Slammer Burgers

I wouldn't have tried it if not for my husband. I'm afraid of wasting my money for a bland-tasting burger. My mind's already set on where to go if ever I crave one, Burger King or Brothers Burger or if I'm short of cash, McDonald's or Jollibee.


***just look at the lines....not pictured are the ones waiting for their orders

After eating at Kozui, my husband, still hungry, ordered Jalapeno Cheeseburger at Slammer Burgers. Hesitant, but still willing to take a bite, I did and, surprise, surprise, I liked it.
It is not as spicy as the Kamikaze Burger of Hotshots, not "one that would burn your tongue" spicy, but just "with a kick" spicy.


JALAPENO CHEESEBURGER P60

The bun is crusty on the outside but soft inside. The cheese added tartness to the burger, but the surprise of all, the patty tasted like that of Brothers Burger. No wonder they always have long lines, their burgers are great. Though a little pricey than the usual Jollibee or McDo burgers, at P60 for 2 mini burgers with a brothers burger taste, it's worth it.

***a close-up view of the burger....

I just hope they'll sell mix flavors of burger an order and not just one flavor per order. In that way you'll get to try more from their burger selections.


Happy Eating!

Secret Recipe

Secret Recipe is a lifestyle chain from Malaysia which has already established its name in Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand, for its quality cakes, fusion food and distinctive service. They are trying to do the same here in the Philippines, by opening a second branch at the new wing (Midtown) of Robinsons Place Ermita. They have an award-winning dish, the Irish Lamb Stew, they also serve authentic & spicy Singapore Laksa & Grilled Black Pepper Chicken. They have specialized menu for the kids like, Mini Burgers and Fish and Chips. Not to forget their endless displays of cakes.


***this is their take-out box for cake slice, a notch higher from our local bakeshops.

OUR ORDERS:

PAN-GRILLED DORY WITH LOBSTER SAUCE P320
Pan-grilled dory fillets with home-made lobster sauce.
Served with french fries, sweet peas, cauliflower & carrots.
The fillet is well-seasoned, same with the sauce, not nauseatingly rich. The fries are beautifully cut, with just the right crispiness. The veggies are still crunchy with a slight hint of butter. You can also try to dip the fries and the veggies on the lobster sauce for a better way of eating it.



BEEF LASAGNE P135
Baked minced beef with special tomato sauce, topped with cheese & served with their homemade bun.
You have a choice of beef or chicken with your lasagna.
For just P135, it's more than worthy of your money.
The minced beef are lean cuts with rarely a fatty one in sight. It's different from the one's sold at Greenwich or Red Ribbon, because they use minced and not ground beef. Plus, their sauce is just right, in between sweet and sour, so it'll definitely cater to the foreigners and Filipinos alike. The serving is more than good for one, but too little for two. The homemade bun that came with it is soft, warm and has a creamy taste to it.


WHITE CHOCOLATE MACADAMIA P110
An incredible combination of fresh roasted macadamia nuts and creamy vanilla filling, coated with white chocolate.
I was impressed with its taste & appearance. It is virginal in look but devilishly good in taste. Its filling even tasted like ice cream =)



MANGO DELIGHT P110
Juicy chunks of mangoes come together with home-cooked mango puree and fresh cream.
Though it is liked by a lot of bloggers and has been on the TOP CAKES OF THE MONTH, I don't like it that much. It's plain-tasting to me, and the mangoes used were a little bit sour =(



Happy Eating!

Fleur de Lys

Owned by Pastry Chef Jackie Ang Po, who also worked as a pastry chef and co-host for Heny Sison's cooking show for 5years (2000-2005)and holds teaching/baking classes at Heny Sison Culinary School.
I came to know this new bakeshop from blogs and a TV guesting at Boy & Kris. The cheesecake she made that day looked delicious and was even praised by Kris Aquino and Roxanne Guinoo. Not wanting to be left behind, I tried it ASAP.


Takeout box
The Majestic P108
Orange chocolate mousse & chocolate meringue in between fudge cake layers, all enrobed in chocolate ganache.
I can say that they make great tasting mousse, it is not too sweet and has a good consistency. The chocolate cake though is not moist and a little bit on the dry side. Overall, the taste is refreshing because of the use of oranges.

Happy Eating!

Kozui

What I can't stop raving for days now is this, Kozui's Anmitsu.

I saw it first at a segment at US girls, followed by a lot of blog features. So after taking-out a slice of cake at Fleur de Lys, I visited the resto at Tomas Morato, near Baang Coffee.

