Bora Vacation

Upon the invitation of Your Highness, Audie and I were off to Boracay on the 28th of December 2009. We woke up at 4:45am to catch the earliest boat trip to Iloilo which was departing at 6:00AM. We took SuperCat and customer service is good! :)

Inside SuperCat:


At this point, we were still debating as to what mode of transporation to take going to Caticlan (from Iloilo).

a. Van
b. Ceres Liner
c. Taxi

Upon arrival at the pier of Ilo-ilo, a lot of people were shouting "Boracay?" "Boracay?". Luckily, there was a van going to Caticlan. he charged Php500 per head. He was trying to give us the pro and cons. The one thing that catched my attention was of course the travel time. The driver said that it will only take 4 to 5 hours instead of the 6 to 7 hours when taking the ceres bus. We took option a.

The red nissan urvan we took going to Caticlan:


We arrived in Iloilo at 715am. According to the driver we just have to wait for six more passengers going to Caticlan (his relatives as what he claims). Suddenly the six more passengers became 12! I was quite pissed. Good thing we had better seats in the van. I kept my cool. We left Iloilo at around 900AM. The driver had to make a gazillion stops (gasoline station, remit money to the owner of the van, waited for another person to join - thank god he did not come!, etc...).

After two hours of travel time, we stopped at this resto bar for lunch: Would you believe that their food was spectacular? NOT!!! Not to mention the fact that it was quite pricey for a resto of this stature: BLAH!



After 30 minutes, we were on the road again. We arrive at Jetty Port (Caticlan) around 1:20PM. Bought our tickets, paid the environmental fees, etc:


We had to wait for about 30 to 45mins for the pump boat to arrive. Your Highness called asking where we were and instructed us to proceed to Casa Pilar and look for Shirley (Temple). He instructed Shirley on room assignments. He said that he'll wait for us at the Hobbit's House (Restaurant) at D'Mall (shopping area in bora with resto everywhere) for lunch.

The pump boat ride from Caticlan to Boracay island was approximately 25 minutes. When we arrived on the Island, we took a tricycle and informed our driver that we were heading to Casa Pilar. Trike fare was P100.00. Trikes are not allowed to enter the beach front area so we had to walk from the alley turned right and headed a few meters toward our hideaway! It wasn't THAT bad of a walk.

Looking at the aquamarine color of the water and the powdery white sand can take away the stress of travelling. We checked in upon instruction of your highness. Got our room keys and went striaght to our room. Took a shower. Got dressed up. Then, the uneventful happened: EXHUASTION CATCHED UP ON US! I had to text your highness informing him that we were too exhuasted to move and if we can get some rest and see eachother at dinner. Good thing he obliged! Phew! hahahaha.

We slept until 7pm. Your highness called telling us that his other guests from Manila were delayed by more than 4 hours! They are scheduled to arrive in the island of Bora at 9pm instead of 3pm. He advised us to have dinner at the resort. Unfortunately, there was a wedding reception held at the beach front of the hotel and one of the waiters informed us that their kitchen was too busy and could not accommodate plated orders. There goes customer service! Isn't it that if there's a wedding reception held at a property, things are prepared way ahead of time? Where did organization go? Customer Experience Management Training is required here.

Lucky us, a few meters away from the resort is a favorite fast food of mine: ANDOK'S (Pang tawid gutom). My favorite is their Dokito's (Fried Chicken). They never fail to please the worms in my tummy hahaha!



After dinner, we strolled looking for Mama's tugon: shell slippers ornament for cellphones. They look cute:


We headed to D'Mall - Shopping area in Bora. We went to an internet cafe with internet speed as slow as a dial up modem (annoying). Had to check office emails. Forwarded delayed timesheets of colleagues to Accounting. Then, your highness called again. He was stationed at the Hobbit's House having dinner and wanted us to join him.

He was all alone when we arrived. He was wearing a grey t-shirt, jeans and rubber shoes which I am so not used to seeing him in this get-up. He ordered pizza - too comercialized. Dough is bought at a supermarket and the cheese is not mozarella, they use eden cheese. I am sad.

After about 30 minutes of waiting, his guests from Manila joined us together with his ever loyal driver, Kenneth. He ordered two more pizzas, penne in white sauce, meatballs. I was not totally impressed with the food at Hobbit's House. One of the guests, Mike, who flew in from Italy after 7 years of absence wasn't happy to see italian food on the table either. he was craving for anything and everything pinoy. Super Funny! :)

Bill and Romy, on the other hand, didn't mind at all.

Across Hobbit's House is a Japanese Restaurant called Hamma. Your highness ordered two orders of Tempura. This was fantastic. Not to mention that the price was fantastic too. I think we paid P1,200 for two orders.

Hey Jude was our next stop to chill and unwind.

