Philippines, Manila: Mesa (Filipino Moderne)

I'm just so proud how Filipino restaurants are developing and catching up with the modern style of the food scene in Manila.  Filipino cuisine is considered unpretentious, simple and no frills.  It's more of comfort food that you can enjoy in your home.  But nothing is impossible for Filipinos :) (i'm proud to be one :D)

Check out some of the Filipino dishes with a twist...

Crispchon - Philippines' table is famous for its lechon - roasted pig.  It's usually eaten alone or with rice with liver sauce (right most).  This concept of adapting how peking duck is being eaten was a pretty good idea.

just like peking duck, lechon's skin shouldn't be missed out.  The skin was juicy and crispy, just how a lechon should be.

ta-dah!  The finished product...we're ready to dig in! :)  They provided 3 sauces: Garlic mayo, Hoisin sauce and the original sauce of lechon.  I still prefer the original.

the remaining crispchon was tossed in garlic.  It was pretty oily and salty.  I suggest to enjoy your crispchon and have it chopped as is.

Sisig Pouch - sisig is usually served on a sizzling plate but hey, why not  put it in a pouch like this!  I'm not fond of pork sisig but i'm sure sisig lovers wouldn't mind this twist.  Check out my previous post of how a normal sisig dish is served and read more about it.

Tinapa roll - We usually eat smoked fish just like fried fish.  This one was shredded, wrapped and deep fried.  It was meaty.  It was a good start up.

Adobong baby squid - adobo is our national cooking way (soy sauce, vinegar with a little bit of sugar and bay leaf).  We use it basically with anything even with veggies (adobong kangkong).  This was my dad's choice.  The squid ink seasoned-like adobo was very tasty and the baby squids' tenderness works well for this type of dish.

A Filipino table is not complete without a good serving of rice.  We're rice eaters.  It's our staple for every meal of the day.  We ordered Bagoong rice.  Bagoong is made of fermented fish and made into paste.  We love eating it with green mangoes and of course with rice.  I love this bowl because it combined both which complemented all the ingredients in it.  It was not too salty and the fish paste was not too overpowering so it was great with the dishes we ordered.

The place behind this modernity of Filipino cuisine is...

the restaurant MESA - which is a Spanish/Filipino word for table.  They have several branches across Metro Manila and their branch in Greenbelt 5 is doing pretty good.  For a bigger group, I suggest to  make reservations to avoid not being accommodated.  The staff were all very attentive and friendly. 

And this time, HT wife enjoyed dining here with HT parents. :) Guess from whom i got the genes of eating and enjoying good food? :)

Price Summary

Appetizers starts from 140 pesos ~ 5 SGD ~ 2.5 euro

 Crispchon (1/6 size with 2 ways of cooking i.e. wrapped and tossed garlic) - 999 ~ 30 SGD ~ 15 euro

Main dishes is about 200 and above ~ 6 SGD ~ 3 euro

Bagoong rice ~ 150 pesos ~ 5 SGD ~ 2.5 euro

*All plates are good for sharing ( 2-3 persons)

Mesa (Filipino Moderne)

Ground floor (outside court)

Greenbelt 5

Philippines, Manila - Ramen Bar

I grew up having the knowledge of just eating a piping hot bowl of ramen from instant noodle packs.  So when I moved to Singapore, which is still the best food haven country for me in terms of variety, it was not difficult to appreciate a more authentic ramen bowl.

Manileños nowadays, are so lucky as we are catching up in terms of restaurants offering different cuisines and meals with twist.  I was just away for 6 years, and every time I go back home, I can't help but be amazed and how much new restaurants are sprouting here and there.  I wanted to try them all, maybe when I decide to stay for a year. (though HT hubbie might spank me LOL :D)

Ramen Bar had been in the food scene here in Manila for quite sometime.  They have 2 branches: one in Eastwood and one in Piazza in Mckinley Hill which are both not too accessible from where i live. 

As a ramen addict just like HT hubbie, i just have to try this.

Super Chasyu Ramen - my first impression of the bowl was pretty good.  Though i was expecting a more milky and thicker soup, nevertheless, this was not too watery.  The chasyu pieces were abundant and the tamago (egg) was marinated for 10 hours.  The soup was very tasty.  However, it was not served hot. 

and with the abundance of the fatty part of chasyu, the soup gets oily easily that makes it tiring to eat.  They could do better of less fats in chasyu as other countries do.

