Amanti Food & Friends. A coastal Mediterranean vibe for lovers of food and lovers of friends. Photo by Joann Manabat
ANGELES CITY – Resembling the aesthetic vibe of a seaside Mediterranean villa serving great European dishes in the heart of this city lies a new casual dining place that is Amanti Food & Friends.
Owned by partners Andreas Lundin of Hamanda Hotel and restaurant manager April Mangio, Amanti takes you to a new countryside vibe a la seaside.
According to Mangio, they wanted to have a pizzeria that can give a European experience that will take their customers “outside while inside.”
“Amanti is lovers in Italian, we added ‘Food & Friends’ as we are also lovers of food and lovers of friends,” said Mangio.
“Initially, we just wanted a small pizzeria. The idea was brought up when our favorite pizza place decided to close down. Being lovers of food and lovers of friends, we eventually went for it and turned it into a restaurant instead,” added Mangio.
Lundin, who is also an interior and furniture designer by profession, brought his creative subtleties and artistic touches utilizing the area with warm woods and Filipino craftsmanship and design pieces through its indoor-outdoor dining style to showcase a classic yet modern Mediterranean ambience.
Lundin also quipped that as a foreigner himself who likes to travel, it came as a surprise when coastal and modern Mediterranean restaurants have not been the common style here.
Lundin and Mangio shared how their wood fired brick pizza oven with dome enclosure was built from scratch and sourced their materials as far as Japan for high heat resistant tiles to the interiors of their restaurant from different parts of the country to bring the cozy vibe of a casual trattoria.
“Our place is not intimidating in any way. It is homey and open. I spent hours and hours Googling about wood fired brick ovens so I was the one who decided on it and sourced these special kinds of tiles that are high heat resistant from Japan,” shared Lundin.
“Even though there are many pizza places, we can’t seem to find a pizzeria that uses a wood fired brick oven. There are brick ovens here but they are fired by gas,” Mangio added.
Amanti offers classic Meditterranean menu from French, Spanish, and Italian dishes with chefs from well-known restaurants here such as Amare and Little Italy working behind their kitchen space.
“Our menu is not only Italian but more around Mediterranean sea. We have dishes from France and Spain… There is something for everybody,” said Lundin.
“Our pizza is our signature because of the wood fired brick oven and those are traditional napoletana pizza. We believe when it comes to pizza, it’s more on going back to the original and the basic ingredients. We also use imported ingredients for the (pizza) toppings in order to make it authentic like the cheese, salami, ham, etc.,” said Lundin.
Lundin also shared his plans in keeping the menu as authentically Mediterranean as possible as he also plans to expand Hamanda Hotel in Clark and La Union to bring the same aesthetic vibe and artistic flair that of Hamanda and Amanti.
“It’s not only about the food, it is also the vibe and the character. We wanted an al fresco dining that we can incorporate with what we have here such as the mango and duhat tree,” said Lundin.
“We also have the right people to start it with. We have the chef from Amare’s and Little Italy’s working behind our kitchen,” added Mangio.
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic situation and amid the quarantine situations, both Lundin and Mangio shared how optimistic they are in opening up a restaurant as they both find the opportunity to showcase a new vibe in the heart of this city.
“We are more positive now even if it’s pandemic. Everything is cheaper also when it comes to putting up a business,” Mangio quipped. “It is a good opportunity to do it now. Things are starting to change so we have to act on it, at least we are already there by the time we are at the end of the pandemic,” she furthered.
Amanti Food & Friends defines an al fresco dining anew to enjoy a great night out that indeed displays their love for food as much as their love with friends.
Located along Arayat St. Diamond Subd. in Balibago, Amanti Food & Friends is open from Tuesdays to Sundays between 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. For reservations and bookings, meetings, and private events, you may send a message through their official Facebook and Instagram accounts @AmantiResto
*All photos by Joann Manabat
