Dal Cielo: Splurge On The Luxe And Luscious.

Just last Friday, I finally had the chance to go to Dal Cielo with some friends from the BLD Youth Ministry. Dal Cielo has been up-and-running since the second quarter of 2010 (I think) and has been creating a buzz in Elbi's food scene ever since. Dal Cielo's luxe vibe is definitely hard to miss.

I guess one reason I've never been there is because the place is almost always filled with customers, especially during after-school/office hours. Bryan, Ten, Gela, Cie and I went there around 7:00PM and luckily, we got good seats. I was surprised that it was actually smaller than what I expected it to be, although the overall ambiance of the place compensated for the "lack" of space. The interior is opulent and yet gave a home-y appeal, which made us very comfortable at once. The waiting staff gave us our menus, which reminded me of scrapbooks, and our Dal Cielo experience officially began. We decided to get one starter, several different entrées to share, and three desserts.

 Scrapbook-type Menu

Pink Lemonade (45php/glass, 90php/bottomless)

Nothing really special about this one. I do give them points for not making this drink too sour, though.

 Spinach and Artichoke Dip (195php)

For starters, we ordered this Spinach and Artichoke Dip served with six pieces of lightly-toasted bread. It looked creamy and reminded me of my aunt's cream cheese spread with roasted peppers, and it kinda tasted like that, actually. And yes, that's a good thing! Despite it's creamy appearance, the dip was actually filled with  ample amounts of spinach and artichoke bits. I highly recommend this one, although try to order extra slices of bread since the amount of dip served is relatively large for six tiny slices of bread.

 Meatball Sandwich (195php)

Since I wasn't too keen on having rice that night, I opted for this Meatball Sandwich. I was expecting a small sandwich, so it came as a surprise when my order came and I saw this huge sandwich with two huge meatballs on it. It was dressed with a tomato-based sauce and topped with two slices of cheese. I can honestly say that this is by far, the best meatball sandwich I've had. The meatball was tender and juicy and flavorful! The potato salad included in the meal is too good to pass up, too. I liked how they didn't entirely use mayonnaise for the dressing. Dal Cielo, the salad has mustard, right? Ha ha!

 Crispy Dinuguan (150php)

Clearly, one of the winners of the night! Everything about is just good! The flavor, the texture, even the puto that came along with it was good! Gela got this and a side-order of rice (30php). Definitely one of the items in their menu that we'll come back for!

 Grilled Chicken (150php)

Cie and Ten both got the Grilled Chicken served with brown rice. The chicken was really tender and moist, although we all kinda agreed that it was a bit too-garlicky for our taste. It was however balanced out by the relish atop the chicken which had capers. The saltiness from the relish and the garlic-infused chicken provided a flavor explosion in my mouth. Writing that last sentence made my mouth water!

 Capellini Pomodoro (165php)

Bryan decided to try one of Dal Cielo's pasta dishes and got the Capellini Pomodoro; angel's hair pasta with tomato-based sauce. I know the dish looks simple but this one's good, too. Plus points for using fresh ingredients to make sauces! 

After ravishing (Oh yeah) our main courses, we cued for our desserts to be served. Dal Cielo's dessert offerings have been receiving a lot of positive comments since they started. Needless to say, the five of us were excited to try out their desserts. We ordered two slices of New York - Style Cheesecake and a slice of Pistachio Sansrival.

 Blueberry NY-Style Cheesecake (150php)

Classic, right? Dal Cielo's take on this baked cheesecake definitely is the best I've tasted. Seriously. The cheesecake itself was pure bliss. You have to experience it! And yes, I wouldn't mind paying 150php for a slice of this!

Strawberry NY-Style Cheesecake (150php)

Same cheesecake base. Same amazing flavor! The fresh sliced strawberry's a good touch, too! The natural sourness of the fresh strawberry compliments the sweetness of the cake. 

Chris and Bryan's NOTE: See the whipped cream on the side? BEST WHIPPED CREAM EVER. It was light and had this amazing flavor. It could pass as a dessert on its own! Ha ha!

 Pistachio Sansrival (150php)

CHAMPION. This definitely made our visit memorable. The sansrival was light and not too sweet. The whopping amount of pistachio nuts provided this great flavor and surely justified the price tag. How good was it? It's so good, we still talk about it to date! Can't wait for the next time that we'd have this!

Yes, it's quite clear that Dal Cielo is not the most affordable place to eat, but hey, it's okay to splurge once in a while, right? And if you do decide to splurge on food a little, we highly recommend Dal Cielo!

PROS: Great food. Good service. Desserts are to-die for! Large parking space.

CONS: Pricey

FINAL RATING: 5 out of 5

Dal Cielo

Lopez Avenue, Los Baños, Laguna

For more information, visit Dal Cielo's Facebook page.