Though i prefer a thicker noodles (different version), I really enjoyed this noodles.  It's thin, chewy and creamy.  There were a few strands that got stuck together, but just a few loosening up during the cooking can do the works.

If only I had the time to return the bowl to make it hot, I would be very satisfied.  I will let them know so they can improve. 

A super chasyu ramen costs me 380 pesos~10 SGD~5 euro.  You can get a cheaper bowl for 280 pesos.  It's quite affordable. 

Too bad, my tummy was not cooperating that day, that I have to skip the Tempura Ice Cream. :(  Next time, i guess. :)

check out my previous posts in Singapore and Australia for our love of ramen.

TIME OUT: A must try in Copenhagen

Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, houses 13 Michelin stars and where the S. Pellegrino best restaurant in the world is situated.

http://www.visitdenmark.com/uk/en-gb/menu/turist/inspiration/nydlivet/gastronomi/michelin-restaurants.htm

Being known as the gourmet city in Northern Europe, there are small things that can be enjoyed by normal people like HT couple.

When Danish food is mentioned, i'm sure pastries would first popped into our minds...mine did.  But while i was exploring the food city for a day...i found out how famous this food was...

Polse "letter o with / over it" (i don't know how to type it) can be seen in every corner of the busy streets of Copenhagen.  What makes this sausage differ from others, is it's usually boiled.  The smoked delicious polse is usually long compared to the sausage buns, topped with mustard, ketchup, onions and pickles...a full Danish meal.

And for just 20-30 DK KRON ( 2-3 euro)...who says you can't eat cheap in Denmark?

*I haven't really done Copenhagen food tripping...but we'll be back for sure to visit our friends and explore Nordic cuisine...who knows, we might land in one of the 13's, Denmark is very proud of... (hope we win the lottery).

Ji De Chi : Asian Dessert

I'm fond of Asian desserts and it's always nice to indulge in these with people who have passion in eating it.

I was lucky (again) to be with Harris of The Simplest Aphrodisiac  and first time with Daniel & Lay Sian of Memoirs of Food .

I just love them as they consider getting something asian for desserts instead of indulging nice chocolate cakes as I am leaving Singapore soon . :)  Thanks guys! 

This was what I got...

Yam Paste - this is my favorite asian dessert.  It kinda reminds me of my childhood afternoon, when I would have Ginatan#  in front of me as a snack, which is quite similar to yam paste.   I like the texture of this paste, though, i prefer the ones served at Swa Garden##, a Teo Chew restaurant in Macpherson Road. It's sweeter but just right, to please Filipino taste buds like mine.

Iced Red Beans with Balls - Harris choice...always sweet and yummy!

Mango Pomelo Sago - Daniel and Lay Sian's dessert.  The mangoes tasted natural which made this dessert such a delight. :)

This was the seconds dessert we had (as during the food blogger outing (next post!), dessert was already included).  But it didn't stop us to scoop out most of it.

Price Summary (in SGD)

Yam Paste $3.30

Iced Red Bean with Balls $3.50

Mango Pomelo Sago $4.00

NO GST and NO SVC charge

Ji De Chi

#8 Liang Seah St.

#01-03 Singapore

(walking distance from Bugis or

Raffles City)

Credits:

# - Zeety Jones

## - ieatishootipost

Sugar Granny Cafe: sweet bloggers meet up

I might not be with my hungry trotting husband in this food trip but I was fortunate enough to meet up with 2 hungry food bloggers as we trot around Tanjong Pagar/Outram area.  Meet them here in action.

At first, I was starstruck.  Harris as I am already a big fan of him for years now and Xinli , who's very talented and creative, making food blog even more interesting.  Nevertheless, they both look very young (I look like an auntie beside them hehe).

Food bloggers meet up, i guess, doesn't end in just having one meal together...i'll skip the dinner for now (wait for our post!) and jump to the desserts.

We've been planning for the meet up dinner and Harris has recommended Sugar Granny for our after-dinner sweets.  Try and check out what's Muah Chee.

At first, I wanted a bowl of yam paste.  Too bad, they already run out of it so i've decided to get...

