GUMBO

...did not disappoint...


Went to SM North EDSA agian after a long time and the Block is really SM's anti-Trinoma mall, so unlike the old SM shoebox malls. Big lobby, high open space & outside there was a "green" walkway eading to the newly rebuilt Annex. The Annex is also a nice place but was there only to go to Ace hardware & did not see the whole place.

Wait, why am I reviewing SM North EDSA? This is supposed to be about food & today's place is Gumbo.

Located at the main floor of the Block, Gumbo is besides Gloria Maris. First went to this place when the Block was just opened & the servers wearing decorated hats caught our atention. Tried it then & learned that it was ran by the same people who also ran Burgoo. So expect cajun, new orleans type of food.

Anyway, enough of the long intro & to the food:

Ealier, G & I had beef brisket wanton noodle soup & siopao at the Gloria Maris but I digress again. So it was M who ordered for the three of us.

First on the table was NEW ORLEANS DELIGHT PIZZA


White sauce pizza with sausage, shrimps, garlic & yes, anchovies - P355.00

Good, tasty & especially liked the shrimps. Recommended.

Next: SEAFOOD SPAGHETTINI for M, P355.


Shrimps, clams, mussels, spaghettini pasta in pomodoro sauce . The shrimps, mussels, clams were well cooked & the dish was well made. M liked it.

Dessert -HOT CHOCOLATE CAKE ALA MODE p275


A big block of chocolate cake with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. Need I say more? The chocolate was nicely moist, delicious & with the ice cream, one can almost feel one's arteries hardening. But it was delicious & so, who cares.

Must mention JENNY, our waitress who was very attentive, helpful & quite the cheerful one. Engaged us in lively short conversation without being intrusive. She knew when to back out.

Food was OK and one can see oneself going back for more. Very high marks for the service, hope it was not just because there were just a few diners in the place and that kind of service is the standard.

Prices are reasonable & the items we ordered did not disappoint.

There is a Gumbo in MOA, next to Via mare.

PS: According to wikipedia: Gumbo is a stew or soup originating in Louisiana which is popular across the Gulf Coast of the United States and into the U.S. South. It consists primarily of a strong stock, meat and/or shellfish, a thickener, and the vegetable "holy trinity" of celery, bell peppers and onion. The soup is traditionally served over rice.

Elbert's CHEESESTEAK Sandwiches

CFoncourse Level
PowerPlant Mall


I had the "FULL AMERICAN CHEESESTEAK" classic again. The first time I ordered this sandwich was maybe a month ago but in a paper bag "to go". I liked it then and so I ordered it again, but I had it cut in half - one half to be eaten already & the other in a bag to be saved for later.

Yes, the orders here are quite big. The classic has approximately 350 grams of meat plus the cheese, for P320. One can have the ""Hoagie" a 6 inch sandwich with 300 grams of steak for P240. no soda yet.

Others are steak sandwich (Classic@P290, Hoagie @P230), Provolene cheesesteak (C @P390: H@P310), Pizza Cheesteak (C@P420, H@P340) Quite pricey but the "FULL AMERICAN CHEESESTEAK" was very good. The meat was tender & the bread was good.

One can eat on tables set up in front of the counter made of stainless steel designed to inovke the "diner" look.

They also had "fries & soda combo for P80 and one can order extra sides.

Quite pricey but a classic sandwich is quite filling and this is at Rockwell so maybe it is alright, price-wise? Maybe, not sure. But will surely return for more.

Forgot to take pictures, was so hungry that the sandwich was just one more bite away from extinction when I remembered that I should have taken a picture.

Next time.

Hotrocks, Libis

Sunday found me and Dan at one of our old reliables, which to us means cheap good food! We've been coming to HotRocks in Libis for several years and has always been a good place to come for

a fast steak fix.

HotRocks has two floors, the first is airconditioned and houses the place's wall of fame.

The second floor is al fresco and is also the smoking area.

Their wall of fame, where the famous sign on HotRocks plates :)

That's Pacquiao you know

Hotrocks serves unpretentious grilled steak that is, steak plus rice and that's it! You can choose the doneness of your steak though and if you'd want a regular or a large cut.

