Bits and Pieces

Of course, eating does not only happen in restaurants or kitchens.

From the makers of Bueno. This one tastes just the same although texture is different.

Lemon Baby (Macapagal Ave.) - Lemon Baby Smoothie, a super HUGE lemonade slushie with semi-sweet solid gelatine. Try it! 

Again, from the makers of Bueno. Tastes the same but this one has some rice cereals in it. Love this one, too. But I prefer Bueno out of them all.

Dessert shooters from Chef in Heels. Salted Caramel Mocha. Not really good, a bit bland for a dessert, and so expensive! I think I should try the other flavours first before I post an actual review.

Theo and Philo Chocolate - I tried their Chocolate with Calamansi before, and this Dark Chocolate with Siling Labuyo. Nothing special about their chocolate. Pretty packaging, though. 

SNR's Blueberry and Red Velvet Muffin - moist but lacks flavour. And you ought to go for cupcakes if you want red velvet madness. I suggest get your velvet from Sophie's Mom, perfect cream cheese topping and dense but soft velvet cake.

Meiji's Choco Baby - my childhood only bigger, nuff said.

J.Co's Mini Donuts Box (includes all flavour) - go for this one if you want to try them all. Do keep in mind that the box you get may not be fresh. Still tastes good though. You get to try all their flavours for only Php. 250.00.

These are photos I took with my phone. They're like low-res highlights of my life. Yes, I said it, food is the highlight of my life. Expect more of this kind of posts because I loved writing this one. Have a fun and delicious day, everyone! :)

Mini Food Trips: New Orleans Bourbon Street Ribs, Steaks, and Oysters

The first time I heard about New Orleans was probably while watching The Princess and the Frog on Disney. I may have forgotten about it for a while but then it came up again on Two Broke Girls where they tried to join the Cupcake Wars TV show and ended up being blown away by their opponent whose brand is Hurricane Katrina and who kept singing the New Orleans, New Orleans, lalala, Gumbo Cupcakes song.

I chanced upon seeing New Orleans Bourbon Street Ribs, Steaks, and Oysters when I was chilling just outside the Bulgogi Brothers after eating. You may not know this, but I have this thing for trying out new food places. It's the closest I can get to travel the world.

The Food:
**please forgive my crappy photos, I was using my Blackberry and the lighting just wasn't good.

Mardi Gras Nachos - Php. 190.00

Tri-color nacho chips with three kinds of cheese, bell peppers, onions, barbecued meat, and mangoes. I didn't know that mangoes and cheese would work...but it did. Add the meat and bam, party in my mouth. Price is good, too! This plate was huge! It would have been better though if it was served a little bit warm. 

Actually, I think we can never get it right. We always order a bit too much for us to handle. But what the heck. We don't always eat like this so...meh.

I think this is Ciabatta bread but I'm not sure. This is given to each table as complimentary appetizer right after you order. We didn't actually touch this because our nachos arrived as fast as the speed of light. (Okay maybe I'm exaggerating a bit, but you get my point.) I like how they serve it on a wooden board. 

Oysters Rockefeller - Php. 325.00

Baked oysters with smoked bacon, spinach, and Parmesan. My boyfriend has never tried oysters his whole entire life. I know right? For a person living in a country of more than a thousand islands, being situated near the coastal area, not knowing how oysters taste like. So I ordered this one for him. Safest oyster platter for first timers. Yummy! The cheese and spinach were a perfect combination with just the right amount of smoked bacon to give it an kick. 

But I still like my oysters fresh and plain tastes exactly like the ocean.

Mixed Seafood Jambalaya on the Bayou - Php. 389.00

Served in hot pan (I don't know how to call it). Again, serving is huge. Good enough for three people, actually. I love how they are not skimpy on the seafood. With creole rice, shrimps, clams, mussels, calamari, onions, celery, and bell peppers, added with jambalaya seasoning. This is what I ordered and I loved it. I'm a hue fan of seafood! A bit dry compared to other rice plates I've had (like paella), but this is the first time I've tried Jambalaya so....again...meh. Still love it. Plus the price is great!

Brick and Mortar BBQ Chicken - Php. 339.00

I think this was half of a whole chicken. Can you believe it? My date ordered this one FOR HIMSELF. Growing boys *roll eyes*. Grilled chicken with their own barbecue sauce, coleslaw, and dirty rice (and by dirty, I think they mean flavoured with whatever seasoning they have left on the pan).