Sugar Granny Icy Swirl (3.5/5) - when we were placing our orders, Xinli helped me to ask the waitress (in Mandarin) on what this drink contains as they just mentioned in their menu that it's their specialty.  However, the waitress didn't know how to explain but it didn't stop me from ordering this surprise drink.  And guess what? It didn't disappoint me.  It was passion fruit based, with real fruit kernels, small pieces of nata de coco and aloe vera bits.  It was sugary sweet, a good way to end up the long weekend.

Mango Sago - Xinli's choice for the night.  I love the texture of how smooth and refreshing it was.  I only had a spoon of it so do wait for Xinli's review at theMoose.

Peanut Paste - Harris owned this bowl that night.  At first we had doubts that it might be like eating peanut butter out of a bottle.  It was nice of Harris to share it with us.  Its smooth and just right thickness made me like this not-so-sweet peanut bowl.  And, not a hint of peanut butter taste at all.  I think I'll grab my own the next time.

Slim Chendol - intrigue on how this became non-fattening as per the menu and why Harris has decided to get this instead of a cup of kopi?  Find out at the much-awaited post of Harris at theSimplestAphrodisiac.  Special thanks to Xinli for this creative shot idea. *wink*

To sum it up, the desserts were as sweet as my companions.  We were chit chatting the whole evening, about food, about life, about us...basically just about anything.  There were no dull moments.  Thanks again guys for the time.  Hope to see you both very soon.


Price Summary (SGD)
Sugar Granny Icy Swirl = $2.50
Mango Sago = $3.50
Peanut Paste = $3.00
Slim Chendol = a little bit over $2

Sugar Granny Cafe
5 Teo Hong Road
Singapore
walking distance from Outram Park (NEL exit)
Sun-Thu: 1 pm - 11 pm
Fri- Sat: 1 pm - 1 am

Grill Manna: our kind of chicken

A kopitiam  post....

HTs are not very fond of putting ketchup on burgers and fries. But there is this type of ket-chup that is close to our heart. When we visited Manado, Indonesia, we just love all the dishes they served us. And their main ingredient was the KETJAP or KECAP MANIS (thanks Ice!).

Ketjap is known to the Dutch (Indonesian influence) cuisine. You can get this Indonesian soy sauce from sweet to slightly sweet or even the salty ones in the Netherlands grocery. We love the dark, sweet version of it. We don't cook at home so we're also regulars in several kopitiams in Singapore. And if you want to have a headstart of sweetness in your dinner, I would recommend one of the stalls in Food Junction, Bugis.

Grill Manna is one of the corner stalls in this food place. You can see how your fish or chicken is being grilled. What made it special is when uncle dips the meat in the hot, piping, ketjap, we just can't wait for our cheap but delicious meal.

Grilled Chicken Set - you can opt for boneless chicken but we prefer with the bones.  The chicken leg is always huge so you get a lot of white meat with it.  It goes with a pandan rice but you can advise uncle for plain rice and a thin slice of omelette.  Soup goes with this plate and is way better than the usual salt water you get in kopitiams. 

Most of the time, the chicken were still being grilled to perfection so I don't mind waiting for 5-10 minutes.  The meat was never overcooked or undercooked and was always tender.  The generous amount of ketjap is overflowing on the plate and look at the inner side of the chicken, how nicely it absorbed the ketjap as an added taste.

For a good chicken dinner that doesn't hurt our wallet , off we go to Grill Manna!

Price Summary (in SGD)

Grilled Chicken Set = $5

no GST no SvcChg

Food Junction

Bugis Junction, Level 3

Loving Hut: love for food, love for health

This is another post without HT hubby.  We're not separating ways, so no worries :D.  It's just another dinner out with me and my friends.

I'm very thankful to my vegetarian friend, K.  She always introduce nice veggie places and made me appreciate of not having meat as part of my meal (yes, HT couple associates lunch and dinner with meat).  Check out K's previous recommendation:  YES!

This time, K brought me and our friends to this humble place in Suntec.  We were given a back-to-back menu so it was easy to decide what to order.


Spring Rolls (4/5) - this starter was the favorite for the night!  It's crispy skin made this dish such a delight though it was a bit on the oily side.

Rainbow Rice (4/5) - we ordered a plate of this for sharing.  The rice can be eaten alone (without any dishes) as it's tasty enough and you get all kinds of veggies mixed with it.  This was served with a clear soup for ease of eating.

