So Woo is BOO!!!!! =(

My friends...here is my much awaited post on a Korean Resto found at the Habor Square beside CCP complex.

We were all looking forward to our Saturday dinner. I have more reasons than one, why so...first of all to see my dear Oli sans the cast on his leg! Hoooray you have two legs again Kras!!!! =) ...second...to be with all of our other friends....Ven, Elaine...Chilyn...War-Din....Matt-Sher...Jacko and Peach....and thirdly...to try dining at this Korean Resto called...So Woo (little Cow)

Traffic was terrible that night...as it was earth day and while we were traversing Roxas boulevard...it was around the time of the 1 hour light shut down time (aroung 8-9pm I think)

When we got there...Ven and Elaine got us a private room..nice noh? hehehe

Ah--ah...but once should notsay NICE too soon! We were served traditional small plates of Korean apps....like Kimchi....pickled raddish...omelets...



....they wer so so...all seems to taste the same....

We ordered two of this Pajeon like dish.....

..only it only had leeks...it was like...well...leek omelet! hahahah Ven told me its free...so we can;t complain about this

Bibimbop

Now on to the food we paid for... hay Bibimbop is a very traditional Korean dish....very simple...yet this one was....nothing like any bibimbop we have ever had. The best way I can describe their rendition of this dish....is....imagine a staineless bowl (like the ones we see in Korean telenovelas...when the women are depressed andeat lots of rice in...heheh) dumo in steamed rice....then take all the free appetizer plates they served us...and top with a fried egg! hahahaa The taste? well..just like rice that is made spicy by the Kimchi and pumped up with vegetables....that tasted like...nothing! hahahaha Really...even with the red paste that is supposed to flavor this rice didn'y help much. Very sad Bibimbop!


Kimchi Soup

This dish tastes like Kimchi doused with water =) Oh it was served with steamed rice!


This was the Beef Bacon like dish

This was served with lettuce and a platter of more veggies with kimchi...and the wiatress told us to wrap the gulay with the gulay and the bacon! hahaha Hay...


Chapchae

You would expect that authetic Korean restos could make at least, decent Chapchae right? Well, not here very unfortunate for us. The glass noodles were soggy and the dish was also tasteless =(

It was a very sad dinner indeed. To nurse our dismapyed palates...we all decided to go down to Icebergs!!! Nothing can cheer us up better than ice cream right? hahaha

Nonetheless, we had a great time still...good thing the company was good ;P

5 Cows

My friend and I went to Trinoma, to cool down a bit as it was excrutiatingly HOT that day. We decided to have late lunch at 5 Cows. They offered a variety of food on the menu...like pasta...rice dishes..appetizers and sandwiches plus a lengthy list of ice cream treats!

We opted for a light meal...so we had soup....this is the Cream of Tomato...an NO..you are not looking at half a serving...we ordered one soup each ...but it seems like just half a bowl to us! ehehhe

It was nice...served with 2 bruschetta...

This is the Tuna Sandwich with chips

It was generous with filling but our complain is...well...the bread slices were just waaaay too thick! haha I think if you slice one piece..you can make 2 slices! hahaha Good thing we just shared a sandwich.

Maybe we should have tried other entrees of some of the ice cream treats! hahaha

A poem I stumbled upon during holy week....

Nothing can ever happen twice.
In consequence, the sorry fact is
that we arrive here improvised
and leave without the chance to practice.

Even if there is no one dumber,
if you're the planet's biggest dunce,
you can't repeat the class in summer:
this course is only offered once.

No day copies yesterday,
no two nights will teach what bliss is
in precisely the same way,
with exactly the same kisses.

One day perhaps, some idle tongue
mentions your name by accident:
I feel as if a rose were flung
into the room, all hue and scent.

The nexy day, though you're here with me,
I can't help looking at the clock:
A rose? A rose? What could that be?
Is it a flower or a rock?

Why do we treat the fleeting day
with much needless fear and sorrow?
It's in nature not to stay:
Today is always gone tomorrow.

With smiles and kisses, we prefer to
seek accord beneath our star;
although we're different (we concur)
just as two drops of water are

Buttermilk Pancakes & Hot Chocolate =)

On to baby-ing my preggy sis...good Friday morning and she woke up craving for buttermilk pancakes and hot chocolate....so I pulled myslef out of bed and went down to the kitchen to scrimmage the pantry for ingredients.