Kozui puts a new spin on green tea. They have an extensive tea menu in hot or cold. They also sell green tea loose leaves in a variety of selections. Green tea paraphernalia and other merchandise are also for sale.

For dessert, the bestseller is the Anmitsu, and for japanese eats, the Takoyaki. Other must-try are the Karaage Chicken Vegetable Wrap P148 (grilled pita bread with japanese breaded chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, onions & a dollop of black sesame dressing), Mount Fuji Green Chocolate P105 (a pyramid-shaped brownie with creamy green tea on top & a burst of chocolate at its peak) and Green Tea-ramizu P95 (a spin on the italian dessert tiramisu).

But the star of my nightly dreams is the Anmitsu. Anmitsu is a japanese dessert that has been popular for many decades now. It is made of sweet azuki bean paste or anko ( the an in anmitsu) and sweet black syrup or mitsu (the mitsu part in anmitsu). In Japan, it is usually eaten with a spoon and fork.

Kozui's Anmitsu P138 on the other hand, is made of shaved ice topped with green tea jelly, dango balls ( made from rice flour), fruits flavoured with mitsu syrup, sweet azuki beans (red bean), taro (gabi in the phils) jam & Kozui's rich green tea ice cream. You have choices of strawberry preserves, fresh mangoes, taro or fresh melons to accompany your Anmitsu.



Anmitsu with Fresh Mangoes P138
It is similar to our native halo-halo but with japanese ingredients.

The smell of green tea can really win you over, I can't forget it up to now. The Anmitsu plays with all your senses. It is very colorful, and the taste, heaven...

The amount of the green tea ice cream on top is close to 2 scoops, it almost filled the entire bowl. I have tasted a lot of green tea ice cream, and I found Kozui's version to be the best for now. It is granular but doesn't easily melt in the mouth. My idea of a perfect ice cream. I also love the taste and color of the taro jam, it sort of binded the Anmitsu, taste-wise.

The dessert is not too sweet nevertheless, filling.

Ideally, it's for sharing, but for a dessert lover like me, good for one. And since it is with green tea, I considered it healthy =)


Takoyaki P98

Takoyaki which literally means fried or baked octopus, is a japanese dumpling made of diced octopus, it originated from Osaka, and is derived from YAKU which simply means to bake or grill. It is also known as samurai balls.

Kozui's Takoyaki are pan-grilled tako balls stuffed with chunks of ika, ebi and negi (squid, shrimp and asian leek), topped with their okonomiyaki sauce and sprinkled with fine strips of nori and bonito flakes. The owner Anthony So opted to use squid, which is not as tough but as chewy as an octopus.

Their version is different from the others as their's are pan-grilled. It has a crusty exterior but is soft and chewy inside. The sauce on top has a smoky/BBQ flavor and aroma to it.




Matcha Butterscotch korichio P138 (Grande)

Matcha or ground green tea ice-blended and flavored with butterscotch, milk and whipped cream.

They said that when you drink this tea (matcha), you also consume the leaves. And it is for this reason that ground tea contains higher concentration of catechins and vitamins.

This is Kozui's version of Starbuck's Green Tea Frappuccino only better. The butterscotch in it added flavor but not sweetness, making this drink not cloyingly sweet. And the taste of the ground green tea as with their ice cream is very eminent.

If you're a starbuck's green tea frap fan as I am, you'll definitely love this one.

***They also sell their green tea ice cream by the cup or cone at only P60.



Happy Eating!

Ice cream,Gelato and More...

Feeling festive due to the holidays and also being an avid dessert lover, I bought 3 different kinds from Rustan's Supermarket to eat at home. Two of which were my all-time favorites and the other one, a new favorite.

Ciao Bella's Hazelnut Gelato, Ben and Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough and NSA (no-sugar added) Pistachio from BTIC.

***Gelato is an italian style ice cream. Ciao Bella's Hazelnut Gelato is based on a family recipe from Torino, Italy. It is primarily hand-made in small batches with high quality ingredients. As a result, the gelato is smoother & creamier in consistency, with a dense texture and an intense flavor.

"Even super-premium ice cream brands taste diluted when held up against the true rich creaminess of Ciao Bella, whose flavors are deep and based on the finest ingredients." An excerpt from a New York Restaurant Review by Steven A. Shaw.

Personally, I like Amici's Hazelnut Gelato over this. Amici's has a grainy texture while Ciao Bella's creamy and dense. I like a little bit of crunch in my food. Overall, it is good than other ice cream brands, and it tastes like Nutella.

