Father's Day celebration in advance

It was an honest mistake. I really thought that Father's Day this year was June 13. I had it mixed up and thinking of it, that was I thought that nobody was sending greetings of Happy Father's Day yet because it was supposed to be on June 20. Anyway, we proceeded with our advanced Father's Day Celebration by making reservations at Isabelo Garden Restaurant in Marikina. Hubby heard some raves about this private dining by Isabelo and when I got to read the post by Our Awesome Planet, I made reservations for June 13, for a Father's Day Celebration. I sent an email to Ms. Portia, the passionate cook behind Isabelo, and she sent us a map, the directions and a list of their best sellers and prices.

It was raining hard while we were driving to Marikina and we almost missed the restaurant because there was no sign outside their gate. When we got inside the gate, there was an ancestral house with sprawl of old trees and plants. There were tables set up, decorations of hanging bottles, potted plants and a smell of something good cooking inside the kitchen.

We pre-ordered the Orange Herb Chicken, Quatro Formaggio Pizza and Parmigiano Carbonara.

This is the Orange Herb Chicken, which according to Ms. Portia was cooked for two hours! It was moist and flavorful with a subtle hint of the herbs and orange. It comes with vegetables like marble potatoes, carrots and squash.


This was not in our original list, but our waiter asked if we would like their available appetizer, which is the Spinach Artichoke Dip. This was the dish that started it all. It was really creamy and goes very well with the crunchiness of the bread.


This is the Parmigiano Carbonara, which is not like the usual carbonara that we've tried. The creaminess is not overpowering and we can really taste the flavor of the ham and the Parmigiano cheese. It's also olive oil based.


The Quatro Formaggio pizza is a must try. The dough is homemade and cooked grilled, so it is crunchy on the outside but still chewy on the inside. From the smell of it, we can really tell that the Mozzarella used was fresh, including the tomatoes on the sauce.


After our main feast, we ordered Watermelon Sorbet, which is just the right ending to our wonderful meal. The homey ambiance at Isabelo is a perfect scenery for the excellent food that they serve. We also got to meet Ms. Portia when she visited us at our table. Overall, it was really a nice family dinner for us as we celebrated Father's Day.

Note: All pictures above were taken by hubby. ; )