I really don't understand why people need to buy pancake mixes...as pancakes from scratch is uber easy to make...plus you are sure that all ingredients are fresh and the best =)

Here is the hot chocolate I made using Nestle semi-sweet chocolate, Ghradelli cocoa powder and fresh milk....nice and thick....and yummy!


Here is my buttermilk pancakes. I used sour milk (because I didn't have buttermilk around), flour, eggs, a little vegetable oil, baking powder...and baking soda ...salt...a little sugar and a lot of love =)


They were very nice and fluffy! I griddled them on a lightly buttered non-stick pan as my sisters were waiting at the counter! Nothing better that pancakes fresh from the griddle right? You might find it a bit odd as my sisters have a habit of putting lots of President butter...a little sugar and EVAPORATED milk on their pancakes....yes..evap...as opposed to putting maple syrup. Well, they love it that way....different strokes for differnt folks...as long as you enjoy what you eat!

It was a nice good Friday brekkie....hope it was ok to consume eggs and butter this day? hmmmm

Night Cap at CAV

There is this wine place at Bonifacio High street called CAV...and boy did I adore the place! It's wine tasting heaven! Yes! They have this very funky and modern wine dispenser (that I didn't take a phot of...well because it was kinda uncool to whip out my digi and take a snap shot of their way amusing wine dispenser! hahahaI didn't wana ruin my image as I have every intension of goin back ;P hahaha)....where you insert this credit card you are given....take a wine glass from the side shelves...pick from white...medium reds and full bodied wine selction....press the volume you would like to have (yes...youhave a choice of 3 volumes: 1- tasting, around 25 ml of wine 2-half glass, around 75ml and 3-full glass, around 150ml) prices of which are indicated respectively and you are charged in your card. Pretty neat huh? I love it! There are even shot literatures about each wine selcetion...like place or origin...flavor, finish and other wine characteristics...even suggested food pairing! The place is very posh... but relaxed and it's really nice.

Apart of the lovely wine selection....they offer cheeses....antipasti..salads..entress and desserts! They even have a set menu selection which I think is another must try!

We had this Antipasti platter...which comprised of Jamon Serrano, Chorizo slices, Parma ham and Cheddar cheese....served with freshly baked bread!

Breads

Antipasti
..with a small helping of fresh greens with Olive Oil and Vinegar...cherry tomatoes and black olives.

Wow...good bread....wonderful antipasti and good wine of your fancy....how could one not have a terrific night cap!

A new fave that is CAV!!!! =) Love it!

New Orleans at High Street

It's my first time to dine at New Orleans restaurant at Bonifacio High Street. The place was packed so we were seated at the al fresco area.

I have never had gumbo in my life...so it was definitley a must for the evening. It was like chili...with some rice in it and a tad bit spice...but still enjoyable =) This is just half a serving...my friend and I split an order because it seems like a heavy dish with the rice and all....

To go with our gumbo...we had this platter of mix calamari and shrimp fries.

Crispy and yummy! =)

There were soo many yummy food in the menu...so a come back is a must.

Beef Stir Fry

Saturdays, my sisters and I usually go out for lunch. This time I thought of cooking something inthe office, in line with trying to sneak in healthy food my preggy sis and shobe. I went to the nearby grocery and bought beef tenderloin, that I had cut into strips...walked at the veggies sections came across beautifully green broccoli....go got some of that too....a pair of zucchini...carrots...red and green bell peppers and a packof snow peas. Beef stir fry was it was to be!

I think stir frying i s really fast and healthy cooking. Minimal oil is used and the meat is cut to small pieces as the veggies are so they are cooked in a flash sans destroying much the nutrients in those wonderfully colored produce.

Very yummy indeed and my sisters loved it!

Salmon and Mushroom Stroganoff Pasta

My preggy sis loved the Salmon Cream Pasta of Mary Grace sooo much...she was craving for it the next day. So I did my best to make my own rendition of a Salmon Cream pasta dish to make her happy =) Mom's to be must really be spoiled with food right? Definitely!

