Main course paella from Trellis

There is finally an answer to the perpetual question “Where shall we eat?” whenever we find ourselves hungry after a day of shopping and unwinding inside the mall.

While malls have provided the perfect opportunity for people to bond, relax, and enjoy a meal together, the increasing number of mall dining options has made it quite difficult for customers to really pick out the best choice of restaurants.

“Choosing a place to eat has become a common problem especially so that each dining experience differs. Each restaurant has its own special dishes and target markets. What usually happens is that we tend to stick to a single restaurant and go there whenever we are inside the mall and miss out on a lot of other good restaurants,” said Chef Tina Pamintuan, one of the country’s food experts.

Indeed, various taste buds and various cravings differ from one person to another but a restaurant’s “best dish” deserves at least a single try especially when it’s recommended by the country’s top connoisseurs.

Chef Tina, together with eight other food experts recently converged to help address the common concern of finding the best dining places with the perfect dishes. The group which form part of a food council called AM Top of Ayala Malls includes culinary authorities Lorraine Timbol, Nana Ozaeta, Chef Rosebud Benitez, Chef Ernest Gala, Issa Litton, Chef China Cojuangco, Margaux Salcedo, Chef Tina Pamintuan, and Chef Heny Sison.

Dubbed AM TOP – Ayala Malls Top Food Picks, the program showcases the best food offerings of family restaurants, bars, fine dining, and specialty food concepts in all the Ayala Malls, with the aim of setting out a list of the top food picks in the Ayala malls as chosen by this panel of culinary experts.

Restaurants in the Ayala Malls were asked to submit their signature dishes for the following categories: appetizer, soup, salad, fish or seafood, main course (red or white meat), dessert, and coffee or cocktail.

Each dish was judged by the members of the Food Council who shared their personal preferences based on taste, presentation, and X-Factor/originality.

“It was really a memorable experience where we were surprised by the number of great dishes in most of the restaurants that we went to. We kept on being surprised by our discoveries during the judging and sampling of their best-sellers. These kinds of discoveries are the things that we wish to promote to mall-goers and to try new things and dining experiences,” expressed Lorraine Timbol, Editor-in-Chief of Appetite Magazine.

Ayala Malls has been changing the mall habits of Filipinos and the overall experience of their guests. As a pioneer in enhancing the mall experience, it said that dining at the malls is an integral part of the mall-hopping spree among families and groups of friends.

“We want to capitalize on our unique dining experience through word of mouth. The A.M. Top is an idea aimed at helping guests to decide where to eat and know what’s good in each restaurant,” said Maricris Bernardino, Division Manager, Marketing and Events Management Division of Ayala Malls Group.

A food journey exhibit will also be launched in Greenbelt on September 10, 2010 showcasing the finest and most delectable dishes of various restaurants via a photo exhibit and food sampling. A touring visual buffet exhibit in selected Ayala Malls will also be held on September 11 – 17, including the recently held ‘Sun-Down Food Market,’ a grand food celebration which showcased specialty dishes of participating restaurants from Ayala Malls.

To round up the festivities, the Ayala Malls Food Book, a compilation of dishes selected as part of the Top Food Picks will be available to valuable mall patrons. The book carries an assortment of interesting articles on food and a directory of Ayala Malls restaurants and food merchants.