My thoughts on food, restaus, makeup, fashion, books, movies, photography, events and everything else that interests me. Enjoy!

Saturday, April 28, 2007

GREAT!!

Great! So Amici won't be closing anymore. Some great good hearted Filipino has decided to carry on the business! I'm so happy!

Friday, April 27, 2007

Smokey Eyes

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What do you think? It's my new attempt at smokey eye make-up.

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Swagat Indian Restaurant

My parents own a condo unit in Rada Street and so I had the chance to eat here today. I first heard about this place from wysgal and have been interested in trying it out ever since! The place is really small, service was fast and the servings were generous. What I liked most about the place was that the servers were very well informed of the dishes in the menu. I asked them so many many questions (some of the dishes were very hard to differentiate from one another) and they could answer them all! Kudos to you! Here's what we had:

Vegetable Samosa Php60
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This was very filling. Naturally spicy even if we ordered the mild version. It came with 2 sauces (see picture below) which I most certainly loved! It's described as "Triangular pastry stuffed w/ mildly spiced potatoes & peas & deep-fried." I wish I could taste more of the 'peas' part of the samosa though.
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Yummy dipping sauces. The green one is a spicy cilantro dipping sauce I got addicted to and the brown one is a sweet tamarind dipping sauce my companion liked.

Aloo Tikki Php60
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Described as "Mashed potato patties w/ mild spice, deep-fried in vegetable oil." I liked this one more than the samosas. Most especially when I tried to dip it in the cilantro sauce! Wow. Bliss... I got so addicted! You must have this with the cilantro sauce! Must!!!

Mushroom Paneer  Php140
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This was addicting too! It's made of mushrooms cooked w / homemade cottage cheese & spices. The cheese was so good in itself! Mushrooms was just a bonus to this wonderful dish! It was all about the cheese for me!

Murgh Biryani Php160

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Described as "Chicken cooked w/ special Indian rice & flavored spices."We were supposed to get Sangam Biryani which had both chicken and lamb but they didn'y have lamb that day. We ended up with the murgh biryani instead. I loved the way the rice was cooked. I would have preferred an order of the rice only. I didn't like the way the chicken was cooked.
Next time, we'll prbably get the Kashmiri pullow (Indian rice, cooked with herbs & spices w / dry nuts) instead.

This place has really affordable prices and much much better food than most hyped restaus *cough*Bollywood*cough*. There's the mandatory tax but no service charge was charged. Will most definitely come back to try more!


*Disclaimer: I noticed that wysgal and I had almost ordered the same stuff. This was unintentional. Most of what we got in common are the common Indian dishes to be had. Next time,I'll try to be more adventurous with my orders.

Banapple

First of all, I think the name 'Bananapple' would have been cuter but that's besides the point. This place serves really delectably sweet desserts! I think they have the tendency to over sweeten their cakes but that's okay with me. I just eat the cake a little more slowly and enjoy every bite of it. I was in my (old, sob) school yesterday and was finally able to have the chance to try their cakes (I waited for you to open! I did! Promise!) and these were what we had.

Apple Caramel Crumble Pie Php 75
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I was quite annoyed with it's very crumbly (almost powdery) topping. It was too loose, for the lack of a better term. I prefer my apple pies to be very crumbly on top. I did however love the crust which I found to be a great "sweetness absorber" to the overpowering caramel taste. I'd probably try the other cakes before getting this again.

Banoffee Pie Php65

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I apologize for the horrid picture. I got this only because it was the supposed best seller, even got it on take-out. The banana slices on this one were big and chewy and very much soakes in caramel. The chocolate shaving were a great contrast to the sweetness of rest of the cake. Once again, I liked the crust most on this one. One thing I didn't like though was that I could actually taste sugar crystals on the cake (crust most especially) while I was eating it. 

Monday, April 23, 2007

Lipcolor I'm Loving Now: Barbie Loves MAC

I'm sort of a loyalist. A loyalist to MAC lippies that is. I just love the packaging, creative names and innovative colors they come up with. These are my latest finds from the extremely coveted Barbie Loves MAC Collection:

Happening Gal Lipglass Php840
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Described as a midtone reddish plum with gold pearl in frost formulation. This was darker than I expected and I find the shimmer particles to be too "big" (does that even make sense?). Close up pictures really capture that "sparkle" but in group shots, it looks fab!

