juls random thoughts

I have always been a fan of banana cream pie or banofee pie, I actually posted about this last year here. Well, anyway, I would just like to post that this year I found three new restos/coffee shop/dessert shop where I can indulge on this favorite of mine.

One - Classic Confections in Greenbelt 5

I actually learned about this from this blog and well, given that it's near my workplace, I did not waste any time and tried it for myself. Katawa ako actually kasi feeling food writer ako, as in I logged in my cellphone the actual experience while eating the banana cream pie. So to share, here's my opinion about the pie on the exact time that I am eating it:

"Dense chewy nutty crust, not too sweet with a hint of cinnamon. The cream is not too sweet too. On top of the cream are the slices of ripe bananas then a weave of whipped cream on top then garnished with swirls of caramel syrup. My only wish is that they have a banofee pie version. Illy coffee served is not too strong just perfect for my pie. I just wonder how the crust is done as I don't see a hint or taste of any graham crackers in it. Tastes like all the sweetness comes from the crust. I thought it's caramel cream but when I tasted it on its own, it's different. It's so good but when you're eating one mini pie alone, all the sweetness sinks in and now you wish that you're not alone. My verdict, it's good but shouldn't be eaten alone as it is too much sweetness for one person."

Ha! and now that I visited their website, I learned that the cream pala is a vanilla custard while the crust is crushed cashew nut. Teeheee...

Two - Bo's Coffee Club

And I just tried it now. Hmm.. I think this one is the cheapest among all my faves though I can't remember the price na in Banapple so I'm not sure. This one is so small, which is perfect for me, kasi hindi pagsasawaan as compared with the one from Classic Confections, di ko talaga kaya ubusin mag-isa.

Three - Myron's Place

Photo taken from Dessert Comes First

Well this one, I haven't tried yet. I am super curious as its presentation is different, as the sliced bananas are on top. I actually planned on ordering that after our lunch posted here kaso we're so full na and I realized that after that lunch eh sa coffee shop ako tatambay so we weren't able to try it na. I was actually contemplating of ordering a take out of it so I can try it. Maybe next time.

So, now that I tried a lot of versions of banana cream pie/banoffee pie, I honestly don't know anymore which version is my favorite. Now, what I am trying to look for na is a recipe on how to do it. I tried doing the banofee pie before but not too successful. I am now off my quest for that recipe search and more restaurant finds for this pie.

Photos of Bo's Coffee Club's banana cream pie to follow as I don't have my cellphone's LAN cable with me right now.

Hubby and I had lunch yesterday in Myron's Place in Greenbelt 5. I've been hearing about this na even nung sa Rockwell pa lang sila but since we seldom go to Rockwell and when we're there, di ko naman naiisip, haven't tried it yet. Now that it's so near to our workplace, I've decided to ask hubby that we have lunch there. That interest was actually renewed when I read about it here and since both hubby and I are steak lovers, we decided to give it a try.

Our order: salad with seared tuna - definitely yummy. sarap at feeling sosyal kami ni hubby, ang ganda ng plating. Then our main course, roast beef (medium, Franco cut). We're supposed to order ribs pa with this but according to the waiter the cut is already good for two so we took his word for it. We requested that the steak be served on separate plates na.

Photo from Dessert Comes First

So, what's our verdict. We still prefer the roast beef from Gulliver's as in! though I liked the sidings here better, mas gusto ko ang lasa ng meat sa Gulliver's pero bilib ako dito, sobrang kapal ng meat. The last time I ate that thick steak was when nasa US pa ko.

So according to our list, this only goes second. First is still Gulliver's, followed by this (Myron's Place) and third is the Highlands Steakhouse.

I have to log this. I have a new favorite breakfast/snack item from Starbucks! well, I started with this love affair last January but I only realized now that I've been frequently buying this, truly enjoying each moment while I savor my BAGEL! Yep! That's my new favorite from Starbucks, their multi-grain bagel toasted until I can feel its outer skin crunchy, smothered with yummy cream cheese and partnered with strong brewed coffee, heaven! I used to buy even the cream cheese from Starbucks but yesterday I've decided to buy my own tub in the grocery.P35 for a small cream cheese is not cheap you know, so I decided to buy my own 1/3 less fat Philadelphia cream cheese! yum! yum!



