New Restaurant Alert: The Halal Guys

Yes, it is finally happening. After almost a year of waiting (or was it over a year?),  The Halal Guys is finally opening its first store in Manila!

I still remember the first time I saw The Halal Guys Opening Soon tarpaulin signage at the quirky SM Mega Food Hall. I squealed like fangirl and anticipated its opening which was supposedly July of this year. But just like most stores’ opening dates, The Halal Guys’ was also moved. They said that the cause of the delay was that they wanted to make sure that they get the quality right. Sounds reasonable to me as long as I get the real deal!

And THIS IS IT. The Halal Guys already announced it in its Facebook and Instagram accounts that it will open tomorrow and here’s the good news… first 100 customers get free meals! Yes, FREE MEALS! Woohoo… for you. As much as I want a free meal, it’s logistically impossible for me to be one of the first 100. *cries*

Ladurée in Manila!

I love macarons. But I hate the snootiness that goes with it for those who fancy it. I still remember the time I had to listen to this person raving about the French macarons and that it would never be at par with the local ones. There are also those who say that the pricy branded macarons are the bes- thing-evaaah. To be honest, yes, the macarons are crazy expensive but most actually taste the same. (Well, it is for me.) Then came Ladurée in the local scene.

Hello, Ladurée.

Just when I thought that the macaron craze was dying, this well-known and well-loved brand entered the market. I hear people going crazy over it. I did too… when I saw the price per macaron. PHP150 per piece?! Are you kidding me?!

But the foodie in me could not stop being curious. It must be really good then if it was priced that high.

Then again, when I found out that the macarons are not made here and are flown in from Paris (every single time), its price started to make sense. Sort of. True, they may use premium ingredients but it’s the air freight and taxes that made the macarons expensive.

I have to admit though, the Ladurée store here is really fancy.

Oh, they also have some non-food items like perfume and accessories.

First Bite: Nori Sushi Burrito x Yakitori in Kapitolyo

After several months, I am back, Kapitolyo! I read a couple of restaurant reviews on the new establishments in Kapitolyo, one of which is Nori. Since it has been getting a lot of buzz, I decided to invite my mom, sister and R to have lunch there last Sunday.

Hello, Nori!

Just like most Kapitolyo restaurants, parking is a challenge. Luckily, R and I were early and got the one and only parking of the restaurant. My mom came in a bit later and she parked a block away. 

The menu is simple and you only have a handful of options to choose from which makes ordering easier for the fickle-minded. We ordered Bacon Crab Sticks (PHP39/stick), Chicken Yakitori (PHP39/stick), Mojos (PHP69), Chicken Teriyaki Burrito (PHP149), Beef Bulgogi Burrito (PHP169), Miso Glazed Salmon Burrito (PHP189), Angus Beef Teriyaki (PHP119) with one raw egg (PHP10). We also ordered house blend iced tea (PHP55).

First served were our drinks and mojos. The iced tea was sweet yet refreshing. It went well with the mojos which were thinly sliced and nicely spiced. I also enjoyed dipping the mojos with the Wasabi Mayo (which was not spicy at all).

Next served was my Miso Glazed Salmon Burrito. I liked the sweet sauce but I find it a bit off with the cabbage for some reason. The salmon was also a bit dry. And it was messy to eat. The fried potato chips on the side added a nice texture to the dish but it was slightly burnt having a bitter taste.

The yakitori sticks soon followed and the Bacon Crab Stick is literally crab sticks with bacon. It was okay though quite oily. The chicken yakitori was pretty ordinary too. Both were a bit salty so it might be good to eat it with rice.

First Bite: Spice & Cleaver

I was overwhelmed by the new restaurants in Estancia. There are more options now and some of which are fairly new and I have never visited before. One of which is Spice & Cleaver. I spotted this new joint the night I had dinner at UCC Clockwork. And since I can’t wait to try it, I set my sister’s birthday lunch there.

Hello, Spice & Cleaver!

The place had a few seats left when we got there. But we managed to get a couch at the far end as the ones on the sides seem to be set for large groups.

While waiting for my sister, R and I ordered Fish and Chips (PHP499), Wild Mushroom Tartuffo Pasta (PHP350, PHP430 with prawns), Lamb Sausage (PHP280 for one piece) and house blended iced tea (PHP120).

First served was my iced tea which was served in a small glass. It had a nice sweet lemon taste but for PHP120, this is an expensive drink.

Next served was the lamb sausage with mashed potato base. It was juicy and meaty and I loved it with sauerkraut for that extra flavor and different texture.

R was slightly disappointed with the fish and chips. He ordered it primarily because of the fact that Spice & Cleaver uses halibut fillet. But the beer battered fish fillet served wasn’t something at par with what R expected. It was the frozen kind, he said. It was okay though I prefer Chelsea’s or Fish & Co.’s.

