Review Best Posts in Thread: I surrendered at The Alamo

Sorry, I mean Alima (always getting those two confused).

Had lunch with my wife at Alima as I was interested in the positive reviews here of the Eggs Benedict and Seared Fish. Found that Eggs Benedict are not served after 11.30 am (fair enough, have to give them hens a rest) and the Seared Fish was not available. The menu seemed interesting and I predicted a good lunch, even without the fish. I was disappointed. Firstly, with only 7 diners and 7 staff (possibly more, but I counted 7) it took 30 minutes to cook one Arroz Caldo (a rice porridge with chicken) and one Peruvian Steak. They were not served at the same time (which I am sure they could have been). The Arroz Caldo contained a VERY small amount of chicken but was tasty; however I become bored with it (my problem not theirs). The meat in the Peruvian Steak was chewy and therefore not enjoyable to eat (if it had been then the small amount of meat would have been insufficient for the price) and the potato chips were only just warm. I feel that at P165 the Arroz Caldo and at P299 the Peruvian Steak were not good value for money (unlike the Meat Platter for P575 we ate last week at Adamo and which sufficed for two us there and three of us at home for another meal). The menu (plus other reviews here) seem to indicate it would be worth another try but I don't think we will; perhaps we made two bad choices but I surrender too easily. Btw, is 'Alima' derived from the Bisayan for "To look after" or a connection with Peru (because of the Peruvian Steak on the menu) - the connection being 'A Lima' and Lima being the capital of Peru.

 

"And why are you in such a hurry? It's the Philippines!?" I am old!

"After seeing a handful of posts from you, I wonder if you forgot where you are." I am old! My wife reminds me where I am every hour, on the hour, but perhaps I write my posts between those hours.

 

You are far too nice haha, I enjoy your buns there is substance in them, I actually feel I get something in my stomach and taste fit to me, I like you put fruit in them

 

Then maybe you should know then that the chemical tenderiser is made from papain, a by-product of papaya and also a contraceptive. Just ask the dwindling tribes in South America, they use it all the time.

 

He has been around for years now, guess he is on the way to get old too, he is already grumpy at times

 

That's total nonsense ! You're not in the States where you would avoid a $6 steak, you're in the Philippines where 299 pesos is a respectable sum of money. Especially to a member of the indigenous population who likely doesn't earn that amount on a daily basis,
when used correctly, a marinade would not only tenderise but add great flavour ,too.
Especially papaya which is found in abundance. Wrap meat in papaya leaves for a few hours or overnight and you will find your tiny "poo" ( poo, really), nicely tenderised . Of course, it could be the person cooking it that is ignorant of this basic technique.