Tofu Claypot (4/5) - this was our first choice.  Being in a veggie place, we prefer those real veggies used in a dish instead of mock meat.  Broccoli, cauliflowers, carrots, tofu...it was pleasingly healthy and very delicious.  The veggies were simmered in a thick sauce making it tasty and lovely.  It's not mushy or overcooked so we were still able to hear that crunch in our every bite.

Au Lac Pho (3/5) -their vietnamese pho, which had abundant celery and basil leaves, however, the soup was still watery and bland.  The noodle was just ok, and I guess, I prefer my pho with meat.

 Lemongrass Curry (3.5/5) - the curry sauce was a nice partner with the rice.  Though, i was not able to taste the lemongrass at all, it was still tasty.  The bulk of this curry bowl was just potatoes.  It would be great if there would be mixture of other veggies.  I'm sure it would made this dish more satisfying.

Overall, it was a great no-frills and healthy dinner, a perfect night catching up and exchanging laughs with friends. 


Price Summary (SGD)
Spring Roll = $3.80
Au Lac Pho = $4.80
Braised Tofu Claypot = $8.80
Lemongrass Curry = $4.50
Rainbow Rice = $4.80
NO GST and Svc Chg


Loving Hut
#03-016 Suntec
Opens Daily 10 am - 930 pm

Manpuku Japanese Gourmet Town : affordable meal!

I've been to Manpuku when they were new in town at Tampines 1.  The place was like Marche, where you pay on your way out.  To be honest, with the price and the food, at that time, i've never thought I would be back again.

My close friends, together with us, HT couple, decided to give it another try.  Any place deserves a second chance for HTs.  We were welcomed by a guy in a Japanese uniform and advised us that it's now self-service and pay as you order.  It works just like our usual kopitiams, different stalls, no gst and no service charge but has a more posh interiors and serves mostly Japanese fare. 

I love those faux Sakura blooming on top of the table haha.  Plus, the full windows just made the place looked brighter and more spacious.

I was craving for a bowl of noodle soup but I have to skip their ramen after the last time I had it.  Besides, there's a lot of choices.  So I went to the Don/Udon section.  As an oyako don fan, I ordered...

Chicken and Egg Udon (3/5) - for a little bit over $5, I had this small bowl of udon in miso soup with egg, chicken pieces, green onions to complete that oyako twist.  My first glance, hmm, it looked watery.  I first tried the soup, it's ok, it has the japanese miso taste, soothing for my tummy and way better than the ramen soup I had before.  The noodles were bland and a bit overcooked but still manageable.  I was surprised that  I still got about 3 decent pieces of chicken with the price.  Overall, it's palatable. 

Hubby saw this long queue and decided to try one of their okonomiyakis.

Okonomiyaki is a Japanese style pancakes or pizza, whatever you call it, where anything you want is cooked together into a disc-shaped savoury meal.*

Pork Okos (3.5/5) - anything with bacon is always nice.  Hubby didn't think twice of getting this type of oko.  Cabbage, bacon strips, egg then topped with oozing special sauce and mayo creatively done by the chef, hubby just can't wait to dig in.  It was his first time to try an oko so he liked that tinge of sweet taste of the sauce on his pancake.  It was nothing special but definitely, not bad for a lunch meal.

Moonlight Special Oko (3.75/5) - this was the winner for the day and my friend's favorite.  It's thicker than the pork okos and topped with bonito(fish flakes) and a sunny side up egg.  The same special sauce was used but this has more flavor with the chopped squid, shrimp, pork mixed together in this dish.

looks yummy isn't it?

Overall, I think it was smart of Manpuku to change how they operate the place and made sure that they focus on making sure that the food is satisfying enough and affordable for all groups of people living and working at the east side of Singapore.  Give it another try...

Price Summary (in SGD)

Chicken and Egg Udon $6.50

Pork Okos $6.50

Moonlight Special Okos $13.00

*Drinks vary from $1.50 - $4.00

no GST and no SVC CHG

Manpuku Japanese Gourmet Town

#03-16/19 Tampines 1

Opens daily 11 am - 10 pm

*information are taken from Wikipedia

Starbucks: healthy snack?

