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“Worthless people live only to eat and drink; people of worth eat and drink only to live.”
- Socrates

The next grub place we want to blabber about is not really something "new" and we've been frequenting this place since even before we became officially a couple. We even treated friends here for O's birthday about three years ago. But saving the best for last, the next few articles capping our Project 12x2-1 would be our own personal favorites.

Ang Pasakalye:

We pity the 'uncool' who never dined or, at the least, knew or heard about Mister Kabab.

From that humble shack along the West Ave. - Quezon Ave. intersection to its current and superficially better place further down the West Avenue stretch, the Persian resto has always been one of our lamon-place of choice. Walang panahon na hindi namin ikinekwento ito kapag kainan ang pinag-uusapan. Para sa amin, harboring info about the existence of this place from your friends is a crime punishable by eternal craving.

menu

As mentioned, Mister Kabab is along West Avenue in QC. Kung galing EDSA then turning right into the avenue, nasa kaliwa ang Mister Kabab, just past Col. Martinez street. May katabi itong talyer at eskinita.

Ang Inupakan:

• ox brain
• chelo kabab
• chicken liver stick and dish
• shawarma plate
• pita bread
• lamb korma
• yoghurt shake

braiiiinzzz!!!

Palaging out of stock ang ox brain nila pero on our latest return-of-the-come-back doon, naka swerte kami't meron! Lasang yellow ng balut ang ox brain. Medyo mas rich lang ang lasa ng balut ng konti. Trip namin na nilalagyan ng malupit na garlic sauce ito. It also comes with calamansi, pampatanggal ng lansa.

sikret weapon

Chelo kabab ang secret weapon nila. Ang pinaka sikat sa menu. Dalawang skewered meat (may option for chicken or beef), grilled and topped with rice (topped with butter) at inihaw na kamatis (na hindi kumakain si O). Pwedeng papalitan ang rice ng pita bread.

Hindi namin alam kung anong meron sa kanilang kabab pero sobrang nakaka-adik in combo with their equally addictive garlic sauce. It tastes smokey at kung minsan ay makunat, pero patok pa din sa amin.

Yung liver stick ay inihaw na atay habang ang liver dish naman ay yung sinabawan na version neto. May sauce ito na parang sa korma (malabnaw na curry). Gusto namin yung luto ng atay, eksakto lang para hindi maging mapait at hindi din undercooked. Get the liver dish over the liver stick.

plato ng shawarma

Shawarma plate is as it is, shawarma beef na nakalagay sa platong may chopped kamatis, pipino, at sibuyas. Pita bread is served separately, with the aim of having you create your own shawarma wrap. Although, frankly, we think the ingredients can make TWO shawarmas... for the price of one!

extra pita

We have no idea how an authentic korma should taste or if we, in our several visits on grub places around the metro, have already tasted one, but their lamb korma is creamy enough, flavorful enough, and spicy enough for us to warrant a thumbs up. Malambot ang lamb at chewy. When Mister Kabab was featured on TV, they claimed their cook is Persian (no idea if he was cooking there regularly) so their korma might be authentic anyway. In any case, it's worth trying.

yoghurt shake

O's not a fan of yoghurt shakes. Si K ang nag-order nito at masarap naman daw.

garlic sauce of adik doom

On each table is a canister full of garlic sauce at hot sauce. Yung garlic sauce ang sobrang patok! Up-to-sawa pa. Parang nilalagyan nila ito ng drugs kasi nakaka-adik, LOL! Binabalik-balikan ito at personally, malaking factor yun kung bakit patok ang lugar. Sinasabaw namin ito sa kanin. So so lang yung hot sauce. Not really that hot, kaya medyo kelangan damihan.

