[OK na Alcohol Trip] Blind Pig

Hush Hush:

This establishment is one among a few popular "speakeasy" establishments here in Makati. It's the second time we've been into one, after our cousin hooked us up on her trippings to visit Prohibition Era style places (the first being the Curator). 

ang pasimuno

Keeping up with the speakeasy spirit (which is to keep the place a secret), I won't right much about where it is. But really... doh, we're in the Internet age and knowing about its whereabouts should not take a couple of keyboard hits! It's actually just a short walk from my office.

blind pig?

Kat did the reservation through SMS with their staff (Andrew?). The exchange did not took much time as he responded to our inquiries promptly. One thing our cousin told us to keep in mind is to be there on time (since it's said that they've refused customers who were way off their schedules) and so we did.

The only thing to mark their place is this small brass plate with Braille on it. We assume it reads "Blind Pig". There's this unassuming door with a buzzer and a peephole where a staff gets to confirm the customers' reservations. Gusto ko yung paandar na yun. It really gives that Prohibition Era slash underground feel.

gateway to 1920

In the Dark:

It's dark inside with candles on tables mostly illuminating the place. We love the classic touches on the interiors, especially some of the antique items (well, at least they look old so we assume they are) on some alcoves on their walls. The bar looks like a throwback by itself.

bar area

The floor area is cramp so we can clearly hear conversations from the other tables. No worries at all as we heard that one of the basic tenets of  this speakeasy is too keep the noise down. It's even printed on their menu card! We were seated on one of the booths lining the walls and, unfortunately, this huge group of foreigners (look like expats) right smack in the middle of the room were very very rowdy! Aaand the staff can't (or won't) do anything about it. Very entitled fools, feel like they own the place. Oh, and the staff can't (or won't) do anything about it! Nasabi ko na ba?

Well, throwing that house rule out of the window, we still enjoyed our conversation with the cousin (albeit the need to raise our voices a bit to compensate). Too bad we can't hear the music. I heard they have good tunes from the Prohibition period.

these noisy chaps

The Spirits:

The servers are courteous and very attentive. Once seated, we were asked for our orders and one of the lady staff entertained our inquiries about their spirits. We're not really into liquors so our conversation with her ended up in a long and descriptive discussion of how we want our cocktails to taste like. Oks lang naman. The server looks like she's enjoying the chat. Kami din!

the menu

We ended up with the following:

• Strawberry Caipiroska
• Gold Rush
• English Bacon Roll

the caipiroska

The strawberry caipiroska is popular among female customers, they said. It's muddled strawberry with lime in chilled vodka. Not sure kung nilalagyan nila ng Sprite. But honestly, I like it more than my Gold Rush. Not that I did not enjoy the latter.

gold rush

Gold Rush is a mix of bourbon whiskey, honey, and lemon in shaved ice. It's a nice mix of sweet and sour taste. As in, sweet coming in, and makes a sour hint of an aftertaste going down. They used Jim Beam for this bourbon.

The bacon roll is a nice contrast to the liquor taste. It's bacon rolled in cheese and something we can't figure what but it's sweet. Still, it's bacon! Can't go wrong with that.

saint bacon, pray for us

Aside from Jim Beam, wala na kaming alam sa mga liquor brands nila. It all looks (and sounds) high quality to our unlearned eyes (and ears). 

Cash In:

Cocktails starts at P370. It's really expensive and it looks like it's for a reason.

Bar food goes for P300 to P500 per order. So mas okay na magpakabusog muna bago pumunta dito.

my "i'm-paying?" look

The Short of It:

Blind Pig is an escape. Well, except for those noisy expats that I think (and hope) is just an isolated case. An expensive escape, but a great escape nonetheless. Try it, if just for the experience.

the Lego loveteam in Blind Pig

Rating:

5 out of 7

[obi.April]