Bacon Kevin Bacon

Guess who this bust is supposed to be (pretend the title wasn't such a dead giveaway)-

Someone told me you were tasty.

Nope, it's not Conan O' Brien. The very red bust is actually supposed to be a likeness of Kevin Bacon of Footloose fame or if you haven't heard of the movie (doubt it), you've probably already tried or heard of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon (no? click the link and get out of your basement, will 'ya.). 

My Mini Banchetto Date

No, my date wasn't little (or underage). This post is entitled as such because it will be all about that one Friday night spent nomming the grub at the very famous Banchetto Street Food Fiesta. 

Because I had to be home earlier than usual that particular night to take care of my recently adopted, super cute, ten-week old puppy that has yet to be housebroken, I thought that a Banchetto trip would be out of the question (because it starts at midnight). Then I came across their website where it says that they have an extension branch that opens shop much earlier at nine o' clock and is situated closer to the Makati CBD (favorable if you're from the South like me) along Pioneer Street in Mandaluyong City. So off we went.

Banchetto, the now famous Ortigas street food market

Party at Home With Contis!

My mom celebrated her 54th last weekend (she'll probably kill me if she knew I posted her age) with a small get-together at home with family and friends. What was supposed to be a birthday lunch at some restaurant in the city became an all-day impromptu party at our house. And because it was unplanned and we needed nomz for at least a dozen or so people on such short notice, we had to enlist the help of our trusty takeout resto- Conti's, forever to the rescue.

Mama's birthday spread

Conti's has always been a lifesaver in my household whenever there's no one to cook and there'd be guests in the house. You only need to call a day in advance and their ever reliable crew will have your orders ready when you want it. They deliver to your house if your total bill amounts to three thousand pesos or more and they also lend food warmers for a holdout of three hundred pesos per container (your deposit will be given back in full as soon as you return them).

The Amazing National Food Showdown 2010

The National Food Showdown 2010 with the theme  "A Quest for Culinary Excellence" took place last September 10 and 11 at the A. Venue Events Hall in Makati. Representatives from different top hotels, restaurants, and culinary schools came to showcase their awesome talents and compete against each other in different categories.

The National Food Showdown 2010

We passed by on the second day of the competition and were properly amazed at all the gorgeous and edible displays. Here are some of the lovely displays:

How To Eat a Balut Egg

To truly experience the Filipino culture, you can't just visit and enjoy the sights and sounds of the Philippines, you must also try Pinoy food and delicacies. One of the more unusual delicacies of our lovely country is the balut. Simply put, a balut is a boiled fertilized duck egg. In detail, balut is a fertilized duck egg with a nearly-developed duck embryo boiled and eaten directly from the shell. Sounds fun?

They look normal don't they? Balut eggs (p12/pc)

Usually, balut vendors walk around the streets of Manila at a scheduled time of the night, call out "Baluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut!" in a deep voice and you can just head over to where the sound comes from. There was no call after dinner that night; luckily, we found a vendor that stays put at the corner of the street.

This is Dave. He's from Canada and he recently came here for a visit. He is looking apprehensively at the seemingly normal egg in front of him. Of course, we just had to let him try balut. How? Here's a step by step guide for balut newbs-

Stories and Snacks at Tagaytay Highlands

A few weekends ago, my family and some friends were en route once again to Tagaytay to do a bit of R&R. One of the best places to do just that is Tagaytay Highlands, where the greens are lush, the air is fresh and the crowd is thin. Tagaytay Highlands is a country club where you can swim, fish, play golf, tennis, basketball, among many other recreational activities.

The sights at Tagaytay Highlands

After using up some energy on swimming and fishing, the group gathered at Toscana, one of the restaurants in the area, for snacks and stories. It was mid afternoon so we settled on a couple pies of pizza and a round of drinks.

Toscana serves Italian food, gooood Italian food

A Date with Kuse Adobado BBQ Beef Back Ribs

Somebody once said that having a food blog is fun because content is easy to come by. Eating is a necessity more than a luxury and you'll have something to write about sooner or later. While I agree with him, I'll have to say that it's not always always easy to find something good to write about. Sure, you eat every day, you gotta, but it's not everyday that you find an interesting new place to eat at or discover a new combination to rave about. It's a hit or miss thing sometimes, and I try to focus on the hits rather than the misses.

