Coffee Shops & It's Load Of Goodies

What I normally do inside a coffee shop: eat, sip and read a good book

Food establishments, especially coffee shops, are the ones that I usually gravitate no matter what mood I'm in. Whether I'm in a celebratory mood for earning a work related incentive, or to ease myself back to normalcy from the frenetic schedule of the past week at the office, or maybe to set the mood with the suspense-thriller fiction I'm currently engrossed reading, or to bawl my frustrations about life and love with my closest friends. But these days, I head to these food places to nurse a weary heart. A lot of things occupy my mind lately and these food places helped me to take it slow, gather my resolve and refuel myself to pick up steam for the next journey.

Four Food Places In One Day

heart shaped cake at Tous Les Jours

Valentines Day is fast approaching, I know. But me being dateless and single is not something of immediate concern. Or at least that's how I would like to perceive my unfortunate status of still being unattached. For now, it's the food the keep my spirit afloat and banish any morose feeling I may have wallowed upon if I let things fall apart and didn't act things up straight. And acting up straight means getting myself revved up as showcased on these four food places I visited in one day.

Anchors Away, Army Navy!

Libertea, Freedom Fries & Starving Sailor

There's no doubt that Army Navy Burger & Burrito is the most popular fastfood chain in the metro today. It's the current "it" burger place, evident with a number of its stores that sprouted on strategic geographical locations last year. Most of my friends prefer Army Navy as their go to place whenever they crave for a good sized burger, partnered of course with some Freedom Fries and Libertea. But Army Navy offers more than just burgers, fries and their famous iced tea.

Binging At A Bar On The Night Of The Eclipse

at Rue Bourbon

Truth be told, I very seldom go to bars and clubs that nocturnal people seems to inhabit every night after the sun goes down. Since my predilection is more on food rather than alcoholic drinks, I only went to such places if I'm with my beer-drinking friends and colleagues who can't seem to have enough alcohol ingested into their system. Not that I don't enjoy drinking those fizzy, bubbly liquids with its inherent sweetness and a trailing of bitterness at the end. 'Cause I do. I also enjoy the unabashed merriment brought about by alcohol amongst groups that may lead you to do things that you might laugh out loud the morning after, or something that deem too ridiculous that you would be ashamed to share it after the effects of alcohol had diminish. So, it came to me as a surprise when I chose Rue Bourbon to spend a few hours of my night right after work.

A Perfect Place For A Solitary Diner

table setting at Galileo Enoteca

I've been to Galileo Enoteca before and this is on their flagship store located in Calbayog Street in Mandaluyong City. I like the holistic vibe of the place. Frankly, who would have thought a gem of an Italian resto can be found amidst this gritty district where one could also sight a pharmacy, a videoke bar, a talipapa market, a tricycle station and a honky tonk bar? This somewhat unusual location of the restaurant added more to its charm. Once inside, it really felt like you're dining inside a wine cellar with rows and rows of wines that lined each walls and brooding lighting to match it with. Their servers very knowledgeable in suggesting on what to order on the menu. This somewhat contributed to the outstanding dining experience that I had here. From the fish appetizer placed on top of a creamy polenta, the delightfully spicy Spaghettini Ala Arabiatta down to the very luscious Panna Cotta dessert.

Eating Out Around Eastwood

adobo dishes at Adobo Connection

After being a bum for about two months, I'll be back working again for the BPO industry that I can't seem to run away from. I guess it's safe to say that I'll be here (the BPO industry, that is) to stay. But I'm still keeping my hope afloat. However, the past two months didn't come to waste. I've been quite productive during those downtime moments. I was able to catch up on my paperback reading, watched my favorite soaps on TV, did some rudimentary routines and of course, I was able to put quite a number of entries on my online diary and update it as often as I want. It was quite trip and to be quite honest, I'm kinda missing already my 'bum life' he-he! ;)

FACE OFF: Burger Streak-From Beef, 'Shrooms & Chicken Burgers

My Baconator meal at Wendy's

If there is such a law that it is a crime to have a deep sense of affection towards hamburgers and in eating it exorbitantly then I would be guilty as charged. I'm all crazy about hamburgers. The best that I've tried, at least the ones on top of my head, were those hamburgers at D'Amburger Gastropub and Lusso. While for the most part, I enjoyed most of my hamburger experiences, there were those that doesn't really fit the bill. Most notably the flame broiled burgers that I've tried at a burger joint in SM North Edsa. I'm not going to yakety yak about the food that I tried at this burger joint. I still feel a little cringe seeping through me when I tried to remember it. All I could share to you was that the hamburger tasted so bad I avowed not to go back to that burger joint ever.

Where Technology & Food Collide

food at DW Cafe

Who would have thought there would be a cafe right beside a gadget store? And not just an ordinary cafe that serves coffees and desserts but also offer Japanese food favorites like omurice and katsu dishes.

