Eating Chicken and Sitting on Eggs

Sunday is always relaxing =) I met up with my friend Gwen at Power Plant to shoe shop and of course hear her stories from her recent trip to Vietnam. I need to buy shoes! I need bronze/ matte gold formal stilletos! I saw a perfect Unisa pair at CMG...but it wasn;t my size!!!!!!!! I am a size 5! The shoes was onlyu available in 6 1/2!!!!!!!! Awwwww----I was crushed! I loved the look and the feel...it was comfy but..hayayay it was not meant for me =( Good thing Gwen was there to easy my pain! hehehe We hanged out at Starbucks and went to eat Gelato at Pazzo. We bumped into our friend Sherly and her fiance and chatted along while enjoying our gelato =) Yummm!

We parted ways early evening because we both have to have dinner with our families. My two shobes were home so I fetched them so we could have dinner together.

We decided to try World of Chicken! I have eaten at World of Chicken in G4 foodcourt....a long..long...long time ago! Back where I was working for another company I think! So we gave it a go for our laid back Sunday dinner.

The place was small and casual. You sit on egg-shaped chairs, which my shobe Nikki liked a lot! The menu was very kid friendly and good for people who don't want to fuss.

I had the grilled chicken with asian noodles and potato salad. The grilled chicken was surprisingly good! Very juicy and you get to choose your sauce. I had the brown gravy! The noodles was fetuccine with soy sauce and bell peppers. It's nice. I thought it would be something like the kungpao pasta of CPK.

My sis Nikki had the grilled chicken with potato salad and cheese muffin. The muffin was severly dry sad to say....

And lastly, my sis Che had her chicken on a side of ..yes..potato salad still and tuna carbonara. I think she liked it becaise she mopped it all off! hahaha

The food was ok and cheap! If you're hungry and wana fill up fast--World of chicken isn't a bad deal! =)

Green Tomato

Oli and decided to have dinner at Green Tomato. Why? Sometimes when you're hungry and confused yoiu make rash decision! ;P

Oli had the Penne Alioli
He declared that it was good, although the serving was bit small.

I had the Shrimp & Feta Pasta. I chose this because I like Shrimps, love cheese (like Feta) and into red sauces. It was ok but a bit on the soupy side for me. I found the pasta a tad bit over al dente too. It's kinda strange to eat pasta from a BOWL. I don't know if its just me...but the Italian feel of eating pasta is lost by serving pasta in deep soup bowls. It's like you're eating MAMI in a chinese noodle house! hehehehe

Ven and War arrived after we have finished our pasta in bowls! Ven had the roasted chicken with this gravy like sauce served with potato salad and a wedge of foccacia.

I asked Ven how his food was...he looked at me and the boys answered.."well its chicken..it's hard to go wrong with chicken!" hehehe I take it there is nothing special with this dish.

Warren, my poor Warren, disliked his food sad to say. Take a look at that eggplant lasagna! It really looks itcky to me! I showed this picture to my shobe and she said..."what is that? looks like kanin-ba--..." I will not go on! hahahah

I think presentation has a lot to do with the whole perception of taste and eating pleasure. I guess Green Tomato needs to work on plating! hahahaha

MIniature Bibingkas of Bibingkinitan!

Whatelse is new??! Saturday was another wafully HOT day! My friend Oli told me he wanted to hang out in the mall to COOL down---I was most definitely GAME! He fetched me from the office around 5pm and we headed to Shang mall. My friend Ling was also there waiting for her BF and so we met up with her for some meryenda. Oli suggested we try Bibingkinitan! It's located at the foodcourt of Shang mall, and owned by Tea Square--(they sell great ice Teas and Breastick...love the chicken pesto!), which it happens to share the stall with.


For Php 20.00 you get one of these mini-bibingkas, freshly cooked and smothered with butter and sprinkled with sugar (if you like)

Not bad for 20 bucks ei! It's rather nakakabusog because its mabigat sa tiyan, being a rice cake! Ofcourse its nothing like Bibingkas from Via Mare, but coming out fresh from the oven and onto little rounds of banana leaves to your empty stomach---its pretty ok na din =)

Making Up for Missed Breakfast

My sis and I were famished alright! The albino maize didn't quite help take away my morning weakening and so we went straight ahead to Taza Cafe to fill up our tanks. Upon sitting, I immediately asked for a cup of their strong brew....

And they did not fail me at all! I felt so much better after this cup. Look at that crema--an indication of a srtong good brew!!!!!!!!!!!

We had these wantons with spinach cream dip to start our meal....