I loved their coleslaw, it went well with the barbecue. The chicken was nice outside, their sauce is amazeballs. The meat was flavourful, though a bit dry, but I expected that already. Barbecued chicken tendto be dry. especially the breast part. But that's how you know it's healthy.

So that's it. I actually thought it will be expensive. Now I can't understand why we don't have this restaurant in out go-to list of places to hit. I'm just glad I've crossed it out from my "haven't tried" list. New Orleans has an extensive menu of drinks, too! They have wine and, believe it or not, shooters at Php. 50.00 only from (I'm not sure with this but I think it's from) 7pm - 11pm, promo runs until (again, super not sure with this) November. 

I'm so sad we didn't try their key lime pie. My sim makes key lime pies on the Sims3 so I've always wondered what it taste like. Here's what I'm gonna order next:

• Key Lime Pie (of course I'm gonna start this list with desserts)
• Beignet and Chicory Coffee au Lait
• Grilled Chicken and Mushroom Truffle Alfredo
• Shrimp Ettouffe
• Voodobo Rice
• Acadian White Gumbo

That's a lot. I know. Don't judge. Just want to try them all. 

Have you tried New Orleans food? Which ones are your favourite? :)

Mini Food Trips: Racks Steakhouse

I've been having a lot of dinner dates with my boyfriend lately and I'm loving it! But I'm not sure if my wallet does. Back in college, it was never difficult for me to budget my money. Earning is hard!

Anyway, I'm sure a lot of you have tried Racks already. But I love sharing experience so here is mine.

I'm not really a big fan of meat, even steaks that were perfectly done. But my boyfriend does. Boys will always be boys. I don't hate meat, though. I do hate animal cruelty but I'm no PETA member or vegan at the least. I just find it hard and tiring to chew slabs of meat.

Racks Beef Ribs (Half Rack) - Php. 620.00

The Beef Ribs plater comes with two side dishes and two slices of garlic bread.You can choose whatever dish you want with your platter but we wanted to try their Broccoli with Cheese. We also went for their Home-made Mashed Potatoes because it goes well with steak. I loved every bit of everything. The potatoes were smooth and super tasty and didn't need any gravy. The broccoli was our way of eating something healthy along with a huge serving of meat. Of course the cheese had to ruin our healthy initiative. But still, it's surprisingly good and light. I like this way better than mac and cheese now.

 The ribs were tender and literally slides off the bone. This plate was good for two so the initial plan was to move them to our plates but we just can't lift it up with the fork and knife. It just doesn't seem like it in the photo but it was the bomb for realz. Racks steaks are always a win. This one was peppery and its smokiness was just enough to leave you high :D You can order this in quarter rack (Php. 375.00) and full rack (Php. 1020.00).

Onion Brick - Php. 195.00

This one caught the attention of the whole restaurant while our waiter walked from the food counter to our table. It was HUGE. Not like brick-huge. No. It's like a hallow block. This one was still hot and crispy like shoestring potatoes when it arrived. Served with some kind of ranch dip and barbecue sauce. 

I think I like the bigger slices of onion rings better than this one. I enjoyed eating this mainly because it's one of those munchies that keep you occupied while waiting for your main dish to arrive. It was just OK, nothing special about it but the size. 

The aftermath: 

Took us around 45 minutes to down this heaping plate of meat and sidings. Worth the wait! And because it's protein, it left us full for the rest of the evening...even until bed time.

It was so big that we couldn't finish the whole thing.

All in all, our experience at Racks was impressive. There's something about eating at a restaurant that makes me feel like an actual, full-grown adult. Add the fact that I'm with a date. Hehehe. Service was nice and efficient. Everyone was rather friendly and accomodating. But I think it's because I'm just the perfect customer when I'm with my boyfriend. Hihi.

Truly, I'm very much looking forward to dinner dates with. :)

Mini Food Trips: Manos Greek Taverna

Excuse my lack of photos, I really didn't expect we would be eating here so I didn't bring my camera. I used my date's phone instead.

The first time I saw Manos was in Tagaytay and it was just this cute little place with Greek accents. White and blue patterns with a touch of Santorini. I never was able to talk my parents into visiting that place so when they opened in MOA, I just had to put it on my list.

The Food

Grilled Lamb - (Php.650.00) served with fries, mixed veggies, and cup of rice.

