MANILA -- At only 26 years old, Kaye Torres has already worked in the kitchens of Alain Ducasse in Paris and Jean-Georges Vongerichten in New York. Now she has opened her own restaurant Palate at Uptown Parade in Taguig.

“Palate is a journey of flavors. I want every bite to tell a story,” the young chef said as she explained the French-Mediterranean restaurant’s concept.

From the outside, Palate looks imposing and expensive. The restaurant’s name is in gold, while inside it is decorated like a hotel restaurant in neutral colors of gray and mostly white.

This, however, was intentional. “My food is quite colorful,” Torres pointed out.

“Instagram-worthy” is a term that we like to band around these days. Palate’s food, at least most of what was served during a special tasting for select writers and bloggers, definitely were.

There was the bright yellow Squash Soup that was poured table-side -- fancy service for a soup that costs less than P200. Bright and light, it had a subtle roasted pumpkin flavor heightened by a light-handed sprinkling of wood spices.

Fried inoki mushrooms and roasted squash cubes both gave texture and deeper notes when sipped, but the best spoonfuls were those with the croutons, adding extra salty zing to the soup.

Frozen watermelon sounds like something that you would have as dessert, but here, Torres serves it as an appetizer. Frozen watermelon cubes were topped with a torched Feta layer, and two kinds of "caviar" – honey and balsamic.

A pretty dish, it's definitely Instagram worthy. Taste-wise, it’s a refreshing light dish, which is really all about the interplay between the salt from the Feta and the two caviars, with the watermelon as the vehicle to where salt vs sweet, and salt vs acid, meet.

There’s a lot going on with the Beet Salad -- the beets come through as jelly, glazed, and roasted; there’s a poached egg that you break and mix in; and there’s a quenelle of goat cheese topped with black salt.

Successfully highlighting the sweetness and earthiness of the beet with the yolk adding another rich layer, this was almost too heavy in spite of the lemon vinaigrette. What hallmarks this as a well-thought of dish is that quenelle of goat cheese, giving it that punch of needed acidity to balance it while the black salt provides a lingering finish.

Flatbread pizzas have definitely been done before, and Palate offers only one kind, the Pissaladiere. If you’re an anchovy-lover, this is a must-try.

Contrast is what it’s all about. The first bite can be salty from the anchovies, which are helped along by olives, but then you’ll be pulled to the sweet side of things by the caramelized onions. The crust provides a different flatbread texture, more cracker than "pita-ish." It’s all browns, the least picture-worthy of the lot, but one of the things that I will definitely return for.

Another dish mostly in the brown palette is the Chicken Roulade. Juicy chicken cut into four parts, two with a topping of chorizo cream for that Spanish-Mediterranean flavor, one with a topping of bacon, and lastly one with a quail egg. I loved the bite with quail egg the most, the yolk’s richness highlighting the juiciness of the poached chicken, mixing really well with the Mediterranean medley of chickpea and potato, with romesco sauce.

The salmon, meanwhile, is one of Palate’s early bestsellers, and is visually arresting with its bright colors. Most of the plate lent itself to balancing the innate richness of salmon, the puree was earthy and grounded the dish, carrots added sweetness, while the pickled vegetables, gave some zing, and the crispy salmon skin that salty extra.

For a less protein-heavy option, there’s the Pasta Amatriciana. Fresh pasta with tomato sauce and bacon, topped with thin and crisp pieces of pancetta. When you mix, the pancetta breaks off into thin flavor-bombs of flavor. For maximum enjoyment, make sure to have some of these in every forkful.

Onto dessert!

Palate’s version of churros has the cinnamon-sugar dusted treats served with two kinds of dips. The almond de leche was more about adding sweetness than almond flavor with the churros, as the cinnamon overpowered the almond.

I found the Spiced Chocolate the better option. At the start, it gave the impression of the usual chocolate dip, then heat creeped in and lingered for a while. Nothing too tear-inducing, just a slow and steady burn.

The Frozen Crème Brulee, meanwhile, interprets the "brulee" part of the dessert as a nest of caramel, instead of the usual torched sugar crust. And the crème custard, which didn’t feel “frozen,” was creamy and sweet, more like a cheesecake. The fruits were not merely there to add vibrant colors but were also great counterpoints to the sweetness of caramel and cream.

Enjoy all these with sips from their extensive drink list that covers wines, fruit juices, and cocktails. Signature cocktails include the smooth Journey (red wine, vodka, grapes, lime, cinnamon syrup), and the fruity Le Chic (Vodka, pineapple, cherry, soda, mint).

Despite looking very expensive with its ambiance and the fancy plating, Palate’s dishes are reasonably priced and not as expensive as one would think, with most of their dishes ranging at the P200-P400 range.

What I like most about Palate is the restraint in the dishes. While some may say that most of her dishes are “light,” no one can argue that they weren’t flavorful. Restraint and delicacy are always hallmarks of a great chef, so I’m excited to see what else Torres has in store.