I opened the pantry to look for ingredients I can use. I found a can of pink Salmon, mushrooms...and colored pasta shapes! Goodie! I sauteed the Salmon with garlic and onions in butter....added the mushrooms. I mixed sour cream with a little flour and chicken stock and added this to the saute...seasoned it..added cheese and simmered until cooked and thick. I added the cooked pasta shapes and added more cheese...tada....

Well, it was good =) Salmon and mushroom stroganoff it was..and I served it with buttered toasts.

Mary Grace Cafe at Trinoma

I like Mary Grace Cafe =) The place is home and the food is simple and delightful. I was hanging with my sister's at trinoma...and we decided to have dinner there. It's my first time at this branch....

Kesong Puti dip

This is sooo good! Kesong puti baked with Olive oil and served with toasted bread =)

Seafood Soup

Creamy..but not overwhelming. It has generous bits of seafood..nice =)

Smoked Salmon Pasta

My sister's love this a lot. Salmon with cream sauce on fettuccine pasta.

Vegetarian Panini
Foccaccia panini filled with muchrooms, onions and other grilled veggies. It was very nice an light...served with potato chips.

Well, if you ask me, I like the Serendra branch better...locationwise...but food and service in both are the same and good. A very nice place for familyand friends =)

Choco Chip Cookies =)

My sisters were craving for some chocolate chip cookies....so I whippedup a batch....

..super easy...and there is nothing like cookies freshly baked ;P

Nominomo ;P

Summer is really here! It's getting so hot nowadays, really. Sal and I went to Robinson's Galleria, which we haven't been to for quite a while....to do a little shopping and look for something cool =)

My shobe, studying at DLSU, has been telling me about her new fave Japanese drink....fruit shakes with tapioca and coconut milk! What the?? Yes...coconut milk! And we stumbled upon it here at Galleria....Nominomo.

It's made up of a fruit shake base, layer with a coconut milk shake and topped with fruit/s of your choice.

Kinda reminds me of a Gunomis....hahaha really good, refreshing and filling! hahaha

Paul Calvin's Deli

It's sunday brunch time at Serendra. For quite sometimenow, we have been seeing this sign...PAUL CALVIN's...BREAKFAST, LUNCH AND DINNER....on our way to serendra and we have always said...we will try it one time.

The time is now...we finally drove off to Rizal drive to check out the breakfast at Paul Calvin's. It's located at this new building along Rizal drive...near McDonald's. FYI the new branch of Barcino is situated at this building too!!! A new target! ;P hahahah

The place is very charming! I like =) Orange chairs...a deli counter...fresh breads and pastries on display...very nice!

Tapas and Cheeses

Breads and pastries....they sell healthbreads such as Malunggay loaves and low sugar cakes =)

Breakfast Meals come with free coffee but you pay an additional Php 40.00 for free refills.

Complimentary Cheese bread slices with Olive oil and Balsamic dip


bread was just ok =)

Sausage, Hash and Scrambled Eggs

Pancakes, Bacon and Eggs

Pancakes were nice...eggs were a tad bit dry and bacon was ok =)

We enjoyed our food...but more so looking around the quaint and cozy place. The owner, who we have met( and was so nice to take us around and chat with us)....who is none other than Chef Paul Em. Paul Calvin's Deli took it's name from him and the Calvin....from his late granpa.

Very nice place..will come back here soon =)

Batirol at Serendra

To cap our night...we decided to take Ros for some native treats at Batirol...where the specialty is the Tsokolate =)

This is the ginger spice tea of Gwen...she liked it a lot..warm yet refreshing =)

This is Lyn's Hot Choco -Banana

It's really supposed to be a cold beverage...but Lyn asked if they could make it hot. They gave in to her request...and she was very pleased as it turned out to be a thick..choco-banana-ey drink...like an Italian thick chocolate drink ;P hahahha

Ros, opted for the Tsokolate with Almond flavor

And our expecting mom, Shawie ordered the Mangga at Suman, which she graciously shared amonst us =)

The suman was delicious and the mangga was ripe thatcomplimented the suman very well. We liked the powdery muscovado sugar dip that went with it. Yummmy and truly Filipino =)

It was a very, very wonderful evening with girlfriends I love =)

Welcome Home Ros!

It's girl bonding time. Gwen, Lyn, Shawie and I took our dear Ros for a little night out at Serendra. We chose to have dinner at Chelsea's =) We dined al fresco..the weather that evening was nice...a fun and relaxing eveing to catch up and enjoy good food.

