Revisiting Sonya’s Garden: A Relaxing Escape

It has been a while since I last visited Sonya’s Garden. I have been to Tagaytay a couple of times during the previous year (2011), but never really got the chance to go back there. It was a good thing that during the Holidays, we had some balikbayans visit us in Manila and visiting Tagaytay was part of the itinerary.

Contrary to what people think, Sonya’s is not only a restaurant where you eat vegetables and petals of flowers during lunch or brunch or dinner, but it’s a relaxing haven. When we went there last December, there were three weddings that were held at Sonya’s. It was a good thing that we decided to have a massage first and then have lunch.

We went straight to the Spa area. My husband tried the Tuina. It was a dry massage, but according to him, they used a little bit of oil. I had a foot massage with Ate Nina (ManilaMommy.com).

They gave us a big basin of warm water with lemon in it. It was very relaxing. The foot massage was done in a room which had a vibe of a small country home. The windows and doors were open so you can actually hear the water flowing down the fountain outside.

After the soothing massage, we also had a pedicure. It was a great activity to start my year right. After the session, I wrote it down in my little notebook. I promised myself that I would pamper myself at least once a month for this coming year. I had written “massage and pedicure” for January.

The treatment ended with a cup of hot tea with calamansi (I’m guessing… or was it actually calamansi juice?). It was really good and yummy! Next up, was lunch for everyone.

Sonya’s Garden had an eat-all-you-can menu for Php 610. It was reasonable for the amount of food that they served us. The menu consisted of…

Green Salad Greens: create your own salad of Freshly harvested lettuce and arugula topped with mango, broad beans, eggs, cucumber, pineapple, edible flowers in season, etc., drizzled with Sonya’s Secret Dressing or Balsamic Vinegar/extra virgin olive oil.

We stuffed ourselves with the salad. The vegetables and fruits were so fresh and the sauce was really appetizing.

Bread: Fresh baked whole wheat sesame bread with an array of homemade dips and toppings: basil pesto, white cheese, anchovies, bruschetta tomato toppings. mushroom pate, black olive tapinade and fresh green peppercorn in olive oil.

I just had a few slices of the bread that they served. It was baked in the bakeshop that they had just outside of the dining area. Remember to grab a few packs of the Cheese Hopia and the Spanish Bread. These are to die for!

Pasta: With two kinds of sauces and toppings: sun dried tomato and chicken cream with mango. Topped with ratatouille, salmon belly, shitake mushrooms, black olives, capers and grated parmesan cheese, pepperoncini.

Roast Chicken: This doesn’t come with the standard menu but we wanted to add this.

I loved the white sauce. The toppings were all good, except though that the salmon belly, we thought, was off. Although full, we were glad that we got to order the roast chicken. The meat was cooked well and it wasn’t oily. The meat of the chicken was tender and juicy.

Dessert: Glazed sweet potato , banana rolls with sesame & jackfruit, and smashingly sinful homemade chocolate cake from the Panaderia (enjoy with mint leaves).

When we got to the dessert, the waiter recommended that we eat the glazed sweet potato with the mint leaves on the table. After one bite, we loved it and we wanted to bring home mint leaves. It was a refreshing surprise.

Drinks: Bottomless freshly squeezed dalandan juice (green mandarin) and tarragon tea

The tarragon tea was a perfect ender to this perfect meal in this relaxing ambiance. I felt so re-energized and so ready to start the new year with vitality!

Are you feeling a little down this year? Maybe a trip to Sonya’s Garden will do the trick!

Contact Details:
Sonya’s Garden
Website: http://www.sonyasgarden.com/

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