HT couple spends half of our weekend time in a coffee shop, reading newspaper and having our weekend dose of caffeine.  We usually settle in a place where they serve dry cappuccino without even asking for it (that means less milk).  Starbucks wouldn't come into our mind unless we want their refreshing green tea frap or their satisfying blueberry muffin.

One time, we decided to visit Starbucks, after a long time, so hubby queued up and that smart layout of coffee shops, wherein you passed by their sweets section before you can reach the cashier, made him get this sweet-looking pastry together with our supposedly 'just coffee' order for the day.

This crumbly, healthy-looking was very inviting for HT hubby.  It stood out among their pastries for the day so hubby just can't resist of getting one.  Plus, anything with oats sounds good for the body, isn't it? 

Berry Oat Bar - the verdict of my first bite...hmmm...it was so good!  I love those crunchy bits on top with some oats which were chewy and just sent signal to my brain, 'what a delicious healthy snack!'.  The best of all were the whole berries scattered in the middle which were chunky and pops everytime you bite on it.   It was not too sugary but just a delight for our sweet tooth.

After that experience, we had another reason to spend our weekend here...maybe, we'll skip the coffee and just get our share of berries-and-oats-in-one.

Price Summary (SGD)

Berry Oat Bar = $5.30

Erich's Wuerstelstand: the true blue sausage!

Who said Chinatown only provides non-authentic items and traps for tourist?  Uh-uh, for HT couple, Wuerstelstand is the only place providing real, genuine sausages, (for our tastebuds, of course) in Singapore.

If we're craving for mighty, meaty sausages, we would stroll our way under the hot sun, to Chinatown to get our favorite, CURRYWURST.

Currywurst (5/5) - I've never really eaten a real currywurst before(wherever it exists), but HT hubby's hometown is near Germany, he said this is the authentic one.  We've been to German restaurants here and ordered their currywurst, and indeed, its not the same.  Curry sauce is usually made up of tomato sauce with a huge amount of curry powder.  I love how sweet and spicy blends together and how unique the sauce is...not your ordinary type of ketchup or chili.  Their tasty and meaty pork sausage will always be our choice (we don't like chicken version). 

With the generous amount of the sauce, HT hubby usually gets...

credits to Wuerstelstand blog

Semmeln Buns - Semmeln is a breakfast roll that is crunchy outside and soft on the inside.* HT couple differs in how we like this bread.  HT hubby likes this and he said it's the same one he gets in Europe (I believe him).  He usually would use this tough-looking bread to polish the curry sauce.  I'm not really a fan because it's too hard for me and usually I would end up with mouth wounds. 

If there's even a drop of the sauce left, i would hear this from hubby, "shame on you" to leave such a nice sauce...(sometimes, he ends up licking the plate hehe...good thing it's disposable).

I was not able to take a lot of pictures as I am very scared of the Austrian guy selling sausages.  No offense, i guess, just his strong features.  Anyway, I am still a regular customer and will always be.

Price Summary (SGD)

Sausages = about $3 - $5

Erich's Wuerstelstand

Trengganu Street

(Chinatown Night Market)

Singapore

*information taken from http://base.google.com/base/a/1193572/D13869106986588446050

Carl's Jr: is it a healthy burger?

HT couple are not fond of American fast food.  We prefer hawker centres to get chicken rice or hokkien mee rather than burgers and fries. 

But from time to time, we do get our share and taste of it. 

Carl's Jr is HT couple's choice among the American burger joints. They released their range of thickburgers.

I got myself...Low Carb Thickburger

Ta-dah!  Looks pretty healthy, huh?  Veggies, veggies, veggies!

It's the original Carl's Jr burger, with thicker, bigger beef patty and NO BUNS!  The lettuce held my burger and guess what? It was not easy to eat.  (somewhere at the end, my burger became a salad). 

Overall, it was not bad...I wonder how much calories I was able to run away from after gorging into this healthy-looking sandwich?

Tom's Palette: homemade ice cream

Hubby had a bad Monday...he was not informed that it was a holiday in their office and as workaholic as he is, he decided just to continue working (ai yoh).  As a good wife, I made sure I end up his day...nice, cold and sweet...

A treat from Tom's Palette!

For gloomy days, it's good to be surrounded by colors...and ice cream

love these colorful stools

We were lucky this time to be served by Chronos, the owner, himself.  He was so kind and nice to explain to us their ice cream, how it's thoroughly made and what are the ingredients they used in each flavor.  When we sat down, he even gave us water and informed us to let him know if we wanted to try other flavors of the day.

