Midnight Mercato Now Open On Wednesday Nights

Hi all! I know I’ve been absent from this blog for quite some time and posting has been very sporadic. It’s a mixture of the lazies, crappy internet, the lack of material, the lazies– you get my drift. I’m really sorry about that, but now I’m back with an update! XD

Midnight_Mercato_Launch_14

I got news that Midnight Mercato is now open Wednesday nights, and never having been, we decided to check it out. There’s a big selection of grilled items from pork barbecue, isaw and other innards; as well as grilled fish and chicken. There were also stalls that sold burgers and fries, deep dish pizzas and something with lots of crispy bacon. Other stall had Ilocos empanada, chicharon, kebabs and fried chicken. Siomai, maki and takoyaki are also available. I also remember seeing paella, steaks and pasta being sold at other booths.

For those looking for dessert, there were, I believe 3 stalls that sold cakes and other baked products. There’s also a stall that sold gelato and mochi. There was actually a lot of food there but I can’t remember everything I’ve seen. Continue reading “Midnight Mercato Now Open On Wednesday Nights”

Robot Bar & Lounge

One afternoon found myself and some friends over at Robot Bar & Lounge. Robot, short for Robotoyaki, is a Japanese restaurant and bar that offers a modern twist on Japanase cuisine. We chowed on some of their menu items like the Spicy Tuna Roll, which was very creamy and the heat is tolerable, which I like very much. My tolerance for spicy food isn’t really high.

spicy tuna

 

 

Spicy Tuna Roll Php 320.00

Continue reading “Robot Bar & Lounge”

Bistro Ravioli Opens New Branches

raviolicopya

One of my favorite restaurants, Bistro Ravioli, opened two branches in the last twelve months. One is in Robinson’s Midtown Wing of Robinson’s Place in Ermita, and more recently, at Glorietta Mall in Makati City.

margheritacopy

Both branches offer the same delicious dishes that their Mall of Asia branch does, such as their fresh pasta dishes and pizzas baked in a brick oven. And let’s not forget dessert!

panacottaandtiracopy

If you’ve been wanting to try their offerings for some time now, but still haven’t, it’s certainly more easier to do so with two new branches in the metro. Here’s hoping that they’ll open another branch somewhere in the north.

Makati branch
2nd floor, Glorietta 3
Makati City

Malate branch
2nd floor, Midtown Wing, Robinson’s Place Ermita

OMG It’s Chicken-All-You-Can Once Again!!

Max's Photo

Yes you read that right. It’s Chicken-All-You-Can once again at Max’s! For only Php 199.00, we can once again experience eating all the Max’s fried chicken that our stomachs hearts desire. This already includes a glass of any Pepsi softdrink that can be upgraded to bottomless drink for only PhP28.

chicken all you canI had six.

As an added treat to its customers, Max’s is also giving away free PhP 20 money coupons for every PhP200 spent during the Chicken-All-You-Can promotion. A maximum of three accumulated coupons per transaction may be used to “purchase” any Max’s products within a year after issuance.

The promo started last June 10, and will run until July 10, 2011. Chicken-All-You-Can is available between 6:00 to 10:00 P.M. So what are you waiting for? Attack na!

Gelato and More at Caffe’ Ti Amo

March is almost over and the days are getting hotter. Summer is definitely here! It’s during these times when I crave for something cold to help cool me down, like gelato. There’s a gelateria that I love going to where I get some really good gelato. It’s called Caffe’ Ti Amo.

gelato

Caffe’ Ti Amo is a gelateria cafe’ that offers Italian gelato and coffee in a fast casual dinig format. It was established in 2006 in Korea, where it has become quite succesful with stores numbering close to 270. Their first branch here in the Philippines is located at The Annex, SM City North Edsa, and they have since opened another one in Greenbelt.

gelato2

Affogato and Gelato; Gelato Small Php 55.00; Regular Php95.00

I’ve tried out a lot of the flavors of their gelatos from chocolate to green tea. But out of everything I’ve tried, the dark chocolate, coffee, mocha, strawberry and yogurt are my top faves.

honeytoast

Honey Bread  Php 120.00

But aside from the gelato, Caffe Ti Amo also has Gelato Creations like the Honey Bread, which is a big chunk of loaf bread drenched in honey and served with scoops of gelato. They also have different flavored waffles which are topped with gelato and slices of fruit.

waffle

Gelato Waffle Small Php 95.00; Regular Php 189.00

They also have Banana Split, Affogato, and 3 flavors of Mischiato: Yogurt, Green Tea, and Chocolate. Affogato is a combination of hot coffee and gelato.

coffee

Chocolate Mischiato

And what cafe wouldn’t be without coffee? Caffe Ti Amo  not only serves gelato, but offers coffee and tea selections  as well.