Love at First Bite: Ramen Iroha

I love ramen and I’m so happy that more and more ramen establishments are coming to the Philippines. I do mini mental cartwheels every time I see a new ramen shop and I happen to spot one on my way to the Tempur Breeze event.

I spy Ramen Iroha!

This new ramen place opened last December and I have been hearing nothing but good reviews about this place. I told my colleague A that I will have dinner there before heading back home. But since there were a lot of dishes left from the event, we decided to save our money and have a mini buffet instead of having a ramen night. I promised myself though that I will visit this place soon.

Unfortunately, I hardly frequent BGC these days as I was so into getting fit hence I get stuck in Kapitolyo or Rockwell. But the food gods really love me. The principal (from work) I was with last Tuesday night craved for ramen so we ended up having late dinner at… RAMEN IROHA! (Insert deep *oh yeaaah~* here.)

The place was hardly packed by hungry foodies. Only two other tables were occupied when we arrived hence service was quick. And since I was with a principal, I was a bit timid to go all out so I just ordered a small bowl of Toyama Black Soy-Sauce Ramen (PHP250 | PHP395 for regular bowl). This ramen is a winner of the Tokyo Ramen Show for 4 years including 2014 so I had pretty high expectations for this dish.

Love at First Bite: ArroZeria Manila

I absolutely love that I’m surrounded by people who love to eat. My Instagram feed never fails to make me hungry. It also gives me ideas on where to eat next. And a few weeks back, someone posted a photo of paella. Soon, I found myself researching about the restaurant that serves that paella and after a few minutes, I listed it down on my “must visit” list. And since it’s my birthday next week, I figured that this is the place to go to treat some of my favorite people.

Hello, ArroZeria Manila!

This new Spanish restaurant has been gaining followers since it opened. Located at Century City Mall’s 4^th floor, this place has a homey vibe. 

And ArroZeria is quite artsy too with the ladders on the ceiling and adorable door handle!

We decided to go for the following dishes: Tatin De Tomate (PHP395), Jargo Asado (PHP495), Panceta Y Trigueros Risotto (PHP450) and the Paella of the Day, Del Señorito (PHP275). [One thing you have to be mindful of when ordering Paella, Caldoso, Meloso and Fideua is that there’s a minimum order of two. The prices in the menu are on a per person basis, which we find quite odd.]

Complimentary appetizer!

The first dish to arrive was our salad.

I must say, the presentation was quite different. The lettuce was on top of the baked parmesan and the mozzarella balls and cherry tomatoes on spinach pesto were at the bottom. However, the taste wasn’t as impressive. It was too bland for me and for the price of almost PHP400, it was a bit expensive given its serving size.

Restaurant Discovery: Osaka Ohsho

There are only a few times when I am willing to wait for a table when I'm hungry... when I traveled far just to get there, it's a new place, or there's a long line and it made me VERY curious. And last Saturday, it was because of the last two reasons.

We noticed a long line in front of a restaurant I haven't seen before. It looks... Japanese. And true enough, it's a restaurant that claims to serve the number one gyoza. It's Osaka Ohsho. I asked how many people are in line and there were a party of 12 before us. Yes, it's a long line but in my mind, long line means good food. And since we were not so hungry then, I had my name listed and waited.

It took an hour for us to get a table and we would have missed it if we didn't return. We were up next and we did not get any message from the front host.

As soon as we sat down, I already have dishes in mind. I remember the host mention the Black Vinegar Chicken set (PHP360) to be one of their bestsellers so I chose that while C went for a katsu set. I also got a half order of the Osaka Ohsho Salad (PHP195) and Fresh Mango Yakult (PHP125).

Restaurant Discovery: Balboa

It has been a tradition for my friends and I to celebrate our birthdays through lunch or dinner dates. A few weeks back, A celebrated her will-not-mention-her-age birthday and we decided to explore the new wing of Shangri-la (my new favorite place!) and have an early dinner there.

 

While walking around, we spotted Balboa, a casual restaurant that serves pasta, pizza, steak, and the like. We browsed through the menu and liked what we saw so we ended up staying.

We had a hard time choosing as A has a strict budget to follow (I kid). But Balboa has a lot of tempting choices but we cannot order too much as we wanted to have room for dessert. In the end we ordered Spinach Artichoke (PHP249) for appetizer, Shrimp and Sausage Spaghettini (PHP328) and Half Roasted Chicken (PHP399; PHP689 for whole) for our main course, and Cucumber Pineapple (PHP138) as my drink. 

Service was quick (well, given there were only 2 other tables being served). Our appetizer arrived in less than 15 minutes.

The spinach artichoke was served really hot and it sure was stretchy. It had a slightly tangy flavor which I love and it was a great way to start the meal. I just hope that they gave us more toasted bread (crostini). 

 

We were almost done with our appetizer when the pasta and chicken arrived.