Mga Chechebureche:

Maraming options sa menu pero ang kelangan lang na mandatory matikman ay ang mga kababs nila at shawarma. Most nung mga ibang ulam ay pa unti-unti naming sinusubukan habang bumabalik-balik kami sa kanila para kumain. So far ox brain at korma ang nasa top ng list.

hangin hangin

Open air yung lugar pero hindi naman mainit. Punong puno ng ceiling fan at tuloy tuloy ang daloy ng hangin. Never mind the interiors, it's not much in our opinion. Ang mahalaga kumportable naman ang pakiramdam kapag nasa loob. Wala silang individual na upuan but instead used long wooden stools. Parang sosi na karinderya ang experience. 

waitress galore

Gadami ng mga waitress! Napaghandaan nila ng husto ang sandamakmak na customers na pumipila sa kanila araw-araw (lalo na pag holidays at sa gabi). Speaking of, on most cases, may pila laging pagdadaanan bago makakain dito. Ganun kadami ang customers. At partida, their new location is almost twice the size of their old place already pero napupuno pa din. Ganun sila kasikat.

Kaching!:

Price range is at P80 to P140 lang.

Sobrang mura for the food they offer. We can rave all day about how people would go back for the food but it will always boils down to the relative cheapness of their prices as one of the main reasons.

At around 180 buckers, gagapang ka na palabas ng Mister Kabab sa kabusugan. Chelo kabab na yun at good serving ng inihaw na atay or shawarma plate. Nom nom!

hello. i am mister kabab!

Update: Nasa P130 to P180 na ngayon (2015) ang average fare ng isang kain sa Mister Kabab at mura pa din ito all things considered.

Ang Hatol:

A good majority of those who've tried this place will swear by it. At parang laos ang pakiramdam kung hindi masusubukang kumain dito while people around you are talking about it with gusto.

Until now, several years after we first tried eating here, bumabalik pa din kami regularly at laman pa din siya ng aming cravings.

Update: Fast forward to 2015. Same thing. Pabalik balik pa din kami dito whenever we can at from time to time, nagke-crave pa din kami sa kabab nila. Nagkaroon na din sila ng mga branches (kumikitang kabuhayan) at dayuhin pa din hanggang ngayon. 

Rating:
7 out of 7


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We are indeed much more than what we eat, but what we eat can nevertheless help us to be much more than what we are.
- Adelle Davis

Nung birthday ni K, baligtad. Ako ang sinurpresa niya with a lunch date. And surprised I was! With a feast waiting for us at Vikings Luxury Buffet.

lamang lang sya sa buhok sa ulo

Unang Hirit:

It's just a couple of months ago that we kept on hearing raves about this new buffet resto in town. So much, that curiosity requires us to schedule a visit someday. But alas, the Misis beat me to it.

She did the reservation way ahead of time. And from what we heard, medyo mahirap talaga magpa-sched ng reservation dito especially on weekend nights dahil sa dami ng patrons. We visited on a weekday kaya medyo moderate lang yung amount ng customers.

peaceful on a weekend lunch

Vikings is located along the commercial strip of Seaside Boulevard sa Mall of Asia (eto yung likod ng MOA na katabi na ng pampang). Kung naka-harap sa MOA, take the right side of the boulevard. Tapos diretso lang hanggang sa dulo. Vikings should be the last establishment on that area. Lampas pa ng Hooters.

Pag-pasok pa lang namin, we are immediately seen to our table and the chow begins!

Roooound one! Fight!

Ang Chicha:

• chawan mushi
• dimsum
• tempura (many)
• various maki and sushi
• Japanese fried rice (some)
• steamed veggies
• various chicken dishes
• various beef dishes
• various pork dishes
• steamed shrimp (tons)
• baked oyster
• grilled squid
• grilled beef tenderloin
• beef kebab
• grilled sausage
• cold cuts
• crackers with white cheese
• DIY salad
• mango
• carrot cake
• chocolate cake
• sari-saring kakanin
• cox
• kape

So many food, we don't know where to start.

salad bar

We can't begin to imagine how many combination of salad ingredients and dressings are there but the options are endless. Para saken ang ginawa ko ay egg bits, variety of greenies, bacon bits, corn, at carrots strips on honey mustard dressing. Mukang fresh naman lahat. Andito din sa area na ito ang mga tinapay, spreads, at soup.

sandamakmak na hipon

Tons of cold shrimp. Sa sobrang fresh andaling tanggalan ng balat kahit naka kubyertos lang.

