Chinese Archives - Between Bites - Bites of Food, Travel and Lifestyle

LIMITED TIME OFFER: Hong Kong-style Roasted Goose by Chef Billy Cheong until November 21!

November 16, 2017 by Janey

I always look forward to my annual business trips to Hong Kong only for one reason: roasted goose. It’s a shame no restaurant in Manila can come even an inch close to the quality and taste of either roasted goose or duck served in Hong Kong.

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Not until my surefire favorite go-to for Cantonese cuisine located at the 44^th level of Marco Polo brought in a limited time special. Marco Polo’s Lung Hin continues to provide the finest flavors introducing the classic traditional Hong Kong-style premium roast goose this November.

Related Post:

Lung Hin at Marco Polo

Premium roast goose (availability limited per day or until stocks last) whose recipe hails from Guangdong Province is available at the authentic modern Cantonese restaurant Lung Hin, from November 6 to 21, 2017. Marinated in special spices and roasted in a charcoal furnace at high temperature, the result is succulent meat protected with layer of crispy skin.

New Palate Gems at Crystal Jade Shanghai Delight

April 29, 2014 by Janey

Their restaurant frontage can barely be seen in 2010 with the long queues outside that wait to get seated. Flocks of families and foodies have trooped to Crystal Jade for their famed Xiao Long Bao and authentic Chinese dishes. You cannot spell authentic any less with the Chinese expats that are rebased here to head and run the Crystal Jade kitchen to ensure quality standards.

Crystal Jade is one of the largest restaurant chains and is just about everywhere in Singapore. They have established a strong presence in San Francisco and across the Asia Pacific region –in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Indonesia, Japan, Qingdao, Guangzhou among numerous places. The successful opening in Manila added to that portfolio, bringing in that passion of dishing out the finest delicacies served contemporarily.

We usually think of comfort food in the form of burgers, fries, and wings but when I want to eat a little more stylishly minus the grease and the common taste of diner items, I find my comfort at Crystal Jade.

Whenever I’m in the Greenhills area, there’s a magnetic pull to eat at Crystal Jade. I’ve been a long fan of their original Xiao Long Bao, Cantonese barbecue meats and noodles. In fact, I don’t order outside my usual of two orders of Xiao Long Bao, Noodle with Beef in Chili Oil (P228) and my all-time favorite Noodle with Dried Shrimp and Peanut in Spicy Sauce (P328 for sharing and P198 for snack portion).

I have visited again some weeks ago and noticed that they have renovated their interiors. It has maximized their seating capacity to serve more patrons and have shifted to vibrant welcoming hues of purples and pinks. I’m happy to report that their menu still retained their classic dishes and happier to tell that it has expanded to add more dishes that are surefire imminent bestsellers. Cuisine has delved into an authentic mix of Cantonese and Shanghai offerings that get your palate incessantly interested.

On the Table

Crispy Eel in “Wu Xi” Style P288

Prior to the recent visit, someone has made me try this before and it’s an appetizer that’s a staple on the table. It’s wonderfully crunchy that it cackles biting into it. The crispy eel has a dark sweet soy coating leaning towards a barbecue taste.

New World Hotel Brings the Ultimate 18 Treasures to Chinese New Year

January 23, 2012 by Janey

Between Bites already featured Jasmine Restaurant in New World Hotel a few months ago when they included authentic Shanghai cuisine in their menu. Jasmine Restaurant is bringing a whole new flavor and experience to celebrating the Chinese New Year. Nothing is more fitting than welcoming the Year of the Dragon with a menu that highlights the Ultimate 18 Treasures Feasts.

If you’re in touch with your roots, Poon Choi (Pun Choi) a.k.a Ultimate 18 Treasures is a tradition associated with New Year celebrations where they serve a big basin of assorted dishes for everyone to feast on and partake. You don’t have to be in Hong Kong just to experience this first hand. New World Hotel’s Executive Chef Choi Wing Ki knows how to make a feast truly worthy of the fireworks of Chinese New Year.

On the Table

Wagyu Beef with Mango Roll

I’ve tasted this when they had the YUE 1525 dishes as part of the menu. Since this became popular, Jasmine Restaurant decided to retain it as a regular ala carte dish. That crumbly flaky roll wrapper almost disappears instantaneously upon hitting your tongue’s glands.

It’s still the familiar tender and flavorful Wagyu piece partnered with a sliver of sweet mango that submits to the beefy taste.

Between Bites TOP 10 MUST BITES 2011

December 22, 2011 by Janey

I have scoffed, gobbled, munched, wolfed down different dishes in many, almost countless, restaurants that I have to really organize my food thoughts. That is the reason time and again I come up with these Between Bites Top 10 lists.

Between Bites TOP 10 Best Japanese Restaurants

BETWEEN BITES TOP 10 BEST DATE PLACES

BETWEEN BITES TOP 10 BEST FILIPINO EATS

BETWEEN BITES TOP 10 BEST PAELLA

BETWEEN BITES TOP 10 BEST Buffalo Wings

TOP 5 Sultry Strawberry Treats

Mercato Centrale, Where Food Lovers Meet, The TOP 10

Between Bites TOP 10 Things About Bali

And here we go again! This time I have dubbed my annual list as “MUST BITES” in line with the Between Bites “brand.” Yuck, brand daw oh. Haha.

10. Rub Ribs and Barbecue

A simple duplex with a red signage that spelled RUB stands in Tomas Morato. With more comfortable dining area on the 2^nd floor, the small space has quotable quotes in frames adorning the wall. Their menu offers wings, potato wedges, pastas, pork belly, among others but obviously, it is a no-nonsense restaurant devoted to the love of ribs and barbecue.

Chatime Tea, Why Don’t Cha?

April 14, 2011 by Janey

I never realized that the Milk Tea fever will explode this big. Foodie friends and non-foodie friends got hooked initially on Serenitea and some eventually switched their coffee time with cold tea drinks. I was never a big fan of coffee although I love the smell and I take it once in a while during meetings but I was pretty much taken by Serenitea since late 2009. We visit frequently in a week and somehow got addicted to it.

Family of drinkers

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Now, they have about 5 branches since they opened since 2 years ago. I did lessen my visits when prices hiked up, and even limited orders of my favorite peppered corn. Bubble Tea opened along Wilson Street and my Twin and I usually pick that spot for our chat/bonding/catch-up time. Happy Lemon, a new player in the market, has followed suit and started making waves in the Greenhills area since it opened late last year.

I have somehow got friends hooked on it also and have converted some from the first cooler to the latter. My different groups of friends cannot stop raving about Happy Lemon in the past couple of months and TODAY I’m quite excited to share with them, a new DRINK discovery.

After having lunch with Richard, Irene, Lauren, Fran and Paul at Cab Café 2 days ago, Richard suggested to stop by his latest addiction, Chatime. Chatime is a Taiwanese (the population who started the milk tea craze) brand of milk tea and is considered one of the largest bubble tea brands in the world.

What I love about ChaTime is their second floor that’s a huge lounge area with chic seat designs. It begs to spend more time there chatting with good friends and finishing your round of drinks. Or maybe 2 rounds *shrugs*

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They had so many varieties of drinks available to order that it might take you a while to choose your poison. Take note that some of the Chatime drinks do not come with toppings/pearls/sinkers so make sure that you check with their friendly staff. Pearls are an addition of PHP 15/serving.

