Good cheers, good health, peace, love and prosperity to all of us! Happy New Year!
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I met my two friends at Eastwood last Saturday. We were supposed to have our dinner before Christmas but all were busy so we postponed it a week after. As always I enjoy going out with them. We had pizza and pasta at Pasto. We went around the tiangge (flea market) where I was able to buy a red blouse with puffed sleeves. It was a good buy actually, fits me well, nice feel of the fabric and below P500 (roughly 12USD).
Pasta is really good at Pasto. More on Pasto in my food feature in coming posts.
Eastwood was jampacked as it was a Saturday night, gimmick night. There was a concert too featuring Regine Velasquez, one of the Philippines' top songbirds. My friends and I were supposed to have dinner at Jack's Loft but my, it was so full. I love the cakes at Jack's Loft. But a lot were still waiting so we have no choice but to transfer to the more laid-back Cafe Adriatico.
Around dinner time my hubby and my daughter came to fetch me. They had dinner with us at Adriatico. My hubby said the Lechon Kangkong tastes great. This dish is quite unsual for me though.
Lechon Kangkong
I was still full from all the pasta so I just had maja blanca. Maja blanca or coconut cake is a popular Filipino delicacy. For this particular order, all I can say is I only had a teaspoonful of it. My friends checked it out but didn't like it too. I was expecting a softer, corn-flavored finish. It's just plain sweet.
Maja Blanca (Coconut Cake)
My daughter is a pasta person too. She got herself a baked macaroni and consumed them all. I tasted it and it's good, it's like home-made. It's rich with sauce and the sweet-sour taste is just about right.
Baked Macaroni
We all had a grand time as we went home at almost 12 midnight. My daughter enjoyed the picture taking with her Titas at the theme area of Eastwood. The area has a really festive mood.
We had coffee and a late snack at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf again (this was our meeting place earlier). We were a little tired already and did not bother to see the fireworks outside. On the way to the parking area, my daughter dropped by Eiko, an accessories store for tweens and surveyed some items.
We had a grand time, who wouldn't? Being with family and friends are always the best. :)
Some restaurants get popular because of word of mouth. One such restaurant is a-Veneto Pizzeria Ristorante. It has its first branch at Visayas Avenue, Quezon City. Most of my officemates living in Katipunan and from UP Diliman frequent the place. They rave about its pizza. The place was very crude so to speak, in fact, the servers are the owners' household members. The restaurant was always jampacked though.
A few weekends ago at Trinoma, my family and I tried a-Veneto for the first time. The interior is simple but comfortable enough. As expected it was full. We have to wait for about ten minutes to have a seat. And maybe another twenty minutes for our food to be served. I must say the restaurant people were very accommodating.
I don't think it's very clear here but if you can, try to guess what actors are on the mural. There's Richard Gere, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, etcetera.
Our quick snack turned to dinner already since the servings are huge for the three of us. The platter alone can make one really full.
The carbonara is not the best but just fine. I guess I'll take another pasta when we go back.
This one is the best, Seafood Pesto. It's very creamy and there were loads of shrimps which I really appreciated since I am a shrimp lover.
Check out other weekenders with their wonderful snapshots. :)
Often times my daughter ask for a delivery during their supposed break time, break time from playing. Last week she asked for a chicken joy and some ice cream since her friend was in the house. I called up Jollibee, surprisingly, they got my order quite fast this time. Anyway, I need to complete the required P165 (around 4USD) so I thought of adding macaroni salad. Look here, too much green. I still prefer Wendy's but there's no Wendy's near our house.
A few minutes before Jollibee delivery arrived, my husband got back with pansit Malabon in tow. She came from my sis-in-law's place and thought of buying a plateful good for five. This is a lot better than the macaroni salad. Had I known he'd buy this I wouldn't have a delivery.
Normally I try to prepare something during weekends - pasta or a new dish I read in Yummy magazine. So the following day we thought of trying out the sundried pesto we bought and prepared some pasta. How was it? Let me just say now I know the sundried tomato from Santi's is a lot tastier than those prepared in bottles.
Curious what weekend snapshots the others posted? Take a peek here. :)
I was in Baguio for two days last week. As expected, I bought Baguio goodies, primarily vegetables. I bought them thinking of cooking chopsuey. I was able to do that but there were still left over broccolis and cauli flowers.
We still have the pansit bato I bought during my trip to Bicol a month ago or so. A pack of Chinese sausage is sitting on the ref which is supposed to be for Yang Chow. But I was not able to prepare Yang Chow because there was no available frozen green peas at SM Supermarket when I dropped by. A great idea from hubby is to make pansit bato for merienda and use all these ingredients. So that's what we had Sunday afternoon. Brilliant!
