I'M IN LOVE: Minions of Despicable Me

It has been a while since I last bought a Happy Meal. I believe they were giving out Rise of the Guardians toys then (and I got an elf). I never thought of wanting to complete a collection again till…

 

BA BA BA BABANANA BA BA BA BABANANA NA NA NA AHH POTATO NA AH AH BANANA…

Yes, that song! Those cute yellow minions captured my heart ever since I saw them on the big screen helping out Gru to be the best villain ever.

Restaurant Discovery: Lombardi's

There are times when I wake up and crave for something real bad. The thing is, I won’t stop thinking about it till I get to eat it. And last Saturday, I woke up with the thought of… Pizza. N though wasn’t in the mood for pizza that day. Luckily, N was running late and I thought to myself… pizza time! And just when I was about to have a solo date, I saw my mom and sister and M (my sister) was in the mood for pizza too. High pizza five! (Hmm… that sounds nerdy.)

I’ve been eying Lombardi’s ever since I saw it while eating at Corazon during Mother’s Day. I thought of checking the place out as soon as my tummy said “PIZZA”.

 

The menu wasn’t very extensive but it’s perfect for those who think so long before ordering.

Since it was past 1 p.m. that time, I decided to do the ordering as my mom and sister take longer when we try out a new restaurant. 

 

I planned on ordering the Parmigiana Di Melanzane (roasted eggplant with stewed tomato and mozzarella) but it was not available. The server suggested another bestseller, Mozzarella in Carrozza with Arrabbiata Sauce (PHP230) and as a sucker for anything recommended, I said, “We’ll have that!” We also ordered chef’s recommended Ravioli Di Carne (PHP480) and Pizza Gambaretti (PHP480). For desserts, we ordered Tiramisu (PHP210) and Pannacotta Del Piemonte (PHP160).

 

We were given complimentary snacks to calm our angry tummies. We finished it in less than 3 minutes.

A pitcher of brewed iced tea is PHP150. Ask for more ice as it tends to have a very strong flavor.

The dishes were served fast though. First, the appetizer.

An English Afternoon: TWG Tea Salon and Boutique

Tea, just like ramen and katsu, has been available in the market for a long time but it was just recently when it became a craze… a big craze. Taking photos with that cute cup with a mustache to the reflection on a shiny gold teapot, these are just a few of many posts  we commonly see on our social media news feeds. Yes, compared to those tea bags available in your favorite supermarket, these raved ones are pretty pricey. But I guess you pay for the ambiance and rather English experience. 

I’m in love with that classy tea place. Yes, it was love at first sight. I enjoyed munching those wonderful brunch dishes while sipping my Pink Garden tea. I just have to go back for more. And I did with T last time.

Since we just came from lunch then, we opted to just try TWG’s pastries. There are two kinds—Tea and French. After a bit of thinking, we chose to try Financiers with Matcha Tea (PHP150 for 2 pieces).

Restaurant Discovery: Saboten

Japanese food seems to be extremely popular these days with ramen and katsu places popping left and right. Every time I pass by The Fort or walk around Shangri-La, I see a lot of new Japanese places I just have to try. And yes, Saboten is in the list.

It has been a while since I last saw M so I set a date with her to catch up. We were supposed to have lunch with T but T suddenly backed out as he had to meet his friend. *sad*

We met up a bit past 2 p.m. and I was surrounded by food as early as 11 a.m. so I was tortured for over 3 hours! >.<

 

Anyway, when we arrived at Saboten, the place was still full and we were on the wait list. But since we’re second, we decided to wait. It wasn’t long till we got a table.

I got mesmerized by the Grated Radish Katsu so I ordered the Loin Set (PHP395). But since ordering just one viand isn’t my thing, I convinced M that we order Saboten Special Set (PHP525) too. The Special set includes one deep-fried shrimp, 65g loin cutlet, 30g tenderloin cutlet, and one crab cream croquette. For dessert, we ordered one Chocolate Hazelnut Cream Cake (PHP195).

 

Service was quick given that the place was packed.

 

First served was a huge bowl of cabbage and some pickled cucumber and radish.

M and I enjoyed it so much that when the first dish arrived, we were a bit full. But the dressing was just too addicting!!!