Photo Credit: Richard Co of www.talesfromthetummy.com

While there was an order for 2 Cocoa Smoothies, Tea Guanyin Tea Latte, Grass Jelly Milk Tea and Cha Time Roasted Milk Tea, I settled on Taro Milk Tea (PHP 90) and got a Pearl Milk Tea (PHP 80) as an added free bonus due to the current promotion they have on the store.

Chatime OVERLOAD! I likey-like! 🙂

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It’s Buy 1 Take 1, choose any of the drinks on the menu board and take 1 Pearl Milk Tea (regular size) for FREE only from 12nn-2pm! This will last until tomorrow, April 15, so better head over to Chatime at Pioneer St. by today or Friday to get free dibs on their Pearl Milk Tea.

Taro Milk Tea

Chatime Taro Milk Tea is the most real taro drink you can find in the market. Don’t expect our local purple yam as its taro taste or the synthetic kind. It took me a few more sips, midway, to finally appreciate Chatime’s version of fresh taro and I grew to like it. It had pieces of the taro and i enjoyed the texture of the drink… not-thick or not-thin. It had a certain dance in your mouth. I might order the same next time I’m there but I’m also tempted to get a second drink to try their other offerings.

Try some Chatime drinks!

Chatime supposedly has 500 stores worldwide and it is now available in Manila with its first branch in Pioneer Street. Why don’t CHA give it a try? 😉

Photo Credit: Richard Co of www.talesfromthetummy.com

Chatime
Good Tea, Good Time

Pioneer Center, 8006 Pioneer cor. United Sts.

Pasig City, Philippines

Different Tea Assortment to Love at Serenitea

A Sunday Afternoon Picnic

Happy Lemon

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Foodie Club Series: Shang Palace Dimsum Buffet Promo

September 1, 2010 by Janey

There was rarely any other Saturday that I woke up so excitedly even when I lacked sleep. I didn’t mind being up by 1030 am despite coming home from a High School reunion at 230am. I was eagerly anticipating brunch slash long lunch at Makati Shangrila’s The Shang Palace.

Shang Palace has always been a favorite and I’ve never been back since my grandpa passed on. As I entered the top-rated Chinese restaurant in Manila, I was gulping down tears of memories, remembering my grandpa.

After turning one corner, the hostess directed us to where our favorite foodie friends were occupying a large round table. It was a beautiful Saturday lunch as we all partook in Shang Palace’s Dimsum Buffet, which we first found out from Richard (and Irene) of TalesfromtheTummy.blogspot.com. They have ordered ahead for everyone to share, initially 20 pieces of Hakao (steamed shrimp dumplings) and Pork Siomai.

The Foodie Club that day consisted of Richard, Irene, ZP (Carlos), Carlos’ friend Faith (who joined us for the first time), Grace (who we shared the inaugural lunch of STV’s Hainanese Chicken set at Richard’s place and who’s great in appreciating good food), Peter, Bubba and me.

Irene and Richard

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ZP and Faith

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Shang Palace Dimsum Buffet

11:30 AM – 2:30 PM

PHP 995 net (PHP 810 + 10% service charge and applicable government taxes)

Unlimited Dimsum +

Endless servings of soup, appetizer, rice,

noodles, congee, vegetarian dishes, dessert +

a choice of one main course per person (personal size)

Strictly no leftovers! 😉

On the Table

Dimsum

Steamed Giant Shrimp Crystal Skin Dumplings

Steamed Shanghai “Xiao Lung Pao”

Steamed Chicken Feet with Black Bean Sauce

Steamed Pork Spareribs with Black Bean Sauce

Spinach Dumplings Stuffed with Shrimp

Baked Barbecue Pork Pie with Apple

Deep Fried Ham Shui Kok Stuffed with Minced Pork and Chicken

Hong Kong style deep fried shrimp spring rolls

Deep Fried Taro Puffs with Diced Scallop

Appetizer

Honey Glazed Barbecue Pork

Chilled Marinated Beef Kenchi

Jelly Fish with Century Egg

Marinated Soyed Bean Curd

Soup

Shredded Fish Lip Soup

Sichuan Style Hot and Sour Soup

Noodles

Stir fried noodles “Fujian” style

Efu noodles with three kinds of mushrooms

Main Course

(1 main course per person)

Hot Prawn Salad (3)

Deep fried pork spareribs in fragrant garlic and chili spice (1)

Stir Fried beef tenderloin cubes in black pepper sauce (1)

Steamed Lapu Lapu fillet with garlic sauce

Dessert

Chilled Mango Puree with Sago and Diced Mango

Chilled Almond Jelly with Mixed Fruits

Sweetened Almond Cream with Glutinous Pudding

Chilled Grass Jelly with Sago

This is a list of what we all ordered… or at least from what I can remember from the delicious feast that was in front of me. For Dimsum, we tried as many as our famed dimsum favorites. What I love about Shang Palace’s Dimsum Plus is the fact that they cook as you order. The dimsum items come out fresh from the kitchen and not sitting in a waiting area for quite some time then served to you.

Of note also is their steamed giant shrimp dumpling in thin translucent flour skin which gives a perceptively melting effect in the mouth. The shrimp inside is very plump and fresh. The hakao bite just slides down cleanly in your tummy and there’s absolutely no trace of MSG or heaviness –very clean-tasting. I dare say, best Hakao in town.

Their pork siomai comes with a morsel of shrimp surprise and generous amount of roe on top. All the ingredients of this little circular dice of siomai come together beautifully and it’s a wonderful taste in the mouth. No taste of extenders here, just quality ingredients that you know is a cut above the rest.

The Xiao Lung Pao is definitely not their strongest suit because there’s no warm soup broth that bursts as you pop it in your mouth and the wrapper was a bit thicker than expected. If they can make it any closer to Din Tai Fung’s version, I’ll be there every other weekend!!! They serve it with soy-ed vinegar with sliced ginger stalks. At any rate, I think I was still able to finish 6-7 pieces of their Xiao Lung Pao.

The Steamed Chicken Feet with Black Bean Sauce was not that greasy and was full of flavor you’d really leached in. I’m not a big fan of chicken feet (I only eat it once in a long while) and I could only usually finish one. I had two this time and if I weren’t stuffing my mouth with the other dimsums, I would have digested more chicken feet. ZP (he loves chicken feet) would have found a big competition in me.

The Deep Fried Taro Puffs with Diced Scallop and Deep Fried Ham Shui Kok were quite a big hit on the table crowd. Irene, Peter, Bubba and Grace all raved about the Ham Shui Kok which is basically minced pork and chicken wrapped in some crisp glutinous wrapper. When you bite into the Deep Fried Taro Puff, it crumbles beautifully albeit messily and reveals the semi-sticky scallop-taro ensemble inside.

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To deviate from the clean-tasting dimsum treats, order the Hong Kong style deep fried shrimp spring rolls and crunch into a crisp goodness. Get a bit of sweetness and savory from the baked barbecue pork pie with apple. Grace almost didn’t share her piece.

The Spinach dumplings with shrimp are also another must-try.

