Seafood Galore at A La Peche Aux Moules

One late Saturday afternoon, a restaurant along rue des Marronniers called à la pêche aux moules served as our pit stop. Eateries in France usually close shop after lunch and resume for supper. At around three past noon (lunch was a tad bit delayed), it was one of the few restaurants still open for business.

This restaurant is situated at the ground floor of an apartment building just like most, if not all, restaurants in Place Bellecour. The cobblestone path along rue des Marronniers adds to the restaurant's very French ambiance. À la pêche aux moules is named after the traditional French song of the same name (Video below. Have a listen, it's catchy!), which means 'fishing for mussels' in English. They serve mostly seafood, their specialty being mussels of course. 

 A la pêche aux moules is catchy!

As always, meals in France means you get bread in a basket. I've actually grown to love the French baguette, which is what most restaurants serve before your main order. Theirs was a little different from the usual breads served in most restaurants, it was slightly tougher and was sprinkled with sesame seeds which gave it a stronger flavor. 

I <3 French bread

My companion opted to get the three course menu, which is also typical in most restaurants here in France. You get an appetizer, main course, and dessert for a fairly reasonable price. This combination includes the Welcome Salad for the appetizer, Tuna Steak a l'ancienne as the main course, and the St. Marcellin as the last part of the meal.

3-course menu (€15.90)

St. Marcellin, which he initially thought was dessert, is a kind of cheese that's considered to be one of the best cheeses from around these parts apparently. It smelled horrible. Is there any truth to what they say that the fouler the smell, the better the cheese? This particular one is definitely an acquired taste.

I forgot to mention that there were sturdy buckets decorated the tables around us, with most guests having one bucket of mussels of different flavors to themselves. I wasn't sure if my stomach could handle a bucketful of mussels so I had the safer French fish and chips called Half cooked salmon escalope and a creme brulee for dessert. 

Half cooked salmon escalope (€12.90) + Creme Brulee (€5+/-)

I was pretty happy with my choice because the salmon was tender and tasty (I had some doubts because of it being only half cooked, but it worked well) and the side of fries was just what I needed (fries are happy nomz, shh). The creme brulee was sweet, light and perfectly crispy on top (but a little pricey).

Next time, I'm gonna brave it and try the bucket of mussels. Wish me luck! 

P.S.

The melody is now stuck in my head.

A La Peche Aux Moules
Location: 2 Rue des Marronniers, 69002 Lyon
Contact Info: +33 4 78 92 94 24

2, Rue des Marronniers , 69002 Lyon

Marina: Of Oysters and Other Seafood

Admittedly, I'm more of a red meat kind of gal. Seafood, no matter how it's cooked (specially if it's not not cooked at all), retains a mild fishy taste that I don't particularly enjoy. So when it was decided that we were headed to Marina for a seafood dinner, I wasn't excited. That is, until the food arrived.

Lato Salad (p130)

We started the meal with Lato Salad. It looked so unusual that I was extremely wary to try it. These things aren't cooked, the seaweeds are slightly rinsed with water and then mixed with tomatoes and onions. I'm sure some people have developed a liking for these tiny globules of seaweed that pop salty sea pus in your mouth, but this salad isn't for me. (I was nearly traumatized.)

Pinangat (p175)

After the salad that left my mouth tasting like I just swallowed a mouthful of seawater, I wasn't looking forward to the next item on the menu which was the Pinangat. It turns out that the night was looking up. The pinangat is an Ilonggo dish made of ground pork balls wrapped in gabi (taro) leaves and then cooked in coconut milk. Being a fan of nomz prepared with coconut milk, I liked it a whole lot.

Baked Talaba (oysters) (p250)

I was really starting to enjoy the meal after the Pinangat. Things were looking up and the next dish turned out to be the highlight of the night- a plateful of Marina's special Baked Talabang Ilonggo. A bucketful of fresh oysters are slathered with a healthy amount of cheese, butter and sprinkled with garlic, and then baked and served.

See that? That's cheese and butter.

It was better than I expected. The plate arrived warm with the enticing aroma of cheese, butter and a hint of garlic playing at your senses. Each oyster shell had a juicy blob of oyster and was filled to the brim with melted cheese and butter that made each bite rich, creamy, and juicy all at the same time. Savoring these oysters made me forget the disaster that's called Lato Salad. 

