Poco Deli (take 2!) in East Kapitolyo

Headed once again to Poco Deli to try out their callos (but later on I admitted to myself that I am not cut out for tripe) for a lively, chatty dinner with one of my favourite persons in the world. (Shameless plug: Please support National Bookstore Foundation projects and make an investment on The Lord!)

Irish beef stew with bacon rice for Php 265. I liked this! Beef was tender, reminded me of the delicious stew I had in Kiss the Cook Cafe

Spanish Chorizo with home-made Pomodor sauce and mozarella cheese for Php 300

Orange poppy seed cupcake for Php 65. I really liked this one. Tangerine-sweet just right

Poco Deli

21 East Capitol Drive

Barrio Kapitolyo Pasig City

Philippines

Tel: 632 664 0519

Le Bistro Vert in Salcedo Village

I've been meaning to try out Le Bistro Vert ever since Carlos Celdran mentioned it in his FB. Thanks to my two Makati girl friends, Isa and Lisa (of the Chocolate Fire experience) who made this suggestion. I love friends who know where to dine well. =)

Le Bistro Verti's is an advocate of "sustainable foods" (also their tagline), because they source their ingredients from nearby places. The nearer the source is, less transportation, less carbon emissions, thus moving towards a more sustainable environment.

Some of the items we had:

Sagada orange, carabao cheese, tomato - malunggay, basil, pesto for Php 195. I can't say it's worth the price for such simple ingredients, but I adore the arrangement of the food. This deserved the gourmet meal stamp.

Aligue Spaghettini with Green Mango Shreds - frilled shrimp skewer, grilled tomatoes for Php 295. House specialty, rightfully so! One of the best aligue pasta I've had.

Freshly ground beef and lucban longganisa - quesong puti, roasted onion bread for Php 250

Apahap Fillet, Buro Mustasa. Citrus Soy Dressing, Brown Rice Pilaf for Php 295. Couldn't get enough of this too!

We walked back to my car in the afternoon, and it was beautiful walking along Valero on a sunny afternoon. Thank you to the weather that has been relatively cooperating with me throughout the week!

Le Bistro Vert

Streetside, Fraser Place

Valero Street, Salcedo Village

Makati City, Philippines

Tel: 632 403 1841

Relish in Ponte Salcedo

My good friend Mela gave me a heads up on the new restaurant that her mom and aunts opened: Relish in Ponte Salcedo. Her sales pitch was: grab a bite to eat in Relish before you hit Ponti, in reference for the nearby yuppie bar. Smart pitch! But I'd say you can have your drinks in Relish too, because they offer thirst-quenching cocktails in beautifully contoured glasses (which I can only admire at a distance since I took the wheel that evening).

I loved Relish's interiors. The place looked a lot like Mela's beautiful home - with flowery wall paper, cushioned seats and clean dividers, very much like a classy artists' lounge. It made me feel like I walked into a spring evening.

I am a big sucker for the color green, it is cooling in the eyes.

A jazz musician plays on Wednesday and Friday nights

Freebie popcorn with pesto. Creative twist!

We had our dinner in Ilustrado previous to our trip to Relish, so while we saw very enticing main items, we opted for the dessert menu instead. Still worth the trip, if only for sweet dessert that cleansed our palate.

Special Relish Delight - a heavenly coco pandan cream concoction for Php 195

Chocolate Caramel Cake for Php 140

Dreamy interiors merit another visit! Heading back for the mains and a cocktail when time permits.

Relish

Ground Floor, Ponte Salcedo

120 Valero Street

Makati City, Philippines

Fine Dining at Cafe Ilustrado, Intramuros City, Manila

I had another opportunity to visit my most favourite city in Manila: the walled city of Intramuros. (Actually, as a back story, I had the fortune of getting lost going to Intramuros, and drove through the famous towns of Binondo and Quiapo)

I went around with a foreign friend named Patty, and it was great that because I went on the Carlos Celdran Intramuros tour, I had a lot of material to work with. We went on a kalesa tour (something that I did with my university friends during the vacation - we are random and geeky like that), but for some reason the kalesa man took us to a different route which allowed me to see parts of the city.

