When in Cebu: Shangri-La Mactan

The Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts has been synonymous with stellar service. Having it as one's accommodation during a vacation almost equates to a wonderful and memorable trip. However, with boutique resorts offering more personalized service and more attention to detail, can big hotels like Shangri-La compete? 

Hello, Shangri-La Mactan.

Shangri-La Mactan is one of the popular resorts in Mactan. With its massive lot housing two wings, Garden and Ocean, plus numerous restaurants and amenities, it is not surprising for this resort to be packed with guests, local and foreign alike.

Go Wagyu Crazy at Edsa Shangri-La's Mad for Wagyu at Heat

I always consider indulging in wagyu a treat. Aside from its unbelievably tender texture, it’s the sort of meat you can’t enjoy on a daily basis because of its not so affordable price tag. This is why my heart pounds so fast whenever I hear (or read) the three sweet words “unlimited wagyu promo.” And it definitely skipped a beat or two when I found out that Edsa Shangri-La’s well-loved buffet HEAT is celebrating foodies’ love for wagyu with Mad for Wagyu.

Hello, Heat!

 

It’d be hard to miss the Mad for Wagyu sign when you enter Heat as the first thing you’ll see is this roulette that diners could spin for a minimum single receipt worth PHP5,000. But let’s save the spinning story for later and focus more on the scrumptious spread.

First Bite: Samba

Shangri-La chain of hotels has been known to offer superior services. These past years though, the spotlight has been on its dining establishments. From the well loved Heat, Senju and Summer Palace of Edsa Shangri-La to Inagiku of Shangri-La Makati, tastemakers have grown to be fascinated with the new additions Canton Road and Raging Bull of Shangri-La at the Fort.  And late last year, a new restaurant was added to the list and it is designed, just like the others, to give us a gastronomic experience worth remembering.

Hello, Samba.

This Peruvian restaurant on the 8th floor of Shangri-La at the Fort, may seem to be a bit misplaced at first given that Canton Road and Raging Bull are both on the 3rd floor.  However, one would understand why this restaurant is placed there upon stepping in its al fresco dining area.

First Bite: Teddy’s

Once upon a time, a genius discovered another way to enjoy beef. He turned it into beef balls and flattened it. Then he placed it in between two pieces of bread and added a few vegetables for crunch and that creation is one of the reasons why most of my posts have #dietsomeothertime and #fatkidoutside. *sigh*

Hello, Teddy’s Bigger Burgers!

I recall that the first time I saw this joint was almost a year ago. The line was crazy and it discouraged me to try it out. I was not willing to wait for over an hour under the summer heat. But thankfully, they opened a branch in Shangri-la a few months ago and I got my chance to try their famous burgers.

I went with Teddy’s bestseller, Kailua burger (PHP347, big) while my mom got the Hawaiian Style (PHP287) and my sister ordered the Bacon Me Crazy (PHP268, ¼ lb.). We also ordered shoestring fries (PHP88) as a side dish.

While waiting, my mom got a complimentary dessert in celebration of Mother’s Day.

Detox Time: Detoxify Bar

Just like most people, I love to eat unhealthy stuff. (Chips, cakes, ice cream, chocolates, pizza, fries… why are you soooo good???)  But there are times when I feel so guilty that I just have to cleanse myself. I still remember the first time I did juice detox. It was not as hard as I thought but it was still challenging. I avoided everyone with food and became anti-social for a day. (Why yes, all of the people I know and talk with always have food.) It was worth it though as I felt great after! Not really sure if it was psychological given I spent quite a lot for 6 bottles of juice I could do myself or if it really made me feel better. Anyway, I was convinced once again to try it out and this time, I tried Detoxify Bar.

Hello, Detoxify Bar!

Detoxify Bar offers juice detox at a friendlier price compared to Juju Cleanse. Ordering was easier too as I called them up one afternoon to prepare my order for pick up that same night.

One day detox is composed of 5 bottles (versus 6 of Juju) and you may mix and match the juices you want (though they also have sets). Each bottle costs PHP220 but if you get a detox set, you also get a thermal bag and two tea packs for an additional PHP250.

I chose the Green Vegan Detox, Minty Berry Detox, Lemon Detox, and two bottles of Red Vegan Detox.

Pie Day: Lombardi’s

I love celebrating all those random “special” days. One of which is Pi/Pie/White Day. Celebrated every 14^th of March (3.14), I make sure that I do something on that day. And I did this year. But one thing I failed to do was to eat pizza. Since I must have pizza that weekend, I went to… Lombardi’s.

