Tuesday, May 31, 2016

PROMO ALERT: McDonald's is giving away FREE CHEESEBURGERS

I go crazy whenever I see promos. I recently downloaded SM Supermalls, Krispy Kreme and Yellow Cab for awesome freebies. And last night, I spotted another cool reason to download another app. 

After the fun McChicken promo, McDonald’s once again making noise in social media.

I present… FREE CHEESEBURGERS!

Yes, McDonald’s is giving away free cheeseburgers and you do not need to be named after a burger or have your name sound like one. You also do not have to sing a cheesy song just to get your free cheesy treat. 
All you have to do is download the McDonald’s app on iTunes or Google Play. Once downloaded, set your profile and log in. 
Click the Refer a Friend tab to get your promo code and share it to all your friends (or contacts if you really want a lot of cheeseburgers). Note though that even your gazzilion friends put in your promo code, you are only entitled to a maximum of 30 cheeseburger coupons. Also, you could only claim one cheeseburger per transaction. 
Lazy to visit the nearest McDonald’s? You can have your free cheeseburger delivered! You just have to pay for the delivery fee. (Yes, there is no required purchase for you to claim your free cheeseburger! How awesome is that?!) 

This promo is valid until June 20, 2016 and redemption is valid until August 20, 2016. Redemption is not available during breakfast hours (4 am to 10:30 am).
Use my promo code for instant free cheeseburger!

Hooray for promos!   

For more details, visit McDonald’s PH website.

Stuck In Seoul: Subway Kimbap

What do you do when you are in Seoul, hungry and quite short in cash? Go to the nearest supermarket and have a buffet with all the free samples! But if you’re heading somewhere, your best bet would be subway food. And mind you, there are some good food finds in subways such as the coffee buns from Sadang. Oh how I miss it! But this entry is all about…

Subway Kimbap.
 
These small rolls saved my sister and I from hunger. We woke up early to head to Le Petit France and since we want to be home in time for dinner, we headed out early and skipped breakfast. But the long walks made us hungry before reaching our destination.

Thankfully, almost all, if not all, subways sell convenient snacks including kimbap.

My sister and I ordered one Bulgogi roll and another with Hamand Cheese (and radish for that Korean flavor).  Each roll cost about 1,000-1,500 KRW.
 
Taste-wise, it was okay. The bulgogi roll was slightly dry but was complemented by the soft and perfectly cooked rice.
 
The Ham and Cheese was better for me. The saltiness of the ham and cheese and the tanginess of the pickled radish were balanced by the beautiful rice. I liked this one more as there were more flavors and textures.

I can’t wait to be back!  

Monday, May 30, 2016

Gastro Park Kapitolyo Find #7: The Masala Bar

Our desire to stuff ourselves till we burst brought us to our last Gastro Park Kapitolyo food discovery, The Masala Bar. This stall didn’t have a long line when we spotted it. (The ones with long wait are the milkshake stall and SurFries!!!.) It didn’t cross my mind that the store might offer mediocre dishes hence the lack of foodies lingering in front of its store. I just wanted to maximize my Kapitolyo visit. 

Hello, The Masala Bar!
We got the Chicken Tikka Quesadilla (PHP120) as it is easy to be shared and it sounded light, giving us room for drinks or dessert. An order comes with pico de gallo and garlic dip.

The server told us that they will just serve the quesadilla to us. We just have to inform them of where we’re seated. 

Our order arrived in about 10 minutes and it was served warm. 

I dipped my slice in the garlic dip and topped it with pico de gallo and… it was still bland. I had to sparingly drizzle more garlic dip as I was sharing it with my friends. 
I am not sure if we ordered pita with a hint of cheese or Chicken Tikka Quesadilla. I could not taste the chicken or any of the other ingredients. Perhaps they were almost out of ingredients when we placed our order? I have no idea but I’ll buy from the other stalls next time. 
The Masala Bar is located at Gastro Park Kapitolyo, 1st Street, Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City.

Friday, May 27, 2016

Gastro Park Kapitolyo Find #6: Tokyo Tempura

The craze for food parks has just began as more and more areas are being developed to accommodate start up food concessionaires offering unique and delectable dishes and drinks. Sadly, I haven’t been to most and the only ones I have visited were Pioneer Food Market (where I just walked and exited in a few minutes) and Gastro Park Kapitolyo. One of the stalls I tried a few months ago was this Japanese store that offers unlimited tempura.