Manila Cathedral, which Patty said looks a lot like churches in Madrid.

The original site of Ateneo de Manila =)

The sign reads: Here once stood the Ateneo de Manila. Founded in 1817 as Escuela Pia de Manila. ... Exclusive ownership given to Jesuits in 1901. Gutted by fire in 1932. Grade school rebuilt in Intramuros while rest of the campus moved to ermita, Manila. Destroyed during World war II. Moved to Loyola Hights, Quezon City in 1962

Ateneo was a school dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, the goddess of philosophy and mathematics (Ateneo's strongest suits remains to be liberal arts and math). They called the school Atheneum, and since it was controlled by the Spanish Jesuits, it became Ateneo.

Some significant place involving Douglas MacArthur. They turned this as one of the areas for Manila Golf.

I love how they maintain the manicured lawn of Fort Santiago. It feels great to just sit on one of the benches and think quietly.

On our way out of Fort Santiago, some students from UST accosted me to answer their tourism survey. When I handed back the completed copy, they asked: So why do you travel to Intramuros?

I come here to eat.

I took Patty to the best place I knew (thus far), but haven't tried - the Fine Dining in Ilustrado Restaurant. I tried the cafe portion a few weeks back. I just love the interiors of the place - it made me reimagine Old Spanish Manila.

Seafood paella for Php 750. I loved this one. I forked through more than half the dish, and had to restrain myself, and I don't even like white rice! Truly a specialty of the house.

Ilustrado Restaurant

744 General Luna Street

Intramuros, Manila

Tel: 632 527 3674

Grams Diner in Rockwell Info Center

Another mad craving I've had these past few days is the craving for the perfect waffles. I tried looking for it in Antonio's last week, to no avail, so I chose my breakfast date to be in Grams in case they had something that I can try, and there was nada. I think I will end up in Starbucks for their Belgian waffles.

What I had in Grams instead were some addicting pieces of pancakes. They came in small circles, were sweet just right, and I couldn't get enough of it. I just kept on popping it in.

Silver dollar pancakes for Php 65.

Interesting matter on pancakes from Wikipedia:

Archaeological evidence suggests that varieties of pancakes are probably the earliest and most widespread types of cereal food eaten in prehistoric societies whereby dry carbohydrate-rich seed flours mixed with the available protein-rich liquids, usually milk and eggs, were baked on hot stones or in shallow earthenware pots over an open fire to form a nutritious and highly palatable foodstuff.

Ha! I cannot imagine pancakes in stone ovens! Thank god for progress.

Some other items we had

Eggs benedict - two poached eggs served on toasted muffins layered with ham and topped with hollandaise sauce and served with home fries for Php 225. I wasn't a very big fan of this, perhaps because I have tasted the perfection that is in Chateau 1771's eggs benedict

Patriotic breakfast - US beef tapa served with egg and rice for Php 175

Grams Diner

Rockwell Info Center

Rockwell Drive, Rockwell Center, Makati

Tel: 632 898 2890

Cafe Ysabel in San Juan, Greenhills

I've been thinking of about dining in Cafe Ysabel ever since I got the whiff of news that Anthony Bourdain dined there for an episode of No Reservtions. The cafe gets featured in the newspapers, mostly for its evolving menu (every year they replace 50% of the menu items) with pictures of its beautifully styled food and fancy plating. Later, I found out that the cafe is on a 1927 ancestral home and furnished with period pieces. I am a sucker for period design so I finally bit into the sales pitch.