Caffe Ti Amo is definitely one of my favorite cafes to hang out in. The place is cozy and inviting, the gelato and food are delicious and truly mouth-watering.

 

 

Claw Daddy

Claw Daddy is a restaurant that specializes in dishes with crabs. But aside from crabs, they also have some meat dishes like BBQs and other seafood fare, a lot of which have that Creole flavor. It was one cool evening when my family and I, along with my aunt, went to have dinner at their Bonifacio High Street branch.

corn

For starters, we were served some delicious sweet corn as we were looking over the menu. We then ordered a plate of the Creole Crispy Shrimp for our appetizer. These are fried baby shrimps seasoned with a Creole rub, served with cocktail sauce and malt vinegar. This was so good. True to it’s name it was crispy, and the Creole rub gave the shrimps a wonderful flavor that was complemented by the dipping sauces.

hipon

Creole Crispy Shrimps PHP 338.00

We wanted some meat, and their selection looks really yummy. We went with the BBQ Caboodle King Paddle size. This is a BBQ set that includes a full slab of baby back ribs, hickory BBQ chicken quarter, bountiful beef ribs, and Texas links. The meat was very tender and flavorful. Everything was coated in a sweet and tangy barbecue sauce.

barbecued ribs

BBQ Caboodle King Paddle PHP998.00

The set also includes 3 side dishes. The choices include: bourbon peaches, honey corn bread, dirty rice, rustic, mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, corn on a cob, crinkle cut fries, coleslaw, broccoli and cheese, and baked potato. We chose the coleslaw, rustic mashed potatoes and honey corn bread.

side dishes

The coleslaw is a bit sour, not like the coleslaw that we are used to. The rustic mashed potatoes are seasoned with just salt and pepper, and mashed with the skin still on. A great balance to these two was the sweetness of the honey corn bread.

szechuan crab

Szechuan Crab

Dining at Claw Daddy wouldn’t be complete without sampling their crabs. The crabs on the menu are priced by weight. For a 600gm-700gm crab it’s PHP 100.00/100 gms. An 800gm- 1 kg crab is PHP 135.00/100 gms.; and the ones that are above 1.1 kilos are PHP 145.00/100 gms. The crabs we got were  800 gms each.

We ordered 2 crab dishes that evening: Crab Maritess and Szechuan Crab. The Szechuan Crab is a dish that has a sweet and mildly spicy szechuan sauce. The leeks give it that extra light kick. I love pouring the sauce on hot steaming white rice.

crabs maritess

Crab Maritess

Something new for me was the Crab Maritess. I love how this tasted! It’s sauteed in olive oil, white onions, chilies and garlic. Lots of garlic. Despite the garlicky aroma, which i really love, it has a very clean, light flavor. The garlic doesn’t overpower the flavor of the crab at all.

fresh watermelon shake

Fresh Watermelon Shake

To wash it all down, we had some really good watermelon shake. I like that it wasn’t too sweet, and that they used fresh watermelon. It was on the house. We found out that the restaurant is a partner establishment of Smart Rewards, and my aunt, being a Smart subscriber decided to use her points and rewards. So we got a pitcher of free watermelon shake to go with our dinner! We enjoyed dining more because of the great discounts, freebies and points that we got by using my aunt’s Smart Rewards.

A delicious meal was had by all. Everything was satisfying. The food was great, and the service was excellent! I’d definitely keep coming back.

