a treat for me. I love food, and everyone knows how much I love to eat. I got there a bit late though, but I was able to take samplings of quesadilla, a very popular treat. That green glob is guacamole, a dip made out of avocado and spices. It's pretty how it maintains its green color, adding the lemon just the right time.

That's the Baked Australian Brie, a very creamy Yarra Valley Brie cheese wrapped in jamon and lightly glazed with honey. Brie is a very creamy kind of cheese, so it's served with bread. But for me, I just sliver some and eat it as it is. I like the combination of sweet and salty here, plus the mellow creamy cheese texture. No bread. heehee. It's quite a lot for one person to eat that much bread and cheese so this is best served for 2-3 (or a bit more, if you're into variety) people.

Soup always warms my tummy and it preps me for a very heavy meal, just like a warm-up before a dance. Since Spanish-Mediterranean food is quite rich, I need a good warming, I guess, or I'll be super overwhelmed. So the soup served to us was Roasted Pumpkin Soup, which tasted very mild, with just a hint of spice. It kinda reminded me of pumpkin pie with that hint of sweetness but it was still acceptable as a soup dish. I finished my serving before Arpee was halfway his.

What's Spanish tapas without paella right? I love rice and pasta, which I find to be a more sensible meal-carbohydrate than bread. Relik's Mixed Paella's overloaded with flavors and fillings like seafood and chorizo and lemon wedge to give it a sprinkle of tartness. Since Relik wants everything fresh with high quality, they request their customers who would want to order their Mixed Paella to order this a day in advance (I'll post their number later). And really, the paella is very afforable. It's around Php870 pesos and it already serves 8-10 people.

Gambas With a Kick. If you love gambas (shrimp) or anything spicy, this has both and a lot of both it will kick you to the next table. The shrimp was tender instead of tough and they weren't kidding with the spiciness. It hits you and then lingers. You love spiciness? You gotta try this.

To mellow down spice would be something sweet namely dessert. It kinda makes sense though. Remember when we were kids and we accidentally bit on something really spicy and we'd have to eat like a spoonful of sugar to relieve the spice burn? A little sugar mellows the spice, and the sugar came in the form of Vanilla and Amaretto Panacotta topped with berry compote (made from real berries, and I can bite the seeds) and ladyfinger.

There are more dishes to try, such as the Relik's Beef Tenderloin Salpicao and the Mother Ann's braised Ox-tail. Relik Tapas Bar and Lounge is located at 2/F CommerCenter Building, 4th Street corner 31st Avenue Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. It's reachable by the Fort Bus, and they do have parking in the building. If you're taking a cab or walking it, it's the building where Chatime is, right behind HSBC.

Operating Hours are as follows: Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday (except public holidays). Dinner and Cocktails are from 5:30 p.m. onwards from Monday to Sunday. For Reservations, you may call at +63917-5298333 or +62-6248251. That's the same number to call when ordering the paella.