năm năm 20 — Restaurant in Quezon City

We were a group of 7 seated outdoors, cooled down by fans. The place felt slightly cramped but manageable, with a simple ambience that just works. I was drawn to their exterior and use of overgrown nature over a concrete wall/arch, earthy colours, and of wood-plants-painted/printed bright-coloured artwork.

They have a limited menu and it's a bit on the pricier side, and servings aren't exactly small but could be bigger to get more bang for the buck. However, taste-wise, it was all good. Fragrant, simple, but hit the right notes. As chefs and foodies would say, sometimes roadside restos with a limited menu is a good sign because it shows how they really specialize in something and this did seem to be the case.

We were also with a Vietnamese colleague and she's been disappointed with other Vietnamese restos in Metro Manila (even along Maginhawa) before, to the point that she felt like no one served "authentic" Vietnamese food in the Philippines. BUT she gave her major approval for Năm Năm's pho bō and gòi cuon as she felt it did taste like those she'd have back home, and commended the staff present.

It was a busy night but even when peak hour died down, service was a bit slow (numerous follow-ups even for water) and forgetful (no ice for iced coffee served for others at the table where others had been served ice; orders given but items never delivered). HOWEVER, they were all friendly and gracious and even patient and accommodating when our group didn't realize it was beyond closing hours (sorry!).

They can spike up their lemongrass juice in case you'd like an alcoholic beverage to accompany your meal. Local and imported beers are available too.

Overall, it was a good experience and we'd recommend this place (just not when you're famished and...

Food Library #2 (Maginhawa Treasures)

Nãm Nãm 20 20 Maginhawa, Diliman, Quezon City ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

We've been craving for some good Viet food and luckily our friend knows a place. Stepping in the restaurant is reminiscent of our Saigon experience (which is one of our food haven cities in the SEA). The furniture, the arrangement, the vibe, and ohhh Lord! The inviting aroma of coriander, Holy Thai basil, lemongrass, and mint!!! You know it's authentic based on the interior (which the owners replicate the classic food shops in HCM) and aroma (those playful scents of native herbs and spices often used in culinary SEA tradition).

This resto only offers eight items in the menu (4 for food and 4 for drinks) which we ordered one of each (coz why not?).

What we had here is brunch: Phó Bō (clear beef broth with rice noodles and raw graded beef sirloin) Būn Bō Hué (lemongrass beef broth, rice noodles, brisket, tendon, sót saté) Chá Giō (fried pork spring rolls with nuóc chām sauce) Gói Cuōn (fresh spring rolls, shrimp, pork, and peanut sauce) Cá phē suá da (Vietnamese Coffee) Lemongrass Tea

This one is near the main highway. The resto has no parking space (similar to HCM). There's a line between 11AM-2PM. The resto offers limited seating with options of air-conditioned or al fresco, better plan your visit.

The staff are friendly and prompt to our needs.

Price is reasonable--unlike other commercial Vietnamese restaurants.

#gidsfoodlog #forkylibrary...

Simple enough no frills place, food menu has 4 items total but really just 2 if you think about it, 2 choices of noodle and 2 choices of spring rolls.

Spring rolls had this unnecessary fragrance to it. While you get the sweetness from the shrimp, the pork adds absolutely nothing flavor wise, just this meaty texture. That peanut sauce however I could not get enough of.

The beef pho was more salty than anything, and the strips of beef came fully cooked, unlike the posts on social media where they're cooked medium or something. It wasn't bad, far from it it was actually quite good, but if you're going to only have 4 things on your menu then the expectation is it's as close to perfect as it's going to get and this wasn't a wow bowl by any measure. Full disclosure though i don't like cilantro so i had it on the side, so that mightve been my fault.

The lemongrass juice was well, lemongrass, as was the viet coffee.

Service was quite efficient in the beginning but when i ordered the coffee to go it took forever to get done. The owners or perhaps regulars came in and the staff dropped everything to accomodate them to the point that it took well over 15 minutes to get my 1 cup of coffee out.

Weak signal in the area but they do have wifi, and street parking at your own risk.

Senior computation is problematic and they don't...