Marina's menu is filled with fresh seafood dishes and Ilonggo specialties all at affordable prices. Their staff is always friendly and the service is quick and they have free WiFi too! Great, now I'm craving for oysters. ^_~

Marina Oyster Seafood Grill
Location: Oakridge Plaza, Paseo de Magallanes, Makati
Contact Info: (02) 851-4204; 0922-8796755
Other Info: http://marina.com.ph/

Satisfy Big Cravings at Big Plate

Another weekend has come and gone, I hope you guys all had a good one like I did. Here's one of the reasons why-

Lazy weekends are usually spent lounging around the house, watching downloaded tv series for the week, walking the pup to the park, and then forcing inviting some people to grab a bite to eat somewhere close by. And by "somewhere close", I mean somewhere along Presidents Avenue in BF. We usually just cruise along the street until we find a suitable place to stuff our faces.

Then we found this

One (really) hungry Saturday with no particular craving besides good food in large quantities, a newish restaurant next to Petron with a yellow green sign that said "Big Plate" caught our eye. The name sounded perfect for our grumbling tummies so we parked hastily and found ourselves a table inside the clean and comfy restaurant.

Johnny Rockets Is Where The Good Times Roll

Saturday night EDSA traffic is notorious for being almost unbearable. Usually, I don't mind it, the many vehicles and tempers provide enough entertainment to pass the time. Last weekend was a different case though, the traffic was crawling at half past seven and we were due to attend a birthday dinner of a special little girl on the other side of town scheduled at eight. From Sucat, we were headed for the newly opened Johnny Rockets along Tomas Morato, already late.

Fries all you can, baby!

Thankfully, Johnny Rockets is easy to locate- the flashing lights in the shape of an arrow pointing to the restaurant is hard to miss. It's a good thing that Johnny Rockets offers a worry-free valet service because cars were double to triple parked along the popular Saturday night hangout when we got there and it looked near next to impossible to find a slot by ourselves.

Jupiter Archives #2: Veggie Delights at Corner Tree Cafe

Like I said in the Lutong Macau review, the first post for Jupiter Archives, one of my foodie goals for this year is to try as many restaurants along Jupiter Street in Makati before the year ends.

And this is why I've been dragging this poor guy to Jupiter Street nearly every Friday night. He's been a good sport so far, humoring my regular requests to find unusual restaurants to dine at. (Thanks, doll.) We usually just cruise along the bright and busy street and stop at whatever restaurant that catches our attention.

The nondescript storefront of Corner Tree Cafe

Last Friday night, we already had restaurant in mind when we saw the dimly lit restaurant (it looks a bit bright in the picture, but that's only because I adjusted the levels) across the street and decided to eat there instead, just because. The quaint little corner store turned out to be the vegetarian restaurant called Corner Tree Cafe.

In contrast to all the other restaurants that lined the street, Corner Tree Cafe had very low lighting which made the space look cozy and inviting. The area had a romantic feel to it, with easy music filling your ears,  candles lit on the table, a little nook in one corner where you can read magazines and books, and very few Friday night guests. (The only other party present had a super cute, well behaved and bright eyed pomeranian puppy with them.) 

Appetizer-

Greek Spinach Filo Triangles with Feta Cheese Dip (p150)

Once we got settled in, we had a look through the menu and it was only then that we realized that Corner Tree Cafe is a vegetarian restaurant. Neither of us are vegetarians, but we do like our greens. 

We started the dinner off with the Greek Spinach Filo Triangles that came with a feta cheese dip. The spinach had a hint of tartness to it, was wrapped in triangular filo dough (same dough used for baclava and flaky pie crusts), and baked to a nice soft crunch. It's a bit pricey at 50 pesos per triangle but it's lovely.

Main course-

Kare Kareng Gulay (p160)

A week ago, I was picking at the kare kare I ordered from another place, removing the meats and keeping just the vegetables when I expressed my sentiment that restaurants should serve kare kare with just vegetables in it.

It was like someone heard me say it, because on the menu of Corner Tree Cafe, I found exactly what I wished for. They had Kare Kareng Gulay that comes with a cup of red rice and bagoong at an affordable price of 160 pesos. The meal comes in a medium-sized bowl filled with all the vegetables that I like swimming in nutty kare kare sauce. Yummy!