Most of the diners were older (my cousin and I observed that we were the youngest persons in the entire cafe), the food took a while to arrive to our table, and they could have done with brighter lights. Still, Cafe Ysabel did not disappoint. Below are some photos that we took

Grilled white cheese on grape olive and anchovy salad in crisp parmesan frico for Php 278

Halibut Amandine - crusted with finely slvered almonds and leek sauce for Php 448

Prawns Thermidor - stuffed with young mushrooms, vegetables, cheese and baked to perfection for Php 518

Chocolate Souffle

Cafe Ysabel

455 P. Guevarra Street

San Juan, Metro Manila

Philippines

Tel: 632 725 5089

The Kebab Factory along Burgos Circle

I have been craving - madly craving - for a glass light margarita for a while now. I had a giant disaster in RestoPino, and was not able to enjoy Iguana's tastier version. So the afternoon of the Burgos Circle food hopping, the next stop was whichever place served light alcohol.

We found it in Kebab Factory. Thank you! (Note - business opportunity awaits for entrepreneurs entering Fort area and who will be willing to serve cocktails on brunch/afternoons. Fort is poised to become a high density location and structured to become a self sustaining community. You can sustain the drinks bit!)

Finally, my margarita, on a special order from the bar. On a slender, contoured glass, with fine salt grazing its rim. A cool drink, a light buzz, on a beautiful, sunny afternoon. For Php 150

Baklava - Middle Eastern filo pastry dessert with nuts dipped in honey for Php 150

Mango Kulti - pureed mangoes and a hint of cardamon flavour for Php 150. Frozen treat on a nice afternoon!

Chicken Masti Kebab - tender pieces of chicken marinated and roasted in a Tandoor over for Php 130

My brother and I ate here the last time I flew in Manila. Mid-range Mediterranean restaurant, nothing spectacular, except that Mediterranean food is great in itself. I still prefer Mister Kebab.

The Kebab Factory

Burgos Circle, Fort Bonifacio

Taguig, Philippines

Cantinetta in Burgos Circle

It was a sunny beautiful Tuesday afternoon when two of my friends and I decided to do some food hopping along Burgos Circle. Our first stop was Cantinetta, which served Italian food. I never thought of entering Cantinetta because I felt it was a normal Italian restaurant with normal Italian food. Little did I know that it made a great tasting risotto that dispelled my aversion to rice

Risotto originated from North Italy, where there was an abundance of rice paddies. The dish is made by constant stirring of rice which adding the stock, a process that releases the starch, giving the creamy texture of the rice. I remember making risotto over the summer, using brown rice, chicken stock and white wine. My experiment came out edible provided that sour cream was added.

Seafood Risotto for Php 450

Cantinetta

Forbes Town Center

29 St. Rizal Drive, The Fort

Taguig City, Metro Manila

Philippines

Tel: 632 403 5220

Keizo Authentic Japanese along Burgos Circle

On the few times that I have dropped by to have a quiet dinner at Keizo, it is always filled with Japanese clientele. It would take a while to land a table for ourselves. My mother loves Japanese so when we are hungry and can't think of any nice place that may satisfy her, Keizo it is. It is authentic and relatively cheap, and Chef Yasu and his sushi bar staff, Angelo and Ronald, are more than accommodating to their guests (asks us how the food is, and we've been given freebies - "taste tests")

Once when I dined in Keizo, I chatted up a Japanese national who took pictures of his food. "Are you a food blogger too?" I asked. Turns out he's a Japanese whose been living in Manila for 13 years, and has been following Chef Yasu since his days as a chef in a famous Japanese restaurant in Manila. Like many of Chef Yasu's patrons (and majority of the Keizo staff), they followed him when he set up his small restaurant in Kesington. Great quality and great taste does not have to come at a great cost.

It is also amusing how Keizo maintains a facebook and twitter account where they talk about the developments in the menu and the source of their food. Great marketing ploy to sustain the interest in the restaurant! Seems that their raw meat are sourced from Tsukiji.

