Love at First Bite: SaladStop!

Despite my lack of interest in blah healthy food, I love munching on crisp greens. I make sure to hoard lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber and the like whenever I visit Baguio as enjoying salad here in Manila can be very expensive. Most restaurants serve salads with outrageous price tags that make you ask if there's gold in it. I tend to veer away from ordering overpriced salad but I gave in last Friday when my colleagues went to...

SaladStop!

I have read a lot of great reviews about this place but the PHP250-PHP350 per bowl price seems to be too steep for lunch especially when I'm used to just spending... practically nothing as I bring packed lunch. But since it was payday Friday, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to treat myself a nice and healthy meal.

I got myself a bowl of Big Bird (PHP350) with Ranch dressing.

Serving size was huge! The bowl was filled to the rim with Romaine lettuce, smoked turkey, avocado, celery, green apples, and red grapes. It was definitely good for sharing or you could split it to two meals. I opted to do the latter.

Instead of mixing the dressing with the salad, I simply dipped the greens in the ranch dressing.

Love at First Bite: Pound by Todd English

There's a new burger joint in town and it sure knows how to get attention. Presenting #paywhatyouwant.Yes, you read it right. The new burger place is offering most of its burgers (except for the Pound Burger priced at PHP999) at any price that you are willing to pay for a limited time. And if you're curious which burger place I'm talking about, it's Todd English's baby, Pound.

Hello, Pound!

I was not aware of Todd English's new restaurant till I saw a post on Instagram promoting it's Pay What You Want promo. I giddily told my officemates about it and asked if anyone would be interested to visit the place with me. (Two officemates said yes but they had to leave before I managed to get a table. But I'll get there in a while.)

The talked about promo of Pound has been on my mind since lunch and I was so excited to head to the place and pay for my meal at a really friendly price. But I was not the only one who saw the Instagram post as there were a lot of people waiting outside when we arrived at 6:25 PM.

I looked for the hostess right away and I was horrified by the long list of diners waiting to be served. One even had a party of 16 guests! But since I wanted to take advantage of the really attractive promo, I gave in and had my name listed. I was 28th. 

*tick tock tick tock* 

Eventually, I was left all alone come 7:15 PM as my officemates had other plans. And I was still at #23. To entertain myself, I went to the supermarket for some cold air and escape from the pesky mosquitoes. But alas, when I got back, I was at #19.

I was starting to get impatient as it was already an hour wait. I was debating with myself if I should wait more or not as I was turning hangry. But I opted to wait. And wait. And oh, Krispy Kreme. *munch* And wait some more.

After 2 hours and 15 minutes, I finally heard name and I got a table... for one. (Alone but not lonely. :D)

The place has a Your Local kind of vibe and Todd English darkness touch. It was really dark and I had a hard time reading the menu! I was also seated closest to the A/C and when the diners beside me complained on how cold it was, the server adjusted it and the cold breeze went straight towards me! Brrrr. Minus points! (It kind of made me want to sing Celine Dion's song Alone.)

To take advantage of the promo, I went for the most expensive burger included in the promo which is Amsterdam Burger (PHP280). I wanted to go for the bacon and egg sliders but figured that this might be bigger. I didn't go for any beverage anymore as they were only offering sodas and iced tea. 

Despite the crowd, service was fast and I got my burger in less than 15 minutes. 

First Bite: Village Tavern

It has been 3 months since my office moved to Fort and till now I hardly explored the area (except the establishments in front of our building). For one, I want to go home before it gets dark. Second, it’s expensive to explore here! But I do treat myself a good meal on certain days when I feel I deserve it. And a few weeks back, I invited E to join me for dinner and we went to…

Village Tavern.

I was first to arrive and the server led me to a corner table (near the al fresco part of the restaurant) and I politely asked her to move me to another table as I noticed that the area had a lot of mosquitoes. I refuse to be the mosquitoes’ dinner. She then led me to the table near the bar and it was a lot better. Soon, E arrived.

Since we got there before 7PM, we managed to score some Happy Hour drinks. I ordered Red Sangria (PHP95 before 7PM, PHP180 regular price) while E went for Long Island Iced Tea (PHP95 before 7PM, PHP155 regular price). We also ordered Roasted Bone Marrow (PHP365) and Black Pizza (PHP550).

