It was one Saturday morning when we had the awarding for the Hot Young Designers 2012. The winner was Jackie Abueg (Congratulations Jackie!). We were deciding where to eat and my friend Sharon suggested that we have a lunch and a few drinks at Rocket Room. I agreed since I haven’t been to the place and I heard the food there and of its sister resto, Stella, was good.
Congratulations, Jackie! :)
Rocket Room and Stella are situated beside each other at the new extension of Bonifacio High Street. They are at the lower floor at the far end. The menu of the two restaurants are similar and I think they even share a kitchen. The difference between the two places is the ambiance at night. Rocket Room is for the ‘drinking’ crowd while Stella is for families and friends who want to have dinner.
Well, we didn’t get to notice the difference since we ate in the morning at around 11:30 am. Since we were almost 10 in the group, we got to try a lot of dishes. The price of the dishes were not that bad. It seemed to follow the price point of Chelsea, another sister restaurant of these two. The dishes were good for sharing, too, so the restaurant was perfect for family gatherings and celebrations.
The Stella Salad (Php 295)
We started with Salad. We ordered the Stella Salad. It was a mixture of lettuce, sundried tomato bits, malagos pecorino (cheese), buttered chive-ranch dressing and two of my favorite ingredients, bacon bits and candied rosemary pistachios. The salad was very fresh and the greens were as crispy as ever. The salad mixture was just the right amount of flavor that anyone would need to start lunch right.
Next up were the Wood Fired Pizza. Rocket Room and Stella were known for the wood fire concept (pretty much like Uncle Cheffy’s and the like). The stars of this restaurant (as I heard people rave about it) are the pizzas.
We ordered what the Fire Rosted Truffled Mushroom and the Straight up Pepperoni Pizza. In a matter of minutes, the pizzas were gone. Comparing it to other pizzas, these were not as oily as others, probably because of how they were prepared. I like the subtle flavor of the Roasted Truffled Mushroom Pizza and the meaty goodness of the Pepperoni pizza. The taste reminds me of the pizza that we tried in Sorrento where they cook the pizza in an stove brick oven and you can see it being cooked from where you are sitting.
Fire Roasted Truffled Mushroom (Php 350)
Straight up Pepperoni Pizza (Php 295)
The pasta that we ordered were the Stella’s Steamy Clams and the Lasagna “Al Forno”. For those who love clams, this pasta is to die for. It is made of clam stock, angel hair pasta, herbs, asparagus and malagos pecorino cheese.
Stella’s Steamy Clams (Php 350)
Although I’m not a fan of pasta in tomato sauce and would normally go for white sauce, cream based, pesto or even clam stock, I liked the Lasagna better. Both are good, but I loved how you can feel the texture of the pasta being ‘baked’. The lasagna is made out of fire roasted seafood, smokey sundried tomato sauce, black olive, dried chillies, fresh herbs, ricotta, and fresh lemon. It really tasted like a home cooked dish, which I like.
Lasagna “Al Forno” (Php 495)
Of course, we had to have meat. We ordered the Stella’s Porchetta, “California Style” U.S. Baby Back Riblets and the Whole Rosemary Butter and Bacon “Butterfly” Chicken. Among the three, each had their own personality. The Stella Porchetta was pork belly roll stuffed with double smoked bacon, fennel, herbs and is served with warm rosemary sultana sauce. It was a hard core dish — so meaty and unadulterated. The pork was tender and simply delicious. Even without the sauce, I think I would crave for this dish. From the three meat dishes I mentioned, I loved this the best!
Stella’s Porchetta (Php 395)
For those who love barbecue, this is a dish that you will love. The meat of the baby back riblets was tender and soft. This flavors were just right; nothing can go wrong with this perfect barbecue sauce.
“California Style” U.S. Baby Back Riblets (Php 395)
Now I know that my aunts and uncles and my mom would love this Chicken dish. It reminds me of the huge turkey that we would have during New Year, but this is chicken. The meat of the chicken was cooked to perfection. It was served with Chicken liver gravy that would complement the flavor of the dish. It was served in a small pot that made it look even more appetizing.
Whole Rosemary Butter and Bacon “Butterfly” Chicken (Php 495)
We were so full, but we of course left some room for dessert. We had the Stella’s Wood Fired Chocolate Almond Cookie Dough. A cookie dough was lined at the bottom made up of Salted Caramel and Rosemary Pistachios. It was served warm with the cold Mantecado Ice Cream on top. It was a heavenly dessert of clashing temperatures! Each scoop of the cookie dough with the melting ice cream was delightfully amazing. The dessert was good to share for 3-4 people. It might be a bit too sweet if you, alone, will finish it.
Stella’s Wood Fired Chocolate Almond Cookie Dough (Php 195)
Overall, the food was pretty good and I would hold family dinners here. I hope they improve in their service though. The servers were not that attentive and some of the food took a while.
So, are you excited to try out their dishes at Stella and Rocket Room? Drop in a word if you have tried the food here.
Love lots,
P.S. Here are there contact details:
Rocket Room & Stella
7th Ave. corner 29th St. South, Ground Floor, East Superblock, Bonifacio High Street Central, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
Telephone No.: *+632)621-3222
Facebook Fanpage: Stella and Rocket Room
P.P.S. Sharing you also a review of my friend, Anton of Our Awesome Planet. Click here.
