Food: Don Henrico's Ristorante at Festival Mall, Alabang

I haven't eaten at Don Henrico's for years. So when I saw a 50% off deal at Ensogo (P500 voucher for only P250), I immediately bought 2 vouchers and planned to dine at their Festival Mall branch in Alabang. I was able to after the Holy week, together with my husband and my parents.

Upon entering the restaurant, the first thing I noticed was that it looked old and dull and tired. It was mid-afternoon and there were only a few diners inside. I asked for a table for four and we were led to one with 2 two-seater couches facing each other. There were large tears on the couches and everything just seemed to have this worn out vibe. Obviously, the interiors was kept un-updated for a long time.

So not having any interesting piece to focus on, I set my eyes on the menu. First, I informed the waiter that I'll be using two Ensogo vouchers. I inquired through phone beforehand and was told that to be able to use two vouchers per table, it will be a one item per voucher transaction. To maximize the use of the vouchers, they suggested that each item must be at least P500. Hence, we ordered 5 pieces of Buffalo Wings (P560) and a family-size Supreme Pizza (P540). We also added a regular size Seafood Pesto Linguine (P280) and 4 glasses of different flavored drinks.

I forgot that Don Henrico's Buffalo Chicken Wings are BIG (almost as big as other restaurants' quarter chicken). But the taste was as good as I remember it. The sauce that coated each piece provided a strong, sharp BBQ flavor on the outside of the chicken, which others might find overwhelming. I did so I scraped off the sauce first before I take a bite. But the inside was a juicy, tasty soft meat, reminding me why the wing is my part favorite in a chicken.The best way to eat this is to dip or dab a few drops of the ranch dressing onto the chicken for a balanced smoky-sweet-salty-sour flavor. We didn't have rice, but I imagine this would go perfectly with it.

The pizza was delightful as well, as I could note the freshness of the toppings used. Although I wish we had asked for more cheese. The crust tasted fresh, too and I thought it nicely offset the flavors of the pizza sauce and the toppings. But my Dad, who is fond of thin-crust pizzas, found it too thick.

We liked the Seafood Pesto Linguine the most. The blend of creamy-white and Pesto sauce, perfectly-cooked seafood slices and al dente Linguine noodles lent a rich, full-bodied flavor to this pasta dish. The combination of Pesto and white sauce offered a refreshingly new and wonderful treat to our taste buds. Despite the creaminess of the sauce, it didn't have that umay factor.

Overall, we enjoyed the food and was overwhelmed with the large servings.We only had 3 dishes but it was more than enough for all 4 of us. We brought home half of the pizza and 3 pieces of Buffalo wings. The wait staff were also very friendly and helpful and using my Ensogo vouchers was hassle-free.

Our total bill amounted to P1,700+, which means that I had to shell out an additional P700++ cash. If only they didn't have the 1 item/voucher rule (when using more than 1 voucher per table), we could have ordered the smaller serving size of the pizza and the Buffalo wings, and added another dish for more variety. But yeah, rules are rules and I think the P500 worth of savings is good enough.