I think the spinach dip was a bit on the runny side today....maybe diluted?

I had Today's Special: Pasta Aiolio and Oilio (tama ba yan??? meaning pasta with garlic and Olive oil! ;P ) with Garlic chicken and garlic bread! Garlic! Garlic! Garlic! Vampires would be warded-off by this dish! hahahah


I was kinda disappointed with the wings...why wings? Gimme legs, thighs..breasts! hahaha The pasta I found to be too spicy! I failed to read on the board..."with minced chilis" woooha! I skipped the pasta and settled on the bread.

My sis had her usual...Sassy Shrimp...

I don't know why sassy?? It had shrimps and chicken pieces in a white creamy sauce. My sis loves creamy white sauces!


I just had to have another dose of caffeine..so I had another cup of brew and we shared this Kilauea Cake.

We still cannot pronounce the name of this cake! It is chocolate cake with a layer of walnuts inside and fidge frosting. I like it...simple..not too sweet and chocolatey! I love walnuts ofcourse =)

Missed breakfast well compensated for! =) hahahaa

The Albino Maize

I was off to work extra, extra early today! I left the house for Bicutan around 530am!!!! I had to attend to some work in lieu to our on goin SM sale. I got back to the office around 10 am and had to go to Binondo for a meeting....hence...NO BREAKFAST FOR ME!!!!!!!!!!!= ( I hate missing breakfast...I love breakfast=) Around 11 am I was already weak...no food...NO COFFEE yet! ahhhhh I was not at my best and traffick was awful---on a SATURDAY???? What's the matter Manila??? Anyhoos...my attention was caught by a passing kariton of boiled mais! How desperate can I get! hahahe It turned out, the vendor was selling white mais..apart from the usually japanese sweet corn. This made me think of my dad. My dad just adores white mais, foir the fact that it is juicier, sweeter and starchier..as he declared. I bot 3 for Php 20...not bad. I didnt't finish one because as I was eating my mais..I suddenly thought....san kaya galing yun boiling water nito???? hahaha...my stomach twitched and I put down the half eaten corn I held ;P

Forgetful Jen!

I had my first fitting for my friend, Shawie's wedding on the first of July. I am the bridesmaid....yeah, yeah...always the bridesmaid..never the...hahaha ;P Our couture is none other than Ms. Debbie Co. Although my gown was still 3/4 done...I love it already! Shawie made me pick the design. She was showedme this picture of an oscar gown worn by Rachel Weisz, and without hesitation I said this is what I want =) The first fitting of the gown and it felty and looked so right..I can't wait to see it finished!

After that I went to Podium and met up with my friend Ling for dinner at Cafe Med.


Weird as it may sound, it's my first time to have their baba ganoush! I know..I know...it's just because I always seem to have hummus as appetizer the times I've been there.

The baba ganoush...is strangely white? Please correct me if I am wrong but should it not be greenish?---because of the eggplant??? In any case, it was still rather good and we mopped it all off with 2 pita breads =)

We bith had the usual chicken gyros...simple shawarma goodness. I like chicken =)

After dinner, we had crepes at our Cafe Breton...the usual La pinay and Cafe Au Lait---the no fail, dessert combination!

We got carried away with out chit chat that I almost forgot I had to meet up with my highschool barakada! Yikes, talk about being forgetful! tsk tsk... By the time I realized it, I already saw them at the adjacent Starbucks. We joined them and caught up with the conversation..until I got a call from my friend Kirby! I forgot also that we were supposed to meet up with our other friends. Ling and I dropped by at Marina, Annapolis to hang with the boys for a while.

I should really start taking memory enhancers! hahhaha Nevertheless, it was a fun evening meeting up with good friends =)

Reason Enough to Wake Up in the Morning....

If there is one thing I really can't live without...its COFFEE I think. Really...I am really convinced that it is so! I really have a difficult time functioning throughout the day without my daily dose of caffeine. Am I an addict?--perhaps =)

Today is the first day I start using the Trung Nguyen Coffee, given by my friend Gwen=). Can you believe I went to the office really early for this! I normally have my breakfast in the office because ....well just because =) Anyways, I got here around 730am--that's why I am blogging about it now. I just want to share my excitement! hahahaha ;P

As I opened the bag----uhmmmmmmmm...love that aroma!!!!!!!!! There's really something different about authentic Vietnamese grinds. It has this peculiar aroma and tatste that I don't find in any of the usual coffee grinds. I just can't describe it---like ah...dark chocolate and coffee? I remember in Vietnam, they serve their coffee in double espresso-shot quantities and served with sweet milk (a.k.a. condensed milk). They take there coffee at all times of the day, hot or cold in any type of weather. I love it!

