Meals on Wheels # 10: Nestle Buncha Crunch

Date: December 30, 2012
Driver: KB (with Framie)
Food: Nestle Buncha Crunch (how I missed ya! :P)
Meal Type: Snacks
Route: S&R to Bonifacio High Street 

Crazy Katsu

We live near Marikina, but have only very recently explored the area. We were so glad to find out that there are actually a lot of good restos so conveniently close to our home. 

So last Friday, Ate, KB, Bee and I decided to eat in Crazy Katsu in Soliven Street. I've been wanting to eat in Crazy Katsu since it opened its first store in Maginhawa near the original Pino, so yey for me! :)

Crazy Katsu's menu is as simple as it gets, with katsu, of course, being the main dish. 

Here are our orders:

Miso soup. Really, really good for 30 pesos. 

Gyoza. 

Chicken katsu. Their best seller. Breading became a bit soggy because of the sauce. But the sauce was good anyways. I liked that it has a bit of a kick because of the sili.

Tonkatsu. Crispy and tender. Surprisingly, I liked the pork better than the chicken. One of the best katsu I've had. 

For dessert, coffee pudding or coffee-flavored leche flan. :) Just ok. 

After an excellent dinner, we moved to Ersao just beside Crazy Katsu. I had their Raspberry Shake, which was also very excellent. :)

I really had fun that night (eating good food and pesky-ing Bee), and hope to come back to Crazy Katsu soon. :)

Until next time, 

Binky

Europe Post: Berlin, Part 1 (Historical Walkabout)

From Amsterdam, we took a night bus to Germany. It was really not the most comfortable ten hours of my life, but I knew it was going to be worth the sleeplessness. I was going to Berlin! :)

Like most of Europe, Berlin is a historical city. However, large parts of it were destroyed in the Second World War, and have gone drastic changes with the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall. 

What's left of the old world, of course, lends to a more beautiful and dynamic city.  

Among the cities we visited, Berlin is unique in that it looks and feels more modern than old --  four-lane roads instead of narrow cobblestone streets, glass/steel structures instead of intricate gardens, high rise buildings instead of grand palaces, and... more street art and grafitti one can stuff inside a museum. 

Here are a few sites we visited.

The East Side Gallery. This is the longest preserved part of what used to be the Berlin Wall. The Gallery consists of paintings done by artists from all over the world. 

We also saw this near the Wall, a gig poster of one of my favorite bands, The Temper Trap. Too bad we didn't get to see them.

The Berlin TV Tower, one of the highest structures in Europe. 

Berliner Dom and beside it, the Altes Museum (Old Museum)

Here's Bee, being silly again.

We followed the stream of tourists to the iconic Brandenburg Gate.

Darth Vader and a Storm Trooper by the Gate. 

The Reichstag -- home of the German parliament (Bundestag), equivalent to our Congress. 

The Holocaust Memorial, built as tribute to the Jews who died in WWII. 

That's part one of my Berlin post.  

Binky

~photos by Star, Bernard and Binky, please don't steal. :)

Meals on Wheels # 9: Cello's Doughnuts

Date: December 24, 2012
Driver: KB (with Dad)
Food: Cello's Cocktail Doughnuts (Assorted)
Meal Type: Snacks (before lunch)
Route: Katipunan to House

Meals on Wheels # 8: Marks & Spencer's Milk Chocolate Orange Biscuits

Date: December 21, 2012
Driver: KB (with Ate Star)
Food: Marks and Spencer's Extremely Chocolatey Milk Chocolate Orange Biscuits (More Chocolate than Biscuit!)
Meal Type: Dessert (after Dessert)
Route: Shangrila Plaza to House

BBQ with B

Finally!

Today's my last day of work... at least for the year.  

The last two weeks have been so hectic, what with end-of-the-year meetings, memos, and deadlines, and our office's super stressful annual Christmas celebration. This involved decking out our entire office space with Christmas-y things, making lanterns in the shape of a mirror ball, and me dancing badly to the tune of 70's disco tracks... on stage, in front of hundreds of people.  Not a very nice Christmas memory, I tell you. 

But now, this is all behind me. I'll see ya office in January! Wooohoooo!

To kick off my Christmas vacation, I had my (supposed-to-be-weekly) "bonding night" with Bernard. We wanted to eat in a quiet place (i.e., not the mall), away from all the noise and the stress that only the Christmas season brings. We decided to eat in BBQ Chicken, Pearl Drive. 

See? No people, except for that Korean dude in the corner (the owner, we think). A few minutes later, though, a bunch of  middle-aged Korean ladies came in, animatedly chatting and merrily eating chicken with their cold bottles of beer. 

The blackboard also told us that BBQ does not mean barbecue, but just BBQ, which stands for the best of the best quality! :)

Our food: 

Smoked Salad. Because the chicken tasted like smoked ham. 