We had

Nuts and Such - peanut butter based ice cream with all nuts and such(mocha brownie cake batter),

Chocolate - super rich chocolate and simply the best chocolate ice cream!

with a spark as this was my cup..hehe

Chocolate Stout - the best of both world, chocolate and booze!

Salted Caramel Cheescake - one word 'heaven!'

Coffee, all-time Granny's Favourite and Pistachios are a few of my favorites.

What i like about their ice cream is - its smooth, creamy, not-so-sweet, natural and very strong
flavorful taste.  I don't feel guilty after I indulge a cup so often.  With my several visits, quality and quantity were always consistent.

They have other VERY unique flavors...Wasabi Lime (not bad at all), tea infusion - Earl Grey, Lavender, Oolong, alcohol-based - Passion Sake (yes, japanese sake) and up to a combination of Balsamic Vanilla...drop by at their shop for these flavors this week (of course, while stocks last!) check out their Calendar  in their website. You can try as many flavors as you want before you decide what goes in your cup...and yes, they don't frown even if you have tried more than 5.

Price Summary (SGD)
small cup : $2.80
medium cup : $3.20
large cup : $4.70
Takeaway tub: $12.50 (I ordered 2 last Christmas) :) 
*even if you order a small cup,
 you can have 2 flavors with no
 additional cost...what a value for
 money!


Tom's Palette
100 Beach Road
Shaw Leisure Gallery
(across Ah Loy Thai)
Mon-Thurs : 12 nn - 930 pm
Fri-Sat: 12 nn - 10 pm
Closed on Sunday
http://tomspalette.com.sg/

K ki @ Ann Siang Hill: Finally...

This place was built by the love of Kenneth and Delphine.  This place have been haven of foodies love for food.  Last Saturday, this place was the witness to the love of HT couple's countdown to almost 1 year as happy hubby and wifey. 

The moment we enter the place on a hot, sunny Saturday, we can smell the air is filled with love and passion. Friends gathered together, foodies taking pictures and the cakes...

yes, not much selection that time, we thought we were early...

The place was already crowded and no tables left for hubby and me to enjoy our cakes.  Nevertheless, the location didn't hinder us from ordering and getting our first...of the most talked-about cakes of 2010.

We waited a few minutes for our take away treat (check out how it was nicely packed) and we've decided to sit at Ann Siang Hill Park to enjoy our sweets. 

Hubby got himself...

Mont Blanc -  a macho-looking chestnut-flavored cake but once you dig in, the fluffy oozing cream makes this cake a softy. 

I had...

Antoinette - sounds like a small girl, but gave a "big bang" after the first bite.  The light, creamy texture with the delectable mango puree hidden inside made me realize i'm not dreaming at all, yes, the cake was real, it's in front of me and i'm enjoying every portion of it.

We also took away this yummy-looking apple carrot sitting on this green, grassy cupboard.

Apple Carrot (4.75/5) - moist, chunky and really delicious.  The walnuts on top gave us a hint that we would get more inside and indeed, we didn't had a bite without walnuts in it.  The white cream has a bit of a zest taste that made this apple carrot fresh and unique.

Among the foodies, I might be one of the last to check out this place. Please check out MY DAILY DOSE, most of my favorite food bloggers have been there.  Harris had tried basically everything...he can eat a 'minimum' of 2 cakes in a row (wink). I didn't rate the cakes this time, rest assured, K ki uses the finest ingredients in their absolutely divine treat.

At last, we've landed in K ki...*bliss*  For HT couple, being in love doesn't matter how, where and when it happened...as long as the hearts continue to enjoy simple things....together.

Price Summary (SGD)
*cakes are priced about 7.50-8.50
Mont Blanc = $8.50
Antoinette  = $8.00
Apple Carrot = $16
*for take away, no GST or SVC charge

No. 7 Ann Siang Hill
*near to The Scarlet Hotel (walking distance from Maxwell Food Centre)
*once you see Ann Siang Rd then you're nearby (look out for the signs)
Opening hours:
Tues, Wed, Friday and Sunday: 11 am - 930 pm
Thursday and Saturday: noon till 4 pm