Photo courtesy of http://blissfultravel.files.wordpress.com/2007/07/greg-olsen-bagel-a-day.jpg searched in Google.
Note: this is not how the Starbucks bagel actually looks like but it is the closest. Starbucks bagel has more grains (right term?) on top and it's more brownish and flaky looking being a multi-grain bread, I can't take a photo of my bagel as I already finished the top half LOL!

And while I'm at it, I realized that the blog I found on google is really nice because the entries are all about travel. Now, I have a new addition to my fave reads.

I have been a “luncher” (my own term again) in Starbucks for quite some time now. I order either of these two sandwiches: turkey chicken sandwich and chunky chicken waldorf on cinnamon bread. I always pair my sandwich with a tall Americano and take one small cup of half & half with me. And today, I tried another yummy sandwich from them. You see, my fave between the two sandwiches above is the turkey chicken but then it seems that I’m not the only one who loves this as every time I go to Starbucks Enterprise after lunch, there are no more of this. Although I like the chunky chicken, I am in no mood of eating today anything with cinnamon. And, there are only two choice of sandwich available, either this chunky chicken or this one that I haven’t tried yet. So, naturally, I picked the other one which I haven’t tried yet but been seeing every time. It’s the antipasto cheese. I actually even contemplated on buying my sandwich in Oliver’s instead but I’m so “sawa” na of their sandwiches and I don’t like Oliver’s in Enterprise, I always go to Glorietta branch if I am really craving with their sandwich.

To go back to the story, I took my antipasto cheese and coffee with me back to the office for my lunch. And surprise of all surprises, I never thought that it will taste this good! Looking at it kasi, it looks like a simple ham and cheese fare but when I tasted it…wow! Really good huh! I checked for the ingredients and realized that it’s not an ordinary ham pala. It has beef pastrami, beef salami, pepperoni and lyoner pala together with iceberg lettuce, caramelized onions and white cheese. And to think I have been ignoring this! It means I have a new favorite!

I know I have to post this. I tried two new restos this week and went back to a favorite one. As a backgrounder, last week, while we were eating Burgoo's Tomas Morato, our discussion went to Nanbantei and by the end of lunch, all of us are craving to eat there. So, last Monday, I asked hubby to eat there. I'm actually asking him to have lunch there but since he've got a 1pm meeting we've decided to move it to dinner. This is the second time that hubby and I ate there, I posted our first here. The other times I ate there was with my officemates c/o our boss. As usual, we ordered the "Bestseller yakitori treat" which consists of 21 sticks. Hubby and I felt so full after the dinner that I've decided to have coffee at Bo's after. Then last Wednesday, the boss asked us to go out for lunch. We're the only three managers in the office, the rest are on client or on leave. So, where did we eat? Shang! it was my first time to eat in Shang Palace here in Makati Shang. I tried Shang Palace in EDSA Shang but that was like 8-9 years ago. We enjoyed our lunch consist mainly of different dimsums, noodles and veggies and our tummies were so full because they keep on refilling our cups with hot tea! Then yesterday, we had our regular meeting and this time, she asked us to eat at Cantinetta in Rockwell. Another first for me here. We ordered various flavors of pizza and pasta, my favorite of all we ordered was the eggplant parmigiana, it was so good!! You can hardly taste the eggplant because of the melted cheese. Yum! yum! then for dessert we had pannacota and their famous Illy coffee. They were warning me that the coffee is strong but when I tasted it, it suites my taste perfectly. That's when my boss concluded that I am really a coffee drinker because she can't take to drink one cup by herself. It was such "gastronomic full week" (a term I invented! LOL!)for me. I have one happy tummy again. LOL!

Since we already patched things up that midnight, ok na kami. We decided that we'll have lunch in Circles, Makati Shangri-La to celebrate. We haven't eaten in Circles for so long that we were suprised to see the major changes. There are more sushi, more seafood, there's even a lobster and better food choices. We saw the chef making his rounds and checking everything with some of the waiters, we guessed that he's probably new and he's responsible for all these really good changes in Circles. Of course, enjoy kami ni hubby as in major!

We started off with the sushi then seafood, then i tried some of the various salads and appetizer. Headed off to carving station and finally my favorite, the dessert bar, having a feast with all the different chocolate desserts. I managed to take a few pics using my camera phone, however, i cannot post them yet as my little boy is busy playing billiards in my phone = )

Now, here are some pics of my plate.

