BOP BERNIE BISTRO

Bop Bernie was a hole-in-the-wall find along Don Gil Garcia Street in Cebu City. It's a brightly decorated retro-pop themed bsitro well-stocked with Lemon Sola Iced Tea with predominantly Filipino food offerings, smattered with some continental dishes.

There was one other table of customers while my sister and I dined there. The radio was tuned in to a station playing tunes mellow enough for a post-work dinner with an equally stressed out companion. This ambience makes it an ideal dinner place for peoiple who want a quiet dinner minus the fuss of dressing up. The food I'll talk more about later, while the service was enthusiastic and attentive. As with most Cebuano restuarants, service is never its selling point, but the young dude met our dining requirements well enough despite lapses on the type of salad dressing to be served on a side dish of salad.

FlavorFiend for the pork pot roast with a side of mashed potato and pimiento macaroni salad. Inspite of requests to keep the potatoes on the chunky side, the side dish still came out puree soft. Nevertheless it was a creamy, milky mash lent with a nice fresh cucumber aftertaste thanks to the slices it was served on. The pot roast was stewed to a fall-off-the-bone perfection with a lovely wine-infused tomato sauce. It was rather on the bland side, however, and could use some stronger herbs for more aroma. but for Php 165 combo meal without drink, FlavorFiend is happy enough.

My companion opted for Bop Bernie's grilled pork chops which proved to be a winner and proved---once and for all---that size does matter, at least where chops are concerned. The electric grilled inch-thick slab was the size of a typical sizzling plate in which it was served with pickled slivers of cucumber. this one also came with a side dish of mashed potatoes.

All in all. it was a well spent Php 375 including drinks. My companion and I went home feeling sated and fairly lucky to have allowed ourselves to be lured by Bop Bernie's orange signage.