malunggay ice cream anyone?

Sunday is south day for my little brood. Before noon, we head down to Tahanan Village for a day of eating and watching dvds. Last Sunday, no one had any new dvds on hand so we decided on the next best thing, to eat the whole day instead!

We learned about Elfav (short for el favorito, one of the pioneers of pinoy ice cream) ice creamery from our cousin Ate Lea. She actually told us of a good steak place for 99 pesos and the ice cream was just a side story. I was more interested in the ice cream because of the flavor she mentioned -- beer!

After David dozed off for his afternoon siesta, we went to Pergola Mall in BF and went up to the 2nd floor where ElFav's was. It was such a cute store with the white boards and the summery decors. It was a real perfect stop to a hot day. The tables all had games each for people to play with. We had sunka, Dan had a chess set for a table and we also had a snakes and ladders board. it was fun for the kids and for the grown ups too. I've forgotten the rules for sunka though, basta ikot lang kami ng ikot dun sa sunkaan hehe.





The first flavor I tried was beer. It really tasted like beer. It was weird because it was beer and ice cream! It was good but wrong at the same time. I had to stop myself from ordering a pint :P



wasabi, bubblegum make up a long list of flavors at elfav

The place also serves merienda fare and steak. Kasi after lunch na, i ordered the kiddie not-so-sweet spaghetti. Dan ordered the t-bone steak with rice and buttered vegetables...oo for merienda. My husband is a growing boy. The spaghetti was bleh :P Its' saving grace was the two tiny pieces of bread that it came with which tasted like soft biscocho. The spaghetti was not only not so sweet but not so tasty. It didn't have cheese too which is a must for my spaghetti. The sauce also tasted like watered down spaghetti sauce. For 90 pesos, i could have had a more filling spaghetti at Jollibee.

Dan's T-bone steak was another story altogether. Although the meat was veeery thinly sliced (for 90 pesos nga lang naman kasi) it was very tasty and the gravy was delicious. It was a good enough lunch (or merienda) that would not punch a hole in your budget.



All the meals we ordered came with a shot of ice cream or a sampler as they called it there. I got the malunggay ice cream. When I had it, Dan and I looked at each other and said out loud, "dapat may ganito nung nag-b-breast feed ako/ka" weh weh weh....the verdict....it was, to quote a friend, "refreshing!" It tasted like green tea but with leaves. It was mild and sweet and did not leave any aftertaste. It was a really pleasant surprise, and no I didn't crave for tinola while I was eating it. I finished my sampler right away.

Dan of course had the Yakult sampler and had his load of lactobacilli shirota strain for the day. Our cousins ordered a banana split but with popcorn ice cream. The ice cream tasted like popcorn,buttered popcorn pa ha :D



malunggay and yakult


Tasting the different flavors of the ice cream gave a weird yet familiar sensation. If you're in for a foodie adventure, this place is a good start. At least you know that the only thing you'll get here is an ice cream headache :)

One scoop of ice cream is 40 pesos. The place has free wi-fi too. Prepare to spend at least 200 pesos for a merienda meal and soda. All meals come with ice cream samplers.


2nd Floor Pergola Mall
BF Homes Commercial Center
Paranaque City
6593279
website: Elfav

Kenny Rogers. For Deliciously Healthy Food.

My wedding's on October and, boy, it's so hard to lose weight, especially when you're faced with pizza and fried chicken for lunch meetings! Thank God that this week, EJ and I made an effort to leave work earlier than usual (which we actually got to do) and do yoga and work out. But of course, we also wanted to try to watch what we ate.

It's a good thing that we have Kenny Rogers and now Kenny's Roast and Grill (a variant of Kenny Rogers located in Power Plant, Rockwell). I should suggest that we order more of Kenny Rogers for office meetings. #1, it's cheap and gives you value for your money and #2, it's healthy. I'm quite surprised that nowadays, young executives, even younger than me are suffering serious heart problems, diabetes, and sometimes even the big C!

I normally order solo A (with the 1/4 roast chicken, 1 cup steamed rice, 1 regular side dish and 1 corn muffin for dessert) at Php 145.00 or if i eat in the evenings after working out, I order the half chicken at Php 195.00. I'm not a 'rice' person so the 'chicken only' is fine by me. The price is very reasonable and you'll feel full after! I love the way they grill the chicken. The chicken is still juicy yet some of the outer parts are even a little crispy. Even if it's roasted, the chicken does not lose it's taste.

I also love the side dishes. EJ loves the corn and carrots. I like the steamed vegetables. You can also try the cheese and garlic potato. Or for the more indulgent, mac & cheese. Side dishes are at Php 40.00 for the regular sized container and Php 60.00 for the large sized order.

