Have you tried the Arabic Pizza? It is called Mana-ish and it has some similarities to the Italian pizza such as a thin crusted dough but the toppings are exotic and worth sampling. Where can you find such an exotic treat?

It can easily be found at Mana-ish & More, a new Syrian-Lebanese Restaurant located on Jupiter Street, Makati. They also offer traditional middle eastern fare such as Fatteh, Mousaka and Donner Shawarma wrapped with Saj bread.

Great care has been taken in making the interiors exactly like a Syrian restaurant from the hand crafted copper counter top, ovens, chillers, hot plates, and equipment that have been imported from Damascus to the sun motif that brings a ray of light even during rainy weather. We are convinced of the sincerity of the owner Mr. Philip Mazloum to bring a piece of his country to Manila especially since he also brought over a chef to train the local staff to ensure that the taste will be as authentic as possible.

Mana-ish & More has so many dishes worth trying that is why it took us two visits to get a complete picture of all the amazing food to be served. Most Filipinos know the highly popularized kebabs and shawarmas that are commonplace in the metro so we tried some exciting new dishes to learn the intricacies of Middle Eastern food and wish to share them with our readers.

Cream of Lentil - PHP 110.00+ ($US 2.50)

This fragrant grainy soup hits the spot especially with a slice of lemon. It is extremely nutritious with a lot of fiber and protein, a good way to start off any meal.

Tabouleh – PHP 170.00+ ($US 4.00)

Tabouleh is a parsley salad with crushed wheat, fresh tomatoes, onions, lemon, dried mint, extra virgin olive oil. This was refreshing and did you know that parsley is one of the top alkaline foods? This helps balance all the acidity from meats in a typical diet.

Toasted Mousaka 5 Pcs. - PHP 250.00+ ($US 6.00)

Mousaka is a well known appetizer comprised of eggplant, onion, garlic, and bell pepper cooked in tomato sauce, to make it toasted it is baked with mozzarella and placed on top of a sliced baguette. Mousaka means frozen and it is normally served cold in Syria and the Middle East, it is served hot in Manila to cater to local tastes. This was an excellent dish and made our mouths water for more.

Manaish Trio – PHP 140.00+ ($US 3.50)

We wanted to sample a few of their unique flavors of their mana-ish so we made a special order for the following:

1) Zaatar (ground thyme, oregano, sesame seeds and olive oil) – We liked this best of the three as the 31 herbs and spices made it the most flavorful. The Zaatar also happens to be the most famous Mana-ish in Syria and the spice combination is in high demand. The appreciation for this native dish is similar to how puto is appreciated by Filipinos worldwide.

2) Jebneh (home made white cheese and chopped parsley) – This was our second favorite of the trio.

3) Muhamara with Cheese (minced tomato and chili paste) – Not that chilli and tasted a bit bland.

The crust was soft and complemented the various toppings.

Mana-ish Shawarma Donner - PHP 150.00+ ($US 3.50)

We also tried a non-traditional mana-ish with lamb and mozzarella which was also quite delicious especially with the salted radish.

Fish Harra – PHP 315.00+ ($US 7.75)

Lamb is the main source of protein for Middle Eastern food, but along the coast, this fish dish is one of their specialties. It is a baked sole fish fillet with garlic, chilli, bell pepper and tomato sauce, and served with saffron rice. What makes it taste different from other tomato based sauces is the cumin and walnuts. Originally it would be made with the Sultan Ibrahim fish found in the Mediterranean sea which has red meat like salmon.

Upon cutting open the rice, the steamy fragrance of the saffron wafted out and it provided a nice bed for the fish.

Eggplant Fatteh - PHP 325.00+ ($US 8.00)

This house specialty came highly recommended and it reminded us of huge nacho dip but with a combination of eggplant, chickpeas mixed with toasted pita, garlic, vermicelli rice, tahini sauce, topped with ground beef and cashew nuts. The flavors and textures were lip smackingly good! Instead of a tortilla it was served with their in-house toasted Saj bread and we have been warned about the heaviness of fatteh but it was difficult to hold ourselves back! To accompany this power meal, pickles, salted radish, jalapeño peppers, and onions were served.

Saj Machine

The Saj bread is passionately made at the restaurant as well as the pita and dough for mana-ish. It painstakingly took three months to perfect the original recipes due to the Philippine humidity and atmospheric pressure.

Saj Wrapped Sandwich Shawarma Donner – PHP 150.00+ ($US 3.50)

This is by far the best shawarma that we have tried in Manila thus far. What makes it stand above the rest is the quality and tenderness of the lamb used (without fat), combination of garnishings, garlic yogurt sauce, and the lighter saj bread provides a crisper wrap than pita. As a bonus french fries! Another dish worth coming back for!

Muhalableh - PHP 100.00+ ($US 2.50)

For dessert we had their best seller – Muhalableh with arabic tea and turkish coffee. It is a traditional Lebanese milk flan that is very light and perfect after a heavy meal.

Turkish Coffee - PHP 75.00+ ($US 1.75)

The Turkish coffee was a very rich black, aromatic and had additional flavor due to a hint of cardamom.

Hookah – Shisha PHP 250.00+ ($US 6.00)

They offer quite a few flavors, but the best is their double apple which may be enjoyed at their outdoor patio.

Take note that when in Syria, don’t share your wife, car or shisha! Most foreigners however do share their shisha with their friends and these are a few shisha/hookah etiquette tips:

1) Tap on hand if you wish to borrow the shisha pipe / Do not get shisha pipe from hand of smoker

2) Person with shisha should twist and give

3) To get more charcoal, tap on the charcoal plate

4) Don’t light cigarettes from charcoal – Very bad luck!

They also offer backgammon and free wifi!

How was your Mana-ish experience?

Mana-ish
#20 Jupiter Street
Makati
Tel: 896-6262
Website: www.mana-ish.com

On our next post we have Shabu-Shabu at the Thousand Cranes located at the 2nd Floor of Greenbelt 3, Makati. Please click here.

Remember life is way too short, don’t let it pass you by. Enjoy Hour Philippines!

Sincerely,

Lord and Aksana
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