Our Awesome Planet

Free & Easy Membership @ Makro Makati Finally :)

Finally, wholesaler Makro Pilipinas opened their 14th store right at the heart of Makati last Oct. 25. If you have not heard the news, membership is now FREE and it is easy to become a member. and you might want to check out this makati branch while the opening promotion is on-going until Nov. 7. However, for the Makro virgins out there, I would like to give you a view on making your first visit to Makro a smooth and pleasant one.

1. Makro Makati's parking is in the first floor with entrances along Finlandia and along Osmena Highway. The store is located near the skyway ramp in Buendia.

2. Always check out the fresh section where you will get the best bargains and quality products. Try the Cagayan Letchon and P99 Roasted Chicken.

3. Makro has those big shopping carts that are PULLED and feels heavy when pushed. This is the common mistake of most first time shoppers. I'm glad that the Makati branch already has a few of those normal shopping cart found in most supermarket stores.

4. Only BPI express credit card (burgundy color) is accepted as credit. You can also pay via BPI's Electronic Payment System. If you don't have both, you have to pay Cash.

5. Shopping bags are not free. They are sold for P5 each so if you have extra ones at home, please make sure to bring one.

6. Check out the Makro mail before going to the store, or make sure that you avail of the relevant promos that you need.

7. The target shopper of Makro are the sari-sari stores and being a wholesaler, you can find products at the cheapest price but you need to buy in bulk. Just like shopping in Pricesmart except that there are not a lot of imported US products here.

8. Always visit the newly opened store during the first week to take advantage of the opening promotions. There would be 10+ more stores that will be opened, so watch out for Makro in your neighborhood.

The Best Therapeutic Massage in Town! P450 ($10) for 4 hours of Reflexology Massage!

Discover the best therapeutic massage behind this gate by therapist, Bing Chua. Unbelievable?

I learned this from a good friend, Jeeves and Bing is a reflexologist who came from a 10 years therapist experience in Canada and recently Taiwan. He is a very meticulous person and his reflexology is superb. I know this because my cousin studied in Aksem in Dian taught by Dr. Manubay and I feel the difference. Now, there is an important difference between a Swedish Massage vs. a Reflexology Massage. In the former, you are just using the palm of your hands with oil and rub it along the skin. In Reflexology, it massages pressure points in the body to release any blockage and the theory is all the different organs of our body have a nerve point connected with our hands and feet. In a sense, if you have a lot of ailments, the reflex methodology could be painful but after which you'll feel relieved and glad you did it. Some of his clients claimed that he is able to cure stroke patients because of his technique but he is too humble to admit it.

I arrived 2.30pm. The massage starts with a 15 mins. feet massaging test. I tried to take a picture here and this was the only picture I was able to sneak of myself. Bing courteously asked me not to take his picture or some of the equipment he is using. I kindly obliged. If you look at the picture above, it's like rocks and it vigorously vibrates. I'll tell you if you are not healthy and a lot of blockage in your veins, you won't survived 1 minute in this machine. As expected I did not, and It was very painful :( After this test, there is a makeshift steam bath using a cofta chair and a cover enough to cover your entire body when sitted and it has a hole so that only your head would stick out. Ok this is not your sauna ambiance, but you'll perspire a lot and I did not last the prescribed 15 minutes. The theory is, the steam would also remove a lot of toxins for your body and would prepare/ soften your body for the 4 hours marathon massage!

Now the fun part, but here is the catch first. There is no ambiance -- period. Expect an electric fan cooled room with a restroom so that you can take a cold shower after the steam bath. There is a foldable massage bed where Bing does the massage marathon. If you don't like this, he is also available for home massages with additional transportation fee depending on the location. Once you transcend the ambiance, its heaven all the way :) He would shut off the lights, and play this relaxing instrumental background music.

The Reflexology Massage Routine (as I remember because I kept on sleeping throughout)

1. It starts with 15mins of reflexology massage of your left foot then another 15 mins for your right foot. This is painful but for those who have tried reflexology, he has the right pressure and you'll really feel relieved after wards. After the feet, he reflex your hands and arms (both left and right) for another 30 mins.

2. Then, you turn around and the first pass of the massage of the back focusing on your shoulders and the lower back -- (sarap :). I told him I was stressed that is why these are the focus areas. After which, he reflexed the back of the head. This one I did not like because of the pressure on the head. Then he goes back to massage the back again (shoulders, lower back) and then the back of my legs and feet. This time he also massages your buttocks and reflexology in this part is really good. (for women, he has an woman assignment who does the sensitive massages). Then for the last time, a third pass of the entire back -- Imagine that! I estimated the entire routine to have last 2 hours! (because when I checked in the watch it is 6.30pm already)

3. I thought it was finished but, I had to turn around for the entire body massage facing up. By this time, I was still perspiring because of the steam effect and because it is not air conditioned (which might be a good idea actually). At this time, he massages from the chest, to the stomach, the back of the head, and your face. As the massage finishes, he performs these stretching that I've never experienced in any of the spa massages I've been to. ( I've been to a lot of the popular ones cause I'm an addict when it comes to this things) Also, he would make you lie on your sides and do reflexology on the side muscles and take the opportunity to do further stretches as well. All of this for another 2 hours!

For me it was actually a total of 5 hours and we finished 8.30pm and I was late for Nick's birthday party celebration. For me, this was the best massage ever! Although, to tell you honestly, I was bothered by the ambiance. But Bing reflexes the right points with his callous experience hands that I've never experienced before. He was so meticulous with the details that he is like a perfectionist when he performs and ensures that no point in your body gets un noticed. Last thing, your body will be bug-bog (battered) after this, so no sports activity in the next five days :( Probably next time, I'll just try the home service as long as I can provide Bing the right bed for him to perform his therapeutic massage.

Now, I'm guilty that I only gave him a tip of P50 but with a blog post :)

MORE INFORMATION:



REFLEX THERAPY CENTER

San Antonio Abad Subd., Maybunga Pasig City

"Need relief from pain, stress, and poor blood circulation. "

STEAM BATH Plus 4 in 1 Session Therapy combination of:

Reflexology, Shiatsu, Accupressure, and Swedish therapeutic massage.

627-8208, 0916-293.0534. 0919-592.5585

Here are the directions, if you are going from Ortigas, go past the fly libis road and over the Rosario bridge (1st bridge).

Turn right on the second street called C. Raymundo and this is in between a vacant lot with car wash and Shell gas station.

C. Raymundo is a long street that ends in the pasig rotunda and the place is directly in the middle.

Your landmark would be the MySpa sign where you need to slow down. You will see St. Therese Hospital on the left and Lola Idang's Pansit Malabon on the left (small store). This is your cue to turn right along Narra Street going to San Antonio Abad.

The Narra street is short, turn right at the end, and then turn left which is a dead end street but you should be able to see the Maroon gate in the picture.

Som's Noodle House - cheap authentic version of SukhoThai

VS.

The Secret is Out :) Cheap Thai Food!

Here is another best kept thai cuisine secret for all those food adventurers out there. This time, this is a hawker style (just along the road- turo turo in short) place, where it serves sukho-thai food at a very cheap price! I'm really a food adventurer and sometimes I'm criticized for only trying the expensive ones (so here's a cheap find for you). The food is cooked or supervised by a retired Sukhothai Chef who is a thai and has a family here in Makati. Som is the name of the grand daughter of the Chef. I've decided to check out Som's Noddle House instead of going to the World's longest dinner buffet in Eastwood (and the World's most unsatisfied guests - I'm glad :) Then, the next day, I also checked out SukhoThai in Megamall which is one of our favorites but we heard that it will be closing shop soon (hopefully just a rumor). Here is a blow by blow boxing match between Som's Noodle House vs. Sukho-Thai before you even try to check this one out.

Som Noodle House vs. SukhoThai Boxing Round Comparison

Round 1: Ambiance
VS.
Som is just along a Poblacion Makati road alfresco dining whereas sukho-thai is in Megamall airconditioned. Parking is easy in Som's vs. trying to park in Megamall on a weekend or lunch time. After badminton or exercise, Som's is definitely the best place vs. Megamall. But I would give this round to Sukho-thai since overall comfortability is very important for me.

(winner: SukhoThai's Ambiance)

Round 2: Tom Yum Goong
VS.
The soup is equally great and you can taste that Som's tom yam soup is authentic Sukhothai soup as well. Although, there are fundamental differences like the Som's Tom Yam used meat which is not that tender and uses button mushrooms. For Sukho-Thai it is shrimp and straw mushrooms. Our maid said that the original SukhoThai taste a lot better than the Som's version. In terms of cost, the Tom Yam (P70) good for 3 vs. Tom Yum Goong (P220) good for 6.

(winner: Som's Tom Yam Soup)

Round 3: Bagoong Rice
VS.
The bagoong rice tastes the same although the Som's rice is older/ harder which is a characteristics of long stored rice whereas the Sukho-thai tastes newly cooked. Of course, I would think there would be a difference if you eat in the morning or if you eat at night in Som's Noddle House since you might get the freshness of cooked food during lunch. Som's bagoong rices goes for (P60) good for two while SukhoThai bagoong rice (P160) is good for 4-5 people.

(winner: Som's Bagoong Rice)

Round 4: Pad Thai
VS.
This is no contest even though Som's Pad Thai only costs (P65) vs SukhoThai's Pad Thai (P170), the latter is a run away winner. Som's Pad Thai does not even comes close. It is like spicy sweet spaghetti with kalamansi (I'm regretting that I finished this) Aarrgh.

(winner: SukhoThai's Pad Thai)

Round 5: Green Curry
VS.
Som's green curry (P65) sauce is rich with eggplant while SukhoThais' chicken green curry (P165) taste a lot better because of the leaves. I like them both but the Som's curry is home made and if not for my sore throat I would order the chili one which I heard is really chili :) My wife likes the SukhoThai version better while the Som's taste was forgettable.

(winner: SukhoThai's Green Curry)

Round 6: Chicken Noodle Soup only @ Som's Noodle House

We like the soup alot and its the type of clear soup that you would like to get back for more. However, we we ate the Mixed noodle and we should have ordered the Chicken only since the mixed ingredients were bad. All for P42 pesos :)

(winner: Som's Chicken Noodle)

Round 7: Thai Desserts!

SukhoThai wins thumbs up for this since Som's does not offer desserts. Here are the top 3 SukhoThai Dessert: Sticky Rice with Mango, Thai Halo Halo, and Ta Koh.

(winner: SukhoThai's Desserts)

THE VERDICT:
Nothing can beat the original SukhoThai (4-3) but if you are in the mood for cheap authentic Thai -- Som's is the place to be! Just a warning though, you need to make sure that your stomach can digest street food and we felt sleepy afterwards so we suspect that there's a lot of Ajinomoto in the food.

MORE INFORMATION
Som's Noodle House
5921 A. Alger St. Poblacion, Makati
757-8079, 0917-9227648
This is the street where Grilla is located along kalayaan ave corner Alger St. This is at the back of Rockwell.

Guide to Trekking Up to the Taal Volcano - world's smallest volcano!

What does it take to explore the beautiful taal volcano?

4 hours of morning free time + gorgeous smiling weather + guts and stamina for a 40 mins. hike + P1,600 for the boat ride and buko juice :)

I would like to share with you a best approach on exploring taal volcano island which is an island within a lake.

This guide assumes that you are coming from Tagaytay. You need to find the way to Talisay via the Ligaya Drive. This road is located in between picnic grove and the Sta. Rosa/ Tagaytay road. The landmark is a school where you would turn right to Ligaya drive if you are coming from the rotonda going to Tagaytay Highlands. The road is a 25 minutes zigzag scenic ride through the Tagaytay Ridge while enjoying the lush forests until you reach the shoreline of Taal Lake. There are signs along the way so just follow signs going to Taal Yatch Club.

Just a watch out, that along this path there are a lot of people who would flag you down and offer their boat ride. The ongoing rate is P2,500 some with horse back riding and grilled food already. They are very aggressive so make sure you avoid eye contact with them because they can get nasty. I would recommend to rent a boat via Taal Yacth Club and the boat ride just cost P1,500 for the boat and not on a per person basis. Be wary about tour operators where they would charge you a per person rate. This could get expensive as the more people you are in the group. Here is the contact of Taal Yatch Club:

Look for Greg @ +63 919-6046197 at the Taal Yacht club to arrange your boat rental.
If you want to learn sailing, you can also contact Nestor Soriano @ +63919 6010668
Taal Lake Yacht Club (043) 773-0192

The boat ride is approximately 30 minutes and you would see the commonly mistaken taken volcano -- which is the small cone on the left photo. No, this is just one of the small crater, and the actual crater is bigger than that. There is no dock, when you arrive in the island and you will just be greeted by a community. There is a docking/entrance fee of P20 and a P10/person barangay fee. Pay this and this is not a means of the people getting money from you. There are volunteers who protects the taal volcano from evil elements and they get their salary from this.

We already have a tour guide c/o the Taal Yatch Club and they call him Rambo. He does not ask for any payment so just be generous on your tip afterwards. It is actually a 40 minutes work which is quite a workout or you can opt to ride a horse as most tourist do for P500/person two way. If you can hike, I suggest you do to get the exercise and if you are like me who likes to take pictures, it gives you opportunity to get picturesque shots.

Enjoy the view and take time to savor the fresh air, feel the red rocks, and appreciate nature. You could see the steamy rocks oozing with steam and you'll be amaze that you are really on an active volcano! How amazing could that be :) Sometimes, its sad that it takes the koreans/ japanese to appreciate our own beautiful natural resources.

Getting to the top is so rewarding. Specially, the last stretch because the trail is so steep. But once you are there, the 2 kms. crater mouth with a dark blue lake is so beautiful. Savor your time here. The cool buko juice for P30/piece is worth it! We also tried the cool beer for P50/bottle :) Well, you can bring your own water, or juice and buy them on your way up, it's cheaper to buy it from the foot of the island or in Tagaytay.

When you are on top, don't limit yourself to the nipa hut, you can wonder to a higher point where you can see the beauty of the lake in full view from another vantage point (see leftmost above photo). The way down is a lot easier and you will be able to appreciate more the colorful landscape of Taal Volcano island. You can opt to ride a horse down which would costs (P300 one way down).

>> More Photos of Taal Crater experience.

Taal Volcano Crater Experience!

Amazing Taal Volcano Crater!

How can it be soo nice and nasty at the same time? There is a feeling of serenity but also the feeling that you are on the dark side. The mirror lake entices you to come down and flirts with you to hike further down a 1 hour path to the crater lake. Red rocks, blue skies, white clouds, green mountains, dark blue waters welcome you to Taal volcano's island. You can feel and see the awesome power of the volcano with its steamy rocks and vents that oozes out with white smoke just patiently waiting for the perfect time to erupt.

I'll be sharing with you more postcards shots of the Taal Volcano and will share in a separate posts on what does it take to get to this place.

The scenic route down Taal Volcano with the contrast of nature's colors.

Hiking up the road less travelled by.

I'm on top of taal volcano!

Ming's Garden: Only for Mums Not for Food

The food is expensive for a canteen style of menu/ serving.

Ming's Garden is located along the Sta. Rosa Road going to Tagaytay and I've always wondered what can you see in this place since it has a big sign along the road. Another Sonya's Garden? I would save you the trouble of wasting your time checking this place out, if you are looking for mums, and ornamental plants then check this out and this is for you. Don't go here if you are looking for coffee or culinary treats --- please please save yourself the hassle. I'll tell you why...

In fairness, the restrooms are very nice and the garden ambiance is very cool. But where can you find a toasted bread with 4 slices for P65?! Coffee for P60 that taste no where close to Starbucks even if its barako coffee?! There is no service to talk about and the canteen type of food does not do justice to the ambiance of the place. I really felt that I cannot stop whining about how I was fooled and wasted my time stopping over this place. Aaargghh!

Then again, just appreciate the mums :) They are soo beautiful and cheap :)

Writing Salon Series 4: Word Safari Inspired Prose

James Nave: Can you form a composition based on these random words scribbled on the board (known as word safari) ?

This was the warm up exercise in letting your imagination and creative subconscious to take control of your writing. We had to do 10 minutes of continuous writing and in the middle of my composition, I was able to develop the following essay based on the word safari above. Here it goes:

Aspirations
"Deathly manila is transformed into a healthy idol of the far east.
With its sunset bursting into everyone's mind and heard calling for each one of us to love him dearly.
Manila's musicians give us an annoying hope that someday we will be among the greatest nation in our beloved green earth.
His beaches would kiss and touch our soul as if water coming from the mouth of the Almighty.
His wind and breath of fresh air is something that would make you wish that you want to die right here and right now.
All the living animals in the zoo and the farms -- the birds, the bees, the cattle, the cat,
All sings with reverence to Manila's Beauty and warm embrace."

The best view of Taal Lake!

Magnificent Postcards from Taal Vista Lodge

Inarguably this is the best view of the taal lake and the volcano. What makes it soo amazing is that you can enjoy the view less the mass crowd or weekend crowd. It would be good if there was a before and after photo but maybe some of my readers would still have photos of the old taal vista that is packed with people. I love taking pictures of Taal Vista Lodge and here are the postcard shots that hmmn, maybe I can sell them to Taal Vista Lodge as postcards. Check out the rest of the postcard shots.

Taal Vista Hotel (2005)

Swimming Pool @ Sunrise

Father & Son's Bonding Session

A Baby's Bath in the Morning Sun

Writing Salon Series 3: My Feeble Attempt at Characterization

The setting was perfect -- breakfast @ Illustrado's and Sunday morning preaching from James Nave' on Journaling and Characterization. The ambiance is very important so that the writing flows out and you can let your imagination take control. Our writing exercise for the day was in developing characters and I realize how easy it was to get started with it and how difficult it was to develop the level of detail the character needs. We selected random first names, and random last names then for 15 minutes develop the character. I chose to develop Erundina Lim, Taipan Heiress and Alex Fonacier, Politician responsible for babies genocide in the Philippines. My piece needs improvement but here it is in its raw form:

Erundina Lim

Daughter of a Hongkong taipan who loves to travel, wants to be unique and has a passion for the arts in the area of theater and broadway shows. She is single coming from past relationships that don't seem to work out. She constantly looks for the meaning of life and her purpose here on earth. She love children and travels around the world to help malnourish children in Asia and Africa. People admire her because of her beauty and generous heart. However, most people get intimidapted by her presence because of her overflowing confidence and passion to do what is right and fight for what she believes in. She loves her parents very much and a very family oriented person. However, she sometimes disagree with age old chinese traditions that is not appropriate to modern times or does not make sense to her point of view. An example of such tradition would be chinese women should only be married to chinese men discriminating other races. This gets a lot of tension in the family and would have caused the failure of her past relationships with other asians. She currently work as a teacher in a local university. She dreams of being an ambassador for Unicef or UN and pursue his passion of helping the next generation of Citizens. She would love to have her own children one day but time is against her as she would be celebrating his first birthday outside the calendar days.

Alex Fonacier

I am a nationalistic governor of a province in Luzon. I want our beloved country, the Philippines to prosper. Filipinos become poorer and poorer each day and the rich becomes richer each day. It seems that there is no end to this vicious cycle. I need to take matters into my own hands. Increasing population is the biggest problem in our country perpetrated by the priests who are always against artificial population control. This is my motivation for passing my personal bill to only have one kid per family and rest will be killed if you violate my law. I got to do and make the tough decisions to make this happen.

I gave strict instructions to kill each one like a ritual of first stabbing the stomach, mutilating the face, then cutting their genitals, slicing & dicing their arms and legs before finishing off with a stab to the heart. I enjoy the blood bath and this grows on you like a drug addict. This is the start of the purging of the Filipino race and sends a clear message that if you have one more than one kid the rest will be sacrificed for a higher cause.

Taal Vista Hotel Reinvented -- Amazing!

Amazing Transformation! Kudos to the Fuego Hotels group!

I was flabbergasted when I saw Taal Vista Hotel. This was the last place in Tagaytay that I don't want to be seen in and for decades, this has been off my travel destination or even culinary adventure place. Fast forward to 2005 and the new generation of Pinoys would enjoy the re-envigorated Taal Vista Hotel. Gone where the days of Mass Crowds flocking to see the taal volcano from this viewpoint where this was the only public free spot together with picnic grove. With P100 parking fee, you really need to either stay on overnight or eat in this place just to enjoy this place. Read on for the surpises that awaits you in this hotel.

5 star hotel rooms. This actually feels and looks like the beds and room size as Manila Pen (which we book often for business affairs). Amazing at a low price of P3,400net with breakfast from Sunday to Wednesday.

