viaje del sol: kusina salud

kusina salud is one of the better-known destinations in the viaje del sol group. its rustic environment was created by renowned designer patis tesoro.

for those who've been to fat michael's in bangkal, makati, and enjoyed it, you will definitely love kusina salud, as it's a larger version of fat michael's, with an aviary and lots of plants to boot.

the place was interesting enough and highly photogenic. however, as for the food, i didn't find it spectacular as others claim it to be. don't let me change your opinion about the place, though. kusina salud is still worth a visit, and maybe the a la carte menu is better than the kambingan festival lunch buffet that we had last sunday.

here's the lineup of dishes we had that day:

kilawin
traditional goat ceviche tossed with red onions and chili

ensaladang pako salad bar (photo)
fettlehead fern salad with marinated organic tomatoes,
roasted peppers and corn, julienne of carrots and jicama.
served with two choices of dressing: red onion or garlic mustard.

lumpiang shanghai
crispy pork and shrimp spring rolls with a chili guava dip

sinampalukan
organic, farm-raised goat in a tart sampalok-broth
with traditional vegetables

kambing curry
spicy curry goat stew served with pineapple relish

kaldereta "shepherd's pie"
braised goat-kaldereta style, topped with mashed potatoes,
creamed corn, and cheddar cheese.

pinangat
braised taro leaves stuffed with seasonal fish,
local green chili and topped with deep-fried crispy-pork

organic white rice

fresh buko salad
with market fresh fruits and luscious sweetened cream

they failed to include the only thing i thoroughly enjoyed: the bread pudding with mango sauce (photo). of these dishes, i was pretty satisfied with the kilawin, the salad, and the sinampalukan. i did not enjoy pinangat at all. i was actually pretty interested to try out something different. oh, the curry with pineapple relish tasted good, too, but there wasn't much meat to feast on. luckily, the pineapples were great.

kusina salud is also home to a branch of pillar plants & novelties, which was filled with various items and oddities, such as wooden heads of the apostles (sent shivers down my spine, i tell ya). there were also wooden furniture and antique stuff for sale.

even with my sub-par experience in kusina salud, i'm still not writing it off. maybe next time, i'll get to try their other dishes and finally see what all the fuss is about.

to see more of kusina salud, go here.

contact information:
kusina salud
bgy. sta. cruz, putol, san pablo, laguna
contact person: jerome
mobile: 0921-7726985
tel. nos.: manila: (02) 6995035; laguna: (049) 2466878.
rates: P410/head, sunday lunch buffet.
business hours: lunch: 11am-3pm; dinner: 530pm-9pm