***Ben and Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough is made of vanilla ice cream with gobs of chocolate chip cookie dough.

It is a very rich & dense ice cream with lots of chocolate chip cookie bits. The cookie bits adds tartness thus breaking the creaminess of the ice cream.

***BTIC's NSA Pistachio tastes good and is also good for you.

It is not an ice cream but a frozen yogurt dessert, rich in Calcium, Protein, Vits A & C and there's no sugar added to it. It also has active friendly bacteria cultures which helps the digestive system change most of the lactose in milk into simple sugar easily absorbed by the body. An added bonus, it's 99% fat-free, made of fresh milk, corn sugar, and active yogurt cultures sweetened with the Nutra Sweet brand Aspartame (an artificial sugar substitute). It has a prominent pistachio taste and bits, with just the right sweetness and creaminess.

From the taste of it, it's hard to believe that it's fat-free, NSA (no-sugar added) and a frozen yogurt.


Happy Eating!

Sucree's Virginity

Sucree's Virginity Cake P90

A 2-layered, vanilla-infused sponge cake with occasional bits of macadamia praline, spreaded by a thin layer of dulce de leche cream and generous amounts of white icing, finishing it off are sprinkles of almond slivers.

Personally, it's too light for me. It would be better if the dulce de leche cream is of the same amount as the white icing. It's too light(dulce de leche), you sometimes can't even taste it.


Happy Eating!

Me, got talent (in the kitchen, that is)?

Last Christmas I decided to practice my baking skills (if there's any) and baked Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars. I gave it as added christmas gifts to my family. And based on their smiling faces and stuffed tummies, I think they liked it.



the cookie bars, square version

round version

It is a cross between a chocolate chip cookie and a brownie bar. It is made up of 2 layers, the bottom is the brownie part and the top is the cookie part. It has a crusty exterior with a soft &fudgy inside.



This one is a recipe of my sister, Roasted Chicken with Potatoes and Corn Gravy.



Juicy roasted chicken with crispy skins and herb-roasted potatoes on the side. Enhancing its' flavor are the corn gravy. You can taste the creaminess of the corn complementing the saltiness and spicyness of the chicken juice.

Truly a winner recipe, easy to do, and will absolutely delight anyone. Proof: It was polished off easily on our dining table and I was given endless compliments by my family =)


Happy Eating!

Hotshot's Kamikaze Burger

Kamikaze Burger P125

According to a survey by a food blogging site, it is one of the best burgers in the Philippines, together with Chili's, Brothers Burger, Top of the Citi, Kublai's, etc.

Quarter pounder patty with lettuce, tomatoes & onions on a sesame bun with cheese sauce and wasabi cream. An order comes with a small serving of potato chips.

It's soooo hot, it cleared my sinus. Not for the faint-hearted or else you'll need a glass of milk with you to counter the spicyness of the sauce.

The potato chips are freshly made and not just from a package. You can definitely taste & smell that of a real potato.


Happy Eating!

Kozui

What I can't stop raving for days now is this, Kozui's Anmitsu.

I saw it first at a segment at US girls, followed by a lot of blog features. So after taking-out a slice of cake at Fleur de Lys, I visited the resto at Tomas Morato, near Baang Coffee.

Kozui puts a new spin on green tea. They have an extensive tea menu in hot or cold. They also sell green tea loose leaves in a variety of selections. Green tea paraphernalia and other merchandise are also for sale.

For dessert, the bestseller is the Anmitsu, and for japanese eats, the Takoyaki. Other must-try are the Karaage Chicken Vegetable Wrap P148 (grilled pita bread with japanese breaded chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, onions & a dollop of black sesame dressing), Mount Fuji Green Chocolate P105 (a pyramid-shaped brownie with creamy green tea on top & a burst of chocolate at its peak) and Green Tea-ramizu P95 (a spin on the italian dessert tiramisu).

But the star of my nightly dreams is the Anmitsu. Anmitsu is a japanese dessert that has been popular for many decades now. It is made of sweet azuki bean paste or anko ( the an in anmitsu) and sweet black syrup or mitsu (the mitsu part in anmitsu). In Japan, it is usually eaten with a spoon and fork.

Kozui's Anmitsu P138 on the other hand, is made of shaved ice topped with green tea jelly, dango balls ( made from rice flour), fruits flavoured with mitsu syrup, sweet azuki beans (red bean), taro (gabi in the phils) jam & Kozui's rich green tea ice cream. You have choices of strawberry preserves, fresh mangoes, taro or fresh melons to accompany your Anmitsu.



