The name of the restaurant is so French, but when you saw the signboard there's a subtitle, "Authentic Vietnamese Cuisine". I'm sure they put it there just to explain what's the main cuisine and specialty of La Petite Camille. The name of this resto reminds of my friend Camy, who is know for years for being the la petite mademoiselle in our group, and having a resto with a French name make me think if its a cafe or a cookie store. We have some Vietnamese resto here in Manila and I have tried only 3 kind of resto in some malls, but the last resto that I tried in Makati closed down few months ago and its a surprise that La Petite Camille opened up and caries the Vietnamese cuisine in Makati City.
La Petite Camille branch here in Makati is their 2nd branch, the mother and 1st branch is located in the US (170 El Camino Real Milbrae California) and it was founded by Mama Fong, a culinary innovator who came from Vietnam and migrated in the US and there she started her resto business and now she's here in Manila to lead new chefs to bring us good Vietnamese food.
The restaurant just started their soft opening last December 2012, and I observed from my 1st visit that the resto is always in full house during lunch time, not bad for a soft opener. La Petite Camille Philippines is part of a food group that brought here restos we love like Super Bowl of China, Yomenya Goemon Japanese Spaghetti House.
here's some info about Vietnames cuisine:
Vietnamese cuisine encompasses the indigenous food and beverages of Vietnam heavily influenced by French cuisine, due to its previous status as a French protectorate, as well as Chinese, Indian, and Thai culinary influences. Regular ingredients include fish sauce, shrimp paste, soy sauce, curry, rice, fresh herbs, fruits, and vegetables. Vietnamese recipes commonly use lemongrass, mint, long coriander, & Thai basil leaves.
Traditional Vietnamese cooking is greatly lauded for its fresh ingredients, minimal use of oil, and reliance on fresh herbs and vegetables. Vietnamese cuisine is ranked as one of the healthiest in the world as a result. Most common meats used in Vietnamese cuisine are fish, chicken, pork, beef, and a variety of seafood. The Vietnamese have a strong vegetarian tradition influenced by the deep seated Buddhist values of its people
- so that explained why it is so greeny and leafy
I forgot to take photos of their cute interiors and set up of chairs and tables, its so cute that the lighting and ambiance might mistake this resto as a cupcake or cafe house. Maybe because of the French influence that's why they go to that design and its name attracts French style lovers to dine in and try Vietnamese. I'm not really a fan of this cuisine, but I'm so glad that La Petite Camille re-introduced it to me and now I'm starting to explore it
A close look on their menu and food pricing
Looking at their pricing is a bit higher and I expected this already because of its location and also we pay here for the authenticity of the food, created by Mama Fong. If you will eat here, I suggest you bring P800 or at least P1000 to enjoy more on the dishes.
Pomelo Salad (Php 245)
Here's what we have on our tasting day, I tried some Pomelo salad in other restos, but it looks the same, the only thing that made it different is that...
we poured some lemon juice and its tastes more yummier..
Combination appetizer (Php 385 )
BBQ Pork, Imperial rolls and Minced Prawn on sugarcane, served with lettuce, rice vermicelle, pickled carrots and raddish and fish sauce
Coffee drip, used in making Iced Coffee
I've encountered this before but I already forgot on how to prepare your Iced Coffee in Vietnamese style.
The coffee will brew and drip on a coffee cup below as you pour on hot water to the drip, there's dried and grinded coffee beans inside the drip.
La Petite Camille can help you prepare if you don't know the process, its a fun activity, especially if you want to introduce this cuisine to your family and friends.
Vietnaamese Iced Coffee (Php 125)
tada!!! here's my iced coffee, we pour it a glass and added some ice
Beef Stew noodles (Php 245)
My favorite food here in La Petite Camille, I love spicy, beef and tomatoey taste. The serving is bit smaller to me, and I wish they have bigger serving. Its a must try for those who will eat here 1st time.
Saigon Style BBQ Pork (Php 285)
If you look at it, its just a plain regular BBQ pork, but the taste is much different and its much softer. Dip it in that special sauce and it will add more new taste in your mouth.
Prawn fried rice (Php 255)
I love eating rice and fried rice, almost all kinds of fried rice are the best for me. I haven't tried the real deal of maybe this is the 2-3 serving of Prawn fried rice. I think I should eat there and double check their real serving. Sorry.... I will eat again next week. and update this post.
Vietnamese Jello (Php 90)
Our dessert.
Pandan and yellow mongo beans with coconut cream (Php 50 )
Its another must try dessert here in La Petite Camille, its tastes like a jello buchi.
Its taste good when you pour on some cocounut cream
Deep friend Ice cream (Php 90 )
I haven't tried deep fried ice cream, but here in La Petite Camille you'll get a chance to taste on how and why do we need deep fried ice cream in our life. Its a little bit hard core already to try this, but its just an ice cream in breaded flour and then deep fried in hot oil. The process is not simple and it will require an expert to create it perfectly. Its taste okay and I love it, the outer layer is little hot but the inside of the breaded thing is cold and chewy. I hope there's a choco or strawberry gooey that I can pour in this ice cream to add more sweety taste.
If you want to try a real Vietnamese cuisine, give La Petite Camille a chance to re-introduce you the real deal, I didn't even blink when I ate here, but a 2nd visit to this resto will give me more time to decide if ever I will visit it regularly.
La Petite Camille restaurant
http://www.facebook.com/pages/La-Petite-Camille-Philippines/270509436383993?ref=ts
https://twitter.com/petitecamilleph
Tel Nos. 728-4965
Operating hours
11:00 am to 10:00 pm Sunday to Thursday
11:00 am to 11:00 pm Fridays & Saturdays
