Chef's Quarter - Megamall Branch

One of the occasions I look forward to each year is the celebration of our birthday. My beau’s birthday is on the 11th. This year, aside from the usual simple celebration at home on the 11th and 13th, we decided to eat out with some friends we now seldom see. 

They’re based in Pampanga and Bataan so they’ve come a long way just to be with us on our birthday and they even bothered to buy us cake. ^___^

It was our first time at Chef’s Quarter so we didn’t know that we’d be paying corkage if we eat the cake in their restaurant because their menu includes cakes.

I’m glad the waiter had the courtesy to inform us prior to ordering though. I would have been outraged if he didn’t and shocked us with a corkage fee on our bill.

THE FOOD

We ordered rice [P40] but we still ordered more carbs in the form of Penne Carbonara [P395]

The pasta was cooked perfectly, and the sauce was just the right amount – not too dry, not too saucy.I’m also not a fan of greens so I feel that there was too much basil.

I loved the Fish Fillet Meniere [P495]. It was overflowing with creamy mushroom sauce and served with whole potatoes (which I adore) and greens (which I don’t :p)

The Chef’s Quarter Steak [P595] was one of my favorites. Spell meat lover. ;) We had it medium-well and I think they did just the right technique to achieve the kind of texture we were looking for.

The St. Louis Pork Ribs [P550] made us wonder how long exactly they boiled the ribs to attain that kind of softness. We didn’t even need a knife to slice through the meat; it was literally falling off the bone with a slight poke from our fork. And the taste was just divine, complimented by the thick and flavorful sauce! Definitely the highlight of the meal!

For our drinks, we ordered various shakes (Apple, Banana, Ripe Mango) [P110]. Also Bottomless Iced Tea [P95], Dalandan Juice [P65] and Lemon juice [P50]. I went for the Banana shake which was OK but a little bland. I also expected a more sophisticated look to the glass. :p

Going back to the place? Maybe for the Pork ribs and to try their cakes too. :)

Service charge: 10% P275.44Approximately P420 per head

Verdict:

Ambiance: 4

Service: 3

Price: 3

Taste: 4

Overall:  3.5

Level 3 Atrium, SM Megamall

Mandaluyong

(02) 401 3658

Facebook page

Asia Food Recipe

On my spare time, I enjoy surfing the net and often times I would come across giveaways which appear alluring sometimes because of the prize, other times simply due to how it was presented.

This is how I first came across Asia Food Recipe. There are times when after entering a giveaway, you just tend to forget about it once the contest is over. Other times, I would end up disliking the page. This is not the case with Asia Food Recipe however.

I wanted to keep the thumps up because the page was something I’m actually interested in – food, food recipe”, “cooking recipe” and giveaways. J

As of writing, they have reached 123,433 followers and I’m pretty sure this number is yet to blow up.

If you visit their website, it’s probably one of the cutest and adorable website you’ll see with ‘happiness’ just painted all over the place.

It has tabs for Recipes, Articles and Crafts. The recipes are categorized according to course orders, main ingredient, occasion and even dietary consideration! It’s my first time seeing such grouping which I think is really comprehensive and smart.

Another thing I love about the website is the crafts section where you can download printables for different occasions. J

Under ‘Birthdays’ for example, you can print invitation cards and envelopes, milk boxes, party hats, cupcake wrappers, prize ribbons and thank you cards! How cool is that?

On another note, if you’re looking for something fun to watch or scouting on cool Do-It-Yourself stuff and exciting recipes, you should really visit and subscribe to their you tube channel.

They have a selection of featured playlists which includes giveaways, recipes, cooking tips, bento dish ideas and much more! I’m sure you wouldn’t notice how much time has passed by because you’re just glued to your seats watching their videos.

If haven’t, you should visit their page right now!

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube Channel

Asia Food Recipe

And be social. Share! J

Dads Kamayan Saisaki - a nippy post

Glorietta 3

2/F Glorietta 3, North Drive

Ayala Center, Makati

(02) 892-8897 to 98

Since my family is based in Leyte while I work here in Manila, I seldom see them. So when my father suddenly texted that he’d be here the next day and would love to take us for a quick dinner, I instantly said yes! I picked up my sister from UP the next day and we headed to Prince Plaza Hotel where my dad was staying.

My father wanted to treat us to an eat-all-you-can for the reason that we seldom eat together so might as well eat a lot while we’re together. My dad is such a funny man. J

He chose the Ultimate Buffet at Dads Kamayan Saisaki.