Taal Vista Hotel Historical Mural.
Now, this is a refreshing change -- having an art masterpiece in the hotel. Although, it was a very nice mural, I think only a few people appreciated it. I would like to quote a magazine article's description of the mural:

" It presents the rich and inter-twined histories of Tagaytay City and the Hotel. It is a joint project of Paolo Alcazaren and Felix Mago Miguel. the 26ft x 8ft mural is located at the Hotel's Foyer." (quote: Via Fuego Magazine vol. 3)

Ylang Ylang Spa.
At last another spa in Tagaytay! Apparently, this spa is available in the Fuego Hotels @ Pearl Farm Beach Resort, Taal Vista Hotel and Club Punta Fuego. I did not try this because I was guilty that I still have alot of spa gift certificates that I haven't use and I should consume them first. Another quote from the Via Fuego Magazine:

" It is a tropical-type of spa which applies all-natural techniques and ingredients. The name "Ylang-Ylang" embodies a vision of a homegrown beauty and wellness facility that raises the bar for pampering and rejuvenation. Conceptualized and inspired by the Ylang Ylang tree, the Ylang Ylang method is rooted on the principle of "touch therapy" which has been proven to stimulate the release of endorphins which suppose to make you happy."

(quote: Via Fuego Magazine vol. 3)

Magnificent Swimming Pool.

Amazing pool and the blue color just entices you to jump from your hotel room :) If not for the cold weather and the feeling that the pool is out in the open with hotel guests seeing you as they walk along the corridor -- I would have tried this out. In any case, this was a pleasant surprise and I'm sure to go back here to try this out. Hopefully during summer this doesn't get crowded.

Great Lobby Cafe.

It's a nice way to spend a lazy after dinner conversation here. The view would be magnificent once they open the curtains which opens up to the view of Taal Volcano. Well Done!

Kid's Room. For families with kids, no need to go to McDonalds. There is a very nice playroom for free!

MORE INFORMATION:
Taal Vista Hotel
Km. 60 Aguinaldo Highway, Tagaytay City, Phils.
Tel. (6346) 413.1000 / (632) 886.4325
www.taalvistahotel.com

Sanctuario Revisited: Ho-hum food?

Ho-hum dinner food

After 9 months (read my january post here), I had a chance to eat again in sanctuario, tagaytay. I was disappointed with the ho-hum food this time around which costs us P400/person and I was looking for the food that I raved about last time. I don't know what happened but eating there on a wednesday night at 8pm in the evening with only us around might be one of the reasons. I just want to share with you my experience and be cautious next time you visit this place. My conclusion is Sanctuario is best for the merienda -- coffee, dessert, bread.

Spicy Mushroom Soup (P85). This is expensive for a small bowl of soup and nothing special. We also tried the Squash & Cali (P95), and the Taro Bisque (P85) which is a clear soup pretending to be a bisque -- both nothing special just your regular soup in a small bowl.

Foccacia Bread (P35), Raisin Bread (P30), and Bangus Pate (P30).
Well this could be the best part of the meal-- specially the Bangus Pate. Originally, we loved the raisin bread, however, it lack the crispy outside and juicy inside taste. Total price for this set is P95 and come to think of it, you'll eating all carbo :)

Mixed Greens with Pesto Dressing (P155). This was suppose to be the killer food for the night according to the server. It tasted ordinary and I would just ordered in Goolai @ P100 and I'll be a happier person. What happened here, Sanctuario?

Beef Caldereta (P160). Their rice toppings are OK together with the supposedly most raved about pesto salad on the side. The server kept on building up the reputation of the salad that didn't live to its expectation. I'm sorry but I'm really disappointed with this salad (not the calderetta which is OK). We also tried the Chili Tilapia (P145) and tasted fried and OK too.

Pasta Pesto (P130). Now this one tasted like the one my brother used to make me with Pesto straight from a can mixed with Pasta topped with Cheese. I could have ordered in Cibo or Don Henrico and I'll be more satisfied. I know, I know I'm in Tagaytay and what can I expect? My sister-in-law tasted the Pasta Aligue (P175) and still falls under the ho-hum description.

Suman & Manga (P130) and Coco Langka Ice Cream (P60). This dessert continues to make me happy and I'll go back here anytime. So, maybe Sanctuario is really just good on appetizers, desserts, and coffee.

Writing Salon Series 2: I Am From

One of the most interesting writing adventure in the writing salon was developing a piece that starts from "I am From". There was a lot of setup, artistic warm-up and conditioning techniques to generate my own interpretation of "I am from". Here's my piece:

I AM FROM

I am from a state
of showbiz and political controversies
counts life in terms of cross roads

I am from my mother's womb
of love not minutes
that offers interesting twists
trained to be hopeful

I am from a mind
of turns in my life
that is passionate
faithful to God's sweet embrace

I am from a life
from my day 1 on earth
that strives to find
celebrating life's blessing

I am from a soul
of beauty of ordinary surroundings
that lives for
the purpose and meaning

I am from a persona
of day-to-day chaos in life
inspiring and touching
defined by integrity

I am from a place
of beautiful sunsets
with other souls on earth
governed by truth

I am from a heart
propelled by love
that yearns to love.

Writing Salon Series 1: A Creative Adventure in the Writing Salon

inspiring, fabulous, awe, creative, jazz, improvization, healthy, mind bloggling,
good network, poetry alive, lovely, friendly, laidback, greenery, mental gym

These are the words that come to my mind as I look back at the writing salon adventure. The entire concept is very noble and challenges your mind to go to where it has never gone before. I was very inspired to unleash my creative mind into the written word and James Nave is a bohemian poet that gives you a glimpse of the possibilities. Hopefully, it sets out and unleashes your wild imagination. Originally, I was planning to do a day-by-day series of the events that happened during the 3 day weekend, but instead I'll post our writing exercises instead to give you a glimpse of the salon experience.

Here are my key learnings from the Writing Salon:
1. Unleash your Creative/ Design Mind. Most of us are trained to be logical and creativity comes from the subconscious where it does not follow any logic. One trick would be if you wanted to start writing about a place of inspiration, instead of starting with perfecting your first few sentences, start with capturing all the words that immediately comes to your mind. Just capture what comes out and what you can hear in your head -- that is your subconscious. The words might not make sense but once you compose your writing using the words you collected, your writing would be totally different. Now this takes practice, practice, practice and will apply it when posting things about an awesome site next time.

2. Character Writing is all in the details. The power of a characterization is not in terms of how complicated the character is, but how detailed you are able to describe the character in 360 degrees detail. Now, there is no logic in developing the character, you just need to look into yourself and allow your own creative imagination to tell you what the character would be. Details could be what's the favorite food, age, first de-virginized, education, friends, social state, etc. This actually gave me a confidence on creating my own character not in novel but anonymously blogging (Ha!)

3. Each of us have our own imaginative energy which is a product of our experiences, books that we read, people that we met. To better explain this (or confuse you even better... hehe) I would leave you with a quote:

"What is it in the imagination that keeps surprising us in odd moments when something is given back in solitude, spontaneously and with great joy."

Just let it flow and better listen to yourself and trust your creative/ imaginative self.

>> More Photos Here.

Bak Kuh Teh - My New Singaporean Dish Favorite

Bak Kuh Teh is the local version of bulalo for Singaporeans and the loop is alot better than our bulalo!

I was out last week again and was travelling in Singapore for yet another team meeting. Mostly it was all business and networking with other nationalities, and the badminton game with Indoneans, Australian, Thai and Filipino. The only thing that is worth raving about during my trip was our hunt for the famous Singaporean food called Bak Kuh Teh. Now, this is a local favorite that you don't hear a lot among tourists which only knows Hainanese Chicken Rice as the only Singaporean food out there. We really had to go to Ballestier Road which serves alot of these Bak Kuh Teh food and we were not disappointed.

We were looking for Founder Rou restaurant in New Orchid Hotel but unfortunately it was closed on a Tuesday. Now, this is soo weird that this is the first time I heard a restaurant closing on a Tuesday. Maybe its a Singaporean thing. We ended up in hawker place along a street and we're soo curious about bak kuh teh that we don't mind eating in this ambiance. Maybe it is best eaten here rather than in an airconditioned restaurant. The Bak Kuh Teh is really a winner and the pork ribs broth was sooo delicious that all of us in the table who was from Thailand, Australia and the Philippines loved it! The only problem with it is that it was pork ribs and there was not alot of meat. It has a garlic taste to it that it is soo good that you can eat the soup with the rice and that was it. This really made my night!

[Left-Right counterclockwise] The Bak Kuh Teh Gang. Calvin (Australia), Siriwan (Thailand), Pittaya (Thailand), and my Boss Susan (Phils). Thanks for the company guys!

You can check out this address in you next Singapore visit:
Founder Rou, New Orchid hotel
347 Ballestier Road
+65-6352-6192

The Coolest Town in Singapore

Visionary technology ideas in the year 2020 for the Philippines?

I wanted to write this post about my coolest town in Singapore experience. Not because I want to blog about the coolest technology stuff but to be able to recollect back in time once these technologies become available in the future. How far is that future -- 5, 10, 15 years perhaps? Let us check out some of these technologies:

Digital Home.  Alot of people are banking on this to happen pretty soon where the Media PC would be the center of all the devices and appliances in the digital home enabled. The digital home prototype is not impressive although it demonstrate the convergence of TV, Audio, Video, Photos, and computer in one powerful media PC and only one output LCD screen. If you look at the center of the prototype above, the LCD screen acts as both mirror and the TV which is a very neat  architectural execution (which gave me an idea for my condo). The idea is that not only the appliances are fully connected but also, the home is connected to the outside world via webservices from internet sites like airline carrier, radio stations, google sites, etc. The infrared keyboard was cool as well although, it is a one finger at a time typing technique and cannot take in simultaneous keyboard strokes. Bottomline, the keywords would be Convergence, Appliance Networking, and Web Services in the future.

Virtualization. On 3d virtualization, there was an interesting demo on virtualizing a physical space (in this case, the lobby of cool town) in a tablet PC and as you move it, it changes views to where you are physically oriented or looking at. It was able to determine it by having GPS or location based detectors and respond to it accordingly. Now this is cool :) We are now experiencing the power of google earth using satellite images and imagine being able to recreate the world's environment in 3d and not use top-level satelite point of view.

Digital Pen. A digital pen where whatever you write gets recorded. You can also have a specially printed form where if you use a digital pen to write on it, it can record your actual entries and its relative location on the form.

Future Workspace. Hmmn, lets see if people will start working isolatedly in a bike or spaceship type of mode where it promotes two screens, one for business applications and one is for personal/ games so that you can work life balance :) We'll see about that.

Interactive Posters. Advertisement on posters or even billboard someday would be able to communicate with mobile phones or PDAs.

Poster Kiosks. Buying artworks (reproduced) in museums can now be done interactively with this proof-of-concept kiosks.

RF ID Cafe. The idea is that the coffee mugs in a cafe would be identified to the person drinking it so that it enables a personalized experience when you are inside enjoying your coffee. It could let the barrista know personal information about yourself and your preferences.

However, I think the best technology in this coolest town is this self-service printers in the reception lobby where you can plug in your CF card and print your own photos instantly! Maybe not a revolutionary technology but it works we had fun taking pictures and printing it. Really cool! This gaves me an idea for a business venture ....

Viaje del Sol Review

Viaje del Sol is the newest destination 2 hours away from Manila (besides Tagaytay). I checked out all the places already and I can save you the trouble of being disappointed in going to Patio Verde or the Laguna Lake. Sorry for starting this on a sour note, but we were disappointed because the Patio Verde is a hole in the wall grilled beerhouse and even if the food is great, the whole ambiance and crowd is not appropriate. The laguna lake on the other hand, is ugly, and I do hope they are able to revitalize this lake -- soo sad :(

I'm glad that is out of the way, here are the best of Viaje del Sol:

Collete's Original Store -- This is big and you can say that you have bought your buko pie from the original store in San Pablo. You will see this immediately after entering San Pablo along the Maharlika hi-way. There are a lot of pasalubong goodies and they opened a new cafe beside it.

>> Casa San Pablo -- Cozy Place for a retreat

Casa San Pablo -- A writer's retreat place. When you enter the main city of San Pablo, you would see this. Check out my detailed blog post on this with the link above. I'm checking this out and have an overnight stay on my next trip.

Contact Information/ Directions:
Gomez Compound, Barangay San Roque, San Pablo City, Laguna
It is along the main road going to San Pablo city proper (see website for map)

email: inquire@casasanpablo.com
website: http://www.casasanpablo.com/index.html
mobile: 0917-8126687, 0917-5268628

>> Quezon Culinary Night Cap @ Kusina Salud

Kusina Salud -- Bohemian atmosphere with an excellent food. Patis Tesoro was the one who started this Viaje del sol concept and I'm glad that they marketted the whole San Pablo and Tiaong as one destination rather than competing with each other. Buffet lunch on the weekend and massage is one of the things you can enjoy here.

Contact Information/ Directions:
One you are in the main highway, Maharlika along San Pablo City, There are alot of signs going to Kusina Salud. You won't missed it.

Mobile: 0921-7726985, San Pablo: 049-2466878, Manila: 726-5058/ 59
email: kusinasalud@yahoo.com

>> Carlito's Workshop 1-- Intimidating House with Surprisingly Hospitable Host!
>> Carlito's Workshop 2 --Photogenic House with an Outstanding Garden :)
>> Carlito's Workshop 3 -- Carlito's Coffee

Carlito's Workshop -- I was smitten by this place that I had to wrote a series on this. No food here, just plain coffee, puto and rambutan/lansones during this season. But it is a must to have a good chat with Carlito and that would complete your afternoon coffee break.

Contact Information/ Directions:
Just a word of advise, there are no signs from the maharlika highway going to Carlito's workshop. If you are coming from Manila, after passing the left turn going to kusina salud, you will make a right turn to Brgy. Sta. Ana. The only landmark is a direction going to 3j foods corp. It's a big road with alot of tricycles in that corner.

Carlito Ortega   Cellphone # 0919-837 7755 or (049) 5620351
Open on Saturdays. For the rest of the week, please call to give prior notice.

>> Quezon Culinary Series 10: Ugu Bigyan's Secret Pottery Garden

Ugu Bigyan -- This is a winner by itself and you go here for pottery, food, and ambiance. I'm raving about this place so you should check this out if you decide to venture into Tiaong, Quezon

I don't have the passion to blog about Villa Escudero not unless there would be something new or I'm accompanying a balikbayan. But, one of the last place I want to visit would be Kinabuhayan Cafe and I've heard alot about this place. Maybe this coming long vacation, we'll take the opportunity to check it out. Good luck on your own adventure!

Contact Information/ Directions:
If you plan to go here, there are no signs along the national highway because Ugu wants it to be a secret. I made a mental note of landmarks along the national highway in Tiaong, Quezon which is the Ebreo Castillo Agri Poulty Supply, Lusaca highschool, and old Petron Station.

Ugu Bigyan
Telefax: (042) 545-9144
Mla. #: 250-8416

Special Birthday Brunch from a Special Chef :)

I love Chef Pat's Food :)

It was my wife's birthday last Saturday and I've been looking for a special place to eat. By special, I mean a cozy place that only a few people are eating, excellent food, and warm service. I'm glad I was not disappointed with our Sunday Brunch @ Chef Pat's. I like discovering new places that people have not been into and this budding chef would someday be famous. This place is like Chef Laudico in Urdaneta where he opened his house for intimate dining with a special menu. Chef Pat is located in Northeast greenhills and just a perfect place for a Sunday Brunch -- yummy :) Sometimes, Pat Choa would be invited to people's house to cook at their own home (imagine that).

The 6 course menu was fantastic and delicious :) All of them a winner except for the soup which got mixed reviews:

Chicken and Saffon Soup. My dad loved this!

Pomelo and Chinese Pear Salad. This is soo delicious that we want to steal the recipe.

Sesame Crusted Lapu-Lapu with Mushroom Broth. Now this one is magical because the very thin slices of tuna flakes on top of the crust is moving and it was fun to watch like it was alive.

Beef Tenderloin with Crispy Beef Tongue and Risotto. Delicious and was gone in a few seconds.

Mandarin Orange Sorbet awith Kaffir Lime Jelly. The sorbet was homemade and you can really taste the mandarin orange.

Chocolate Hazel Nut Mousse. This is the yummy birthday cake. The crusts is worth the calories :)

Chef Pat -- Thanks for the wonderful Sunday Brunch and for making my birthday surprise to Rache soo special.  Although I would offer a few things for improvement to make it a truly mind-blowing experience because the food is already fantastic:

Overflowing signature drink. The drinks were just water and powdered ice tea. It would have been great if there was a signature drink like fresh mandarin orange that is overflowing! Or, maybe a wine would be a good compliment for these french dishes :)

Focus on the tiny details of the dining experience. There should be interesting talk pieces in the dining area. There are a few but we don't know what the story is, so maybe an intruiging piece of art or cloth, or dining ware would be appropriate. One thing missing is excellent music to complement the dining experience.

Here is our family photo and this was the best among the photoshoots that we made that morning:

>> More Photos here.

MORE INFORMATION:

Chef Patricia Choa (Chef Pat)
Northeast Greenhills, Entrance is near Chili's Greenhills
0917-8387338

Casa San Pablo -- Cozy Place for a retreat

Casa San Pablo is one of the destinations in the Viaje del Sol's San Pablo destinations and we checked it out during our Rambutan Picking adventure.  We were trying to check it out if it serves dinner but it only provides food to the in-room guests. So, I ended up shooting the ambiance of the place which was suppose to be designed by Ugu Bigyan. The above photo is my favorite among the set and gives you the overall ambiance of the place.

According to the Casa San Pablo website:
"Casa San Pablo is a cozy bed-and-breakfast wrapped in a tropical setting. Designed by potter Ugu Bigyan, the main cottage has six bedrooms mos of which open up to private decks. Each bedroom is designed with eclectic wit-- from folk art papaer mache' horses and bird houses to sea shells and funky car parts."

The rooms are nice and has it's own theme. Although it was disappointing to see that the beds are short and hard (see beds in the photos). But if you don't mind and you don't miss your soft spring beds at home then you'll feel right at home here. They have a few rooms so better book in advance.

Clockwise from top: 1. Conference and Community Room, 2. Rooms with double deck beds, 3. The swimming pool at the nearby Kay Inay Resort, and 4. the facade of the dining room.

Looks very interesting and now I know where to go to for our next teambuilding session :)

MORE INFORMATION
Gomez Compound, Barangay San Roque
   San Pablo City, Laguna
It is along the main road going to San Pablo city proper (see website for map)

email: inquire@casasanpablo.com
website: http://www.casasanpablo.com/index.html
mobile: 0917-8126687, 0917-5268628

My Singapore Adventures 1: Are you a Chili Crab or Pepper Crab lover?

Asia Band 3 College, Singapore ( September, 26-30, 2005 )

Singapore has been my second work home. All of my trips this year have been in Singapore and this week is no exception. We had a leadership training for all the senior managers in our company in the asia region. Whenever I travel, I bring my hobby with me: Photography, Badminton and Culinary Adventures.

Night Photography. My first attempt at night photography of Clarke Quay, Singapore. I wished pasig river could be as beautiful as this. This place have always been a tourist winner ever since.

Chili Crab or Pepper Crab? I've always craved about these singapore favorites that nobody can match in the Philippines resto. For some reason, ever the Palm Beach in the Fort or Singapura Rasa cannot even compare to these authentic dishes from Jumbo Seafood Restaurant. The JUMBO chili crab has always been a winner over the JUMBO pepper crab because of its rich yummy sauce with fried or steam buns! If you don't know what I'm talking about, you're missing on one of the culinary adventures of your life.

I can't imagine that I've eaten in a Jumbo restaurant on two consecutive nights both in Clarke Quay. Their most famous restaurant is in East Coast -- most of the taxi drivers know this place. Recently, I learned that there are other recommended dishes that are sooo delicious in Jumbo. Don't forget to order Bamboo Clams with minced garlic and Crispy Baby Squid!! Equally Yummy!

Badminton. When visiting Singapore, I always make a point to play Badminton. Also, I always bring my badminton racket when I travel. It affects my game if I don't use my Armortek 800. There's a certain feel to it that I'm able to make excellent drop shots or control the flick of my wrist.