My sushi and seafood plate:

A close up photo of the sushi:

My greens plus caesar dressing:

A sampling of the different salads and appetizer:

I forgot to take a picture of the roast beef. So, here's my dessert plate. Hindi obvious that I love chocolate noh? LOL

There are actually a LOT more food kaso I prioritize, I only eat the sushi, seafood, salads, appetizer, carvings and of course the dessert. I always skip on the chinese, indian, pasta and other main dishes. I don't see anything special kasi on these food. In the carving station, I usually only get the roast beef but when I am in the mood, I also request for a slice of the lamb.
A picture of the huge Christmas tree in the Makati Shangrila lobby:



So funny how my anniversary celebration post turned to focus on the food that we ate. LOL!

Hubby and I had an impromptu lunch date today. It happened kasi my co-managers are not here in the office and I want to eat out. I am actually craving for a grilled chicken caesar salad and can't think where to buy it so I asked hubby if he's available. Since he can't think of a restaurant that has the salad that I want he suggested the fusion japanese resto in Greenbelt 5. He ate there twice already and he's been raving about this resto so off we go.

Its my first time to go to Greenbelt 5, I just don't find it appealing yet since a lot of stores are not yet opened so even if I pass by it a number of times a day, I haven't been there before. John and Yoko is located in second floor, the place is impressive, a lot of choices in the menu. We ordered the spider roll (soft shell crabs roll) and japaella (a japanese paella). The food is good. Hubby is actually showing me other choices from the menu which he tried already, maybe next time. Total cost = P600.

Been busy last week that I wasn't able to post our activities.

Wednesday last week, hubby & I ate at Nanbantei of Tokyo in Greenbelt 3. I just love this restaurant. Their specialty is yakitori or japanese grill. We got the bestseller - it contains 21 sticks, 3 pcs. of each variant - corn, asparagus, chicken wings, potatoes with bacon, chicken ( 2 servings) and pork. My favorite is corn and the pork. Their menu is so simple and the yakitori is definitely so simple but I love eating here. We had green tea icecream for dessert. And oh, the reason why we ate here? we celebrated my 10th year with the firm!! Oh yes! that's how long I am with the firm now.

Thursday, we watched Enchanted. The movie is sooo funny! and Dr. Mc Dreamy (Patrick Dempsey) is soooo handsome! I highly recommend this movie, hubby and I are laughing so hard while watching. Didn't know that the witch is Susan Sarandon, learned about it only this morning from the Morning Rush in RX 93.1. I can actually watch it again as I so love the movie.

To those who know us well, they know that hubby and I are layas. We both have nunal on our foot and looks like our son is starting to have one as he is one hell of a "layas" too. After spending an almost whole day of watching dvds, surfing the net, playing "Burger Rush" (that's me) in the 'puter, we've realized that we can't take it not to go out today.

Our destination? Unknown. We prepared with no idea where to go. Then when we're already in C5, that's when hubby thought that we visit his dad's lot in Maris Village in Tandang Sora. They're offering this lot to us but we're having second thoughts on getting it due to its very far location. You see, we work in Makati, my province is Batangas and most of our family are in the south except for ate gem who's living in Kamias, but that's not so far though.

Anyway, we visited the place and yeah, its really far. 2.5 kms from the Tiera Pura gate to the lot then from the Tiera Pura gate to Manila Water in Balara was another 5 kms. We no longer bothered to get the distance from there to Pasig as it is really far.

Highlight of the trip, we visited Banapple Pies and Cheesecakes along Katipunan. You see, I fell in love with banofee pie eversince I tasted Starbucks' version, then I tried Sonjas and Red Ribbon. So far, Sonja's still the best for me. Banofee pie is my new favorite, replacing my old time favorite - chocolate mousse. So, hubby's officemate mentioned about this place and hubby knowing that I love banofee pie told me about it. The place is cozy and is full packed. What did we order? of course banofee pie, praline banana cream pie, americano coffee for me and home made iced tea for hubby and kurt. It was good!!! still thinking though if I like this better than Sonja's.

