Frozen yogurt: CaliforniaBerry

I could really eat a truckload of frozen yogurt right about now. Seriously. I have been drinking maybe at least 3 liters of water a day and for the past week, I cannot seem to stay outdoors (by outdoors I mean outside of my air-conditioned room) and I have been feeling sick lately; headaches, stomach aches.

The extremely, super burning weather is killing me.

I wish I live somewhere where I just have to walk a block or just cross a street and voila, convenient stores and better yet... a mall. That would help me get my errands done: grocery shopping, paying the bills (Meralco, PLDT, Maynilad, Globe), go to the bank, and eat frozen yogurt.

Here's one from California Berry at Silver City in Ortigas.

CaliforniaBerry: Blueberry-flavored frozen yogurt

If you have been reading this blog, you would probably say that I am a sucker for frozen yogurts. True. This is not the first time I have posted about this. It was however my first time to try out their blueberry-flavored yogurt and it was GOOOOOOOOD! I wish I could've ordered the larger one but I was in a hurry because I was literally the last customer and the girl was already closing up, hence a small order and a blurry photo.

I probably tasted most of the frozen yogurts in the city but I have yet to try one at Tagaytay and those two at Shangri-La Plaza. If you know of any place which sells frozen yogurt other than Red Mango, White Hat, FroYo, Lulu Belle, California Berry and the one I forgot the name at Tagaytay besides Buon Giorno, please let me know and I will be very happy to try them out!

CaliforniaBerry's price range is P85++ depending on your size and topping/s of you choice. Visit them at Silver City (in front of Cafe Mondial), Paseo Center, Philippine Stock Exchange Building and Madison Square in Greenhills.

Japanese food: Sumo Sam

Summer season is almost over but the summer heat doesn't seem to want to go just yet and as most of us know, summer is equivalent to the beach. Yes, summer season + summer heat = THE BEACH and going to the beach means sporting a perfectly (or almost perfectly) fit body (e.g. flat tummy). 

And because of that reason, I am trying my hardest to stir away from eating too much food for every meal. Not that I had any luck with that for the past days but I am able to reduce unnecessary junk food eating and less carbs, though I still eat until I feel stuffed to move.

Such a thing happened when I had lunch with friends at Sumo Sam, I suggested that we just share foods instead of ordering separately since the servings in Sumo Sam was big enough to share but we ended up ordering A LOT of food to share, here's my share:

Bacon wrapped dory

Dynamite maki

I have always loved Japanese food and since Sumo Sam was built, I believe I get most of my Japanese fix there. I wouldn't say the place is cheap but it's not too expensive either, it's more on the reasonably priced side of restaurants and totally worth it. If you're going on a date with your boyfriend or girlfriend or with your friends, a budget of at least P300-P500 is good enough (to share, 3-5 pax). I admit, in times like this, spending P500 each on food can be frustrating but believe me when I say that your P500 can go a long, long way in your stomach. It's healthy, mouth-watering and worth the price. Besides, consider it a treat for yourself.  

By the way, you can also try their Spicy Tuna Salad, Teppanyaki, Agedashi Tofu, Happy Birthday Noodles and their Bottomless Iced Tea (especially the Green Iced Tea).

Sumo Sam has branches in Shangri-La Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong and Powerplant Mall in Makati.

Edsa Shangri-La Cafe

Not to be confused with the hotel's Coffee Shop (HEAT) or The Baksehop, the Cafe is located along the Garden Entrance beside Fully Booked, facing the Shangri-La Plaza Mall.

Iced Tea and Banana Bread

Because it's still burning hot here in Manila, I am still all about refreshments and I give you my word for their banana bread and iced tea. 

Price for both is less than P200 ($5): P90 for the iced tea and P50 for the banana bread.

Ya Kun Kaya Toast.

I know it is too hot to go out and have hot tea or coffee even when we are actually craving for the caffeine. We'd rather have fruit shakes, milk shakes, iced cold juices, ice cream but hey, there's now such thing as iced tea and iced coffee, right?

Ya Kun Kaya Toast: Hot tea and French Kaya toast

If you happen to be along Ortigas-Shaw area, you can drop by at Kaya Toast along Escriva Drive, near Astoria Plaza and Antonio Hairdressing. I promise you, their coffee and tea ROCKS! There is something added to their ingredients, something that made it taste gourmet unlike Starbucks and other commercialized coffee shops (not that I don't enjoy them too). 

I had their tea and toast after our Korean dinner, it was too delish to be only P105-125 for both! Ooh, I didn't mention it is not as expensive as other coffee shops too? Well, it isn't. So, if you are looking for a new taste in your coffee and tea drop by Ya Kun Kaya Toast.

p.s.

