THE OLIVE TREE: EXOTIC FLAVORS, VIBRANT SPICES

One fine Sunday recently, we discovered this tasteful Mediterranean restaurant in Molito Lifestyle Center along Madrigal Avenue in Alabang, Muntinlupa. Although a bit far off from where we live in Quezon City, we ventured into what we considered foreign territory, not being southerners.

The trip to The Olive Tree in Alabang was preceded by an early morning mass, followed by a visit to the Legaspi Sunday Market in Legaspi Village, Makati on invitation of our good friend, Christine Areola-Tweg, whose Bait Lehem bread shop has been kiosk-ing there for five years. We have been followers and fans of Bait Lehem, a passion project between Christine and her Israeli husband, Michael.

The bakery, based in Mandaluyong, where it has a companion restaurant called Finkels, has over 50 different kinds of Mediterranean and West Asian breads.

They have artisan loaves made with olive and rosemary, cereal and oat, cranberry and raisin, dark multigrain, walnut, assorted flatbreads, bagels with cinnamon and raisin, cranberry, blueberry, sesame, garlic, onion.

There’s more: sourdough ciabatta, rosemary focaccia, assorted buns, breads and rolls and appetizing dips such as babaganush, matbucha and hummus.

Christine asked her staff to whip up for us a special pizza studded with sprinkles of meat, herbs, black olives  and veggies,  which we finished in a flash, famished as we were, thanks to all that walking in the Greenbelt area and the scorching heat that August high noon. She warned us, however, not to stuff ourselves too much, as we were headed for Alabang in the afternoon for our date at The Olive Tree.  

There to welcome us with a full smile, stunning presence and engaging conversation, was Ramona Yamat Pedraja, former beauty queen (Miss Eco International 2017) and one of Christine’s partners in the new restaurant. She offered to order for us the house specialties, which consisted of Kebab Patter, Pumpkin Soup in Baguette Bowl, Cauliflower Steak, Mediterranean Corn Ribs, Complimentary Hummus, Babaganush and Pita, Pitabites Nachos.

The Olive Tree, which opened a second restaurant in Makati’s Poblacion in September, is where they serve lots of healthy foods prepared by a team of veteran Filipino chefs who have worked in foreign kitchens. Servings are huge, are priced reasonably compared to other restaurants of a similar nature.

This is where one can indulge in food rich in exotic flavors and vibrant spices, the type you’ll never find in your homes. Mona explains that theirs is a delicious blend of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern fusion menu. 

Our meal, of course, was topped by coffee. Mine was a café mocha, not too sweet yet quietly strong, I realized much later as soon as night fell. We matched this with a lovely Brioche French Toast, which Mona herself brought out.    

While waiting for your orders, check out the restaurant’s design and interiors. The two olive trees, rendered driftwood-style and standing in two corners of the room, are genuine trees imported from Dubai. 

In Greek history and mythology, olive tree is a symbol for food source, a shade giver and a fuel provider. The early Olympians were crowned with olive leaves as champions in their league.

And so it goes, in pretty much the same way, we crown our winning dining experience at The Olive Tree with an imaginary big branch of olive leaves.