The appetizers we ordered were completely wiped out with no complaints and if we had room for it, we could certainly order another round of honey glazed barbecue pork, chilled marinated beef kenchi, and jellyfish with century egg (a favorite appetizer of mine).

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We each had our own serving of soup. Majority ordered the fish lip soup (another favorite of mine when it comes to Chinese soups –second to Sibot or Duck Soup) while Bubba got his favorite of Sichuan hot and sour soup.

For main course, make sure you order Hot Prawn Salad or Stir Fried Beef Tenderloin in Black Pepper Sauce because it surely satisfied almost everyone in the group.

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I think you can already figure out dessert for yourself. I have to stop here before I pass out. I’m getting so famished after reliving that Saturday lunch I had with the Foodie Club.

Service is top notch as I’m accustomed to from The Shang Palace excellent wait staff –very knowledgeable of the menu items, friendly and so easy to call with a quick eye contact or wave of hand. Entertainment was as usual provided by Peter (who was in attendance without Rowena of animetric.com) who made us laugh and smile our way through lunch. Stories of food, current events and personal anecdotes were all over the lunch table and it made the experience all the more fun and enjoyable. Fantastic time like this over good food is best shared with foodie friends!

Peter, Grace, Irene, Richard, ZP, Everybody’s Janey, Faith and Bubba 😉

A REPEAT of the Shang Palace Dimsum Buffet, is without a doubt, a must on my Things to Do list. It was one of the most worthwhile things I’ve done on a Saturday.

The Shang Palace

2^nd Floor, Makati Shangrila Hotel

Ayala Avenue, Makati City, Philippines.

(632) 813 8888

Shang Palace Album

Related Entry

Shang Palace

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2 Comments Filed Under: Inside Dish: A BITE of Food Tagged With: address, best Chinese restaurant in Manila, best duck in Manila, best food blog, best foodie, best lifestyle blog, buffet promo, Chinese, Chinese Restaurant, Dimsum buffet, dish, dishes, duck, Edsa Shang, Filipino, foodie club series, girl appetite, list, location, Makati City, Makati Shangri-la Dimsum Buffet, Makati Shangrila, menu, Metro Manila, nett price, Philippines, pinoy, price, Shang Palace Dimsum Buffet Promo, The Shang Palace, VAT

Between Bites’ TOP 10 Food Highlights of 2010’s 1st Half: What a Mouthful!

June 23, 2010 by Janey

Between Bites TOP 10 Food Highlights (2010 -1st Half)

10. King One’s Shabu Shabu

That Sunday lunch at King One’s Shabu Shabu (PHP 529 per head) was a wonderful lunch where the food were abound and of good quality –prepared well I should say. I get turned off with restaurants that offer buffet sometimes because of the way the food is prepared… but in this case, King One’s staff handles the food properly. Service was friendly, prompt and inclined –more reason to enjoy your King One feast. Don’t forget to order fresh prawns, mozzarella balls, tao pao and lamb! Oh lamb!

King One Rotary Hot Pot

M2-A Lower Hobbies of Asia

#8 Macapagal Ave., Pasay City

(632) 556 1370

9. Sweet Revenge of Maitre Chocolatier

Sweet Revenge is Maitre Chocolatier’s Lindt Molten Lava Cake -dark chocolate molten lava cake made from Europe’s finest Lindt Excellence Dark 70%, filled with oozing sweet and vengefully spicy chocolate served with vanilla ice cream

Sweet Revenge was the unanimously favorite on the table with its gooey warm chocolate that ruptures from the moist cake that’s bittersweet dark and spiced with chili. Midway when the chocolate flavor sinks in, the chili essence abruptly creeps in creating a sweet heat inside your mouth. Cool off with the vanilla ice cream that soothes your taste buds to a calm reverie. Bubba, Zipster and I loved the yin yang taste of darkness and sweetness, as well as the heat and arctic feel.

The spunk of the chili in the luscious chocolate liquid inside and the vanilla ice cream bring it all together in sweet harmony.

Maitre Chocolatier Boutique Café

Maitre Chocolatier Boutique Cafe by Eva Wong

2A (Beside Starbucks), No. 28 Jupiter Street

Bel Air, Makati City, Philippines

(632) 897 8559

8. Minato’s Great Korean Barbecue

Other than the smorgasbord of side dishes that includes Kimchi, spiced green vegetables, peanuts, bean sprouts, marbled potatoes among a variety of other side accompaniments, it is really the barbecue that’s quite good at Minato. It has to be one of the best in town.

Kimchi Pancake

The Kimchi Pancake is oil-fried pancake with bits of beansprouts and cabbage flavored Kimchi-style. And I think it’s free.

So Kal Bi PHP 350

Marinated beef short ribs –has a shadow of sweetness, garlic and soy. It’s hard to restrain oneself from gnawing the large bones with charred meat.

Sam Gyeop Sal PHP 240

The plate had thick, fatty slices of pork belly (almost looks like uncured bacon) alternating meat and fat and then skin. Meat is left unseasoned and usually cooked on a grill at the diner’s table. In this case, the wait staff helped in cooking the pork belly slices. On the side, green onion leeks and lettuce are served in case you prefer to wrap your meat inside. Customize it and add different side dishes or Kimchi and dip in sesame oil with fine black pepper and salt for a perfect finish.

Minato Korean Restaurant

Escriva Road (between Furu Restaurant and Agua Vida)

Ortigas Center, Pasig City

#8 is a toss-up between Minato and Chic Boy

tied at the same number.

8. Tasty Lechon Liempo at Chic Boy

Great food doesn’t necessarily have to come at a price. There’s a new affordable (almost dare to say cheap) food discovery along Jupiter Street in Makati. Call on the Chic Boy. Chic-Boy is actually a play on the words Chicken and Baboy (pork) –the meats that are quite popular in the Filipino community particularly when it’s grilled.

Chic Boy is putting a whole new turn on chicken inasal, lechon manok and lechon liempo like you’ve never tasted before. They’ve taken a special secret recipe of tasty lechon manok and lechon liempo in Cebu and chicken inasal of Bacolod and put it all in one easy-breezy and affordable restaurant here in Manila.

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Must-orders include their Cebu Lechon Liempo and Salmon Sinigang (PHP 45). With those affordable prices and flavorsome and satisfying meals, how can anyone go wrong? 😀

READ MORE!

Tasty Lechon Liempo at Chic Boy

Chic Boy

Jupiter St., Makati City

7. 22 Prime’s Tomahawk Chop

Quick-fire thoughts:

I love the ample size of fat that adds a buttery texture

and heightens flavor of the meat

Peppercorn sauce bursts a bouncy flavor that goes perfectly with the chop

The salad is a good pause in between bites of meat as a cleanser to the palate

Side of baby vegetables had the right crisp and seasoning

–the lone brussel sprout was my favorite! Quite tasty!!!

Don’t miss out on ordering my FAVORITE Chef Rick’s Cheese Bread!

Chef Rick’s Cheese Bread PHP 140

Gooey warm cheese topped on three breads, soft and bursting with tantalizing flavors. Served with baby greens in a mild citrus dressing sparkled with pink peppercorn. Sun dried tomato and broiled four cheese together? It’s an exercise in indulgence.