THEY HAVE FREE WIFI! I know, right!? :)

White Hat Italian Strawberry.

If anyone of you is from Manila, you would understand how it feels to need ice cream, a cold shower every hour, a 24/7 air-conditioning, anything iced cold to drink, and any place to go to that's way cooler than your homes. That is how sweltering the weather is in the Metro.

My way to beat it: 

 

A Large Tub of Italian Strawberry White Hat frozen yogurt.

I'm stirring away from ice cream that's why for a cold dessert, I go for frozen yogurt. It was my first time to try the flavored one because I always get the plain one and either have it as is or just add toppings with it like fruits or cereals but since I was feeling adventurous that day, I tried the flavored one for the first time and honestly loved it!

There is not much difference with the price, the large plain one is something around P115 (without toppings) and italian strawberry flavored one is P120. Not bad. Not bad at all.

They have branches at the Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Alabang Town Center, and Mall of Asia. You can also visit their website, The White Hat Philippines, for more details.

Korean Food for Dinner

Ever since I was introduced to Korean food, I just can't seem to get enough of it. There was even a time when I was craving so much for Rabokki (stir fried noodles and rice cake) that I wanted to go out and go to that Korean place where my friends and I eat 15-20 minutes away, order, have it to go and eat at home while doing some work. I fought the urge. This was about 1 week and 2 days ago. But my sis and I had Korean for dinner 4 days after that craving and needless to say, I had delighted taste buds and full stomach after.  

Korean Dinner: Kimbab, Robbuki, Kimchi, and I don't know what those other 3 bowls have.

Robbuki

A very spicy stir fried noodles and rice cake with vegetables and egg and I believe it also has fish cake. This food is very addicting especially if you are into anything spicy. Robukki should be eaten while it's hot because somehow, it just doesn't taste as good and as spicy anymore.

 Kimbab

Kimbab is like a Korean version of the Japanese Maki minus the wasabi in the dip. If you like Maki, then you will also enjoy Kimbab.

My friends and I notice how Korean food are mostly that of vegetables, no meat whatsoever and their foods are cooked boiled, broiled, steamed and almost never use cooking oil so we always say: "This is healthy...". If we say that because it's true or just to calm our guilty conscience for being too stuffed, we are not sure. ;)

I will promote the Korean place we eat at but it's Korean and I don't know the name. I can give you some details though, it's located in Escriva Drive in Ortigas, in between Astoria Plaza and Millenia, it's just beside Mini Stop. You'll find it because you will see the outside with Korean writings and you just have to go inside, open the door in front of the Korean "grocery store", and you're there. No worries about the price because for the meal above we paid P140 (less than $3.50) each and the "appetizers" in the 4 bowls are for free and refillable. Totally cheap but the food tastes like gold. Or something like that. :)

Let me know if you have any suggestions!

C2: Classic Cuisine

Maybe at this point you guys have an idea on how much I love food and how much I enjoy eating (just please don't let me cook), I'm so thankful I have friends who share the same "passion" for food and a sis (yes you, Apple Alvarez) who loves trying out new food and restaurants with me.

This entry is not for a newly tried restaurant, in fact I have eaten lunch and dinner here a lot of times so my sis and I were surprised to find out that C2 offers a "merienda all you can" from 2pm to 6pm Mondays to Sundays for only P150 for 3 treats and P190 for all 7 foods under the merienda menu. Not bad, right?

So even after only finishing with lunch an hour earlier, my friend and I decided to eat merienda (afternoon snack) before our movie starts at 4:50pm. It was only 2:30pm.

Oh, I forgot to mention this is only until May 31, 2010. So don't forget to drop by before then. You will have a "feast" of Filipino merienda for a very cheap price. One order already cost P150+ and with Meriendathon, that P150 can have you 3 foods UNLIMITED. You can order, order, and order as many as you want.

My Sis': Guinataang Halo-halo, Pancit Malabon and Tokwa't Baboy.

Mine: Bam-I, Goto and Suman with Langka dip

I only tried the pancit malabon and the tokwa't baboy and they were good except for the pancit malabon, which was a little salty for my taste so was my Bam-I but the rest was good. I personally loved the Suman with langka dip and had about 3 orders of it.

We were not sure if we can share but we did a few times, besides there was no sign saying it wasn't allowed. ;)

I know some blogging friends of mine would love to try this one.

Please visit C2: Classic Cuisine in Shangri-La Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong City, Powerplant Mall in Makati City and Robinson's Place in Manila.

Buon Giorno!