Modern Ms Lippie Php900
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Described as a mid tone brick red with silver frost in frost formulation. 
This looks very subdued and plummish instead of red on me. I tend to favor plummish
shades and this one is one more great shade to add to my collection. If I stare at my lips long enough, it kinda starts to look like I'm wearing Viva Glam 4. Weird huh?

I really wanted to get Rocking Chick and Malibu Barbie but they were already nowhere to be found...hay. Poor me....

Here's Rocking Chick on me. Doesn't it look so fab?
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Described as a frosted fuschia with blue pearl. 

Tell me what you guys think!

Sonja's Cupcakes 3

We tried this Cupid's Special (not sure about the name, but I'm sure there was a cupid there somewhere).
Cupid's Special Php104
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This has a Graham crust and creamy custard base. 
I think the cupcakes get pricier and pricier everytime I visit. 
It certainly has become an indulgence.

Almost Chelsea

Went to Serendra for lunch. We were supposed to eat at Chelsea, the main reason we went to Serendra even if there were not that many stores there yet. We were ushered inside, sat down, served water then was told that they didn't serve any real food for lunch. Only desserts. The earliest they could serve would be around 3pm since they were still in their soft opening stages. Well, we were starved (and it was only 12 then) so we decided that maybe we'd come back another day. Too bad! I was really pumped to try the Pastrami Melt, and the cakes didn't look bad either....

Thai at Silk

Been meaning to eat here for the longest time, but was only able to have the chance to do so last week. As I had expected, service was good. In fact, I think they were overstaffed. They were very very prompt in refilling my water glass and offering me rice when I was running low. It was as if they had their eyes glued on us. Spooky. Haha. Anyways, here's what we tried:

Tom Yum Kai Php190
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Our half consummed Tom Yum. Indeed the broth was good! Perfect sour/spicy/sweet combination. But what I liked even more was the generous serving of mushrooms! Hmmm. Perfect! This was described as chicken galangal in coconut creme soup. Good for 4 servings.

Mee Krawp Php330

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My heart beats faster with the thought of this dish. I have been looking for this dish in all Thai restaus I eat in. I first tried this way back in 2002 in L.A. and have never forgotten the dish. Imagine my surprise and excitement when I found this in the menu!!!!! Excited!!!! Ecstatic!!! This is basically crispy fried noodles with a sweet/sour tamarind sauce and some shrimps. The tamarind sauce was sooo good. As we say in the vernacular, "nag-aagaw ang tamis at asim" (sauce was bordering sweet and sour at the same time) and so it was really addicting. The noodles were also perfectly fried. Good for 4 servings too.

Panang Pla Kapong Yang Bai Tong Php360
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I could not resist. I took a bite before taking the picture. This is sole fish char-grilled in a banana leaf with perfumed panaeng curry. I didn't notice the fish that much, though  at the very least it tasted fresh but what caught my attention was the curry! I don't particularly like curry, but this version, I couldn't get enough of! I found myself scooping curry unto my rice (which was refillable Jasmine at Php60).

Will definitely come back for more of that Mee Krawp!

Funny thing I noticed, they translated the dishes ordered for the receipt. So the Tom Yum Kai became "Clear Chicken Soup", the Mee Krawp became "Crispy Fried Noodles"
and the Panang Pla Kapong Yang Bai Tang became "Sole Fish with Panaeng Curry." Makes sense 
though I guess. :)

Saturday, April 21, 2007

Becky's Kitchen

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Some of the blissful pastries I've tried from Becky's (and I do intend to try everything they offer mind you):

Brownies
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These are melt in your mouth bursts of yumminess! They are so soft and chocolatey! The walnuts are also very generously incorporated! yumm

Lemon Squares
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By far, Becky's Kitchen makes the best Lemon Squares. It's so tart to the point of being "sour" which is something I really look for in a lemon square. Something most bakeshops lack. This can be addicting, so watch out!

Prune Walnut Cake
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I had no idea prune could taste this good! wow! super yum! To be honest, had I not been told, I would never have guessed this was a prune cake. It was so rich and creamy! Even more addicting than the Lemon Squares! So double watch out!

Of the 3, I would recommend the Prune Walnut Cake the most.