I’m posting their menu here as I was too engrossed at eating that I missed taking down what the dishes were called. :p

But trust me, everything we tried was delicious! I only hope we could have stayed a lot longer to have tried so much more than what we were able to. For now, I hope these photos serve as a feast for your eyes.

  

Beyond the joy of delicious food though, what I cherish more is the time we spent with our dad. Nothing beats having crazy conversations with people you love. And I’m thankful that Dad’s offered such a great ambiance for great conversations.

Verdict:

Ambiance: 5

Service: 5

Price: 4

Taste: 5

Overall:  5

Spending: ~P700/head

Kinabuchs Grill and Bar

369 Rizal Avenue, Puerto Princesa City,

Palawan, Philippines

After our day 2 tour in Palawan, we dropped off at Kinabuchs to try out Tamilok which our tour guide insisted we try.

Ambiance-wise, the place looked more crowd-friendly than romantic. I liked the giant screen they had which at that time was showing a sports game. I used to imagine these giant screens as only seen in restaurants catering foreigners.

I also loved the colorful and exciting look of the bar which displayed an array of liquors. At the top was a surprising life-size motorcycle! Whoever thought of putting that there is both crazy (in a good way) and hilarious!

Service-wise, the crew was friendly and accommodating. One of the waitresses even cared to explain the difference between the classic Tamilok and fried one. She laughed with at us and with us when she saw our expressions once we tried the dish. She also shared that it is best eaten after meal so we ordered another dish first.

If you’ve read my latest blog you’d know that my beau is fond of Teriyaki. So like in Haim Chicken Inato, the other restaurant we’ve visited here in Palawan, he also ordered Teriyaki, this time, Chicken Teriyaki [P155] (Marinated chicken skillet w/ Kinabuch’s very own teriyaki sauce).

It was served on sizzling plate so you can see the gorgeous smoke. The chicken meat was so tender and the sauce was just the perfect consistency and flavor.

After a while we asked for the Tamilok (Special wood-worm mollusk ceviche.) to be served. We chose the classic recipe [P135] instead of the breaded one [P130].

Earlier that day, our tour guide didn’t stop telling us how famous the dish is and how good it tastes.

But as you can see by the look on our faces, we weren’t that delighted. I found it hard to chew and swallow because they were gummy and too long. I also disliked the smell of sea on it.

But, it wasn’t such a bad experience, thanks to their house blend tea which was our saving grace. Thank God it was delicious or I wouldn’t have survived without puking.

Still, as a tourist, I still am proud and glad to have at least tried it. And I’d still recommend others to try it for themselves too.

Verdict:

Ambiance: 4

Service: 5

Price: 4

Taste: 3

Overall:  4

  

Spending: ~P200/head

Haim Chicken Inato

294 Manalo Extension Puerto Princesa City,

5300 Palawan, Philippines

(048) 433 2261/ 09298174055

My beau and I went to Palawan last September. This was our first trip together and my first time in Palawan. On our first day, we wanted have lunch at the famous Kalui restaurant but it was closed so we let our tricycle driver bring us to a restaurant he recommended, Hains Chicken Inato.

Before even settling down, we already had fun taking pictures with the face-in-the-hole boards.

The place was really spacious, with lots of mini kubo with about 10 seating capacity. There were others much larger which could serve up to 50 or more people and has KTV set up.

While waiting for our food we had fun viewing the paintings hung all over the kubo, some of which even had little fun facts about the featured places.

I also appreciate how they value cleanliness – the utensils all looked clean and the entire place was tidy.

They also had this cute wash area where the water came out of what looked like a ‘banga’ (pot).

THE FOOD

I ordered Inafish Tuna [P90] (w/ atsara, pipino, tomato and rice) because of the interesting name. Given that I was in Palawan, I expected the food to really be fresh, and mine tasted exactly as I expected! The meat was tender and juicy and you could still smell the freshness. The atsara, pipino and tomato were also perfect addition to the dish, making me imagine I was by the beach eating with my bare hands.

The beau of mine, being a fan of anything teriyaki ordered Fish Fillet Teriyaki [P175] which turned out to be a very large serving! We never thought we could eat it all up but we actually did. J The fish was just so tender on the inside and crispy on the outside that we couldn’t help but enjoy every bit of it. The teriyaki sauce was nothing less than what we wanted it to be. It was such a delight consuming everything!

To cap off the meal we had for ourselves some Mango Shake [P70] and Avocado Shake [P70] which were obviously prepared with love. J It wasn’t the usual commercial shake that was 9 parts ice plus sugar and 1 part fruit.

Verdict:

Ambiance: 5

Service: 5

Price: 4

Taste: 5

Overall:  5

Spending: P200/head