Hello, Lombardi’s!

I recall the last time I visited was around October of last year with a few college friends and we had pizza too! Lombardi’s pizzas never disappoint. This time, I wanted to try something different so we chose Vegetariana (PHP320). I also got a Crèma di Funghi (PHP190), Spaghetti Ai Frutti Di Mare (PHP440) and Pannacota Del Piemonte (PHP160).

The cream of mushroom was indeed creamy. I loved the slightly thick texture and the bits of mushroom for extra bite.

The Spaghetti Ai Frutti Di Mare, as before, had the delightful light taste. I also loved the different textures of the seafood—clams, prawns, mussels and squid.

Bacon Steak Heaven: Balboa

Friday traffic never fails to discourage me from exploring other places. Just like last Friday, R and I were supposed to visit Xocolat near UP. But since traffic gets more intense on Fridays, we decided to go to Shangri-La instead. And I find it tough to choose where to eat there since I already tried all the restaurants. (Good thing my favorites such as Spätzle, Kettle, Balboa, Brotzeit, and Duck & Buvette are there.) R let me choose where to eat and I chose…

Balboa! It has been a while.

I still remember how much I raved about its roasted chicken. I told my family, friends, and colleagues how much I love Balboa’s roasted chicken. I’m a fan. (Okay, enough of the chicken.)

This time around, R and I ordered the following: Cream of Squash (PHP209), Bacon Steak (PHP448) and Lasagna (PHP319). For drinks, R got the Salted Caramel (PHP175) while I chose Lychee, Lime and Honey (PHP138).

The drinks arrived first and my drink was quite refreshing. It wasn’t that sweet and it has a slight citrus taste from the lime. The lychee taste was faint though.

R loved his salted caramel. It was quite milky and surprisingly not as sweet as I thought.

The Cream of Squash had a light texture making it a good appetizer. I loved the slight sweetness of the soup.

Love at Third Bite: Green Pastures

My preferences seem to be different from my colleagues. Whenever we vote on something, I usually end up choosing the option NO ONE votes for. Just like when we were deciding where to have our celebratory dinner, I chose Kettle or Brotzeit; both chosen by nada. Curious which one won? Green Pastures.

Hello, Green Pastures!

Okay, I have a love-hate relationship with this one. I recall that I ordered the wrong dishes on my first visit and I had yummy pasta but a weird drink on my second visit. This time around though, my boss, M, ordered for the team and got Ricotta (PHP225), Stracciatella (PHP325) and Autumn Surprise (PHP430, small | PHP595, large) for appetizer; Scampi-Chorizo (PHP500, solo | PHP700, sharing), 80/20 Burger (PHP550), Roasted Organic Chicken (PHP650) and Tap-Caulisi-Log (PHP600) as our mains.

First served was the bowl of salad.

I truly enjoyed the mix of greens, nuts and fruits. There were a lot of flavors and textures going on making it very interesting. My favorite was the candied walnuts.

Stracciatella

Ricotta and stracciatella were served next.

Ricotta

Almost everyone liked the stracciatella cheese more but I prefer ricotta cheese as it had a tangier flavor. The scracciatella needed a bit of salt for taste while ricotta tastes even better with the onion jam. Then again, the arugula made scracciatella delightful.

First Bite: Planet Grapes

I’m a fan of Planet of the Apes and that’s probably why I’m so curious with Planet Grapes. I find it to be such a witty name and I’m a sucker for anything witty.

Hello, Planet Grapes!

It has been months since I discovered this place but the Alabang branch was a bit too far for me so I never had a chance to visit. But food gods love me so much that Planet Grapes’ newest branch is just a few blocks away from me—Shangri-La Plaza Mall.

Wine without the drama.

 

Planet Grapes somehow has a classy yet warm ambiance. The dishes too aren’t priced that steep though some dishes are slightly on the expensive side. We got the following: Kitayama Rib eye Steak (PHP1,195), Grilled Trio Prawns (PHP495) and PG Super Sisig (PHP210). For wine, we got Baby Bad Boy 2010 (PHP280 for 125 ml | PHP180 for 75 ml | PHP95 for 38 ml) and Pircas Negras Torrontes (PHP235 for 125 ml | PHP150 for 75 ml | PHP80 for 38 ml).

First served was the sisig. R and I got confused with the tomatoes as we never had sisig with tomatoes before. (I guess it is for the purpose of giving extra crunch?) Admittedly, it’s not the best sisig around but it was good. I just wish that it was crunchier.

