The lockdown resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic gave many people an opportunity to chase after their passions, with many becoming entrepreneurs selling products out of their own homes. However, only a small percentage was able to take it to greater heights and put up their own physical stores.
Randell Tiongson made a name for himself as a personal finance expert, helping many Filipinos maximize the fruits of their labors. But he is also a coffee enthusiast and a proficient cook. The combination of these two passions resulted in the birth of Mano, a café and restaurant located along Timog Avenue in Quezon City.
“Providentially, about a month or so before the lockdown, I bought a professional espresso machine. I wasn’t really able to tinker with it because I was travelling everywhere but during the lockdown, that’s when I really got into it. I started to learn how to use it properly like dialing down the grind size, and tweaking ratios and recipes. It was also at this time that the kitchen became my playground. Coffee and food were mainstays in the house and it was during this period that I really honed my craft,” Mano co-owner Tiongson shared.
Mano is Italian for hand and this is highlighted in the café and restaurant’s pasta and pizza section. It uses freshly-made pasta all made in-house for its dishes. The pizza dough is also made from scratch, with the process on full display at the balcony side of the café and restaurant.
Pasta purists should try the Parmigiano Reggiano Wheel Pasta. Here, fresh pasta is tossed in a 24-month-old half wheel of Parmigiano Reggiano for a creamy and cheesy dish that explodes with flavor in every bite. Tiongson shared that unlike most restaurants which use a 12-month cheese, the 24-month has a deeper, more intense flavor profile which is readily apparent by the numerous crystals dotting the exposed cheese — a sign of complexity resulting from long maturation.
Mano also has heartier meals for those with a bigger appetite. The café and restaurant offers a variety of steaks on its menu such as UDSA Butter-Aged Ribeye, Brazilian Ribeye, and for those who want a decadent treat, there is also Australian Wagyu. Meanwhile, fish lovers can enjoy Tiongson’s own family recipe of Salmon in a Creamy Caper Sauce or a rich Prawns Thermidor. For Pizza lovers, the White Truffle with Creamy Spinach is an upscale take on a Filipino favorite while the Margherita is an Italian classic done right.
Tiongson is also proud of Mano’s coffee beverages. Its own house blend uses beans from the north and the south of the Philippines, combining the floral and citrus notes found in northern beans with the chocolate and spice notes found in Mindanao. “I love Philippine-grown coffee, if done right. It’s how you roast it and how you prepare it,” he shared.
What started out as a passion project has grown to become so much more. With Mano, Tiongson opens the doors of his home to customers, serving their own family recipes or dishes that have become family favorites. Along with good coffee and a relaxing ambiance, Mano can become one’s home away from home.
