Exposition:

Maisen

Being just opened August this year, Maisen in Greenbelt is one of the new restaurants to enter the recent katsu boom in the metro. We personally think it's a bit late since most of the more popular franchises have already developed their solid following but that only fueled our curiosity to check how this restaurant can differentiate themselves from their competitions.

Sinubukan namin ito one lunch time with friends from work.

info page

Turning Point:
What we ordered...

• Mixed Katsu Set
• Katsumabushi Set
• Tenderloin Katsu Set

The mixed katsu set is mini tenderloin (about 2 bite-sized slices), prawn (1 piece), and potato croquette (2 medium sized roll) served with rice, cabbage, set of pickled veggies (just a few bits), some slices of fruits, and miso soup. Refillable yung rice, soup, at cabbage which is similar to most katsu places.

mixed katsu set

Malambot yung pork and slides off with a gentle slice. Juicy yung loob pero in such a way na hindi sobra ang mantika. Crispy ang breading pero nakakapalan kami ng bahagya. The meat piece is lean, wala kami halos makitang taba. The croquette is tasty but can get messy to eat dahil madaming mumu na naglalaglagan pag kinagat. The prawn piece is big pero bitin pa din ang isang serving. Sana ginawa nilang dalawa man lang. Sakto lang ang luto nito. Malambot sa kagat pero may laban pa din ng kaunti (hindi outright soft na parang overcooked).

katsumabushi set

The katsumabushi set is tenderloin katsu sliced into bite-sized pieces served with slow-cooked egg and miso stock. May paandar sila sa set na ito. One of the suggested way of consuming it (that we did) is to douse the miso broth into the rice bowl then mix the soft-boiled egg into the concoction. Parang katsudon ang itsura, less the stringy fried egg. Matabang yung miso soup. Parang wala itong effect sa mix kundi gawin itong soggy. Mas nagka flavor pa ito dahil sa egg pero generally it's just like eating katsu with soggy rice.

Yung complimentary iced rice tea ay literal na pinalamig na tsaa. Yung tsaa na hindi commercial kundi yung lasang roasted na kahoy at damo. 

tenderloin katsu

Conflict:

Prices range from P400 to P500. This is almost the same with the more popular competitors. We can't say that's expensive for what they offer with barely noticeable differences in terms of food quality. So us being casual diners (in contrast to legit katsu connoisseurs), we think the price is just right.

Expensive, yes, but just right for the overall dining experience.

busy choosing her food

Climax:

Maliit yung lugar sa loob. It probably can only seat 8 to 10 groups of diners at a time. It can get noisy when the place is full. At sobrang lapit ng mga customers sa isa't isa na pwede na mag tinginan ng order ang mga magkakatabing lamesa.

The interiors is quaint. Modern ang design na may Japanese touches at may malalaking glass panels overlooking their al fresco dining area and their own kitchen.

Service is good and it should be. Sa liit ng lugar, looking after all the patrons should not be that difficult. May kasamang wet towel for each paying customers as additional eklat.

menu

The tonkatsu sauce tastes good. Manamis-namis pero hindi overpowering yung katamisan. I personally liked the sesame dressing. Kaya nakarami kami ng cabbage refill.

They used Black Berkshire pork variant for their meat and that should guarantee quality according to some.

Denouement: 

For us, they are behind Yabu but ahead of Ginza Bairin and Tonkatsu by Terazawa with everything considered. Pero sa Crazy Katsu pa din kami kung sa pa-sulitan sa binabayad. 

katsumabushi and friends

 
Rating: 
4.5 out of 7




[obi.Sept.16]

Some Intro

We're back in the dating game. Lumalaki na si Pipay at pwede nang iwanan ng mas matagal sa bahay, kaya balik kami ng ex-GF ko (si Misis K) sa pag date-date kapag nakakaluwag. It was a Friday payday night and we decided to finally try out this place in Glorietta 2. Madalas na namin itong nadadaanan pauwi at interesting how their buffalo wings will compare against some of the places we like when it comes to this spicy treat.