Here's some of the pictures I snagged from blogs I searched in Google.

http://thepalacioskitchen.blogspot.com/2007/03/restaurant-review-banapple.html:


http://overdosemd.blogspot.com/2007/09/banapple-day.html:


And here's pictures of the little boy devouring the banana cream pie and a picture of the "abused" banofee pie (LOL!) taken using hubby's camera phone:
Sorry if its grainy, low tech camera phone, P910 LOL!

Its been a week now and I'm still craving for chips and salsa. So today, I decided to satisfy that craving by eating at Mexicali. This is one restaurant that I always ignore to think I always see it in Glorietta and Megamall. The place "speaks" Mexican, from the name, music and interiors but I don't see it inviting, that's why I'm so glad that today I decided to try it out. My craving: chips and salsa, and Greenwich pizza, because its so homemade cheesy but decided to fulfill my chip and salsa craving first. Glad I did. I ordered for, of course, tortillas and salsa plus cheese and garlic quesadillas. Total cost: P152.25.

I LOVE LOVE my chips and salsa. The salsa is actually simple and I made this already before so while eating I'm thinking of heading straight to Rustans supermarket to buy ingredients and make my own salsa. I think we still have chips at home. My MIL always buy nacho chips when she goes to Quiapo.

Then my cheese and garlic quesadilla arrived, its also simple but good, not a huge serving, together with the necessary dips of sour cream, salsa and what seems to be their version of guacamole. Somehow, it satisfied my craving for cheesy pizza since it's really cheesy.

While eating, the familiar taste brought back memories of my US assignment. Mexican food is our default lunch most especially when I got assigned to Cisco. I'll usually order chicken quesadilla and load up on guacamole and salsa. It also brought back memories of my 3-week assignment in Austin, Texas for AMD. That's when I tasted the best Tex-Mex food and good old fashioned salsa. I remember that since that experience, the "used-to-be-good-enough-for-me" Tostitos bottled salsa now tastes bland in comparison. That assignment in Texas upgraded my taste pallet for Tex-Mex food.

Mexican food is also my "no-thinking-needed" food when I go shopping in Great Mall, Milpitas. My favorite? steak fajitas!, quesadillas and of course chips and salsa. Oh, and speaking of steak fajitas, I so love this too from AppleBees!

Mexican restaurants are so common in the US due to a lot of Mexican immigrants. Based on my observation, it's the "fastfood" for the working people there. However, I did not like the burrito, which is like the Meditterranean's (sp?) gyros or shawarma but with rice. I don't like it because of the rice inside. For me, it feels weird. But that's just me.

To go back to my Mexicali experience. I truly enjoyed my food and I think I'm now placing it in my fave resto list. I can't wait to take Francis here and try out their beef tenderloin fajitas.

Just finished my food as I finished this entry (from my mini notebook, that is). My rating: DEFINITELY GOOD! I did not even feel bothered that I'm drinking water instead of my favorite Coke Light.

just got back from a very good dinner.

we woke up late this morning. our intention was to be in makati by 8am, i set the alarm in my cellphone to 6:15am, i heard the alarm and pressed what i thought was the snooze button, however, i learned at 7:45 that what i probably pressed was the off button. so i woke up francis and we hurriedly took a bath and dressed up. we were supposed to use my car as francis has no intention of bringing his car but due to this event, he decided to bring his car and i decided not to bring my car as i know i can't drive under time pressure. so i just rode with him to makati. on our way, that's when i learned that my meeting was moved to 9am so good for me.

since i don't have a car, i decided to go to francis office in pioneer to go home with him. he actually wanted to pick me up from makati but i hate to wait for him for a long time so i just told him that i'll go to his office.

when we met, he said he's hungry, i am hungry too, and that's how we ended up in seven corners.

seven corners is crown galleria suites (not sure of exact name) version of makati shangri-la's circles and edsa shangri-la's heat. this is our second time to eat here. i am excited for the steak.

i started my meal with steamed shrimps, lobster, mussels and oysters, then i realized that i was not supposed to eat oysters with an empty stomach so i got salmon sashimi and various maki and miso soup. even in circles, i always indulge in seafood and sushi, so no difference here, but this time, i only had one serving and proceeded already to the steak. this is what's special here compared to circles. there are more choices in circles but they don't have steak there. i only requested for half inch thick of steak, cooked medium well. it was good but not as good as the steaks i cook in the US, the beef in the US is different, more flavorful.

while eating my steak, the waiter approached us telling us that it's last call already before they close so i proceeded to the dessert station, getting two sticks of various fruits dipped in the chocolate fountain then got one truffle and one itsy bitsy chocolate cake. then ordered for their ice cream tepanyaki and got mango crepe. i was telling hubby that it's not obvious that i love chocolate. hehehe...

i enjoyed everything but i guess this time di ko sya nasulit. finished off my meal with brewed coffee, now as i am typing this entry, i'm drinking hot water. i feel so full.