Another must try is the Kenny Roger's Grilled Sausage. Personally, I never liked hotdogs, but when I tried this dish, I kept craving for it. The sausage was not too salty. The sauce had a tangy yet sweet taste. It was very addictive!

Delivery number: 533-8888
www.kennys.com.ph


A variant is the Kenny's Roast and Grill. This is more like a restaurant version of Kenny Roger's. There were other dishes included in the menu and the prices were a tad more expensive than the original fast food places.

I ordered the Grilled Tomato, Pesto and Mozzarella sandwich (although this is available as well in the fast food version). Of course instead of the fries that came along with it at Roaster's, it came with thinly cut and fried potato chips (which I prefer).

Ej ordered the Angus Beef Burger. The burger was pretty good, but the veggies (the lettuce) was too bitter. The burger was grilled well, not burnt, not undercooked. It wasn't dry and it was still juicy. The food choices were also as healthy as the food choices in Roaster's.

The waiters in both places were very attentive. I like the ambiance though of Roast and Grill. It gave me a weird feeling since it was classier than Roaster's, which I was used to - plus it was cleaner!

A lot of healthy food also cost too much, but at least with Kenny Roger's, you can 'not' worry about your weight and 'not' worry about your budget.

Do visit the basement of Power plant, Rockwell for Kenny's Roast and Grill. Try it out - it gave me a weird, yet pleasant feeling to be in a place so familiar yet so new :)

Wendy's (Shang-ri La)

I will never come back to Wendy's again.

I was a fan of Wendy's. It was a welcome change from McDo or Jollibee, because it was bigger and meatier. Operative word: WAS.

I recently ate there again after a long time. I was expecting a big glorious burger because of the mouthwatering picture on the menu.




Instead, I got this:


(note I placed my driver's license beside the burger so you can imagine how big it is)



The fries are equally pathetic:


I was really disappointed with what I got. I can get more meat from McDo or Jollibee for half the price! Not good for office lunches, not good for snacks, certainly no good for dates. Avoid Wendy's.

PEDRO

Go there and browse!


Found this shoe store in Trinoma called PEDRO last Sunday, April 19. Got curious, no customers inside. Went in to just look. Some other people walked in while we were looking at the displays. They left, we stayed.

Wide selection of leather shoes, great looking sneakers & casual shoes. And reasonably priced. I asked the clerk "PEDRO?" She said that is actually a Singapore label and is franchised locally by Mr. Bench himself. That they have another store in MOA.

Bought a nice looking leather pair, soft soled, very comfortable, light, nice price. Black, for office wear.

Go there and browse!

Website:
http://www.pedroshoes.com/home.htm

Don Eduardo's

The quintessential date place.

We were talking to our travel agent, Mrs. Agnes Huang-Lopez, and somehow the conversation turned to us having the Manila Reviews blog. She immediately recommended this brand new restaurant, saying that the salad and pizza were “soooooo good” and the prices were very reasonable. This, of course, piqued our interest.

The restaurant is located in Salcedo Street, Makati, Value Point building, (right beside the Accra law office). It’s the same building as Sousaku & Big Brother’s Café. There was no sign yet (that’s how new it is) but it’s not hard to find – you just walk a bit through the driveway and go up a short flight of stairs leading to the door of the restaurant.

As we entered, we saw a small cozy space that could accommodate 22 people (max). When we came in, we saw four people eating a meal at the middle table. There was no waiter/greeter there, so, to our surprise, one of the four people eating invited us in, led us to a table and gave us a couple of menus. “Ang bait ng customers!,” I thought. Turns out later that the guy who helped us was the chef!

As we were scanning the menu, the owner approached us and introduced herself. She is Bing Bing Lopez–Santos, our travel agent’s sister-in-law, and her family owns Mezzaluna (Serendra, Fort Bonifacio) and Sousaku (a Japanese restaurant in Salcedo as well). She told us a story about how the restaurant used to be Amo Roma which already closed. They reopened as Don Eduardo’s Trattoria last March 4, 2009.


We were given bread and butter as we waited for our order. The place had a cozy and classy feel to it. I imagine it to be the perfect place for small get-togethers after office or for a lovely, quite dinner for two.

We ordered the Capesante Salad - a warm salad made of scallops (imagine that!) and tomatoes, mushrooms, zucchini and greens. I loved it! I am a lover of salads and this is the only salad that I have encountered with scallops as the main ingredient. The greens were so fresh and crunchy. The sauce was not too light nor was it too overpowering. As EJ said, this was the only salad that he was really enjoying as a meal -- he would take other salads normally as starters, which meant that he would breeze through it just to get it over with.