sushi bar

Andami ding options ng maki at sushi. Di ko trip kumain neto pero mukang nag-enjoy naman si K sa mga pinili niya. Nakaka-aliw lang yung iba't ibang kulay.

pasta area

our first plates

Maganda yung mix ng main course options. May Asian at may Western dishes, and among those we've tried, wala namang disappointing. A special nod on their lemon chicken. Gusto namin eto kasi hindi O.A. yung tamis compared to those we had on other restos.

seafood tray

There's a wide choice of fresh seafood to pick. Pumili lang kami ng gusto namin tapos iluluto na nila. No need to wait. Just give the table number and it will be delivered.

give me my tempura

Tuloy tuloy ang luto ng tempura dahil isa ito sa mga mabilis maubos.

pana cotta, mousse, and cake

more sweets

Name your sweets and they got it. Gusto kong gumulong sa tsokolate sa tuwa dahil andami daming desert!

grilled meat

May isang section ng grilled meat and fish. Patok sa amin yung kabab at sausages. Tamang tama lang ang pagka smokey ng lasa. On one of its corner makikita yung meat grill. Pwedeng bigyan ng instructions yung cook on how you want your meat prepared. At andami ding sauce to choose from. We went for the US-grade beef... medium in red wine sauce. Nom nom!

baked oyster

Other food stations to choose from:

• Chinese food
• Japanese food (masarap yung mga Yakitori)
• Thai food
• Hot pot (shabu shabu)
• Pizza and pasta
• Yogurt and ice cream bar!! (Tip: Go grab some scoops then splash it with fruits from the...)
• Fruit bar
• Beverages (Pwede magpagawa ng fruit shakes. At may draft beer!)

Mga Chechebureche:

"A feast from the sea" ang tagline nila and boy it was a feast! Andaaaming choices (and no, hindi lang sa seafoods). The most dishes we've had in a buffet so far (next to Yakimix and this dinner we've had at the Heritage). Ang nagustuhan namin ay tuloy-tuloy ang refill nila ng ulam. Almost hindi nababakante yung mga putahe. May presence of mind sila na tignan kung ano yung mga ulam na dapat nang i-refill.

we want that headgear

Medyo strategically located din kasi yung kitchen nila. Most of the food stations are ringed around the cooking areas. This, plus the number of crew and waiters (which is a LOT!) manning the dining area, should be enough to monitor the food trays regularly.

octopus

Una naming napansin ay mabigat ang kubyertos. Hindi sila nag-tipid sa bakal. LOL. We don't mind really, pero nakakangalay din pag nagtagal.

Ang ganda ng interiors ng resto. There are hints of a seafaring theme to it as befits the place's name. Napaka elegant ng mga muwebles and sobrang comfy ng couches. Malinis yung lugar... or at least, it looks like it. Medyo sumabit kasi ng konti when across from our table, we saw a small roach creeping out of a wooden panel. Sa likod ito ng sushi and maki area. Tinuro na lang namin sa isang dumadaan na waiter, who immediately disposed it off... by hand! Angas.

where the lady in black is, dyan lumabas yun ipis

Mabilis and attentive yung mga staff. Ang bilis nila mag-ligpit ng mga wares sa lamesa namin na hindi na kelangan. Pag kuha namin ng pagkain, wala na agad yung mga used plates namin pag balik sa lamesa.

As we mentioned earlier, may kahirapan magpa-reserve. Hindi dahil mabagal yung sistema nila, kundi dahil sa dami ng customers na nagpapa-sched. So we suggest to call for a reservation way ahead of time o kaya weekday lunch na lang pumunta. Kung dinner weekend, asa pa na makapag walk-in.

Kaching!:

Hindi mura dito.

At hindi rin dapat mag expect na mura. Dahil sa quality ng pagkain at sa ganda ng lugar at sa pagka-sulit ng serbisyo, hindi talaga dapat mura ang kumain dito.

Weekday lunch is at around P700+ and dinner is a couple of kesos more expensive. Weekend lunch and dinner is at P1000+.

introductory rate

Get ahold of their current promo kung merong may birthday sa pamilya. The celebrant is free of charge. As in! Promo lasts until December 7.