There is NO sour tone to the Vietnamese brew. There are some coffee that leans towards the acidic side---that I don't appreciate so much.

Here it is...my coffee...=) Yes, I put cream and sugar. I take my coffee in all possible ways...black...black with sugar....with cream and sugar (brown sugar)...with cream no sugar.

The perfect pick me up!

Here is my breakfast...this is what I normally have, my coffee, whole wheat toast with cinnamon and butter! I love butter---but butter is bad---so I recently purchased this Land O lakes WHIPPED butter! hehehe 50% less fat and calories than normal butter...but with the full butter taste and experience! ;P


I like putting cinnamon on my toast to give it that extra something, something =) Cinnamon is good of us you know. It is a spice and medicine as well! It helps regulate blood sugar, it has anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties and it even improves brain activity! =) Just a little trivia tid bit... to start the day.


Have a wonderful day everyone!!!!!! =)

Laboring on Labor day...at The Coffee Bean & Katre ;P

As I have mentioned...we did have office yesterday (ganun talaga ang mga slave drivers! hahaha) Nevertheless, it was only for half a day so it wasn't so bad. When I got back to the office afterlunch, my sisters went home and I stayed behind fo finish some paper work. My friend Kirby called me up and after chit-chatting we decided to just hang out together! (Good thing he lives near by na!--hehehe) He fetched me from the office and we went to the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf at Tomas Morato. Can you believe they have NO CAKES on the display!!!! WHY??? o WHY Coffee bean???? It was soo hot so we both had Ice blended coffee. Jhan and An joined us shortly. It was like the good ol' days when we used to hang out almost on a daily basis! Kame ang bumuhay sa Starbucks ABS-CBN (nung nasa Star Studio pa ako! ;P), Ashcreek branch and Podium! (Jhan---I miss my kahera days at Kitaro!hehehe Pwede ba mag moonlight there again?hahaha )

I had a reflexology appointment later in the evening with my friend Sal. She picked me up early evening from my coffee-capade and we decided to have dinner at Katre.

It's only my second time at this Mediterranean resto tucked behind the main street of Morato. I remember this used to be a resto called Toque (which didn't last soo long...). I like Katre. It has simple interiors that had a touch of formality to it.

We shared this grilled pita bread with Hummus Tahini, Baba Ganoush and Yoghurt-Cucumber dip...

I wished that they grilled the pita a bit more..I like my bread on the toasty side. Among the three dips..I like the Baba Ganoush best =)

This is the Field Green Salad with Grapes, Capers and Kalamata olives with Balsamic Vinaigrette ang Blue cheese

I liked this salad a lot. Light and flavorful. Although, was that really blue cheese??? I love blue cheese and I know that it is a soft crumbly cheese.....in this salad it was more like parmesan!

This was the Pasta ala Katre. It was made with Olive oil, garlic pesto garnished with Artichokes, sundried tomatoes, broccoli, walnuts and blue cheese.
We liked this pasta a lot. Different and flavorful. It's good that we split an order because it can be overwhelming if you have too much of it.

To cap our meal...we had the carrot cake, as recommended by our waiter.

No, this is not 2 orders of the cake! I don't know if they split it just because they saw we were sharing everything or if they really served it by twos =) Initially, we found the cake dense on on the dry side. Bite after bite....the taste seems to grow on you. It got better to good but not the best carrot cake I've had. I would love to come back here and try the other interesting food on the menu.

Labor day well spent don't you think? Nice relaxing day with good friends, good food and reflexology to boot!

Trung Nguyen

My dear darling friend Gwen just came home from her trip to Vietnam. When I was there, I just loved the coffee---really stong, aromatic and full bodied!!! I was sooooo happy when Gwen dropped by the office yesterday to bring me her pasalubong ----Trung Nguyen Coffee =) What a great surprise!!!!!!!!!

And yes...we had office on labor day!!!

Thank you Gwen! Mwah!!!!!

Bad Som's Experience =(

I've raved about Somm's Noodle House in a previos post of mine. I loved the food the fisrt time I've eaten there and the price of the food makes it all more worth going back to.