This was the first time I tried lamb meat. I kind of felt bad since lambs are so adorably fuzzy and kind of makes me feel serene (I know, I'm weird). But I totally forgot about that when I took my first bite. This was super tender and slightly rare. The attendant was nice enough to ask my date how he wanted his meat and advised him to not go for well done since this will make the meat a bit tough. And she was right. 

Mano's serving is HUGE. This was enough to feed my growing boy, my Baby Fats (my date). I was surprised he didn't finish the whole thing. That's how big the serving was. At a price of Php. 650.00, you might think it's expensive but once you see it on the table, you'll be like "whoah".

Moussaka - Php. 180.00

Greek  version of lasagna - eggplant, potatoes, zucchini, onion, bechamel sauce, hint of wine, a wee bit of meat, and a lot of cheese. I have always to try moussaka, even since I was a child. Thank you Uncle Borris of Rugrats for introducing this to me.

I have this thing for Mediterranean food. They always taste fresh and light but will surely satisfy your hungry pets (tummy). 

Each table is served with complimentary platter of pita bread and hummus. I LOVED IT.

All in all, I love Manos. Too bad we weren't able to try out their dishes like their pizza and salad. I know, I know, Greek salad should have been our first order. But my date is more of a meat guy so...yeah.

I will definitely come back to try their gyros, pizza, salads, and dips. Wonder how their pizza taste like, weird? Cheesy? Zesty? Greek pizza....hmmm. Although I'm pretty sure their salad will be perfect. 

I'm not sure if this is a branch of the Manos I've seen in Tagaytay, but I think the food is better in Tagaytay. You be the judge. :)

So I've Been Blogging Less

...Lately.

Because I got hired by some non-government organization. I'm loving my job, even the long hours. But I kind of feel bad that I haven't been going to places, taking photos, eating, and sharing my experiences with you.

Blogging has been a huge part of my life. I have two blogs, this one and the other one that acts as my online journal. Maintaining both is hard and a bit....dramatic. I can't help but think that this blog is jealous of my other blog because of how often I post there. Hihi.

Anyway, please do bear with me. I can't find the time (and money!) to do huge posts that feature a lot of items from a menu. For now,  I hope that these mini food trips keep you reading my blog.

I have recently checked my blog stats and was surprised that somebody else (aside from my friends) have read my blog. I want to thank you all for even opening my page.

Do leave comments if you have questions or you know....just anything. I would love to know about you guys. If you do have a blog, put the links also so I could check them out. That's the least I could do for you for checking out mine. :)

Mini Food Trips: Yabu - House of Katsu

Yabu's place reflects Japanese culture through its edgy designs. When you see a place that has less curves in it and more of lines, it reminds you of Japan because of how their people keep things neat and organized. Their interior can be quite intimidating because of the modern punch that really hits you in the face. But their very friendly and accommodating waiters are just by the door to welcome you in and give you a table. 

This guy taught us how to mix our own Katsu sauce. He sounded like very pro; Like a chef on a cooking show.

My date for the night seemed very serious in perfecting his sauce. When making your Katsu sauce, you first have to crush these sesame seeds then pour in scoops of the sauce. Crushing these seeds did not mean pounding it like in a mortar and pestle sort of way. You just have to stir it. 

I like how they provide each table with these condiments. That way, you don't have to call around for waiters to ask for some. And also, the interactivity of mixing these together plus creating your own Katsu sauce really helped Yabu stand out from the other Katsu houses.

Those towels would seem useless at first but you'll be thankful they're there after you finish your meal. 

The Food

The Rosu - Php.405.00 for 180g

This is what Romark had. He ordered a slamming 180g of pork loin. It came with unlimited serving of rice and cabbage, a bowl of fruit, and miso soup (which he didn't like). 

Even though I don't usually go for pork and beef, I did like this. It was soft and tender - exactly how meat should be. It was so juicy but non-greasy which I never thought could happen in fried food. But Yabu made it happen. It had a rich prok flavor and honestly, I didn't think it needed Katsu sauce.

I didn't think Romark could finish it all up but I was, again, proven wrong. His appetite never fails to surprise me.