We left Hey Jude together with your highness. Both of us kept on yawning. Too tired and sleepy, we called it a night. However, the manila peeps (Bill, Romy and Mike) went on with their journey. And if i'm not mistaken one or two had a happy ending. :)

This is Day One.

Day Two and Day Three escapades to follow.

Blessing of Louie's Kitchen

My dear friend Louie invited me to the blessing of his new kitchen at his home in Bethany. This was on December 26, 2009 at 3pm. Speaking of dates and times, i hope i did not make a mistake! He had the kitchen and dining area extended which total transformed the house. It made the inside look BIG!


Orange Mosaic Tiles behind the exhaust. Beautiful! Isn't it that the color orange in feng shui when in the kitchen helps aid in digestion? Or is it yellow? Geeez, i forgot:



Oh this is a very sexy lamp positioned at the corner wall beside the dining table:



He had this island/prep area done as well:


Kitchen sink over-looking the perimeter wall with poison ivy (charing)crawling all over it. The lady in blue is my dear friend's shadow or is it his mirror image? hahaha:


The guy wearing white is the host(ess) with the mostest! Behind him is again, another mirror image of himself.


the Garden (of eden):


This photo was taken from outside (garden). Look how spacious it has become! And I don't have any point of comparison to show here. Goodness! Argh! You see the pilar with a grey wall clock? That used to be the wall of the house....get the picture? Ok good.


Now I have to say goodnight. My eyes are drooping.

Nightmare @ 21 Bar & Restaurant!

I was invited for merienda at 21 Bar & Restaurant by my very dear friend Louie (who just flew in from Paris a week ago where he is currently based) at 3pm today. He was craving batchoy.

It was full table when I arrived! Christine G was there and so was Pinky L. And of course, the Partner of 15 years (??). We wasted no time when I arrived - we all ordered. Louie and Peter ordered batchoy while Pinky & Christine ordered bibingka. I, on the other hand, wanted a grilled vegetable sandwich (for a change...char!).

The Partner and Dear Friend Louie:



All the pretty ladies: Pinky & Christine:


STRIKE ONE: Tin was about to grab a portion of her Bibingka when she noticed that the fork was stained with oil! It wasn't clean! Too bad I forgot to take a photo of it. Sigh! She called the attention of the supervisor. And the obvious came - apologized and replaced the fork with a clean one. Fine!

Thirty minutes or so had passed and my grilled vegetable sandwich was nowhere in sight. So I thought to myself . Again, Tin called the supervisor and complained. STRIKE TWO. Then, Peter mentioned that there was human hair in his batchoy. STRIKE THREE!!!


Peter's Batchoy with human hair:


The supervisor, embarrassed of the entire situation (Oh I'm sure!) offered not to let us pay for what we've ordered and requested that i shall order anything on the menu. At first I was thinking of ordering the most expensive but then again, we had to wait for god knows how long again.... so we opted for a slice of Brazo's De Mercedes. Which turned out to be good (Louie and Peter shared the slice).

That was our experience! How about yours? How did you spend your afternoon today?

Where is Christmas?

I can't feel Christmas. Is it because I'm getting older OR I'm getting older faster? It just doesn't feel the same like it used to. I dunno maybe it's just me. Then my friend said "Christmas is for kids". Now, I have to awaken the kid in me. Let's see what happens on Christmas 2010. Abangan...

Gilber Teodoro NOT for President???

Please take time to read this article and let me know your thoughts:

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=533295&publicationSubCategoryId=64

Mona's Birthday & Mila's Bibingka & Buko Pie

Today, we went to Batang Peninsula Beach Resort, Himamaylan for my officemate's 18th (???) birthday. Himamaylan is a City south of Bacolod. It 83 Kilometer's away (around one hour and thirty minutes drive time).

Here's the Birthday Girl: Happy Birthday, Mona!!!


Birthday Girl rented two cottages for THE EVENT - one was used by her officemates and the other for family use. We had grilled pork chops, Braised duck (??), Chopseuy, Home-made spaghetti and a lot more for lunch. There was non-stop eating.

Here are some photos of us having a good time:











Before going home, we bought "singkamas" on the side street: 3 kilos for P100!!! Really cheap, i think...


Then, we made sure we passed by Mila's Restaurant to buy Buko Pie and Bibingka:

Worthy creation: Mila's Buko Pie! I think it costs P144 only


Mila's Bibingka! For me, it is one of the best binbingka ever! You got to try this... it's worth the trip just to buy this goldmine... naks! goldmine gid ya! It costs P15.75 I think per binbingka.


Address:
Mila's Restaurant
Hinigaran, Negros Occidental
Tel: 63-34-3917849

Dinner at The Madison Grill

We had dinner at The Madison Grill on our first night in Manila. As usual, it was cousin dearest's treat.

