First Bite: La Mère Poulard

French food is one of the cuisines that remains to be the unpopular choice for the local market. It is perhaps of its fine-dining image or its not so friendly price tag per dish. But when we're talking about fluffy puff omelettes, it somehow changes our perception of how French enjoy their food. It becomes more familiar and inviting. 

Hello, La Mère Poulard.

First Bite: Abacá Baking Company

Abaca is not a foreign name to those who frequent Cebu. As one of the popular restaurant groups in the city, a visit to any of Abaca Group’s restaurants is a must. I’ve been to Maya, Abaca’s Mexican joint last 2015 after my trip to Bantayan Island and I was impressed by its nachos and very flavorful Asada Fajitas. This time around, I made sure to drop by its cafe counterpart, Abacá Baking Company.

Hello, Abacá Baking Company.

Located a few steps away from Maya, this place has a very chill and New York bakery vibe. 

Since there are only high stools on the ground floor, we decided to head up to the second floor. I was hoping that some of the staff would help us carry our luggages (as we were on our way to the airport then) upstairs but we didn’t get any assistance from anyone even when some were just idle when we arrived. 

We were approached by a server with a very red nose and handed us menu. With hoarse voice, she mentioned their bestsellers and we decided to go for Tomato Soup (PHP195), Skillet Breakfast (PHP495) and Calamansi (PHP55). For dessert, we went with Fresh Fruit Tart (PHP225).

First Bite: Maisen BGC

I was so excited when I found out that my good friend F accepted a job offer near my office. I finally have someone to drag with me for random cravings or sudden desire to burn some cash. (And by cash, I mean less than PHP500.) After two weeks of planning, we finally decided to have lunch one Friday at the newly opened Maisen branch at Shangri-La, Fort.

Hello, Maisen!

I headed straight to the new Japanese restaurant in town as I was expecting a long queue. (Maisen had an opening promo where they offered their 80g katsu for less than PHP100 for its first two days.) Luckily, there were a few seats by the bar so I managed to skip the queue and got a seat for me and my friend. 

As I waited for F, I read the menu highlighting Maisen’s new offerings and was curious with Cold Udon (PHP175). After a few more minutes, I decided to order it and paired it with a glass of Calamansi with Grenadine Iced Tea (PHP100, refillable).

Soon, F arrived and ordered a katsu set which I wasn’t able to take note of as I was too hungry as I skipped breakfast. 

While waiting for our orders, I took a peek of the main dining area of Maisen and was surprised that it was pretty small. I think a max of 40 diners will fit the air conditioned area. 

Kumori Favorite: Krone

I fell in love with Kumori’s soft buns ever since I got a bite of it. It was the best part of the milk shake I ordered as it somehow offset the sweetness of the hazelnut chocolate. Though I had the whole thing for myself, I felt that it was not enough. I wanted to buy a pack of three (PHP25) then but R stopped me as we have a lot of food to finish or else it’ll spoil. Hence, I stopped myself from buying and heard my heart break a bit. But it wasn’t that long till I get to buy some of that lovely soft buns. 

Hello, Kumori in Makati!

After enjoying my banhmi from Bon Banhmi, I roamed around for some dessert and figured that I’ll try Kumori’s Krone (PHP49 per roll) and buy a pack of soft buns for breakfast. 

Wait. What?

A krone is a hallow, flaky, Danish pastry tube that is freshly piped with a creamy egg custard filling and sprinkled with a snow sugar powder (confectionary sugar).

My krone was given to me as soon as I paid and I just could not resist licking the custard filling overflow. I quickly took a few shots and tasted the filling. 

It had a nice light and smooth taste. It was sweet but not overly sweet. Its smooth texture was well complemented by the crispiness and flakiness of the Danish pastry. Just think of it as crispy cream puff. Actually, that’s exactly what it was… a crispy cream puff.

It was good and one order was enough to satisfy my craving for dessert. 

See you again, Kumori!