Bowl of Chili (p245)

My date ordered the Bowl of Chili. It comes with a big bowlful of beans, corn kernels, a dash of unidentified vegetables, herbs and spices in slightly spicy tomato-based sauce and a cup of red rice. Although it would have been nice if it also had some ground beef in it (of course it wouldn't, it's a vegetarian restaurant!), the chili was rather good.

Verdict-

The homey interior of Corner Tree Cafe

The interior of the cafe gives off a relaxing vibe. The decor, the music, and the lights set a very romantic mood. If you and your date are vegetarian or you just simply enjoy vegetarian dishes, this is the place to go. The prices are affordable, the ambiance is sweet, the service is good, and the nomz are fantastic- in short, Corner Tree Cafe is the perfect date place (unless of course if you hate vegetables). Also, any restaurant that allows guests with supervised pets gets two thumbs up in my book.

Corner Tree Cafe

Location: 150 Jupiter St. Bel-Air, Makati

Contact Number: (02) 897-0295

Other Info: Corner Tree Cafe Facebook page 

Keep reading BaconTunaMelt and wait for the third entry on Jupiter Archives!

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.

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.

Tagaytay Getaway (1 of 3): First Stop - Residence Inn

Last weekend was spent in cool Tagaytay for a nice break from the hustle and bustle of Manila life. It's everyone's favorite weekend destination to relax and unwind, with good reason. Tagaytay is wonderful in August- the weather is cool even during daytime and most places have rainy day promos but the rains (if any) don't start until late afternoon to night giving you plenty of time to go around.

This is the first part of a three-part Tagaytay series. This one's all about Tagaytay's Residence Inn. To get there from Emilio Aguinaldo Highway, you take a right to Tagaytay-Nasugbu Highway and head towards the direction of Batangas past the rotunda and Taal Vista hotel until you see the entrance sign. Soon as we got there, we made a beeline for the zoo and proceeded to coo at the cute one-month old tiger cubs right by the entrance (you can feed them baby formula!).

 Tiger cubs, owls, alpacas, goats, miniature horses 

and various amphibians at Residence Inn Mini Zoo (Entrance: p100)

While the animals were adorable (most specially the energetic tiger cubs and talented baby boars), we're here to talk about the nomz! It was around lunchtime when we arrived, so we decided to eat there to be able to  go around the zoo while waiting for the food. At Gazebo, the restraurant in Residence Inn, you experience al fresco dining while overlooking the pretty Taal lake.

Cool weather comfort food-

What better way to dine in cool weather than 

to be slurping on hot soup?

Because of the cool weather, we just had to order hot soup. We settled on the classic Sinigang na Hipon (p220 +/-). Served in a palayok, it was exactly how sinigang should be, hot and tasty. It was surprisingly seasoned well, like yummy home-cooked sinigang, with plenty of shrimp and vegetables to go around.

Music sets the right tone and feel-

Residence Inn's resident crooner had a nice baritone

During the meal, you get serenaded by Gazebo's one-man-act with songs of your choice. Because we had no particular song to request, he sang for us three feel-good classic love songs which made the meal even more enjoyable.

Something new-

Half a Honey Glazed Chicken (p160 +/-)

One of newer dishes in their menu is the Honey Glazed Chicken. We decided to get just half a chicken to try it. When the plate arrived, it looked like a lot and we had to ask them if they incorrectly gave us a whole chicken. They didn't. Their half chicken order was more than enough for 3-4 hungry people. It was fried chicken coated in thick honey sauce, it was good but it was tad bit too sweet and overpowering for my liking. There was too much of it and the leftovers lasted us until breakfast the next day.

~

The food was delicious, prices were more than affordable, the staff was very accommodating, and the service topnotch. There's absolutely nothing to nitpick on. Residence Inn's Gazebo is an excellent first stop.

Up next would be about tasty Indian food from Andanita Taj. :)

Classic Chicken, Classic Savory

As a kid, I was in love with anything that was chicken and asked for it for every meal that my relatives ended up calling me manok instead of my actual name. I wasn't really very picky with my chicken, but I had favorites. Savory Chicken was one of them. My lola would order a whole Savory chicken (she pronounced it as "sah-vor-ee") as a treat on some days and I'd be happily enjoying every last spoonful on my kiddie plate, even going as far as licking the plate clean.