RC Airplane. On my way to Jumbo, I saw these Singaporeans flying RC plances that look like UFO sightings in the photo above. One day, I'll take up this hobby :)

Official Photographer. The problem with having photography as your hobby is the fact that people will leverage your hobby during meetings and ask you to be THE official photographer. One of my difficulty is asking a group to do a fun shot aside from the normal formal shots. I'm happy that I was able to talk some sense into the team and inspire them to have this wacky pose. (I'm the middle person on the first row)

Writing Adventure @ The Writing Salon

After blogging 125 posts in 9 months (about one post every two days), I have this urge to improve my writing skills to appeal a lot better to the emotions of my readers. Blogging gets addicting, specially everytime you get messages from your readers on affirming how much they love some of the posts (so far, no hate comments yet :) One of my passions in life is I would like to be able to promote the beauty of the Philippines via photos and words -- I intend to improve on both.

This is my motivation and making sure that I don't pass up this chance to join The Writing Salon. Ever since it got moved from Boracay as a location to Manila, I immediately considered joining this. I was inspired to write creatively and hopefully I can write as beautifully as the past participants of the Salon in Aleenta. I intend to write poetically about the Philippines and my life, and the impressive lists of directors James Nave, and Allegra Huston would surely make it worthwhile. Not to mention, the controversial Carlos Celdran is also there as a guest faculty :)

Therefore I made a leap of faith to join The Writing Salon :)

MORE INFORMATION:

THE WRITING SALON AT INTRAMUROS
starts Lunch on Friday, 7 October and ends on Sunday afternoon, 9 October 2005.

• Puerta Real Gardens Calle Real del Palacio (Gen. Luna Street), Intramuros
• Miramar Hotel UN Ave., cor. Roxas Blvd., Ermita, Manila

The Semana Package: Php 13,500  - 2 nights stay at the Miramar Hotel, with breakfasts. Including lunch and all workshops. (check in Friday after lunch, check out Sunday morning)
The Juntos Package: Php 20,000 - the Semana package for 2 people sharing a room.
The Dia Package: Php 8,500  - Includes lunch and workshops for the three days (Breakfast and accommodations not included)
The Solo Package: Php 3,500 – includes lunch and workshops for one day of your choice.

info@thewritingsalon.net or celdrantours@hotmail.com
Call or sms 0926 259 750 or 0906 304 9598

Checkout here --->  Final Salon Schedule

Sunday Brunch Bday Celebration @ Lumiere

Best Sunday Brunch in Town!

I've always wanted to eat at Lumiere and I'm glad that I got a tip from whipsmart that they actually serve the best Sunday brunch in town! My office is just in Ayala 6750 but not a lot of people knows about Lumiere. It is a best kept secret and it should stay that way because it only can accomodate a few people. It was a perfect b-day celebration for Momsy who is celebrating her 64th bday last Sunday. (HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOMSY!!)  I'll be sharing with you our awesome Sunday brunch experience @ Lumiere.

Excellent Bistro Ambiance.  The place was small but what strike us the most is the ambiance of a homy feel to it. On Sundays, it's like the expat community and only people in the know eat brunch here. I'm glad that we are able to catch a seat by making a last minute reservations. It also feels that most of the people know each other and we even saw Nina Tesoro owner of Kusina Salud eating brunch last Sunday.

Art is in the Air. It was able to convincingly integrate Art into the dining experience. Last Sunday, we were still able to catch the Scapular Nomad Gallery. A five-year long performance art gallery. A gallery worn daily by Judy Freya Sibayan, Curator, Performance Artist. I took pictures of the scapular here. On some months, there are actually photograph exhibits in this small quaint french bistro where you can appreciate them or buy them :)

Eat-all-you-can Fresh Green Salad and Potatoes. This is the first time that I've seen a restaurant offering this as part of the entire meal. It says on the menu above: "Generous Servings of Salad, Pomme Sautes, and Grilled Tomatoes". On Sunday Brunch, Lumiere only serve set menus and most of them taste great :) The only complaint that my mom had was it was too much cholesterol in one meal because of the eggs :)

Brunch Meal + Drink + Dessert + Coffee/Tea. You have to choose among 6 types of brunch menu. Among the choices, we loved the Egg Benedict, Baked Eggs with Foie Gras and Biscuit, and Steaks and Eggs (Yummy!). For the drink, Mimosa is a must try which is orange juice with Champagne. The brewed coffee and tea is a perfect way to end the meal. The dessert was not a winner although, they created a small cake for my mom and it was really good that it was immediately wipe out :) All for P650/meal (net)!

MORE INFORMATION:
- Lumiere is located along Makati Avenue and Ayala Avenue near the British embassy besides the PLDT building. It is soo small that people missed this secret place.
- Sundays serves Brunch. Tues-Saturday serves Ala Carte menu.
- Reserve @ 812-2976 because the place gets jampacked.
- More Lumiere photos here.

Carlito's Workshop 3 -- Carlito's Coffee

Superb Barako Coffee, Sweet Lansones, and Delicious Puto :)

This is the highlight of the trip ---a cup of Barako Coffee and delicious Puto at Carlito's workshop. Our only regret was we did not call in advance because he could have served us Rice Coffee and would be a unique experience. Since we are just walk-ins (hehe) we were entertained as guests still and Carlito was very hospitable. His art and books collection are intimidating but it was actually cool spending merienda in his workshop. BTW, he also serves sweet lansones that we cannot help but eat and be addicted to it (much better than rambutan hehehe).

There are interesting art pieces all around and my friend, Maong was fascinated with the swinging wooden chair in a steel frame (middle photoo). Carlito showed us how he is doing his steel/ brass masterpieces that could costs P40,000 at a minimum. The ambiance is very Filipino and alot of art talk pieces. We simply had a fun time in this place (this could change if there is already alot of people visiting here). We'll let the photos do the talking here :)

Of course, I had to take the obligatory family picture photo (top right photo) :) 

Here are the contact information:

Carlito Ortega   Cellphone # 0919-837 7755 or (049) 5620351
Open on Saturdays. For the rest of the week, please call to give prior notice.

Just a word of advise, there are no signs from the maharlika highway going to Carlito's workshop. If you are coming from Manila, after passing the left turn going to kusina salud, you will make a right turn to Brgy. Sta. Ana. The only landmark is a direction going to 3j foods corp. It's a big road with alot of tricycles in that corner.

Best Chocolate Ganache in Manila! ?

My Wife loves it but too chocolatie for my taste :)

It's the first time I encountered the word ganache and by defition it means rich paste of chocolate, cream, and sometimes butter. Now this taste and sounds more fattening than an icing :) The entire cake tastes like death by chocolate because literally it is sooo good and sooo sweet that even if you know that it is not good for your health, you still try to eat it !

Anyway, I'm starting to taste all these best desserts in manila but this one was not even included in the list but it was tucked away in the comments of lori's readers. We ordered one during Aidan's 8th month birthday last Sept. 19. My wife loves it! most of the women loves it! But still I don't get what's with women and chocolates? can anybody explain?

Here's the contact information:

Karen E. Young/ Gigi
Karen's Kitchen (KEY Specialty Foods)
428 Adalla St. Palm Village
Makati City, Metro Manila 1211
Tel# 898-2280
Cell# 0917-key4you (5394968)
email: key@vasia.com

(and yes, we have to pick it up in Palm Village near Rockwell. They also make the Xanadu cake of UCC but it is almost P1000. So, we'll save it for a special occasion...)

Carlito's Workshop 2 --Photogenic House with an Outstanding Garden :)

Photogenic House with an outstanding garden!

When we went to Carlito's, we were hesitant to go in because we are literally walk-ins because we did not call in advance for reservations but the brochure said it is open on Saturdays. When we arrived, the place looks quiet with only one red pickup car parked in front of the house. Now, the main reason we went here is to have coffee and this is right after the rambutan festival in Tiaong.
The picture above shows the facade of the main house and the back of this nice house.

It was really intimidating because the house is very beautiful. The leftmost picture is the view of the well manicured lawn from the main door of the house. Upon entering the house, you are greeted by the picture in the middle where there is a fountain statue behind a glass encarving. We were invited to the living room where there are alot of art pieces as well including a patis tesoro doll (see right most photo above). At this point, Carlito met us and we felt right at home and we felt like a guest of a long time friend.

At the back of the main house is a small structure that has dining tables featuring Carlito's work. At this point, Carlito was explaining to us what he is doing, his work, and the story behind Carlito's workshop. Apparently, he is a very good friend of Patis Tesoro and she asked him to open up his very nice house for people visiting San Pablo. Viaje del Sol, was a very nice concept where the insight was people who would love to eat at Kusina Salud needed to have other site seeing places in the area. Thus, Carlito was convinced, and he opened up his nice home.

Having said this, Carlito's workshop is still not a full pledge coffee house (yet) since viaje del sol is just 6 months old. I actually like going to these places when they are young when there are not alot of people. In this particular case when we visited, we were the ONLY people and we were entertained very well :) Carlito lives with his wife and daughter but they were out in San Pablo city when we arrived.  After looking at the magnificent (first time we've seen such) steel brass artwork, we finally tasted the coffee that we came for and much more in his workshop place.

The structure above is his workshop where he creates his masterpieces. This is where we spent our afternoon coffee time --- Carlito's Workshop ala Starbucks with a Filipino touch.

to be continued... 2/3

Carlito's Workshop 1-- Intimidating House with Surprisingly Hospitable Host!

Excellent artist place and perfect for afternoon coffee and chit chat :)

This is another Viaje del Sol posts. We vowed to complete and visit all the Viaje del Sol locations and blog about them. In the viaje del sol map, we saw this Carlitos Workshop area which is very intriguing just along the maharlika hi-way in between Villa Escudero and Kusina Salud. In the brochure, here is Carlito's Workshop description:

" Carlito Ortega is a sculptor who works in welded steel and brass, as well as with old hard wood. He creates figurative works in both intimate and monumental scale inspired by Laguna folk art and lore. An avid art collector, he has a striking collection of contemporary art.

He is also a land artist whose garden is his masterpiece. Come and visit his artist workshop and garden. Inspired by the American Southern-style plantation homes, his house sits on a 1.5 hectare property. His garden boasts of a collection of plam trees and rare plants. "

The above photos are just some of Carlito's awesome welded steel/brass art. His place is intimidating at first because of the big steel gates and grand driveway to his house. According to Carlito, a lot of people get intimated to the point of turning away once seeing the gate and the driveway.

to be continued... 1/3

Shopwise Manila Now Open!! Not your usual supermarket :)

tion Finally, a supermarket with a refreshing design and totally alot better than the Rustan's supermarket located originally in Harrison Plaza Manila. Shopwise Manila (Harrison Plaza) did a supplier's launch last friday and the grand launch in ASAP yesterday (Sept. 18).  Personally, I like the the new design of the health & beauty section branded as Essense of Wellness where Raymund's Isaac Photos were used. Also, the House of Care design for the household section is implemented where the products are arranged based on how you use it at home ( laundry, bathing, cooking, and general cleaning). BTW, both of these setup were designed by our company :)


The store was launched last friday in a 70's fashion and it was one of the fun supermarket launch that I attended. See shots of the owner of Shopwise, Cricket Tantoco (in green), Ralph (owner of Ralph's wines) and Tanya Lim (orange) from our company as well (see center Photo).

If you are from the Manila area, check this out since we only have two options currently which is Robinson's manila and Cash n Carry. I'm not sure if the prices are competitive, but it would be tough matching Cash n Carry prizes. Hey, shopwise has a wise card anyway so hopefully the points for prizes would compensate for it.

>> MORE PHOTOS HERE

Rambutan Festival 3: Harvesting 10kg of Rambutan

This is the best picking experience we ever had  :)

Coming into this rambutan festival, all of us where wishing that it should have been lansones. We did not realize that the rambutan variety that they have is imported which means it is really sweet. Also, one thing I hate about rambutan is that the coat of the seed which is hard part sometimes stick to the soft part of the fruit when you eat it. ( now I had a hard time explaining this ) But, lo and behold, their rambutan variety is extremely good that totally changed the way I looked at rambutan. I'm glad we bought 3.3kgs each @ P100 only --- wow what a bargain :)

We hiked for half a kilometer to the rambutan trees. We were really expecting that we picked 10kg of rambutan but fortunately there are folks who were willing to assists us. So we commissioned a guy to get the rambutans for us while we snap these shots and enjoyed eating rambutan while we wait. Of course, we wouldn't miss the fun and experience so we tried picking some rambutan ourselves.

   

This was really fun and the weather was just perfect. Since we are under the rambutan trees, it is very cool. Unfortunately, we decided that this might not be a place for Aidan to go to so he was left with his mom in the main house.

This is the end of the rambutan festival series. By this time, it is just about 2pm so we decided to visit the other viaje del sol places. You need to check this out really really great places --- Carlito's Workshop and Casa San Pablo.

Rambutan Festival 2: Agri Seminary & Adobo Packed Lunch

Farm Style Lunch & Seminar ala Fresco :)

When we arrive, we are really not expecting anything because we have not read the newspaper article or seen any pictures. This is simply a leap of faith hoping that the entire experience would be great and not a waste of our time. We arrived in a jeep to the main house where the seminar is already going on. Now, we just listened for a while and cannot relate to the farming methods. Although, Di, Maong and I are already entertaining the idea of buying a farm lot and starting our own farm in San Pablo. My dad would have loved to visit here and listen to the farming tips --- maybe next year.

The packed lunch included in the P150 is a adobong manok / baboy rice topping wrapped in banana leaves. It was delicious and you have to use your hands because no plastic utensils provided ( we don't mind this). Although, one of the difficult part was finding a table because there are only a few like 4-5 so people just look for a spot, sit, and eat lunch. Fortunately we were able to secure a spot at the back of the house where we met and chatted with Atty. Lazatin and guess what, mr. Imbestigator himself -- Mike Enriquez.

I leave you with a picture of a farm tractor.

to be continued.... 2 of 3

Rambutan Festival 1: The best Rambutan I ever picked & tasted :)

Picking the sweetest Rambutan fresh from the CLSU-Dizon Farm!

After our Tina Decal's Quezon tour, we went back to Tiaong last Saturday because we learned from my friend Diwat got raving reviews from her officemate about the Rambutan Festival in Tiaong, Quezon. Now, this gets me immediately interested since I'm starting to fell in love with Tiaong and San Pablo. I'm glad that we went and I wanted to share with my blog readers about this wonderful experience. Now, this only happens once a year during the first weekends of September and this was the second and last weekend already.

We are a small group this time because we are not sure what the rambutan festival is about. It costs P150/head which already includes the entrance to the farm, a packed adobo lunch, free eating of rambutan within the farm, and 1kg of rambutan as take home. It really looks like a great deal already so we decided to go. It is located along Maharlika (national road) hi-way just right after the Tiaong Market and even before reaching Ugu Bigyan's Potter's Garden. The signs are small and we actually missed it, so I posted a picture here so that you know the facade of the farm that you are looking for. You have to park your car outside the farm, along the highway. In the entrance, we were picked up by either a yellow jeep or a jeepney to go to the main house.

Some more information:
11 hectares farm owned by Atty. Victor P. Lazatin
The farm does not have a phone number but you can email the owner vplazatin@accralaw.com
It only accomodates 200 people/day so it is best to go during the daytime

to be continued.... 1 of 3

Tina Decal's Awesome Culinary Tour of Quezon

Highly Recommended!!!

This is a link summary of Tina Decal's Awesome Culinary Tour of Quezon. Call Tina @ 0927-5630989.

Quezon Culinary Series 1: The Beginning
Quezon Culinary Series 2: Enroute to Quezon
Quezon Culinary Series 3: Lucban Longganisa Breakfast!
Quezon Culinary Series 4: The secrets of Kiping & Longganisa Luban
Quezon Culinary Series 5: Kamay ni Hesus better than Field of Faith?
Quezon Culinary Series 6: Quezon Sidetrips
Quezon Culinary Series 7: Super Delicious Lunch @ Kamay Palaisdaan
Quezon Culinary Series 8: Sariaya's Ancestral Houses
Quezon Culinary Series 9: Tagayan & Sariaya Pasalubong
Quezon Culinary Series 10: Ugu's Secret Pottery Garden
Quezon Culinary Night Cap @ Kusina Salud

This is for those who missed my Quezon Culinary Series and for those who are interested to venture into the same culinary experience with Tina Decal. BTW, all of this happened in one day :)

Viaje del Sol: Follow the sun to San Pablo and Tiaong Delights

Now this is a new alternative to Tagaytay! It's also about time that we have a new alternative other than hidden valley in alaminos or Villa Escudero in San Pablo. There are alot of places to visit in San Pablo, Laguna and Tiaong Quezon. I'm glad that they decided to market the place together and not really compete with each other. Ugu and the daughter of Patis Tesoro along with others started to create a brochure and marketing for these destinations called Viaje del Sol. There is a trend now where artist are starting to venture in secret dining places which was started by Sonya's secret garden. I realized that the culinary tour is just a start for me to explore the wonderful places in Laguna/Quezon area.

My next target places are kinabuhayan cafe, Patio Verde and Carlito's workshop. There are alot of information in the brochure that I did not scan anymore. Let me know if you need more information or tips around this places. Email me at anton@diaz.ph. Till our next adventure :)

Quezon Culinary Night Cap @ Kusina Salud

cool bohemian ambiance.

This is not part of the culinary tour anymore but since this is on the way back to Manila, we decided to check this place out. Kusina Salud is an enchanting country home of renowned fashion designer, Patis Tesoro with menu by Chef Paul Poblador of Salud! Bistro in Baguio. It is located in Brgy. Sta. Cruz, San Pablo, Laguna. You won't miss this on the way to Villa Escudero because there are big signs special on the road going to this place.

Now, at this point, we are all still full and we just decided to drink tea, coffee and eat deserts. Yes, we tried the avocado ice cream and it is a clear winner! It tastes like real frozen avocado in ice cream form. The coffee and tea is also good :) Eating in Kusina Salud at night, does not do justice to the beauty of this place. For sure we'll go back here specially during Sunday lunch where they have a nice buffet for P500 net.

Till we meet again, Kusina Salud!

Contact #s:
Mobile: 0921-7726985
San Pablo: 049-2466878
Manila: 726-5058/ 59
email: kusinasalud@yahoo.com

Quezon Culinary Series 10: Ugu Bigyan's Secret Pottery Garden

Great Food, Great Shopping, Great Ambiance, Great Culinary Demo!

This one is off the charts! Ok, I might be exaggerating here but all of us in the tour really raves about this place and some does not even want me to blog about this. I think I haven't seen alot of news about this place and one of the secret hidden treasures in Manila, indeed :) Ugu's pottery garden makes Sonya's Garden an ordinary salad and pasta place. The only catch here is that this place is in Tiaong, Quezon which is about 2 hours outside manila, just past Villa Escudero in San Pablo, Laguna. This is the last and final stop of Tina's culinary tour. 

What makes this place special is that all the architecture and the entire place was built by the owner, Ugu himself. They are a family of artists so some of the family members created native products and jewelry sold in a small nice shop. They are of course expensive but they are nice :) Ugu is well known for his pottery and his products are being used by hotels, etc. There is a pottery gallery where we can buy his works. Although I would suggest that you buy during special sale sessions. There are three sale sessions: first, is the pahiyas sale on May 15 (this would be too crowded); second, on his even birthdays August 14 discounted depending on his age (42% this year); and lastly during the first Sunday of October (Oct. 2 this year).

The food is mind blowingly good even just for merienda. We ate suman with moscovado sugar, sweet ginataan, and fresh buko juice. Although Tina said the sago gulaman would have been the best but was not available. Also, you get to use Ugu's own pottery plates and glasses set on a weave (banig). Even the cracker's served was really great and its origin remains to be a secret.

The tour culminates with a culinary demo of "Kulawo" which is banana heart. Now, this is a banana heart that tastes like inihaw na baboy but with a texture of tuna. We can't believe it either that banana heart can taste this good. At least for this, we know what the secret is which is in cooking the coconut shreds with carcoal as shown in the above left photo. You gotta witness it and taste it to believe it. This demo would exceed your expectations. BTW, I have the recipe for those interested, just email me at anton@diaz.ph.

Ok, now maybe I raised your expectation already but that was not my intent. My intent is really to share with you that Philippines is sooo beautiful that you just need to explore it. BTW, if you plan to go here, there are no signs along the national highway because Ugu wants it to be a secret. I made a mental note of landmarks along the national highway in Tiaong which is the Ebreo Castillo Agri Poulty Supply, Lusaca highschool, and old Petron Station.

Here is the contact number:
Ugu Bigyan
Telefax: (042) 545-9144
Mla. #: 250-8416

The secret is out :) Enjoy!!

Quezon Culinary Series 9: Tagayan & Sariaya Pasalubong

Great Lambanog and best Broas in Town!