When it comes to Japanese food, my family and I are very easy to please. Some of what we had:

Edemame (soybeans) for Php 120

Agedashi tofu for Php 150

Spicy Tuna Maki for Php 250

Beautiful Maki for Php 450

Keizo

Unit 1-1, Kensington Place

Fort Bonifacio, Taguig

Manila, Philippines

Tel: 632 403 3839

Poco Deli in East Kapitolyo

Right after the Ateneo-La Salle game my cousins and I headed to Charlie's for a quick dinner, and then popped in Poco Deli for dessert (Aside: just to give you an idea how famous and contested this game is, it was difficult for me to pull out any of my friends for a trip to Pampanga because everyone's mind was on the game in one way or another. I feel treacherous for not having the same understanding of this community building event).

Poco deli has their own main menu and my cousin boasts of the superb callos that they offer. The establishment looked a bit tight but I guess that's what made it a conducive place to bond and laugh with family and friends. I like how they displayed their wine selections on the perimeter wall which solidified the deli vibes.

Dave's natural premium frozen yoghurt - cup of wild berry classic for Php 85

Another Dave's cup of vanilla bean yoghurt for Php 85. I didn't like this a lot (considering that I love vanilla) but my brother is very much sold on its taste.

I very much liked this one - chocolate caramel cake for Php 120.

Poco Deli

21 East Capitol Drive

Barrio Kapitolyo Pasig City

Tel 632 664 0519

A La Creme in Angeles City, Pampanga

For our last stop for our short Pampanga food trip, we visited the small store of A La Creme to sample their famous Ube cake and Belgian Chocolate Cake.

Ube cake for Php 83. I didn't like this as much but my friend was very much sold on the flavour. Heavier than Red Ribbon's version.

Ube, known in the English language as purple yam, is a violet-colored tuber found extensively in the country. It can also be found across Southeast Asia and India. It is a regular added flavour for desserts or filing for Filipino pastries, breads and cakes.

A La Creme

Alcon Bldg., MacArthur Highway

Angeles City, Pampanga

Philippines

Tel: 63 45 888 2303

Iguana's Cantina Mexicana (formerly Zapata's) in Angeles, Pampanga

Heads up for foodies! The famous Zapata's authentic Mexican restaurant has moved from 480 Don Juico Avenue to 50 Meliton Road (go further down Don Juico Avenue, away from Robinson's place and way past C's Italian Dining). We went around Don Juico three times until the tricycle driver gave us some solid directions on the way to the new establishment.

Zapata's was named after Emilio Zapata Salazar, a leading Mexican figure in the 1910 Mexican revolution. He was a peasant child who gained insights on the hardships of the countryside, and in turn advocated for peasants who were forced into slavery by hacienderos.

I googled "best restaurants Pampanga" and Zapata's was one of the top hits. It lives up to its reputation with its strong tasting and spicy dishes that place it above all the seemingly run down Mexican restaurants in Manila that seem to cater to the Filipino sweet tooth.

Strawberry Margarita for Php 160 - I had a spoonfull of this, and it was well worth it. It gave a slight sting on the tongue that I get with very good margaritas. Too bad I wasn't able to enjoy this as much as I wanted to, since I was in charge of the wheel and am a responsible driver.

Quesedilla Supreme (Chicken!) for Php 210. The spiciness settled on my tongue well after it settled on my tummy.

Chili Zapata: Special "award Winning"... All Meat Chili served with fresh flour tortillas, borracho beans and Mexi-rice for Php 225. This was as award winning as they said this was. The beef was tender yet flavourful. I couldn't get enough of this!

Fajitas - grilled strips of marinated beef brought sizzling to your table with Mexi-rice and grilled peppers. Served with tortillas, salsa and sour cream for Php 320. I have reservations about this because while the beef marinade tasted good, the beef was cooked too soon and thus came out tough.

Iguana Cantina Mexicana (formerly Zapata's)

50 Meliton Road

Angeles City, Pampanga

Philippines

Tel: 63 45 893 3654