Love at First Bite: Bistro Kalzada

I always think of fancy and expensive whenever I hear the word degustation. I first had my first degustation experience at the lovely abode of Dedet de la Fuente for her massive Pepita’s Lechon holiday degustation which lasted almost 5 hours. Since then, I tried other degustation menus and some cost an arm and leg. With more and more establishments offering fancy tasting menus, I would have never thought that I’d get to discover a restaurant that would challenge this and at less than PHP600 for two at that! 

Hello, Bistro Kalzada.

Located along the busy Magiting Street inside Teachers Village, this small and homey restaurant is owned by a dynamic chef couple who have professional culinary training abroad. Pursuing their dream of starting their own restaurant, they opened Bistro Kalzada last July this year and have been slowly getting the attention of locals who frequent the area.

A tasting menu was prepared for us when we dropped by a few Sundays ago and for starters, we were treated to a lovely plate of Beef Brisket Enchilada (PHP95). 

I was surprised when I found out that this beautifully plated appetizer only costs PHP95. And it was not just beautiful, it was actually tasty too! The beef brisket bits were succulent making each bite packed with flavor. 

First Visit: Merkanto Street International Street Food

Merkanto Street has been one of the most awaited stops during our Maginhawa food crawl. With J’s new found love for banh mi and R’s interest in Indian food, we had to make sure that we head here as soon as when the clock strikes 4 p.m..

Hello, Merkanto St International Street Food! (Whew, that’s a mouthful.)

The humble car wash and food park in one was empty when we got there around 4:30 p.m. and sadly, there was only one stall open at that time as most open at 5 p.m.. This made choosing easier as we’re stuck with Viet Nom, a stall that sells Vietnamese dishes. 

J went with Bahn Mi Ga (PHP165) while A got Mi Xiao Mem (PHP145) and R1 ordered Mi Xiao Toi Thit Ko Bo (PHP165). 

The Bahn Mi Ga (it was really spelled as Bahn Mi instead of Banh Mi) was sweet and had a bit of crunch thanks to the veggies. But it lacked that defining taste of banh mi that comes from a generous serving of cilantro and liver pate. The bread was wrong as well as they used a soft bun instead of a baguette. At PHP165, this was a bit steep as other banh mi places sell theirs at PHP130 and these establishments use the right bun. 

Beat the Heat: Snow Creme

With the never ending summer heat, shaved ice treats have become a staple dessert in the food scene. I find it interesting how it evolved from Cerealicious and Ice Monster to bingsu. Such changes show how locals also evolved as foodies. We are no longer satisfied with rough shaved ice and now yearn for snow-like ones. We also now crave for a variety of toppings and are no longer content with just brownies, chocolates and cereals. And these changes in preferences help push the food industry to come up with better dishes. I was pretty pleased to find a shop that actually merged two of the food trends that made Manila, well, fatter. 

Hello, Snow Creme!

This charming shaved ice dessert shop is located in the same building as some of the famous Maginhawa restaurants such as Wicked Kitchen and Papa Diddi’s. Cat Café Manila is also in the same building. 

I was actually just looking for something to quench my thirst when I passed by this shop. I figured that shaved ice will do the trick and that I’ll be able to satisfy my insatiable desire for desserts at the same time. To my surprise, this shop offers more than shaved ice treats. 

Snow Creme also offers milk teas, fruit teas, smoothies and light snacks like fries and squid balls.  I ended up getting Strawberry Kiwi Iced Tea (PHP70, Large | PHP80, Extra Large) and Taiwan Shaved Ice (PHP130, Small | PHP180, Large). 

My Taiwan Shaved Ice was served in less than 15 minutes and it looked pretty nice with its generous serving of mochi, red beans and coffee jelly. It sure was a steal for PHP130. 

First Bite: Catabolic Café

It was a few weeks in the making but we finally made it to Maginhawa for an epic food crawl. 

We didn't exactly plan our stops but thanks to looloo and Waze, we managed to find the rainbow cake store, Catabolic Café.

Hello, Catabolic Café!

The store was pretty empty at 2 p.m. with only two tables occupied. 

We quickly placed our orders namely Pares Rice with Crispy Tadyang (PHP350) and Chicken with Waffles (PHP330).

The Pares Rice with Crispy Tadyang was a hit. The rice was flavorful and complemented the slightly sweet and tender beef ribs. I would have liked it better though if the beef was more succulent. 

Love at First Bite: π Breakfast and Pies

Breakfast food is love. Sunnyside up eggs, bacon, spam, tapa, hot dogs… I could eat it all day long. This is why I adore restaurants that serve breakfast from opening to closing. And that’s why I got excited when R suggested that we try π Breakfast and Pies for dinner one Sunday night.

Hello, π Breakfast and Pies!

The quaint restaurant is pretty small and parking could be difficult too if you visit around lunch or dinner time.

R’s memory of the Longsilog (PHP295) wasn’t that good as he recalled that he only got two small longganisa and felt that it looked sad with the mountain of rice. Anyway, we opted to go for the Wagyu Beef Sirloin Tapa (PHP265) and the Caramelized Spam (PHP265). We also ordered Lemon Basil Fritz (PHP75) and Cranberry Celery Cooler (PHP75) as our drinks.

First served were our drinks.

The lemon basil fritz didn’t have much citrus taste to it while the cranberry celery cooler had a strong celery taste. In short, both drinks tasted very healthy. (And sadly, R and I are not fond of it.)

The tapa and spam were served next.

Restaurant Love: Leona's Art Restaurant

I was so excited for the Quezon City Food Fest as it sounded so promising. Imagine, gathering all the best finds in Quezon City in one area. It was a foodie’s dream come true. But I wasn’t expecting (1) that it’ll rain pretty much the whole afternoon and (2) that there wasn’t anything special about the whole event. There were no special dishes or offering and every single restaurant was packed! In short, I ended up being a sticky and wet hungry girl.