The Roasted Bone Marrow was sinful and quite weird too. We put a bit of bone marrow goodness on the sourdough and sprinkled a bit of salt and added the greens that went with the dish. 

It tasted okay but quite far from the bone marrow dish I had from Cue.

Restaurant Love: Olive Tree Kitchen and Bar

It has been a while since I have done a food trip thus I tend to eat less now. Yes, I can no longer do four stops. (I bet you think I eat like a person on a diet huh?) 

I have super friends! Even before I landed, I already arranged dates with the people I love. N for one was game for a food trip. So that means more than one stop.

Wee both finally agreed to go to Bonifacio Global City as it has a lot of new restaurants we have yet to try. We planned to visit Olive Tree Kitchen and Bar, Sunshine Kitchen, and Kitchen's Best. We didn't know though that most restaurants close at 4 p.m. on Sundays so we had to change our plans a lot!

Anyway, this entry focuses on our first stop, Olive Tree Kitchen and Bar.

Why hello there OTKB!

2013 Resolution #1: Get fit!

I'm excited and this time it's not even about food! 2013 started weird. 

It all started with a talk on fitness and ended with me feeling "flabby as a jelly". Fitness, you will be MINE this 2013.

So right after lunch (yes, right after having a hearty meal), I decided to call Urban Ashram Manila and inquire. But of course I did a bit of homework before calling. It's more of verifying the following:

-The very enticing 15-Day Unlimited Pass for only PHP1000!
-Available yoga mats for absolute beginners (as I do not want to invest in a PHP3000 mat if I won't be dedicated to yoga)
-Best yoga class for a beginner like me
-Soonest possible time I could start attending

The Healthy Slice

After a long walk and a bit of side shopping (as our attempt to digest what we ate from Nolita), A and I finally decided to sit down again and eat… just in time for BGC food stop #2. We decided to stop by Slice, a quaint café owned by Pia Cayetano. 

I’ve been hearing a lot of good reviews about this place. Healthy yet oh so yummy food has been the constant phrase I hear every time people talk about Slice thus I just have to include that in my list of must-try restaurants.

Hello, Slice!

 

The place was quite packed that day and since we were trying to project “demure ladies out for some tea” we chose to get the seats near the window with comfy chairs and coffee table (and eventually realized that it was a bad idea as the table is too low).

2nd's please!

To celebrate our first big event this 2011, our boss treated us to 2nd’s in High Street (formerly occupied by Mag:Net).

We were greeted by BIG wooden doors (and heavy) doors and behind those doors is a really uh… brown space. It is like being transported to the setting of The Godfather (which I find quite cool).

The servers were quite quick (probably because there were only to other tables to wait). We were quite famished so while waiting, we ordered for Bacon Chicharon. Come again? Bacon Chicharon??? Why yes, served with muscovado mustard and spiced vinegar, it was one of the highlights that lunch.

Bacon Chicharon

My colleagues ordered Three Little Pigs Kawali (PHP598), Red Horse Fish and Chips (PHP520), and Summer Grilled Pork Chops (PHP420).  I ordered Healthy Chicken (PHP485) because it is… healthy (or so what the menu claims). It also has two pieces of hash brown that turned out to be radish.

Three Little Pigs Kawali

Red Horse Fish and Chips

Summer Grilled Pork Chops

Healthy Chicken

The Healthy Chicken was very delightful. It was a bit sweet (because of the honey) just the way I like it. The chicken was very tender as well. The side dish with arugula was a great addition to the dish.

I managed to taste the other dishes and my favorite is the pork chop. Quite sweet and sour because of the pineapples, it was one oh-so-good meat. The fish and chips were good as well. Do try the fries for it has an interesting taste (warning:  Quite SPICY!). On the other hand, the lechong kawali was a bit dry.  

Leche Flan Turon Ala Mode

For dessert, we had Leche Flan Turon Ala Mode (PHP235). After one bite, my boss ordered another one. Yes, it was that good. WE JUST HAVE TO HAVE MORE! While munching on this sweet and crispy mini turon with leche flan inside sprinkled with chocolate shavings and topped by vanilla ice cream, we all wondered how they managed to put the leche flan inside for we all know that it should melt. Then again, how do people make fried ice cream? Oh how I miss KIKU.

Verdict: The place is very nice and it is a place I'd love to visit again. The food's great too though the price though is not very student friendly. Next time, I'll try the other desserts.