Claw Daddy
Bonifacio High Street, Taguig City
Tel. No. (02) 836-4785/ 856-4326

6th Level, EDSA Shangri-la Plaza,
EDSA corner Shaw Boulevard, Mandaluyong City
Tel. No. (02) 636-5679/ 637-4528

Cocktales

Cocktales is the sister company of Fruitas, and seeing all the fruits displayed , one would be inclined to think that it is just a juice/ shake bar. But inspecting their menu proves otherwise. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that not only do they serve juices and shakes, but they serve sandwiches, meals and even dessert!

callos

Part of their savory offerings is the Spanish dish callos. It’s something I am very familiar with as it’s somewhat of a staple in our household; once only cooked during holidays and celebrations by my mom, until eventually when ever we feel like having it. I even shared her recipe on my other blog (with her permission, of course) . Cocktales’ version has the requisite mix of ox tripe, garbanzos and chorizo, but unlike my mom’s recipe, is a bit sweet, maybe to adapt the taste to the Filipino palate. I liked how it tasted but found the serving rather small. But then again I am a big eater, hahahaha!

peach mango smoothie

To wash it down, I ordered a fruit shake. The menu boasts of a varied selection of fruit based shakes. From simple mixtures to one of a kind concoctions. Deciding to stay simple, I choose the Peach Mango Smoothie- a combination of peaches and sweet ripe mangoes blended to a cool, smooth drink. A very refreshing drink served in a slim tall glass.

I guess the small serving of the callos was actually a good thing because if it here as hefty as I wanted it, there wouldn’t be room for dessert! What meal would be complete without it? Cocktales’ dessert menu consists of fruit shake based desserts served with fresh fruits and sweet creamy desserts like panna cottas and tiramisu.

mango cosmo

To balance out the savory flavor of the callos, I chose something that looked light so I chose the Mango Cosmo. This stylishly-named dessert has a sweet mango shake base, topped with mango cubes, almond jelly and whole lychees. The sweetness of the mango is layered from top to bottom with the mango shake and the mango slices; and complimented by the light tart flavor of the lychee. The almond jelly finishes it off with it’s velvety -smooth texture.

The items on the menu are varied. Aside from what I’ve featured here, there are hot and cold drinks, more desserts and other dishes like pasta and sandwiches. The savory dishes also come as set meals. Included are drinks and a dessert. The prices vary depending on what you’d want to have. Drinks and shakes can ordered spiked with alcohol, for an additional fee.

Drinks and shakes start at Php 75.00. The Peach-Mango Smoothie is PHP 150.00 per order ; desserts like the panna cotta and tira misu are Php95.00 per order. The Mango Cosmo and other similar fruit bowls come in sizes: single and to share. Prices start at Php 120.00 for the single and Php180.00 for the to share bowl. The callos is Php 175.00 for the solo and Php 245.00.

Cocktales
3rd Level, TriNoma Mall
EDSA cor. North Avenue, Quezon City
Tel. No. (63 2) 290-5236
http://cocktales.multiply.com/

Heirloom Recipes at Max’s

Max’s, the homegrown brand that has recently created public hype with the biggest Chicken-All-You can promotion ever, is back with a hefty plate of new dishes to serve. I got to sample these new dishes during their blogger’s night where I also got to eat all the chicken that I wanted. These two new offerings–Max’s Pork Binagoongan and Chicken Caldereta–are original recipes of Nanay Ruby, the restaurant’s first cook who developed the secret recipe for Max’s sarap-to-the-bones chicken.

Max's Pork Binagoongan

Max’s Pork Binagoongan Php 275.00

Continue reading “Heirloom Recipes at Max’s”

Trying Out Sakae Sushi

Sakae Sushi is not a typical Japanese restaurant, which offers the usual sushi and sashimi. Because of the expanded choices and the innovative way of preparing and serving food, the brand provides a culinary experience different from other Japanese dining destinations.

I spent one evening in the company of fellow bloggers where we dined on Sakae Sushi’s offerings. I came in late so they’ve already started eating by the time I got there.

kaiten

The first things I got to try were sushi off the kaiten– a conveyor belt that goes around the restaurant where diners can just pick up what ever they fancy.Used to seeing it only in pictures and on tv, I finally got try it myself. It was a lot of fun! I was like a kid playing with a train set. Continue reading “Trying Out Sakae Sushi”

A Father’s Day Treat for the Man of the House at Melo’s

Steak ala Dad @Melo's

Steak ala Dad

It’s been an old-age saying that the way to any man’s heart is through his stomach.

Being the number one man in our lives, our dads are about to celebrate their special day come June 20. And what better way to melt our dad’s hearts than to give him a gastronomical experience he will never forget. Continue reading “A Father’s Day Treat for the Man of the House at Melo’s”