My First Bite: Kim N' Chi

I have practically been away from CS for almost a month and since the scheduled laser tag was on the weekend of my favorite bazaar, we decided to cancel it and move it two weeks after. (It may sound a wee bit selfish but most CSers were also not available then. Promise!) My friend N (different N from previous posts) and I decided to go food tripping at Glorietta before hitting a bazaar.

Since we were in a hurry to have lunch in order to be at World Trade before 4 p.m., we decided to have lunch at the food court. (Hey, we need to save some money to be able to buy more fashion finds.)

 

N ordered Indian food at New Bombay and while I’m not really the person fond of Indian food, I skipped around and saw… Kim N’ Chi. Cute name, I thought.

 

The menu was very simple and the Ramyon (PHP85) and Seafood Omu-Rice (PHP119) captured my attention.  The ramyon was nothing extravagant. I just wanted soup. :D

 

I waited for my little alarm to buzz and light up while looking for a table for me and my friend. After a few minutes, the little cute convenient gadget lit up. My food’s ready!

Birthday Lunch Surprise: Sonya's Garden

I have been targeting to visit a hidden yet well-known “gem” near Tagaytay for quite some time now. Fine, it has been years, two or three years to be more precise. But for some reason, my parents were always busy and my friends were not very fond of out of town adventures. But this 2012 seemed to be nice to me as I finally got to cross out one of the items on my to-do list—a trip to Sonya’s Garden.

I am the type of person who plans out my own birthday. I make sure that I will get to eat good food on my special day (and the day before and two days before that too as I just love birthdays). Hey! I don’t think it is being a spoiled brat or anything like that. I only get to have the right to demand to be special in one out of 365 days! Anyway, going back to Sonya’s Garden…

 

My First Bite: Kogi Bulgogi

It feels so surreal when you have to say goodbye to someone you get used to seeing almost every day. It never fails to make you feel that sharp pinch to the heart when you bid farewell and you know that it’s for good or at least for a long time. Despedidas are often organized to create last hurrah memories and S’s dinner/KTV night sure made her… legendary.

This is it. S’s last Friday with us. *upside down smile*

 

We decided to have dinner at Kogi Bulgogi after T2 recommended the place (because of its affordable menu and great tasting dishes).

 

The place was packed when we arrived and despite having a reservation, we had to wait for a few minutes before getting a table. While waiting, we decided to check the menu so that as soon as we get to sit down, we already know what to order. 

 

After 10 minutes or so, we finally got a table for a group of 5 which was positioned beside the ice cream freezer (oh temptation!). We quickly ordered as our tummies were about to get really angry. I ordered the following: Haemul Pa Jeon (PHP158), Salmon Sashimi (PHP218), Tuk Bulgogi (PHP298), Japchae (PHP218), and Bibimbap (PHP165). Before you judge me, I shared most of this with S and T1.

 

Lunchtime at Chatime

I just love going on a date with my dad! These dates give us the needed father-daughter bonding plus heart-to-heart talk. I find it extremely funny though how much our conversation topics evolved from me being a spoiled brat begging for a new toy or whatnot to us talking about career, life, and everything in between (which mostly involves food and me being shipped to another country!).

My dad randomly called me around 11:30 a.m. on a weekday (which means I was at work). He asked me if I want to have lunch and since I only have meatloaf as lunch that day, I said YES as I normally decline because of the long line to the elevator. We planned to have lunch at Milky and Sunny but there was no parking space. Same for Nav and Poco Deli. We then decided to have lunch instead at Chatime as they now serve food.

 

We were lucky as the line was still short when we arrived. I ordered two orders of Pepper Salt Chicken Chops with Annatto Rice Pilaf (PHP75 for the chicken chops and PHP18 for the rice pilaf) and Parmesan Fries (PHP65). I had my usual ChocolateMousse while my dad tried one of the newest drinks of Chatime.

 

The chicken chops and rice annatto rice pilaf was served in about 10 minutes and surprisingly, it was served lukewarm. My dad had to ask the server for a new bowl of rice as he doesn’t want his rice reheated. 

My First Bite: Lord Stow's Bakery

I think I have already shared several times how much I love Binondo. No, it’s not because I’m Chinese (as I “was” a frustrated Japanese wannabe loving everything Japanese!). It was because I get to discover and experience a lot of things here that I normally wouldn’t if I roam around my “territory” (as some of my friends call it). Kalesa rides, haggling for fruit prices, seeing chicken feet and head vacuum sealed, and more—I don’t think I’ll ever experience that in my territory.

During my fourth trip to Binondo last year, a CS friend of mine got so excited to see a bakeshop. I was… confused. Apparently, it is known for its egg tarts and it is actually an international bakeshop. *Ooh*

Hello, Lord Stow’s Bakery!

It was rather odd though that her excitement never pushed me to buy a box of my own. I guess I was too lazy to carry a box knowing that we were going to Intramuros (my favorite place ever… here in Manila).

Restaurant Discovery: Lusso

I am seriously addicted to salmon! Every time I get to see salmon being offered, I order it. Sashimi, baked, or whatnot, I must try it. 

I finally reached the point of being “quarter of a century”. It makes one feel a lot older, right? *sigh* But one nice thing that comes with age is TONS of experiences and memories. It may be good or bad, but hey, it makes you who you are now. (Well, if we try to connect it with salmon, it may sound weird, but I hope you get my point.)