Last Sunday, after meeting my friend Ling (to give her her order---thank you sweetie!), her sisters's and bf at Starbucks Katipunan. I hopped to Corithian hills (yes--Starbucks again!) to hang out with my sisters and brothers. When our stomachs were clamouring no longer for coffee...but for some substantial nourishment...I suggested we go to SOMS! I told my brothers and sisters that it was really good and cheap there minus the ambiance---but who cares right? Perfect plan for a laid back Sunday dinner. ...or so I thought!

We got there around 7:30pm...the place was full and the waiters adviced us to go to the new Jupiter branch. I refused to because I wanted my bros and sises to enjoy the authentic thai carinderia experience. We got a table and here is what we had

The Spring rolls

Green Tofu Curry

Red Beef Curry

Bagoong Rice

The food was still really good..but my bros needed their RICE with their ULAM naturally! That was what killed the experience! The food came in TRICKLES...one dish at a time! So what happend was we picked on our ULAM everytime each was set out on the table! After the bagoong rice came....our fried rice followed over AN HOUR LATER!!! OUR PAD THAI NEVER CAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That was really nasty!!!!!!! We were all bitin!!! It was so unfortunate that that happened because the food was really good pa naman.

Why SOMS???? WHY DO THAT TO US????? =(

Banana & Apple Found!

I've read a recent post on one of my favorite food bloggers, Ms. Lori Baltazar' dessertcomesfirst, on this new pastry shop with a very cute name Banaple. Ofcourse, I naturally made a mental note in mind to look this place up next time I pass the Katipunan stretch.

On our way home from our dinner at Metrowalk, I told Sal about Banaple and she was eager to go and find this place so we could check their goodies out! We like to buy food for our families to try.

We kept our eyes peeled as we started taking on Katipunan, coming from White Plains.

As I saw Kopi Roti at our right...then looking to the left.....EUKERA! We have found the red and yellow sign that calls out Banaple! =)

We asked our dear driver to take a U-turn at next available slot! We rushed out of the car and this is what welcomed us.....

lookie here...a cake display of scrumptous looking cakes!!!

They offered a selection of cheesecakes, carrot cake, snicker chocolate cake....

...here is there famous Banofee pie....

As I mention .quite often...I am really no fan of cakes and/or desserts whith white stuff (except cheesecake and tiramisu becasue the white stuff, i know, is cheese that I adore!)...sad to say the Banofee is topped with very white-looking banana cream or was it whipped cream topping =( So, I couldn't have the banana (of Banaple) so I went on to have the next best thing...the Apple in the Banaple!...=)

Here is the Apple Crumble...served ala mode! I love anything ala mode!;P I just love contrasting temperatures in desserts! Warm pie...cold ice cream...yummy =) Sal and I ordered this to share and I had an Americano to go with it.

As I was studying the other cakes on display, I mindlessly asked...so who owns the place?...As I looked up, a sweet looking woman and a nice looking guy looked back at me and and introduced themselves as the owners! YIKEEESSS!!! I was sooooo embarassed, as I din't notice them come in from the kitchen! I must have sounded so cocky looking for them like..."so sinong may ari?" hahahah... So sorry about that GJ and Maricel =) Ah yes, the owners are the very lovely couple aforementioned!

Our dessert visit turned out into a little tete a tete with the very nice couple! It was soo inspiring talking to them. The very nice surprise was that they were both UP graduates like myself! They were just 2 batches ahead of me! And Gj was even a schoolmate of mine during elementary days! I wish someday I could have my own little shop of cinnamon rolls and all my bread babies and all my food faves....I wish..I wish ....I wish I had the guts like this couple does! I find it so lovely that they work together...with love...in food =) Sweet! Literally and figuratively!!!! I love it!

Here is the Appple crumble pie...ala mode...

I managed to get just a few bites of it because I got so engrosed in our conversation, but I recall that it was very good =). I like the crumble topping! Maricel told me that she even modified it a bit because some patrons found the crumble topping a bit too much. Is that possible??? Too much crumble topping?? hahaha I told her, if it were up to me, that would have been just FINE =)

Aside from cheesecakes and pies they have muffins and banana loaves =)

I will definitely come back here and bring some friends over! Thank you GJ and Maricel for being so accommodating and see you again soon! =)

Pre-Birthday Teaser at Teazzan, Metrowalk

It's Sally's birthday coming this sunday!!! ADVANCED HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR SAL!!!!! =) Just to be sure that we get the chance to get together to celebrate, we decided to have dinner last night.

We went to Metrowalk and checked out Teazzan. by the name itself...I was kinda thinking it was like the defunct, Struan and Tang's (remember that?). So we instinctively tried their fruited iced tea...

I had the Kalamasi flavored and Sal had the Strawberry...as recommended by our waitress....