Premium Night at 22 Prime

22 Prime

22^nd Level, Discovery Suites

25 ADB Avenue

Ortigas Avenue, Ortigas Center

Pasig City, Metro Manila

(632) 719 8888/ (632) 719 6821

6. Ya Kun Kaya Toast –Ortigas

Want a great breakfast that lifts you up at any time of the day? Head over at Ya Kun Kaya! 🙂

Kaya Toast (Half PHP 115, Set Menu PHP 140)

2 slices of delicious Kaya toast with butter –has the right lightly toasted crunch of the bread, slathered with butter and just enough green sweet coconut spread. Satisfies when washed down with Ya Kun’s famous coffee tarik or the traditionally pulled coffee. It’s not on their menu, but you can change your coffee to Yin Yang, which is this delicious half-coffee and half-tea drink.

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Noticeably, the Ya Kun eggs were cooked perfectly, which other Kaya stores can’t quite get, where the eggs usually come out with still some raw uncooked parts. My little spoon broke into that fountain of yolk and I was soaked in sunshine delight. There’s no brighter day than eating wet and perfectly prepared eggs with the crunch of your toast.

READ MORE!

Ya Kun Kaya -Ortigas

In Crumbs: Ya Kun Kaya, Taverna Verde and Taal View Heights

Ya Kun Kaya Toast

G/F AYK Bldg., Escriva Drive (Right beside Astoria Plaza)

San Antonio Village, Ortigas, Pasig City

(632) 470 4285

7AM-11PM

5. Stevie’s Hainanese Chicken Rice

Suffused in its natural chicken juice/broth, the chicken meat was very tender and delectable –quite tasty for what can be considered a “healthy food.” The exquisite and juicy flesh of the steamed chicken is finely balanced with the fragrant rice sprinkled with green onions. Add a splotch of color and taste by blending in the ginger in sesame oil, chili and sweetened soy sauce.

Ooh, the appetizing smell and pleasant gingerly-sesame light taste mixed with a touch of soy and red spice… makes you definitely bite off more than you can chew.

Stevie’s Hainanese Chicken Rice: Bite Off More Than You Can Chew

Stevie’s Hainanese Chicken Rice (For pick-up orders only)

21 Libra St. Bel Air,

Makati City

(0906) 508 4155

4. Legend of India

Next to my favorite cuisine, I think Indian cuisine is one of the most interesting and flavorful fares in the world. Indian cuisine uses various spices, herbs, and vegetables and fruits sometimes grown only in India. It also has a wide assortment of cooking techniques.

Kadai Paneer PHP 260

Cottage cheese cooked in a traditional kadai masala paste

Rogan Josh PHP 450

Rogan Josh is an aromatic curry meat dish cooked with a mixture of strong Indian spices where the fat of the meat is usually roasted first in yogurt marinade. Legend of India tamed their version for our group, which mean it wasn’t intensely hot, but it was still intensely enjoyable paired with the vegetable biryani or the naan.

Sweet Lassi PHP 110

It was my first time to actually drink a whole glass of sweet Lassi. I’ve tried it before in other Indian restaurants but found the others’ version too sour for my taste. Lassi is a popular and traditional Indian yogurt-based drink. I tremendously enjoyed Legend of India’s sweet lassi since it has a perfect blend of yogurt, milk and sweetener. There’s a bit of tangy taste to it but it mellows down with a frothy sweet milky flavor. It fully relaxes your taste buds from the spices.

READ MORE!

Legend of India is Legend of Taste

Legend of India

114-B Jupiter St.,

Bel-Air II, Makati City

(632) 836 4232

3. Tsumura’s Wagyu Beef Usuyaki

Other than the sushi and sashimi…

It’s the Wagyu Beef Usuyaki that’s memorable at Tsumura! 🙂

Wagyu Beef Usuyaki PHP 600

Supple mushrooms wrapped in thinly sliced Wagyu beef –very tender, flavorful that it’s mighty impressive. The mushrooms were very light, in mellow contrast of the excellent beef. It is simply an indulgence in fine food. The taste is divine.

Tsumura

2^nd Level 88 Corporate Plaza

Sedeno corner Valero Streets,

Salcedo Village, Makati City

(632) 887 4848/ (632) 4850

#3 is actually a toss-up between Tsumura and Serenitea

tied at the same number.

3. Serenitea’s Okkinawa or Hokkaido Milk Tea

Serenitea is your one-stop shop for all things serene about tea. They have different variants of tea that will help boost a definite change of drinking lifestyle. It is the healthy alternative to colas, coffee and sugar-loaded smoothies. We visit 3 to 4 times a week to get our “Serenitea fix,” which is usually their Okkinawa milk tea drink with nata or pearls (depending on what topping you want) or Hokkaido with pearls.

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A Sunday Afternoon Picnic

2. Frazzled Cook’s Paella

In terms of taste and price, I consider Frazzled Cook’s Seafood Paella as the best in my book so far.

Seafood Paella PHP 550

For those diners who love their seafood paella with the full generous portions of mussels, squid rings, shrimps, chorizo and egg, this is their best bet for paella and huge value for money. I love the fact that they serve it on the paellera since I enjoy most my paella with the burnt crispy part at the bottom.

For other recommended orders, below are some dishes worthwhile to try:

Wagyu Salpicao PHP 550

When the serving arrives on your table, initial thought would be, “this dish is pricey.” If you’re being served with quality Wagyu that certainly softens in your mouth in a buttery texture without any effort, then your money is good. Have no qualms being served only a few flavorful cubes of beef drenched in its sautéed oil with lightly fried chips of garlic and slices of button mushrooms. Superb.

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Peruvian Hot Pot PHP 400

The Peruvian Hot Pot is their version of spicy lamb stew. This was Bubba’s favorite as the spicy invigorating flavors all come together from the lamb, olives, bell peppers and wine –great flavor and unbelievable rich sauce. The lamb meat had no gamey aftertaste that will surely convert those non-lamb eaters.

The Frazzled Cook

#916 Luna Mencias Street, Baranggay Additional Hills,

Mandaluyong City

(632) 782 5980

1. La Tienda Steak

Chuleton PHP 2,150 (PHP 425/100 grams)

It was the steak that was the highlight of this dinner date for me (okay, plus Bubba’s adoring chinky eyes). One of the best steaks I’ve tasted in Manila is not found on a focused steakhouse. It’s at a Spanish restaurant called La Tienda. I was pleasantly surprised how the steak gratified my meaty cravings. I think we had it cooked in medium doneness. The delicious steak was quite tender –glistening with appropriate grease and seemingly lightly salted while being cooked.

READ MORE!

La Tienda

43 Polaris St. Bel-Air

Makati City, Philippines

(632) 890 4123

Because I love food so much, I have #11-#20 but I’ll save it for another post. Watch out for that soon! 😉

For the meantime, here’s looking forward to the wonderful eats and gastronomic experiences for the next half of the year! Food Highlights from July-December 2010 –2^nd half version! And finally, by the end of the year, TOP 10 of 2010!!! 😉 I’m so giddy with excitement! CHEERS!