A good way to complete the culinary experience is via an afternoon drinking session with Philippine's own Lambanog. Tina provided a perspective on Quezon's drinking session rituals or "Tagayan" after the tour of the ancestral house. The lambanog tastes like vodka + tequila in one, and it is very smooth --  I liked it! We should start to patronize our own Philippine product. BTW, after the session, we get to take home the bottle of Lambanog :)

Sariaya has the best broas in the Philippines period. Villamater's broas is crispy all throughout and according to Tina, the secret is in the pugon cooking throughout. Too bad, they don't want to provide a demo on how to bake these sariaya goodies. Villamater's bakery is just down the street from the ancestral house,  and next door, you can buy home made pastillas (see middle picture above). During our trip, their special pastillas de potato was sold out :(   

This ends of Sariaya leg, and we are all excited with our last pottery garden stop!

Quezon Culinary Series 8: Sariaya's Ancestral Houses

Great Ancestral house and a cultural highlight for the tour :)

After eating soo much already at this point, we were looking forward to the Tagayan that Tina promised us in this ancestral house. I'm not really fan of old buildings or structure but I was quite impressed with how this ancestral house was maintained. Of course, the tour guides who just comes in just for us was dressed in barong and saya which transports you back in time.

 
I let the pictures of this ancestral house to do the talking of how it feels like to be in that house. Frankly, there's a creepy feel to it, and I cannot imagine living in this house :) This reminds of La Cocina de Tita Monings house. Too bad, they are not serving food inside the house though-- if ever food is arranged it is at the back.

The interesting part of the house is the cellar which is where the people would hide from Japanese and there are clothes, beds, and products from that era. Check out the old bottles of consumer products during that time from old coca cola bottles, to baby oil, etc.

The great part is the escape from the cellar as you can see my brother is escaping through a narrow opening :)

Best "Secret" Desserts in Manila

Excellent Desserts only in Manila!

I love new and wonderful things manila has to offer and she does not fail to surprise me. I'm glad that wysgal linked to this great dessert blog by a food writer, lori  entitled dessertcomesfirst blog. Her articles are very witty about food and desserts that I totally forget my goal of losing weight (I warned you). Check out her entry on great home based desserts in this blog post -->The 10 best desserts in Manila (and the vultures who eat them).  I only know Estrels and Bizu's macaroons but I think I'm missing on all the other great desserts/cakes. I'm glad that my son Aidan, celebrates his birthday monthly and my wife's family's birthdays are normally in october/november time frame. Just a test, how many of these great desserts have you tried already?

Chocolate Decadence Cake by Dennis Hipolito
Banana Toffee Pie by Roselyn Tiangco
Chocolate Rum Cake by Joyce Aragon
Nono’s Chocolate Oblivion by Baba Ibazeta
Macaroons by Bizu
Polly’s Chocolate Cake by Polly Garilao
Chocolate Carrot Cake by Melissa Lim
Mango Torte by Tony Cuerva
Strawberry Shortcake by Baby Yulo
Caramel Cake by Estrel’s

Goodbye Diet! Maybe in 2006 :)

Quezon Culinary Series 7: Super Delicious Lunch @ Kamay Palaisdaan

Ang sarap sarap! Really super delicious lunch :)

I do not mean to use alot of superlatives but this is how we felt about the food. It's alot better than Exotik Restaurant in Laguna. But you need to make sure you have a reservation specially during lunch time. You eat in kubo huts in the middle of a fish pond where there are lots of Tilapia.

Our lunch started with a serving of fresh buko juice and we were glad that all the food was pre-ordered by Tina :) She ordered fresh tilapia, spare ribs and ginataang kuhol -- all of them was very delicious. I can't restrain myself from eating the spare ribs or the ginataan sauce or the fresh tilapia. Truly superb in all aspects and this is the perfect lunch I imagined in a culinary tour of Quezon province. Lastly, the dessert was equally good -- it's like inipit made out of flour and pumpkin with sweet sauce.

At this point, we are all satisfied and we are starting to feel that the tour was worth it. But the best is yet to come :)

Quezon Culinary Series 6: Quezon Sidetrips

There were a few sidetrips along the entire tour which are worth noting:

Pahiyas Samut Sari, Lucban
Buying pahiyas inspired products is perfect during offseason. We bought a weaved pandan throw pillow worth P120.

Graceland Estates & Country Club, Tayabas, Quezon
It's has a nice clubhouse, sports facilities and amenities plus the main attraction of man made lagoon. All in the heart of Tayabas, Quezon.

Earth Keeper's Garden, Tiaong, Quezon
Nice and cozy country feel ambiance. Worth noting is the dining area amidst the forest -- really nice.

Quezon Culinary Series 5: Kamay ni Hesus better than Field of Faith?

This one is really really awesome healing church and rosary hill!

This is one of the places that I would surely go back. This shot is taken while it is raining outside so we did not have a chance to savor the beauty of the place. When we are approaching Kamay ni Jesus, we just saw Jesus Christ statue on top of the mountain. Later we realized that it was a rosary garden where you have to climb 200+ steps as you pray the different rosary mysteries. As you can see in the bottom, there is the last supper and on top, the crucifixion. The Field of Faith never came close to the beauty of this rosary hill.

Kamay ni Hesus features a healing church with Fr. Joey Faller giving a healing mass every Monday and Saturday 9.30am. Approximately the place is just around for a year but there have been some pilgrimage already to this place. When we arrive there are still alot of construction going on in the parking lot. This is still in Lucban and would definitely be in our next itinerary when visiting Lucban.

A Fresh Resto in Glorietta -- Heaven & Eggs!

Not something to rave about but at least a new resto in Glorietta !

When I was passing by for lunch to Modern China in Glorietta yesterday, I happen to pass by and see heaven & eggs opened already. I guess it is opened for just a week and this is the 2nd branch of this resto chain by the same owner of the Red Crab chain. The 1st branch is in Tomas Morato and there are always alot of people lining up similar to this Glorietta branch during lunch time (located beside bread talk)

Fortunately today, the IDS team had a scheduled birthday treat for me :) Its been a tradition that the bday boy is treated (for free) during lunch time by the team to a resto of his choice. So this was a chance to check out this interesting resto. The reason I wanted to eat here is that I missed Country Waffle's Angus Tapa and I know that Heaven & Eggs serves this kind of food as well.

Upon entering the resto, you are welcomed with winged waiters, wall of clouds and these swinging chairs similar to Herrick's. The menu really feels like country waffles where in fact, they serve small pancakes as complimentary. The star in the menu is the P230 Angus Tapa or the P205 Angus Burger which I ordered. After the meal, I did a quick poll if the food is worth raving about or if it really taste anything special -- consistently, it is just OK. I'm expecting alot more given the price but looking for a killer taste for their Angus. (But I guess my expectations where a lot higher) But I'm glad that it was a bday treat where I enjoyed my Angus for free :D

Thank you very much for all my office mates who joined for the lunch treat:  Noel, Chris, Carlo, Susan, Zandro, Daniel, Kats, Candy, Andie, Meann, Karen, Jayan, Christian :) Thanks alot guys!!

Quezon Culinary Series 4: The secrets of Kiping & Longganisa Luban

Now I know how to make it...

After breakfast, we went on the culinary demo by Milada Dealo Valde (Ka Mila), owner of the koffee klatch and head of the Quezon provincial tourism council. Did you know that Kiping is made from Rice Galapong and can be eaten like kropek? Yes, it can be fried or grilled and perfect with a vinegar dip (see yellow kiping below). We liked the grilled one alot better :) As you can see my focus is still food and not really how to make it. I guess I have admitted to myself that I don't like cooking so I leave it up to my wife and her friends to figure out how to make it. BTW, kiping is the popular decoration they used during the pahiyas festival and almost all the houses in lucban knows how to do it.

The next demo was about the longganisa lucban or according to Mila, shortanissa because I began to be shorter than they used to make it. She stressed on using no preservative, using oregano, and making sure that it is air dried. Also, according to her, a longganisa without fats would be dry and that it why they still used pork with fats normally the neck part of a pig. My wife had a chance to pack a longganisa and it's not an easy task -- you need to have patience :)

Special for my blog readers, I have the recipes for making both so just email me at anton@diaz.ph.

The Eye of Hurricane Katrina

  IMG_1091 
  Originally uploaded by mysterious chicken.

"Nature's Hidden Beauty Inside the Fury"

"How can something so beautiful be so destructive?"

"This is an amazing shot. So impressive. It's hard to believe something so beautiful has caused so much sorrow.."

These are some of the reactions to this beautiful picture of the Katrina's eye. This is not a picture out of your tornado movie but an actual shot of the eye of the hurricane. Check out this photo set from myterious chicken.

Quezon Culinary Series 3: Lucban Longganisa Breakfast!

Addicting Longganisa Lucban :)

After 3 hours of driving, we finally arrive in our first stop in Quezon. Now, this would be the start of our degustation. By this time, we are hungry from the trip because we only had snacks along the way in the interest of time. I've been to Quezon during Pahiyas and I should say it is worth visiting lucban not during the fiesta season on May 15. Also, you would have the time in the world, to savor what lucban has to offer.

Our breakfast was in Dealo's Koffee Klatch and our breakfast consists of Pansit Lucban or popularly known as pancit habhab, Longganisa Lucban and broas. My son Aidan was very jolly and at this point of time we were taking photo shoot of Aidan.

The longganisa lucban is very addicting because it is made of natural ingredients (no preservatives) and lots of oregano. Although for some who are expecting a sweet longganisa, it is not. I think people will be offended if you look for a sweet taste and they would say go to Pampanga. For me, I think it is perfect with the vinegar sauce -- really yummy! Also the pancit habhab, was delicious. According to Tina, you would know the pansit is special if it has lechon kawali as an ingredient. BTW, it is called habhab because you would normally eat it in banana leaves and just use your mouth to eat it.The broas was not as good as the one in Sariaya so stay tuned for that.

Quezon Culinary Series 2: Enroute to Quezon

The culinary tour would start in Lucban, Quezon and there are two ways to go there either via Los Banos -- Pagsanjan route or via the Nagcarlan -- Liliw route in Laguna. I asked Tina if our schedule permits to pass by latter route, and I'm glad I did. Our call time was at 6am at Caltex Starmart in Buendia near Pasong Tamo. But knowing my friends they would be late specially on a Sunday. We left Manila at 7am and arrived in Lucban at around 10am. One of the things I love about long drives, is driving along virgin paths where it is thrilling to see new places and roads. 

Underground Cementary in Nagcarlan, Laguna. Along this mountainous route, there are two points of interest: The Underground Cementary in Nagcarlan, Laguna and Tsinelas street in Liliw, Laguna. In the morning, the facade and the clouds at the cementary is photogenic that any pictures that you take would be stunning. This spot is really a photographic interest and nothing really much to check out in the basement of the cementary. Besides, no photography is allowed inside. Below is the story of this cementary (in Filipino):

Liliw, Laguna. It's been a while since I wanted to visit this famous tsinelas street in Liliw. I'm glad I had the opportunity first hand to see what's the fuss about in this place. I would say that you need to lower your expectations. Some of the slippers are already made in China but there are still some produced in Liliw.  I think it is overated because my wife and her friends was not raving about it soo much after seeing the goods.

There were a few churches that we stopped by particularly the one in Majayjay, Laguna but nothing beats the Paete Church in terms of its antiqueness and the old paintings inside the church. So, when you go on this route, no need to stop by the churches except that it has been my rule to pass by one to pray for safe travel and a chance to pray for 3 wishes :)

Quezon Culinary Series 1: The Beginning

Tina Decal's best culinary tour of Quezon :)

This is the beginning of a 10 part blog series of our culinary adventure in Quezon. Carlos Celdran started to rave about Lady Laguna Ms. Tina Decal last July which I guess when he joined the inaugural culinary tour of Quezon supported by the Department of Tourism. The looks could be deceiving when you first meet ms. Tina Decal, and we have to take a leap of faith by gathering friends who share the same interest. At the start, it was very difficult to come up with a group of 8 for a tour price of P1,200/person (bring your own transpo). Specially, if nobody have been on the tour yet, not alot of people raved about it, and you need to find a group that has photography and eating as an interest.

I love travelling in the Philippines! We had the time of our life last Sunday from exploring secret pottery gardens in Tiaong to the Kamay ni Jesus healing church in Lucban. There's alot to rave about and there are some things that you need to be cautious also.  Just to tease my blog readers, can you guess where are these places:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Keep tuned into the Quezon Culinary series to get detailed information about this culinary tour.

Fantastic Italian Cuisine @ Cantinetta

This is a clear winner when it comes to Italian Food!

This italian resto have been in existence for more than a year already and I've heard about this place from people raving about it. Last night, after hearing mass in Don Bosco, we went to Cantinetta at the end of pasong tamo extension.If you can see the empty tables above, all these tables are reserved for dinner. We are glad that they can still setup a table for 3 for walk-in guests like us in the non-smoking section of the resto.

According to the menu, Cantinetta is a small wine cellar, where the typical italian family store their wine for private consumption. Over time, the cantinetta turned into a small shop, selling from it the family's wine label. Since my wife and I are the only ones dining with my son Aidan and yaya, we can only order two meals:

Quattro Formaggi. (P360) Popularly known as four cheese composed of Parmesan, Gorgozola, Ricotta, and Mozzarella  served on a thin crust. We like it but it  is at par with  CPK.

Tagliatelle Tartufo. (P440) Egg made pasta with truffle, parmesan in white cream sauce. This pasta reminded us of our favorite pasta in Cafe Maestro. Both are expensive but both also serves the best italian pasta. We simply loved that mushroom taste of this pasta and this one was easily wiped out!

Cantinetta is located at:
Karrivin Plaza A
2316 Pasong Tamo Ext. Makati City
Tel# 892-9873 (better reserve specially the non-smoking area)
cantinetta2003@yahoo.com

Who's the healthiest of them all?

Healthy Nuts that I have been looking for :)

My friend Tanya introduced me again to this healthy low fat nut snack. Introducing Wheat nuts! This is very timely because on Sunday we will be going on a culinary tour of Quezon and these nuts would keep me awake when driving. This is really perfect for me because I loved nuts -- I craved for it but with my recent blood exam, my uric acid is way above the acceptable limits. Also, I know that nuts is fattening and I'm trying to lose weight. So these wheat nuts are perfect :) Thanks, Tanya!

These wheat nuts grows on you but it is not like nuts/junkfood where the more you eat, the more it gets addicting. These nuts would somehow be able to tell your brain that you're eating too much and be satisfied already. These healthy nuts are available in Aisle 48 of Landmark supermarket. Get yours until supply lasts.

Swing Chairs of Herrick's

Swinging Chairs that compensates for its ordinary food.

If you haven't been here, this is a nice place to hang out with friends and family while swinging away. Herrick's swinging chairs are very unique and you should try this when you are in the Magallanes area. I normally passed by magallanes because my son's pediatrician holds clinic at the 4th floor of the same building. The dining experience would have been perfect already if not for the ordinary food that they are serving. I particularly like the tea served in a nice pot. A garden tea is pricey and would costs at a P110! Try it out for experience sake but be choiceful on the food that you would buy.

Herricks Tea & Coffee
101 Oakridge plaza.
Paseo de Magallanes Makati
Tel# 854 3199

A Glimpse of Raymund's Isaac Artistic Brilliance

I always have fun watching how artist/ photographers interpret a concept and bring it to life. I'm amazed at how it is being done, and I was fortunate to witness how Raymund Isaac brings the concept of "Essence of Wellness" to life. All elements of the visual are handled with excellence -- from the projection of professional models, to the perfect make-up, to the artistic props/setup, and and choreography of the visual scene. Really amazing and just sharing with you the glimpse of the fun shoot below:

--> The use of a huge glass can do wonders for the shot either infront or behind the glass.

--> It's fun when even the rest of Raymund's team would pose or act out in the scene.

--> This shot calls for a hand of a person that has the same skin tone as the model. In this particular case, Raymund's hands were the closest in tone so he decided to be the aloe vera hand props. BTW the aloe vera smells like bad odor -- yuck.

>> MORE: Essence of Wellness Photoset

 

All Photos were shot in Raymund's Studio in Makati..

Awesome Bday Dinner @ Terry's Gourmet

My new favorite :)

I was contemplating whether to eat in a gourmet restaurant or in a sumptous buffet of Seven Corners to celebrate my birthday. I'm glad that I chose Terry's Gourmet and get to taste all the spanish dishes @ P500/head only! ( Alot better than the Zoovenir experience almost at the same price :) This is the kind of place to enjoy the company of friends and family while exploring the various delicious food in its menu.  When eating in a new restaurant, we always try their best sellers as a criteria and then check out their selection of healthy food. Here are the food that we loved:

Castellana de Ajo. (P170) Their best soup according to the menu and their not kidding. It is a clear soup with slices of fried garlic bread, poached free range egg (I'm not sure what the heck is this), and the secret ingredient (I think) -- the jamon Serrano. These hams are simply addiciting and after a few sips, you wanted the whole bowl to yourself. We also tried the cold soup and the consumme with garlic rice (both highly recommended) which taste like congee spanish style.

Suspiros de Santona. (P260) When this salad was served, it looked like century tuna over fresh tomato with mayonaise on top seasoned with olive oil. However, all of us loved it no matter how simple it looked. Since I was the birthday boy among our group of five (5), I get to have two of the suspiros. This is a runaway winner and will try to replicate this at home :)

Lengua Sevillana. (P320) We tried three main courses among which the Lengua was the best. The black spaghetti we thought that it would be cooked in squid black ink, but apparently it is just literally a black one. While the tuna steak, with its delicious fresh basil provencale sauce, was overcooked -- too bad. Try the lengua with a glass of Rose wine and it would be the best food you've tasted the whole night. The Rose house wine costs P375/bottle versus the per glass rate of P120.

Tarta Imperial Rusa. (P140) It's a must to end your dinner with this traditional Sans Rival dessert!

>> More photos here of Terry's Gourmet Dining Experience

Manila's best kept Gourmet Restaurant secret

I love this gourmet resto!

This restaurant has escaped my radar because I have not heard about this either from my usual sources of inquirer lifestyle, sunday dose of F, or from manila bloggers. They have been opened since September of last year. I'm glad my friend Diwat was raving about it and introduced me to this restaurant Terry Selection - Gourmet Store located @ Basement 1, Podium Mall. This is actually a gourmet store ran by Juan Carlos de Terry (Ph. D. in Oenology) similar to Santis but this one appears to be authentic spanish stuff with authentic spanish cooking. This is actually a perfect gourmet restaurant to celebrate my 31st Birthday! I'll share the dining experience in the next post.

Apparently, they have two locations now and the other one located in Pasong Tamo Extension. Here are their addresses:

Gourmet and Wine Experts, Inc.
2316 Pasong Tamo Extension Karrivin Plaza Bldg. Unit 2, Makati City
Tel# 843-8897, 843-8907, Mobile# 0917-835 0681

Terry Selection. Gourmet Store.
The Podium. Lower Ground Floor, 18 ADB Ave. Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City
Tel# 638-5725 to 26

Ordinary Food @ Zoovenir :(

Still disappointing despite the change in name from Endangered Species :(

This should be a lesson for me not to always follow the recommendation of Amanda from the "F" show in Studio 23. Last Sunday, she featured this restaurant in M.H. del Pilar named Zoovenir. The street is one-way so best to start from Pedro Gil or in the Manila Diamond Hotel area. For those of you who have been in this area, the place was originally named Endangered Species. It retained its animal themed interiors and the ordinary tasting salads, pasta, and meals.

What's good about this place is the Baked Salmon and Cheese Dip (P290) with really crunchy garlic toasted french bread. Also, the dessert was nice -- we tried the crunchy vanilla. It was simply vanilla ice cream with merengue but it costs P220 -- way too expensive. Please stay away from the Spaghetti alla Vongole (P230). The Salads which was raved about by "F" is nothing but ordinary and we tasted both Tuna Turner (P140) and Chinese Duck Salad (P160).

After the meal, we felt that we were robbed by P400/each!  This is the reason that I want to blog about places, and restos in manila so that we don't get all marketing gimmicks and information from TV Shows and Magazines... Aaarghh!

 

Sunday Morning Walk @ Seaside (Mall of Asia)

Best place to spend early Sunday morning  :)

Sunday Mornings will never be the same for me. Finally, the rained stopped and I had a chance to go out eary Sunday morning to exercise. I started to enjoy spending the day with my son strolling along the seaside area in front of the Mall of Asia. If you have not been to this place, this is the best place to exercise and spend early Sunday morning with your family. We call it the Seaside area where this is located near The Way, The Truth and the Life Church built by Henry Sy or infront of the biggest mall in Asia!

