Foodie Manila

As most of you know peeling garlic is one of worst tasks one can do in the kitchen! But fret no-more! Look what I found! I’m pretty sure you are thanking me right about now.

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So Jamba Juice finally opened in Manila and it took awhile considering how Americanized we are. The place was pretty new and in the nice part of Manila. Basically Jamba Juice serves up different kinds of smoothies with different “shots” for energy, immunity, etc. They combine different fruits and the franchise is actually quite famous in the US.

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Yakitori (焼き鳥/やきとり/ヤキト), or grilled chicken is now open at the fort Burgos Circle. From the same people who brought you Ramen Bar, comes to you one of the most authentic japanese yakiniku restaurants.

When I saw the restaurant from outside, everything was quite simple and yet almost the entire restaurant was full. We were glad to be seated quickly and the service was polite and efficient.

Upon seating, the servers will hand you a piece of paper and you basically tick off which one you want to try and customize your whole dining experience.

I was quite excited and yet overwhelmed with all the choices. I quickly asked for the best-sellers and was quickly prepared.

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I received a package at the office the other day. It was 3 boxes of donuts! Being that it was the Christmas season it wasn’t a complete surprise that someone sent something to us. It could’ve been one of our clients. But what did surprise me was it was J.CO donuts! I’ve always liked J.CO donuts! Having offices in KL and Singapore I’ve tasted these bad boys before. What I liked about them were the unusual and yet simple flavors they had. I knew I was going to have a blast sharing these with the rest of the office.

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I know what you are thinking, “its been awhile” and I admit it has. Work has drastically increased and my diagnosed illness has been working overtime with my mood swings in a very non productive way. I think I might go back to my meds again. But anyhow, I’m in Malaysia again! I am finding myself frequenting this country more and more and falling in love with it more and more. Last time I was here I featured some dishes from Yut Kee, Bee Chiang Hee, The Loaf, and much much more. But I think I lacked out some of the more interesting places. I can ramble on and on about Nasi Lemak, Chicken Chop, Maggi Mee, Mee Goreng, etc. but ever wondered what Malaysian home cooking was? I mean as a Filipino looking in I wonder now, is our home cooking quite different from the usual restaurants we frequent. I mean with such great food places all over Kuala Lumpur, one would never think about home cooking! But I was very fortunate that my boss, who just got engaged btw you’ve probably seen his meme proposal on 9gag, had someone prepare a home cooked meal for us. Thanks Tim.

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Its been getting colder lately. The wind smells a little different and you just know that Christmas season will soon be here! I love this kind of weather! You can wear those jackets that you’ve been keeping in your closet and those scarves that you bought but never knew when to use except when in another country. But before this turns into a fashion post, there are far more better things I love that comes with cooler weather. It makes sense now to drink warm drinks! Warm coffee being one of my favorites, but even more so Hot Chocolate. I mean c’mon, who doesn’t love hot chocolate?

The other week, I gave a talk about blogging and marketing at a recent convention (yes it’s because of my day job) and aside from actually meeting Bo Sanchez, (who spoke before me btw!) came a nice care package after. Inside the box were a lot of various food items and this can of Ghirardelli Hot Chocolate powder was in it. I decided to try it with my favorite milk, and I knew this was going to be a staple with me for a very long time!

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Science and Food has long been intertwined. From the very first man who decided to hold raw meat over an open flame gastronomy was born. Elements Gastrolounge seeks to mold together two things that the greenbelt area is known for, good food and good drinks. Drawing from the inspiration of a basement laboratory, the lounge offers your not-so-common barchow with a unique twist. The personality of the owners really shine through as each dish is signature and quite unique and equally good. But if you think Food is all they offer then you have to sit down and chillout for a few hours. As unique as the food was, the drinks were even more unique. Some of them served in test tubes with a test tube holder, some in beakers, truly sticking with the theme. Elements Gastrolounge is a place where you come for the food, but stay for the drinks.

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One of the perks of being a food blogger is when readers send over some of the stuff they make and let me try it. The other day, Lyschelle from Retox Ice Cream emailed me asking if I wanted to try out their concoctions of alcohol infused ice cream, and its ice cream, who would say no to ice cream. I quickly agreed and she had her partner send it over.

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As most of you know (or do not know for that matter), it has been the ghost month this past few weeks. For the superstitious Chinese, there are different implications regarding the ghost month. But for the us looking in, it is quite fascinating. Usually falling during the Mid-Autumn festival, several different folklore is associated with Ghost month and the mid autumn festival as well as the tradition of eating/giving mooncakes during this period. Time for the Filipino to look into something quite different happening in my own backyard.

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I’m a sucker for anything authentic. Authentic Pasta? I’m there. So imagine my delight when I finally discovered Amoroma at Tagaytay. Tagaytay is a brief 1 hour 30 mins drive from Manila and you have the cool crisp weather which is a cool respite from the hot & sticky weather that Manila has to offer.

I first tried this place with The Club on the way to Punta Fuego and have been back the succeeding weekends because I could never get enough of the place. I soak in the ambiance, the choices of handmade pasta, the music, and the weather, everything just ties in. This is one place I wouldn’t mind dining Al Fresco.

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