The drink is based on brewed green and jasmine tea...with fruit flavored syrup. The taste did not agree with me as I found them both to be too "candy" tatsing! I couldn't detect the tea taste anymore b4ecause the syrup they used was too overpowering....


We split this honeyed balsamic salad.....


...it's mixed greens with caramelized walnuts (but the menu says...cashews dapat!), sundired tomatoes (I love sundried tomatoes!) and balsamic vinaigrette (which tasted like it was JUST balsamic vinegar). Nevertheless, I liked the salad =) or was I just famished? ;P


Next up...we spilt an order of the seafood pesto linguine....

We bothed like this dish! It had pesto and a little bit of red sauce, which I think gave the dish dimension. The prawns were fresh and the linguine cooked al dente!

This is the spinach-cheese crepe (with mushrooms). We were supposed to have the quiche, but the waitress told us it was a very tiny order (muka siguro kame malakas kumain talaga!hahaha)

The crepe was more like egg lumpia wrapper to me, but I did like the spinach -cheese-mushroom filling. I love spinach and cheese =) Although, after a few bites, I found it "nakakasawa".

For dessert...we had the mango souffle...good for 2 for Php 225.oo

Hmmm...I really don't like white stuff =( I like the soufles at Le souffle..but this one, I took a pass. It was too eggy for me...I could barely taste the mango and it didn't seem like dessert to me at all. After 2 or 3 bites..I let it go. Sally like it though.

It was nevertheless a plasant and filling dining experience overall. I like the interiors of the restaurant.

Ponderings...

I have been busy baking the past few nights and I'm loving every minute of it! =) Thank you to all the wonderful people who order cinnamon rolls from me (hugs to you all!!!) I really need the baking frenzy to get my mind off a lot of things...I welcome the work with open arms!

I don't know if any of you out there realize, that sometimes the seemingly happiest people around can be the saddest people you'd know?

I just got a text message now...

" do you know what real love is?....itis when you go through the hard trials of trust & sacrifice, and still wake up every morning falling in love all over again..."

Just wanted to share that because it's nice.... and true=)

Why do nice people have to go through emotional hardships? Betrayal? Disappointments? Hurt? I know a good deal of good people who are not getting the kind of love and care they deserve. And is this the saddeness I am talking about? Well, yes. I think one of the heaviest burden a person can have---more than any kind of physical stress or wear---it's hurt in the heart that is most painful. It has mind altering, mood swingging, appetite losing and body deteriorating effects to people....some pretty good people. It happens to many of us and it happens to the best amongst us.

I think pretty much all of us have dealt with this ..at least once in his or her lifetime. Sometimes I just can't help but wonder...why so hard on some people? Why easy on others?

Just some thoughts...

Sunday Shobe Bonding Day =)

I have been out quite a bit the past week and I missed my shobe a lot, so I decided to take my shobe out malling last Sunday.

But first things first...I went out of the house early to bring some cinnamon orders to 2 of my friends in greenhills. Can you believe after my Saturday night out at Apartment B1 I managed to bake when I got home? O yes I did! That's how much I love baking---love it more than sleeping! hahahha ;P

After my deliveries, I met up with my friend Gwen at theatremall for a quick chitchat =) (just can't live without that! hahaha)

I went back to the house to pick up my shobe and to Podium we headed on! My shobe goes..."are we gona meet with your friend Gwen ba?" I said..."no, tapos na" and she goes..."bakit tayo aalis?" I told her "wala lang for bonding =)" hehehe

We had early dinner at UCC, one of my favorite coffee shops. I really like the food selection here. The I call their menu, simple-fancy...the items are really ordinary..you know like pasta...sandwich and salads...but the put very nice complexity to the dish that you cannot find elsewhere! I love it! =) hahaha

Let me expound.... consider exhibit 1.A Chocolate French Toast!

My shobe was contemplating on this or a waffle and apparently this won her over. The cubes of thick bread made into mini- frensh toastlets that are slightly crisp on the outside and soft in the indside...smothered with chocolate sauce, topped with whipped cream (this is the yucky part! ---to me:p) and sticks of pocky! =) (i like pocky...specially the kind with almonds) My sis loved it!

And here...exhibit 1.B Chicken Terriyaki Penne...