After an upsetting trip to this new Japanese restaurant I shall not mention, M recommended that we visit his favorite pizza place instead. And since I was famished and the two sorbetes cones I bought were about to disappear, I agreed.

Hello, Leona’s Art Restaurant!

The place is pretty small and we had to wait for a bit for a table to clear up. Luckily, the wait wasn’t that long.

Since the place was packed, it took the servers a while to clear our table and to get our orders. But since the owner was apologetic, I was more forgiving this time. (Plus, the sorbetes helped calm me.)

We opted to get the Take Three Pizza Promo for only PHP499 (for 10 inches). For the flavors, Three Cheese and Pepperoni are fixed. We could only choose one more and we got the Garlic and Mushroom. I also ordered the Tomato Espresso (PHP80) and Soft Taco (PHP90). I also got a rootbeer float as drink/dessert.

Foodie Alert: Quezon City Food Festival

Food trips. I love food trips. But one thing I love more than food trips would be food fairs and festivals. And I can’t wait for October 11.

Quezon City Food Festival is happening in 10 days!

The foodiedestination Maginhawa Street will be closed the whole day of October 11 starting midnight as several tents from our favorite Quezon City will gather in one area for one unforgettable fattening day. The best part? It’s FREE.

Roam around the street of Maginhawa and discover new food loves. I for one can’t wait! I just realized that I haven’t covered a sixteenth of the restaurants in Maginhawa and Malingap alone.

Restaurant Discovery: Hillcrest Wellness Café

Since we were already in the area, V and I opted to walk around Teachers Village and look for an interesting place to have dessert after a filling meal thanks to Cocina Juan. After a short walk, V noticed a coffee shop with a bookshelf and that attracted him like a fly to light. So, we found our dessert place.

Hello, Hillcrest Wellness Café.

It has a modest café set up that gives an impression of a school lounge of some sort. The menu is quite simple too but the Moringaccino (PHP120) sure made me curious. Moringa with cappuccino? I’ve never heard of that before. And so, I just have to order that one. V, as a person who doesn’t drink coffee (*gasp* I know!), opted for Strawberry Banana Wellness Shake (PHP145). We also ordered a Banana Mango crepe (PHP185). It was a good thing that they have Moringaccino to distract me as the person manning the counter could not answer any of my questions except which one is their bestseller.

My coffee tasted a bit like matcha. It had a strong “green” taste. It tasted healthy though so I didn’t find finishing the cup sinful.

Restaurant Discovery: Cocina Juan

I am lazy on Lazy Sundays. I am even lazy to eat on Lazy Sundays! Given that I hardly go out on Sundays, I eat really late. I normally skip breakfast so that I’ll just have a big lunch. It became a habit that I find difficult to break. Hence, whenever I go out on Sundays, I’d leave my place with an empty stomach and just a few minutes away from being grumpy. (Unless I bring a carton of milk with me to last me an hour or two.)

A few Sundays ago was supposed to be a Fishing Day at La Mesa Eco Park. But V and I were surprised to be greeted by a fishing pond that seems to be owned by Shrek. We cannot see a single fish. Well, there were a few kids “fishing” but I bet these kids were there for hours. Plus, there were falling branches that made things quite scary for us. So after a few minutes of staring at the pond/Shrek’s swamp, we decided to go to Maginhawa instead.

 

I was 10 minutes away from being a “hANGRY” cat lady when we finally decided to go for Cocina Juan. The place looks charming with its bright red wall and there were only two tables occupied.

The server assisted us to our table and promptly gave us the menu and recommended some dishes. We went for the Churrasco Nicaragua (PHP439) as the server mentioned that this one isn’t spicy. I also got a glass of Cucumber Lemonade (PHP65) simply because it sounds so refreshing. Since I was really hungry and starting to show some symptoms of bratinellism, I asked the kind waiter to choose an appetizer for us as I do not want to think anymore. He chose the Quesadilla Con Tomate (PHP189).

A New Breakfast Lovers' Hotspot

I just love breakfast and I get grumpy when I miss the most important meal of the day. We Pinoys just love food that most of us eat 6 times a day (breakfast, brunch, lunch, merienda, dinner, and midnight snack). But nothing beats breakfast. A great breakfast is the perfect way to start the day. 

Another restaurant I would love to try is π Breakfast and Pies by Chef Ed Bugia. 

Photo from Pepper.ph

Yet another gem waiting to be flocked to by (since it has been discovered already), it has a lot of reasons why it should be your next breakfast destination!

Photo from isabelladepano.tumblr.com

Aside from the typical Eggs Benedict (called Eggs Benny in Breakfast and Pies), they have interesting gourmet waffles such as Salmon and Waffle at a very friendly price of PHP155! Topped with Salmon gravlax and fried capers, this will surely hit the tummy's happy bone! (Okay, that sounded weird and not just because the tummy doesn't have bones.)

Pork Heaven: Don Day

My friend told me about this eat-all-you-can samgyeopsal (grilled pork belly) place a year ago but I never tried to visit the place because it was a bit too far from where I live. But for the past three weeks, I’ve been craving for this Korean dish and I know that I just have to give in.

It took me three rides before finally reaching this pork heaven but it was worth it. Don Day, a Korean restaurant in Malingap St., Quezon City is right across another noteworthy restaurant… Pino RestoBar but that’s another story.

Anyway… back to Don Day…

My friends and I were greeted by a whiteboard menu—stating its very limited options but you’ll surely leave with full tummies.

We decided to go with the samgyeopsal buffet for obvious reasons—we could eat anything on the buffet table plus unlimited supply of samgyeopsal.