I wrote this way back December 8, 2012 and I may have rated it a little too high because of my novice palate but I’ll be reflecting my new rating in this post.

Pandie Rating: 

So now let me introduce you to the award-winning restaurant, The Goose Station (owned by Celebrity Chef Couple Rob and Sunshine Pengson)!

Awards:
1. 3rd Best Restaurant and Top 100 in Asia in the 2011-2012 Miele Guide
2. Best Newcomer at Manila’s Best Kept Restaurant Secrets 2010

I have always been jealous of the judges in Top Chef or Iron Chef America or other cooking shows because… it feels like they have the easiest jobs in the world. All they have to do is eat and criticize food! But haven’t you noticed that the portions are… quite small? Being raised in the Philippines, I have always known HUUGEE portions to be placed on the table as we always love holding large gatherings and sharing food with everyone. No wonder buffets are so popular in the Philippines. It’s always more the merrier. But with Degustation at The Goose Station? It’s a totally different ball game. Prepare to shell out buffet-like prices for meager/small but MARVELOUS, FANTASTIC, DELICIOUS, GASTRONOMIC courses. It’s really out of this world I tell you.

It’s actually a little physically out of this world since it’s located at an isolated part in The Fort Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. I have read reviews before going there but not one mentioned the obscure location of the place. You can’t even see the sign of The Goose Station clearly. It’s quite daunting and scary when going there alone… especially getting lost… (oh of course I didn’t get lost, just maybe a little) especially when you’re not familiar with the place… But now I will warn you. Please plan ahead and print out or save a google map of the area. Here’s the address.

Ground Floor, W Tower
39th St., Fort Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, Philippines

I’ve mapped out 2 ways for you to get there since some roads are actually blocked. One is coming from Kalayaan avenue and the other one is coming from Market Market. If you arrive at a deserted area with only 2 buildings in sight, then you’re at the right location! Don’t worry about parking since it’s free and the restaurant only accommodates selected number of guests so parking is quite accessible. It’s just right on the street.

Prices are quite steep as they offer 1700php (includes service charge) for 3-course meals, 1990++ for 4-course meals and if you’re willing to really shell out, 2600php for the 10-course meal. I was lucky enough to get a 5-course meal for only PHP1250 instead of the usual PHP2100 because of DealGrocer! Now to the review that you have been waiting for!

The interiors of The Goose Station gives off a classy dating atmosphere. I arrived at the venue at around 6pm and while waiting for my gal pals, I was surrounded by 4 couples! It was quite funny that the couples on my right were boredly looking at their food, must be blind dates or something while the couples on my left were happily chatting and eating away. But never fear, you can go eat here with your best friends (minimum group of 8). I loved how clean and intimate the place was. I am very particular to little details and I loved how attentive the waiters and how great the service was. You can even see some of the chefs at the back working. *Unfortunately I wasn’t able to see the restroom of the restaurant, I have this thing for clean restrooms).

Courses are divided into Snacks, Appetizers, Main Course and Desserts and we were given a complimentary dish because… the Chef was awesome! I liked the idea of having a “snack” course, it kinda starts and jumpstarts the meal without instantly overwhelming your senses. It’s kinda of like the start of a beautiful relationship. Oh just being romantic here. You also get the feeling of being a Top Chef as the waiter explains the meal in detail. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to gather all the details because I was too concentrated and wide-eyed as I hungered for my food.

Snacks were composed of

Foie Gras Cone
Heavenly heavenly foie gras. I’m quite picky with my foie gras since if you get it wrong, it’ll really taste so dry. The foie gras melts heavenly in your mouth and the hazelnut adds such a distinct flavor to it and the filo pastry gives a sort of crunch to it. You’d want to curse the waiter for serving you such small portion. But after one bite, you’re prepared to be a judge in Cooking Master Boy, with illuminating sparkly eyes and all.

Mais Con Yelo
Does molecular gastronomy ring a bell? Basically it’s really cooking mixed with science, or actually it’s science mixed with cooking. This dish tastes so much like corn, it’s hard to believe that there’s not a speck of corn in this since it’s actually corn foam. Watch the debunked Marcel’s Quantum Kitchen TV series if you want to know more about this technique of cooking. I was actually squealing with glee after eating this because I wasn’t much of a “corn” person but this dish didn’t turn me off at all.

French Macaroni With Salami
My best friend said some wise words on that evening… this dish radiates femininity yet when bitten, turns out to be so masculine in the end! It’s like eating 2 different bite-sized dishes at the same time but are wonderfully united too. I mean the sweetness and the salami-ness… whoah! It’s yummy!

Potato Chip
I know you’ll probably say, whut, a lays potato chip? Okay I admittedly was a little underwhelmed because it was…. just a single potato chip. HAHA! It is probably the best potato chip I’ve ever tasted.

So yeah all those 4 things composed your Snacks. Here comes the good part! Appetizer!

Eggs Benedict
Who would have thought slightly cooked eggs could be so… AWESOME. Seriously, I’d give this dish the highest of the high rating. I’m no fan of mushrooms but these poached egg dipped in hollaindaise foam and truffle oil blew my mind away! And dipping the BACON (did you hear me say bacon? B-A-C-O-N) tuile in the eggs benedict adds a playful and crunchy factor. Oh gosh I want to go back and eat this again O_O Bacon and Eggs have been reinvented people!

Scallop and Shrimp ala Planche with spiced pumpkin, fennel, nut crumbs, curried squid ink crackling
I have no idea if that’s the title but this is another winning dish! Who can resist the temptation of Scallop? The scallop is cooked to perfection and the nut crumbs adds the right flavor to it. And of course, another crunchy factor.

Main Course!!

Chicken Roulade wrapped in bacon and stuffed with italian sausage and pistachio
I would have loved to try their signature beef meal (next time folks!) since I’m a steak person but this Chicken Roulade is exquisite. It is also wrapped in BACON. The stuffing of Italian sausage could be quite overwhelming and despite its small portions, I suggest eating this meal slowly to savor it better. And adding pistachio nuts, GENIUS! Also there’s plenty more on the side but I’m too busy gobbling the food up to notice.

Desserts of course

Mixed Berry Cheesecake and Dark Chocolate (DC not shown coz… again too busy eating to take photo)
One of the healthiest desserts out there because of all the berries! Did you guys know that berries are ranked among the healthiest foods? Filled with antioxidants and lots of other good things that could help you lose weight, berries are great additions to our diet. It is a pity that in a tropical country, we weren’t raised eating berries (coz… no berry can survive here except for Baguio/other cold places). Going on exchange to France opened my eyes to the wonder of berries… especially BLACKBERRIES. I swear no blackberry that I have ever eaten here has ever compared to the fresh blackberries we picked at some random farm in the French provincial town. The blackberries here were better than the regular ones in the grocery stores but still doesn’t come close. I did enjoy this dish because of the freshness of the strawberries and blueberries. Another molecular gastronomy technique as the cheesecake was really in foam form. I would have preferred a more solid cheesecake (I’m a cake person…) but this dessert is wonderful nonetheless. Dark chocolate, FANTASTIC!

I loved the totally different dining experience I had at The Goose Station but for the price, they could have added another main course but given I availed the Dealgrocer package, they would have given me a more pre-packaged set. With the arrival of Vask, The Goose Station has to up its game.

Dine here when you want to celebrate or just received your paycheck and tell me how it goes. Would love to hear other reviews too.

For reservations, you can contact them here:
Ground Floor, W Tower
39th St., Fort Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, Philippines
Mondays through Saturdays 6-9pm
Telephone: +632 556 9068
Mobile: +63917 85 46673