Nakalagay sa price board nila na introductory rates pa lang yung mga presyo. Ibig sabihin ba nito ay tataas pa ang presyo ng pagkain? Abangan!

Update: It's 2015 and the price actually didn't change much after 4 years. Weekday lunch is still about P700 while weekday dinner is about P900. Weekend lunch and dinner is still P1000. The birthday promo has been there ever since. I think tinanggal nila once on 2012 but it was reinstated din after a couple of months lang.

Ang Hatol:

Kung may masusunog na pera at gustong magpaka-bundat, Vikings is a must try. Experience ang kumain dito at hindi lang basta pang tawid gutom. And why not, the price entails it to be so.

Babalik kami dito... hangga't may ipong maaaring gastusin at pangyayaring dapat i-celebrate!

Update: Fast forward to 2015, madaming beses na kaming nakapag Vikings at nagsulputan na parang kabute ang branches nila sa Metro. Naging go-to buffet resto namin ito kapag may mga birthdays sa family at naging memorable na sa amin ang particular na branch na ito (MOA) dahil dito na din ako nag propose kay K during my birthday back on 2012.

Rating:
7 out of 7

her gift

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All food tastes good to the starving man's mouth.
– Lin Yutang, 'My Country and My People'

It was a payday Friday and all of the grub spots around the area was full to the brim. Gutom na gutom na kami at pang lima pa sa waiting list ng isang resto at pang labing-isa naman sa isa pa. Lumalalim na ang gabi. Kahit sa foodcourt jampacked.

Without much choice, we chanced on a place we never even cared to consider stepping into before - Luk Yuen.

Unang Hirit:
Luk Yuen in Glorietta 5 is on the outside of the premise along the roundabout lane where North Park, Starbucks, Bo's Coffee, and Yellow Cab are.

Luk Yuen - Glo 5

Frankly, we see it as just another typical Chinese resto similar to David's Tea House or Hap Chan. Kaya ang iniisip namin, why bother to try it kung ilang hakbang lang may North Park na which offers better options. That night changed our opinion. In fact, at the time of writing this (which is a month late!), nakaka-tatlong balik na kami sa Luk Yuen.

my side of the table

We decided to stay despite the waiting list. Pang-apat na naman din kami at mabilis ang turn around ng customers. Hindi nag-tagal ng mahigit sampung minuto at naka-upo na kami. Kudos kay Manong Guard na malupit na binantayan yung listahan niya ng pila.

Update: Fast forward to 2015. Lumipat na ang Luk Yuen - Glorietta 5 into a bigger venue inside the main Glorietta building. It's right after the bridge way connecting Glorietta to Landmark. Hanggang ngayon suki pa din kami dito at isa sila sa mga go-to food places namin kapag dinner after work.

Ang Kinain:

• Beef Brisket
• Ravioli Noodles
• Dumplings in Hot Chili
• Fried Noodles with Shredded Pork
• Shanghai Buns
• Beef with Brocolli
• Yang Chow Fried Rice
• House Tea

beef brisket

Nothing special on their beef brisket kundi yung lalagyang bowl. Naka tilt ito diagonally sa isang side. Ang kulit. Yung beef brisket halos kalasa lang ng sa Chowking.

shrimp-stuffed ravioli

Yung ravioli noodles ay noodle soup na may limang ravioli dimsum. Hindi gaanong malasa yung sabaw nito pero sulit yung presyo para sa laki nung servings.

patok sa amin yung sauce neto

Dumpings in hot chili nila ang di namin inaasahan na patok. It's basically eight pork and kuchay dumplings dipped in chili soy sauce. Ang sarap ng timpla nung toyo. Sobrang malasa at bagay sa dumplings. And again, mura yung presyo neto para sa dami ng servings kaya good buy.

ubos na bago naalalang piktyuran

Parang crispy noodles ng North Park yung Fried Noodles with Shredded Pork. Dry noodles ito na tinimplahang pork broth at sahog na gulay. Unti-unting hinahalo yung noodles sa malagkit na sabaw hanggang sa lumambot yung mga strands para makain. Masarap naman yung timpla nung sabaw concoction nila.

shanghai buns with asado sauce

Typical na bola-bola siopao yung Shanghai Buns. Pinaganda lang yung pangalan. Pero yung lasa at itsura ganun din. Medyo mukang may chopped veggies lang yung loob nung meatball.

beef with broccoli

Beef with broccoli tastes good. Again, it's typically the same with most Chinese resto. Gusto namin yung butterfly-shaped carrot na garnish. Aliw.