It was my second time to eat at Buon Giorno in Tagaytay, my first Buon Giorno experience was around April last year and I loved it!

The pasta I had, the green tea, the bread, the ambiance, I loved everything.

So last (Good) Friday, after having visited 2 churches, my friend and I decided to grab some late lunch before continuing with our church visits in Tagaytay City and we chose to have lunch at Buon Giorno just for the salad.

Buon Giorno Special Salad

Then our salad order didn't look enough so we ordered a shrimp and clam pasta and had it split into two.

I forgot the name. Something like "Spaghetti...." Okay, just order for D7. That's it.

As usual, I was more than satisfied with the the salad, pasta and iced tea that I've had and my friend and I also split the bill and paid around P250-P300 each. That's cheap enough for us given that the food tasted great and we were in Tagaytay so the ambiance was cool, cold and beautiful.

For Buon Giorno experience, you can visit them in Cliffhouse Tagaytay and in Liberty Center (Puregold) Shaw Blvd. Mandaluyong City.

Mongkok

This is how we (my friends, particularly Apple, Abs and Zano, and I) always end up eating at Mongkok:

F1: Saan niyo gusto kumain? (Where do you want to eat?)
F2: Kahit saan, hindi pa nama ako masyadong gutom. (Anywhere, I'm not that hungry anyway.)
F3: Ako din, gusto ko light lang tsaka pwede sa mura lang? (Me too, I just want something light to eat and can we eat at a less-expensive place?)
F1: So, saan yung mura, hindi masyadong mabigat at masarap? (So, where can we eat a "light", less expensive and delicious meal?"

*long pause*

F1, F2, F3: MONGKOK?!

Salt and Pepper Squid, Sweet and Sour Fish and Yang Chow Rice

I guess, based on how we always think of Mongkok, I can say that it is worthy of satisfying your hunger, craving for Chinese food and not robbing your wallet of too high of a bill. The above meal was only for my friend, Apple, and I last (Holy) Tuesday hence the seafood and it only cost us less than P300 ($7) each! We had the rest wrapped for take out because we are already too stuffed to even stand up. No exaggeration! :)

We always order for the squid, the sweet and sour pork or fish, some dumplings and lemon chicken but since there were only 2 of us and we're on "diet" we ordered for less ;)

Give Mongkok a visit if you are in Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Powerplant Mall, Robinson's Galleria, Greenhills Theater Mall, SM Southmall.

Taco Bell.

After being boring for the past month, I did something spontaneous like going out after planning about it only the night before. Yes, I was that boring and bored. I treated myself with some shopping with my friend, Anna, and then went for a late lunch at Taco Bell.

Beef and Cheese Quesadilla Combo

I had the Beef and Cheese Quesadilla Combo (with Nachos and 16oz. drink). So cheesy and beefy and I don't know if I'm just too hungry or it really tasted so good. I haven't had Taco Bell for almost a year now and I was really craving for it last Tuesday. Too delicious and so worth the price knowing that it is an American franchise and all. The food and my appetite made it worth it.

What's your favorite Taco Bell?

Charlie's Grind & Grill.

I love trying out new places to eat especially when those places have very good feedback from my friends.

Charlie's is one of those places who made quite an impression with friends who also love to eat out. Charlie's is not a classy, high-end place but it's classy on it's own. What being situated right beside a carwash station, it has clean and air-conditioned area. Clean tables, purified drinking water (which you get on your own), two flat screen cabled televisions, an extremely cold air-conditioner and the very delicious food.


Okay, I have only tried 3 foods out of the many they have on their menu but those 3 are so yummy it makes me want to eat them for a week. Chili cheese fries, Black angus burger and buffalo wing (not in the pictures). Yum. Yum. Yum.

Please, please try out Charlie's located in Kapitolyo, Pasig City if you are looking for mouth-watering burgers, gigantic tasty fries and a lot lot more. Budget will be around P200-P350 for a complete meal (food+drinks), this might be pricey for some but believe me the serving is big for Filipino customers.

Golden Spoon.

In a super hot season like what we have here in Manila, a very cool, cold and yummy treat would definitely help in more ways than one. If you're a local, you know what I'm talking about; ice cream, halo-halo, iced candies, iced fruit juices, anything "iced cold" we would grab and chew/drink just to feel not-so-hot anymore. If you're a foreigner in a much cooler place than where we are, you're lucky. :)

Here's what I have been thinking of since last night. Golden Spoon frozen yogurt is different from all the other frozen yogurts that I have tried (and I have tried a lot!). Although it's not one of my favorites in the category, I think it's pretty delicious if you're craving for something sweet but low-fat or non-fat. Of course for a frozen yogurt treat, I'd still go for White Hat but last night I was craving for something sweet but guilt-free and of course... COLD.