What can you do here? Well this is a nice escape from the busy and polluted manila. This is a treasured experience that will soon be a treasured past once the mall of asia is built by Dec 2005. There are group exercises in the morning, you can jog, ride a bike, or simply walk with your family from one end to another. I've seen some families bring in picnic items so that they can eat and rest as well. I would advise that you bring your own food and water.

After the exercise, you can head to the Bluewave and eat a sumptous meal of Jollibee breakfast ( tapa or longganisa)! I can tell you that the simple things in life are the best. Savor it while you can.

Sunday @ Seaside Photoset

French Fine Dining @ Parallel 45

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A Breath of Fresh Air in the Fine Dining Cuisine in Manila

Finally, another new secret fine dining place in Manila. Parallel 45 is neatly tucked away in a busy mandaluyong neighborhood along Samat Street. This fine dining restaurant just opened last July 26 and on Popsy's bday we made sure that this is the place to be to select his 69th birthday. I've always been in the lookout for very nice dining places that is not in a hotel but the likes of Chef Laudico in Urdaneta, Tita Monings in Malacanang, Lolo Dads in Malate, and Antonio's in Tagaytay. This is a place where you celebrate special moments, anniversaries, or reward yourself and your family.

The main chef of the restaurant is Humphrey Navarro who is a very approachable guy and it is easy to strike a conversation with him. At the moment, the main dining space is small which can occupy less than 30 people so you should reserve in advance. There are other function rooms in the 2nd floor which would include a chocolate room and a wine library which is still 70% complete.

I like the way the food is cooked and prepared. The Foie Gras appetizer where very good (although I know that duck liver is fattening). You should try the Soup & Sandwich (with foie gras), and the four dances of Foie Gras (small servings of duck liver cooked in 4 different ways -- the "meat ball" cooked foie gras was good). We also loved the starters of a small plate of sea urchin and a dash of caviar. The soup of the day which is like an oyster soup and the mini-sorbet before the main dish was a winner.  For our main course, we shared family style the 500g Angus Beef Cowgirl Steak, A Shellfish pail, and Lapu-Lapu for my mom. It was a heavenly treat specially that the cooking is light/healthy and usually with wine as a cooking ingredient. Although the tastiness of the lapu-lapu or the seafood can be improved, as well as the different sauces for the shellfish pail, and the chocolate dessert. The food is expensive so be prepared with a P1,500-2,000max/person when you eat here on your special day.

Here are some of the details on Humphrey Navarro's Parallel-45:
Address: 871 Samat Street, Mandaluyong City
Mobile: 0917-8906865
Website: http://www.p45.com.ph/ (Still under construction)
Reservations: 718-8888
Popsy's Bday @ Parallel 45 Photoset

 

My first Wedding Photoshoot Engagement

I got carried away with excitement with my first wedding photoshoot assignment. My friend, ask me to be a backup photographer during her brother's wedding (Jay & Portia) last Sunday. Alot of things went wrong at the start. I was late by 15 minutes in the church and by about 90 minutes in the reception so it was a bad first job for me. Also, I'm having problems with my flash unit. Initially, most of the shots are dark and underexposed, or with an unflattering flash burst. I was able to handle it during the church ceremony but I had a hard time with the exposure during dinner time. I need to practice some more and buy the diffuser for the flash.

I was happy with the shots I got and I tried out a couple of effects I learned from Flickr's Technique group. Here are a couple of effects that I used in the wedding photos:
1). Explosive Photo Effect
2). Comic Art Effect
3). Ipod Ad Effect
4). Lomo Effect
5). Color / B&W Effect

I'm really having fun with photography and digital art these days. I'm thinking of taking photographs on a weekend basis ala Fol Rana.  Let me know if you have some questions on the different photoshop effects above.

Amici de Don Bosco -- Home-Cooked Italian Food that you'll love!

Authentic Italian Food!

If you haven't eaten in Amici yet, then I suggest that you hear mass in Don Bosco Makati and right after mass, walk towards Amici which is located under the pasay road/ arnaiz st. It is authentic Italian cuisine brought to us by one of the entreprenurial Italian Salesian Priest, Fr. Gianlugi Colombo, SDB. Now, having said that it is authentic, it means that its not the Italian food that we grew up in Manila -- Spaghetti that is sweet with red meat sauce. Here are my assessment of the Amici food so that you can calibrate your expectations when eating here:

1. Canteen ambiance. The entire resto has a canteen feel to it, and it is self service. This would mean you have to order pizza, pasta, and gelato from their respective counters and they will give you a number. There's a long line sometimes and the food delivery is slow so I would suggest to avoid the main dining hours.

2. Italian food for a price. The food is expensive and I think just rightfully so since it's kinda authentic and I'm hoping that some of the profits goes to a good cause by the salesian priest. Pizza costs around P240 while the pasta goes from a range of P120-P170. The gelato goes for P35 per scoop.

3. I love the home-cooked Italian taste! Now this is debatable because Filipino does not like the Italian taste which is bland, and sometimes sour in taste. You can certainly distinguish the taste from the commercial italian restos and the jollibee spaghetti taste. The pizza by the way is wood fire pizza so it tastes great except that sometimes there are some burned portions. Try Pizza #10 Four Seasons, #23 Al 4 Formaggi, and #24 Tutta Carne. On the pasta, try out #15 Spaghetti Vongole e Gamberetti (seafood pasta) and the Lobster Linguine.  The gelato is addicting --- try out the vanilla with nuts.

By the way, there are cooking lessons available for P1,500 for 6 hours and the session varies. I actually would have an idea to propose a teambuilding cooking sessions with the priest and see how it goes. The number to call are: 893-8915 for the cooking lessons.

Dayrit's delicious Roast Beef

Don't go back for more :(

Finally I was able to eat in Dayrit's which for the longest time I'm just seeing it along Buendia. Now, they moved in Magallenes already where they have spacious parking and a canteen like ambiance. I don't have alot to say about Dayrit's because so far, only the Roastbeef is great. All the rest, burger and non-beef food like sizzling fish is a big disappointment. So, if you are a meat lover and you happen to be in the Magallanes area, this is something to try out for a change.

Power Lunch @ Chef Ed's

G/F GF & P Building
139 H.V. Dela Costa Street
Salcedo Village, Makati City
Tel# 812-0016, Cell# 0921 740710

Awesome Power Lunch!!

I've always wanted to eat and try out Chef Ed's famous cosmopolitan cuisine specially the famous paella. Yesterday, I had an opportunity to eat during lunch time with the phils leadership team in Salcedo. We arrived at 11.15am (they open at 11.30) and this was just a perfect time for us to order the paella which should be ordered one hour and 15 minutes in advance! Yes, we have to wait but it was worth it :) Lunch was heavenly specially with all the happy discussions we are having with the team. You should also try out their laing lumpia, crispy cochinillo, and the decadent cake! we tried the grilled salmon tocino on vegetable sinigang but it was just OK.

Just a couple of advice for people eating here, you should alot at least 2 hours for lunch, call one hour in advance, and prepare a power budget of >P500 :)

Carlos Celdran noble cause to change the way we look at Manila!

Fantastic Tour! Way to go Carlos!

I remembered to post this article when Mike Best, my visitor from Cincinnatti, gave me a thank you gift which I received via mail last week. He appreciated the tour very much and I enjoyed joining the carlos celdran tours as well. Finally, I was able to meet the funky down-to-earth carlos and I joined not only one but two tours in one saturday afternoon. The first one was a scheduled Funky Imelda tour of the CCP complex buildings (CCP Main Theater, Folk Arts, and PICC). I learned the great importance of the Leandro Locsin architecture and understand better Imelda Marcos and how the CCP came to be. Then, we had a private tour of Intramuros which started with the tour of San Agustin Museum, Casa Manila and finally Fort Santiago. This tour talks alot about the spanish colonial era and the liberation of the Philippines by the Americans. There has been alot of articles already written about the tour and everything they said about Carlos is true. What I like most about the tour would be:

• Carlos funky getup and how he starts all his tour with the Philippine National Anthem.
• There are alot of funny anecdotes, controversial insights and unwritten gossips about the history of the Philippines.
• Carlos is a great promoter of the Philippines and we should have all tourists to our country to have the celdran tours as a must in their itinerary.
  

By the way, we requested Carlos to bring a psychic friend, Jessica along to cap the day with ghost stories and psychic readings. It was truly a fun saturday with Carlos.

Here are some of the links and reviews:
>> Carlos Celdran Intramuros and Funky Imelda Tour Photoset
>> Planet Philippines Article on Carlos Celdran
>> Philippine Business Magazine: Volume 12 No. 4 - Lifestyle. A Walk through History
>> Time Article March 7, 2005: Walk the Talk
>> Official Blog: www.celdrantours.blogspot.com
 

Awesome Places to visit next in the Philippines

There are still alot of places in the Philippines that I would loved to visit and conquer. One of my dreams is to visit all these beautiful places and hopefully capture its beauty in my photos. Someday, I'll publish a coffee table book on these awesome places in the Philippines. Here are my top 10 lists of places to visit in the next 6-12 months:

1. Relaxing vacation in the Fantasy island of Balesin, Quezon
2. Sand Shower experience in Pinatubo Wellness Spa
3. French Fine Dining at Navarro Humprey's Parallel 45 in Mandaluyong
4. Rare encounters with the whale sharks of Donsol, Sorsogon
5. Honeymoon in Pansukian in Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte
6. Experience Lady Laguna's Tina Decal Culinary Tour of Quezon
7. White water rafting in Tuguegarao
8. Explore Sagada and the famous Banaue Rice Terraces
9. Savor the Ananyana experience in Bohol
10. Summer Vacation in Lagen Island, El Nido Palawan

Send me a note if you want to join or similarly interested in any of these places.

Sanctuario -- The best filipino inspired Day Spa @ the heart of Malate

Awesome Spa!! I'm going back for more.

It's been a while since I've blog about stuff in our awesome manila because we have alot of offsite meetings in the office (which I don't usually blog about them). Last Sunday, I took the opportunity to check this famous day spa @ the heart of the malate area. I was flabbergasted by the beauty of the filipino inspired spa inside a spanish old house in Malate. This is really fantastic and just in the heart of the adriatico circle.

I've been a spa addict ever since and in fact we still have a spa membership in Westin Philippine Plaza Spa and Suriya Spa across Gold's Gym in Glorietta. While in Suriya, I've read in one of the spa magazines all the best spa in Manila and the previous two spa was mentioned (Westin Spa and Suriya @ Intercon). Mandarin Spa is also mentioned that is in my next list to visit but what surprises me is the mention of Sanctuario in Malate. Yes, another sanctuario but not the resto in Tagaytay but a day spa. What makes me interested in this spa, is the famous Roberto Nacario who is a true manghihilot who uses a coconut oil made by him during good friday and a menthol oil that is really icy soothing. Enough with the background, but for all those spa addicts out there here is my review on Sanctuario:

1. Try out the Banahaw Mystique! I guarantee you that it is a totally different spa experience that is truly Filipino I should say. You start of by have a shower, steam, sauna and enjoy the different open air pools in aquaria. Then you take a dip in a wooden bath tub with hot water of Pito Pito. After this you get an authentic Hilot Remedial Therapy by Tatang Robert. He is also performing the Bentosa (also called suction cups) which involves "sucking of certain acupoints in negative pressure environment" to clean your system, activate blood flow, stimulate nerve systems. Then you finish off with Dagdagay which is an authentic Filipino Tribal foot massage using bamboo sticks. Total damage is P1,550 which is not bad considering the number of treatments for 2 hours.

2. Roberto Nacario is a must! He is on a by appointment basis only so you should call or set an appointment via the website. Yes, the website appointment system actually works. He is a down to earth guy who is part time manghihilot and in the morning drives a jeepney. Also, expect that his hands would be rough already and he is already mid 50's but the pressure is the best. He would give you alot of insights on alternative healing. He is also available on home service basis @ P500 per visit. His cell number is 0919-2551151 for home service appointments.

Sanctuario is a full blown spa, salon and restaurant also. To give you an idea about the massage prices, aromatheraphy goes for P1,020, and reflexology/shiatsu by P780. Check out their entire line up of services.

Here are other information on Sanctuario:
website: http://www.sanctuario.com.ph/
address: George Bacobo corner Nakpil, Malate Manila.
Telephone Number: 450-1127
>> Sanctuario Pictures in Flickr

Mango and branded apparels at Factory Prices!

Awesome Factory Sale!!

I can't believe it :) It is like a factory outlet store in Manila that actually has quality branded apparel goods at less than 500 pesos per piece. It was a great sale indeed that only happens twice a year (Mid-year, and Christmas) in a warehouse in Meycauayan Bulacan. There are three things that makes this certified awesome sale:

1). People shop in crates! Yes, people actually hoards the clothes and fills up the crates. My wife and two of her friends bought P6,000+ worth of clothes. I can't believe it either but I've seen it with my own eyes and my credit card is my witness. Yes, they accept credit cards -- can you believe it? If you know the owner, you can simply ask for additional 5% discount on the total purchase -- who can beat that?

2). A Secret Place that only Chinese people know. I watched the people go into the sale with excited faces and these are mostly young Chinese women. You know that something is really good if you can see Chinese girls shopping in the store (they are the most value conscious people). Also, if you don't see sedan cars in the parking area-- mostly you can see Toyota innova, Toyota Revo, Ford Explorer, Honda CRV, Toyota Hiace and other family or 4x4 cars. This is strictly by word of mouth through the rotarians network but once you are in their contact list of the factory sale owners, you get informed when the sale gonna be held.

3). Original Mango Apparel at 1/3 the costs! My wife and his barkada would visit all the mango stores in metro manila to check out the great Mango sale. They cannot believe it when they saw some of the same clothes that are being sold in the mango stores for P900+, you can buy it in the factory sale for around P300! The warehouse have an air conditioned room where all the mango clothes can be found and the non-aircon area would have the men's shirts and other branded apparel. There are no imitation in this factory sale.

By the way, the Chinese owners are very nice and they even offer you soft drinks or bottled water when you shop. Really amazing!

What's the catch in all of these?

--> The products are overruns from export factories, from Hong Kong/ China, or Marshalls from the US. We suspect that the clothes are bought in bulk by weight. Some are from export companies in the Philippines so you would also see Ralph L made in the Philippines (but there are also made from other countries like mexico, etc.)

--> The factory store is located in Meycauayan, Bulacan which is the 2nd exit in the North Luzon expressway. Here is the address:

Star Trends Apparel Corporation
Block 4 Lot 3 Acefree Street, Sterling Industrial Park
Meycauayan, Bulacan  Tels 2996061, 2996120

Directions:
From Balintawak Northbound, take the North Expressway and take the Meycauayan exit (the big exit after Valenzuela, right after the Ever Memorial Park). Upon entering Meyc exit, turn left at the rotonda towards Iba (there is a sign), go straight past all the gas stations and you will see a big water tank of sterling on your right that marks the industrial park. Look for the second gate which is on your right (approximately 1.2kms from the rotonda). When you enter gate 2 (you have to leave ID), take the first left (Orion St.) and take the first right (Acefree St.). The gate is the 2nd gate from the corner (green).

--> The sale was already finished last June 30 until July 2, Saturday only. So keep posted on this blog for the next sale in November/December.

Yet Another Ultimate Chocolate Buffet (YAUCB) in Shangrila!

Alot better than Manila Pen, but still not worth it :)

When I arrive last Saturday from a whole week meeting in Singapore, I was soo excited to eat in yet another Ultimate Choco Buffet in Shangrila Makati. Yes, it is a copy cat of the Manila Pen's ultimate choco buffet and we fall for it again. Who wouldn't fall for it with these descriptions:

" Ultimate Chocolate Buffet --  Indulge in a seemingly endless spread of mini valrhona cakes, royal chocolate gateaus and tempting truffles in the most remarkable chocolate showcase. Every Friday and Saturday from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. "

Here are my two cents worth for those who are in the same target market of these choco buffets:

1).  Choco Buffets are not worth it!  For the price of P550 +10% service charge, you would die eating alot of the chocolates. The best that I can do is eat a small plate of the chocolate selections and the mixture of the best chocolate drink I've ever tasted. You should have a Shangrila Gold Card for a 20% discount or AMEX platinum for a 15% discount.  We had an amex discount and we still netted out with P520 per person.

2). Shangrila is alot better than the Manila Pen. I should say that what I love most is the chocolate drink ala fondue. You could select the chocolate that they would put in your choco drink with skim milk and a touch of almond syrup/ kahlua or baileys. You should definitely try the 65% cacao chocolate. Also, come in early so that you could still get the strawberry covered with Chocolate. Other than these two, all the rest are nothing special from the creme brulee, to the mint chocolate, to the  chocolate  puddings and cakes. Don't expect any fondue that comes with different fruits for dipping because you would only get marshmallows.

>> More Pictures of our Shangrila Ultimate Choco Buffet Experience

Coldstone Creamery -- the cult ice cream is here!

  Coldstone 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Something different

I'm excited that coldstone is starting to test market their ice cream in the Philippines! This is in the league of cult food like what krispy cream did for donuts. However, the rockwell branch is just a test market place, and the final outlet would either be in podium or greenbelt. Also, they are just offering packaged "I like it" cup servings and the choices are limited. They only have three flavors: Strawberry Banana Rendezvous, Coffee Lovers only, Chocolate devotions, Apple Pie ala Cold Stone, and Birthday Cake Remix.

We tasted the Strawberry Banana and I did not find it specially different or maybe I'm just not an ice cream connoisseur. They said that the full line would be available in the final outlet and I can't wait for it to arrive!

>> More info on Coldstone Creamery
The initial coldstone creamery is located in rockwell near Fully Booked.

Father's Day @ Chinese Monk in Rockwell

  Chinese Monk, Rockwell 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Chinese food without  MSG!

We decided to celebrate in Father's day in Rockwell because we wanted to eat in a place that we have not been to, and at the same time easy to park and not alot of people. Rockwell fits nicely into this criteria and originally we were hoping to try out the N restaurant -- but it was closed. Since popsy's favorite (and mine) are chinese food, we decided to eat at Chinese Monk.

Chinese Monk is located in the Dencio's, Crustacia side of Rockwell. Surprisingly, there are alot of people who decided to eat here too and like us, wanted to avoid the many families celebrating father's day. I actually have mixed reviews about Chinese monk. One great thing about the food is that they don't use MSG similar to Zhongnanhai. I particularly like the Mixed Seafood Medley, the ribs, and Hot & Sour soup. However, some of the food tasted like Filipino Chinese like the Szchezuan Crab (which outrageously costs P580) which tasted like the sauce is with Ketchup. The Sesame Prawn Salad is too sweet with alot of Mayonnaise and alot of shrimp bread coating (really fattening).

This is not a good place to talk since in a typical chinese restaurant where there are no acoustic and you can barely hear each other. Also, if you arrive past 7.30pm there are already alot of people eating dinner, so I suggest to arrive before 7pm if you want to get a seat specially during special days.

A beach resort called Honey!

  honey beach postcard 3 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Proceed with caution :)

I love beaches and when I got hold a copy of Philmap's beaches of the Philippines, I immediately looked for a beach area that is a driving distance from Manila but still exotic (or unexplored). I fell in love with the pictures of Honey Beach which is located in Sawang,Lobo, Batangas. Finally last Independence Day weekend, we had a chance with my wife's balikbayan friend, Espie. Yes, Lobo batangas beaches are not popular -- I can't find any google info about these beaches and nobody talks about them and I now understand why. Aside from the Philmap's article, which focuses too much on the positive and don't give you the negatives, I intend to give you local travelers, adventurers and beach lover like me what to expect and how to have a fun time in Lobo beaches.

Here are some of the key highlights:

Honey Beach Accomodation is OK for family/friends specially if you have kids!  The place is a private resort (recently opened to the public) owned by the Macalintals who shuttles back and forth between the US and their retirement place in Honey Beach. There is a whole article on the background of the place in Philmap's article and I don't intend to replicate it here. There are only 2 airconditioned rooms (suppose to be good for 5 each but from experience one can have 4 and the other 3 persons that could sleep comfortably) and 2 cottages (suppose to be good for 12 there are only two beds and the rest should sleep in a banig or mattress). Resorts should be more truthful on the maximum capacity of the rooms considering that people are not skinny girls and people needs to sleep comfortably. Having said that, since the place is a little private it is ideal for kids because it is not crowded, there is a putting green where the kids can play with the golf balls, and the service is warm + personalized.

You would spend P3,500 for the airconditioned room and P600/person for 3 meals (lunch, dinner, breakfast). Service Charge is not included and they have a song and dance number when you arrive that encourages you to provide the staff tips if you feel happy about their service.

