Niu by Vikings at SM Aura

I have to admit, I have never eaten at any Vikings restaurant before.  But, I've been hearing a lot of good things about their newest venture at SM Aura, aptly named Niu (which means "nine" in the Viking language), and represents the 9th restaurant of the Vikings group.

If you plan on going to Niu anytime soon, I suggest you make reservations first.  It is quite easy, we made our reservations online, received a confirmation by e-mail on the same day and a text confirmation on the day of our reservation.  It gave me the impression that they are orderly and professional.

On the day of our reservation, we took the lift straight to the 6th level from the basement parking area of SM Aura which opened directly to Niu on the left side.  Niu has elegant interiors, decked with chandeliers, plush velvet and leather seats.  It had an expanse buffet selection that occupied the entire left side of the restaurant as you enter until the very end of the restaurant at the back. 

Upon arriving at Niu, the maitre d' will welcome you and ask for your name so she can check their reservations list and bring you to your table.  If you arrive earlier than your reservation, there is an area where you can stay and wait until the restaurant opens at 11:00 a.m.

We were seated at the B section it is closer to my favorite Mediterranean cuisine  

Here is Niu by Vikings at SM Aura:

You'll be amazed at how long the entire length of the restaurant is

If you are a big group, there are also several private function rooms available. 

This is the Sweden room - The largest among the three, Sweden can accommodate a number of 40-50 guests.

The Norway & Denmark rooms
both rooms holds 10-12 seats separately, but can occupy a number of 20-24 seats when combined.

Some wine perhaps to go with your meal?

There is also live entertainment at dinner

Having a Diana Krall moment

 

 

The beverage section had lemon infused water, lemongrass infused tea, four seasons, iced tea, blueberry lemonade, apple cinnamon and strawberry mango 

Wine and beer are also included in the buffet as well as coffee and tea

Start with some appetizers with stuffed bell peppers, parmesan veggie spirals, sausage mango tart, cream and turkey and pork terrine

The cold section has mortadella, chorizo pamplona and a selection of salamis

Bread selection

A selection of cheeses: cheddar, edam, Dutch cheese with pesto, boursin, durch cheese with pimiento and emmental

At the Japanese section - sushi (maguro, ebi, ika, shake, kani, etc.), sashimi, & maki rolls (spicy tuna roll, dragon roll, crazy maki roll, etc.) and also baked oysters and tempura

Make your own HongKong style noodle soup

Load it up with your favorites!

left side, top to bottom: Snow mountain asado siopao, crispy kuchay cake, raddish spring roll and drunken pata salad and right side, top to bottom: ribs with honey sauce, soy chicken, HongKong barbecue pork asado and beef kenchi salad

Surprisingly one of my favorites is the almond crusted tofu (and this is to say, I am not a fan of tofu).

Soy chicken, ribs and HongKong barbecue pork asado

The Mediterranean grill section had seafood kofta in cucumber raita, chicken shish taouk and lamb kofta

The American grill section had Jamaican jerk pork and chicken a la pobre

The carving station had rack of lamb and rib eye. 
You can also top your dish with Foie Gras, don’t hesitate to ask the chefs

Fish fillet with tausi

Baked oysters

We also met Executive Sous Chef Paul Cruz

who made these great-tasting dishes and sent it to our table (thanks Chef Paul!)

Crabs with almond covered tofu

Beef wrapped in bacon

Poached salmon in milk

Thanks Chef Paul!

I kept coming back for the bubble gum ice cream, yum!

There are many toppings to choose from for your ice cream or gelato

You just have to try their desserts, it's hard to pick a favorite

There is local kakanin also on the buffet

We absolutely had a wonderful dining experience at Niu.  We'll definitely be back!

Want to try Niu?  Check-out their promos and rates here.

Niu is locate at the 6th level of SM Aura Premier, 26th Street Corner McKinley Parkway, 1630 Taguig. For reservation and other details, call (+63-2) 478-3888, 847-3888, (+63) 917-586-6888 and (+63) 919-999-6888.