 The store front at the Bicutan branch

Savory Chicken's fried chicken has a distinct taste that no other restaurant has replicated up until now. They seem to have gone away for a while because my most recent memories of Savory Chicken were the random trips to the Binondo branch when my lolo from Davao would be in Manila (he also pronounced it as "sah-vor-ee"). These trips were few and far between and couldn't have been less than 7 years ago. But they're back now and in full force. Branches have sprouted in many malls of the city, giving us chicken lovers more chances to have a go at their special fried chicken.

 Classic fried chicken from Classic Savory (p345)

They're now called Classic Savory and one of their newer branches is tihe one in SM Bicutan. Caught sight of the store about a month ago and I've been meaning to eat there since. And then came one Sunday when my family came to visit and we had no food in the house. It was the perfect excuse to head to the mall to finally try the food at Classic Savory.

The restaurant was surprisingly full for a late dinner on a Sunday, families are usually headed home by that time to rest and prepare for work/school the next day. We had to wait for a good 20-30 minutes to get us a table. But boy, it was well worth it. I am happy to report that their Savory Chicken is as good as I remember it to be. If anything, it's more flavorful now. The skin is light and crispy while the meat is tender yet firm with that delicious Savory secret flavor that I still can't identify but absolutely love. You can tell that I'll be going back to Classic Savory for more feel-good chicken dinners!

A Not So Proper Review of Mom & Tina's

Come dinnertime last Saturday, we were having a difficult time deciding where to eat in Greenbelt or anywhere close by. We were looking for a place that didn't serve fastfood that isn't so expensive where food is filling.

Twenty minutes later, after ticking off all the nearby restaurants one after the other for failing to meet the above requirements, we still didn't have a place to eat. And then someone had a lightbulb moment and suggested to eat at Mom & Tina's, which was a few minutes walk from where we were. We all agreed immediately (not just because we were already hungry).

 See all those heads outside? Mom & Tina's is as busy as if it were early evening

Mom & Tina's Bakery Cafe in Makati can be found at Perea corner Dela Rosa Sts. It's one block away from that corner of Greenbelt 5 near the huge Zara shop. They also have a branch in Pasig, their first one if I'm not mistaken.

We got there for late dinner, around 9:30pm or so, and I was pleasantly surprised that the restaurant was still teeming with life. Most chairs and tables, even the ones outside, were taken and were filled with people enjoying the food and/or coffee and dessert animatedly talking to each other. It was a surprise because the place was a bit out of the way and usually, restaurants are less lively during this time.

For starters- 

• Garlic rolls- Mom & Tina's garlic rolls come with their soup of the day (more on that later) and pasta dishes, or they can also be bought at p7 a piece. These lovely rolls have a consistency similar to croissant but are less flaky. These are a must try.

 The half-finished squash soup and garlic roll

• Soup of the day- the soup of that day was creamy squash soup (they had a fancy name for it, but it was so long, I forgot). I'm calling it squash soup and it was really good. You can get half an order (p55) with one garlic roll or a full order (p105) with two garlic rolls.

Main Dishes-

• Chicken Alexander- creamy mashed potatoes mixed in with chicken chunks prettily served in a bowl with two pieces of garlic rolls on the side. It was creamy and tasty. The dish was loaded with carbs, it was very, very filling.

Carbo-overloaded Chicken Alexander (p160)

• Beef Stew (p175)- didn't get to try this one, but I'm told it's pretty good. There was so much of it that one order can be shared between two people.

 The Beef Stew that would never end
(tahong not part of this dish)

• Callos (p175)- another dish worthy of note. Tender ox tripe, sausages, chickpeas, and bell pepper. The serving is good for two as well.

The Callos didn't make it to the picture

Desserts-

• Brazo de Mercedes- the cake was light and not overly sweet. It's a great deal at only p35 per (really huge) slice.

• Dark Toblerone Walnut Torte (p95 per cup)- a refrigerator cake flavored with dark toblerone mixed in with nuts and cream. It's lovely. They also have White Toblerone Walnut Torte and Toblerone Walnut Torte, both are fantastic as well.

I'm really sorry for the lack of details and good pictures. But you can take my word for it (and the fact that we nommed immediately and forgot to take pictures), Mom & Tina's Bakery Cafe is a dinner stop worth the walk- the food is delicious, the desserts aplenty, the serving size large, and prices are easy enough on the pocket.

It's nearly weekend already, yay! I'm heading to Tagaytay for this one. Have a good one guys. ^^,

GB3's Kitchen is Totally Underrated

On date night, after walking around Greenbelt 1, 2 and 3 and checking out all the restaurant menus, my date and I settled on an old favorite. We found ourselves settling in for a nice evening at Kitchen in Greenbelt 3.