Foccacia with Roasted Garlic Spread

Gwen and I arrived a bit earlier than the rest. We asked for some water and free bread while we wait for the rest to arrive and order....guess when the water and bread came?....When all the girls were already there ;P hahaha haaaayy..that was a bit disappointing.

Squash Soup

We had it split into 2. Very good and creamy =)

Chicken an Bacon Caesar Salad
This is Gwen's fave and now mine too. It had crispy bacon strips, chicken shreds and slivers of almonds. Very nice =)

Osso Bucco Pasta

Ros wanted Osso Bucco...so we oredred this dish. I was quite surprised that the osso buco was shredded along with the sauce. It was ok...but a bit lacking in flavor.


Half Duck and halg Shrimps pizza

The crust was very nice and thin...but I dunno...I had a slice of the duck and the shrimp pizza..and honetly..I cannot detect any distinctive taste on both varieties. Perhaps the duck shreds were way...konti =(

We had a wonderful time catching up ....Chelsea's is very conducive for a nice chit chatty dinner =)

Banana Nutella

My dearest Ros is in town for a week...and I am thrilled to see her! =) The best way I vent out some of this good energy is by baking =) I spotted this banana lying on the kitchen counter....overly ripe to be eaten...but just perfectto turn into BANANA BREAD! Yes! They shall be my BANANA-NUTELLA BREAD. Since it's only 1 piece...I decided to make a fourth of a batch...sorta just like small loaves ....as I envisioned them that morning.

The aging banana...

....that turned into these...TADA....BANANA-CHOCOCHIP-NUTELLA MINI LOAVES =)

One small loaf for my preggy sis and one loaf for my dear friend...
So that they all stay sexy! ;P hahaha But these babies are way healthy...I always cut the sugar a bit...since I pumped them up with choco-chips and nutella =)

Something so simple to make that is ohhh soo good! hahaha

More Bagoong...

Our second visit at the Bagoong Club here. The road is underconstruction, so it's kind of a hassle driving within Scout Dr. Lazcano street.

This time we tried the Seafood Fried Rice

It's ok...less tasty than the Bagoong rice...which is good if having more falvorful dishes.

Grilled Tuna Belly

This was just ok...I like the grilled tuna at Taste of LA better =)

Crispy Bagnet

Good and simple homey food. Everything with Bagoong...so if you love it..you'll enjoy dining here.

Bo's Brunchies =)

I think Sal and I have finished the breakfast offerings of The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf...so it's time to move on to another coffeeshop at Serendra for our brunch treats =)

Well, one of the major criteria for which we would settle in for our Sunday brunch is ...bottomless coffee ....and they do offer it here at Bo's


The brew was strong...but not as aromatic as that of at The Coffee Bean....the mug was cute though ;P

We had the breakfast sampler set....

...which comprised of 2big pancakes, scrambled eggs and bacon strips. The pancakes were a biton the dry side. I coul tell the pancake batter had cornmeal in them...making them very satiating. The scrambled eggs were kinda tasteles and the bacon...we wished were fried to a crisp.

We also shared the mushroom-cheese omelette

As you can see...the egg was kinda dry...over-cooked a bit....which I didn't mind. Good thing it was filled with lots of melted cheese and mushrooms which made it more appealing and made up for the slightly over-cooked eggs =) Served with toasted whole wheat bread...that was toasted to a biscocho state =) hahahahha

Well, we enjoyed out breakfast still....by filling up on coffee and ample conversation =)

We strolled around the entire fort area and went to Gourdo's to buy some cookware.

To cap the day...we visited our old fave Banaple at Katipunan Avenue to try out their new cake...

The Almond Roca Coffee Toffee Pie?

I may have to check on that name again....it sounded something like that and it is made of a cookie crust with otap cookies, caramel sauce, an egg pie like custard and whipped cream....drizzled with chocolate sauce and decorated with almond slivers. A unique pie indeed...but I just thought it was not anything like what it was called. It was good though...maybe not just for me.

Well, this one is not really new...the Caramel Cheesecake

One of the classic signature Banaple cheesecakes. You can really count on the crust here..if you are a crust lover...you will love this. The cheesecake is dense but good =)