Kumori is located at Basement, Landmark Food Court, Makati Avenue, Makati City. 

Love at First Bite: Pound by Todd English

There's a new burger joint in town and it sure knows how to get attention. Presenting #paywhatyouwant.Yes, you read it right. The new burger place is offering most of its burgers (except for the Pound Burger priced at PHP999) at any price that you are willing to pay for a limited time. And if you're curious which burger place I'm talking about, it's Todd English's baby, Pound.

Hello, Pound!

I was not aware of Todd English's new restaurant till I saw a post on Instagram promoting it's Pay What You Want promo. I giddily told my officemates about it and asked if anyone would be interested to visit the place with me. (Two officemates said yes but they had to leave before I managed to get a table. But I'll get there in a while.)

The talked about promo of Pound has been on my mind since lunch and I was so excited to head to the place and pay for my meal at a really friendly price. But I was not the only one who saw the Instagram post as there were a lot of people waiting outside when we arrived at 6:25 PM.

I looked for the hostess right away and I was horrified by the long list of diners waiting to be served. One even had a party of 16 guests! But since I wanted to take advantage of the really attractive promo, I gave in and had my name listed. I was 28th. 

*tick tock tick tock* 

Eventually, I was left all alone come 7:15 PM as my officemates had other plans. And I was still at #23. To entertain myself, I went to the supermarket for some cold air and escape from the pesky mosquitoes. But alas, when I got back, I was at #19.

I was starting to get impatient as it was already an hour wait. I was debating with myself if I should wait more or not as I was turning hangry. But I opted to wait. And wait. And oh, Krispy Kreme. *munch* And wait some more.

After 2 hours and 15 minutes, I finally heard name and I got a table... for one. (Alone but not lonely. :D)

The place has a Your Local kind of vibe and Todd English darkness touch. It was really dark and I had a hard time reading the menu! I was also seated closest to the A/C and when the diners beside me complained on how cold it was, the server adjusted it and the cold breeze went straight towards me! Brrrr. Minus points! (It kind of made me want to sing Celine Dion's song Alone.)

To take advantage of the promo, I went for the most expensive burger included in the promo which is Amsterdam Burger (PHP280). I wanted to go for the bacon and egg sliders but figured that this might be bigger. I didn't go for any beverage anymore as they were only offering sodas and iced tea. 

Despite the crowd, service was fast and I got my burger in less than 15 minutes. 

First Bite: Hokkaido Ramen Santouka

It has been a while since I last went to Greenhills. I went crazy with the great tiangge finds. I even thought of hoarding stuff for Christmas. But the tummy had another plan… to eat. And since F wanted ramen, we went to Hokkaido Ramen Santouka.

Hello, Hokkaido Ramen Santouka!

The place was packed with hungry diners when I arrived a bit past 1 p.m.. F and I had to wait for around 20 minutes before the server approached us if we’re okay with bar seats. Since we were hungry, we said yes.

I ordered a regular Shio Ramen (PHP345) with Komi-Tamago (PHP50) and Kurobuta Gyoza (PHP240) while F went for a bowl of Shoyu Ramen (PHP345). Service was quick as it took them less than 10 minutes to serve our food.

First Bite; Size Matters

You only live once. That’s pretty much the motto of the younger generations to justify their crazy antics. Lately, I feel that I have been doing the same thing with how I eat. I know that I have finally reached the stage where I have to be more careful with the food I eat. Hello, slow metabolism! However, I do not want to deprive myself of the delicious things in life so…

Hello, Size Matters.

I recall checking Size Matters out before with N during one of our food trips; but it didn’t exactly catch our fancy, we skipped it. But since E sounded so eager to visit the place (again), we decided to have dinner there instead of the failed Burp hunt.

The menu is quite simple and straightforward—a few burger selections, some rice meals, pasta and chicken. That’s it. Simple and easy.