2 small Boysenberries: the left one is mine w/ small mallows and yogurt chips and the right one is my nephew's w/ buttered pecan and granola

My nephew introduced this to me a few weeks ago, it was yummy but I was thinking of White Hat yogurt that day so I didn't really enjoy it much. Plus it was TOO expensive for me. I didn't even bother looking at the price (my nephew paid for our yogurt) of each, I just saw the total amounting to about P500 ($10-$12) which means each cost approximately P250. That's crazy. Frozen yogurts usually only cost P80-P150 including toppings. I guess I'll go for this one if I have money to spare because in all fairness, it's cheaper than a Haagen-Dazs and it tastes yum yum yum!

If you are in the Philippines, I only know of one branch and that is in Shangri-La Mall. If you're abroad, you can find Golden Spoon in Japan and in the USA (California, Arizona, Nevada and Utah).

Give it a try and let me know!

Choriburger @ The Powerplant Mall.

A day before Valentine's day, I went out to watch a movie by myself as my planned date with 2 of my girlfriends got cancelled just last night leaving me with a very conditioned mind to go out on a Saturday to watch a movie and grab a choriburger at the tent. After my movie, I headed straight out to the tent for my choriburger craving, had it to go, hailed a cab and went home.

I was thinking of having at least 30 minutes of walk inside the mall but no can do. I cannot stand all the couples and families watching movies, eating, walking together while I am by my lonesome self.

Forget that. That's for my personal blog.

We're here for the food and that food for today is Boracay's famous Choriburger being served at the Powerplant Tent.

The poster

The actual food

Can I just apologize for my photo? I am really saving up for the G10/G11 camera (and this is a call for shameless begging, any amount is greatly appreciated--just click on the donate button at the upper part of my blog). Anyway, I don't know if it's just me but I didn't quite enjoy it. For 70 pesos it was decent enough but not like how the choriburger tastes in Boracay.

I texted my friend and her conclusion was maybe because the choriburger here is too "clean". I joked that maybe it lacked the "beach water and sand" in Boracay that's why it tastes different. Haha!

If you want to grab yourself one, drop by at the Powerplant Tent, the choriburger is just outside the entrance. It's for 70 pesos. They also have bottled drinks, tables and chairs while waiting. Oh, this is only for this weekend February 13-14.

Pepper Lunch: Beef Teriyaki

Since this new addition to the Pepper Lunch menu has been introduced, I have been dying to give it a try because 1.) I LOVE PEPPER LUNCH and 2.) I LOVE BEEF TERIYAKI and knowing I love each individually it would be logical to say that I MIGHT love both combined.

I DID! I DO!

I had this for lunch about two days before Christmas, I enjoyed every spoonful that I put into my mouth. PLUS, this is the meal that gave me my FREE PEPPER MEAL the next month.

Beef Terriyaki

I got a free pepper meal just by doing what I always do when I eat there... sign the comment card. :) I think I have mentioned about this here or in my other blog but anyway, back to Beef Teriyaki... The terriyaki sauce is separated from the beef, there's still the sizzling plate with the beef slices and sunny side up egg and a separate bowl for the rice. It costs a little less than P400 ($6-$8) and is deliciously worth it! Or am I just being biased because I love PL? Anyway, I am so happy that I get to introduce this establishment to a lot of people already... my cousins, my friends and even fellow bloggers who have read about Pepper Lunch on my blogs. As far as I know, you guys love it too!

As part of my new year's resolution, I promise to give other PL food a try (other than my usual orders of Beef Pepper Rice, Curry Beef Rice, and Beef Terriyaki). Yes, I prefer beef.

Any suggestions? :)

Kimchi.

Korean food are becoming more and more popular these days and not only here in the Philippines but also in the US and other countries too. But even though a lot of Korean restaurants are popping out in almost every corner, I haven't had a single taste of any Korean dish except for a Kimchi flavored potato chips (which by the way taste good) until my friends and I ate had one at a Chinese restaurant, Kopi Tiam. This was supposed to be an entry about Kopi Tiam's food but I figured, I have 300+ days to talk about Chinese food here anyway and besides, this was my first time to actually have a taste of Kimchi and I must say it's not bad at all. My friends were like "Wow, you liked it? The first time I tasted it I didn't enjoy the taste.".

Kopi Tiam's Kimchi

I cannot wait to try other Korean food! Any suggestions? :)

Starbucks Drinks.

