Pre-Chinese New Year Pig Out@El Cerdo

This outing last Sunday was a much anticipated pigging out session for my brother and I. And what better place to pig out than at a restaurant where oink oinks is the star of the show.

Ever since the first time we visited El Cerdo, we have fallen in love with it. This is where pork lovers can come to enjoy the swineful delights to their hearts content. We went there early, arriving at 12:00pm. I did not make reservations because the last time we were there, we did not have any problems getting a table. It was the same this time except that the server took a while to decide where to sit us. 

Like before, this fellow greeted us at the door, all dolled up in Chinese New Year getup.

El Cerdo means The Pig in Spanish and inside you will see many piggy decorations.

Now on Sundays, you can opt for the brunch which I think is good value for money if you are a big eater and/or drinker.

But we did not come for the brunch because we wanted ribs and Paella. The brunch is a small spread but filled with variety. I think it is pretty good but that will have to wait for another day.

Once we were seated (our seat was opposite the toilet but it was alright as the toilet was well concealed with drapes. But still, I think in future I better make reservations to get better seating) I got busy inspecting the menu. We were given only one menu and I had to pass it to my brother after I was done.

The Menu Cover.

Poetic with the piggy.

It was not difficult to make our choices as our focus was trained on the ribs and paella. We settled for the Green Salsa Baby Back Ribs and Paella Mixta. And water. El Cerdo does not serve good old plain water and the server brought us a bottle of mineral water to share. After our orders were taken, another server approached me with something that looked like a bracelet (my brother called it a handcuff). I did not quite understand as he spoke with a heavy accent. Then it became clear that the "bracelet" was actually some kind of hanger to hang my handbag hah..hah... Now I know...

I need to buy a new handbag.

While waiting, I got up to snap pics of the piggy decorations.

Piggy mobile. I'd like this in my house.

The food took some time to arrive. In the menu, there is a note to tell patrons to allow the kitchen 30-40 minutes for the paella to be served. Meanwhile, we started off with bread and butter.

The bread is refillable.

The ribs arrived first, served on a board. There were 8 pieces of ribs, apple salad, fried potatoes and salsa. I think I could easily polish this off all by myself but we shared on account of the paella.

The meat was tender and juicy. Really tasty but I did not quite appreciate the green salsa. It was rather salty and I believe there were capers in there. I should have snapped a photo of the menu for reference of the ingredients.

The apple salad was quite good. I think it was apple slices mixed with mayonnaise. It went well with the pork.

And the potatoes? Totally scrumptious. It was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside and full of salty buttery goodness. My brother said it tasted like cookies. hah..hah...

The green salsa was left pretty much untouched. It did not quite suit our tastebuds. Besides, the ribs were already so good on their own. After we were done, our paella was still not ready. I believe it was more than 40 minutes since we placed our orders but we were not complaining. We had lots to talk about and it was after all a lazy Sunday for us. 

Wet wipes to clean our hands after attacking the ribs.

The restaurant was not at full capacity yet with only a handful of tables taken. I noted that a private room was occupied as our table was just outside that room. We saw the servers going in with platters of exotic looking dishes. And finally our Paella Mixta arrived.

The paella portions are meant for two persons and I would say that it was ample even by our standards hah..hah... I proceeded to dig in, forgetting about the lemon. Our server approached and offered to assist. He squeezed the lemon juice into the wooden spoon and used a fork to catch the seeds as he poured the juice over the rice. Then he told me to mix the rice to evenly distribute the lemon juice.

And wow! The lemon juice made a difference. It brought out the full flavors of the paella. Our tongues were popping and I can only describe the paella as magnificent! My brother, who has been to Spain, remarked that the paella tasted just like the one he had there.

I've really got to cook paella at home though I am doubtful if I could re-create what I tasted at El Cerdo. Hey, RealGunners, if you are reading this and if you have the time, go to El Cerdo and eat the paella. It is a good way of spending your angpow money! 

While digging our way through the paella pan, we noted that the bottom was burnt. Very burnt. Is it supposed to be that way? But hey, the burnt bits tasted pretty good. But if my partner were here, he would tell me that it is heaty and can cause sore throat. 

Kerak nasi Sepanyol.

The server came over when he saw my brother digging away and offered to help scrape the bits off. I took the opportunity to ask him if the paella was meant to be burnt like that. Oh yes, he said. In fact some of his Spanish customers will request for the paella to be more burnt. Interesting. But at those prices, I really would not want the paella to be burnt too much :)

I guess it is pretty much like claypot rice where some people just love the burnt rice at the bottom of the pot. I am not really a fan of burnt rice but I can guarantee you that if I cook paella on the stove, you don't have to specially request for the burnt part - it will burn hah..hah...

After we were done cleaning the paella pan, the natural progression would be dessert. We quickly decided on the Andreas Special "A Dream in Chocolate", one each. The server however suggested that we have a half portion each of that and the Werner's Special. A half and half. We were not sure how that would pan out but we agreed.

On the left is the Werner's Special and on the right
is the Andreas Special "A Dream in Chocolate".

And so it arrived, one of each. We were expecting two of each (pigs!) and the server said that he thought that would be too much (he is very naive, doesn't know our capacity). Oh well. Anyway, he gave us a tip on how to enjoy this dessert. Start from the bottom and work upwards. 

The Andreas Special "A Dream in Chocolate" is truly a dream in chocolate. I am sorry I don't know what is in those layers but I tasted bananas. It was very good, I dug deep in and was transported to heaven. Then my brother and I exchanged desserts.

The Werner's Special was equally good, more on a sourish note. If I remember correctly the topping is a strawberry mousse with fresh strawberry slices underneath. I loved this one a lot too and I am glad that the server suggested one of each dessert. It is hard for me to choose which one I like best. But never fear! I forsee myself and my brother visiting El Cerdo a few more times and so it will be a full serving of one dessert at each visit. Oh yes, we won't split our desserts again!

I picked up the tab and it is money well spent. It was a wonderful meal and we promised ourselves that we will be back! In fact on our drive home, my brother and I were still twitching from the paella :D

Oh yes, today is the eve of Chinese New Year! To those of you having your reunion dinner tonight, I hope you have a lovely time with your families. And if you see chocolate cake on the table, go ahead and have a slice (or two). Because I said so. This is the time to celebrate and enjoy yourselves. Whatever the consequences, worry about it later hah..hah....

I would like to wish everyone GONG XI FA CAI! May you be blessed with Love, Happiness, Good Health, Wealth and Good Luck in the coming year!