Somewhere along McKinley Hill in Bonifacio Global City is a nice restaurant situated along the Venice Grand Canal called Mati’s Meat and Bread. Anyone who loves Melo’s, one of the famous steakhouses in Manila, should be happy to know that Mati’s is its grandson. That’s why we got totally excited when we learned that we’re going to dine in Mati’s Meat and Bread because we’re so sure that we’ll get to taste quality food . We’re so ready for the meat and greet!

The cozy interior is perfect for dates which can either be a simple catch up with friends or a romantic one, both accompanied with good food and good wine.

We were planning to go straight to the meat part of the “meat and greet” but when we saw Balut Aligue and Gambas Ajillo on the menu, we couldn’t resist.

Known to gastronomic adventurers as boiled bird embryo, balut is one of Philippine delicacies that usually comes with bets and bribes because people, especially foreigners, get weirded out when asked to eat it. We admit, if we didn’t grow up eating balut, we’ll behave the same way too. Luckily, we enjoy eating balut and so when they were served to us in a plate sizzling with aligue (crab fat) sauce, we were all smiles. We appreciated that the bird embryo was small enough to be eaten in one bite and soft enough to melt in the mouth. The aligue added that seafood flavor to the dish which complemented well to the overall taste of the balut. To a person who will eat balut for the first time, this is the perfect dish.

Gambas Ajillo may be regarded as something easy to whip up but aside from the balance of flavors, one of the key things in making this dish was how well the shrimps were cooked. In Mati’s case, they were cooked and seasoned beautifully. The heat from the chilis added personality to the dish, making it quite difficult for us not to order another serving.

If there’s one fish that we can eat every single day, it’s salmon. Raw or cooked, we love salmon. Therefore, this Grilled Norwegian Salmon with Lemon Butter has to be included on our list of things to try in Mati’s Meat and Bread. The freshness of the fish was apparent and the lemon juice we drizzled over the salmon helped brought out the dish’s vibrance. The mashed potato that came with the dish was silky and lovely.

Now, on to the meat and greet proper. Since Mati’s bake their own bread, we wanted to try one of their bestselling sandwiches— the Steak Sandwich. It’s basically a baguette with generous slices of steak smothered with garlic cream cheese. One bite and you’ll get that combination of crunchiness and softness from the bread and that tenderness and juiciness from the meat. We almost forgot the fries that came with it because we were focused on enjoying the sandwich.

For the meatier part of our lunch, we got the Classic Ribeye. Known as the “butcher’s favorite”, our ribeye was cooked just the way we requested— medium. The serving portion is about 150g and with the sides of mashed potato and vegetables, it’s enough for a satisfactory meal.

The Wagyu Salpicao was up next. Our love of garlic is vast and wide so when we saw Mati’s’ gorgeous Wagyu Salpicao, our hearts instantly fluttered. At this point, we just finished our Watermelon Shake and Fresh Dalandan Juice so we asked the wait staff to get us a bottle of good red wine. Wagyu and Wine for lunch, why not?

Last item we got from the menu was their gorgeous Wagyu Tenderloin. All 180 grams of it. The beef was tender but still has that bite. It was so well-seasoned that we almost forgot the gravy that came with it. We ate it together with the Angus Steak Rice which was already a meal in itself!

Contrary to what a lot of people think, the meal we had— even though we got a couple of Wagyu selections, was delightfully affordable. Since Mati’s Meat and Bread is related to Melo’s Steakhouse, they get quality meat from the same source. The grade may be slightly different to make Mati’s prices more accessible but the flavors and the taste are spot on— exactly how you like your steaks.

Since the restaurant is situated along the Venice Grand Canal, you may choose to dine al fresco for that scenic and romantic feel. We’re sure Mati’s would be happy to meat you.

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