Pancake House

I accompanied my mother with her errands one rainy afternoon, and after doing her thing, it was now time for dinner.

I haven't eaten at Pancake House, since forever. Kidding aside, it has been a while.
There were a lot of new dishes in the menu (new for me), and though it was hard to decide, we both settled for something healthy but still look good (in pictures).



I ordered the Salmon Cakes on Brown Rice Tabbouleh, while my mother had the Spicy Chicken Fillet on Brown Rice Pilaf, both below P200.


salmon cakes on brown rice tabbouleh
- with alfalfa sprouts, dill mayo and chopped parsley

The Salmon Cakes tasted more like butter than salmon, although I did see some salmon flakes inside. I do like the dill mayo dip though.


The brown rice tabbouleh was too dry for my taste, but my mother liked it, that I ate her pilaf while she ate my tabbouleh.

While the Spicy Chicken Fillet was really, really really spicy, but dry at the same time.


- with garlic cream mayo, parsley and lemon wedge

I like the pilaf though, I like it more than my brown rice tabbouleh. Probably because it tasted like a paella. But it does cloy you easily, that you'll need part of the tabbouleh to balance it out.

I wasn't impressed with our meals though, and probably won't order them again. The salmon cakes (2 small pieces) and spicy chicken fillet weren't enough for the amount of brown rice in the dish.

Happy Eating!

Greenwich Set Meal

Complete meal for only P99


- chicken with java rice, onion rings and drinks

I changed the onion rings to fries and the drink to a Buco Pandan Cooler for an additional 16 pesos.

I liked everything. It was indeed a complete meal (although not the healthy kind) for someone who likes fries with almost everything. And the cooler drink doubles up as a dessert too.

Happy Eating!

Gonuts Donuts Red Velvet Crumble

Saw a lot of new (for me) and cute donut varieties at Gonuts. Like the Disney Collection with Winnie, Piglet and Mickey. Saw Ube Crumble, Red Velvet Crumble and Blueberry Cake donuts too.




But since I just had my yogurt fix and will be having dinner in just a short while, I just bought one. The Red Velvet Crumble.


original donut with red velvet crumble on top.

Honestly, I'm not that blown over by it, that I just took one bite and that's it. I still like their Pastillas de Leche  more. So did the cashier.

It reminded me of Red Ribbon's Ube Cake and tasted like it too.

Happy Eating!

Sweet Beginnings Dark Chocolate Revel Bar

Didn't taste the dark chocolate and they were too sweet too and were mostly chocolate and just a little of the oatmeal mixture.

Why is it that the only good desserts at Parvati were Dezato's Mochi and Gigi's Custaroons and Poppers? All the others that I have tried were mostly failures.

Happy Eating!

SWEET BEGINNINGS
Parvati
Trinoma Mall, Quezon City

Bread Monster

The first time I tried them at Market Market, I was very impressed, that I can't stop thinking about their S'mores and the chunks of chocolate in it.

So I was very happy when I spotted them again at Trinoma after my autograph signing session with Kim Hyun Joong.



I bought 4 pieces of the S'mores Cookies and 4 pieces of the Dark Chocolate Cookies. Both their best sellers. Their number 1 and 2 top sellers.


-s'mores cookies


- dark chocolate cookies

When I went home I was excited to eat the S'mores but noticed a change in everything. Although the chunks of chocolate were still present, the taste and the chewiness were slightly altered unfavorably, that I just ate the chocolate chunks and discard the rest. Same with the Dark Chocolate. It wasn't chewy, nor moist, but just plain hard and crumbly. The dark chocolate taste wasn't prominent too. Too bad as I was impressed with our first meeting. I don't know if there's just no consistency in their products or if they change their recipes. Whatever it is,  I just hope that they'll bring back the old cookies that I love.

Happy Eating!

BREAD MONSTER

Ground Level, Trinoma Mall

Quezon City

3/F Market! Market!, Fort Bonifacio Global City

Taguig City, Metro Manila

Starbucks Chocolate Rum Cheesecake

New offering from Starbucks together with their breakfast sandwiches and Creme Brulee Macchiato. I was able to try it after my Toast Box Nasi Goreng dinner.



It was a smooth cheesecake with a distinct rum taste, somewhat similar in taste to Shopwise Bakery's Rum Balls.

Happy Eating!