Anyway, Frannywanny asked me a few Sundays ago if I was free for dinner at Lusso. It was actually my birthday but since my family usually celebrates my birthday over lunch, I said I could join her and her lovely cousins.

I’ve never heard of this place before but based on how excited Frannywanny was, I bet it’s a good restaurant. And, boy, was it posh-looking. Unlike other restaurants with screaming signages, this restaurant was pretty simple with its name on its door handle. It was wittily done too using a long L as both the signage and a decorative piece for the entrance.

Friday Love: T.G.I. Friday's

It has been almost two years in the making but finally—I’m getting married! Not. My friends and I have been planning to have an overnight get together for years now as the last time we did that was when we graduated a few years back. We decided to stay at Eastwood Richmonde Hotel but had no plans to dine there for dinner as we were still on a non-executive salary. *gloom*

It was almost 9 p.m. and most of us came from work or elsewhere without food in our tummies except for K. Just like a group of tweens, we waited for everyone before deciding where to have dinner.

After putting our bags inside our “unlocked” room (scary!), we decided to have dinner at T.G.I. Friday’s. The place was quite packed so the server who served us suggested that we go al fresco dining but we hesitated as 1) none of my friends smoke; 2) it was hot that day. We then requested for the corner table available at the second floor.

Starved, we quickly ordered something. I ordered the Cajun Shrimp and Chicken Pasta (PHP415 regular; PHP625 for sharing) and Strawberry Lemonade Slush (PHP165). B ordered Chicken Club Sandwich (PHP395), while N settled for Jack Daniel’s Burger (PHP465). K, M, and L were still full so they just ordered Oreo Madness (PHP205 for one piece and PHP345 for two pieces). I still remember how hyper our server, Rentin, was. It was his second day if I remember it correctly and he even apologized about sweating too much as he was just eager to serve us. (Funny fellow.)

They quickly served my drink and it was delightful! Sweet yet still refreshing!

Revisiting Tender Bob's

I just love celebrating my birthday. But what makes me love celebrating birthday more is when I get to share it with people I cherish. Thus, this year, I decided to message one of my closest friends (we’ve been friends for 19 years and hoping for it to reach 60!) and invited her to dinner with my mom and sister.

I actually wanted to eat at Cyma but since I was with my sister, I had to give way and we decided to have dinner at a restaurant a few steps away from the Greek restaurant I simply adore. Hello again, Tender Bob’s!

The homey American restaurant’s server quickly guided us to our seats and handed the menus. I was still full from the ribs I ate for lunch while A was not very hungry and I (her boyfriend) is on a strict diet. We then decided to order food for sharing instead.

We then decided to try the Meat Platter (PHP990). We also ordered Mussel Pasta (PHP388) and my sister’s all-time favorite, Chicken Tenders Original Recipe (PHP220).

 

The chicken tenders arrived first and the fries never fail to tempt me and eat a lot of it. I just love fries made from REAL potatoes. I also love the honey mustard sauce. For more of the chicken tenders, click here.

A Pre-Valentine's dinner with Mr. Kurosawa

My colleagues T1 and T2 (just so we could differentiate their names and believe me, they actually have the same sounding name as they were just a few letters off) planned a pre-Valentine’s dinner at Eastwood and I gamely joined them (and let me stop myself before I start to over share).

I hardly frequent Eastwood as I find it a bit far from my place and I’m pretty happy to stroll around Rockwell or Shangri-la as these malls have some of my favorite restaurants and retail stores. But for some reason, I end up wandering around for two consecutive Fridays (excluding this pre-Valentine’s).

 

Anyway, I was getting off topic. Let’s go back to the pre-Valentine’s dinner. T1, T2, and I agreed to have dinner at Mr. Kurosawa. I, as a foodie who hardly visits Eastwood, got excited as I have never dined there and it caught my eye the last time I went there with a fellow foodie. Finally, I will get to taste Mr. Kurosawa’s cooking. Sort of.

 

Moshi moshi, Kurosawa-san!

My First Bite: Ye Dang

For some weird reason, I remember Ye Dang to be on the second floor of a building across the Union Bank head office. Thus it was a surprise to me when I saw it beside Metrowalk. What surprised me even more is when my balikbayan friend N wanted to eat there instead of a Filipino restaurant. Oh well.

Annyeong haseyo, Ye Dang!

 

It took us a bit longer to go to this rather popular Korean restaurant because of the rush hour. Luckily, the place was not crowded at all and we managed to get seats right away.

Sale Alert! SuperSale Bazaar this March 2-4, 2012

Something very exciting is happening this weekend and I can’t wait for Saturday to come!

For the past few weeks, all I have been doing was eat, eat, and eat. Then I realized, I did not shop last month (and to think it was my birth month), except for those occasional food shopping and gift buying trips. I am not a shopaholic but I usually buy a new top or whatnot every month. I guess I prioritized my tummy last month (oh, how time flies) more than my desire to wear something new to work. (Yes, wearing something new, even if it’s just a clip, makes me feel, well, excited to go to work. *blush*)

 

I know that there’s a SuperSale Bazaar every March of the year but I was not expecting it to be early this year. I was so surprised when my officemate B handed me a flyer of my favorite bazaar stating that it is slated to happen this MARCH 2-4, 2012. That’s this weekend!