Merienda with a Seditious Spin at Restaurante Pia y Damaso

Acts of rebellious sedition are farthest on your mind when it comes to sinfully indulgent desserts. But then again, desserts are all part of the bold "Subversive Filipino Cuisine" at Restaurante Pia Y Damaso...

Discover Restaurante Pia Y Damaso's innovative culinary style with their line of indulgent desserts to cap your "Subversive Filipino Cuisine" experience on a sweet note, and unleash your inner rebel without a cause to the sweet temptations of Restaurante Pia Y Damaso...

After a sumptuous lunch at Restaurante Pia Y Damaso (see my previous post here at http://dude4food.blogspot.com/2015/08/a-subversive-filipino-feast-at.html), you just need to leave room for dessert. Restaurante Pia Y Damaso spins its unique "subversive" style in its line of signature desserts, with many named after Jose Rizal's colorful characters from his iconic novels. Like Sisa's Dementia (P 175), a rich and moist truffle cake with almond pastille, dark chocolate mousse, and ganache. Inspired by the tragic character in Noli Me Tangere, one bite of the rich and smooth truffle cake will send you on a temporary spin of insanity, seriously. The different layers of truffle cake, creamy almond pastille, dark chocolate mousse, and ganache blend in an insane mix of indulgent notes.   

Brazo ni Dona Vicki (P 100), Pia Y Damaso's classic take on the Brazo de Mercedes, a chewy meringue roulade with fresh butter curd. Named after Don Tiburcio's cruel wife in Jose Rizal's novels, the rich yet firm meringue with its sweet fresh butter curd is unapologetically and brazenly indulgent, and proud of  it. A personal favorite, a slice of Restaurante Pia Y Damaso's Brazo ni Dona Vicki raises the usual Brazo de Mercedes to a higher, more indulgent level. And there's just no other way Dona Victorina de Espadana would have it.

Restaurante Pia Y Damaso then transforms the traditional creme caramel with premium local milk with the Davao Malagos' Goat's Milk Leche Flan (P 160), baked caramelized goat's milk flan with native lime "dayap" zest, on a bed of caramel syrup. The richness of the Restaurante Pia Y Damaso's Davao Malagos' Goat's Milk Leche Flan is tempered by a hint of the sharp and citrus notes of local lime for balanced flavors.

The unique fusion of the local bibingka and the western waffle is another brilliant combination resulting in a unique dessert, pretty much the same way as Maria Clara in Jose Rizal's novels, the illegitimate mestiza daughter of Dona Pia Alba and Padre Damaso, whose characters inspired the  restaurant's name. The Bibingka Waffle (P 150), made with Malagos' goat's cheese, queso de bola, salted egg and coco jam, is soft and moist, with a light and crisp layer for contrasting textures. Topped with queso de bola, the sharp notes of the cheese combine with the equally sharp flavors of the salted egg, tempered by the sweet coco jam. Creative, playful, and inventive, that's what you can expect at Restaurante Pia Y Damaso.

The popular yema, the childhood dessert made with egg yolks and condensed milk, is transformed and reinvented by Restaurante Pia Y Damaso with its Toasted Yema Parfait (P 125) on frozen creamy parfait with cookie crumbs. The sweet notes are comfortingly familiar, yet the texture is new and refreshing for a whole new flavor experience. This is one of Restaurante Pia Y Damaso's specials, available for a limited time.

In between, have a cocktail, like Pia Y Damaso's After Eight. You can have coffee, or better yet, in true subversive character, have a cocktail with your dessert.

Pepay the Dancer's Halo-Halo (P 220), Pia Y Damaso's indulgent spin on the classic Halo-Halo, with red monggo, langka, garbanzos, kaong, nata de coco, jalea, goat's milk leche flan, candied kamias, saba, guava, quezo de bola, and pastillas, topped with ube (purple yam) ice cream. Named after Don Custodio's "other" woman from Jose Rizal's El Filibusterismo, the traditional shaved ice dessert is given a version upgrade loaded with even more ingredients, like candied kamias, guava, and quezo de bola.

Like its signature mains, Restaurante Pia Y Damaso takes classic local flavors in their desserts to a refreshingly whole new level that's familiar and comforting yet new and excitingly different. That's "Subversive Filipino Cuisine." Only at Restaurante Pia Y Damaso...

Restaurante Pia Y Damaso is located at the Second Floor of Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati City, or call 729-5511 for inquiries and reservations.

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