Friday, April 20, 2007

Relaunched Domino's Pizza

I honestly thought the company had closed down here in the Phils. One day we decided to make a study on the company on why it had closed down, why it failed in the market. Boy were we shocked when we suddenly started to see posters/banners of Domino's Pizza all over the Metro. haha. Ironic much? Anyway, this is the Supremo Pizza
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and so far, this is all I've tried from their newly relaunched products. I think that its okay. Fairly priced, fair amount of toppings. The crust is quite chewy. Give it a try and you might actually like it. They also have so many promos right now, you might want to try those too! :)

Thursday, April 19, 2007

Movie I'm Loving Now: 300

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My favorite movie as of late. I am so loving this! And I'm quite sure that I am not alone, wherever I go, school, mall, park or party, I hear people talking about scenes from the movie, the characters and sometimes I even hear them chanting that infamous chant "Ahu ahu ahu" (I really don't know how else to spell that). It's a great movie. Really. I loved the effects, the story. I loved the characters most especially that of Leonidas. Not to mention he has an oh so cute butt! I also found the character of Xerxes very amusing. That overly tanned (goldened) gay-ish overdrawn eyebrowed monster. He was an effective antagonist in his own weird and disturbing way. 
Lastly, I liked the way the story was told. For those who still have not seen the movie (and I strongly suggest that you do), the movie is narrated by one of the '300'
quite matter of factly and unbiased.

Some questions that arose from discussions with friends:
1. In the scene where the Spartans were asked what their profession was, they answered "Ahu ahu ahu." So what does that mean?
2. Really funny that they use very modern dialogues/ punch lines in a very traditional/history based movie. For example "I'm just stretching my legs."
3. That bed scene.
4. The cool foretelling of the oracle.
5. And lastly, my friends and I all agree that the son of Leonidas' right hand man wouldn't have died had his father not distracted him/ called out to him or had his father been more alert to point out that there was enemy riding toward him.

There you have it. Man, if 300 sets of pure chiseled abs doesn't get you to watch this movie, then I don't know what will!

Danish cookies anyone? How about an authentic meal?

Hotel InterContinental Manila's Gambrinus Bar will be offering a DANISH Buffet from April 26-May 10 for both lunch and dinner. There will also be some interpretative readings of well loved Danish writer, Hans Christian Andersens's fairy tales. Ms. Pernille Harboe from Denmark is the mastermind of the dishes. Some of the promised authentic Danish cuisine to be served will be the turkey consomme with wild mushrooms, salmon au gratin with green asparagus and bay shrimps, roasted duckling Prince of Copenhagen (huh?), red cabbage, Frickadeller, Mermaid's Delight (salmon mousse) and The Ugly Duckling (intriguing!).

Lately, I've found myself interested in eating at restaus that serve cuisines from different countries. The other day we ate at an Australian Buffet, tomorrow we'll be eating all Malaysian and next week Danish! I'm eating by country! And it really is fun! So go try this buffet, there aren't that many chances to eat Danish you know.... It's priced at Php950++ probably plus tax and service charge.

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

OMG!!

Oh my gosh! Did you hear? Amici di Don Bosco will be closing soon! Oh my!! My gelato!!!..... I'm not sure if this is the real reason but I was told that it was closing because some people higher up in their order felt that the priests who were cooking were losing perspective of what it is they really should be doing. They've been so busines oriented that they lost track of their other (charitable) projects. Such sad news really. So, let's all head to Amici and grab our last few moments with the restau...

Monday, April 16, 2007

Brazil! Brazil!

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We had a reason to celebrate when we ate here. They actually have no food available for a la carte. When they handed me a menu, I thought they did but it turned out to be a verrry detailed drink menu. They had very limited choices in the buffet. One dish per kind of meat only. That night they had a salad, a white sauced pasta dish, steamed vegetables, rice, fish fillet and a chicken dish. They also had several salads like the classic
potato salad, fruit salad and waldorf salad. The star of the buffet though are the CHURRASCOS. That's what Brazilian food is basically all about. The waiters go around the tables serving skewers of their different meats. We of course tried each and everyone of them. There was the:

beef loin- lean
beef hanging tender- a bit musty in taste
beef brisket-it tasted great but it was so fatty!
chicken thigh-great marinade. my fave of among all that was served
lamb- this was good also. the mint jelly (they had 2 variants) was really very complimentary to the basting they used on the roast
pork belly-really rich
pork loin-fatty
sausages-
corn on the cob- great palette cleaner
bananas- who knew roaste bananas would taste this good?
pineapples- i really liked this. brought out the true sweetness of the pineapples