Hotrocks has since expanded their menu to include pizzas, salads and pinoy staples like kare-kare, salmon belly sinigang, etc and burgers.

For me and the hubs, our usual order would start with two to four sticks of Tenga (Pig Ears) from the Pinoy Barbecue menu, we always order them extra crispy. For drinks, we'd always order a pitcher of green iced tea or neon green tea in this case.

Crispy Tenga

Green Iced Tea

I usually just order the regular cut of their steak but the waitress informed us that every sunday lunch, the large cuts at HotRocks are 20 percent off!! so two large medium well T-Bones were ordered for our table.

Medium well

The steaks came in two white plates with popsicle sticks. They were grilled just right with the right kind of char.

We finished our plates and our pitcher of green tea full and satisfied. Cheap and predictable, we'll be coming back very very soon.

HotRocks
Club 650 E. Rodriguez, Jr. Avenue, Libis, Quezon City
Remember! Large cuts of steaks are 20% off every Sunday Lunch!!

Galileo Enoteca

For a dinner night out, a friend suggested we try Galileo Enoteca for good Italian fare. The restaurant has two locations but our friends chose the one in Mandaluyong. Going to the place, my hubby and I got lost and we had to navigate the confusing side streets of Mandaluyong since we chose to go there via the Makati Mandaluyong way. There are no visible signs leading to the restaurant. Finding Calbayog Street was only made possible when we finally stopped and asked for directions.


Coming into the restaurant, you will be greeted by a freezer filled with deli and shelves of Italian pantry essentials. The walls of Galileo is lined from ceiling to floor with shelves that are filled with wine bottles, cans of lentils, tomatoes, boxes of pasta, italian soda, fiji water and a lot more. The rest of the store is lined with red bricks. The whole feel of the place is that of an old wine cellar. There are no formal dining set-ups here, just tables and benches that reminded me of those that you find at a park.

All of these come together so that you can enjoy the food and the company in a fun and casual atmosphere. Just like a big family gathering as you see in those movies about Italian families.

The interiors did not disappoint but what about the food?

For the antipasto, we ordered a cheese platter, calamari, and a bread basket which came with sun dried tomato pesto, olive oil with balsamic vinegar and tomato paste.

The bread was soft but not soggy and was just perfect. The tomato sun dried pesto was a winner and tasted really really fresh. The calamari was ok, the crunchy breading came right off but the squid itself was tender and tasty.

For the main course, Dan ordered the Italian steak while I had the Pollo Prosciutto which was Chicken wrapped with Prosciutto.

Dan's steak turned out to be a dud. The steak was tough and had the consistency of old leather. The taste of the olive oil was very overpowering and was all that he could taste in his steak.

My chicken however was a winner! The chicken breasts were wrapped with reaallly crispy ham. Hearing the crunch of the prosciutto while slicing into really juicy chicken breasts won me over. To counter the oil and fat, the dish came with a side of salad that was dressed in a light vinaigrette. The sourness and crunch of the salad and the tenderness of the chicken plus the greasy fat from the ham made this a really complete dish!

Our friends ordered a shrimp and garlic pizza and an all meat pizza. They were both good but not memorable. Another friend of ours ordered the Chicken Picatta which was tasty and which also came with a salad similar to what I had. The Eggplant Parmigiana that another friend ordered was declared to be very good as well as the Pasta with Porcini mushrooms which was creamy but still retained a very light consistency.

Galileo had a promo on their red wines where you could buy two bottles for the price of one. We got that and drank to our sanity and health.

In the end we spent about Php 400 per person which already included a glass of wine and a soda.

Service wise, the place could use more waitstaff but the ones that they do have are courteous and polite although there was a time when we had to call on several waiters to have our drinks refilled.

All in all, this is a place we would love to come back to and we would gladly recommend to our friends and family.

Galileo Enoteca
website

Ground Floor, Reyes Gym
Calbayog corner Malinao Streets
Mandaluyong City Philippines
Tel. No.: 532-0482

Ground Floor, La Fuerza Plaza
2241 Don Chino Roces Street
Makati City Philippines
Tel. No.: 817-9118
Mobile: 0917-8470061

Expect to spend at least 400 for food and soda per person (price as of May 2009)

Paseo Uno, Mandarin Oriental

An old reliable for end of season team lunches, Paseo Uno at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel has always been a favorite go to for the people in our office.