The table setting and the service water bottle.

That's their service water bottle on the left, laced with mint (I'm not so sure if they're actually mint) leaves. On the right is the table setting, with unusually large utensils. I spent a good amount of time arranging and rearranging the assortment of table knick knacks for photos while waiting for our order.

For starters-

Breadwinner

The breadwinner includes four pieces of lightly toasted bread and assorted dips. I'm not familiar with their fancy names, so I'll just attempt to describe them. The red dip is tomato based with clumps of tomato and some seasoning in it. The green one had the texture of pesto, it looked like crushed basil leaves with herbs in oil. The mustard colored one is mushrooms in oil. And lastly, the yellow one is grated cheese. The serving size was on the small side but it tasted good. Rating: 3.5/5

Main course-

Undercover

My date ordered the Undercover. This is basically chicken pandan with pandan rice and sweet chili sauce to taste. It was total pandan overload because he paired it up with bottomless pandan iced tea. Good value, huge serving size, great texture, fantastic taste. His rating: 5 out of frickin' flippin' 5!

Ribbit

I ordered what they call the Ribbit. From the name, you'd think it'd be frogs but the dish is actually deep-fried pork ribs seasoned in garlic, salt and pepper with pandan rice and a side of mixed vegetables. The serving was so large that I had to take half of it home, but it tasted so heart-stoppingly good. I paired it up with mint iced tea which was a bit on the sweet side rather than minty. The meal was delicious, but it was kind of unhealthy. My rating: 4.5 of 5.

Dessert-

And no meal would be complete without dessert, and because we were full, we decided to share. We ordered what they call Going Bananas.

Going Bananas and the uniquely presented bill

The description on the menu which read something like- bananas packed in graham cracker crusts topped with a swirl of cream -sounded promising. When it arrived, it looked like it would be super sweet, like those cakes you can get at coffee shops. It was a delightful surprise to find out that the middle part is actually (very) chilled bananas with no cream or sugar, but the graham cracker crusts were enough to sweeten it. It wasn't expensive too, about 80 pesos an order. Rating: 5/5

~

If I were to choose one word to describe Kitchen over at Greenbelt 3, that word would be 'subtle'. From their logo, the simple letter 'K', to their minimalist gray restaurant interior, to their friendly but never overbearing staff, to the tasty but not overpowering flavors of their food. But make no mistakes, subtle doesn't mean Kitchen is dull, bland or boring. Quite the opposite, actually. I can honestly say that Kitchen is one of the better restaurants (and affordable too!) I've been to, ever.

Meals are about 200-300 peseos per person, but these are huge meals, and each plate is good for sharing. They have great service, good ambiance, fantastic food, large servings and reasonable prices.

Total Rating: 4.75 of 5

Best restaurant reviewed as of yet, at a reasonable price. Great nomz!

*again, I am sorry for the very grainy photos, used my phone's camera. I always don't have the good camera with me when I go to places worth taking pictures of. -_-;

Orchard Road - A Little Bit of Singapore in Manila

Last Saturday, we were at Megamall come dinner-time looking for a place to eat when we chanced upon this recently opened fast-food style eatery called Orchard Road. I had just gone to a trip to Singapore and was on a spicy oriental food hangover and this restaurant, bearing the name of Singapore's most famous main road, caught my attention in an instant. The place was packed at 7 in the evening so we decided come back when the crowd had thinned a bit.

Orchard Road in Manila

A couple hours later, we came back to find the restaurant a little less busy so we decided to order and get settled in. It was a different kind of ordering system that welcomed us at the entrance, you get a slip of paper with their menu on it and a pencil. You can go around the kitchen area, which is right at the entrance and check out how the food is being cooked and how it actually looks like compared to the ones in picture. And then you tick the checkbox on the menu items that you wish to order.

The kitchen- right dab smack in the middle of the main dining area

Their kitchen is up front and center, with glass panels that almost make it look like a large aquarium minus the water. Actually, this kind of kitchen transparency is a good idea I think, you hear many horror stories of what really happens behind kitchen doors. With this kind of setup, you and everybody else see what's going on in there. The dining area reminds me of the elegant food court at Ion Mall along the actual Orchard Road in Singapore.