Restaurant Love: Happy Cream Puff

I have a few favorite places that I go to whenever I’m lazy, tired or just wanted to have a quick break. One of which is Happy Cream Puff at Shangri-La Plaza Mall’s East Wing. (Wow, that’s a mouthful!) The place is not as crowded as Starbucks and they have free wi-fi (which fails me at times). And since they also serve savory dishes, it’s one of my top choices when I’m hungry and need food ASAP.

It was already 4 p.m. when we got to Shangri-La and with no food in our bellies; we were starting to get cranky. My sister and I decided to go to Happy Cream Puff for a quick meal before doing other errands.

Konnichiwa, Happy Cream Puff!

This time around, I decided to go for the Nagoya Spaghetti (PHP230) while my sister ordered the Salisbury steak. We also got Banana Nama Éclair (PHP105) for dessert.

For some reason, I was so addicted to spaghetti that week. Just the day before, I also had spaghetti. I felt like I was possessed by Hetty Spaghetti. Anyway…

Restaurant Love: Kettle

It has been a long while since I last visited Kettle. I think it has been almost a year! 2014 went by so fast. It was filled with so many changes, learning, challenges and a lot of food finds! I still remember the food I ordered in Kettle. The Mac and Four Cheese and the Buttermilk Fried Chicken definitely stood out. Anyway, since it was almost a year, it was time to visit again.

Hello, Kettle!

This time around, we decided to order the following: Oven Roasted Squash Soup (PHP269), Angus Roast beef Hash (PHP539), Angus Roast beef Sandwich (PHP459), Miso Glazed Salmon (PHP569), a carafe of green iced tea (PHP179), and a slice of Checkered Cake (PHP209).

First served was the iced tea.

It had a strong green tea taste that made it slightly bitter. In short, my sister didn’t like it.

Next served was the soup. I liked that it was creamy and the tidbits of shrimp added texture to the dish. It was heavenly!

Okay, my family loves roast beef. They ordered roast beef sandwich and roast beef hash. I was telling them that only one should order but no one wanted to change. *sigh* Fine.

After trying both, I realized that the only difference was that the sandwich was cheesier and that it had a banana inside making it a bit sweet. The hash was potato overload with the oh-so-soft-and-savory roast beef. The hash was also topped with a fried egg. Both were great but I would be more inclined to order the roast beef hash as it would be easier to share.

Restaurant Love: Duck & Buvette

Shangri-La Plaza Mall is one of my favorite malls but lately, I don’t feel like visiting the place. Yes, I don’t. It’s because there are no new restaurants. *insert sad music here for the foodie* We always end up visiting the restaurants we’ve been to and order something else. But when I’m with my family, they always order the same thing. *insert another sad music here*

Hello again, Duck & Buvette!

I have nothing against D&B so it was okay for me to eat there. And luckily, they have new dishes!

Duck & Buvette now serves dishes like Mustard Rabbit (PHP440) and Braised Frog Legs with Herby Breadcrumbs (PHP280) which made the exotic foodie in me excited. But… those were not available when we visited.  So, we ordered the following instead: Grana Padano Cheese with Quezon Wild Honey (PHP190), D&B Crispy Half Duck Confit (PHP980) and the family favorite, and the 8 Hour Angus Briskets (PHP370).

First served were the slices of cheese with honey. Okay, confession time. Cheese with honey was something new to me. And oh boy! I felt bad that I discovered it after two decades! I love the contrast of the tanginess of the cheese and the sweetness of the honey. (P.S. I just discovered yogurt and honey combination recently. I used to put maple syrup but since we were out, I tried honey and it was better!)

The angus briskets were served next and it was still as yummy as before. (Click here to read my review about this dish.)

Love at Second Bite: Maple

There are just some things worth giving a second chance. And no, I’m not being mushy here. I’m talking about giving some restaurants a second chance. There are times when I get bad first dining experiences because of either bad food choices or terrible service. But when I see good reviews about those establishments I visited (and swore will never visit ever again), I get curious and try to dine again. And I’m glad I did with Maple.

Hello, Maple.

To be honest, I wasn’t that thrilled to eat there again since my first visit wasn’t that pleasant. (We ordered all the wrong dishes hence Maple never appeared before.) But my mom wanted to visit something new to her so I gave in.

She ordered The Maple Burger (PHP475) and a glass Country Iced Tea (PHP105) while I got the Salmon Catch (PHP550).