 

Now for the moment of truth, the Grated Radish Katsu…

Grocery Find: M&M's Snack Mix

I’m the type of girl who shrieks over a new grocery find instead of a new Armani… uh… belt. I’ve never been the type who gushes over fashion pages. I mean I appreciate good clothes but I prefer reading food or kids magazines (because of the simple yet straight to the point movie reviews and comics… who doesn’t love comics?!) over fashion magazines.

After my last driving class, I decided to pass time at the grocery. Determined not to spend a lot, I took a basket instead of a push cart. And after getting some vegetables (as I was trying to lead a healthier lifestyle), I found myself staring at chocolates. Darn!

I spent a good 20 minutes reading over every single packaging that caught my fancy. There were a lot of new chocolates, new flavors, new packaging (that tricked me to thinking it’s a new brand)… I just have to check each and every one! In short, I was in chocolate heaven.

I started to fill my basket with a few sweet goodies then I saw…

 

M&M’s Snack Mix Sweet and Salty? Yeah~<3

There are different kinds. There’s one with short bread partnered with peanut M&M’s, one with dark chocolate with raisins, and one with cookies. Since the cookies seem more appetizing, I took a pack (with milk chocolate M&M's). It was a bit pricy for PHP185 but my I-just-have-to-try-it-because-it-might-be-oh-so-good mentality got the best of me. Good thing I brought with me a few GCs to lessen my cash out. Yes, I’m a stingy glutton.

Restaurant Love: Lazy Dog Café

I miss California. I miss those humongous portions, oh-so-yummy food, gigantic supermarkets, friendly people saying hello to just about anyone, everything. While browsing my phone, I saw some photos from my last trip and a few were from my lunch date with N at the Lazy Dog Café. 

I remember that it was a bit past 12 noon when N picked me up and we were famished. As soon as we got to park the car, we checked a few restaurants outside the mall (in record time) and eventually decided to have lunch at the Lazy Dog Café. 

 

The interiors are rather cute. It has a western feel as place is predominantly wooden brown. I love the cute accent on the table… a paw print. 

N and I didn’t thoroughly browsed the menu and just ordered the lunch specials—Chicken Parmesan ($7.45) and Sundried Tomato Pesto Penne ($7.95). They also serve these for dinner but plus $5.

Restaurant Love: Balboa

Chicken. I really do not know what made you so charming but most Filipinos love chicken. Tinola, Adobo, Fried Chicken. There’s Max’s, Jollibee, Mang Inasal, Baliwag, Andok’s and much more. And because of our love for it, Max’s and Jollibee are now in other countries too!

It’s funny how we always think that whenever we have a balikbayan friend or relative around, we assume that they want to eat Filipino food. You’d be surprised that most of them are more Filipino than we are and they get to eat Filipino food more frequent than us who are here. 

 

We were thrilled when M and D are both here in Manila. We immediately planned a reunion as we just have to. Last time I saw M was way back in 2009 and it was over a year since I last saw D. However, D’s oh so cute baby got sick so she had to back out. But we still pushed through with the plan and met up with M.

 

Thinking that most of us are near Ortigas (except for K), we decided to have dinner at Shangri-La. We were all late except for T. (Sorry!!!)

 

Since we were all famished and because T was at the 4^th floor of the East Wing, we decided to have dinner at Balboa. I got so excited when we all agreed to eat there as I will get to eat my favorite roasted chicken!

 

The place was pretty packed when we arrived and it was around 8:45 p.m. already that time. We got a table though but it was farthest from the counter so the servers can’t really see us right away. Lucky though that there were a lot of people eating outside so there were servers who pass by every 5 minutes.

Weekend (Endless) Eating: Eastwood Cafe's Weekend Family Buffet

Stay-cation is becoming a trend nowadays. With the intense heat, hardly anyone has the energy to roam around under the scorching heat. Things to do with the family have been limited to the comforts of the home but let’s give mom a break and head to Eastwood Richmonde Hotel for a family buffet. 

 

Eastwood Café of Eastwood Richmonde Hotel started to offer Weekend Family Buffet for a friendly price of PHP880 for adults, PHP440 for children age 6 to 12 years old, and FREE for kids 5 years old and below. With that price alone, it’s already pretty tempting but here’s a nice touch to it, they have a special nook for kids to play after eating. 

There’s also a very charming sweets station that is very eye catching. 

I started my buffet adventure with the salad station. They had a good mix of Filipino-style salads and the usual lettuce, carrot, tomato over Thousand Island dressing salad.