Sugarhouse cake shop, Greenhills

It must have been years since we last went to Sugarhouse. A decade would have been exaggerating but it was likely. I felt that it lost its charm: the lighting looked industrial and the general ambiance was not as lively. But the Lemon Torte was great!

Lemon Torte for Php 130

Sylvanna's for Php 20 / piece

Marjolaine slice for Php 130

Sugarhouse

The Shops, Greenhills Shopping Center

San Juan, Metro Manila

Philippines

Tel: 632 584 9482

Creamy and luscious chocolate cake, Starbucks, Philippines

The ancient Mayans are credited with the invention of hot chocolate. Originally, the Mayans simply ground native cacao beans and spices into a paste, and then frothed the mixture into water and served this concoction hot. Soon, the Aztecs were introduced to cacao beans and made a similar chocolate brew of their own.

The Spanish conquered the Aztecs, and eventually owned up to this tradition, thus the practice was adopted in the colonies. - Source

Chocolate cake for Php 95/slice

Starbucks

All over MM!

La Creperie in Eastwood

There was space for dessert! And so we went to La Creperie to fill in that space.

Crepe Sucrees : Strawberries for Php 65 + Bittersweet Choclate for Php 35

Double Chocolate Fudge Brownie Crepe - Chocolate Crepe, fudge brownie and home made chocolate sauce topped with vanilla ice cream for Php 225. Sugar overload!

La Creperie

2/L Eastwood Mall Veranda

E. Rodriguez Jr. Ave.

Bagumbayan, Libis

Quezon City, Metro Manila

Philippines

Cyma, Eastwood City

My family and I had dinner in Cyma after what seemed like many years since we have gone. My preferred outlet was in Greenbelt (better lighting, wider space) but a salad mix was a salad mix, which was why we entered the establishment anyway.

Roka Salata - Fresh Arugula, chopped romaine lettuce, sun-dried tomatoes, candied walnuts, with shaved parmesan in traditional Green Vinaigrette for Php 495

Spinach Artichoke Fondue - blend of melting cheese, sliced sun-dired tomatoes and feta, served with warm pita triangles and grilled garlic bread for Php 350

Greek Shish - Kabobs: Chicken skewered with fresh vegetables for Php 340

Cyma Lamb Chops - Charbroiled, served with rice-stuffed peppers for Php 460

Cyma

2/L Eastwood Mall Veranda,

E. Rodriguez Jr. Ave., Bagumbayan, Libis

Quezon City, Metro Manila

Philippines

Tel: 632 709 1955

Blu Fish, Eastwood

Blu Fish interiors were great, food was slightly above average. Noise in the kitchen should have been kept at a minimum.

A better Salpicao! Salpicao Madrileno for Php 235

Calamari Pasta Negra for Php 295. This brought me back to Da Paolo days.

Seafood Fabada Risotto for Php 345. Nice rendition.

Blufish

G/F, Eastwood Mall Veranda, E. Rodriguez Jr. Ave., Bagumbayan, Libis

Quezon City, Metro Manila

Philippines

Tel: 632 900 0886

Cream chicken and mushroom pasta

After my red wine experiment, I used white wine for this pasta. A dab of sour cream added some taste

Ingredients

1. pasta

2. chicken

3. mushroom

4. white wine

5. all purpose creme

6. a bit of sour creme

Dabbling with Salpicao

I always thought that cooking Salpicao involved an intricate preparation of beef, but turned out it was just about frying it. The game changer was the marinade, the cut, and the sauce that you cooked the beef in.

Ingredients:

1. beef

2. oyster sauce

3. pineapple juice

Day tour in Corregidor, afternoon cap at Razon's

We took a trip to Corregidor for a day of guns and ruins and some rediscovery of Philippine war history, with a special highlight on the ghost hunting in Malinta tunnel. My pictures in the tunnel were full of orbs, and it was frightening thinking of it THAT way.

soldier's quarters

17 mile range

major destinations circa 1920s

the charming Spanish light house

2000 people died in here...

The summer heat left me dehydrated and hot headed by mid afternoon, so I met Ynez in my favorite halo-halo place, Razon's. Halo-halo was a summer staple, and Razon's had the simplest ingredients that I preferred: saba banana, macapuno, finely crushed ice and leche flan. I also strongly recommend their palabok! Razon's was definitely worth the trip in any part of Manila.

Charlie's Grind and Grill, Pasig

My brother took me to try Charlie's, a burget joint right inside a carwash station in Kapitolyo. The exterior was hardly glamorous and their interiors (lighting etc) could be better but they made up with serving foreign brands of ketchup, mustard and mayo. And greattttttt buffalo wings.

Gourmet chicken for Php 170. The taste left much to be desired

WINNER Buffallo wings. 12 pieces for Php 320. My brother ate 10 pieces! And rightfully so - it was really good! I used its sauce to on my gourmet chicken. Very good value for money.

Blue Cheese came with the buffalo wings. Made the purchase extra worth it.

Charlie's Grind and Grills

16 East Kapitolyo Drive

Pasig City, Metro Manila

Philippines

Tel: 632 501 0137

Hot and sour prawn soup

I did a bit of an experiment on hot and sour prawn soup.

Major ingredients:

1. prawn

2. lemongrass (!)

3. kaffir lime leaves and galangal (missed this one, so I compensated with...)

4. mushrooms

5. lime juice

This version could have done better (put too much water and I should have added more chilli), but the beautiful orange shade made it appetizing enough for our Sunday breakfast.

May also work best with squid and carefully chosen veggies!