I decided to go for The Works Burger (PHP299 for 1/3 lbs.) while E went for Breakfast in Bed Burger (PHP199 for ¼ lbs and PHP279 for ½ lbs.) then just added an additional PHP60 to make our meals “combo” to get a glass of 12 oz. house blend iced tea and fries. We also ordered a plate of lasagna (PHP159).

Given they were only serving two tables that night, service was pretty quick.

First served were our glasses of iced tea. True enough, it was not your usual Nestea. It had a stronger citrus taste.

Next served was the lasagna which I liked. It was somehow similar to the cheesy lasagna of Greenwich and Red Ribbon. Comfort food is always great.

The burgers arrived soon and both were pretty big.

The Works Burger was rather fat (and yes, fattening). I had a hard time getting a whole bite. I liked the Monterey Jack patty though as it was juicy and flavorful. I just hoped that the bacon strips were thinner and crispier.

E enjoyed The Breakfast in Bed Burger but it was too salty for me. It was interesting though as it had fried egg on it. Again, the bacon looked so foreign to me.

Overall though, it was a filling and worth-your-money dinner.

Size Matters is located at Ground floor, Ace Water Spa Building, Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City. 

Restaurant Discovery: Ukokkei Ramen Ron

I have never been a fan of UAAP. I never watched a single game nor had the interest to know the players. (The only one I know is Chris Tiu—because he is one of the owners of Happy Lemon and an endorser of Milo.) So I had low expectations when I watched it for the first time, LIVE. To my surprise, I enjoyed it. It was fun to watch a game surrounded by game enthusiasts. They cheer and utter “awww” in unison. It was a very interesting experience. But the trip back home was pretty horrific. It was traffic! And my generous sponsor, W was starting to get hungry. And he turns into a grumpy rabbit when deprived of his carrot.

We decided to make a quick stop in Makati so that we get to have dinner and W suggested Ukokkei Ramen Ron. I have never been there so I was game.

When we arrived, only a few diners were there so service was pretty quick. W and W2 knew what to order and went with the Ukokkei Miso Chasu (PHP380 for regular and PHP560 for big serving). I ordered the Ukokkei Shoyu Chasu (PHP380) and Gyoza (PHP120).

Our ramen were served in less than 15 minutes.

My ramen was slightly oily and a bit weak on the taste. I guess I got used to the strong flavors of Ramen Nagi and Kichitora. It was refreshing though to have ramen again with a lighter taste. The noodles were not as firm as I wanted it to be but it was pretty good. The chasu was soft and slightly sweet  (which I love!).

Heart-shaped Burgers: Murray and D'Vine

I have this huge thing for hearts. I don't really know why but ever since I was young, I get attracted to anything shaped like a heart (not the human heart, just so we're on the same page). I used to have a lot of shirts with hearts printed on it. I also used to have a lot of accessories with heart pendants, charms, and what not. I also went crazy over Papa John's heart-shaped pizza. And I have this glowing heart pin I used to wear every Heart's Day. I guess it has something to do with being me being a February baby.

My favorite Dragon Lady, T, told me that there's a restaurant that serves heart-shaped burgers and we agreed to have a date there and murder a burger or two. But I didn't expect to visit the place sooner when I ran out of ideas during my trip there with J. 

Hello there, Murray and D'Vine.

The place was pretty dark when we went so I thought it was closed and I was already planning to recommend my favorite restaurant in Serendra, Mesclun, as an alternative. But the friendly server approached us and told us that they were open. So, I guess it was destiny. Hello, heart-shaped burger. <3

We opted to dine upstairs as it was cooler there. The server gave us a bell to use to call them. Pretty cute but it clashes with the whole concept of the restaurant. Anyway...

It took us quite a bit to order as we were distracted by the shape of the food. After a while, I decided to go for the Ostrich Burger (PHP565) while J went for the Aussie Burger (PHP515). We also ordered a glass of drink each (and unfortunately, I forgot what it's called but we got it for less than PHP100 each if I recall it right).

First served were our drinks which were pretty decent. The drinks had a slight kick but nothing to make one woozy.