Anmitsu with Fresh Mangoes P138

It is similar to our native halo-halo but with japanese ingredients.

The smell of green tea can really win you over, I can't forget it up to now. The Anmitsu plays with all your senses. It is very colorful, and the taste, heaven...

The amount of the green tea ice cream on top is close to 2 scoops, it almost filled the entire bowl. I have tasted a lot of green tea ice cream, and I found Kozui's version to be the best for now. It is granular but doesn't easily melt in the mouth. My idea of a perfect ice cream. I also love the taste and color of the taro jam, it sort of binded the Anmitsu, taste-wise.

The dessert is not too sweet nevertheless, filling.

Ideally, it's for sharing, but for a dessert lover like me, good for one. And since it is with green tea, I considered it healthy =)


Happy Eating!

Abe - Serendra

For my post birthday celebration we're supposed to eat at Chelsea in Serendra, unfortunately, they had their last call for the lunch set and will only serve merienda/snacks like pasta, pizza and sandwiches.

With the kind of appetite my family have plus the fact that we're extremely hungry 'coz it's waaay past lunch, snacks like that won't do.

We scouted the other restaurants at Serendra, most of which were closed, because it's January 1.

We settled at Abe, where Amy Austria & Family ( who also tried their luck for lunch at Chelsea) and others who were as disappointed as us, had their very late lunch.

Abe (ah-beh), capampangan word for friend, companion and getting together. Also the nickname of Emilio Aguilar, writer, editor, painter, connoisseur, bon vivant & legendary eater outer of Pampanga. It also means good "Filipino" food. Lastly, it is Larry Cruz' (LJC Group's founder & president) tribute to his dad, Abe.




Here were our orders:



Lumpiang Ubod P65

Spring roll of fresh heart of palm, served fried or natural (we chose natural).
The lumpia is good but a little bit salty, the peanut sauce is good also.


Mungo Bean Soup P85

A hearty green bean bisque topped with fish tinapa flakes & chicharon.
This dish is loved by everyone in my family. There's nothing wrong or bad in this dish except for the serving size. A serving is only good for one.


Lamb Adobo P305

A favorite Filipino dish made better with lamb.
It is fall-off-the-bone tender, a rich and flavorful dish, also high in fat and calories =)


Binukadkad na PLa Pla P275

A Bistro Remedios original. Overgrown tilapia butterflied & fried to delightful crispiness, served with balo balo relish and mustasa leaves.
This is also good, fried just right, crispy and not oily.


My Mother's Rellenong Mais P175

It's the first time we came across this kind of dish, never thought that it can be had as a meal and not as snack or dessert.
The dish is good and savory.


Spicy Sisig Pampanga P155
Minced pork jowl and chicken livers sauteed in garlic, spices and chilies.

It's the first time after a long time that I liked a sisig dish. I avoided eating it for quite a while. But Abe's version made me like it again.
Contrary to its' description and from what I remembered, it is not spicy, it is sweet and not oily, it doesn't even need additional seasonings like worcestershire, knorr, calamansi, etc, that we always put on sisig.


Sinuteng baby Squid P125

Small squid sauteed in olive oil and seasonings.
It is a flavorful dish and also a favorite of my niece (who likes to eat weird food like 1 day old chick, chicken feet and balut). Only gripe, too small serving, also only good for one.

We partnered these dishes with their Bamboo Rice P195 (sorry, no photo, we're extremely hungry and this is the last dish to be served =( ) Mountain rice cooked with shrimps, wood ear mushrooms & bamboo shoots, steamed in a bamboo shell.

Another flavorful dish, good presentation, they cracked open the bamboo shell in front of you and they'll be the one to serve it. An order is good for 3-4 people.

For desserts we ordered Maja Mais, resembles panna cotta/gelatin, not rich but creamy in a way and Turon, wrapped banana with langka, rolled in sugar and fried. The turon is not too sweet but flavorful. A notch higher than regular turon sold in the streets.

Overall, the service is fast and friendly, the ambience is homey, the place is clean, the food is innovative and flavorful, the price is kinda steep, because most of their dishes are good for one, but they do have bottomless rice for only P45. We came out of the resto full and satisfied but with a huge dent in my wallet (or Art's).


Happy Eating!

Apartment 1B

It received a lot of good reviews from the blogging & publishing world as well as the old-rich of Makati and Alabang. It has a homey & cozy ambiance, with couches and wooden chairs of different sizes & styles.

It has dining areas on the ground and mezzanine floors. Clean wash area and two cubicles make-up the restroom.

