First Bite: Friends & Family

Today's food scene has never been this dynamic. There are so many new and innovative concepts that would intrigue anyone. But one thing that trumps all trends and gimmicks is familiarity. And that is what Friends & Family focused on.

Hello, Friends & Family.

Friends and Family made its mark in the foodie community with its nostalgic take on several Filipino dishes such as Birthday Spaghetti and. It grew even more popular when The Raintree Group's Executive Chef Kalel Chan came up with Ube Champorado. And when it launched a very tempting Buy One Get One deal on two of its comforting dishes perfect for this rainy weather, I've decided that it's time to stop delaying my visit.

When in Tagaytay: Aozora Japanese Restaurant

It has been a long while since R and I drove to Tagaytay. As much as we would like to have a quick getaway, the horrific traffic discourages us from heading anywhere on weekends. But this long weekend's festivities sure made us change our minds. Our first stop, Aozora Japanese Restaurant.

Hello, Aozora. 

Aozora has been one of the popular dining options in Tagaytay that it finally expanded and opened a second branch, across One Tagaytay Place.

First Bite: Lobby Café by B Hotel

I find it fascinating how small boutique hotels are starting to grow in Tomas Morato. I could see it slowly turning into Kalayaan of Makati, an area budget travelers frequent. And the best part of staying in this area is that you'll never run out of places to go to for food. But when your hotel already offers reasonably priced food, why head out?

Hello, B Hotel. 

B Hotel is one of the many reputable establishments under The Bellevue Group of Hotels. It opened two years ago and since then got a steady number of patrons and is even commissioned as the accommodation of some beauty pageants. I'd know since there were several gorgeous ladies when we visited for dinner at Lobby Café sashaying their way around the lobby with their sashes on. 

Love at First Bite: Sharyn's Cansi House

One of the dishes I was excited to try in Bacolod is cansi (or kansi). I've tried it before here in Manila but I was not impressed with its extremely salty taste. Apparently, the taste of real cansi is quite far from the one I had. Hearing that it's supposed to be tangy (thanks to this local produce called batwan) made me excited to give it a second chance. And to avoid disappointment, I went to the best cansi place in town, Sharyn's Cansi House.

Hello, Sharyn's Cansi House. 

This no-frills cansi restaurant is located in what the locals call Shopping Center of Bacolod. 

Restaurant Love: 7107 Restaurant

I’ve been a fan of 7107 Culture + Cuisine ever since I visited it last year. I still remember the lovely pesto pasta with sweet tocino dish I ordered as if it was from yesterday’s lunch. As much as I would like to dine here again, my busy schedule was against my plan of visiting this colorful restaurant sooner. Thankfully, one weekend finally cleared up and I was able to drop by for more delectable local fare with a twist!

Hello again, 7107 Culture + Cuisine!

First Bite: Siglo Modern Filipino

R and I decided to avoid the Valentine's Day mayhem in Manila and went to Tagaytay for a nice short break. We arrived in two hours on a Friday night and enjoyed the cool breeze of the city. Thinking that most people will celebrate Valentine's on Saturday, we decided to head back to Manila early afternoon of the 14th but we were stuck in traffic and Waze said that it will take us a long time before reaching Nuvali. Without hesitation, we made a U-turn and opted to head back to R's apartment. But since we were hungry, we made a quick stop at this Filipino restaurant called Siglo. 

Hello, Siglo Modern Filipino.

I was a bit iffy to stop by this place as I couldn't find reviews about it. But hungry people stuck in crazy traffic cannot be choosy. 

The restaurant serves typical Tagaytay specialties such as Bulalo (PHP350) and Tawilis (PHP150). We opted to get those as well as Chocolate Milk Shake and Strawberry Smoothie (PHP125 each) from its neighbor Adam's Cafe. 

Our drinks arrived in 15 minutes or so and both were very sweet. In fact, too sweet. It was like slurping dessert on a hot day. Not exactly something ideal to be paired with our meal but it was okay to battle the early summer heat.

After almost an hour, our dishes were finally served. The waiter apologized and said that it took them a while to make the bulalo as they had to make sure that the meat's tender. (True enough, it does take at least 3 hours to make really good bulalo. But the long wait was not acceptable.)