Love at First Bite: Vampire Penguin Shaved Snow and Desserts

Summer is here and I now have the perfect excuse to eat cold treats 24/7. Halo-halo, bingsu, ice cream, you name it, I’d most likely want it. And a few weeks ago, I discovered a new favorite. It comes with an adorable mascot and an interesting name.

Hello, Vampire Penguin.

An adorable Vampire Penguin greeted us as soon as we approached its store located at Ayala on 30th. A display shelf with the different flavored ice, toppings and macarons were among the first things we noticed as we stepped inside the corner store. 

Its name sure made a lot of diners curious. Thankfully, Leo, one half of the duo who conceptualized Vampire Penguin, was there to entertain all our silly questions. He enlightened us by sharing a little story about themselves and how related it is to Vampire Penguin.

First Bite: Mrs. Graham Macaron Café

Our dinner at Eighteen Bistro was quite heavy. But there is always space in the tummy for desserts! Since Mrs. Graham’s Macaron Café is just beside the bistro, R and I decided to visit the quaint little shop. 

Hello, Mrs. Graham’s Macaron Café!

The interiors of this café is so charming. The white rustic tables and chairs, windows with dainty decals and mouthwatering sweets, this place is to die for! 

R and I decided to go with Bittersweet and Cookie Dough macarons (PHP70/piece), Toasted Marshmallow Milkshake (PHP160) and Cookie Shot (PHP74). 

While waiting for our food, we took some board and card games from the game corner of Mrs. Graham’s. We started with Monopoly Deal Millionaires’ Edition.

We were busy dealing the cards when the macarons arrived. 

The bittersweet macaron was delightful. It was the perfect macaron for dark chocolate lovers. It was not exactly bitter but it was dark. I also loved the slight chewiness of the macaron.

The cookie dough was fatter and sweeter than bittersweet. The ganache reminded me of peanut butter (but without it being cloying) for some reason. This would go well with tea or coffee. 

R’s Toasted Marshmallow Milkshake was a bit of a surprise. We were expecting rich brown marshmallows. Instead, we got black marshmallows. I know that once you go black, you can’t go back. But I don’t know with this one. I even asked the server if it was meant to be black than brown. She insisted that it is how they prepare it. We just let it be and R just avoided the black parts. It sure made me wonder though how they define burnt if toasted is black.

McCafé Macarons

I don’t know why McDonald’s is so irresistible. I always find myself attracted to it whenever I travel or simply cross the street. The bright M makes me forget the horrifying tale of Supersize Me. Anyway, one of the reasons why I visit McDonald’s in other countries is to find out how different these are from the ones in Manila. We all know that there’s the squid ink bun and taro pie. But I never thought that Mcdonald’s could be so fancy.

Hello, McDonald’s Hong Kong!

While looking for a place for lunch (which eventually became Sushi One), we spotted McDonald’s. The signage promoting its Salted Caramel and Tiramisu Latte caught our attention and skipped Sushi One’s tempting chocolate lava cake to try the latte.

 

We decided to stop by the famous clown’s place and ordered Iced Tiramisu Latte (HK$32, Grande) and added HK$10 to avail one Salted Caramel… MACARON.

Love At First Bite: The Tuileries Confections

Macarons. This has been one of the biggest food craze last year and it seems like it's here to stay for a bit longer. I must say, I am one of the crazy foodies to shell out money for these small (but yummy) desserts. If you think about it, these are very expensive. But if you crave for something beyond your typical chocolate bar or ice cream, this is a good choice.

I have been a big fan of S's baking and when she flew to Paris to further enhance her skills, I just want her to finish her studies ASAP just so I could have more of her delectable brownies. But I guess I have to wait.
She didn't disappoint us though as a few weeks after she came back, she started her business The Tuileries Confections.

Image from The Tuileries Confection Facebook page

It was her post for Valentine's Day that convinced me to to order a box of macarons. 

An English Afternoon: TWG Tea Salon and Boutique

Tea, just like ramen and katsu, has been available in the market for a long time but it was just recently when it became a craze… a big craze. Taking photos with that cute cup with a mustache to the reflection on a shiny gold teapot, these are just a few of many posts  we commonly see on our social media news feeds. Yes, compared to those tea bags available in your favorite supermarket, these raved ones are pretty pricey. But I guess you pay for the ambiance and rather English experience. 

I’m in love with that classy tea place. Yes, it was love at first sight. I enjoyed munching those wonderful brunch dishes while sipping my Pink Garden tea. I just have to go back for more. And I did with T last time.

Since we just came from lunch then, we opted to just try TWG’s pastries. There are two kinds—Tea and French. After a bit of thinking, we chose to try Financiers with Matcha Tea (PHP150 for 2 pieces).

Sweet Find: Chez Karine

I first heard of this store from B and ever since she bought a box of macarons, I’ve been curious if it really tastes good (as B was really looking forward to buying a box of it). Months passed by and finally, I managed to grab a few macarons.

 

Hello, Chez Karine!

 

This small pastry shop has a charming feel to it. Filled with light colored items, it sure screams “cute”. I went straight to the macarons and asked the friendly server for their best sellers.

She suggested that I get the Earl Grey, Salted Caramel, Dark Chocolate and Strawberry (all macarons are priced at PHP50/each). I decided to get the first three and opted to get coffee instead of strawberry as my sister is not very fond of it. 

I also bought one Muscovado Pudding (PHP100) and Mango Panna Cotta (PHP100).

Weekend Love: Gourmandise Patisserie

I had a solo date a few Saturdays ago and though at some point it felt a bit lonely, I was able to visit some stores I wanted to visit and one of which was Gourmandise Patisserie. 

While walking, I spotted a small éclair place that could house at most 8 people. I remembered the name of the store. It was one of the featured sweets in the desserts issue of Yummy magazine and I even got to sample some before! Oh yum!

I hurriedly entered the place and checked out the different flavors.

I wasn’t feeling very adventurous then so I opted to order the more popular ones such as Salted Caramel, Chocolate, Praline, Vanilla Bean, and Coffee (PHP100/each). I also ordered some Salted Caramel macarons (PHP65/each) and a cup of cappuccino (PHP85) as snacks while resting from my mini walkathon.

While waiting for my order, a party of 5 arrived and I realized that the place was really packed already. No wonder there was a table outside the shop too.

The coffee is your typical cappuccino and it isn’t anything spectacular and I really do not have high expectations as it’s not a coffee place. The macaron on the other hand is another story. It was HEAVENLY.