This is for yours truly =) When it comes to pasta...I am inclined to the noodle type..i.e. spaghetti, spaghettini, fetuccine, linguine, angel hair..... but for this dish I am ok with the penne since the Terriyaki chicken has strong flavor. I love this dish! As I love Terriyaki...I love chicken and Cheese!!! I think this will be a UCC favorite of mine along with the Terriyaki eggplant sandwich (see Terriyaki still???) Warning though..this dish IS VERY FILLING! Super busog and like you need to be wheeled out of the resto! bwahaha (exagg!!!)

Apt 1B

I have read and heard so many good raves about this cozy little place called Apartment 1B by some of my favorite food bloggers. I finally got the chance to vist this place last Saturday night with my good friends...Mikey and "Angel" ;P . We got there after for a little night cap.

The place is homey with comfy looking interios...tables and couches. We were seted at a corner table on the ground floor, but I would have liked it better upstairs (it looks cozier there!) Mike and I had the brew of the day, which was 100% Arabica coffee. Arabica is the most fragrant of all coffee beans but it lacks the body that I look for in my coffee =)

And for dessert we had the Carrot Cake....

...this was ok..though I found it a bit too sweet for my preference. I didn't appreciate the caramel sauce that they drizzled on it. I think it over powers the complex flavors in this dessert and it made it even MORE sweet! There was also some sort of dried fruit incorporated in the cake...like glazed fruits or was it dates? It made it more like fruit cake than carrot. The cream cheese icing...was a bit weak on the cheese. Nevertheless, it was ok. Not bad but not good, I'm sorry to say. I remeber the carrot cake I really, really liked....the one from Cafe Ysabel. I'v had it aloooong time ago and I remember loving it (I just don't know if its still the same). The carrot cake of Fleur de Lyss, I like also =)


Moving on, we had the famous White Toblerone Cheesecake....

as you can see....WHIPPED CREAM A TOP!!!!! =( SADNESS!!! I hate whipped cream! I actually, am NO fan of white chocolate as well. The crust was graham cracker with some nuts in them, again too sweet for me. The cheesecake body had bits of white toblerone in them---it was ok but nothing I would fancy. I must add that the strawberry sauce they used to plate this dessert was too much and too thick! I'm so sorry to all the fans of this dessert. Perhaps I am a biased opinion as I hate whipped cream, I don't like white chocolate and I don't appreciate excessive saucing! hahahah ;P

A bad dessert day for me? Well, not really...I still appreciated the cakes we had. They were not my taste but I bet there are lots of people who like them=) We mopped out both cakes anyway so there you go! hhahhaha

What interests me though, is the hot items on the menu! The food looks very interesting....casual gourmet. I will definitely go back here FOR DINNER and/or BREAKFAST! Yes, they offer breakfast satrting at 7am! I love breakfast food! I love breakfast as I love morings! I can't wait to try the eggs benedict and waffles! ;)

Despite my disliking the cakes...I will definitely give this place another go!---matigas talaga ulo ko! hahahaha

The Turkish Pasta Pic...

A-ha! I found the missing pic to my Ziggurat post! Here it is my friends... the Turkish Tujmaj =)

Look at the plate---its the same plate they use at Cafe Breton! ;P hehehe

The Temple Tower of Ancient Mesopotamia!

I have long made a list of restos I want to try out, and I have totally forgotten about this mediterranean resto tucked away in the heart of Makati (somewhere near the red light district hahaha).

Ziggurat is a quaint resto having a very interesting menu of African, Indian and Persian food. The place is quite small, but very cozy. I like that you get to sit on the carpeted floors with throw pillows...makes the dining experience more authentic! The menu is a Gazette and serves as a guide as well to novice patrons.

It was a real great idea that Gwen suggested we dine here for our Friday night out, along with my good friend Oli. Gwen ordered the Beef Wet, the picture of which was deleted unfortunately! It was sliced beef with tangy red sauce with feta cheese and hard boiled eggs on the side on top of a big pita bread. The tangy red sauce didn't quite agree with my palate, but nontheless I didn't dislike the dish over all. Every bite was a mystery to me as I try to decipher the spice that went in the sauce and my brain tries to understand what is being masticated in my mouth! ;P hahaha I love it!---The thrill of eating strange food!

For something safer, we had the Mixed Kebabs plate....

It consists of chicken, beef and kofta with a grilled tomato and minced herbage--that was thyme-mint like. The chicken was grilled perfectly! Tender and juicy. I didn't touch the beef and we all liked the kofta. Kofta is like an elongated burger patty to me ;P

This is just traditional hummus...we just had to have it and it was great! I love the pita bread too.