Kuse's Menu

Date night a couple Fridays ago was definitely a hit. Looking for an intimate place to grab a bite to eat around Piazza Mall at McKinley Hill, we chanced upon Kuse's quaint storefront. One quick look at the menu and the prices seemed a bit higher than we were willing to spend that night but the place was quiet and had a welcoming feel to it that we decided to give it a go.

Get a Limited Edition Eraserheads Boxset from Greenwich!

If you're from the Philippines and you're a child of the 90's, you'd know Eraserheads for sure. With timeless hits like Ang Huling El Bimbo, Alapaap, and my personal favorite, Magasin, the band has been etched into the hearts of many Pinoys, mine included. For those who don't know who they are, get on YouTube right this minute! For the non-fans, uh.. hi. For the fans out there, you'd be happy to  know that Greenwich is giving away exclusive Eraserheads boxsets!

There are two ways to get this limited edition cd set:

Option 1- Get an Eheads Card and collect six Eheads stickers until end of promo period. You'd have to order 3 large Greenwich pizzas with drinks and 3 Greenwich Barkada Feasts in total.

Or,
Option 2- Get one Greenwich Barkada Feast and pay p2,499 for The Eraserheads Limited Edition CD Set.

The set includes:

• 10 remastered studio albums
• a bonus cd of unreleased recordings
• a special pop-umentary DVD
• a magazine of photos, lyrics, and history 
• an exclusive Eheads tshirt

Larry's gorgeous Eheads set

One of the first few people to get this special set is Mr. Larry Cayco. (Thanks for the pizza!) Read his detailed review of the boxed set here. Are you a true fan like him? Quick, get yours now before they run out of stock. Promo runs until October 31, 2010.

Ch-ch-check it out!

As you may have already noticed, BaconTunaMelt now has a banner!

BaconTunaMelt's new banner!

Much thanks to the artistic talents of that guy over at http://comicology.i.ph. :o)

Amira's Buco Tart A La Mode - Perfect Rainy Day Breakfast

It took a while to peel myself away from my comfy bed and covers this morning. Rainy mornings make for perfect snuggling-under-the-covers bed weather, dont they? When I was finally able to unglue my face from my lovely pillow, I headed straight for the breakfast table to find something to eat. And because of the weather, I wasn't in the mood for the conventional cereal and milk.

Rummaging the fridge, I found a couple of Amira's buco tarts left from my recent trip to Tagaytay (Amira's makes the most delightful blueberry and buco tarts!). I thought it would make for a lovely breakfast. Soon, I was enjoying the best buco tart in the world. After a while felt like it was missing something. It was then that I had a lightbulb moment- why not make it ala mode?

The very special buco tart a la mode

I popped the tart in the microwave for a minute at low heat and then topped it off with a scoop of Selecta Creations Pistachio & Cashew ice cream. Voila! Homemade (sort of) buco tart a la mode for breakfast! The end result was delicious; the nuts in the ice cream gave every bite a nice crunch while the ice cream itself provided just enough sweetness. Yummy! 

Who said that ice cream wasn't good to have for breakfast? This made me start my day just right. ^^,

Tagaytay Classics: Heartwarming Bulalo at Leslie's

Last weekend, I found myself making a third roadtrip to Tagaytay for the month of August. The Baguio of the South lived up to its name, providing pleasant weather throughout the day. Because we were with a first-timer this time around, it only made sense to show him famous landmarks of Tagaytay. 

It was nearly lunchtime when we arrived and for our first stop, we decided to head for the most famous bulalohan in town- Leslie's Restaurant located along Tagaytay's main highway. Overlooking the lake, it provided quite a spectacular view of the volcano.

The Noms at Twenty One Plates

I've been meaning to write about Twenty One Plates since we stopped by for dinner a couple weeks ago but things sort of piled up and I haven't had the chance to until now. This  new-ish restaurant is conveniently located on Aguirre Street, along the well known (among Southerners) row of eateries and bars.

Too bad that it was drizzling when we got there and I wasn't able to take pictures from outside. The restaurant's exterior makes the place look homey, by that I mean you might mistake it for a nice suburban house instead of a restaurant when you first see it from the road.

At Twenty One Plates

The layout of the restaurant is homey as well, segregated into rooms, with each room having a different look and feel. The setup was a nice concept, it gives you and your party privacy at no extra charge. I'm told that you can have a TV set up in the room, and you can bring your own projector or gaming console or Magic Sing and have a mini party in the seclusion of your own private room with no extra charge. There is, however, a set minimum order amount, all of it consumable, and the room is yours for the duration of the night. Cool, yea?