Now let's get on with big scoop here- the food. Obviously, with a name like Orchard Road, they serve dishes that are bestsellers in Singapore. And there were so many tasty-looking orders to choose from, it was difficult to order just enough- we wanted to try them all.

What we ended up ordering-

Main course orders:

For the main course we had: (clockwise from top-left) Hainanese Chicken, Laksa, Chicken Satay, and Chicken Curry

• Hainanese Chicken- steamed chicken seasoned with ginger, salt and pepper. I didn't get to try this one, but my date liked this dish best compared to everything else. He says the texture of the chicken was good, firm and tender. Rating: 4.5/5
  


• Chicken Curry- this was an order good for two, it was a bowl filled with several pieces of tender chicken in rich and tasty curry sauce with just enough spice. This was my favorite. Rating: 4.5/5
  


• Laksa- spicy coconut-based noodle soup that's a popular dish in Singapore. Tasted exactly like the Laksa I had in SG, which is a good thing. Rating: 5/5
  


• Chicken Satay- 4 sticks of barbecued skewered chicken fillets; also pretty tasty and the order was bigger than what I expected. Rating: 4/5

Side orders:

Popiang and Ice Kachang

• Popiang- this was sort of like the Filipino lumpiang ubod. Chopped vegetables in a soft wrapper flavored by a sweet peanuty sauce topped with chopped nuts. Rating: 2.5/5
  


• Shrimp Dumpling- hakaw, is what they call it in Chinese restaurants. Steamed shrimp wrapped in a translucent and gooey dumpling wrapper. Pretty good. Rating: 4.5/5
  


• Ice Kachang- if we Pinoys have the halo-halo for dessert, they have this. Soft crushed ice drizzled with brightly colored syrup and syrupy corn with coconut milk (gata), gelatine (gulaman) and sugar palm (kaong) as the base. Rating: 3.5/5 (Nothing beats our halo-halo!)

Drinks:

Bandung and Milo Dinosaur

• Bandung- a prettily colored Malaysian drink made of milk and rose cordial syrup. It's an acquired taste, is what I can say. It reminded us of the Pinoy street cooler, scramble. Rating: 3/5
  


• Milo Dinosaur- this happy drink is very Filipino. Creamy iced Milo topped with more Milo powder. That just says everything. Rating: 5/5
  

We ordered a bit too much for just two people, but the food and the ambience was that good that it made us want to fatten ourselves up s'more.

Main dishes cost about Php120-Php200 per order, which I think is a pretty reasonable price range considering the serving size and food quality. The staff were also very nice and helpul throughout the entire process, our orders arrived without delay, requests were handled with smiles and prompt service, the food tasted great and the dishes were a nice change from the usual.

Overall rating: 4/5

All in all, it was a fun dining experience. Good nomz! (^_~)d

*sorry for the grainy photos, I hadn't brought a proper camera and used the cellphone's cam instead

http://i50.tinypic.com/33mua8m.jpg

Pitstop of an Online Foodie – MunchPunch

Here's a scenario. You're stuck at your workdesk and your friends email you for a near-impromptu dinner/get-together in two hours and put you in charge of picking the place. What do you do? IM online friends and ask them for suggestions? Open up Google and search for "recommended restaurants in Makati"? Email your friends that you're busy and they should decide and just tell you where to meet?

I used to do all those (the last one most often) until I found out about MunchPunch.

What is MunchPunch?

MunchPunch is a nifty little site that has in its database details of most restaurants in the Metro. And it doesn't just list them, they have all the information you need. From the address, the contact number, reviews from fellow foodies, the menu and prices, this site has got it all.

Search and filter options for MunchPunch

You can even search for restaurants by location, by mall, or by cuisine. I often use the by mall search because there are just so many restaurants in one mall these days (MOA, I'm looking at you) that I lose track of them even if I've been there already. Another great feature is the Promos section where they list current restaurant promotions, discounts and freebies. I'm a discount junkie and this feature just gives me the happies. A new feature of the site that I haven't tried yet is ordering online. I bet it'll be useful for when you and your office buddies need a quick merienda break.

Details and menu prices for World Chicken at GB1

I've used MunchPunch for preparing small gatherings, get-togethers, and even simple dinners. With restaurant details posted on one location online, I can easily call up the restaurants for bookings and reservations, compare prices of different restaurants, pick out orders from the menu selection, get the best deals with restaurant promos, all that in one stop.

Now when my friends set up dinner dates, I get to pick the place. ^_~