THANK YOU Ming for this photo! 😉

LIVE, LAUGH, LOVE and EAT!!! 😉

Photo Credit:

Carlos Palma of Foodie Manila

www.FoodieManila.com

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Foodie Club Series: The Shabu Shabu Fit For A King at King One Rotary Hot Pot

June 8, 2010 by Janey

I’ve been hearing King One stories from Richard, Irene and Wendy ever since the Foodie Club meet at Beijing Hand Pulled Noodles and since then it’s been included in my “food/restaurant” hit list to try. I don’t know how the King One Plurk thread started but when somebody said June 6, it was immediately a “green light” for me without even peeking at my calendar.

June 6 was such a hectic Sunday. Bubba and I went from one end of Manila to another end but nothing could have stopped us from joining the King One lunch get-together. It wasn’t too tough to find the place with specific directions from Richard. A little before 12 noon, Carlos, Bubba and I were welcoming Irene and Richard back in Manila (fresh from a Davao trip). Our group of five sat comfortably in the reserved booth near the conveyor belt.

King One has a conveyor belt that showcases all their little plates of ingredients available for hot pot. They will basically provide the Hong Kong curry broth on your table and set it to boil. Once boiling starts, cooking begins. Grab the plates that you want to add to your curry soup. Sze Chuan sauce is also available as an additional spice.

On the Table

I’m so happy that I was sitting across Irene because she knows good food! She picked the right plates off the conveyor and requested some more plates directly from the servers who are stationed inside the “belt”. We started off with:

Tao Pao

Tao Pao is basically beancurd skin. I learned from Irene that this is used to wrap Kikiam meat. Interesting huh? It takes a while to cook them but it’s worth the wait to bite into the soft beancurd skin. It gives a different texture to your palate –the beancurd sheets have a unique bite about it I can’t quite explain. It was soft yet textural… almost still crunchy.

Mozzarella Balls

It’s Singaporean fish balls with mozzarella inside. Be careful when you bite into it because even if the outside might not be that hot, the inside could be piping hot!!! It’s best, as Irene advised, to cut it first on your plate.

I like the soft fish balls (I’m not a fan of fish balls, maybe squid balls, but Singaporean version is good!) without the evident fishy taste and interestingly semi-sweet and cheesy mozzarella bit inside.

Lamb Slices

Bubba and I love Healthy Shabu Shabu but it can get quite pricey. Some plates there cost PHP 500 already and your limited to just one plate for that price. King One has great meats available with the “all you can eat” price. I particularly loved the lamb slices and I think even finished one plate by my own. It had enough meat and fat combined in the strips.

Instead of dumping the meat/shrimps on the boiling soup that makes them a bit overcooked and dry, the trick is, I learned again from Irene, to place the beef on the ladle, submerge it in the hot pot and wait a few seconds for the pink to turn light brown, then pull it out onto your plate. The lamb tasted so delicious soaked a bit in the curry soup.

Hong Kong Curry Soup

Enoki Mushrooms

Also known as Golden mushrooms… it’s one of my favorite

Fresh Scallops

We didn’t get to try this since it wasn’t available that day… but Richard and Irene were able to try it on their previous (dozens) visits.

Shrimps

Do the same trick with the lamb slices to the shrimp. King One can serve the shrimps without the shells anymore. Best to dip the cooked shrimp in the Sze Chuan sauce… it’s like dipping suahe in Chinese restaurants into the semi-sweet soy sauce with spring onions.

Dip and Shake -and it gets cooked!

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Other than the above, we also tried litid, pork dumplings, shrimp dumplings, watercress, fresh squid, Hong Kong fish cutlets, etc.

Richard and Irene brought several pasalubong from Davao –langka yema of 2 brands and durian yema. My favorite (and I think Joan and Carlos agree with me on this) is the Apo ni Lola Yema Langka –has the sweet milky yema flavor to it and strands of fragrant langka adding a different sweet tang to it. I almost finished the whole bag.

Apo ni Lola has the sweetest yema langka! 😉

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Richard and Irene 🙂

Love this HAPPY photo! 😀

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Abet and Joanne 🙂

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Carlos aka ZP aka Zipster

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It was a battle won by “us”

After eating the yema langka, I had to eat some more savory food. I can’t end with only a sweet note on my palate. I ate more shrimps soaked in the sze chuan sauce and half a plate of lamb slices. It was a wonderful lunch where the food are abound and of good quality –prepared well I should say. I get turned off with restaurants that offer buffet sometimes because of the way the food is prepared… but in this case, King One’s staff handles the food properly. Service was friendly, prompt and inclined –more reason to enjoy your King One feast.

King One’s “all-you-can-eat” hot pot was such a pleasant and satisfying lunch –all for a good price of PHP 529 per head. It’s a bit far off the usual Metro highways but the trip to Macapagal Avenue is worth the while. Best to go on a Sunday where traffic is really light in the area.

King One Rotary Hot Pot

M2-A Lower Hobbies of Asia

#8 Macapagal Ave., Pasay City

(632) 556 1370

King One Album

Related Entries

FoodieManila King One

Tales from the Tummy

Photo Credit:

Carlos Palma of FoodieManila.com

Richard Co of TalesfromtheTummy.blogspot.com

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Different Tea Assortments to Love at Serenitea

April 21, 2010 by Janey

There’s no room to get bored with Serenitea’s long list of drinks! But it’s definite that you’ll really get hook at one or two and have that for one whole season before aiming for another variant.

First, choose your kind of tea: Assam, Royal Milk, Jasmine or Earl Gray. Then you can choose whether to get it cold, hot, with fruits or as a latte. There are also optional toppings to choose from: pearl, crystal, black bricks, pudding, lime jelly, and QQ.

Once Bubba and I brought Serenitea for a Sunday picnic and we both loved the drinks that accompanied us. Bubba got the Hokkaido milk tea with 75% sugar while my choice was the Grass Jelly milk tea with 0% sugar. What’s terrific with Serenitea is the fact that you can actually choose your sugar percentage from 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%… you can even go beyond or none. Richard of Ya Kun Kaya Ortigas shares that Irene gets 150% sugar with her tea drink -I’m quite the opposite since I enjoy drinks with less sugar.

Last time I was here was during the Foodie Club’s meet at Beijing Hand Pulled Noodles.

“Foodie Club”

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I couldn’t just buy for myself so I bought for Bubba and Joyce.

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I got Joyce the Yakult, which she loved.

So for those who are health-conscious or watch their sugar intake, this is your best bet to getting satisfying drinks without breaking your sugar level.

It’s been quite a while since we’ve been enjoying Serenitea. Let me share with you that the tea drinks from Serenitea have calmed even the most stressful days at work… the evening comes and the mind is still running wild with that day’s events, the tea drink somehow relaxes my mind into a soothing detoxifying reverie.

Drop by Serenitea and get a dose of freshly brewed tea in different assortments. Be warned that the place can get really packed even at odd hours so have the option to just order to go and bring it home or someplace else where you can enjoy your Serenitea.

Minimum delivery in San Juan area is PHP 200.

Serenitea Cha Kitchen

#1F G&L Bldg. J. Abad Santos,

Cor. V. Cruz, Little Baguio, San Juan

(632) 379 4166

Serenitea Multiply Site

Serenitea Album

Related Entries:

A Sunday Afternoon Picnic

Foodie Club’s meet at Beijing Hand Pulled Noodles.