The iced tea was quite concentrated so my mom had to wait for the ice to melt. Then again, that’s value for money (in a way).

The Maple Burger was pretty huge. Thick and juicy beef patty served with cheese, lettuce, pickles, tomatoes, and bacon with onion rings on the side, this dish guarantees a full tummy.

Colleagues’ Choice: Watami

It’s always fun to bond with colleagues outside the office. You get to know them better and you get to freely talk about other things without feeling guilty of slacking off. And since one of my officemates will be leaving soon, we decided to have a team dinner. After a few suggestions here and there, we decided to dine at Watami.

Hello, Watami.

I was super hungry when I got there with one of my officemates who happen to live in the same area. Due to lack of self control, I ordered right away. I went with: Watami Salad (PH255 for half), Salmon Irodori (PHP195), Cold Soba (PHP225) and Shochu (PHP150).

The Shochu arrived first and it looked like water. Upon sniffing, I could definitely tell that it’s alcohol. It was pretty strong too.

The Watami Salad and Salmon Irodori were served next.

I noticed that the salad’s meant for sharing as it was served with tongs but… no. *sharing no likey* (Kidding! But I really didn’t share that night.)

Promo Alert: One Year Supply of Sumo Sam's Ebi Tempura?!?

I cannot count how many times I said the sentence “I love Japanese food.” I just love it so much! Salmon sashimi and teppanyaki forever!!! And things just got sweeter when I got an email about Sumo Sam’s wonderful 9^th birthday.

Happy birthday, Sumo Sam! (Well, happy birthday in advance!)

On its 9^th birthday, Sumo Sam will hold THREE interesting promos.

#1 PHP9 Ebi Tempura

No, your eyes are not playing tricks on you. It really is just NINE PESOS per ebi tempura! It’s a steal right? On the 23^rd of December from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., order as many ebi tempura you want! If this isn’t enough, diners who avail of this promo could also win a ONE YEAR SUPPLY of ebi tempura! Imagine this: tempura… every day… for a year! Sweet!

#2 9TH Birthday Treat

Know anyone named Sam and born on December 23, 2005? Celebrate your niece/nephew’s birthday at Sumo Sam and he or she could win a one year supply of ebi tempura! Nine lucky nine year old namesakes of Sumo Sam could win. All it takes is proof of name and age.

 

Restaurant Love: Texas Roadhouse Grill

I always look forward to Friday nights as it always mean dinner out with my favorite girls—my mom and sister. However, because of the insane traffic (and scarcity of parking space in Kapitolyo), we often find ourselves stuck at Shangri-La. I really have nothing against the mall as it’s one of my favorite malls but I have visited all the restaurants there. I may be always hungry but my tummy is quite choosy. It wants something new every time. And sadly, there are no new restaurants at Shangri-La. So, we’re left to do a few repeats but I always make sure that I try something new.

Hello, Texas Roadhouse Grill!

I remember that the last time I visited Texas Roadhouse Grill was during the time there was a liquor ban. I wanted to drink margarita then but my order was turned down due to the prohibition forcing me to opt for a shake. This time though, I ordered a Long Island Iced Tea (PHP120). Our other orders were Crispy Chicken Tenders (PHP310), Chicken and Beef Skewers (PHP495), and Smoked Salmon Salad (PHP250, solo | PHP395 cowboy style).

The chicken tenders were indeed crispy. I also loved that they were able to maintain the juiciness of the chicken breasts while the batter was golden brown.

Ti Amo: Lombardi's

People come and go. Those who stay are just one of the three—family, friends, or the one. Anyway, I won’t be mushy today as I’m referring to the second one. I’m so glad that I have friends to talk with when I have problems or bug when I’m in the mood to eat. It has been over a month since I last saw my MScM friends and so many things happened for the past weeks. We needed a catch up session.

I was looking forward to the 24^th of October as my friends and I were planning another staycation. But we were not able to book a room. *boo*

 

We decided to have dinner instead at Shangri-La. K and F picked Lombardi’s as they haven’t tried the food there yet.

When I arrived, they already ordered Spaghetti Ai Fruitti Di Mare (PHP440) and Quattro Formaggi (PHP475). I ordered Crèma di Spinaci (PHP175) and Chicken Cacciatore (PHP590). I skipped ordering dessert as I was craving for tea.

 

My cream of spinach soup was served first and it was quite salty. Actually, it was really salty. But I was hungry so I finished my bowl of soup. It made me look forward to the main course though.