At the time of this writing, we already did two visits with them.

sports channel everywhere

Some Food

• Hand-Spun Wings (Snack and Small Servings)
• The Big Ribs (Half Rack)
• Dirty Rice
• Cheeseburger Slammers

Their wings is in denominations of 5 (Snack), 10 (Small), 15 (Medium), and 20 (Large) pieces per servings. It comes with celery, carrots, and a choice of bleu cheese or ranch dressing. There are about 18 flavors to choose from and the menu illustrated it in order of spiciness. Here are the signature seasonings that we've tried so far.

lemon pepper wings

• Lemon Pepper (Very Mild Spice)
• Honey BBQ (Above Average Spice)
• Parmesan Garlic (Very Mild Spice)

Generally, the chicken wing parts are chunky and the meat inside is tender. The breading is crunchy at hindi dinaan sa kapal para magmukang malaki yung piyesa. We always picked bleu cheese and it went well with the flavors we've tried.

We can't feel the lemon tang on the Lemon Pepper seasoning so it just tasted like a plain fried chicken with a hint of pepper spice. The Honey BBQ seasoning is supposed to have an above average spiciness according to the illustration on their menu but it is just a bit more hot than the Lemon Pepper. Nasa dulo yung anghang niya nararamdaman kapag madami na ang nakakain. The sweet honey taste is evident though. The Parmesan Garlic seasoning has a solid garlic taste with a cheesy aftertaste. This is our favorite among those we tried.

big ribs

The Big Ribs is new on their menu. As fans of barbecued ribs, we didn't like how this one doesn't have that distinctive smokey taste. It is served with crispy and flavorful potato wedges that is, frankly, we enjoyed more than the ribs. Its redeeming factor is on its honey barbecue which is not too sweet that it overpowers the meat. Ganun kasi madalas sa grilled ribs ng ibang restaurants.

The dirty rice is expensive for what it is. There's nothing special on its taste despite how it looks. We stick with plain rice on our next visit.

burger slider

The cheeseburger slammer is three-piece cheeseburger sliders served with fries. The patties are big for a slider at busog kaagad kami kahit sa isang piraso pa lang. Nothing fancy has gone with it. May lettuce, tomato, and onion slices lang and that's it.

misis K

Some Cost

The "small" serving of wings (10 pieces) is about P600 and this is comparable to the other fried chicken wing places we've been to. With how big the portions are and the additional sauces, side dishes, and ambiance, mas lamang pa nga dito ng kaunti sa pasulitan.

The snack size is just right for a single meal at around P300 per 5 pieces.

spice chart for the wings

The ribs is about P700 and although it is a competitive price compared to others, the taste just doesn't work for us. And for the price, dapat hindi pwedeng "pwede na". We are expecting more for what we paid.

The bite-sized burgers are about P400 in all. This can buy us a huge and good-tasting gourmet burger on other burger joints so meh. In short, just stick with the basics when in this place. Buy wings and enjoy.

Some Words

The place is a watering hole by night.With its sporty theme and ambiance, it sure is a guy's haven. The place is surrounded by flat TV's with channels tuned in different sports shows. There's a corner with gaming consoles with sports games available. Everywhere we look, there are frames with sporty photos and memorabilia. 

happy camper

Sobrang dami ng servers nila kaya hindi mahirap kumuha ng attention to ask for something. The menu is straightforward and visually appealing. 

The place can get noisy at night and understandably so.

Comfort room is impressive. It has two kinds of tissue: the soft one for personal care and the rigid kind used as seat cover. There's also a provision for diaper changing for babies. They also provide wet towels for the customers.

gaming consoles

One of their marketing catch is the "Screamin' Wings" challenge. If customers can finish a dozen screamin' wings (the hottest variant), they will get an exclusive shirt. The first night we dropped by to dine, may isang kano na sumubok. Mukang di nya natapos. Ganun talaga siguro ka-anghang.

a guy doing his 'Screamin Wings' challenge

Rating:
4 out of 7





[obi.Sept.4]