This is definitely a great place to relax and breath fresh air with your family and friends!

There are alot of negatives (consider yourself warned!)

1. The road going to Lobo is terrible (although it has improved alot from a few years ago) -- 20km of rough roads sporadically spread throughout your journey to Lobo. Bring a big car or SUV -- highly recommended.

2. The Lobo beaches sunrise is behind the mountains and sunsets in front of the resorts but still behind the mountains (not the horizon). You have a feeling that there is something wrong with your location and wanted to move the mountains. So this is not an ideal place for sunrise/sunset shots.

3. Although they would say that the beach area in front of the resort is already protected recently (proclaimed as a marine sanctuary)-- the catch is the corals are alread DEAD! It is so sad that the fisherman killed the vast corals and snorkeling is a sad experience. It's like looking through grey dead corals.

4. The beach area in front of honey beach is disappointing. It is definitely not white, lots of rocks, and it is only clear in the morning but looks murky in the afternoon. Don't expect a stretch of white beach along a cove. Although, there are nearby resorts which have the kind of beach (submarine, and lily) -- This would be next on our lists of places to explore.

Some tips on how to make your trip exciting and fun.

1. Since it is a private resort, there are only a few things you can order. We can't even order san mig light, peanuts, and the like. Since there are no corkage anyway, bring the drinks and junk foodies you need to make your stay alot more exciting. Drinking by the beach is definitely a must!

2. There are two ways to go to Lobo, one is via Batangas City and the other one via Rosario which is 30 minutes shorter. Both have a long stretch of rough roads. I would suggest to go via Batangas city (just follow the road going to Ponte Fino which leads all the way to Lobo) and on the way back go via the Rosario Batangas route. I suggest that you make Ponte Fino as a stop over and savor the nice view of the pool in this hotel. If you don't know your way to Ponte Fino, just go via Startoll-- exit batangas city-- turn right after the exit toll-- just go straight past the batangas pier and makro batangas-- turn left going to ponte fino and follow the signs. Email me if you need directions.

3. This is an ideal getaway from all the hussle and bussle of manila. So bring your close friends and family and enjoy the night away.

More Information:

>> Photoset on Honey Beach, Lobo Batangas
>> Honey beach tag on Flickr photo

Click below for the contact info:

Garduch enroute to conquering Mt. Everest! Next Stop: MT Cho Oyu!

(Romi Garduch is the first Filipino to climb the highest mountain in the western/southern hemisphere - Mt. Aconcagua 22,842ft/6962m (Argentina) and currently holds the highest recorded Filipino ascent)

Garduch (or Romy as we call him) is a good friend and co-worker in IT in P&G. I'm really excited for him and supporting him in all his climb-for-a-cause activities. I think he is  trying to be the 1st ever Filipino to climb Mt. Everest! I would place a bet  that he would beat the Philippine Everest Team because his strategy is to train himself and join other capable mountaineer to reach the Mt. Everest. In Contrast, the Philippine Everest team is as strong as the weakest person in that team.

He already was able to climb Kilimanjaro and Aconcagua. Now, he is set to climb Mt. Cho Oyu in Sept/October.  I'm very happy that he started to blog and was inspired by Gavin Bates' Blog about climbing Everest.

Here is a description of Garduch from his blog:

Romi Garduch is a seasoned adventurer and an old-time mountaineer who has hiked and climbed mountains in more than 10 countries. He was the first Filipino to climb the highest mountain in the western/southern hemisphere - Mt. Aconcagua 22,842ft/6962m (Argentina) and currently holds the highest recorded Filipino ascent. He currently has eleven (11) high altitude peaks and high-passes under his sleeves (all above 15,000ft), including the famed Uhuru Peak of Kilimanjaro in East Africa (19,430ft), and Mt Pokhalde in Khumbu Nepal (19,000+ ft). He is a member of UPMountaineers (since 1991), and has started mountaineering trips abroad since 1998. Garduch started his international Climb for a Cause program in August 2004 (Elbrus, Russia), and continued with his 2nd in Dec/2004 (Aconcagua). This will be his 3rd climb for a cause.

>> 1st Climb-for-a-cause: Sept 2002:  Mt. Kilimanjaro
>> 2nd Climb-for-a-cause: Dec/Jan 2004: Mt. Aconcagua
>> 3rd Climb-for-a-cause: Sept/Oct 2005: Mt. Cho Oyu

Don't forget you can support his climb-for-a-cause by pledging P1 for every 100FT and the proceeds will go to the cartwheel foundation. Read more in the Mt. Cho Oyu Climb for a Cause Blog!

I'll keep you guys posted on my blog on Romi's progress. BTW, there are funny shots in his training escapades blog, check it out--> Training Escapades -2005.

"Anti-It" Restos by the PDI Super! Team

Inquirer yesterday released an article Anti-It (and eat it two!) which I read from  the Rants and Rave blog of Wysgal. It recommended the following cool bar and restos around metro manila and I've been to some of them.

N (Rockwell above brother's burger)
Yaku Japanese Bar and Grill (Somerset Millenium Hotel, Aguirre St., Legaspi)
Gweilos (C. Palanca St., Makati)
Gaudi
Cosa Nostra (Adriatico St., Malate)
Luce (Jupiter Street, Makati, 3F Montivar Building)
Swagat Indian Cuisine (Rada St., Legaspi Village, Makati City)
Nicotina Garden Pavilion
Cyrano Wine Selections (Legaspi St., corner C. Palanca St., Legaspi Village, Makati City)
Capone's (Valero Street, Salcedo Village, Makati City) 
A Taste of L.A. Cafe
Coco Cabana
Saguijo Café (Guijo St., San Antonio Village, Makati)
Lolo Dad's
Bellini's
Ato's Rack Billiards and Coffeenista (Aguilar Avenue, Casimiro or CAA Road Talon Tres, Las Piñas)
Lanai Red  (Westgate complex, Filinvest City)

I'm not into the bar thing these days but I like to try new restos specially ones that are not main stream and those that are best kept secret in Manila. Will keep the restos in mind and keep posted on my blog as I check them out...

 

Mothers Day @ Nicotina

  nictona scenes4 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Try it out!

I first heard of Nicotina from the show "F" on channel 23 and then later on read about it in Carlos Celdran's Walk this Way blog, in Wysgal's Rants and Raves, and recently in Inquirer's article, Anti-It (and eat it two!) restaurants. My family decided to eat for lunch during mother's day in Nicotina and I have mixed reviews about the place. Here are a few tips on making sure that you enjoy eating at Nicotina:

1. Reserve! Reserve! Reserve! Recently, I've making sure that for restaurants I want to visit, I make it a point to reserve a table to get the best spots in the place. In Nicotina, I'm glad we did because the whole place is al-fresco but there is only one section of tables (far end) where there is air conditioning available. This made alot of difference specially during the hot May afternoon. Here is the contact information:

NICOTINA GARDEN PAVILION

110 Williams St. corner Roxas Boulevard, Pasay City. (one door down from the Department of Foreign Affairs) tel. 5517906 - 07

2. The Ambiance is great but the food is just OK. Set your expectations lower on the quality of their food. I did not find the food great (like the salads, fish, deserts) and some are even below my expectations (like the quattro pizza, even the welcome drink). Not to mention, since the place is open air, you get to share your food with the flies and "bangaws" waiting to dive and taste the food. Should have sticked to the recommendation of Carlos Celdran on the Porcini Risotto and Beef Carpaccio. There was this dish called Fettuccine Gamberie Aragosta that we love and it is very good for sharing and it is a fettuccine pasta with prawns and lobster in tomato sauce. This was the highlight for us and you can check out some of the menu below:

3. Eat in the evening. I think it was not a good idea to eat during lunch because it is hot and there's not alot of things happening. What would have been great would be to eat there during wednesday when the Ramon Obusan Folkloric Group performs a traditional Filipino dance in a Cabaret Setting as Carlos would describe it; or during friday/ weekends where there are bands performing.

By the way, it was named after the nicotina plant shown below:

>> More pictures of Nicotina

Now I know why KAPUSO GMA channel 7 is no. 1!

  LT OFFSITE GMA7 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Last May 24, I had a chance to  learn the success story of GMA7's  rise to being no.1 in mega  manila!  I now fully appreciate  and understand why GMA7 is beating ABS-CBN channel 2 how and for years to come.  Here are some facts:

1). In February, GMA obtained  its highest lead ever, over ABS-CBN by 6 points in total day ratings based on both AGB and Ac Nielsens  rating.

2). 17 out of the top 20 programs are on GMA in mega manila house holds according to AC Nielsen  which includes Full House, Extra Challenge, Mulawin, stairway to heaven, and 24 oras on the top 5 programs overall.

3). As of February, 14 new shows  (out of 30 new programs promised)  on ABS-CBN has been launched  and all these shows registered  lower scores than their GMA counterparts. (These include Home Boy vs.  Dolphin Bay uncut,  M.R.S.  Vs. Sis, star dance vs. Bitoy's Funniest Videos; among others)

Here are some of the learnings from the GMA story:

1. Back to Basics, Focus on the Core.  Fixing the fundamentals of organizational excellence is key which would include establishing  Mission, Vision, core values, policies, rewards and recognition,  training among others. Focusing on the integrity and  credibility of the news and public  affairs of GMA7 is on top of the priority list.  Removing non-performing assets  and allocating resources to things that would add value to the filipino viewers is a must.

2. The viewer is the boss!  All programming decisions are based on what the viewers wants  to see. Single minded focus to beat competition to win the hearts and mind of their viewers. Some of the actors and writers have  to go on an immersion program  to be in touch with the pulse of the masses.

3. Innovation is key to longterm success. You will be amazed at how the key innovation programs of channel7 have succeeded back to back from Mulawin to Darna to Enkantadia.  Im now excited to see their next fantaserye, Sugo which is described as Pepsi commercial (red/ blue pepsi) meets crouching tiger hidden  dragon --- kungfu Filipino style! Innovation is a product of the best minds across the GMA  organization (management, talents, writers, GMA  staff), and  deeper gut feel understanding  of the minds and hearts of the Filipino viewers.

I used to think that being a KAPAMILYA is cool but after the  GMA visit, I'm now a KAPUSO! congratulations GMA7 and more  power!

 

Shooting House of Care visuals with Raymund Isaac @ Sta. Elena

  raymund in action shooting the bed of flowers2 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Now I can already blog about the stunning visuals that you would see in the house of care solution center in Shopwise Alabang. I'm into photography, and it's an honor to have worked with Raymund in shooting the House of Care visuals in Sta. Elena Golf & Country Club last May 5. At first, you would thought that he is intimating but really he is down to earth and I enjoyed chatting with him and exchanging photography tips. Here are a few tips that I would like to share with you:

1. Visualize the photo before composing and taking the shot. This is the key to the photographs. You should be able to articulate in your mind what about the shot is visually appealing to you and why. After this clear vision of the photo, that's when you capture that vision in your shot. (easier said than done)

2. Use Backlighted composition. For people, this would give a hair light effect on the heads and for nature like leaves/ trees, it would give a dimension instead of appearing as flat in the photo.

3. Its all about light. You should be able to tell (by practice) what would be the aperture/shutter speed settings of a particular seen based on how light strikes the objects/ colors. The key is to be able to photograph the scene with the right settings the first time with no need of post production. This takes alot of practice and alot discipline! Some practical tips on lighting would be shoot early in the morning before 11am and after 3pm to get the right lighting levels.

Here are my favorite photos among the various layouts. Sta. Elena is very very beautiful and it provided the backdrop for all the shots in the House of Care photos in Shopwise.

Lovely place with a great photographer, can you ask for more?
  >> More Pictures of Raymund Isaac @ Sta. Elena

Shopwise House of Care --- Alabang Launch with Bitoy and Tolits !

Finally, all the hard work paved off and we are able to launch a new concept in retailing for the household products. Shopwise in partnership with P&G collaboratively launched the House of Care yesterday in Shopwise Alabang. It makes shopping for household products alot Easier and alot Faster!! With the nice shopping environment (the bears are really cute and reminds me of the care bears cartoon) , varied assortment (even important products like tide with a touch of downy), and easy to find products grouped under different rooms in your house ( kitchen, bathroom, general household, and Laundry).  This is how shopping should be experience inside the supermarket!

I had fun taking pictures of the solution center and our showbiz guest bitoy and tolits. The launching event started at 4pm, one hour late as originally planned because Michael V needed to finish eat bulaga and pitch in for vic/joey who was absent for that day. Its great to see Michael V in person perform the J-O-Y song! He is just a natural comedian and I had a chance to talk with him during the cravings merienda. He was telling stories about how they would laugh and laugh during the shooting of the bear brand's "nakabawi ka na ba" commercial. It was shot by our agency, publicis as well and I'm hoping to see some outtakes soon :)  Another amazing person is Tolits. He has a lot of fans and he is down to earth. He considers everybody as his tito/tita and he is just 7 years old. How could a child attract soo much attention?! His real name is BJ and we had a fun time chatting with him. It would be really good if there is a Tide music marketing by Tolits, don't you think?

Come and visit Shopwise Alabang to experience the House of Care!!

>> More Pictures of the House of Care
>> Shopwise House of Care Mechanics

The Farm @ San Benito --- Did it really create an impact on the way I live?

ianc
  the spa 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Last May 25, 2005, I was able to go back to The Farm for a teambuilding session with the Philippines leadership team of P&G and I got to reminisce The Farm experience my wife and I had a year ago (holy week April 2004).I am very proud of that experience and one of the primary reasons we went there is to concieve a child. Yes, and right after visiting the Farm, Rache was pregnant with Aidan. We were trying already for some time to conceive a baby and we had a difficulty. The Farm apparently is marketted outside of the Philippines as the Hippocrates Health Resort of Asia and also known as place for having a baby by cleaning/detoxifying yourself. This was validated when my wife and I were in Australia for a vacation last year in May, we read in the Woman's Day magazine about Ian Stenlake and Rachael Beck's (busy showbiz couple in Australia) taking a Baby Honeymoon after three years of marriage in the Farm @ San Benito in the Philippines.

After a year, here are my reflections on the impact of The Farm @ San Benito in our life?

• The Joy of Parenthood -- My wife and I will be eternally grateful to the Farm for helping us with detoxifying ourselves and we are able to give birth to healthy baby boy, Aidan. During the iridology (eye) examination, the doctor said that I have a weak prostate problem and I should continue to eat healthy food (coconut, papaya, etc.) to strenghten my condition. We now have a 4 month old fat baby boy and adjusting to the joys and trials of parenthood.
  
  
• Back to old eating habits -- This is the most challenging part. After learning that all the cooked food that we eat is dead and that eating meat is slowly poisoning yourself, I cannot help myself but still consume alot of these food. I'm still struggling and in fact, I gained almost 30 pounds already (currently weighing 208lbs) due to poor eating habits and lack of exercise. During the teambuilding, even though I know that the food that we are eating in the farm is live and healthy, I succumb to the temptation of cheating and eating chocolate bars, peanuts and sausage mcmuffin which was smuggled inside our conference meeting room. At the rate the I am tracking, I won't be surprised if I have cancer due to the food I eat by the age of 50. The lack of self discipline, peer pressure of eating unhealthy food and the lack of support systems to keep you on track to a healthy lifestyle are key barriers that needs to be addressed.

After visiting the Farm again, the spirit of healthy living was rekindled inside of me. I remember the ordeal of colon cleansing, and how I promised myself then to live a healthy life so that I don't need to go through the pain again. I remember the surge of energy I get after eating healthy living food and how junk food can be addicting to the point that you poison yourself. I desperately want to change and I want to see my son grow up and have his own son. This is not the end...

>> More: The Farm @ San Benito Photoset
>> The Official Website of The Farm @ San Benito, Lipa, Batangas

Laiya Cocogrove Beach Resort

  single bed treehouse 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Recommended Beach Offsite meeting place

I've been to a back-to-back offsite meeting and coming from Boracay, Laiya cocogrove is a stark contrast. It is the first beach resort when you first arrive in the dirt roads of Laiya. It is a 2.5 hours drive from Manila and you should alot another 30 minutes for stop over. I've been wanting to visit / explore the san juan beaches -- first with Balai sa Laiya and then La Luz Resort. I would say that cocogrove is alot better than Balai but I still like La Luz better. These beaches have been unexplored yet both by local and foreign tourists that is why I like to go back to these San Juan, Beaches!

What I like about cocogrove?

1. The treehouse concept is really nice. They are situated right beside the beach!  There are different treehouse configuration that can fit from 3 persons to as many as 5 to 10 persons. The costs in cocogrove is on a per head basis which ranges from P2,500 to P3,000 depending if you are sharing the room. It already includes buffet meals from Lunch to Lunch the next day. Still, I think it is expensive for an overnight stay in a beach resort.

2. Conference Room Amenity. There is a conference room that you can use for business meetings with complete conference room facilities. I have not seen that other resorts have this and this would be a winner if you are planning an offsite meeting for a small group.

3. Access to White Beach! This is another stretch of Beach which is not yet developed where you can play badminton or just go to the beach. The sands and beach are very nice and there is a beach volleyball court. This is a 5 minutes jeepney ride from cocogrove and part of their vast estate. This is one of the place where extra challenge have been to in one of their episodes.

What I don't like about cocogrove?

I don't like the food, contrary to some regular clients of LCG who liked the overall good value of the package and quality of the food that is included. I always hate these resorts that provide an all-in-one resort package per head and you don't have options to even bring your own food. Just a warning also for those people who are not used to drinking coffee because I had a stomach ache when I drank their batangas barako coffee (which is also loved by some of the regular clients of LCG).

Boracay's Mystique...

  boat station 2 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

A Truly Magical Experience

I've been wanting to blog about Boracay but I'm afraid that I might not give justice to Bora's magical experience that awaits any tourist/vacationer. Each Boracay experience is truly unique and the island never fails to surprise or amuse you with its cuisines, parties, sceneries, chillout places, shopping, and people. I've been in Boracay 2 years plus (I can't remember exactly) and each visit has been an unforgettable awesome experience. There is a saying that "what happens in Boracay stays in Boracay"  because people literally are transformed  like a butterfly coming out of its cocoon. I would like to give you a glimpse of what happens in Bora. Here are a few suggestions on how to make your boracay escape a truly memorable experience:

1. Signature Boracay Experience

A Boracay experience is not complete without these time-tested Boracay traditions:

• Sipping Jonas Milkshake while watching the sunset.
• Flipping over a wild banana boat ride with your friends
• Having a massage by the beach with virgin coconut oil

2. The Beach Bum look

Two-piece swimsuit is in. I've never seen Boracay soo bold with girls wearing two-piece suit as a standard and if you are wearing one piece -- it is either your old or your fat. I was shocked or maybe I was just old that I'm not been in Boracay for quite a long time. Boracay is a great place to be young and free. So what if you don't have a two-piece suit and you are shy to wear your one-piece after reading this? Don't worry, there is the famous "Paolo Collection" swimwear line in the d'Mall where you can find quality but cheap two-piece suit.

Henna Tattoos are a must!  Almost all Boracay goers have a Henna Tattoo or a glitter Tattoo which serves as a trademark that you have been to Boracay. In our group, the young ones definitely got one while the young once shy away from this. Just a word of caution: the henna tattoos smudges with sweat and it would take you two weeks to remove. Also, there are some people who are allergic to Henna so be very careful. If you are determined to get a henna, get one in the morning, place it where you won't sweat easily and it should definitely be seen. I loved watching women with henna tattoos on their lower back.

Puka Shells/ Bead Necklaces.  Boracay is full of vendors of necklaces. Be sure to get one to accessorize your look or bring one as a "pasalubong" to your friends or family.

3. Island Hopping around Boracay Island

Island hopping is one of the boracay plus experience that you should definitely do that would consume a half day of your itinerary. You need to negotiate with a banca boatmen preferably associated with your beach resort. The costs depends on how many you are, and how long is the trip. Here's a tip: make sure that you call him by his name when negotiating and you should know or pretend to know the places you would go to. Here are recommended places to visit/stop over:

• Snorkeling near crocodile island and drinking fresh buko juice after.
• Stopping over for lunch at Puka Grande, in Puca beach.
• Appreciating the beauty of the Nami Villas. (try to inquire and see their breathtaking rooms)

4. Dining and Chilling out with style

There are alot of good restaurants in Boracay and places to chill out for the night. Since you only have a limited time in this island paradise, you need to carefully plan out your dining adventures. Here are my favorites:

• Gasthof Restaurant in d'mall. Yummy Filipino grilled food right in the center of d'mall.
• Aria Italian Restaurant in d'mall. The food is simply unforgettable.
• Happy Hour at Cocomangas -- buy 1 take 1 drinks with Chori Burger on the side.
• Chilling out with cool music at BomBom -- this is where the likes of Paolo Santos hangs out

Other options:
Manana Mexican Food in station 1 beside cocomangas.
Caribo Restaurant in Station 2
True Food Indian Restaurant in Station 2 before boracay regency
Victory Thailand Restaurant in Station 2 right after boracay regency
Crepes St. Michel de Boracay in d'mall
Smoke Resto at the back of d'mall where you can buy food in the market and they'll cook it for you.