French Baker Brownies and Peach Danish

My usual purchase at French Baker are their Dark Chocolate Cookies, but when they only had one piece of it left, I had to buy something else to bring home for my hibernation. I bought a box of Brownies and a piece of their Peach Danish.




I don't like the crusty top of the brownies but the moist half I do. The peach danish was also good more so if you are a peach lover.

Happy Eating!

Qi Wellness

Since my massage appointment with Shui Hilot Spa didn't push thru (always their fault), I booked another massage, but now with Qi Wellness, also in Makati.

The moment you enter you'll immediately feel and see the difference. Qi's interior was classy and warm, while Shui was dark and almost rundown (now that is, they really need a makeover).  And even before you approach the reception, Qi's host already knows your name. All those times that I made an appointment at Shui, their usual greeting to me was, do you have an appointment, instead of good afternoon ms _ , you have an appointment for today at 1PM. Anna will be your attendant. You'll start your treatment with a foot reflexology and end it with a 60minute massage of either shiatsu, Swedish or mix, like at Qi's.



After checking-in at the reception, I was then escorted to the reflexology room and was given a hot lemongrass drink (my choice). The foot reflexology was good that it made me doze off for a little while. After the foot reflex, I was then transferred to the massage room. I chose the mix massage. Shiatsu is a dry massage, and was mostly stretching, Swedish uses oil, and was mostly kneading. I love how relaxing the mix massage was and also the tender but oftentimes hard hands of the masseuse. After the massage I was given another hot lemongrass drink (my choice again) and a hot towel that I used on  my back and shoulders.


-reflex room


- hot lemongrass drink 


- foot reflex


- massage room


- hot towel and lemongrass drink 

It was a nice first experience at Qi. I even told them I'll be back soon, as in any day now :-)
I only have one problem, their magazines are old, they should invest on newer ones. Although you'll never really read that much, but still.

Qi Wellness Massage + Reflexology

Picasso Boutique Serviced Residences
119 L.P. Leviste St, Salcedo Village
Makati City

Tutti Frutti Green Tea

I saw 2 new yogurt flavors that piqued my curiosity and made me eat yogurt first and postponed dinner for later.

I tried Red Velvet, which tasted like their Death by Chocolate, in short like a frozen Magnolia Chocolait.

Next is the Green Tea which was like their original tart, which I like.

I bought the Green Tea and topped it with Fudge Brownie and Butterscotch Bites. Yum!



Happy Eating!

Savory

I thought we'll be staying in one Sunday afternoon, but my mother wanted to visit my sister, so we did. And for dinner we ate out. The restaurants within the vicinity of my sister's place were limited, that we ate once again at Savory, not that I don't like their food, cos I do.

We had the set 1-A which was good for 4-6 people.

It has Nido Soup with Quail Eggs,


Miki Bihon Binondo,


Sweet and Sour Fish,


Calamares, 


Chopsuey,


Whole Chicken,


and 2 orders of Yang Chow Fried Rice.


Almost everything was good, I just don't like the chicharon bits on the soup and the sweet and sour fish fillet was too sweet. Also the set meal could have been a total package if it also has drinks.

For dessert we had the Coffee and Cream Delight and the Buco Pandan.



The buco pandan was okay. The coffee and cream as per my sister, wasn't.

Happy Eating!

Dunkin Donuts

Before our Savory dinner, my niece told me of a new donut item at Dunkin Donuts, that she ate a couple of days ago. She said that it was too messy to eat but was good. The way she described the Milky Bliss made me want to try it. And I did. I tried it with the Chunky Choconut and the Dark Crunch. And if you buy 3 you'll get an order of Dunkin Yan for free.


- dark crunch


- choconut - was like a donut sandwich with a mocha cream filling
- milky bliss - topped with grated white chocolate


- donut yan


They were all too sweet for me though, and the donut base were dry and chewy. But out of the 4, the Dark Crunch was the good one and also the Donut Yan.

I like the generous chocolate coating on every half of the donut yan sticks and the dark chocolate glaze and chocolate crunch bits on the top of the dark chocolate crunch.

Happy Eating!

C2 Classic Cuisine

After lunch at Sumosam and an hour or so of shopping, we left Powerplant to go to another mall, for what else, but to shop some more.
But we immediately got tired of walking and wanted to just have a snack and rest for a while.