Capesante salad at Php 370
(the presentation was much nicer than this, of course. we were so excited, we forgot to take the picture!)

We also ordered the Quattro Formaggi Pizza. It was a thin-crust pizza about 1 foot in diameter cut into 8 slices. The crust was toasted perfectly, not burnt at all. The cheese layering, made out of blue cheese, mozzarella, gruyere, and parmesan, was perfectly made.

Quattro Formaggi Pizza at Php 380

Ravioli Riccota at Php 380

The Ravioli Ricotta was okay. The owner mentioned that it was actually cannelloni and not ravioli. The dish was made of two long strips of pasta covering deliciously cooked meat. The top was smothered with bechamel sauce and copious amounts of cheese. The amount of the sauce given was quite substantial - the pasta was drowning in the sauce!

For dessert, they recommended that we get the Strawberry Napoleon (Php 245) but we were so full we had to skip dessert. It wasn’t in the menu but I think they are planning to add that in.

The service was excellent! The waiters were very attentive.

We truly had a great experience. For those who want to try out new restaurants in the metropolis, we highly recommend that you try out Don Eduardo’s Trattoria!


Contact details:
Don Eduardo's Trattoria
ValuePoint Executive Apartments
227 Salcedo St.
Legaspi Village, Makati City
Tel. No.: 818-0209/818-0106
Mobile No.: 0920-275-3616
Email: don.eduardos@gmail.com

Via Mare

Via Mare – Landmark- Trinoma

That first two names in above 3-name hyphenated combination brings back memories 25 years old or even older when we used to go to Makati Commercial Center in the “olden” days. We would go to Landmark & inevitably find ourselves seated in that “island” called Via Mare.

Only the 3rd word is new – Trinoma. But Via Mare is like an old friend, someone you can rely on. In this case, with their ever reliable Bibingka & puto bumbong, the Lugaw with toppings, the palitaw, the tokwa’t baboy, the goto & others.









It has remained the same, though we miss the closed Eastwood outlet. Via Mare is the standard merienda place, the old reliable. Its Power Plant Mall outlet is also a frequently visited one.

So, how do I rate it? You must be kidding, how else would I rate it after waxing sentimental. It has somehow remained consistent wherever and whenever (?). And I like that.

Nuff said!!

Toast Box

Kopi Roti's still better.


After looking for travel books (for me) and yoga books (for Ginger), Ginger and I decided to sit and have coffee and milk tea in Toast Box, Trinoma. It's right across Fully Booked and located in the first floor.

Being fans of Kopi Roti, we were both pretty excited to order some toast. Ginger ordered the Teh (pulled milk tea) @ Php 65.00. I got the Kopi at the same price. We also ordered the Ho Kaya (thick toast - 1 pc @ P45) and the Chuan Tong (traditional toast - 1 pc @ P42).

When we sat down, we went through our routine. We got our trusty camera and Ginger started taking pictures. One of the folks behind the counter called our attention and told us that we can't take pictures. I asked why and he told us because it's "private." I don't know exactly what that means. Maybe some intellectual property issues are still being ironed out, i don't know. But being the picture-loving culture we Pinoys are, it's certainly a downer that we can't do what we love doing -- being camwhores. Seriously though, it's definitely a negative since you can't really enjoy yourself here. (Note: Pics of the place here were taken before we were told to stop. For the pics of the food, we asked permission from the cashier who cheerfully told us "sure!")


The Kopi's okay. A little bit stronger than Kopi Roti's but servings are much smaller. At Kopi Roti, I enjoy seeing the condensed milk swirl around and get mixed with the coffee. You can't do that here with the ceramic cups.


The Ho Kaya / Thick Toast was pretty average. The bread needed a little bit more toasting. It was still chewy. Also, because the bread was thick, it overpowered the taste of the Kaya.


Ginger liked the Teh of Kopi Roti better. Toastbox's Teh was too sweet. We suspected that there was too much condensed milk and we were right:
There was thick condensed milk settled at the bottom after Ginger drank her cup.


For the Chuan Tong (traditional toast) - the bread was too thick and it was also undertoasted.

Some things they did better than Kopi Roti: they had a giant mound of butter on the counter, and they openly displayed how Teh was made. Great marketing. :)


Verdict: Toast Box looks much nicer than Kopi Roti, but taste-wise you're better off sticking with the latter.