We had the Crab Meat Ceasar Salad, with real crab meat of course, not synthetic. Sorry, we were quite hungry that I forgot to take a photo of the dish before eating:


Vegetarian Silken Tofu Sandwich: This really taste fantastic. It has pesto sauce generously drizzled on top of the silken tofu:


3 Mushroom Pizza (supposedly). However, since they ran out of shitake, it became 2 mushroom pizza with anchovies: This was divine. I think they have one of the best pizzas:


And the winner is Audie's 1/2 pound burger:


Madison Grill is located at Phase 2, Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati City, Metro Manila. Telephone Number: +63-2-756-9000.

Brazil Brazil

Audie and I flew to Manila via Cebu Pacific using the promo fare ticket we purchased last June 2009 amounting to only P300.00+ roundtrip. It was a go lite fare - meaning we don't have check in luggages. We were only allowed 1 hand carry weighing not more than 7 kilos.

Yours truly getting bored and waiting patiently for our flight to Manila:


We departed on time, however, we landed in Manila thirty minutes late because Tita Hillary Clinton's plane was asked to land first (i think...).... Moving on....

We arrived in Manila at 12pm. We were picked up by cousin dearest, Teray (her side kick) and B1 (her human GPRS - however, he makes us take the wrong route most of the time). Cousin dearest was so frustrated with her human GPRS, ended up leaving her car with Teray and B1 and the three of us hollered for a cab. Three of us were in "gotham city mode" (hungry) and to make matters worse, we waited for more than 30 minutes to get a cab.... You know how it is in Manila, it's like you, the passenger, is the one asking favor and is at the mercy of the taxi drivers. I HATE IT!

Audie and cousin dearest waiting for a cab somewhere in Makati:


Two years and 25 days later....Finally, a sigh of relief:


We arrived at Brazil Brazil around 2:00pm. It was cousin dearest treat (as always):


We had this buffet of grilled meat. Each table is given a yoyo with color red on one side and green on the other. Placing the green side of the yoyo on top of the table would mean continous flow of all the grilled meat.

This is Audie's Plate:


Their friendly staff, giving us a slice of grilled pork shoulder(??):


Beef Terriyaki (??):


Grilled sausages:


More grilled meat:


Grilled short ribs:


Even grilled fruits:


And their spiced wanton chips is simply TDF (to die for):


After one hour and thirty minutes for no talking, here's the look of contentment:


Brazil Brazil Address: Rockwell Drive Corner Estrella Street Rockwell Center , Makati City. Telephone Number: +63-2-8990957

Thai Inspired Dinner

I brought some green curry paste from Bangkok a few weeks back. And it was just two nights ago that brother chef got inspired to cook dinner with green curry as base. He prepared two dishes:

1. The very popular Chicken with green curry.
2. Banana-wrapped tilapia fillet with green curry & coconut milk

Chicken with green curry was the easiest to prepare.

Ingredients:
70g green curry paste
400ml coconut milk
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
500g chicken (cut into bite size portions. note: you may use chicken breast)
basil leaves
180ml water
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Procedure:
In a pan, saute green curry paste in oil until you can smell the aroma.

Add coconut milk and water.

Add chicken.

Simmer until chicken is cooked evenly.

Add sugar and fish sauce.

Last to add is the basil leaves.

Here's the finish product:



And for the Banana-wrapped tilapia fillet: I don't have the exact measurements of each and every ingredient. Just use your imagination... hehehehe...

Right at the bottom of the tilapia fillet is a slice of lemon. On top of the fillet is a combination of spices (onions, ginger, green chili, tomatoes)



Pour over the green curry/coconut milk mixture on top:



Then, wrap with banana leaf and hold the leaf with a bar-b-que stick:



Bake for 10 to 15mins on high. Remove from oven once done:



Let it stand for 2 to 3 minutes. Get one wrapped tilapia fillet and open to get your surprise:


The fillet is so soft and creamy. You can feel the heat of the green curry paste. After a few bites you can feel your sweat pouring down from your face. hahaha! But It's totally delish!!!

Brother Chef's Crab Cakes

This post is long over due!

I would like to share with ya'll this crab cake recipe of Brother Chef.

Ingredients:

crab cakes:
1 cup crab meat
2 cups mashed potato
1/2 cup bread crumbs
juice of half lemon
salt & peper chives

Procedure:
1. Boil potatoes until soft - ready to be mashed:


2. Incorporate the crab meat and all other ingredients:


3. Make paties out of the crab mixture and fry until golden brown then set aside.

Sauce:
Juice of half lemon
Mayo lite 1/2 cup
1 tbsp dijon mustard
Olive oil to thin the sauce
Lemon zest
salt & pepper

1. Mix all Sauce ingredients in a bowl and whisk. Slowly incorporate oil to thin the sauce. Add lemon zest; salt & pepper to taste:


Garnish:
Pickled Cucumber:
1 med size cucumber - juliene
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tbsp honey
salt & pepper

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and set aside. Let it stand for 30 minutes to an hour so that the cucumber can absorb the juices:


Here's the plated dish:


Try it out! Now Na!