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Foodie Club Series: Beijing Hand Pulled Noodles

April 15, 2010 by Janey

Photo Credit:

Carlos Palma of Foodie Manila

http://www.foodiemanila.com/

(Only those watermarked. The others are mine. I don’t want to insult him haha.)

ZP picked me up from the office and off we headed to the San Juan area where most of food bloggers and foodies alike are meeting that Thursday evening. Assembly place of choice: Beijing Hand Pulled Noodles. ZP already placed the reservation for our little group –which is now dubbed as “The Club.”

BHPN is not new to me as Bubba and I have visited this place so many times for their lamb dumplings. Whenever we visit Ristras (which was a LOT in the past), the usual is to walk next door to BHPN and order their steamed dumplings to go.

BHPN is a simple noodle restaurant with seating capacity that can accommodate 30 conveniently. A counter is in between the dining area and their kitchen that has an open window. Catch their chef in action as he pulls long strands of fresh noodles and cut them in equal portions only with his hand.

The reserved seats were filled up and we placed our orders. Soon after, the table space was crammed with several orders of dumplings, dry noodles (braised beef, shredded beef and fish), tofu skin and century egg!

On the Table

Braised Beef Dry Noodles PHP 135

I’ve always tried their Braised Beef Noodle Soup but I should have learned about their Braised Beef Dry Noodle first because it satisfies more. The delicious braised beef in small chunks arrives with the “dry” noodles drenched in braised beef broth. The clear soup comes separate to add to the dry noodles in case there’s need for it or for extra hankering slurp of warm broth.

The dish made more appealing with the green vegetable (Taiwanese pechay?) on the side, good measure of minced garlic (for added flavor) and chopped green onions.

Lamb Dumplings PHP 60

7 pieces of fairly plump lamb dumplings with the option of steamed or fried. We love the steamed version and incidentally, it’s also ZP’s favorite. Initially, ZP and I were going to split one order but we should have known ahead of time that this is not possible as the lamb dumplings vanished sooner than we were halfway through our noodles.

The lamb dumplings have flavor on its own but it’s best dipped with the black soy vinegar of BHPN.

Century Egg PHP

Other orders:

Tofu Skin

Dry Fish Noodle

Dry Chicken Noodle

Food is much more enjoyed with a company that enjoys good food as well. Our group of 9 were all smiles as we cleaned out what was on the table. Didi even had food to go for Edmund. Thoughtful.

The Wilson-San Juan area is becoming more and more a foodie spot with the different restaurants sprouting. Beijing Hand Pulled Noodles definitely adds to that list of what to visit, especially for your dumplings and dry noodle hunger.

Beijing Hand Pulled Noodles

Unit 4 Citiplace Building

#8001 J. Abad Santos St.,

San Juan City

(632) 487 6148

Beijing Hand Pulled Noodles Album

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Yen Yen Taiwanese Street Food

March 12, 2010 by Janey

Granada Street, better known as Gilmore Ave., is really starting to build a name for itself as another foodie arena with different small restaurants sprouting here and there. One restaurant did catch our eye and it was Yen Yen Taiwanese Street Food.

The place is very small but it doesn’t take away the fact that this is a hole-in-the-wall spot that serves authentic Taiwanese food that uses imported ingredients. Price is almost dirt-cheap but serving size is not compromised.

Camera shy these days

There was only one table occupied when we came in. They were on the way out when we placed our orders. It was 830ish when we arrived, which is way after dinnertime. Hardly 10 minutes passed and people started coming in. 4 tables of different groups are immediately filled up. Interestingly, I observed that scenarios like this happen quite frequently especially if it’s our first time to visit the restaurant.

I remember Richard of Ya Kun Kaya telling me the same observation when we first visited his breakfast place. He said that it was surprisingly more packed than usual that morning when we came in. Beside our table was another couple also tasting their first YKK experience that same day.

Such has been the case for more than a few restaurants we’ve been to. I wondered that evening at Yen Yen if I really bring in the droves. It was a slow evening for them when we came in. Maybe it’s the happy vibe/aura? If ever I open up my own restaurant in the future, I wish that same inviting aura follows and brings in the crowd for me.

On the Table

Hot and Sour Soup PHP 38

For barely 40 bucks, two can even share the hot and sour soup –a blend of spice and tangy taste. There’s nothing better than a hot soup to start the meal right.

Spicy Wanton PHP 58

6 pieces of spicy wanton served in a light soy sauce. Quite a steal for the price

Pork Chop Rice PHP 68

When it comes to pork chop rice, I’m not the expert. CW likes it a whole lot and instead of traveling all the way to Banawe to get his pork chop rice fix at his favorite, Yen Yen is the next best place to hop to.

Crispy Chicken Rice PHP 88

Okay, I wasn’t really able to take a photo of the crispy chicken rice but it looked so much like the pork chop rice that I posted the same here anyway. I immediately dug in when it arrived.

Green Iced Tea PHP 28

Try some Taiwanese street food and check out the other restaurants along Gilmore Avenue. There’s a Thai place there that I’ve been meaning to get a crack of once my schedule opens.

Yen Yen Taiwanese Street Food

96 Granada St. (Gilmore Ave.) QC

(632) 345 3219/ (632) 701 0360

Open Daily: 11AM-11PM

Yen Yen Album

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Manila News Today: Car Blast at The Fort Under Investigation

December 15, 2009 by Janey

There was a car explosion that rocked Taguig City this afternoon that burned the driver inside the car to a crisp. The blast happened in the Fort Bonifacio Global City near Serendra and right across the Fully Booked bookstore in Bonifacio High Street (BHS).

Image Linked From: EQAddict from Tsikot Forum

The authorities are currently investigating the cause of the explosion. Speculations abound that the blast involves foul play. No indication yet from police reports.

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Colt45 URCC 15 “Onslaught” Fight Result

November 23, 2009 by Janey

Last Saturday, my friend/”sole” sister Madz and I was at the 15^th installation of Universal Reality Combat Championship dubbed, “Onslaught.” This time it was staged at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. Thank goodness that the World Pyro Olympics was staged at the Fort or we would have been caught in heavy traffic.

We came in a bit late (1^st round already started) but thank goodness, Jerome had two seats saved and we were able to find relatively good seats in the elevated PHP 300-ticket area (last time we paid for VIP seats at PHP 1K++, I strained my neck. Downside of PHP300 -rowdy drunk guys who make never-ending speculative commentaries and a fool of themselves).

FIGHT RESULTS

1. Hideo Morikawa (Kyokushinkai) vs Ramonito Pabroa (d’ Elements)

Result: Morikawa won via armbar

2. Alvin Ramirez (Yaw Yan Buhawi) vs Roy Docyogen (Lakay Wushu)

Result: Docyogen won by unanimous decision

3. Lando Espinosa (Elorde MMA) vs George Lusadan (Lakay Wushu)

Result:

4. Sabah Fadai (DEFTAC Cebu/Revolution Fight Team) vs Aden Zarco (Benibe MMA)

Result: Fadai won via KO

5. Jlimar Tanagayan (Cenojas MMA) vs Mags Gonzales (Oriental Negros Top Team)

Result:

6. Eric Kelly (Yaw Yan Ardigma) vs Luke Mark Catubig (Oriental Negros Top Team)

Result:

7. Marcus Valda (DEFTAC) vs Vincent Pajaro (Hybrid Yaw Yan)

Result: Valda won via TKO. Pajaro’s corner throws in the towel.