The place is just the right size and its interiors are on of my favorites, with the hard wood and the green glass. However, the place can get crowded during lunchtime and the layout of the place might be too cramped for some. Our table was near the hotel's large lobby window and we had to somewhat squeeze ourselves in between the rows of tables leading to ours.

The Paseo Uno buffet is not the largest nor the most varied in food choices.

the pretzels on this stand is a cute idea though and it saves space

an assortment of salads, terrines, shrimp cocktails...

For the appetizers, the crunchy hardboiled egg in my picture below was the highlight of my appetizer plate. It was wonderful biting into a crunchy egg with a slightly spicy yolk. The other appetizers on my plate were typical and did not offer anything new.

Right after the appetizer and sushi station was their Asian buffet station. One can order fresh noodles, hot and fresh tempura straight from the hot bubbling oil, miso soup assorted stir fry and ihaw-ihaw(bbq!)

However, you can afford to skip this station, and go straight to the carving station. For buffets, I think the general idea is to go straight for the high priced items. Save your dimsum, noodles and liempo for another time. So, following this philosophy, I ordered a slice of prime rib. However, the lady who was behind the carving station sliced a pitiful piece of rib with a hole in the middle so I had to ask for a thicker slice. I had it grilled medium well and scooped red wine sauce on the side. I'm not a fan of pouring gravy or sauce all over grilled meat, the meat loses its flavor and most of the time its' own juice is its' best sauce. Before I sat down, I also took two rolls of roast duck with hoisin sauce.

the satay station

steak sauces, i'm a big fan of mustard on steak, well of mustard in general

I need to point out this sad bowl of cold (!) and underseasoned miso soup. I love a good miso soup so it's sad to see this one not finished to slurping.

my main course

The prime rib was dry and a bit tough. Not to sound like a hotdog commercial but I was expecting to bite into a tender, juicy, really meaty slice of good prime rib but I did not get it. It was disappointing. I finished off the other food in my plate before I finished off my rib.

The roast duck too was pretty average, it tasted like the regular duck you could order at any other Chinese restaurant. I gave the other roll to my friend who after eating decided not to get one from the buffet station anymore.

The buffet's dessert station had your usual fare of chocolate mousses, mini-cakes, crepes and a halo-halo station. The cutest thing about the whole thing though was the candy buffet, it was a delightful and colorful counterpoint to all the "serious" food out there in the other stations.

The next best thing I ordered for the day (the first being the egg appetizer) was this calamansi sherbet which was a really refreshing palate cleanser. It was just the right kind of sour for me. The girls in our team loved it but the boys hated it. At least though, the buffet ended on a right note.

We just had water with our meals but ordered coffee and tea afterwards. The total bill including a 12 percent service charge and an 8 percent food tax came to about Php1,700 per person. Quite a steep price for an uneventful buffet lunch.

Service wise, the staff and the waiters were very helpful, courteous and attentive. Sometimes good service makes up for an average meal but in this case, Paseo Uno is in a hotel and good service is expected. I could only wish the food was up to par.

Paseo Uno

G/F, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Makati Ave. cor. Paseo de Roxas
Makati City, Metro Manila
750-8888

Expect to shell out at least Php 1,700 for food and drinks per person (price as of May 2009)

Stackers @ Eastwood City

Run for the Runny Burger

Stackers is the new restaurant in Eastwood City Walk. It is located where Go Nuts Donuts used to be. EJ and I are usually at Eastwood in the weekends and when we pass this place, it is usually full.


The restaurant is well lighted and has a seating capacity of 25 people (around 35 if including the seats outside). The menu is 85% composed of choices of hamburgers, 10% other dishes (fried chicken, salad and side dishes) and 5% drinks. It's target market are teenagers to young professionals.

The burger meals are quite affordable (actually a little cheaper than Brother's Burger).