Spicy Chicken (8 pieces). Big serving! Sauce was more sweet than spicy, it tasted a bit like spare ribs sauce in Chinese restos. Breading was too thick, I thought, but very crunchy. 

Seafood rice. It was very tasty, and Bee, who's allergic to shrimp, didn't get Angelina-lips (because his lips tend to puff up when eating shrimp, get it? Ahehe!).  

Of course, Starbucks for dessert, also at Pearl. Oreo cheesecake and green tea cream frap for me. 

That's it. 

I'm so excited for the holidays. I've got so much to do and have to finish them all before December ends. 

And oh, Happy Holidays, too, to everyone. 

Cheers, 

Binky

Weekend Fun

Last Friday, I met with my dear friend Kate so she can give me my CD that I asked her to buy in the States. Finally, my Bon Iver, Bon Iver is here!! :)

I download most of my songs, but I still love buying CDs. I like the feeling of holding something solid in my hands and examining details in the album art and reading through lyrics from the jacket. 

Isn't this album a beauty? :)

On Saturday, I watched Aladdin (the musical) with Ate, Bernard and Don at the Meralco Theater. The play was so fun (sword fights, a timeless love story, and a flying carpet, for realz!) and funny (genie popping out of nowhere, zumba-dancing manly Arab men) and colorful (the set was made from recycled materials). Also, I thought the boy who played Aladdin was so delightful. :) 

The play reminded me of my childhood, when I used to watch Aladdin the TV Series after school. They sang Arabian Nights in the play, and it's also the song played in the opening credits of the show.

On Sunday, we went to Clark, where I bought these: 

Milky Way Simply Caramel, so yummmmmy!!!

That's all. Work is super super busy, and I'm afraid I wouldn't have time to go on my weekly eating adventures.

That's all for now, 

Binky

Meals on Wheels # 7: FIC's Choco Mint Ice Cream

Date: December 3, 2012
Driver: Ate Star
Food: A Pint of Fruits in Ice Cream's Choco Mint with Raspberry Ripple (all mine! hehe!)
Meal Type: Dessert (after dinner)
Route: Pioneer/Kapitolyo to House

Vanilla Cupcake Bakery

I have not been to Glorietta for a long time, and I was quite surprised to see that so many new stores have opened/ re-opened since the renovation of... that wing going to SM Makati. (I am really terrible at remembering places and have no sense of direction hehe!)

Across National Bookstore is a new cupcake store called Vanilla Cupcake Bakery. It's so, so, so... pretty (for lack of a better term!) -- with chic, mismatched furniture and pastel-hued decorations and accents. It has that whole vintage tea party vibe going on. They serve cupcakes and a few other pastries, as well as coffee. 

It's the kind of place you'd go to if you want to hang out and have long conversations with your girlfriends. Or, if you're a boy, this is the "special" place you take your girlfriend to so you can impress her, and romantically share a tiny cupcake together. :P    

Aside from the overwhelming prettiness, we came there for the cupcakes, of course! :) Red Velvet for me and Salted Caramel for Ate Star. 

To be honest, these were just average. Both had good frostings (though I liked the red velvet's better, I really tasted the cream cheese there -- just the way I like it), but we thought that the cupcakes themselves were a bit too spongy (buhaghag, to be more accurate). Prices were a bit steep also. 155 pesos for two cupcakes. 

The cupcakes weren't truly disappointing, but we've definitely had better ones that are much cheaper. 

The better part of my day, I think, was when I went book-shopping at National Bookstore. Oh my goodness, NBS in Glorietta is so well-stocked! :) :) :)

Til next time, 

Binky

Tok-Yu

For delicious and affordable Japanese, we only go to Tok-Yu!

It's probably not the classiest nor the most authentic Japanese resto in Manila, but loyal patrons like us keep coming back for their simple, no-frills dishes, and friendly service. :)

So last Wednesday, we (Ate, KB and me) found ourselves, yet again, in our beloved Tok-yu in Pioneer Center.

We ordered our usual: 

Special mix (sushi and sashimi). 
 

Chicken misono (comes with a cup of rice). We like ours with a little sprinkling of Kikkoman. You can also try their beef and tuna misono!
 

 
Of course, Ebi Tempura. Sometimes, they put on too much batter, but that night they got it just right. :)
 

And Tok-Yu's special red iced tea, served super cold on a large glass. Sweet and refreshing!

I am also currently reading-- albeit very, very slowly -- Erin Morgenstern's Night Circus. I brought it out to read, but then I realized that doesn't work for me. I must not be distracted while eating, hehehe! :P 

All of this, under 600 pesos! Not bad, eh? 

After our delicious meal, off we went to fetch Bernard from his nest (aka Milky and Sunny), where we also ate Choco Chip (with extra chips!) pancakes for dessert. Sorry, no photo! We gobbled them up before I could take one. :)

'Til next time, 

Binky