We all wanted to have some sandwiches/wraps and coffee or tea and cakes at Starbucks, but there were no seats available. As we were very tired and can no longer go to another branch of Starbucks a 15-minute ride away, my mother just went inside C2 Classic Cuisine for a snack of pancit malabon and the like, but what started out as a snack, ended into a full-blown dinner.

I didn't like the merienda (snack) offering of C2, that I ordered Inasal Rice, Tortang Alimasag, Seafood Inasal and Buko Pandan Shake instead.

They ran out of bangus belly that they replaced it with tilapia in my Seafood Inasal. The dish was rich and delicious.


The Inasal Rice was also good but was very rich, that pairing it with a rich viand, like seafood inasal, was too much. A buffer of white rice is a must.


The Tortang Alimasag weren't good at all. They were crispy on the edges and hard and rubbery on the rest.
My niece was disappointed as well.. She also ordered one thinking that she could definitely finish an order of  3 crab patties, but after just a couple of bites she stopped eating the alimasag and ordered another dish.


They all loved the Sinigang na Tyan ng Bangus,


and my sister liked her Ginataang Halo-Halo, which I didn't like that much as it doesn't have that much ingredients like bilo-bilo. And the taro taste and color was overpowering. It was like a melted ube ice cream with sweetened bananas and sweet potato.


My sister's boyfriend ordered the Champorado, which he had a hard time finishing, as an order is good for 2-3 people. My sister said that it was better with powdered milk than the milk they offered.


My sister's boyfriend, a certified durian lover, also ordered and liked their Durian Brulee.


The Buko Pandan Shake tasted good but was just overly blitzed. It was not anymore a shake but a juice.


While the Sago't Gulaman was just okay. It seemed to have an added ingredient/flavor than the usual, but we can't pinpoint what.


After all that we ate, we still made room for the Sweet Surrender of the Sweet Life of Ange that my sister bought at the Bakers' Dozen at the Powerplant Mall. It has now melted (the ice cream part), but was still good.


Happy Eating!

C2 CLASSIC CUISINE
Ground Level, Robinsons Place Manila

A. Venue Hotel Suites

My sister gifted my mother with a stay in a Premiere Suite at A.Venue Hotel Suites in Makati. And since it's a room for four, we went with her. It's my mother's birthday too by the way.

A premiere suite has two rooms, two baths, separate living and dining room areas and a kitchenette.

My sister booked thru booking.com, and she got the suite at a cheaper price than if you book directly. It also comes with a buffet breakfast for four, wi-fi internet and free parking.

*** most photos were from booking.com as my pictures didn't turn out well


- hotel facade



- hotel lobby


- elevator area


- living room

- in our room, the kitchenette was on a separate corner and not beside the dining room, and there's an island separating it from the living area

- our room, with just a glimpse of the dining table, and the 2 rooms and one of the baths


- the kitchenette



- complimentary bottled water, tea and coffee making facilities and some snacks from the bar




- the rooms


- the bathroom inside the master bedroom



- pool area



- gym




- azzurro bistro and bar

The buffet breakfast wasn't as extensive as from five star hotels, but the taste was more than satisfactory.

Overall, the room was nice, clean, and has almost everything you'll need for a short stay. Great for staycations. The hotel was also near Glorietta and Powerplant Mall. A plus for those who loves shopping.

Our first night we decided to just stay in and have food delivered. We ordered dinner from Mc Donald's. I ordered a lot for myself. I had spaghetti, chicken with rice, chicken nuggets, cheeseburger, large fries and drinks and a double fudge caramel sundae for dessert. Whew!

But I always have room for Garrett Popcorn Chicago Mix.






I asked my sister to buy me one in a New York Skyline Tin Can.
I like the CheeseCorn more than the CaramelCrisp, but together they were fabulous, that I finished them all in one sitiing :-)

And for midnight snack we had - Cheesecake Etc New York Cheesecake with Blueberry Toppings




- this is pure cream cheese, no extenders of sorts.

The cheesecake was very rich - thick but smooth, with just the right level of sweetness. Even the toppings were not that sweet.

Happy Eating!


A.VENUE HOTEL SUITES
7829 Makati Avenue, Makati City
Tel No: (632) 403-0888
Fax No: (632) 403-0854
Email Add: reservations@antelsuites.com