Hello, Tokyo Tempura!
Gastro Park was packed when we went one Saturday night. We were lucky though to spot an empty table at Tokyo Tempura. Honestly, this store didn’t attract me when I visited earlier that same day. I guess it was because their tempura was just the usual, except that they also offer unlimited tempura

But since we will sit there, we made sure to buy something from the store. Hungry R availed of the Tempura All You Can (PHP199) while my friends and I decided to share Chili Cheese (PHP49) and Stuffed Chori Burger (PHP180). The burger is from Offbeat Burger but is also owned or managed by Tokyo Tempura. 

R’s tempura was served first which he quickly attacked hence it being undocumented. We noticed that the tempura was quite short. Small and thin shrimps were used for the tempura and there was more batter than shrimp. Since it was an unlimited promo, the ones who avail of this have to sit near the store so that the servers could monitor as sharing is not allowed. R, being persistent and all, gave me a few bites of the tempura while nervously checking if the rather huge server saw us. 
The Chili Cheese was super spicy that one small nibble made me turn red. It is definitely not for those with low spice tolerance. I didn’t even get a taste of cheese.

Thursday, May 26, 2016

My Favorite Food Finds: The Gourmand Market

Ever since I saw an announcement that The Gourmand Market will be in BGC again, I made sure that I pass by the well-known weekend market for me to try some of its mouthwatering dishes. And I was lucky to visit last Friday and Saturday! 
I have never been to this lovely weekend market before as I was always away when they stage it. But since R and I had no plans last weekend, I was able to pass by on its first day and R joined me the following day.
I was greeted by a beautiful signage and a set up that seems to have been lifted from a wonderful rustic wedding.
On my first visit, I made a quick tour of the place and checked which ones look interesting. I spotted stalls that sell hummus, tacos, shawarma, paella, ginger ale, churros, sandwiches and pork belly. I think there are about four or five stalls selling the sinful yet oh so good meat. 
Since it was really humid that night, I opted to buy a cup of ice cream from Manila Creamery (PHP120 per cup). I was torn between the two bestsellers Mangga at Suman and Tinutong Rice. I liked both flavors and the burnt rice flavor was surprisingly delicious! But I went with the safer option and got Mangga at Suman. Each cup of it is topped with some sort of coconut jam syrup
What I loved about this flavor is that it was not that sweet and the taste was not overwhelming. I also liked that there were some chewy parts that reminded me of sticky rice
I then bought  a cup of pressed Sugar Cane Juice with Ginger (PHP70) from Healthy Cane after finishing my cup of ice cream

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Restaurant Love: Schmidt's Hotdogs

Schmidt’s is one of the well-known hotdog brands in Manila. It serves various well-garnished hotdog sandwiches at relatively steep price but are worth every penny. It has been years since I last had a bite of Schmidt’s hotdogs and when I spotted it last weekend, I made sure that I do not miss my chance sinking my teeth into some juicy meaty treat. 

Hello, Schmidt’s
The place is pretty small and seemed to be designed to look like a kiosk with a few tables and benches for dining. Since Podium is hardly packed even during holidays, we easily got a table. 

My mom and sister were still stuffed from lunch so we decided to just go with one sandwich—The Julius (PHP190). I also added PHP60 to get one liter of Iced Tea which is normally priced at PHP90.

Service was quick and we got our meal and drink in less than 5 minutes.
The iced tea wasn’t very sweet making it a great thirst quencher.
I fell in love with the hotdog sandwich’s bread. It was very soft and fluffy. 

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Love at First Bite: Passion by Gérard Dubois

I have been eying this restaurant beside Green Pastures ever since I pass by it on my way home from St. Luke’s Medical Center. I thought it was an Italian restaurant as I read it as Passioni. (I was not wearing my eye glasses then hence the added letter.) But while waiting for K and J, I decided to pass by the shop and buy a pastry I saw featured on a food blog. 
Hello, Passion by Gérard Dubois!
This brightly lit restaurant was packed when I visited. Luckily, there was still one available table inside. 
I quickly told the server that I want to get a Strawberry Danish (PHP108) as soon as I entered after seeing that there was only one left. 
Since it was self service, I got my order right after paying. 
I took the last available table and started to enjoy my beautiful dessert (or appetizer as I was going to Grind right after for dinner). I took a bite and it was simply delicious. I loved the flakiness of the base and the smooth and creamy custard
I also love the fact that Passion didn’t scrimp on the strawberries. They used huge and fresh ones. I immediately fell in love with it!

Monday, May 23, 2016

First Bite: Grind Bistro

As a sucker for trying out new places and dishes, I digitally dragged with me K and J to try this new restaurant called Grind Bistro. 

Hello, Grind Bistro
The place was pretty empty on its first day of operation. The only group there was... just my bosses and their friends. Yeah. That's how I roll. 