Details:
Toast Box
Ground Floor (beside Gourdo's, connected to Bread Talk)
TriNoma Mall
EDSA cor. North Ave.
Quezon, Metro Manila

Phone Number: (632) 915-2856

Cafe Mediterranean

Ok lang.


Powerplant mall, Makati
April 11, 2009 / 6:00pm


We started the meal with the Soup Au Pistou. A simple vegetable soup kicked up with the french version of Pesto -- Pistou (i had an aha! moment right there). It was simple and pretty satisfying specially with the crusty bread that went with it; a good start for the upcoming meal.



We then had Turkish Feta & Tomato Salad. It tasted very much like an old Filipino favorite -- salted egg & tomato. It went with slices of toasted bread, which neutralized the strong taste of the salad. I recommend this dish next time you eat at Cafe Med. (We ordered 2. hehe)]


We then had an old regular: Chicken Kebab with Whole Wheat Pita. The chicken was dry which I remedied with plenty of garlic sauce. By itself though, the dish was pretty bland. This isn't the first time we ordered it though and it was just as dry the first time, but we keep coming back for it. I don't know why... maybe it's because of the...

Service was pretty good that night with the manager really overlooking everything. It may have had something to do though with Tita Annie telling them that we were writing about them in a newspaper (sic). From previous experience though, service has always been pretty good.

Over-all, Cafe Med has always been a convenient, comfortable, reasonably-priced restaurant with friendly fast service. It's definitely good for a quick office lunch but if you're looking for a gastronomic adventure, go somewhere else.

***

Average price per person: P300 - P400
Locations: Alabang Town Center, Greenbelt 1, Greenhills, PowerPlant Mall, Robinson's Galleria, SM Mall of Asia, Podium
Payments Accepted: Cash & Credit Cards

AMICI

One word - Dissapointing!

Amici
3rd Level Megamall
6:14 PM, April 11, 2009

Gino had to return to our table twice as what we wanted were not available. There was no PANINI of any kind, no "spaghetti al pomodoro," no "spaghetti alla bolognese," no "vegetariana" (white pizza with artichoke hearts & arugula), no 1.5 liter diet sarsi. The store manager must have been wishing he was on a beach somewhere!!!

We ordered "mozzarella frito"(cheese logs with tangy pomodor sauce), salsicce italiana (italian sausage), prosciutto e funghi (pizza w/ mushrooms & prosciutto), spaghetti carbonara, 1.5 liter coke light. Total bill P890.


The pizza was soggy, the Italian saugsage tasted like what I had one week ago, i think it was vigan longanisa. Spaghetti was OK. Over-all, the food was not worth the amount paid.

Never got to eat at the original "Don Bosco" place & people kept saying then that it had great food. Maybe something was "lost in translation" when it became "commercialized."

Yoga Styles and Where to go

Since my wedding's coming, Ej and I have been trying to get into the fitness groove. One of the activities that we wanted to do regularly was yoga. I first enrolled in Bikram yoga at Eastwood with my sister. EJ didn't find it comfortable since heat and sweating profusely gave him migraines. We then tried out Vinyasa at Strata 100 in Ortigas. Before I continue with my assessment, let's first learn about the different styles of yoga from some great resources on the web:

• What is Yoga?
• Yoga Styles
• Hot Yoga/Bikram
  
• Vinyasa/Flow
  

Where to go?

For Vinyasa, you can visit the Vinyasa Yoga Center. It is located at the 17th Floor Strata 100 Building in Ortigas Pasig. It's very convenient for those working in the Ortigas area. Classes in the evening start at 6:15 pm and the next one at 7:30 pm, which is apt for an office worker's schedule.

They have three instructors: Pio Baquiran, Jevimer Lobitana and Gemma Magtibay. I have tried Pio and Jevimer's classes. Both were quite accomodating to the new comers and they really guide you well when you do the poses.

The floor area can accomodate around 15 people so you really have to call to have a slot reserved for you.

More information about the center and its guidelines can be seen at the Vinyasa Yoga Center Website.

Contact Details:

Unit 17-F Strata 100 Building
F. Ortigas Jr. Road, Ortigas Center
Pasig City
Philippines
1600

yogacenter06@yahoo.com

+(63 2) 637-9003 /+(632) 2329189

+639209475915/+639152920989

For Bikram yoga, you can go to Biktam Yoga Manila or Bikram Yoga Eastwood.

I have tried the one in Eastwood but I haven't tried the one in Makati (though I heard about the one in Makati first, it was far from my place of work.) They have exceptional teachers in Eastwood. I have tried Joy (the owner), Lorrie and Julie's classes. What you will need for the sessions there is your mat and a towel to place on top of your mat. The classes are done in a heated room, more than 30 degrees, i'm assuming. I can become pretty hot, so remember to stay well hydrated before you join any class.