I had lunch in Heaven and Eggs today and had my favorite Manila Spareribs. Yummy! yummy! yummy! and i'm so glad that they switched back to their original menu where for some main dish, they can choose 2 sidings of: pancakes, hashbrown, mashed potatoes, french fries, rice, etc.

Jenz and I were so disappointed last month when we ate there since they removed these choices. Eh yun pa naman ang unique sa kanila.

Now to go back to my meal. As usual, I love their Manila spareribs. It was the first time that I ordered java rice, before, I always request that the java rice be changed to garlic rice. I am not a big fan of java rice kasi for me, masyadong fake and malagkit. I enjoyed naman they're java rice and of course, my ribs. It's so tender that you will no longer need knife for it. I ordered for additional ribs sauce and been tasting it, hoping that I can guess the ingredients. I'll definitely look for a recipe of this as I really love ribs!

Last night, hubby and I had dinner at Barcino's Gourmet. Been hearing a lot of good feedbacks about this place in my egroup for quite sometime now and medyo matagal ko na ring inaaya si hubby to try it.

Since last night I picked him up in his office kasi wala syang dalang kotse, and we're both hungry and he's so stressed with work, we decided to try the place.

It is in front of the driving range in Julia Vargas, on second floor, above Razon's. when we got there, the place is full of people. i heard that it's a small place so i thought they won't be able to accomodate us anymore but i think they expanded their place kasi there is this small door which leads to another dining area together with boxes and boxes of wines. we thought that this must have been their stock room converted to dining area to accomodate more customers. i was not prepared for this dinner so i was not able to check my file containing the "must-try" food here though i somehow recall most of what they recommend. This is a Spanish bistro so not one of our expertise. The only Spanish resto that we tried was “Mingoy”, which I used to pronounce as mingoy instead of min-goy. We decided to try their paella (P390+), tapas gourmet (P500) and ordered a bottle of red wine (P280+). Total bill: P1,300 +. It was good, something new and something different but I don’t think I’ll be a frequent guest of this place. I just don’t see anything special in Spanish food, I’m more of the steak, baby back ribs, sushi and seafood type of person. At least we tried the place now and yeah, the people who recommended the place are not telling a lie, food is indeed good. And now that I checked my files, I just found out that we only tried one of the recommended food. Hahahaha!!! What my co-egroup was recommending was arroz ala cubana, a can of baby eel, paella and a bottle of cava (champagne).

Some of the other restos they’re recommending are for special occasions like Valentine's date, birthday, etc:

Firelake Grill in Tagaytay – now I know why this place near Café Breton sounds familiar, that’s one of the place they were recommending. The place has an unobstructed view of Taal lake. I love the place actually since its not crowded (refer to entry about father’s day). Food to try: steaks

Massimo’s in Tagaytay – no view of Taal lake but the interior is warmly decorated with artsy lamps. Recommended food: for appetizers – warm artichoke dip; for main course – steak, beef tenders; for dessert – gelatos, molten chocolate cake. Or if going with a group, try the coccinillo. Price: around P1500 to P3500 for a meal of 2.

Prince Albert in Intercon – according to them, they serve the best steaks and sea bass for a stiff price, a meal can cost P3,500 to P6,000, so I guess I will never get to try this resto since it’s way too expensive.

Top of the Citi – this is on top of Citibank building and they’re serving Le Souffle food.

Gulliver’s at Great Eastern Hotel in Makati ave. – this one, we tried already. They’re prime rib is the best! Tried this resto for our valentine’s date in 2006. Really highly recommended.

Rastro in Rockwell – recommended food: spicy gambas, sardine pate, boquerones and steak with coffee gravy.

then saw in the tv that The Highlands in SM MOA is highly recommended too but expensive. I am actually curious about the place when I saw it but now I got more curious when I saw it featured on tv.

Happy eating!