Le Petite Camille

I'm not much of a foodie. But from time to time I get invited to lunch or dinner and I must confess that when friends invite it breaks my heart to not join in on the fun. I really do watch what I eat, but sometimes the urge to binge just takes over me...

Pomelo Salad

Over the Lenten season, my friends decided it was a good time to catch up on stuff. So on Monday of Holy Week, Sarita, Mother June, Fides and myself all converged at Greenbelt for another of those long lunches that seem to bring out our gregarious inner selves. We all met at Le Petite Camille on the second level of Greenbelt 5. As it turns out, my friend Sarita met with its owner, George Yang at this resto that serves Vietnamese fusion cuisine.

Spring rolls

The interiors are unpretentious and brightly lit - what better to enjoy the food presented enticingly on their serving dish! The dishes were light and fresh and had a Filipinized version of Viet cooking. Now, that ain't exactly a bad thing because we all know that Vietnamese food, though tasty, may not necessarily be healthy for you. We all enjoyed our meals while the attentive staff moved in and out of our periphery to make sure that we were served well and that we needn't ask for anything that was part of our meal.

Fried rolls

We started with spring rolls served in rice wrapper. The rolls were light and fresh. The shrimp was steamed to perfection and the dip had just the right amount of heat in it. The greens were crisp and the vermicelli in it was springy to the bite. We also ordered the fried version which had a different dip altogether that was a mixture of nam pla and vinegar with bits of bird's eye chilli on it. Soooo goood!

Tofu with veggies

Then came the Tofu with veggies and pomelo salad. The julliened veggies were sauteed and cooked but still crunchy while the salad had slivers of almonds on the top for added crunch and a little nutty flavor. The Asian dressing was tangy and had the right amount of citrus on it. the salad would have been a meal in itself. I had the urge to eat all of it.

Braised catfish

The braised catfish came in a clay pot and was drenched in a sweet- sour oyster sauce and minced chives. Now I normally don't like the fishy/almost slimy taste of  catfish. It isn't one of my favorites. This dish though, was quite a surprise. It was soft and flaky and I'm guessing it was the chives that eliminated the odd texture and flavor of the catfish. I seemed to me like cream dory... which was nice!

The pork  was covered in a sauce that almost seemed like it was barbequed. It was tender and had none of the gaminess one would expect from a viand like this. Charred on some areas (which I enjoy), the meat was not as oily and the caramelized onions and tomatoes were a perfect garnish.

We decided to skip dessert. I thought it would be a light lunch... Guess I was wrong!?!