Yung yang chow fried rice is a bit overcrowded with green peas pero patok pa din naman yung lasa and it looks and tastes as how it should be. Good for two ang isang serving.

Mga Chechebureche:

Andami ng pagkain sa menu. Most of them ay common nang offerings sa mga Chinese food places pero madami pa din namang never-heard pa namin before at mukang interesting.

menu

Ang angat sa kanila against the usual Chinese resto of their league is their dimsums. Hindi sila madamot sa servings. Malaki yung sizes ng dimsum at madami at masarap para sa price. Eto ang nakikita naming babalik-balikan dito.

Maasikaso yung mga staff at bihira na hindi kami mapansin kapag may kailangan kaming hingiin. Medyo mabagal lang sila magligpit ng mga pinagkainan ng mga umalis na patrons. Pero hindi na namin problema yun. Ang mahalaga mabilis kaming naka-upo.

nice place

Kaching!:

Price range is at P90 to P180.

As we mentioned, mura ito dahil madami ang servings nila at nothing to scoff at ang lasa ng most dishes we tried so far. Dahil dito, mas advisable kung may ka-share sa ulam... the cheaper it will get while being able to try more dishes. Most of it serves two.

Update: After the move to a bigger and more classy place inside Glorietta 2, nagmahal ang mga food items nila. It is now around P180 to P250 range. Madami pa din namang items na mura in relation to the amount of serving and the taste so this time, kailangan lang ma-identify kung ano ang mga ito and stick with those orders. Ganun kami ngayon ni K kada balik namin dito. Halos automatic na ang orders namin which is mostly one dimsum plate and one rice meal.

Ang Hatol:

It's a good place to load on good food and still pay cheaper than usual or compared to similar establishments.

Magiging balik-balik place na namin ito when we crave for dimsums for sure.

aftermath

Rating:
6 out of 7



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It's so beautifully arranged on the plate — you know someone's fingers have been all over it.
- Julia Childs

An unplanned foodhunt brought us one OT-night at a nearby ElarZ branch here in Makati.

Ang Pasakalye:
ElarZ Lechon (yup, that's how they actually spell it) prided itself as the Pambansang Lechon. Obviously, they serve lechon and other roasted goodies on top of the typical Filipino dishes like tilapia, dinuguan, sinigang, and caldereta to name a few.

pili pili

They recently opened this branch along Dela Rosa Street in Makati, just across Perea Street (where Mom and Tina's is). Doon kami napadpad, para masampolan lang yung mga pagkain nila. Ang dami na din namin kasing nakitang branches nito na nagsulputang bigla around the metro.

Ang Kinain:

• Dinuguan
• Lechon
• Lumpiang Ubod
• Libreng Sabaw

lechon dinuguan

Nothing special on their dinuguan. Unless matatawag mong ispesyal yung walang masyadong sahog na karne ng baboy dahil panay isaw (o balat, o twalya, o kung ano man yung ginamit nilang sahog na yun na sigurado kaming hindi karne ng baboy). Masarap yung sauce though.

Pahabol: Supposedly, dinuguan lechon pala iyon. Wala kaming natikman na lechon whatsoever. LOL.

crappy shot ng lumpia aftermath

Okay sana yung lumpiang ubod, kaso makapal yung wrap. Masarap na sana yung sauce eh kahit madaming budbod ng mani. Hindi rin naman kulang sa laman. Nakakabusog lang talaga dahil sa kapal ng wrap.

