This steakhouse serves affordable luxury
There’s a new steakhouse in town, a spinoff of the winning formula that made it a neighborhood go-to along Katipunan in Quezon City.
But whereas its “older brother,” William Watson Steak Room, serves families in the vicinity of Blue Ridge, St. Ignatius and White Plains, the new Black Bull Steakhouse and Bar serves customers in north QC and mallgoers in Ayala Malls Vertis North.
We want to offer the same quality, same ambiance, for half the price.
“Ayala was asking for William Watson, but William has its own magic on Katipunan,” explains founder Anthony “Tony” Ng. “People-in-the-know know it, and I don't want to commercialize that, but keep it more intimate.”
Ng wanted something that could go head to head with the hotels in the area. “We want to offer the same quality, same ambiance, for half the price.”
Black Bull is named after the Black Angus steaks the restaurant specializes in, so we wondered how Ng came up with such a value-for-money proposition. Turns out he’s been a supplier for SM Supermarkets for over 20 years, so he knows where to source the best beef, seafood and produce from around the world for the lowest prices.
“When you've been working with SM for two and a half decades, you think like them: it's almost a sin to raise prices,” Ng stresses. “It's always about giving our consumers affordable luxury.”
Sipping lounge
An example of this is Black Bull’s sipping lounge, where a big group of friends can enjoy happy hour from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. For just P888++, choose between a cold-cut or salmon charcuterie board and drinks like margarita, sangria roja, Blanco mojito, AO Cosmo, hazelnut bourbon sour and GNC 75.
Additional bar chow options include staples like beef salpicao and more unique offerings like scallop sisig and fresh sashimi—from tuna to otoro—and different kinds of maki rolls. Ng is proud of his pizza—in particular his four-cheese pizza (P788)—which is so generously topped with melting cheese ringed by a perfect, leopard-spotted crust that we wolfed it down, despite our resolutions to go low-carb in the New Year.
Steak x Japanese
But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Before we tried the pizza we sat down in Black Bull’s stunning interiors to have our first course, chawan mushi with blue crab. A Japanese dish in the midst of a steakhouse? That’s the beauty of Ng’s concept. On Katipunan he opened Japanese restaurant Fukui Omakase alongside William Watson, and customers could order dishes from both restaurants, no matter where they were seated. It’s the same here, as Ng opened a Fukui Omakase right next to Black Bull, and executive chef Roel Acol oversees both restaurants, so you can cross-order as you please.
“We’re going to relaunch the omakase at Fukui in March,” notes Acol, “with fixed menus of five and seven courses.”
We dove deeper into Fukui’s delights with our second course, Japanese oysters topped with macerated onions and yuzu kosho, sprinkled with smoked salt infused with Iloilo coconut. A Cielo Sauvignon Blanc from Eldorado, with its lime peel and grapefruit notes, complemented these two bites of briny heaven that transported us to the sea.
Our fish course, Chilean seabass that Black Bull serves with truffle sweet potato and white-wine sauce chimichurri, made it clear that even if you’re not a steak lover or don’t eat meat, you can have a meal every bit as fabulous as your carnivorous companion. The seabass fillet is hefty yet flakes flawlessly under your fork thanks to its perfect doneness.
But even a former pescatarian like me couldn’t resist the piece de resistance, Black Bull’s steak. For our cut of meat Ng uses a hybrid wagyu that the Japanese have crossbred with Black Angus, so you get the best of both worlds. “It’s what you want from Angus, which has the bite, but doesn’t have the tenderness of Japanese wagyu,” Ng explains. “So the hybrid has the bite of the Angus and the buttery flavor of wagyu.” An unforgettable steak, in other words.
A Blancher Clos 7/12 Crianza had rounded, full notes of black fruit and pine that went seamlessly with hybrid wagyu/Angus steak.
After the richness of our meal, dessert was peanut butter cheesecake topped with ice cream and a strawberry slice, which sounds heavy but was actually light and fluffy, and ended our feast with just the right amount of sweetness.
Aiming to become a heritage brand
Black Bull can seat 150, and its unique layout features more VIP rooms than common area to cater to business clients, with a folding wall to accommodate larger groups. Unlike William Watson with its Chicago steakhouse vibe, the look of Black Bull is mid-century modern, and Ng, who has an affinity for design, has paid attention to even the minutest details, like the high, waffled ceilings, geometric patterns and beveled table legs. Even the restrooms, with their botanical wallpaper and deep-green marble countertops, are striking.
Though Ng’s brand of affordable luxury attracts both budget-conscious and more affluent customers, his ultimate goal is for something more lasting.
“You remember Mario's, Annabel’s, and Alfredo’s at their peak, right?” he asks us. “You don't look at ROI, you look at the longevity, where people used to go to those places because they feel comfortable, they do their business, their meetings, their family gatherings there. That's what I want to happen. It becomes a heritage brand, not just a fancy place.”
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Black Bull Steakhouse and Bar is located on the ground floor of Ayala Malls Vertis North, Quezon City, open from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 12 a.m. on Sunday, Monday, Thursday and Friday. Call (0956) 367-7696 for more information and reservations.