8. Ali Khatibi (DEFTAC) vs Andrew Benibe (Benibe MMA)

Result: Stoppage by the doctor due to accidental eye gouge. Khatibi retains title.

9. Caloy Baduria (Elorde MMA) vs Zhang Tie Quan (Black Tiger Team China)

Result: Zhang won via armbar

10. Mark Sangiao (Lakay Wushu) vs Justin Cruz (Spike 22)

Result: Cruz won via guillotine choke

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I wasn’t able to take that many photos unlike last time because I wanted to concentrate on the fights. I was able to take a few during the earlier bouts.

This got to be one of the best fight card, even the undercard fights were action-awesome. One undercard that Gracie Barra Cebu contender won had half the body of Zarco flying out of the ring with his kick. It was indeed a great kick catapulting your opponent between the ropes knocked out. It’s another thing though to add insult to injury by taunting a man in stupor.

I think there were 4 title-ridden MMA bouts –the last 4 fights that started off with Marcus Valda and Vincent Pajaro squaring off. I really liked the pre-fight video presented prior to introducing the fighters –gives some off-the-ring drama and humanizes the fighters a bit (it’s sick how some drunkards go there and rally the fighters like they’re in a cockpit watching roosters slash each other until they bleed out.) The fighters are athletes too, you know. Some of them are really technically adept and not only there to gut it out.

As soon as the bell clonked, my good friend Marcus (SEA Games wrestling champ in two categories) immediately took control of the match. He dominated position against then heavyweight champion Pajaro from the Hybrid Yaw Yan team. He got Pajaro’s back and unleashed damaging punches to the head. Pajaro momentarily escaped the disadvantaged position and was able to get back on his feet. But Marcus had something up his rashguard sleeve when he took Pajaro down like he was only fighting a featherweight champ. Marcus did an incredible suplex, which is basically an offensive move used in professional sport wrestling where you pick up your opponent off the ground and then using the large portion of his own body weight to drive him down. The whole crowd ooh-ed and aah-ed in astonishment. Marcus had great base that toppled Pajaro’s strength of trying to put him off. He held Pajaro down with full control. He took his time and let loose few more harmful blows to Pajaro’s face. Finally, Pajaro’s corner threw in the towel –literally in the middle of the ring. Referee stopped the fight.

The Khatibi and Benibe fight was the most cautious match –with both fighters measuring the other without quite an offensive attack. Benibe at one point accidentally kneed Khatibi’s groin area. Later on, Khatibi accidentally poked Benibe’s eyes. The doctor didn’t want Benibe to continue. Without a decisive result, Khatibi retained the title.

Co-main event round, Caloy “Bad Boy” Baduria looked ready for his opponent returning from China –coming from a light heavyweight division win against Remand Lazaro. Both fighters weren’t strangers to each other as they have seen the same determined eyes in the ring before. Zhang Tie Quan won the first meet against Baduria. …and he won the 2^nd meet last Saturday via armbar. It’s surprising that Baduria hasn’t learned how to defend against that strategy and still somehow gave away his arm. This is not the first time he has tapped out due to an armbar trap.

The main event is the excellently conditioned Mark Sangiao pitted against the well-rounded Justin Cruz returning from Guam. I personally like Justin Cruz because he is a seasoned athlete and shows a lot of heart in his fights. This was the match I was really anticipating, other than Marcus’ URCC debut, because Mark Sangiao has earned my respect too after having an undefeated record (with strong fights) before his first loss in URCC 7, the Art of War, where Filipino MMA fighters were up against Chinese MMA fighters. That was back in December 2005 –Bubba’s last match as well. Almost 4 years since I saw Sangiao back in the URCC ring again.

Reigning champ Justin “The Shocker” Cruz of Spike 22 didn’t make it easy for Lakay Wushu’s Sangiao to reclaim the belt he once had. He once again impressed me by locking in a tight guillotine around Sangiao’s neck –guillotine that actually prevents airflow to the lungs. It was quite tricky to pull –but Cruz’ execution was done beautifully and successfully. Sangiao is a formidable foe not known to tap out –but unexpectedly, he did.

Enjoyed the show with Team DEFTAC (Jerome, Carlo, Janna, Floyd, newly promoted to purple Toffy and Lai) 🙂

(With Maddie)

It was another heart-stopping show. URCC only gets better as the MMA fighters are more learnt and get more skillful. Eagerly anticipating the next “Bakbakan na!” event.

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Xin Tian Di Restaurant

October 21, 2009 by Janey

“13” for most is an unlucky number. It’s just the opposite for my mom. She claims that “13” is her luckiest number. She was born on the 13^th of October. Incidentally, this is the same birth date as her mom.

Bar One’s music lounge was where we wanted to celebrate the night –live band music and drinks in a not so crowded place. It’s been the family’s favorite hangout venue as of late. Tap Room of Manila Hotel just feels too far nowadays. Since the bar was in Crowne Plaza, mom decided to stage her birthday dinner in one of the restaurants in the hotel. The choice happened to be Xin Tian Di.

Crowne Plaza Manila is located in Ortigas Center, which is at the heart of the 2^nd business district in the Metro –next to Makati. It is quite near Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE/Tektite). The hotel offers fine hotel restaurant choices in Ortigas, from casual dining to 24-hour room service and in room mini bar. The restaurant list includes its international buffet restaurant – Seven Corners, while Chinese specialty dishes are whipped up every lunch and dinner at the famous Xin Tian Di, which also has private function rooms and meeting rooms.

There was a bit of hesitation to eat at Xin Tian Di. I’ve already eaten here on a business lunch with AFC during the Philippine Cable Convention. Although I was satisfied, I wasn’t too eager for a repeat. My gut instinct was right. Service is usually adequate here but not that night.

On the Table

Assorted Barbeque Meat PHP 860

What better way to start a Chinese meal but with “cold cuts.” Cold cuts platter included assorted barbequed pork and chicken meat, jellyfish and slices of century eggs. It was served with ginger garlic sauce.

Salted Fish Rice PHP 540

The salted fish fried rice is a typical Chinese fried rice peppered with dried salted fish and a dash of fish sauce. Xin Tian Di’s version was aromatic and appetizingly good.

Tenderloin Beef with Goose Liver PHP 1350

Tenderloin beef was cooked just right. Broccoli was crunchy and retained its vibrant green color. There was generous helping of foie gras, which was mouthwateringly excellent –rich flavor and was such an ideal partner for the tenderloin. The leftover was my lunch the next day and it was still pure goose liver bliss. Mmm-mm! Delectable!

Chicken Lemon Sauce PHP 540

Tender chicken meat glazed with a beautifully yellow lemon sauce, which my sister Joanne found a tad bit too sour. This was the least popular on the table.