Ansama ng lasa nung libreng sabaw. We know not to expect anything spectacular sa mga libreng sabaw ng mga gentong fastfood. Pero sana man lang kahit sa sabaw ay makapag bigay sila ng magandang kaledad. Hindi kasi maipaliwanag yung lasa. Matabang na parang pinag lubluban ng hilaw na baboy. Napangibit kami sa "uniqueness" ng lasa.

forget the sabaw

Inihuli namin yung lechon kasi ito yung supposed specialty nila. We're greatly disappointed. Una, mahal siya dahil sa P130+, kakarampot lang yung servings. Isang platito to be exact. Tapos panay taba pa. Tapos matabang pa. Parang matagal nang naka stock. Redeeming factor na lang na malutong pa din yung balat kahit most likely hindi na ito bagong luto.

To defend them (or at least to try to make sense about it), gabi na kami kumain doon (around 8:30-ish). So malamang tira tira na lang ng lechon yung napag-abutan namin. Still, it's disappointing for a "lechon resto".

Ibang Chechebureche:

Madaming pagpipilian sa kanilang menu. As we mentioned earlier, mostly Pinoy dishes. Fast food type ang setup so pay-as-you-order at madaming combo meal choices.

Nothing much to expect about the environment. Pag tama ng gabi, ginagawa siyang inuman ng mga manginginom na empleyado sa mga karatig opisina. So the place can get noisy. Not that we really mind it.

The waiters are attentive and generally accomodating.

Bago namin pala tapusin ito, kelangan lang talaga banggitin ito... napaka jejemon ng "ElarZ Lechon" for a name. We read somewhere that it's an amalgam of the pioneers' names so there must be some sentimental reasons about it. We don't mean to disrespect but really? ElarZ Lechon?

Kaching!:

They used the catch phrase "lechon by the kilo" because their lechon can be bought piece meal. Supposedly, dapat maka-mura ang mga kustomer sa ganitong scheme. With the quality that we sampled though, parang lugi pa for the price.

We feel cheated, really. May nabibilhan kami ng lechon sa jollijeep malapit sa office na mas masarap AT mas mura. My point being, we won't complain if it's really dirt cheap. Kaso hindi.

Price range of the food is at P130 to P200.

Update: Fast forward to 2015, average price per kain na sa kanila ay P160 at wala na sa Dela Rosa yung branch na ito.

Ang Hatol:

Hindi kami nabusog sa kinain namin. Gusto namin sana bumalik sa ibang araw para tikman yung ibang pagkain nila pero traumatic yung unang experience.

We just want to think na mali lang yung timing ng pag punta namin (gabi na at baka malamig na ang mga pagkain). But that's just giving it way too much credit.

Rating:
2.5 out of 7



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Hunger is the best sauce in the world.
- Cervantes

Trying out 101 Hawker Food House is a unanimous call to be our next food spotting trip after we saw it this one time we are passing by the Buendia-Ayala corner. Sakto naman na pumunta kami sa Makati Med recently kaya pinilit namin mag-hapunan dito kahit maaga pa for actual dinner.

101

Pasakalye:

Sabi ni K, na-feature na daw ito sa TV. Kaya nung una naming nakita ito, sinama na namin agad sa listahan ng mga dapat namin makainan.

The place is located along a strip of hole-in-the-wall eateries along Urban Avenue. Kung nasa main entrance ng Makati Med facing Buendia, just take the road going to Buendia then take the first left-turn (may Mercury Drug sa kanto). That should be Urban Avenue, and 101 should be on the left side of the road.

andaming choices

Singaporean food ang binebenta nila, particularly yung hawker-type o yung nakikita sa mga food court.

Chicha:

• Thai Bagoong Rice
• Kung Pao Chicken
• Char Kway Teow
• Lemonade
• Milo Dinosaur
• Pandan Pudding

Thai bagoong rice

Gustong gusto namin yung pagka-alat nung bagoong rice. Yung strips ng hilaw na mangga, adds a contrasting asim flavor. Actually, hindi namin malasahan kung nasan yung bagoong. But it works for us, dahil hindi naman kami mahilig dito. Baka iba lang ang lasa ng Thai bagoong sa hinahanap naming lasa ng Pinoy bagoong. For all we know, baka yun na yung nalalasahan namin na maalat. In any case, we liked it. Kanin pa lang ulam na. It has pork strips to boot.