5.  Drinking and Dancing the night away in Boracay

The Station 1 party places are still the coolest place in Bora. This includes Pier 1 Beachcomber, Cocomangas and the spill over bar in the middle Club Paraw. If you want to be wasted for the night, here are my recommended drinks for you and you'll surely dance the night away.

• Jam Jar Drink and Illusion Shaker at Cocomangas
• Weng Weng Drink at Bombom
• Slammer and Beer Bong at Pier 1 Beachcomber.

If you are planning to be wasted, make sure that there are no evidences (you don't want to create another scandal) and remember the Boracay motto  "What happens in Boracay, Stays in Boracay!!"

Amici de Don Bosco Ice Cream @ Waltermart Makati

  Amici de Don Bosco 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

A breath of fresh air for gelato ice cream in Makati

I'm starting to hear a buzz about the gelato Don Bosco ice cream started by a Salesian entreprenuer in Waltermart Makati. So finally, after the Sunday Mass in Don Bosco we visited the place in the 2nd floor of WM Makati outside the supermarket. It is very affordable: P10 - small cone, P20- big cone, and P30- one scoop in a cup. You can take it out for P150 at a minimum and they put it in a styrofoam container. We tried hazelnut and Al rum (chocolate with rum). The hazelnut is a winner while the other one, I should say, don't try it. This reminds me to do taste tests first specially for non-regular flavors.

I'm sure to come back and try the other gelato flavor.

A disappointing choco buffet @ Manila Pen

  chit chat with the chef 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Try it out for experience sake.

Yes, it was disappointing. Despite the warning of my wife's cousin, Pam about the  disappointing reviews of Manila Pen's Choco Buffet, I still went ahead and ate last Saturday with Rache's barkada. Here are the highlights:

GOOD
(almost) killer chocolate. You should pace yourself from eating the chocolates or else you won't enjoy eating alot of it at one time. My suggestion is that you eat the good ones only: The pralines are good! The chocolate fondue is the highlight of the night. They use german Valrona chocolate for the fondue. Also you can try the Bizu type chocolate, pistaschio macaroons. You should end the meal with hot tea.

good cause chocolates.  Do you know why the pralines are really good? All the chocolates are made in Manila Pen but with imported chocolate ingredients. However, the secret is that the pralines are a labor of love from the deaf/mute employees who creates them in the choco room of Manila Pen.

nobody can beat good company. Even if the food is disappointing, Manila Pen's lobby ambiance is a perfect setting for good conversion with good friends. Nobody can beat that!

BAD
Not worth it!  We paid P470 net for the buffet which already included a citibank gold discount of 15%. With a disappointing chocolate souffle, assortment of chocolate cakes, poor choices of fondue dips (melon and orange?!   why not use mango or grapes instead) I should only be paying P200 for this. To compensate, we got some pralines to go wrapped in manila pen's lobby tissue :)

Food Tasting @ Zhongnanhai

  Chef Alan Chan Chung 
  Originally uploaded by Where is Anton?.

Finally we decided to hold Aidan's Baptism reception in Zhongnanhai. We wanted to have a modern chinese cuisine and it was love at first taste. Last Saturday, we had one taste tests for all the food that is about to be serve on Sunday, April 10. I should say that we were not disappointed with the quality of food.

Zhongnanhai Chinese Bistro, Greenbelt 2

Recommended

1. No MSG! The restaurant prides itself with good quality chinese food without using any MSG. The Appetizer & Dimsum was very tasty. Our appetizer and dimsum menu consists of:

• Barbeque Pork Combination
• Fried Beancurd with Spicy Salt
• Steam Polanchai with Shrimp
• Onion Pancake
• Michael's Crispy Raddish Roll-over
• Taro Puff
• Braised Spinach with Seafood Soup

I like the fried beancurd (tokwa) when dipped in vinegar and specified during the first serving where it is still very crunchy. I was also surprised with the Raddish Roll-over which tastes very good and one of the best sellers in Zhong.  Also, worth to mention is the steam Polanchai with Shrimp and the Braised Spinach with Seafood Soup. At this point, we felt that we ate one whole meal already and we have not yet started with the main course.

2. Alot better than chinese fastfood. Although, some of the main course dishes are similar to other chinese restaurant in description (i.e. sweet & sour pork), the taste is alot different. In tagalog, hindi nakakasuya -- You should taste it for yourself. The winner for me is the steam garoupa fillet, Braised prawns in Pumpkin Sauce, and the Braised seasonal vegatables with century egg.  Although the yang chow rice, and braised efu noodles tasted ordinary.

The main course menu consists of:

• Steam Garoupa Fillet with Onion leek & soy sauce
• Braised prawns with pumpkin sauce
• Crispy Fried Chicken
• Sweet & Sour Pork
• Panfried beef with Oyster Sauce ---> Changed to Honey Pepper Beef
• Braised Seasonal vegetable with salt & century egg
• Braised efu noodels with crabmeat
• Yang Chow Fried Rice
• 1 way Peking Duck

3. The best ice tea and hot tea!  The ice tea is brewed tea with orange juice while the hot teas are imported from China. This is a definitely must try to accompany the excellent cuisine.

4. Delicious Steamd Glutinous Rice Balls.  I would say that this is a signature dessert and I've only tasted this glutinous rice balls stuffed with egg custard here in Zhong. The other desserts are ordinary which include:

• Steamed glutinous rice balls stuffed with egg custard
• Hot taro with sago
• Almond Jelly
• Mango Sago
• Buchi

5. Complete party package. We are glad that together with the excellent food, Joy (manager in Zhong) gave us additional items to complete the party package to have a hassle free event which include:

• Buffet Menu table top
• Balloon Decoration
• Face Painter
• Balloon Twisting
• Complimentary Baptismal Cake
• 30pcs Thank you Cards.

Net, we are excited and can't wait to serve our baptismal guest the excellent Zhongnanhai food. Thank you Zhongnanhai for hosting Aidan's baptism on April 10!

MORE INFO:

Zhongnanhai Chinese Bistro is located at the ground floor of Greenbelt 2 in between Kai and Gloria Maris (formerly 12 restaurant).

PS. Send me an email if you have questions on the contract costs.

Pizza Hut Bistro Oasis @ Gateway Mall

Oasis. Recommended . This is my favorite business recap place everytime I would do a customer call in Shopwise/ Rustans in Cubao. The Oasis @ gateway mall serves Pizza Hut Bistro food which have a different menu from the other Pizza Hut chains. I ordered the oriental salad and they taste great! The serving sizes are small so family style eating is not recommended.  Lastly, the oasis is a garden in the mall with an open ceiling. Despite being open, there is airconditioning inside which is extremely important during summer. Surely, expect me to go back for more...

Lovely Easter Lunch @ the Mango Farm

Try it out!

Rache and I decided to invite our parents to have an Easter lunch with us at the Mango Farm.  Overall, the experience is very satisfactory but there are a few things they can improve to make it exceptional and unforgettable dining experience.

What I like about the Mango Farm?

1. Excellent Ambiance. Definitely, the open air ambiance of eating a relaxing Sunday lunch is a winner for me. Mapresko! Eating lunch under a Mango Tree in Metro Manila is certainly a novelty that you want to pay more for special occasions. Of course, there are minor problems to this setup which includes falling mangos and dead leaves as an ornament to your meal; and this summer, the sun's ray is so hot that it starting to pierce through your skin. But when the sun is already covered by the clouds and your diligent enough to guard your food against the falling surprises, then this setup should not be a problem. 

2. Down-to-earth owner.  Mike Santos (the owner) is very accomodating, friendly and a good hosts. From the time that I was talking to him about reservations, he was able to answer my questions and accomodate our needs. He was able to interact with my dad and father-in-law about agriculture and interact with us about photography which is one of his hobbies. Thank you Mike for the warm welcome and accomodation!

3. Very good food! The food is parity versus other makati restaurants in terms of taste, presentation, and quantity of food. We like the seared french-cut chicken breast with pomodoro sauce, sesame herbed chicken cordon bleu, and poached salmon fillet with roasted pumpkin sauce.  Admittedly, the beef tenderloin steak is bland and not juicy anymore. Overall, the main course was a pleasant treat. The coffee was really great as remarked by my Dad who is very critical about his coffee.

 

What the Mango Farm can improved on?

1. The food is nothing special not even a signature mango dish.  Apparently, the food is served by Cardamom Catering headed by Alvin Ong, and Mike, the owner of the property seems to be just renting the place to Cardamom to serve their food. The setup is wrong and the concept is not wholistic. What make's Sonya's, Antonio's, Chef Lautico, Tita Monings click is that the food is integral to the whole concept of the experience and the entire ambiance. Let me explain. There is no signature dish, even yet a Mango dish which you would expect in a mango farm. Also, the single serving of the mango drink served in a small glass is not FRESH and made from concentrate! This is not what you would expect from a "Mango Farm". We asked for fresh mangoes for dessert and there's not even one that can be offered because the Mango season is still in April.  A signature dish with ingredients coming from the farm would have boosted the entire concept like the rose petals on Sonya's in her salads, the bread pudding of Tita Monings, the steak of Antonio's, or Poie Gras salad of Chef Lautico.

2. Fine dining with no attention to details. I would not classify the experience as fine dining as marketted in the brochures. There are details that was just OFF like: the aluminum chairs and small tables; only one waiter and the service was really bad. There was another family (the Tantoco's) eating when we arrived and they were seated right next to our table --- we need some space. I'm glad that they were already finished when we arrived and they decided to move to another table to have their dessert. The meals are not a complete course --- no soup or salad even!  Also, the guest book is lousy --- you can be more creative than just having people sign it. (In tita monings, you get to have your picture taken to be posted in the scrapbook with your comments) Lastly, Mike was in his biker's outfit as you can see from the pictures and I have no problem with it but it does not match the whole concept.

3. Too Expensive -- not worth the price.  The 3-course chicken meal (appetizer, main course, dessert) costs P500, while the steak and salmon 3-course meal costs P750. Way too expensive, considering that the entire experience does not match with the other garden restaurants, private dining places. I'm glad that both our parents have a senior citizens card that we got a 20% discount on their meal. So the P750 was discounted to P600 for the steak/salmon meal. It is either the entire concept and experience is improved by adding more food or addressing the first two(2) concerns above. It should have special discounts or packages for special events like Easter, Christmas and other special occasions (i.e. birthdays) to make it worth it.

TIPS when eating @ the mango farm:
1. You can order a variety of main course from all their past menus since November. You just need to inform the chef in advance.
2. You should try to visit the nearby organic farm and buy fresh vegetables.
3. Cash basis only.
4. Bring your camera since the place is photogenic.
5. Alot about 3 hours for the entire dining experience. Enjoy the place.

MORE INFORMATION:
Check out their website for directions, menu, and other info --> http://www.themangofarm.com/
There is a yahoo group for the mango farm --> themangofarm@yahoogroups.com
View complete photos here --> Easter Lunch @ the Mango Farm Photos

Around Laguna Lake in 11 hours! Yahoo!

Finally, together with some of our friends, we were able to complete a day trip to the Laguna area via going around the Laguna Lake! This is the first time I tried it last Black Saturday. We left Manila at around 8.30am, had a stop over @ petron in south super h-way to grab big chill and jamaican patties. Then we proceded to Calauan Laguna for to visit Field of Faith at around 11.30am. After an hour in FOF, we left Calauan at around 12.45pm enroute to Exotik restaurant for lunch @ around 2pm. After 2 and a half hours, we left the restaurant and dropped by the famous Paete Church. Most of the shops are closed because of Black Saturday in Paete but you can still see some wood carving shops in the middle of the town. After praying for 3 wishes, we head back to Manila via Rizal @ around 5pm. We arrived in Ortigas at around 7pm -- woohoo! Still have plenty of time to have dinner @ Metro Walk.

The map above is courtesy of Paete.org.
See the collection of photos from me, Maong, Diwat ---> Pictures of Laguna Lake Caravan

Exotik Restaurant -- worth it if your eating exotic foods

Try it out! Exotik restaurant is located in Longos, Kalayaan Highway in Laguna. It is about 4 hours drive from Manila and you need to pass by Pagsanjan and Caliraya (yes, it is that far). From the field of faith, Exotik is about 1 hour away and some of our friends are hungry already when we left Exotik at around 12.45pm and we arrive about 2pm in Exotik. The food is Filipino and I like their Sinigang, Tuna sisig, grilled Tilapia, grilled squid. The food is great! (specially if you are hungry :)  One funny thing though, we did not order any of the exotic food this place is known for. Our billed turned out to be P3,500 for the a group of 9, so we had to pay P400 each --- and I think that is expensive priced for tourists! Even the pasalubong place who sells espasol for P45 which could be bought easily at 3 for 100 with the same quality.  The ambiance is really nice, it offers a few of the Laguna lake, and one of the attraction is Samantha (a pet anaconda shown below). Check it out if you happen to be in the Caliraya area. This is definitely a place for tourist to eat exotic food!

Click here for more photos-->  Flickr Photos: Exotik Restaurant Longos, Laguna

 

 

Field of Faith -- a healing garden in Laguna

Highly Recommended!

When our friends were looking a place to visit last black saturday, my friend Maong stumble upon this Inquirer Article (3/21/05): Field of Faith offers solitude, rosary garden. We were inspired by the story and we decided to visit the place.  Upon arriving,  you are greeted with a wonderful view of a fountain and the main chapel over a backdrop of coconut trees. The place feels fresh, peaceful, and it is like you are transported to a magical garden.

Click here for more pictures --> Flickr Photoset: Field of Faith Pilgrimage, Calauan, Batangas

The best part of the garden is the rosary path where you could see inspiring quotes on the concrete road, find a comforting meditation spot, reflect on the joyful mysteries in resin and metal, meditate on the sorrowful mysteries depicted in wood carvings, or pray in the cement and glass cross on top of the hill.  Also, you can pray the stations of the cross on the right side of the entrance with the stations wood carvings nailed to trees.

We were awed-inspired when we visited and I'm sure to come back to this place this time to meditate and pray (instead of taking pictures and acting like tourists). The place was designed to find God and find your inner strenght.  To the Singson family, thank you for sharing this place with us.

For more information about the Field of Faith:

Field of Faith is 2-3 hours (with traffic) drive from Manila. You should watch out for the pansol area and los banos junction traffic. There is no entrance fee but food and drinks are not allowed so that you can buy from them (one way to augment costs). The CR is clean according to the women and this is worth mentioning. There are alot of good restaurants within the area including Samaral and Kamayan sa Palaisdaan.

Please call Nene Quintos, 0919-378-1664 or 721-0081, or email field_of_faith@yahoo.com
Directions: Download Map to the Field of Faith.doc (463.5K)

Jollibee Fresh Green Salad -- Finally!

  Image_68.jpg 
  Originally uploaded by Where is Anton?.

I was in Super SM Sucat and after visiting the hypermarket, I was planning to grab a takeout so that I can eat in the car specially during traffic. I'm trying to lose weight and eat more healthy food but every where I go, its Carbo everywhere! Mcdo, Pizza Hut, Chowking, French Baker, you name it. Fortunately, I saw Jollibee and I wanted to try out their new salad. I was a bit hessitant at first, but I have no choice. I ordered the salad with Asian dressing and the new chicken torpedo. To my surprise, the salad tasted fresh at par with Wendy's salads and the Asian dressing is perfect! Thank you Jollibee for innovating and leading the fast food chains in bringing healthy options. Try it out!

Costa Brava -- Yummy Caramel Cake

  Aidan's 2nd Month Birthday 
  Originally uploaded by Where is Anton?.

OK to try . We ordered a caramel cake for Aidan's 2nd Month anniversary from Costa Brava. The cake was yummy, not to sweet, addicting specially the yema-like caramel in the middle. It looks like an immitation of Estrell's cake and it tasted similar. The round small cake above costs P300 and you need to pick it up in Bel Air. We feel that it is expensive but we like it because it is home made and kinda a secret. We learned this from one of the potluck dinners we attended last Christmas.

Below is the complete contact information:
Costa Brava - 12 Polaris St. Bel Air 896-1267, 896-6872.

AA BBQ and Metro Sports in Cebu City

I'm in Cebu for a business trip and an account engagement in Metro G. What I love about my local business trips would be three things: Getting to know people, Great local food, and Badminton! I'm very happy that I was able to accomplish all there objectives aside from the business of course :)

1). Domeng aka Ricky Martin of CBD. I had a great time talking to the Domeng (the CBD Person assigned in Cebu) and I got to know him better. I'm always amazed at how colorful the lives of people. In fact, I just learned that Domeng married his long time girlfriend within a one month's notice! (No she was not pregnant and that is the interesting part on why this happened). Second thing, I learned that he has three girls already spaced equally 4 years apart  and his "bunso" (the youngest) was born on Jan. 18 -- one day before Aidan was born, Imagine that?  There has been alot of stories and I'm glad that I was able to get to know this person better.  I was hoping to get to know another IT officemate, Tanya but unfortunately there was limited occasion to do so.

2). AA BBQ House the original  -- a must eat in Cebu for your sinugba cravings. At last, I finally was able to eat in the original AA BBQ house in Cebu. It erased my memory of the AA BBQ house in greenhills which serves cooked frozen fish and lousy sauces. I liked the sinugba fish and squid that we ordered together with their soy sauce in chili and sliced tomato. Don't order the chicken. Our bill was 1,000 for the four of us and we ordered alot of fresh grilled food!

3). Metro Sports Badminton -- home of Cebu's badminton addicts.   Playing badminton rejuvenates me but the downside is I'm awake for a couple of hours after playing (we ended 11pm). You have to pay 100 per person in the entrance which is consummable for either two (2) mineral water, or one (1) gatorade, or (2) potato chips. The courts are taraflex and 150 per hour. When we stopped playing at 11pm (when I took the shot above) there are still a few people playing. This is one of the badminton courts in cebu the opens as early as 5am in the morning and closes late until 12nn or even 2am according to Domeng.

A preview of the Bicol Caravan

Our friends are planning a trip to Donsol, Sorsogon in Bicol this summer via a road trip. I was fortunate to have a business trip in Naga and Legaspi this past 3 days that I was able to learn the way and took some pictures as a sneak preview of our upcoming vacation. Thanks to the CBD manager, JayR assigned in the Bicol area, for showing us the way around.  Here is a preview of the trip to Bicol and some tips to make the road trip enjoyable:

1. Photogenic but shy Mt. Mayon.   

If it is your first time to visit the bicol region, the view of Mt. Mayon will be breathtaking and awesome. If your intentions are pure according to the local folklore, you should be able to see mayon clearly (picture on the left taken at around 7am in the morning enroute to Legaspi). Otherwise, you'll only be seeing Mayon wrapped around white clouds (picture on the right taken @ the Cagsawa Ruins at around 2pm). Learning, have your cameras ready and take the first opportunity to shoot Mt. Mayon when the clouds are clear.

BTW, its best to visit the Cagsawa ruins during the weekday when there is no tourist. You can also buy cheap handicrafts in the tiangge and don't forget to buy mazapan pili.

2. The beautiful Naga.

Naga is an ideal place for stop over on road to Donsol, Sorsogon (3 hours from Naga). It took us 8 hours to arrive in Naga but on the way back to Manila it took us about 10 hours. In both instances, we left at around 6 am in the morning and you'll arrive at around 4pm.  Naga is the one of the big cities in Camarines Sur, and one of the places where the per capita income is similar to Manila. (Note: Bicol region is one of the poorest region in the country with the lowest per capita income similar to mindanao).  There are a few places to explore here which includes:

a. Basilica Minore, Naga. Home to the miraculous image of the Patroness of Bicolandia, Nuestra Señora de Peñafrancia. Thousands of pilgrims flock to this site during the September celebration of the Peñafrancia Fiesta just to visit and venerate the virgin.

b. Magsaysay Strip - This is where Malate meets Libis in Naga. One of my colleagues in college in DLSU, Junjee Abela, started the trendy restaurants that you can find in the now famous Magsaysay St. of Naga City.  Five years ago, he started Chili Peppers with the vision of having a hip place for sales agents/ transients and the fallen eagles in Ateneo de Naga. After 3 years of successful operation, the other trendy restaurants opened including the asian food inspired, Coco Leaf, and the local coffee house, Bean Bag Coffee. BTW, when you eat in Chili Peppers, don't forget to other their killer foods which includes: Baby Back Ribs, Bangus Tail, Squid, and the Sinigang Bicol styel with coconut.

