Love at First Bite: Puñta Manila

I love Silly People’s Improv Theater (SPIT Manila)! I always tell my friends that I had one of the best nights of my life when I watched them last year. I never laughed so hard and I thought I would die from laughing. And so when I saw their post on Facebook that their first show in 2015 will be at Puñta along Shaw Boulevard, I began to spam my friends. Sadly, people were busy then. I was too. But I badly needed a laugh.

Hello, Puñta Manila!

Photo from Spot.ph

Please do not ask me to pronounce the name of the restaurant for you. It sounds like you’re cursing when you say the name but I guess this is a creative gimmick of the establishment’s owner, Paolo Bediones. People would love to keep saying the name as it’s something different. But Bediones claims that the name was derived from an expression of surprise or delight and not from a “bad word”. Anyway, I will still not say it. >.<

The place was packed that night so it was a good thing that I reserved seats. We were supposed to be a group of four but two had to back out. So I had an extra chair for my bag. Woohoo.

It was difficult to order since all of the dishes I wanted to try were unavailable that night. I think I tried to order over 7 dishes and yes, ALL WERE UNAVAILABLE. I’m not so sure if it was because business was super good or if they only keep limited supply to lessen throw away cost.

We ended up ordering the following: Pollo Tirada Tortillas (PHP285) and Quesos Quesadillas (PHP275). (I wanted to order more but it was difficult as almost everything I wanted were not available. *frustrating!* )

Service was slow. It took Puñta over 45 minutes to serve our food. The food was served a few minutes after the show started which was past 9 p.m. and we arrived around 8:15 p.m.! Good thing we weren’t that hungry.

Moshi Moshi: Moshi Koshi Noodle Boss

My boss has been telling me about this new Japanese restaurant called Moshi Koshi and how good the food was but for some reason, every time I plan to visit that place, something happens—my sister will be crying her eyes out because of our ex-pet Kermit the hermit crab, traffic, or something else that seemed to be bizarre. But come Christmas, one of my wishes came true.

Konnichiwa, Moshi Koshi Noodle Boss!

 

The place was empty when we arrived. I guess people were too busy lining up to watch the MMFF movies. (I watched Segunda Mano which turned out to be comedic!)

 

Just like a fast food chain, you have to approach the counter and order there. I ordered Kaki-age Udon (PHP140), Ebi Tempura Teishoku (PHP185), Chicken Teriyaki Bento (PHP220) and Japanese ice cream—Coffee and Green Tea (PHP55 each). Really affordable for Japanese food, right?

 

The service was also quick. First served was the ChickenTeriyaki Bento. I was planning to have it for myself but apparently, my sister wanted it. It was served with miso soup and four side dishes, one of which was shredded chicken that seemed to be more like chicken spread (and made me crave for bread).

It was the sweet and slightly oily type of chicken teriyaki. The meat was tender and well cooked. My sister also enjoyed the sidings (and she usually ignores these little things). For a price of PHP220, it really was worth every penny (uh, cent… uhm, peso).

 

Next served was the Ebi Tempura Teishoku which came with miso soup and one siding—potato salad. The ebi tempura was not the oily and 80% bread crumbs type. The shrimps used were fresh as well. The sauce that accompanied the dish was quite sweet. I was looking for a bit of ginger taste but I’m not sure if it was very mild or if it was not there at all. It would have been nice to have ginger to add some spice.

My mom loved the kakiage udon. It was a bit sweet because of some vegetables and the broth itself. The udon was really thick and filling. I could manage to only eat one string at a time. It was a bit oily for me though. Nonetheless, it was a good dish especially during the cold and rainy days.

The highlight of my visit though was the dessert. I wasn’t really expecting much from the ice cream as Moshi Koshi’s a noodle place but the ice cream, especially the coffee flavor, was really… really good!

 

I loved the texture of the coffee ice cream. It was very smooth and it was almost like gelato. It was creamy and had that coffee taste without the bitterness of it.

 

The green tea flavor on the other hand was not as smooth as coffee. It was a bit grainy for me. But, tea lovers out there, I’m sure that you’ll enjoy this. The tea taste was very strong yet, just like the coffee flavor, it was not bitter. Ice cream love!!!

I will definitely go back to try the other dishes and of course, another round of ice cream.

Moshi Koshi is located at #431 Shaw Boulevard, corner Ideal St., Mandaluyong City. It is right across the Goldilocks plant and Puregold Shaw.