Kung Pao chicken

Panalo yung kung pao chicken. Tamis anghang ang lasa ng marinade (but more on the sweet part), which is slathered over breaded fried chicken. It's around 6 or 7 small pieces of chicken. Most Western-version of the dish has ground peanuts deep-fried with it. Buti itong kanila, wala. Hindi ako kumakain ng mani!

Ang reklamo lang namin dito ay medyo mabuto yung chicken parts na ginamit. Not sure if it's always like that pero mas masarap sana kung mas madaming laman kesa buto.

Char Kway Teow

Nothing special from the char kway teow. For a supposedly flavorful food, matabang ang luto ng sa kanila. Hindi man lang maanghang to expect the least. Mura ito though, compared sa most char kway teow na sinubukan namin. Pero sana hindi ito ang rason to skimp on the food's quality.

lemonade

Yung in-order naming kung pao comes with a free soup at lemonade. Soup is as we expected, not much flavor in it. And the lemonade doesn't taste like lemonade at all. Hindi maasim at hindi rin matabang. Parang malamig na tubig lang.

Milo dinosaur

Ang Milo dinosaur ay malamig na Milo chocolate drink na binudbudan sa taas ng madaming Milo powder. Yung froth ng Milo drink + mga cubes ng yelo ang pumipigil sa Milo powder na mag permeate with the liquid drink. Pauso ito sa Singapore and 101 is heaven-sent to have included it on their menu. Matamis ang panlasa ng mga Pinoy at for sure, papatok ito dito. We liked it!

pandan pudding

Pandan pudding ang dessert namin. I expected something sweeter from their variant. The last two times we tried pandan pudding, they are consistently outright sweet. So una naming naisip ay baka ganun yung version ng Singapore. However, etong isang ito ay may maasim na creamy toppings (kulay puti) na nakikipag-agawan ng lasa sa tamis nung actual na pudding. Akala nga namin sa unang tikim ay panis. The taste kinda grows on us though. Still, we're not a fan. We want our pudding straight-out matamis.

Chechebureche:

The menu has a LOT to choose from. Kaya pinili muna naming mag-stick sa basic na madalas bilhin sa mga Sinagporean hawker places. We can go on for weeks eating here and still not have tried everything. Ganun kadami ang options.

half of the menu, the other half is on the flipside

Most of the main dishes have an option to be served with rice (toppings) or ala carte (short order). For couples, we recommend taking the toppings since they serve the dishes generously anyway (can serve two). Nakatipid na, mas madami pa ang masusubukang ulam.

Trip namin yung minimalist design nung loob ng resto. Relax. At the least, hindi try hard na magpaka-Oriental look. KISS rule, kumbaga... Keep It Simple and Stupid. Medyo mainit lang yung lugar. Pero kasi wala pang masyadong tao nung pumunta kami, kaya nakapatay pa lahat ng ceiling fan. Nakalimutan lang siguro buksan... sige na nga.

The waiters are polite and easy to deal with.

K.I.S.S.

Kaching!:

P100 to P200 ang price range ng mga ulam. Can be more (up to P300) kapag yung mga may premium sahog ang in-order na ulam (e.g. salmon or prawns).

Still it's comparatively cheap than most Singaporean-hawker food place na napuntahan namin. At para sa binayad, pwede na yung quality ng most ng pagkain.

Update: Fast forward to 2015, nasa P120 to P200 na ang price range ng mga ulam. Not much change so good job.

Hatol:

Okay itong dayuhin just for the sheer variety of food available.

Karamihan ng dishes ay Singaporean-inspired, if not cooked authentic Singaporean. So it's still a good way to check out what's "in" sa panlasa ng ating kapit-bayan. At sa relatively cheap price tag, abot-bulsa nang matitikman ang mga ito.

Definitely, we should try some of their other stuff next time.

aftermath

Rating:
4.5 out of 7




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