Italianni's Almost Midnight Snack

Fully Booked has a major warehouse sale at their Bonifacio High Street branch, ending tomorrow April 8, 2011. Prices are unbelievable. How low do they go? As low as P 20! Yes, 20 pesos, you read it right. There were tables filled with stacks and stacks of books at price points P 20, P 50, P 70 and P 100. To give you an example of the relative quality of the selection, P 100 included lots of hardbound books (with a pretty diverse selection of business non-fiction, self-help how to's, fiction novels, and more) while P 50 included lots of branded travel books like Fodor's and Frommer's as recent as 2009 and with popular cities. I even saw several books that I had bought full price in the past. 


It was definitely a steal, with people reportedly buying strollers' worth of books and even requiring boxes as they swept the outstanding-value-for-its-price book selection (rapidly trimmed from a large floor area at Fully Booked's Top Shelf when the event started late March, into a small retail space on the third floor by the time we came). Another example of the price versus quality ratio - My cousin bought some sci-fi books by a cult favorite author for a mere P 70 pesos each, when he'd easily have bought it full price for P 700. I hope they make a habit out of this major warehouse clearance sale. Throw in a pleasant, quiet, air-conditioned ambiance, carefully stacked books (all you need to do is circle the tables, reading the titles hands-free), a ready stroller and a special cashier situated for that purpose, and you're all set for some primo bargain-hunting. 


I bought a P70 book by novelist Amy Tan, which I have yet to read. I don't usually buy books anymore, as I have a long list of titles pending in my beloved first generation Kindle (a glorious hand-me-down from my dad). The only thing I miss is the random browsing afforded by paperback copies. I am a browse-a-holic, impatience and curiosity combining as I sometimes read the ending first or significant chunks in the middle before I properly start it from cover to cover. 


After some serious window-shopping (contemplating the height of wedges in Charles & Keith, flabbergasted at the latest Apple technology of 12-core processors, and drooling over pricey dresses in Topshop while mentally weighing it against bargain finds in places like Cotton On, Multiply and Greenhills) as well as a teensy bit of dog-watching (Bonifacio High Street is the place to be whether you're a chic dog owner or just your dog is), we trooped towards a faithful favorite for a late night snack - Italianni's. 


We ate my favorite way - communal dishes placed in the middle and sampled by everyone. I've gotten so attached to getting to try a string of dishes in one restaurant visit, that sometimes ordering a solo dish feels almost lonely. (Unless it's a tried and tested true favorite which I would happily gobble up on my own.) Plus, it also accommodates two of my favorite things - Italian food and appetizers.  

Spaghetti with giant meatballs - tangy tomato and satisfyingly meaty (there were two meatballs, but enough to slice up in small chunks and eat with the linguine)  

 Stuffed mushrooms - cheesy, creamy, mushroom-meaty 

 Italianni's Caesar Salad - classic and sweetly fun to munch on.  

Truffle fries! I haven't eaten in Italianni's for a long time, so this was a pleasant surprise. The sauce was honey-mustard-truffle, which was delightful and endlessly appealing. 

 Salmon carpaccio - tasting like its garnish of capers, olives, spices, and other unnamed ingredients.

Fried calamari - the ultimate pica pica snack food, the right kind of crispy. 

My personal favorite was truffle fries, which did not scrimp on the truffle flavor. The first time I tried truffle fries, it was at Bistecca, and since then I have surmised you can never go wrong with truffle oil and French fries on hand.  It's becoming an addiction. I don't even usually like honey mustard, but with truffle oil? Yum yum. (In the words of the heaviest four year old in the world, Lu Zhihao ;)