Lastly we had the Turkish Tushmaj---or was it Tuchmaj? The picture of which I have to find, but let me just describe to you what it was. It was egg noodles...more like fetuccine but thicker and more gummy to the bite. It had a yoghurt based sauce giving it a slightly sour zing to it and it came along with some muchrooms and bell peppers (if I remember correctly). It was ok..but I would crave for it ;P. Again another dish worth trying but for me...not to try again! ;P hahahaha I just loved that it had a strange name =)

I would definitely go back here and maybe try the duck couscous! I love couscous! There are soo many interesting food on the menu and it would be really fun trying them out! to top it all off..the price is reasonable ah---I was surprised.

After our gastronomic adventure...we really planned to go to Fez in Serendra..but we got an invite from some other friends to hang out. So wewent to side bar in Ortigas----hahaha..yes, yes...so old school ei? But old school it maybe....it was jammed when we got there! Our friend War was there and Claudine, along with more of her friends. It was fun hanging with them, although I the place was really, really "ma-usok" .

Thank you Oli for taking us out. I look foward to our Fez night Gwen! hahaha

Another Song I'm Carzy About Now...

Last Night by P.Diddy and Keisha Cole


Diddy:] Last night, I couldn't even get an answer.
Tried to call, but my pride wouldn't let me dial.
And I'm sitting here, with this blank expression.
And the way I feel, I wanna curl up like a child.

I know you can hear me
I know you can feel me
I can't live without you
God please make me better
I wish I wasn't the way I am

[Keyshia:] If I told you once,
I told you twice, you can see it in my eyes.
I'm all cried out, with nothing to say.
You're everything I wanted to be.
If you could only see, your heart belongs to me.
I love you so much, I'm yearning for your touch.
Come and set me free, forever yours I'll be, baby won't you come and take this pain awayyyyy.

[Diddy:] Last night, I couldn't even get an answer.
Tried to call, but my pride wouldn't let me dial.
And I'm sitting here, with this blank expression.
And the way I feel, I wanna curl up like a child.

[Keyshia:] I need you, and you need me.
This is so plain to see, and I will never let you go and, I will always love you so.
I will... If you could only see, your heart belongs to me.
I love you so much, I'm yearning for your touch.
Come and set me free, forever yours I'll be, baby won't you come and take this pain awayyyyy.

[Diddy:] Last night, I couldn't even get an answer.
Tried to call, but my pride wouldn't let me dial.
And I'm sitting here, with this blank expression.
And the way I feel, I wanna curl up like a child.

[Diddy:] Tell me the words to say, to make you come back, and work me like that.
And if it matters I'll rather stay home, with you I'm never alone.
Don't want to wait till you're gone, let me be, just don't leave me.

[Diddy:] Last night, I couldn't even get an answer.
Tried to call, but my pride wouldn't let me dial.
And I'm sitting here, with this blank expression.
And the way I feel, I wanna curl up like a child.

[Keyshia:] I need you, and you need me.
This is so plain to see, and I will never let you go and, I will always love you so.
I will... If you could only see, your heart belongs to me.
I love you so much, I'm yearning for your touch.
Come and set me free, forever yours I'll be, baby won't you come and take my pain awayyyyy.

[Diddy:] Last night, I couldn't even get an answer.
Tried to call, but my pride wouldn't let me dial.
And I'm sitting here, with this blank expression.
And the way I feel, I wanna curl up like a child.

[Keyshia:] I'm so alone I'm soooo lonelyyyyy,
Why don't you pick the phone, and dial up my number, and call me a baby, I'm waiting on you. Why don't you pick the phone, and dial up my number, just call me a baby, I'm waiting on you.

The Brown Brotha! =)

It has been awfully HOT the past weeks. I feel like ice cream melting away everytime I am out of an air-conditioned area. Nonetheless, however uncomfortable for us HUMANs the weather may be...some living things actually desire such conditions---the YEAST! hehehe Yes my friends! --the icky and sticky temperature nowadays is very conducive to yeast growth, thus now is the time to make BREAD! =)

Meet the brown brother of my cinnamon rolls...the CHOCOBON---hmmm...shall I call him Chocoboy? ;P hahaha I made these last night, an order of a friend of mine. These are the original version actually of my cinnamon rolls. It has chocolate dough with dark chocolate chips inside. For this batch however...I mixed in white chocolate morsels with the dark because my friend likes white chocolate (unfortunately--I don't! ;P) .