Since the class is an active meditation, unnecessary movements (even wiping off sweat) should be avoided. I loved the classes there but the classes are more expensive than the classes in Vinyasa.

Prices:

Vinyasa: They don't have trial classes and the new rates are as follows:

One time trial/session 450.00

12 + 1 free session 4,800.00

18 + 2 free sessions 7,200.00

21 + 3 free sessions 8,400.00

*SERIES EXPIRES AFTER 2 MONTHS

Yoga Manila: Trial of 7 days: Php 1000; each class is roughly between Php350 – Php400 for regular attendees. For those who take their practice seriously and attend often (i.e. 4-5 times a week), the cost is about Php250 – Php300 per class

Contact details:

Makati Studio
15F, 88 Corporate Center,
141 Valero Street cor. Sedeno St.
Salcedo Village, Makati City
Tel. no.: 8890126
Tele fax: 8891011
E-mail: info@bikramyogamanila.com

Quezon City Sutdio
5/F CKB Centre
203 Tomas Morato Ave.
Quezon City
Tel. no.: 3764632
Tele fax: 8891011

Bikram Eastwood: Trial of 7 days: Php 700; each class is around as much as the one in Makati or a little bit cheaper. I took the 20 sessions for 2 months and it was around Php 4,250.

*Series expires according to the duration that was specified in the rate

Contact Details:

Unit E One Orchard Road Condominium,
Eastwood City, Libis
Salcedo Village, Makati City
Tel. no.: +632 9721838
Mobile no: +63 922 8819955
E-mail: jgeronca@bikramyogaeastwood.com

Bikram Yoga Eastwood Website

Fire Lake Grill

simply the best steak I've ever had

Fire Lake Grill is found in Cliff House, Tagaytay. As with most restaurants on Tagaytay's cliff side, the views are beautiful, if not entirely new. :)


Ok, let's get straight to the point... how was the food?

Ginger ordered the duck (forgot the name on the menu). It costs P650+, but add P230, and you get a serving of the Tagaytay Garden Salad and Pumpkin Soup.

I ordered the Grilled C.A.B. Steak Rib Eye (from hereon end referred to as "the steak"). It costs P890, plus P30 Red Wine Shallot sauce. I also ordered their House Iced Tea at P75.

We were both still pretty full from a late breakfast at Cafe Verbena (review coming soon!) so we didn't order any appetizers.


The Tagaytay Garden Salad was... ok. It doesn't really stand out from the other salads you'd get in most good restaurants. The pumpkin soup was a different story as it was better than most.


The duck was beautifully prepared and was pretty good. Ginger enjoyed it and the bed of couscous that comes with it.


The steak... oh where do I start. It was simply the best steak I've ever had. I had it prepared MEDIUM and it was grilled to perfection. It was juicy, very soft, and very tasty. The Iced Tea was too sweet and distracted from the taste of the steak.

The service was also impeccable, with the waiters offering great suggestions and being responsive and proactive. I'm a stickler for good service and I'm happy that they delivered.

Price-wise -- it's pretty pricey so be prepared to spend around PHP 1000.00 per person. Order the steak and you won't go wrong. Great date place!

The meal ended with Chef Paul Huang himself coming over to deliver the parking validation. Not being able to help ourselves, we asked if he really is Paul Huang (as his uniform suggested) and he confirmed that it was his uniform he was wearing. :) He was friendly and eager to learn how we enjoyed our food. Nice guy. Sayang we didn't get a picture with him.

Verdict: Come here for the steak!!! The other dishes are also good though so if you're not a steak person, you won't come home sad. :)

Enjoy!
EJ

Details:
Fire Lake Grill Website

Driving Directions from Manila
Take SLEX to either the Southwoods, Carmona or Sta. Rosa Exit
Head on towards Tagaytay and the Tagatay Rotonda
Fire Lake Grill is only 2 km from the Tagaytay Rotonda going
towards Nasugbu on the lake side.

Address
Unit 3 Cliffhouse Tagaytay General Emilio Aguinaldo Highway
Tagaytay City, Cavite

Hours
Monday to Friday :
serving lunch (11 am to 2 pm) and dinner (6pm to 10pm)
Saturday, Sunday and Holidays :
serving meals the whole day from 11am to 10pm

Reservations
Call 046 483 2069 or 0927 914 4604

Free and secure parking available.
All major credit cards accepted.