Since Naga, is the center of religious observances, there are no hanky panky places in the city.

3.  Enjoying the road trip to Bicol.

a. DVDs! Bring a car with TV/DVD installed and bring alot of DVDs of movies that you have not watched before. What I found effective was, watching the mushy Filipino movies of Judy Ann, Regine, Aga, Piolo, etc. and for sure, you won't fall asleep. If you want your passengers to sleep, put in the music of Nora Jones and Josh Groban and guaranteed this would rock your passengers to sleep.

b. Fresh Food Galore. This is the time to enjoy the food of the southern provinces of Laguna, Quezon and Bicol region. Here are some potential places to eat:
--> Palay-Isdaan in Pagbilao, Quezon. Enjoy eating lunch in a hut amidst ostriches, birds, snakes, crocodiles. There are videoke terminals in some of the huts so that you can sing while eating. The Tilapia is very good and you can taste its sweet freshness.
--> Bulwagang Salakot, Ave-sol Shell, Gumaca, Quezon.  My mom and dad recommended this place, and they vouch for the freshness of the food, clean restrooms and the best coffee in that region. When we ate there, we don't like the inihaw na tilapia, and squid. JayR actually did not recommend this place because the place is old and the food is not anymore that great.
--> Lita's Carinderia, Atimonan, Quezon.  I have not eaten here but this one is located facing the ocean and boasts of fresh fish and squid. There are alot of people stopping over in this restaurant.
--> La Cucina Salud, San Pablo, Laguna.   A garden restaurant near Villa Escudero. There are alot of signs pointing to this place but I did not have the opportunity to stop over. I'm sure the ambiance would be great.
--> Biggs Diner in Bicol. Eating breakfast here is a must. Not that the food is great, but at least you can say that you have eaten in one of the successful diners concept in the Philippines. Bicol is the only region where Jollibee is not the number one fast food chain because of the strong equity built by Biggs in this region and a wider assortment of food.

This is just a preview of our upcoming Bicol Caravan. I can't wait to go back to the Bicol region with Rache, Aidan and our friends!

Green House Bistro -- Trying Hard to be like Sonya's

Green House Bistro, Tagaytay Highlands. OK to try once. This garden restaurant lacks its own personality and it reflects in the quality of food and ambiance.

You won't miss green house bistro in Highlands because it is located in the corner of the road going to the midlands and to the Batino Exit. Your meal starts with dalandan juice, toasted foccacia, and onion soup. Then followed by Salad with a choice of white and balsamic vinegar dressing. Main course is Pasta with a choice of white/red sauce and a wide variety of toppings. The meal ends with blue berry cake, tart and tea.

What I like about green house bistro? The healthy food options, garden ambiance and relaxed atmosphere. I like the toasted foccacia, variety of choices for your salad/pasta toppings.

What I don't like about green house bistro? The powdered Dalandan juice, ordinary Salad dressings & Pasta selections, forgettable dessert, and trying-hard-to-be-like-Sonya's feel.

Di and Maong's Zoobic Detour

  Picture 015 
  Originally uploaded by _Anne.

My friends had a fun time in zoobic and here are the exerpts of their adventure as narrated by Maong:

"As planned, Diwat and I manage to leave my place a little after 5am and was in Pampanga 45 minutes later. Though we missed the first part of the show, we managed to still catch the last few balloons lifting off. Entrance was P100 so a lot of people, including us, opted to watch from the parking lot.  Though we did enter the grounds a few minutes after to join Joy and her family.  A few hours later, after a BIG breakfast of salted eggs, tomatoes, spam, pampanga's best, fried eggs, rice and tuna-i think (provided by Joy), we decided to leave the air field and explore north.  After exhaustively searching Lonely Planet, we just decided to go zoobic.

Zoobic, is an experience by itself.  For those of you who has visited the tiger safari in calatagan a few years before, you'll be reacquainted with some of their resident tigers and then some.  For P295 you will first ride an enclosed jeep inside an enclosed field where you will meet some of the adult tigers.  To make them come near the vehicle, one of the guys will lure them with a live chicken.  By this time, Diwat and I were screaming at the guy who was baiting the tiger--he was, in our opinion, very sadistic as he was torturing the chicken before the tiger ripped the poor bird in half.  After that we went to the serpentatrium then the petting zoo. In the zoo, there was this very interesting bird called cassowary.  What makes this bird interesting is that after the female bird lays the egg, she sets off to find another mate leaving the papa bird to take care of the egg.--hmm.....we might not be the most intelligent species after all!

The petting zoo was like avilon but better since some of the animals are free-roaming.  After that, we were able to take a picture with an 8-month old tiger cub.  And then, we set off to see the tigers that were caged.  Apparently, there are 2 groups of tiger in the zoo, they are kept separate because they will kill each other.  So after a month the caged tigers are set free at the enclosed field and those who were free are caged.

After the cages, we went to savannah where they keep the ostriches, pot bellied pigs, goats and sheeps.  Basically, it is also an enclosed field where all the animals are free-roaming. After a day at the zoo, we were brain-dead.  We got a bite to eat, recharged a little and started our way back home. hope you guys can join us the next time around.

>i posted some pictures from our trip at http://www.flickr.com/photos/anneong/."

magnifICA's Tagaytay Escape

Our friends from magnifICA went on a Tagaytay excursion yesterday wanting to try out Sanctuario, Bag of Beans among others and here are their reviews:
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Hi magnifICA, Just want to share with you our experience in Tagaytay yesterday. Overall, the Sanctuario experience was ok.  I ordered the Bulalo Pasta. The meat was tender but it was a litlle bland for my taste.    The Bangus Carbonara and the Pasta Aligue were good! The raisin bread was also up to expectation. It was soft and the sweetness was just right.  The ambiance was nice.  We were seated at the Ground Floor beside the glass window where we had a great view of Taal.  After lunch we passed by the Pink Sisters Shrine.  Maong and I took some great shots there. We then stopped by the newly rennovated Taal Vista Lodge.  The Lounge was nice.  It was a huge transformation from the old interior which was dark and rustic.  Now it was bright and romy.  It somehow resembled the lobby of Edsa Shangrila.  We then went outside to the vista point and took some pictures. Our last stop was Bag of Beans near the town proper.  Personally that was the best part of the trip.  From the road you can only see the small coffee shop.  It's deceptively small but they have a garden below which has an assortment of flowers and plants.  It resembles a little bit like Sonya's Garden but more cozy.  They had little nooks in the garden for small groups, and a covered area for bigger groups.  We had dessert and coffee.  The apple pie ala mode was superb! Yumm!  The coffee's good and CHEAP!  It costs P55 and it's reffillable.  It's a very conducive place to hang out and chatter up. We had a lot of laughs and near miss experiences. It was a really great adventure! We're planning on repeating this every month. Kind of like a motnhly out-of -town get together.  There are plenty of unexplored dinning places out there.  So I hope the others can come along next time.  'Til then... Di

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To add,  parking at taal vista now cost P100 unless you have your ticket validated at the coffee shop. For those who have pets, you can bring them at Bag of Beans.  We saw a number of patrons in the garden with their dogs. Maong.

Giving Birth @ Asian Hospital in Alabang

Recommended.

It was our decision to give birth in Asian Hospital despite the fact that it was 20mins away from our Malate condo and despite some complains from family and friends that it was too far. I did not regret the decision and we enjoyed every moment that we stay in Asian. In fact, we wanted to extend for a few more days because our P1,600 room rate (small private room which is as big as a large private room in Makati Med that costs 3,000+); is almost shouldered by our health care in the office. Imagine P1,100 is shouldered by Philamcare and P400 is shouldered by Philhealth. We are just paying P100 per stay that already includes food hotel food, nurse at a touch of a button, and free utilities&services (daily cleaning, aircon and drinking water).

What I love most about Asian Hospital! 1. Candelight Dinner and Makati Skyline Food. Yes, Makati Skyline serves the food so you feel like in a hotel rather than anguish at the sight of hospital food everytime it is delivered.  There are 5 patient's meal served at 6.30am,9.30am,12nn,3pm,6pm. So keep your expectations low, and taste the food in Asian --- it is really good.  The clincher is the candelight dinner on your last day. Although the candelight dinner is hosted inside one of the converted hospital rooms. The waiter said it used to be held outside in the patio but then they realized that it is not good for the mom. In any case, the steak meets our expectations. There is a glass of wine, salad and dessert. 2. Only 1,600 private room that looks like a hotel. Of coures, you could argue that a room in manila doctors would costs P1,200 only and even cheaper in polymedic. However, if your benchmark is Makati Med or St. Lukes, the cost of the room is too cheap. It already includes, a ref, tv, a nice restroom, 1 sofa fed, door curtains, pantry service (water, ice, and microwave). The only tip is that these rooms are limited. If you are not able to get one, you'll be assigned a large private room costing around P2,400 which is still cheaper vs. P3,000+ rooms of Makati Med and St. Lukes. 3. Giving birth in Genesis. Genesis is located in the 3rd floor of Asian hospital where the birthing rooms are located. The birthroom is exactly like a small private room but the bed converts into an operation bed so it is really convenient. I think the delivery fees were reasonable: Normal induced birth with epidural costs = 20,000 Huggery (Nursery)                                  =  8,800 Anesthesiologist (In-House)                   =  14,800

Other small stuff we love:  (a) FREE parking basement or public, (b) FREE local calls, (c)  visiting hours is 6am until 9pm (d) you'll really know who among your friends & relatives would extend an extra effort to visit you in Asian.

Other tips:
-- rooming in your baby is a great experience -- try it out,
-- make sure you already fill out your philhealth forms and let your OB sign it already.
-- finally, WE LOVE OUR PEDIA! I'll write a separate posts on why we love her.

WHAT I HATE ABOUT ASIAN HOSPITAL 1. Understaffed! It is not true that the staff is "bobo" or does not do their job well. We found that some of them are good and helpful, except that it is either there are too many request that they cannot attend to all the patients at the same time OR they have just been assigned and lacked experience regarding the hotel's operation or experience in handling patients. When you call for nurses, housekeeping or the huggery, it takes them almost 20mins to respond to your needs.

2. Overkill charging of our OB!  Our OB charged us P37,000 as her professional fees and P5,500 for circumcision.  I'm not sure if it is because she does not hold clinic there and there are additional charges for practicing in Asian or she really charges too much.

3. Inadequate tools. Specially there was a specific tool needed for circumcision that the Huggery did not have and they said that they need to order it from abroad. Also, the billing system is inadequate and process is not that great. You should be careful what they are charging you and you really need to understand your bill .

Added Feb.10 by Anton

4. Birth Certificate Hassle. We got baby Aidan's certificate after two weeks and this  was great. However, it does not contain a registry number and you need to get it from the Muntinlupa city hall. What a hassle?!

MORE INFORMATION
Asian Hospital & Medical Center
Filinvest Alabang, Muntinlupa
Take the Filinvest exit , then turn on the first right after the toolgate.

Kikufuji -- Authentic Japanese in Little Tokyo

Diaz Family @ kukifuji
Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Recommended .  My friend Shigo-san ( a japanese national based in Manila )recommended that Izakaya Kikufuji serves the best authentic Japanese food in Little Tokyo. It was my Brobo's last night in the Philippines before going back to the states, and this was the perfect time to try out Kikufuji. Check out these pictures --> Kikufuji Photos The sushi's and sashimi's were excellent specially the rice that they used for the sushi. Although it costs P200/order, I think it was worth it if Japanese food is your favorite. We also liked the chicken "sukiyaki" in a big hot pot enough to serve us. My friend Shigo was right. Try it out for yourself.

More information
Kikufuji is located in the Little tokyo area and the restaurant is located along pasong tamo beside Makati Cinema Square.

Sanctuario - a secret dining place in Tagaytay

  Rache in Zen Place 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

AWESOME! I'm not sure until when we can keep Sanctuario a secret place in Tagaytay. They just moved in to an unassuming place beside the tagaytay ukay-ukay place near the tagaytay circle just a month ago. If you don't know the place you would not even venture to eat there.  Since they just moved to a 50-person capacity place in the Tagaytay circle, some articles in the web would give directions in its original location beside the korean place along the tagaytay-Sta. Rosa road which is already closed now. Check this out --> Sanctuario, Tagaytay Photos

Here are 5 tips to truly enjoy a awesome dining in Sanctuario:
1. Call and reserve the best spots in the restaurants. Specially if you are a group of 10 or more, you definitely need to get the zen place! If you are a group of 5-10, you should reservce the ground floor spot with a view of tagaytay. If you are a group of 4 or less, the basement spot near the window should be cozy enough for your group.
2. Killer Food. Forget your diet for the moment, you should try their signature dish of pasta bullalo. During my first time, my brother and wife tried their desserts and I should say you should not leave the place without trying their signature raisin bread and home made pinipig ice cream! (better than the choc nut ice cream available in the market).  Sean, one of the manageing partners recommended also their Amadeo Barako Coffee which is the "best coffee in the world" according to him.
3. Allot ample time to enjoy a perfect meal.  Sanctuario is one of those places where you take your time, savor the good food and enjoy the company of your friends. The ambience and the food is very conducive for conversations and just enjoying lunch or dinner time with your friends or family.  This is where the restaurant got their name --> a solemn place for dining.  This is also a good time to take pictures!
4. A good way to end your tagaytay excursion. I would suggest that this should be the highlight or the last place in your itinerary. In this way, you get a chance to savor the experience and uplift your mood on your way home (like the last song syndrome effect --> if there is such a thing as a last restaurant syndrome). This is a better alternative than starbucks for coffee and dessert.
5. The story of sanctuario. Each restaurant has a story and it would be good to read through this article so as to give a preview of what to expect in Sanctuario. Sanctuario Story

More Information
Managing Partners: Romil M. Martinez, M.D. and Sean Reyes
Tagaytay-Sta. Rosa Road Brgy. San Jose, Tagaytay City (Near tagaytay circle)
Telephone Number: +63-46-4130637
Mobile Number: +63917-5404799

Inspiring story but a disappointing lunch @ Carlos Restaurant

  anton & rache & yummy nudillo 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Good to try once . I first heard about this new restaurant in Tagaytay from the Nurture Spa staff and I immediately searched the web for information. I only came across one article in inquirer (Carlos Restaurant Article in Inquirer 03/17/04 ). We were excited to have a taste of good spanish food and excited to eat the suppose to be killer food Nudillo, cocido and the paella. We decided to eat a late lunch around 2pm and its no surprise that when we arrive there were no people in the restaurant. Also, the owner Carlos Callejo was went out so we missed our chance to interact with them. 
Carlos is a spanish theme restaurant in the middle of Las Brisas de Tagaytay villas-for-rent. You order a set meal about P500/person and it comes with bread and liver pate, mushroom soup, salad with strawberry vinegrette, the home made cheesecake by his wife, Malou.  Here are some insights on what to expect from Carlos:

What we like about the dining experience:
1. There is a good reading material about the true-story of Carlos' battle with liver cancer. Its very inspiring and you can feel the love of God. Its a must that if you decide to eat here, you should meet the man and I can imagine the interesting discussions we missed.
2. The cheescake is very good. Not to be missed but I won't still classify it as a killer food.
3. There were alot of artifacts and decoration inside the restaurant. I specially like the swords and samurai. Check out these pictures --> Carlos Restaurant, Mendez, Tagaytay Photos

What needs to be improved:
1. The food needs to be improved in terms of freshness. It tastes ordinary probably because you can taste it as if it was frozen and heated in the microwave. This is specially true for the shrimp tapas we ordered.
2. My wife does not like the nudillo because it taste like asadong pata tim. Don't get me wrong, it is good but we are expecting a true spanish cuisine and different from the ordinary Filipino food.
3. Personally, I don't like the smell of the place because it smells old. Also, it sits in the middle of a residential area/ villas which I think destroys the ambiance or concept.

More Information:
Carlos Restaurant, Mendez, Tagaytay
From the mendez intersection, turn right and on the first intersection turn left. Please expect a short strip of rough roads going to the Las Brisas de Tagaytay where the restaurant is located.

Relaxing Tagaytay Escape @ Nurture Spa

  Nurture Spa Scene2 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

Recommended.<a img src="http://anton.blogs.com/3star.gif" /a> I'm sure that if you are a spa addict, you should have been already to Nurture Spa since its already their 3rd year in operation. This was my second time to Nurture and I brought along my brobo (who is a certified spa addict) before he goes back to the states. Here are some tips to enjoy your trip to nurture:

1. Massage (Just OK) I can remember during my first visit that there was a steam bath before going to the actual massage but apparently it was not part of the signature massage anymore. The Aruga Signature Body Massage was just OK. It was not spectacular and I think it was not worth the average price of  P1,000. But I guess, you are also paying for the ambiance and cool weather.

2. Tips. Average tip is P100 and you have an option to charge it to your passport or pay it upfront with your massage therapist.

3. Don't eat there. One of our mistake in going on a day trip in Nurture, is taking the massage and meal package. The salads are not fresh, the mushroom soup tastes from the can and there are no fruits for dessert (only a small slice of cheesecake). Talk about eating healthy and nurturing yourself with the right nutrinients.

4. Always ask for ongoing promotions.  There are alot of promotions, discounts and packages that you can avail to save you money. There is a 10% bday discount,  a 15% Mabuhay miles discount or a rejuvination package for two.

5. Don't forget your camera. The place is photogenic so this is a good time to practice your photography. Check out this pictures--> Nurture Spa, Tagaytay Photos

MORE INFORMATION:
Nurture Tropical Spa
Barangay Maitim II West, Tagaytay City Tel +6346-4130804/ 05
Reservations: +632 8300876/ 77 
Website: http://www.nurture.com.ph

A memorable dinner @ La Cocina de Tita Moning

AWESOME! for special dinner and events in your life (i.e. wedding anniversaries, birthday celebrations, etc.) . In the league of theme restaurants with great food like Chef Lautico in Urdaneta, Antonio's in Tagaytay. 

  La cocina is the best 
  Originally uploaded by antondiaz.

I must admit that I have mixed feelings going into La Cocina that evening. First, I was excited that after 4 years that the restaurant is in operation, we finally found an occasion to celebrate in this fine dining place and at the same time, a financer (my momsy or my balikbayan brobo) to pay for the bill (approx. P2,000/head). However, I've also received alot of feedback from friends who tried it that the food was not the great for the price and it is too hot because there are no electric fans to conform to the old house theme. Surprisingly, La Cocina exceeded everyone's expectations and we had a great time celebrating my brother Rommel's 29th birthday (Jan. 5) and his girlfriend Jinky's birthday (Jan. 4).[ see more pictures @   Rommel's Birthday in La Cocina de Tita Monings ]

8 Tips for an awesome dining experience in Tita Moning
1). The Tita Moning's Bread Pudding is the best! Its like milk bread leche plan that melts in your mouth. You should save space for this wonderful dessert.
2).  For wine lovers, it would be best just to bring your own bottle and pay a corkage fee of P300 versus a house wine that would costs P700. In this way, you could also choose the best wine for the event.
3). For healthy eaters, I would recommend the Whole baked Lapu-Lapu and the sauteed fresh vegetables. My mom likes it alot and it is one of Tita Morning's signature dish!
4). We got mixed reviews on the Seafood Paella. They say it is one of the best sellers and best in town (?) so try it out for yourself if you are a paella lover. Morever, the paella that we ordered which was suppose to be good for 6, was too much for the family. I'm glad that they would allow us to take home the food.
5). Don't eat too much bread at the start or when you are eating your soup. The staff is hospitable and they are trained to put bread on your empty bread plate. So watch out for it, and make sure you have room for the bread pudding.
6). Remember to inform them if there is a birthday occasion so that they can prepare a cake for the celebrant for free!  Learn from our mistakes.
7).  Don't forget your camera and miss the photo opportunity. The tour of the old manila house is very interesting , I like the living room, dining room and the dressing room areas filled with alot of family pictures, antique artifacts, and china wares.
8). A tip by Aling Tining, just make sure that you don't eat there at the same time that the president is dining because there would be alot of security guards that could cause tension in the area.

More Information:
La Cocina Website 
Telephone Number: (632) 734-2141, 734-2146
Mobile #: (63917) 538-3490
Address: 315 San Rafael Street, San Miguel, Manila Philippines