Socializing with friends, sharing fun stories with your family, having an intimate dinner with your special someone or just cozying up with a good book or magazine are all welcome in the restaurant. There's also no loud music on the background. Just a LCD TV on mute and the voices & laughter of diners having fun.

They're famous for their breakfast menu that they serve from 7am-3pm. With the amount of calories & fat each dish contains, it is but right to eat it for brunch.

the interior of the resto....

Here are my orders, as in MY, 'coz i dined alone.



Eggs Benedict with Canadian Ham & Spinach P320

It consists of 2 halves of a wheat english muffin, with canadian ham, spinach & poached eggs, topped by heavenly drizzle of lemon-caper hollandaise sauce. It comes with a salad and home fries, that you can use to mop up the extra egg yolk or hollandaise with.

The muffins were soft and warm, the spinach is creamy, the canadian ham is sweet with a little bit of saltiness to it, the eggs are poached just right and the hollandaise sauce is creamy & well- seasoned. But what I can't stop raving about is their home fries. I tried ordering an extra serving of it but they're already sold out. So I called in advance the next day for 2 orders of it.That's how addicted to it I am.



Home Fries P60
Creamy cubed potatoes with secret spices and onion slivers. It's the best tasting fries I have ever eaten in my life , so far that is.

And for dessert....



White Toblerone Cheesecake P180

Creamy cheesecake with white Toblerone bits, nestling on top of a slightly crunchy graham crust. It is served with freshly whipped cream & raspberry coulis.
Though, white chocolate is not really a chocolate or from cocoa but from cocoa butter, I still love it.
The presence of the white Toblerone bits on the cheesecake breaks its tangyness. And I agree with what the server of the resto said to me, that even if you don't like cheesecake, you'll like this one. 'Coz I surely did.


Happy Eating!

Aristocrat's Cliffhouse

I never knew that something this special can be found at Aristocrat, aside from their famous Chicken BBQ with Java Rice and Sago't Gulaman, ofcourse. I came to know this from a blog entry at dessertcomesfirst. I was intrigued by its' name and looks and of course, its taste.


Cliffhouse P273

It is a triple decker sandwich with chicken ala king, ham, egg & cheese, coated with bread crumbs and topped with cheese sauce.


an inside view of the sandwich.....

It's a fully-loaded sandwich. Extremely filling. Carbohydrates, protein, fats and dairy galore.
What caught me first, aside from its size, is its aroma, the aroma of freshly-baked pugon pandesal.
While it was on its way to my table, there were endless stares from the other customers. Maybe they're as surprised as I was.
It's worth a try, especially for those who love monte cristo sandwich and the likes, at least once in your life.

***available only in selected branches, particularly in their Roxas Blvd branch


Happy Eating!

Saturday Salcedo Market

I always read about the Saturday Salcedo Market. So I visited it last saturday. It was raining, so I had a hard time enjoying the goodies on sale in one go. I roamed it thrice, and put in memory those that I would buy and came back for it. They sell a lot of organic produce, cooked and raw food, spices, breads, dips, sauces, sweets and pastries.
Tita Cely with her laing, bicol express, etc was there. A french man selling french food, different kinds of pizzas, pastas and sweets, another french selling crepes for P35, raw wagyu beef and australian beef by Viger Trading, Connie's with her great tasting Spinach and Artichoke Dip, Gng. Bukid with the Best Maja Blanca (according to Heny Sison and the Phil Daily Inquirer), and a whole lot more.
There's a lot of free taste on sausages, dips and sweets too.

Here are what I bought:

Bud-bud Kabog (plain) P25




It is a Visayan suman made from millet (not the bird seed variety). sold by Maribel Van Hoven of Alabang, from a family recipe.
Once you unwrapped the leaves, you will be treated to a fragrant, delicious kabog, that seems to melt in your mouth. It's a different kind of suman, one that you'll definitely get addicted to.


Chinese Lumpia P40

an inside look.........
It reminded me of the Lettuce wrap of CPK. Soft wrapper with lots of fillings partnered with a sweet, peanutty sauce.
And lastly from Delimondo, a food firm by Katrina Enrile of the Jaka Group, the creations of the infamous, Chef Ed Quimson.

Ranch-Style Corned Beef P100
Premium in taste, not oily and chunky like other corned beef. And also less fat. Better than our local and that of imported corned beef.

Chili and Garlic Sausage P100
Great garlicky taste with a kick of chili. Best in pasta & pizza, with bread or on its own.

Happy Eating!