Seafood Char Teow PHP 420

Xin Tian Di also has a separate menu for Malaysian/Singaporean dishes. Char Kway Teow literally translates to stir-fried rice cake strips, which is a popular flat rice noodle dish in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore –usually prepared in hawker stalls. The noodles are stir-fried with soy sauce, chili, prawns, bean sprouts, Chinese sausage/chorizo, eggs and chives.

We initially ordered Char Kway Teow that was supposedly served with chicken but 15 minutes later, the wait staff approached the table to say that our order was changed to seafood since the chicken wasn’t available. I inquired why it was changed without prior notice –to which the wait staff can’t give an answer. Instead she gave a haughty response, “I’ll shoulder the extra charge.” I explained to her properly that it’s not the extra charge that was the contention –it was that the dish wasn’t what we actually ordered and we would’ve appreciated the advice especially there’s a change in price. In the end, I still opted to pay for the dish with quite bigger hesitation now to return.

Fresh Buko PHP 270

Never had fresh coconut juice this overly expensive and there’s nothing special to it –unless it gives me superpowers to able to fly then I don’t mind adding a thousand bucks to the price tag.

Crispy Baby Squid PHP 300

The crispy savory baby squid was perfect accompaniment for any cold beer.

Xin Tian Di serves delicious Chinese fares for the usual exorbitant hotel restaurant price (our bill was nearly 5K with only 3 main dishes). With that upscale price though, satisfaction should be expected but there are hits and misses in the dishes –inconsistency that you might think twice spending money on. Particularly didn’t like the fact that they went ahead and changed the Char Kway Teow order without giving us any fair warning.

Xin Tian Di Restaurant

4^th Level Crowne Plaza Galleria Manila

Ortigas cor. Asian Development Bank Avenues

Ortigas Center, Quezon City, Manila.

(632) 623 7222

Xin Tian Di Album

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Gloria Maris Dimsum Buffet

September 19, 2009 by Janey

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SPAS Friends at Hong Yang Shabu Shabu

July 16, 2009 by Janey

Saturday Night, I was happy to finally see my St. Peter friends again. The last time we met was back in December 2006. Bubba and I were just dating then (I was 15 lbs heavier and HE was 15 lbs lighter). The group had dinner at Gerry’s Grill in Greenhills and went to Zirkoh afterwards. That was my first time at a comedy club.

(December 2006)

Reminiscing, I remember that Bubba and I became hungry (again) at some point and decided to go to Caltex Star Mart to buy some chips and drinks. We walked to the car parked across, popped the trunk and sat there munching on our goodies… we also ate the Godiva chocolates that I brought. We had a very short but nice bonding time under the night sky before returning to Zirkoh.

During that reunion, the only one missing in action was Roselene. This time, unfortunately, Joycee, Sandy, Tere, Reagan and Roselene couldn’t make it. Nevertheless, Christine, JM, Harold, Gin, Marie and I all met and bonded over Shabu Shabu.

(July 11, 2009)

It was my first time at Hong Yang (Red Sun) Shabu Shabu restaurant and I was taken aback by the huge spread in front of me. It’s an all-you-can-eat hot pot and grill place. Different meat cuts, seafood, vegetables, innards, sauces are available at the buffet counter. Each table has individual hotpots and grill where you can cook your picks.

Total damage per head was about PHP 570. Drinks are bottomless. JM and Harold ate to their heart’s content. Harold is now a student at CCAC studying culinary arts so Tin and Gin had him cook their food (haha).

Everyone updated everyone on each other’s lives including people we know from school. This group is the friends I grew up with, Prep until High 1. I transferred school after Freshman High and their friendship is what I extremely missed. We reminisced how the group got together as well as the dozens of catfights we got ourselves into. Tin-tin reminded me of “little Grade 3 me” standing on top of the table/chair and dancing and other so embarrassing moments –the adolescent stage haha.

We recalled our grade school and high school crushes, visits to the guidance counselor and principal’s office, cutting classes, girl fights and basically all the high school junk and drama. It felt good to be in touch again with how I was in my past. It felt like being visited by 3 Christmas ghosts.

With busy schedule and geographical blah, it’s hard to find a perfect time to meet. We all agree to meet once every month or at least every 2 months. JM’s birthday is coming up (July 22) and we might meet again during his birthday week. It will really be great to have this regularly.

Red Sun Shabu Shabu

D. Macapagal, Pasay City

Red Sun Shabu Shabu Album

Gerry’s Grill | Zirkoh Album

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Cushee’s Birthday Bash 2004

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Dads

June 21, 2009 by Janey

Chinese dads are rarely expressive.

My dad might have just said it once or twice but I know that he loves me dearly.

The time he spends with us are most treasured.

There is no greater man in my eyes than my father.

I love you pops!

Happy Father’s Day!!!

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Dine with Paws

May 27, 2009 by Janey

Reposting from Didi

I wonder if Bubba’s dad will like this as an early Father’s Day gift 😀

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Peanut to Acorn

September 22, 2008 by Janey

This is peanuts…

Compared to THIS!

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One Fun Saturday Night

September 22, 2008 by Janey

Saturday, Bubba spent most of the day attending his medical appointments –one was with his ortho doctor in Cardinal Santos and the other with his allergologist in Makati Med. I spent my afternoon cooking for the potluck dinner with the “berks.” That dinner idea started when we attended Ann and Made’s surprise birthday party for Dru and Eric last September 13. Since Bubba and I have been attending pua tiong chiu dinners lately, we suggested that we do one with friends. They were game with it so the Saturday dice-throwing get-together happened.

I cooked pasta (I’m sure Bubba is so sick of), curry rice and choco crisp. I need to extend my menu list or else I’d be cooking the same stuff over and over again. Ann cooked Buffalo wings, which were delicious and had crispy skin on it. There were a lot of food on the table –Heaven’s pork bbq with a delish sauce, lumpia shanghai, king prawns with cheese and herbs, and Razon’s halo halo.

I asked everyone on the table if they’re interested to play Laser Tag. Eric played the game at Market Market and we are planning a Laser Tag get-together this coming weekend. I cannot wait! Dinner made everyone full. While the table is still being fixed for the dice-throwing game, Eric shared their photo activity at Bohol that we tried to duplicate. It was really fun. Each couple had their idea of the “double” shot.

Around 9pm, the dice-throwing game ensued and this was where everyone was laughing hysterically. From the onset where Made had to call her mom to verify the rules of the game to Eric calling his mom to revalidate. That was so cute. Made, Buch and Marie gathered a lot of ang paos (red money envelope). Buch actually started slow with no wins but came out as the biggest winner of the night. Dru had to check the rules on pc, 2 flights of stairs up, twice. Jim got 4 (fours), which qualified him the top prize. Jim had to go up two deck of stairs to check too. We played a joke on him, faking that Buch actually got 6 (six) thus snatching the top prize from him. Everyone had to act and Buch had to roll one dice to make the sound. Jim believed it. I really doubled over laughing –my mascara making a mess on my face.

The dice-throwing game finished past 10pm. A poker game followed afterwards and boy was I happy! I haven’t played in 2 years!!! With 9 of us playing, with 4 re-buys, we finished around 2am. Eric won first place, with Dru playing the last hour on Eric’s behalf. Placed a few bad calls and folds, but I won second place by a hairline.