Pansit bato got its name because of the place where it is sold - Bato, Camarines Sur. I am not really sure what difference these noodles have compared to other noodles sold in the supermarket. The hubby says there is no aftertaste unlike most noodles. It is also very affordable at twenty five pesos per kilo (roughly .56USD).
Pansit is very easy to prepare and very quick. Saute garlic and onion. Put in bits of pork until golden brown. A little water (depends on how many kilos of noodles you have) and then goes the noodles. My husband puts in shrimp puree as he calls it to create a seafood taste. He squeezes the head of the shrimp to get the juice and pour them in the pan. Put in salt according to taste. As soon as the noodles are tender, put in all the other ingredients - patola (sponge gourd), Chinese sausage, shrimp and last, cauli flower.
After the pansit, a little dessert capped the snack time. My favorite ube (yam) jam straight from the City of Pines. Tantamco's is the most salable brand next to Good Shepherd. Its sweetness is just right and the bits of whole yam are easy to chew. I love it!
Check out other Weekend Snapshots entry here. The guidelines are here if you want to join.
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Mood: Geeky. Music: The Sweet Escape, Gwen Stefani
I decided to have a half-day last Friday at the office to have a movie date with my daughter. We had our snack at Five Cows. I enjoyed their aglio olio. The mix of olive oil and garlic are just perfect to my taste. No aftertaste. My daughter had her cookie fudge. It's tall and looks really appetizing. My daughter said it's good. Proof is she consumed it all. I find the smoker's cake cute so I ordered it. It's just a chocolate ice cream with graham crackers as base. Lots of marshmallows on top which look like cigarette butts hence the name of the cake. I guess what is lacking is a creamier ice cream for my not so-ice-creamy taste buds. :)
Work load both at home and at the office test my patience these days. We're in the middle of corporate planning for 2008 and it's my daughter's first trimester examinations. I take a leave at the office whenever she has scheduled major exams, to guide her on three subjects which require a great deal of time to review - Math, Science and Sibika (Araling Panlipunan). I get stressed when I feel my daughter is starting to get stressed studying all these. But I try my best to hide what I am feeling. The reason why I am just a room or a few feet away from her while she is studying is to give her moral support. A stressed out mother is not what she needs. I let her rest, I comfort her, I motivate her. So how am I?
I can feel tell tale signs of being stressed. It's a roller coaster ride actually. I try to control them. I give in, I rant though I murmur things only to myself just to release my anxieties at least for the moment. And then I try my best to compose myself again. Think positive thoughts after releasing toxic thoughts.
What is that song which tells us to think of our favorite things and then we don't feel so bad? Let me think chocolates then! Chocolate cakes specifically. They are just so appetizing. Even a simple presentation makes me salivate so I try them - a cake with thick chocolate icing no matter how plain the presentation is wet my appetite. But what's ironic is I cannot even consume a regular slice of cake. But I love tasting them and looking at them. They look so delicious. I have to say there are some chocolate cakes which looks so promising but I was disappointed upon having a bite.
A few months ago, my husband mentioned a cake house and a dining place he watched on television. He said I will definitely want to try it from the name alone. The cake shop is called In Love with Sweets (and their sister restaurant which serve full meals is called Salt and Pepper which I will post about one of these days). It's located in Rufino St., Makati City. The cake above served as our dessert. It's huge. We were not able to finish it off. It tastes fine but nothing to rave about. I guess what is lacking is the soft and tender chiffon one should experience at the first bite. Since it's been months, I forgot the name and the price. I am not good in names really.
This one I can definitely recommend to someone who loves chocolate cakes. It's decadent chocolate which is my favorite among all chocolate cakes. It's always a treat for me and my daughter to go to Fully Booked at The Block (SM North Edsa) because after happily indulging ourselves on our latest book finds, we have our dessert at the bookstore's restaurant, Press Cafe. It's small, almost bare but it's clean and it's very convenient for their customers. It's a great time for me and my daughter to talk about the books we bought while relaxing our feet and share our chocolate cake and pasta.
I dropped by Trinoma today at lunch time before heading home with one thing on mind. I know it would be a challenging study time for me and my daughter. I have to have something that will help lighten my daughter's mood while in the middle of reviewing.
I have to bring her some cheese rolls from Mary Grace. And since I am there already, I bought their famous brownies and why not try their chocolate cake? I bought a slice for myself. I am the only chocolate person in the family if I may say that. The cheese rolls made my daughter's day. I have to say the chocolate cake is good too with its thick caramel filling. But the best is still the brownies.