Chicken and Seafood Set -(Php.475.00) - Black tiger Prawns, Oyster, Squid, Eggplant, Pepper

I'm a huge fan of chicken and seafood so when I saw this set on their menu, I literally shrieked. The squid was not at all rubbery. It was so soft and went well with the crispy crust that is the Japanese bread crumbs. Oh, and black tiger prawns? Fried to perfection! As if the sea and the heavens met in my mouth. The oyster caught my interest because...well breaded oyster? Haven't tried it. I thought it would be weird but no. You get this crispy piece of the ocean. It's like you're actually chewing the sea without the foul after taste.

And the chicken - the best part of the plate. Juicy, tender, and have I mentioned juicy? I had my first bite then bam! Fireworks.

Oh, mine came with some kind of tartar sauce to cut the malansa taste of seafood. But it was useless because the food did not need it. And if it did taste like the ocean, why would I want to cut that out, right?

The Aftermath

I had three rounds of the cabbage. Seriously, I never thought I'd be eating raw cabbage in my entire life. The only greens I eat raw is lettuce and now I'm a changed person. Also, I'm not a fan of sesame but their salad dressings worked for me. That's how good their food is: they make wanna change my view in life/food.

The big guy with just two pieces of pork left. Made about four bites and they were gone.

All in all, Yabu has definitely taken the Tonkatsu craze up by a level. The food is great, the idea of its entirity is great, all about it deserves the hype. Kudos to Yabu! 

I will definitely go back and try their soft-shell crab and salmon katsu!

Although their logo looks like that of motel. Hehe.

Meiji Melty Kiss

When I saw this, I wondered so hard what the inside would be like. That's the thing I have with boxes, that's why I'm extremely addicted to them, that's why I'm kind of weird (but who isn't, anyway?). I know that the picture at the top shows that it's a piece of chocolate in square shape, and it has some green color inside, and it's covered in coco powder. But I just had to actually see them, and see how they were packaged inside.

LO AND BEHOLD. Cute right?

I bought the green tea flavored one. Deciding on which flavor to buy was the toughest one I've made in my entire life. I had three choice: chocolate, strawberry, and greentea. I went for the last one because I haven't tried green tea chocolate before. 

(Forgive the poor lighting.) It tasted like sweet green tea. You'll hate it at first. Personally, I didn't get its flavor when I had my first piece. Then I started to like at after my third one. It's a flavor kids wouldn't enjoy, though. And the same goes for those who don't like tea at all.

No coco powder at the outside at all. It's just the texture. Matte-ish frosted whatever. 

Loved it! Will try the other two flavors soon :) 

Pamana - Tagaytay

October 21, me and a few of my friends had lunch in Pamana, a Filipino restaurant in Tagaytay somewhere near Olivares. It's a restaurant owned by the same people who run Barrio Fiesta, I'm pretty sure you know them well.

The place is awesome. It has a great view of the Taal, Volcano and strategically placed near a lot of hotels and inns - very easy to navigate. The exterior can really catch your attention because of its classy edge, as if only the rich has the capacity to enter. But no.

The elegant exterior of Pamana. I'm sure it made your heads turn when you drove right by.

My very matakaw friends : (L to R) Daday, Cha, Nikki, Romark.

"A legacy of Filipino cuisine" - they truly are. 

The interior is just as amazing as what is seen outside. There's a piece of family history on almost every corner of the establishment. It has that vintage touch with a hint of Victorian style. I don't even know if that makes sense to you, but bottom line is it's really nice.

I'm too lazy to put my "logo" on individual photos so I combines these. 

And of course, there's the staircase with a punch of old pictures on the wall. One does not simply just fly the stairs, they must take a photo near the photo wall...because we're hipsters...and that's what hipsters do.

There's a homey feeling once your'e in. The building has a rooftop - perfect for smokers and those who just want to enjoy the 24/7 bed weather of Tagaytay. It also offers a relaxing view of nature that would make you appreciate life. *charot!*

The three of us, marveling at the view of trees lined with water. The Taal Volcano added more majesty on what seems like canvas of painting.

Now on we go to the feed. My main verdict: DELICIOUS.

We ordered a lot...well that's what we thought when the waiter repeated our order. But when the food came in, it looked just right. The menu of Pamana offers Filipino cuisine...with which a little twist was added. The restaurant's dishes were made signature by experts. 

The Ensaladang Bagnet (Php.250) and Sizzling Adobong Kangkong at Chicharon (Php.199). Both tasted very Filipino. The bagnet was nice since it's served with some greens, tomatoes, and onions - a combination Filipinos could enjoy any time of the day. And the kangkong, it's surprisingly delicious and very asian. Sarap!