There was a yoyo placed in our table which had a red and green side. If the green side was up, that meant keep the food coming. Naturally, the red side meant stop.
It was a great dining experience. I'm just not so sure if it was worth the price tag. :)

Marina

I have a relative who asks to eat at Marina Seafood Restaurant everytime she's in town. On her last visit, these were what we had. (Note: there were only 4 of us eating at the time.)

Green Mango Salad
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I don't know how this can be made special tasting.

Shrimp Sinigang
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The soup was sour.

Kilawin
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This was fish.

Beef Kare Kare
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Bad move. Yes it was beef but all fatty parts!!!! grrr.... Totally did not enjoy this.

Chicken Skin
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Leche Flan and Buko Salad

Cheap eats for a balikbayan. Hehe.

Italliani's 3

Ate here because my sister was craving for the pizza. I'm not really a big fan of the place though. Here are what we got.

Stuffed Mushrooms
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Oven roasted mushroom caps stuffed with sausage, spinach, herbs and 3 Italian cheeses. This was good though I found it to be way expensive for its serving size.

Sicilian Chicken Salad
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Diced chicken breast, mangoes, ripe red grapes with pine nut tossed in creamy lemon dijon dressing in Romain lettuce. This was good as always. For some reason, when I try to recreate this at home, it always turns up not as good.

Salmon Pizza with Dill Cream Sauce
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Salmon pizza with gorgonzola dill cream
sauce and Philadelphia cream cheese baked topped with sliced of
 smoked salmon and thinly sliced onions.

Grape Shake
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Yummy. Steep price though.

Cena 2

Really good place to wind down and have some desserts.

Arctic Mud Pie Php195
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Described as caramel and chocolate sauces layered between vanilla and chocolate ice cream encased in an oreo cookie dome. This is the bestest!!!!! cake/dessert I have ever had!!!! Everybody loved it! It's basically an Oreo crusted dome with vanilla ice cream as filling. This was so addicting! And surprisingly, the ice cream inside didn't melt that fast. This was heaven in every bite.

Creme Brulee Php55
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Described as cofee cream custard topped with caramelized sugar. Had a strong coffee like taste. Quite satisfying even if it was small.


Gin Pomelo Php160
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Refreshing.

Mandarin Orange Frozen Margarita Php250
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To top it all off, they have live bands singing every night. You can even request songs.

Ristorante Italiano Capricciosa 3

Had my birthday celebration here. I love love this restaurant! For their food, for the service, the ambiance, the price! This place is relatively cheap considering the size of the servings! I love this place so much! My personal goal is to try everything in their menu! That night we had:

Calamare Salad Php 270
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As I had said before, this was good. I love squid now because of this dish! :)

Capricciosa Pizza Php 430
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Has bacon, pepperoni, mushrooms and bellpepper. This was good and light.

Margherita Pizza Php 430
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Has tomato, cheese and basil. This too felt light. Of the two pizzas we had, I liked this more.

Seafood Spaghetti Php310/ 570
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This is the best seafood pasta ever. You have to try this! It's a bit spicy but that's okay because it masks the fishy taste of the seafood, if any. This pasta can be so addicting!

Shrimp and Spinach Gratin with Rigatoni in Cream Sauce Php 495
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This was delectable. Addicting too! And oh so creamy! We all loved this one so much. The portion was very generous and so were the FRESH shrimps!

Gerry's Grill

Though I don't like the food nor the ambience here, it really is still a good place for large parties and merry drinking. A friend celebrated his birthday there recently and these were what we got:

Chopsuey Php140
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This was really plain and a tad bit salty.

Crispy Para Php 385
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Pork pork and more pork.

Inihaw na Manok Php195
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I didn't like this because it was undercooked.

Inihaw na Pusit Php 58/100g
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Didn't taste this.

Pork Sisig Php155
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Oriental Sashimi
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Sansrival Php75
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In fairness, this was good.

Brownie ala Mode Php 95
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Dalandan Margarita Php85

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Beer Bong
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