The whole afternoon and evening were spent reviewing, and in between - taking a rest, dipping our fingers on the icing and the cheese. These things helped lighten our day. So maybe I will always try to make it simple and subscribe to the idea that "Chemically speaking, chocolate is really the world's perfect food"***.
Weekends and holidays are bonding moments for our family. Normally, these are most anticipated times since we are together from the time we wake up till the end of day. I treasure moments like these. It used to be that I still have my own agenda for the weekend but spending more time with my daughter has never given me so much joy. I set aside myself on days that my daughter and I can bond more and enjoy each others' quirks and idiosyncrasies :)
We were apprehensive to go out yesterday because the weather is unpredictable. You wouldn't know if the sun is going to shine already or the rain will cause another flash flood. Flash flood equals heavy traffic. That's what we are avoiding. But then my toe nails are begging for a polish and my daughter needs a trim on her bangs. So late afternoon we headed to our salon which is only a few minutes drive from our home. Vanity ruled.
Trust my daughter to know what she wants with her hair. She wants the sides layered. But she had the same style already a few months back. We agreed to keep her hair straight and just manage the bangs so she will always look fresh, her eyes not covered with bangs. The compromise was set and we were both happy with the result. Just trim the bangs and half an inch of the tips of the hair. I had my own haircut too, an impromptu one since the pedicurist is not yet available. I had it shortened for easier managing. I was glad too with the result. Now mother and daughter are sporting bangs. :)
It's not only with the haircut that my daughter gives her opinion on. Even with the color of my pedicure. It has to suit my age, in her own words, "should be hip for you". So as we pick each bottle, we would say "hip" and "un-hip" if we find the color too boring or too loud. We set aside all the "hip" and from there we agreed on a soft red. I forgot what it's called but it's a cross between mild red and soft pink. Looking at my toe nails now, they are like strawberry-coated candies. I was duped by my daughter! Haha.
After the salon, we went to the mall and had dinner at Gumbo, dine New Orleans style. It's my first time to dine at their The Block, SM City North Edsa branch. I know that there is also a branch at Mall of Asia and it's also from the same company of Burgoo and Sbarro (somebody correct me if I'm mistaken here).
A few things I know about New Orleans - hurricane Katrina devastated the city about two years ago on August. The people love jazz. I remember my book, Bridges of Madison Country where a jazz singer from New Orleans was featured in the story. And this I learned from Bubba Gump, this is where cajuns and creoles originated - a combination of seafood, pork and rice - pungent and peppery.
The restaurant is medium sized but could use more room for moving around since its customers mostly come in large groups as I observed it. I love their circular booth seats. They are very comfortable. There are a lot of books and photo frames which serves as the restaurant's displays. Some tables have labels of street names, from New Orleans I bet.
The food servers and the managers are very attentive. And very much alive. That's how a team should be. Kudos to their training group and their recruitment for hiring pleasant looking people who can deliver good service and has good customer rapport. I love their hats too. They are very fancy, something you see with the food servers of T.G.I.F. Like Bubba Gump, Chilli's and the like, they sing a "happy birthday" song to any guest celebrating his or her birthday. They let the celebrator wear the fancy headdress while they sing away. Superb performance! I did not see but I bet there is a free dessert.
Now the food, they offer bread and olive oil with garlic while you are waiting for your order. It's a good appetizer. We had iced tea and chocolate chip milkshake which according to my daughter tastes good. She had it up to the last drop. We ordered cheezy hotdog sandwich with french fries on the side. Huge.
Their seafood jambalaya is a treat also. There is a choice of original (which is spicy) or mild only. I took the latter since I don't go for too much spice on food. The garlic and shrimp aglio olio can do with some more salt. It was really bland when served to us we have to ask for salt. Everything else is good, like what we told with the food server who approached us and asked how the food is, except for the pasta.
It's a novelty also to hear the kitchen crew's chant before serving jambalaya and gumbo, "Ah, Jambalaya!" or "Gumbo!". I got a little startled when I first heard them but I was amused, and the other customers too, with their energy and hustle movement. The team is having fun and that is great because the customers can feel we are all having a good time.
Therefore the conclusion is Gumbo is worth another trip and another. :)
And it's worthy to say that a full day spent with my daughter - whether at the salon, the mall, the restaurant, or just being at home - whether we argue, we agree, we goof around - is what I love doing the most.
Lechon Kangkong
Maja Blanca (Coconut Cake)