Lovin' Our Pinoy Tsokolate

Tsokolate Ah at Tsoko.Nut

Smoldering hot liquid, an alluring deep brown color, thin froth forming on the surface, the wonderful taste of cacao; rich, earthy and slightly sweet. Who wouldn't want to have a good cup of hot chocolate? Especially on this rainy weather. I could imagine myself curled up on my bed, reading a suspense thriller paperback and a hot cup of chocolate right on my bedside table while a light rain would make succeeding tapping sounds on my rooftop. Creating a form of sonata that would make the twist and turn of the story that I'm reading more palpable. 

Me Love Ice Cream

ice cream sundae & shake

Ice creams are one of those desserts that I absolutely love. It's cool, creamy comfort it offers are just enough reason for me to cheer up if I'm having a bad day. It's also a perfect armor against scorching heat. On a particularly hot day, I would usually buy a tub of ice cream. My favorite of the moment would be Selecta's Pistachio & Cashew. There were also times, right after our church service, a sorbetero would be just right outside our church's gate ready to scoop up dirty ice creams from his cart. Although calling it 'dirty ice cream' seems politically incorrect. It's just that those ice cream that we buy from the cart of a sorbetero has a distinct taste that one could not find with any other ice cream brands. If mamang sorbetero is not around, I would walk all the way to the corner of our street to get my soft-serve ice cream fix at Mini-Stop.

A Sumptuous Feast

pastitsio (photo courtesy of Jhen)

It has been a while since I bonded with my friends Karen Anne and Jhen so I was really excited to see them again. It was an advance celebration of sort for my birthday since I have a work schedule on my actual natal day (boo!). So I decided to move the celebration a day before yesterday night instead. I've been head over heels with the delicious food I tried at Cyma Greek Taverna on my last visit so it was very easy for me to choose again Cyma as the venue for this special get-together with my friends. Since I've promised myself before that I would try the other delightful offerings here in Cyma, I deemed this would be the right opportunity to fulfill that promise.

Bulgogi All The Way

table setting

Korean cuisines have been rampant in this part of the metro nowadays. From Korean-style chicken fast food to restaurants specializing in bulgogi dishes. One such resto is Kogi Bulgogi, a sister restaurant (if I'm not mistaken) of Tokyo Cafe, Stackers Burger Cafe and Peri Peri Charcoal Chicken.

I'm Now A Greek Food Convert

food at Cyma

I knew, based on what I've been hearing about this resto, that Cyma offers good quality Greek food. But I never realized until I actually dined there that their food was not only good, but quite addicting that you would want to go back again and again and again until you tried all there is on their menu. Yes. I currently have that certain, almost frightening, compulsion to visit Cyma multiple times till I'm down on the last entry of their menu.

Ristorante Bigoli: The Italian Fastfood Place

Bigoli's food

I've been eyeing this restaurant for quite sometime now. For one reason or another, I was sidetracked to try other food places in Eastwood City. When me and my friends decided to have a get-together a few days before the New Year, I saw an opportunity to finally try Ristorante Bigoli.

Cafeccino By Dome: A Second Visit

Cafeccino's cakes

NOTE: This is more like a continuation of my previous post titled Good Times Really Roll In Johnny Rockets.

Right after the great meal we had at Johnny Rockets, we decided to stroll around for a while  and check out the tiangge in the area for some bargain finds. (At this point, we parted ways with Kuya Regi and Mommy Tonie since they still have work to attend to) We also goofed around in the walkway right beside the Eastwood Mall surrounded by shrubbery plants. And how could we forget posing right beside the huge and brilliantly sparkling Eastwood's Christmas tree.

Good Times Really Roll in Johnny Rockets

johnny rockets' hamburger & milkshake

This much-hyped American burger place was definitely the "it" place to dine when Johnny Rockets opened its first branch in the Philippines (apparently, its their very first in Asia) in Eastwood Mall around two years ago. It's main "attraction", so to speak, was their servers, including the managers (sometimes the guard, as well!) would suddenly dance in the middle of the diner once Donna Summers started belting her classic song Last Dance! from the jukebox. A quite fresh, interesting concept for a burger place at that time.

Comfort (Japanese) Food in Teriyaki Boy

table setting

I noticed just recently that I have this certain fondness for Asian food, specifically for Japanese cuisine. I was totally caught by the richness of flavors and the freshness of the food served in Japanese restaurants. And the servings were quite big as well. And Teriyaki Boy is no exception.

Dome Cafe & Cafeccino By Dome: Luscious Moments

two exceptional cakes

(Note: This is more like a continuation of my previous post. )

Right after our satisfying meal in Cookbook Kitchen, we (Jhen, Darlene & Diselle with two of her office mates) all decided (I might add, with much apprehension) to try out this horror house propped in the middle of Eastwood City Walk. The horror house was inspired by the hit movie Zombadings: Patayin Sa Shokot Si Remington by Jade Castro (who also directed the critically acclaimed Endo and My Big Love), thus the horror house was aptly named Shokot House. 

I Adore Cookbook Kitchen

food at cookbook kitchen

I've always wanted to dine here in Cookbook Kitchen, however, for some reason or another, I was only able to do so just recently. And I really regret I didn't made it sooner, since the food here was just so good. I was greatly satisfied with the dishes we tried here that I'm already considering to have my Christmas meal here (or possibly in their main branch in Socorro Fernandez St. in Mandaluyong).