I love how my friends and I enjoy having coffee (or frapuccino) after a heavy meal together. These are our late night drinks after having dinner:

Coffee Jelly, Toffee Nut Frap, Iced Peppermint Mocha, Toffee Nut Frap, Caramel Affogato and Strawberries and Cream Frap. Toffee Nut and Peppermint are two of the three holiday drinks of Starbucks, oh I did mention these are Starbucks drink, right? ;)

I'll miss having to see these many drinks in one table, hopefully we'll be complete for the 2010 holiday!

What's your favorite Starbucks drink? I heard there's a smoothie in Starbucks in other countries. Hmmm.

Hooray for Crystal Clear!

I received this package a few days before Christmas. The manager, Ms. Grace personally came to deliver it to me. I wasn't even prepared! :) I got a box of bottled Crystal Clear water, a calendar, a holiday card, a notepad and notebook.

Thank you Crystal Clear!!!

Busy Day @ Starbucks.

Happy New Year everyone!!!

I hope you all had a fabulous celebration with your family and friends and totally enjoyed the moment.

As for me, I stayed at home which is fun cos I only cozied up in my pajamas, watched Final Destination 4 and Zombieland with a pitcher of Vodka+Iced Tea and a bag of Lay's. But that's not the photo I'm sharing today.

I realized it's been exactly a month since I posted here and I have a lot of food photos all waiting to be published! Seriously! This photo will show you how busy I have been during the past months, especially December, I had to go to a nearby Starbucks cos my internet connection at home was acting up and I was avoiding spending but then again... I spent P300 for the internet card (yes, wi-fi at Starbucks is NOT free!) and of course I have to eat and since it was only before lunch I had Cinnamon Swirl and Basic Black Iced Tea. I spent P600 ($15) more or less. I used to say busy is not an excuse and it's really not but sometimes being busy drains your strength that most of the time you just need to have some quiet, thinking-free moment after a day of brain exercise.

Nonetheless, I resolve that for 2010 I will stick to a schedule and make time for everything else in between! Cheers for the great year ahead and for more food photos! I'm still saving up for that camera though..... ;)

KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken).

Compared to other fast food chains available here in the Philippines which makes fried chicken their "specialty" or their main food to offer, KFC is my number 1 preference followed by McDonald's and then Jollibee. But of course there's also Max's and Kenny Rogers.

KFC's finger lickin' good slogan is so true to its words.

I have to be conscious about my chicken intake for the week, if I exceed 2 I usually get itchy red rough spots on my arms so before our scheduled KFC dinner after watching New Moon, I stirred away from eating chicken just to be safe. It was worth the starvation from eating anything chicken. ;) It was my first time to try their addition to the menu: Krushers. I had the berries and yogurt or something like that and it was really good! I am actually drooling right now just thinking of it.

I'm stopping now. I haven't had breakfast and lunch yet and it's already 2:30PM. This entry is making me more hungry. Yeah, I now understand why I get comments that this blog of mine makes them hungry or crave for something. Sorry about that! :) But I do hope you enjoy reading my entries.

And if this one made you crave again, visit the nearest KFC store near you! :)

Conti's Mango Bravo.

I always enjoy a good dessert after a hearty meal. And Conti's Mango Bravo cake is one of my favorites to have. After visiting the bookstore with my closest friends last week, we headed to a late afternoon snack slash early dinner in Serendra (literally just a few walks away from High Street where the bookstore is). As usual, we were having a hard time deciding where to eat. Initial choice was just to grab a cup of coffee at Starbucks inside the bookstore but things changed when we suddenly felt a little hungry for just coffee and pastries. We walked and walked and walked until we stopped and said "Okay, where are we going to eat? What do you guys like?" We have no idea what and where to eat so we came up with 3 different choices each and there's three of us. One will choose among the choices given. Conti's won. :) 

If you frequent High Street and Serendra, you might want to try out eating there sometime if you haven't yet. The food is more worth it than the price. They have less than P200 ($2-$3) pasta and it's quite serving. And their pastries... love! That photo above is my favorite... Mango Bravo. It's P105 ($1-$1.50) per slice and something around P550 ($12) for the small whole cake and believe me it's BIG enough for the family. The three of us shared this slice since I was the only one who ordered a dessert because I was smart enough to order a Kiddie-sized Cheesy Baked Mac because I really really have to make room for dessert. My 2 friends ordered individual pastas and they were so full to order individual desserts afterwards. We managed to clean the plate though. ;)

Visit Conti's at Serendra in The Fort and in Greenhills. Or THEIR WEBSITE for a list of their menu, branches and operation time.