I first heard about The Frazzled Cook when they invited me for a meal way back when. I can’t even remember the specific time, but I think it must be when they first moved house from Eastwood to Tomas Morato. It was a long time ago, but to make a long story short: I couldn’t make it.

I finally did end up eating here for my Mother’s birthday dinner, and I suddenly realized I had missed out on discovering this restaurant a little earlier. It was quickly rectified by another visit the following week haha! So just to be clear, the food I’m about to talk about below is a combination of the two visits we made to The Frazzled Cook.

The one thing that I noticed during both our visits– one on a Friday evening and another on a Sunday noon– is that this restaurant never stops being busy during meal hours. I am talking about all tables being full, plus a line of people waiting outside. (So yes, reservations are highly recommended!)

It’s not a big restaurant but it’s not small either, since it’s able to hold reservations for big groups as well. (They do big groups via consumables system so inquire first.) The restaurant has some private rooms, but we were seated at the main dining area both times we visited.

The restaurant is a cozy place, with mismatched furniture that adds to its homey charms. One part of the wall is lined with these cute ornaments and porcelain keepsakes that remind me of an old-fashioned dining room. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, especially when said dining room can serve up a feast.

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Sizzling Squid (Php 495) 🌟

Marinated squid with cured mangoes and vinaigrette that caramelizes in the cast-iron skillet.

I super loved this. If there’s one appetizer you want to order, it’s this one! In the two consecutive times we ate at The Frazzled Cook, we ordered this dish. That was how much we loved it.

The squid is just crisp to the bite and juicy; smothered in a sweet dark sauce. Each popping bite was a delight.

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Truffle Fries (Php 185)

French fries dressed in truffle oil and tossed with herbs. Also served with a truffle-infused mayonnaise dip.

I’m kind of meh about fries so all I can say about this is that they did not scrimp on the truffle.

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Ceviche (Php 165) 🌟

Tanigue marinated in spiced vinegar

As a big fan of ceviche, I enjoyed this a lot. There’s that lovely tang plus a light touch of sweetness that really awakens the tastebuds. I was sad when we finished this so quickly because it was a small serving haha!

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Squid Salad (Php 285) 🌟

Crisp greens with slivered prunes, chopped walnuts, and homemade croutons; but it’s the sweet and peppery squid in basil vinaigrette that makes this dish a cut above your typical salads.

I’m convinced these people know how to do squid really well. Although this salad took forever to come out– as in, after we finished our mains instead of before– one bite of the squid with the greens was enough to soothe my impatience. I love that peppery flavor and how the vinaigrette just wraps itself around that squid! I’m really glad they didn’t hold back on the squid since it makes a great combination with the other components of the salad.

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Tenderloin and Sausage Pizza (Php 380)

Herb crusted pizza topped with beef tenderloin cooked salpicao style, bell peppers, and kesong puti.

This was a bit of a miss for me mainly because of the crust. It was tough enough that it distracted from the toppings. The tenderloin was well-marinated, and the kesong puti did a great job drawing attention to itself despite all the other toppings, but in the end I had a hard time with the pizza.

If you eat it by hand, the toppings fall all over the place. (I guess it needs to have a bit more pizza sauce to make the toppings stick.) If you eat it with a spoon and fork, the crust is hard to cut. Good topping idea though.

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Seafood Paella (Php 345 for 3 persons) 🌟

Classic paella with seafood and sausage.

What’s not to love about paella done right? This was pretty good. I normally go for the seafood option when I order paella, and this did not disappoint.

The seafood was fresh and bountiful, and the flavors infused in the rice were rich and satisfying.

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Truffle Pasta (Php515 for Family Size) 🌟

Pasta with sautéed Portobello mushroom coated generously with homemade white truffle sauce.

This is one of my favorite truffle pastas to date. It’s straightforward truffle pasta without too much frills, which I feel is the best way to serve this type of dish. The goal is to make that truffle flavor shine through, and this was perfection in a plate.

The truffle wasn’t overwhelming (maybe because we ordered this to share), and I feel like I had a guilty pleasure moment while eating through this creamy plate of yum. This has become one of our must orders here at The Frazzled Cook.

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Spicy Lamb Stew (Php 395) 🌟

Lamb meat stewed for several hours with fresh tomatoes, olives, and spices for flavor. Served with veggies, garlic rice, fries, or mashed potatoes on the side.

This was delicious. The spices on that meat have a way of filling your tastebuds with these sensations I can’t even describe. The serving is a bit small for sharing, but I imagine a solo eater would still feel a little bitin. I recommend eating this with rice.

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Grilled Salmon with Mango Salsa (Php 325)

Grilled salmon with a mango salsa topping. Served with veggies, garlic rice, fries, or mashed potatoes on the side.

I was a bit disappointed with this salmon. Topping it with mango salsa actually isn’t a new idea, but I would’ve enjoyed this immensely more if the salmon was a little less dry.

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Slow Cooked Pork Ribs (Php 450)

Pork ribs slow cooked in a signature sauce for 4 hours until tender. Served with veggies, garlic rice, fries, or mashed potatoes on the side.

This pork was tender with a nice thick glaze. It’s a little less fall off the bone compared to other slow-cooked meats I’ve tried from other restaurants, but I think this still hits the spot.

It’s got that classic sticky sauce that makes you want to lick your fingers after you eat.

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Key Lime Pie (Php 145)

I was expecting something else with the words Key Lime Pie. This one is sort of a whipped cream based refrigerator cake with a graham crust. It’s sweet with just the barest hint of lime flavoring.

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Sansrival (Php 145) 🌟

This was actually quite good taste-wise; it just doesn’t slice quite as smoothly as Sansrival from true-blue bakeshops. The meringue layers are a bit hard to cut with a fork, but if you’re not particular about that, I would recommend this.

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Mango Crème Brulee Cake (Php 245)

Soft chiffon cake with sweet cream in the middle. This was definitely a neat idea, especially with that torched and crystallized sugar top you can crack into. This is probably one of the more unique options you can get from the dessert lineup at The Frazzled Cook.

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Final thoughts

In general, I think The Frazzled Cook lives up to its identity as a cozy place to get good comfort food. Aside from the dishes I mentioned above that I didn’t like, it was incredibly easy for me to pick favorites from the food that I did end up loving.

The Truffle Pasta, Squid Salad, and Sizzling Squid are not to be missed! Their desserts lineup isn’t the most extensive, but if you’re just looking for something sweet to finish the meal, they work just fine.

The waiters are fairly fast at taking your orders, but some of the dishes took way longer to come out than others. I guess this was one of the main negatives I experienced while eating here. As I mentioned, the Squid Salad took ages to arrive at our table, but luckily enough it was actually a pretty good dish. In that sense, it was worth the wait haha!

In the end, I understand why this place is always packed. Some of the dishes here know how to make an impression while still maintaining a bit of that homemade feel to them. And once you’ve established your favorites, you can order the same thing every time you come back and The Frazzled Cook will give it to you with consistent quality.

I still have plenty of things I haven’t tried here yet, in particular their meat dishes. I always tend to gravitate more towards seafood, but next time I’ll try more of their chicken and pork dishes and see how that goes.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5

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The Frazzled Cook

78 Scout Gandia Street, Laging Handa,
Tomas Morato, Quezon City
Hours: 11AM to 11PM
Contact Nos: 2469069 ext.267
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Full disclosure: This post was not sponsored in any way. All opinions are 100% my own.