 Sinangag, just the way Bacolodians Cook It (Php.150) Good enough for two hungry-to-death people. It's super loaded with garlic, just the way I like my rice. It really goes well with everything on our table...except for the bulalo.

The Three-Way Adobo (Php.295) An innovative way to serve the classic Filipino dish. My favorite  is the adobo flakes. It's really crispy and perfect for breakfast - my favorite meal of the day. It really went well with my garlic rice. :D

 Lumpia Trio (Php.250) - Some tuna, Vigan longanisa, and mozarella cheese wrapped in lumpia wraper...fried into perfection. I liked them all. Especially the cheese stick...because I like cheese. It's a nice way to start a meal. Light but still very tasteful.

 Nilagang Bulalo (535) The most expensive dish on our table. I did not actually like it because I'm not into meat and beef. But the soup was great. Like really great. It was perfect for the windy noon that Tagaytay is known for. I wanted Kare-kare, but the others wanted this so....I'll definitely come again to try their Kare-kare and sizzling balut.

Daday and Cha fighting the wind on their face just to have a shot with the food on the table.

Now I can cross out Pamana on my bucket list.

Choice Buffet

The Korean food craze entered Manila even before everybody went "sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry". Of course, Filipinos loved it because of one plain reason: it's new. For me (a very untalented and stubborn aspiring foodie), I think Korean cuisine in Manila is all about grilled meat wrapped in lettuce. Well, I'm not one to talk since I've only experienced their food once, but see, there's this saying that goes "first impression lasts." I'm not a strong believer of this one, though. But I sure do hope I get to take these things I've just mentioned about Korean food....since I love Korean and I'm simply jealous of their skin.

Okay, so I went to Choice Buffet with my cousins a few days ago to have dinner. Originally, our plan was to drink the night away, but a certain someone had to ditch us for his academics. I mean come on, what's his deal, right? What's so much better than food? LOL, kidding, I totally understand since I went through that hell just earlier this month.

Okay, so I arrived late, like an hour late. But eh, whatever.

On to the food!
I don't have a photo of the buffet, but see, there wasn't much to take. Just rows and rows of raw meat, veggies wrapped in raw meat, raw seafood like salmon, shrimp, and squid, and the rest...fresh fruits and veggies that you make bibimbap (kimbap?) with.

On the other side, there's an all-you-can-eat serving of Jap Chae, my favorite Korean noodle dish. Also, bottomless servings of different soups that I didn't try because I just know they would fill me up too fast.

On my plate, I had the following:

Some beef and pork marinated with Korean flavors that I don't know what to call with, asparagus and string mushrooms wrapped in a sheet of beef (like it's bacon), and some kind of chicken bbq wings.

Well, I like everything I grabbed, but my cousins just kept on eating what I put on the grill. Except for the veggie and seafood. And it took too long for me to realize the presence of helpful servings of lettuce at the bar. But anyway, everything was okay. Just okay. Didn't have anything exceptional. I still enjoyed the experience because...well it was my first time, so...figures.

Grilling some pork on this so-called smokeless grill. 

The grilled salmon. Oh yes, I had a lot these. In fact, it's the only thing I thoroughly enjoyed that night. This one is still a bit raw, but just look at how juicy it was. But this was the belly part so...yeah. This was my favorite food on their menu.

The shrimp. Again, it's grilled seafood, so I don't have to explain everything. But just so you know, I'm a huge fan of seafood.

The adults of that night...grilling away. I didn't get to have a taste of their rice, but my bro told me it wasn't that great. And that red paste you see, it's some kind of tomato sauce. But it's really delicious, so Korean.

Team fourth generation. And that guy in purple is my bro. He's going to Korea on the fifteenth for some education. He gets to experience legit Korean food soon!

For the drinks, I went for their four seasons, but it had too much pineapple. Tasted like powdered juice. 

They also had sushi and ice cream. The sushi, I wasn't also able to try. But the ice cream, I devoured a whole bowl of it. Strawberry, mocha, and chocolate. I loved the ice cream, it wasn't too milky.

So bottom line: I loved the salmon, the ice cream, and the Jap Chae. The place did pretty okay with the quality of their food, nothing much to fuss about. Just the fact that it was fun grilling and wrapping meat around with lettuce.

But I think I'll soon change my mind about Korean food. It's my first time but I'm keeping my doors open :)