The dimly lit restaurant shouts sophisticated and a not so friendly price tag on its dishes. True enough, when I checked the menu, you could easily spend over a thousand by ordering a couple of dishes. The steaks alone range around PHP1,600 to PHP2,200. 
While waiting, I had a chat with Thea, the restaurant manager and she told me more about Grind Bistro and recommended some dishes. She mentioned that the name of the restaurant is called Grind because they grind their own beef for the burgers. Also, their chef, Mr. Carl Steven used to be the executive chef of Hyatt hence the impeccable dishes. That small talk made my expectations shoot up! 
K arrived a couple of minutes after my talk with Thea and we decided to order Poke Nachos (PHP495) while waiting for J who was having an intense battle with traffic.
The nachos were served after a short while and we did our best not to touch it till J arrives. And we succeeded. 
Complimentary bread was served a couple minutes before J arrived. Yes, it was served after our nachos. I guess they might have thought we were just there to sit and drink free water hence the reluctance to give us a wait snack. 
The nachos were delightful! The chips which were sweet potato, taro and wonton were all crisp and added texture to the pico de gallo, ahi tuna, local chevre and wasabi tobiko. 

Friday, May 20, 2016

Foodie Alert: The Gourmand Market this May 20-22, 2016

No plans this weekend? Then head to the Gourmand Market by nawwTy's kitchen and indulge in delectable dishes by top and promising food concessionaires. 
Don't miss this chance to stuff yourself with great food. Bring your family and friends as food always tastes better when shared.

See you there! <3

Thursday, May 19, 2016

Foodie Alert: Ippudo is now in BGC

I love getting random messages from P as it always mean great news and usually involve food. And yesterday was no exception. It was about Ippudo Uptown Mall BGC's opening this time. Well, sort of. P said that Ippudo is looking for people to participate in the ramen place's two-day stress test. I immediately said that I'm willing to participate as it simply mean that we'll act like usual customers during Ippudo's simulation. 

Hello, Ippudo!
We got to Ippudo early and there was quite a line outside. Since looloo saved us some seats, we went to the front of the line and told the host that we're looking for Denise. Apparently, the ones in line were all for the stress test and probably mentioned her name too, only are affiliated with other groups or probably friends of the owners.
Well, they were just doing some last minute preparations and after a short wait, we got in.
Luckily, C, R1, R2 and P got the table right beside ours so we got to chit chat for a bit over ramen among others. 
R who has never been to Ippudo ordered Akamaru Shinaji (PHP495) while I went with Shiromaru Motoaji (PHP490). We also got Okonomiyaki(PHP270) and Deep-Fried Gyoza (PHP220) as appetizers and Matcha Creme Brûlée (PHP160) for dessert. For drinks, we opted for Watermelon Shake (PHP115) and Lemonade (PHP110).

Service was quick and we got our drinks in less than 5 minutes. We were also served house water before that. 
R's lemonade had a nice tangy taste which was refreshing. 
My watermelon shake was also good. It wasn't very sweet and did the job in quenching my thirst

Our other orders arrived right after. 
The okonomiyaki was quite sweet because of the okonomiyaki sauce. 
I loved the harmony of textures of the yam, egg, chasu and black konnyaku (potato). But I felt that the flavor was too overwhelming for an appetizer. 
The deep-fried gyoza was scrumptious! It had a lovely meaty taste and it was flavorful enough even without the ponzu sauce. Don't let the chili and spicy mayo stop you from ordering if you have low tolerance to spicy food like me. It wasn't spicy at all. 

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Restaurant Love Revisited: Wildflour

There are so many new restaurants in Bonifacio Global City and I always get overwhelmed when someone asks me where to eat. With hundreds of options, how can I choose just one? A few weekends ago, I met up with some of R’s friends from his Shanghai group and since we were running late, his friends made the decision to have dinner at Wildflour.

Hello, Wildflour.
This restaurant never lost its charm. The place was packed on a Saturday night and shortage of parking space did not seem to bother the diners (unless they live around the area).  
Since R and I were quite famished, we quickly ordered Kimchi Fried Rice (PHP495) and Mac n' Cheese (PHP310). R also ordered one Baked Escargot (PHP75). 

While waiting for our orders, we munched on the complimentary bread and chitchatted with R’s friends who were exhausted from braving the sun to walk around Fort Santiago. 

After a couple of minutes, our Mac n' Cheese arrived. 
R found the baked pasta a bit bland so I asked for parmesan cheese. But apparently, there is an extra charge for it. (WHAT THE?!)