I made them after dinner...and boy did I sweat like crazy for this, which made my missing out on pilates class to bake...quite alright! hahahaha It was soo hot in the kitchen...and naturally I can't put on the fan (because the draft will dry out my dough) and air-conditioning will slow down fermentation. Good for the dough....bad for the baker....nevertheless, seeing my brown babies rise perfectly (and quickly, I might add) is worth the suana experience! I call this BIKRAM BAKING! hahahaha =)

I decided to put the cream cheese frosting today, because I don't want it to melt away while I am in transit.

These are 7 x 5 rounds....interested parties may contact me for orders...just leave me a message =)

Half Moon at Serendra--Mezzaluna!

I haven't seen my friend Sal for quite sometime now...with all the vacation gaps and all. She invited me to have have coffee with her at Starbucks Corinthianhills and went antipasti shopping at Santi's. She had her holy week vacation at Baguio and she surprised me with Benguet Coffee and a silver "J" pendant from Ibay's !!!! =) How sweet!!! I loved them both!!! Thank you my dear Thesally!

I was supposed to just stay home and rest that evening...but my aunty...or is it cousin "I"? Invited me to have dinner with her to catch up. I coundn't refuse since she has been asking to meet up with me even before my boracay trip....and I missed her too... so I ofcourse obliged!

We went to Serendra because aunty "I" hasn't tired any of the restos there. I picked Mezzaluna. As I have learned, it has the same owner as Amoroma (I have yet to try Amoroma since I have heard good things about this Italian resto =) )

For starters, we had the warm salad with foie gras and scallops.....

this was good although a bit too oily for my taste. After having the 2nd small foie gras piece....I felt a little queezy! ;P hahahah Nonetheless..the scallops was perfectly cooked.

As our main...we had the Chilean Seabass on a bed of mashed potatoes topped with bacon. I forgot to take a photo of the entree, as I was enthralled by consuming the main course at once! bwahahahaha....I was a bit disappointed that it was a bit cooked over...rendering the fish a bit on the tough side as opposed to being soft and melt in your mouth ...the way Antonio's doest it =)

The bed of mashed potatoes was good...but not as smooth as I'd want it to be. I still compare it to Antonio's version of this dish...thier mashed potato was smooooth and creamy and dreamy. And I tell you, I am not much of a mashed potato fan!

We just felt "not busog" by our food...so we ordered this Pizza Margherita. I love my pizzas simple....with thin crispy crust! Just good 'ol cheese, basil and tomato/tomato sauce for me please! This one was good...but after having a slice...I suddenly felt myself fill up---sayang??? ;P hahahhaah

After our dinner and lively chit chat...we moved on to Fez for a drink. Fez is this quaint bar at Serendra, situated beside Larry's bar. If I remember correctly it has the same owner as Moksha, a bar somewhere on the side streets of Wilson. Aunty "I" had the strawberry diquiri and I had a lychee martini. I liked my drink...it's base is Absolut blue complimented by the sweet fruity taste of the lychees =) I can only take alcohol that doesn't really taste like alcohol. Nevertheless, I have learned my lesson well and the hard way...that is why I know better NOT to have more than one cocktail =). Note: Things I've learned before I turn 30...#1368 know your alcohol limit or you might regret it! hahahhaha

As I was telling my Aunty about the affinity of Fez to Moksha...she got curious about it so we decided to go check the place out. I have been there once a few years back with a friend of mine and I remember liking the it.

When we got there..the it was full! Can you believe it..on a Sunday! The people were mostly contemporary Fil-Chi people. We asked if there was still an available spot for us...the waiter ushered us to the back and told us...ma'am sa taas po. We saw that there was NO staircase to be found...so we asked him again.."saan yun taas?"...the waiter replied..."ma'am jan po" (pointing to the back room! My aunty and I looked at eacheother and we go.."ah..eto pala ang TAAS" hahaha I never knew they had a "back" portion, and it was quite spacious actually. Can you believe there were lots of people there still??? Luckily there was just the two of us so we got seated. I liked the place...nice...cozy...familiar. It's just like hanging in some 'ol friend's house. A nice place for friendly chit chat and hang time. I wanted to have coffee, but it was not available..so I had the next best thing....coffee freeze! Well they put whipped cream ...ewwwee...but I managed to consume my drink without it mixing in ;P I can only complain about the service...you know...nobody appreciates having "wala" "wala" na reply from waiters when you order something ( no cofffee, no cake, no bananas flambee....so why do they put it on the menu???? ;P) and to top this off...i asked for a spoon and tissue....which never came. Oh well, perhaps it was because it was a sunday? perhaps it was late? perhaps..perhaps! But nevertheless, I think I'll be goin back here soon....on a better day...say a friday night or saturday =)