EJ ordered the Jack's Burger. It was a single patty burger with bacon, mushrooms, lettuce and melted cheese. He mentioned that he found it quite bland, but I thought it was quite decent. The Jack's Burger was sold at Php 225.00.


I ordered the Runny Burger. It was a single patty burger, as well, but my burger had a unique "chili con carne" sauce. I thought it was pretty good. The sauce did not overpower the taste of the burger. For the buns though, I still prefer the ones used by Brother's Burger. The Runny burger was priced at Php 160.00.


We ordered the additional fries and softdrinks for 60 pesos (75 pesos if with iced tea). The drink came in a really small glass. I liked the fries though. They were thick but servings were small -- the container was just as small as the glass.

The service was a little bit slow. The servers seemed not to be used to serving a lot of people. There were a lot of mixed up orders. They initially gave us 7-up instead of the Coke Zero we ordered. Also, they gave us the wrong burger and, to top it all off, the wrong bill. They seemed lost. I guess it's because it is a new store. Hope they get better soon.

If you're planning to visit, make sure you have the Runny Burger and lots of patience!

Xoxo,
ginger

Da Seekers' Cove

A Glimpse into the Past, Present and Future

I'm not that superstitious, but one afternoon, EJ and I had nothing to do. I had a lot of things going on in my mind that time - things about work, life, etc. Sometimes, you're so exhausted you need experiences like this to give you that extra push.

We were in Robinson's Galleria, our usual hang-out, when I decided to pay Php 300 for 5 minutes of Tarot Reading. I know, pretty expensive to have someone tell you what your past was, what your present is, and what your future will be.

There are two tiny rooms. I was guided to the room on the left. We prayed together over the cards and 'connected' with them. The reader then asked me to pick 15 cards with my left hand to look into my past, present and future.

Honestly, I was impressed. This was my second time here. The first time that I had Tarot reading (they also do Dream interpretation), EJ and I weren't a couple yet. The reader that time mentioned that a lot of big things will happen in my life and I will end up with a very good man. A few months after, EJ asked me to be his girl and a few more months after, he proposed.

This time, my questions were all about career. When you go there, don't expect clear answers and any piece of advice. Come with specific questions to ask.

I was actually quite satisfied but the time given for reading was too short. I asked for extra minutes, but they wouldn't give them to me. If you are in their list, they normally text extra minutes as promos. Funny, I always get texts for free minutes but that time when I went, there was no promos. Maybe they really are psychic... hehe.

Try it just for kicks. You won't lose anything anyway -- just 300 bucks and 5 minutes. I still believe though in making your own future.

Sebastian's Ice Cream

The Best Ice Cream in Manila


Not a lot of people go to Podium because there's no real reason to go there. All the stores are either in Megamall, Shangri-la, or Galleria. All that's about to change once you try Sebastian's Ice Cream.

Ginger's favorite is Up All Night. The coffee flavor is just right, not overpowering at all. Ginger loves texture -- and the mix of the chocolate chips in the coffee ice cream is perfect. My favorite is Chocoholics Anonymous. It's a very rich chocolate ice cream with BIG delicious truffles generously mixed in the ice cream. Sarap!

Another thing we love about this ice cream -- the servings are very generous! That's a rarity in the Philippines and it's always a welcome site to receive our LARGE 2 scoop ice cream. :D

Being ice cream lovers, we have yet to have ice cream that compares to Sebastian's. It's definitely a bit pricey, but it's well worth it!

Details:
Their stalls (the ones we know) are located in Podium, The Block (SM North Edsa), Alabang Town Center. Leave a comment to tell us where the other stalls are. :)

Prices:
Sebastian's Super Premium (Regular) Ice Cream:
Single Scoop - P95.00
Double Scoop - P150.00
Handpacked Pint - P280.00

Artisan (A Higher Level of ice cream):
Single Scoop - P150.00
Double Scoop - P170.00
Handpacked Pint - P310.00

Sweet Freedom (Sugar-free):
Single Scoop - P105.00
Double Scoop - P170.00
Handpacked Pint - P310.00

Chilly Burger - P120.00

website: http://profiles.friendster.com/sebastians4life (i know... friendster?!)

Enjoy!
EJ