Chillin' Out At Cafe Mary Grace

It's already my fourth time at Cafe Mary Grace and every visit there's a new experience for me. My first, second and third time was a blast and even my cousins enjoyed the place. 


Who wouldn't? Everywhere you look, there are interesting things to see. From the four corners of this establishment, from the floor to the ceiling, it's a great place for chilling out. 


Check out the pictures and you'll see what I'm talking about.

The al fresco dining

The children's corner.

The second floor.

The handmade chandeliers.

A view from the top.

Personalised letters from the customers
were displayed in every table.

Apple pie.

Mango bene

For P200, you'll be amazed that you'll get a decent meal and a great place to hang out as well.

The Art of Dining Al Fresco

Al Fresco dining is eating outside. In temperate climates it is especially popular in the summer months when temperatures and weather are most favorable. It is a style of dining that is casual and often party-like in its atmosphere. In order to promote and accommodate the pedestrian activity and vibrancy associated with Al Fresco dining, communities have passed ordinances permitting it, including the service of food and beverages to customers at sidewalk tables until late at night.


In the Philippines, the business of fine dining, usually Al Fresco, is a booming trend especially in the urban areas. In Makati City alone, almost every corner of the streets is teeming with this type of establishment.


I've tried some of them and I'm planning to try more.

Tuscan chicken with al tonno and side salad, iced coffee and chocolate muffin

Pan fried dory fish fillet infused in zesty provencal sauce and arrabiatta

Tried Figaro. Honestly, I thought it's that super expensive but I found out that they have ala carte meals on budget. And iced coffee is included.

For P220, you'll be delighted should you choose to have a meal. And a free wifi might encourage you to.

I've also tried Mom and Tina's. I have to say it's a bit like Cafe Mary Grace but smaller in terms of the place itself.

Shepherd's pie

Choco-mint shake

Espresso shot

Apple pie

After I wreck havoc on my apple pie...

inside Mom and Tina's

Atmosphere is great but at that time it's raining so we have to get a table inside. It's a nice place to have a get-together with friends and catch up on everything else.

A meal is just about P200, decent.

Fro-yo To The Second Power

Frozen yogurt, also known as frozen yoghurt or froz yog or by the trade names fro-yo and frogurt, is a frozen dessert containing yogurt or other dairy products. It is slightly more tart than ice cream, as well as lower in fat due to the use of milk instead of cream. It differs from ice milk, more recently termed low-fat or light ice cream, which does not include yogurt as an ingredient.


The trend is ever growing in the Philippines, particularly in Makati, with the establishment of Qoola, a Canadian-based frozen yogurt. It is self-service and P75 per 100 grams and there are many choices for the toppings.

For my fro-yo, I chose the original flavor - green tea
topped with strawberries and mango, chocolate chips
and mini-marshmallows

The other one, Tutti Frutti, has a much smaller space at Glorietta 4 and also cheaper by several cents, P20 per oz. Also, it's self-service and I was also told that it was Filipino-made.

My mango-flavored fro-yo with chocolate chips
and mini-marshmallows on top

The quirks, most of all, is its health benefits, good for those watching their calorie count and it's also good for the tekkies because they also have free wi-fi. 

But if I were to choose between the two, I'll choose Qoola. Why? Because it's more spacious and the choices for toppings and stuff is so many, it's difficult to choose.

I Travelled Asia In Three Days

One of the things that I would consider to be my greatest achievement is if I've travelled the world. But since I'm working and there's not enough time, maybe I'd plan it for another time.

See, all things began small, so let me start my travel around Asia.

I've been to Japan, day one. Sushi is the most famous Japanese dish outside of Japan and one of the most popular dishes among the Japanese themselves.

During the Edo period, "sushi" referred to pickled fish conserved in vinegar. Nowadays, sushi can be defined as a dish containing rice which has been prepared with sushi vinegar. There are many different types of sushi but there are particular ones that are usual in my list.

Sushi meal: nigiri (raw tuna, salmon or squid),
norikami (sushi rice and seafood rolled in dried seaweed sheet) or maki,
inari (sushi rice filled into inuurage bags or deep-fried tofu)

Add wasabi on the specially-prepared sauce and you're in for a spicy lunch of your life.

Sushi meal from Teriyaki Boy, P275 and it's good for 2 people. Not bad for going Japanese.

Come dinner, I opted for rice bowl.

Rice bowl meal is bowl of cooked rice with some other food put on top of the rice. Some of the most popular toppings are tempura (tendon), egg and chicken (oyakodon), tonkatsu (katsudon) and beef (gyudon).

Gyudon: strips of beef on top of rice

Coffee jelly

My dinner only at Yoshinoya, my favorite Japanese fastfood. For P200 you will have a decent Japanese meal.

Day two, China. I've been fascinated by chopsticks ever since. Not the famously Chops waltz but the chopsticks famously used in meals. Just the effort of trying to use two bamboo sticks picking pieces of food from the plate, especially if it's rice, fascinating.

Chopsticks are small, often tapered, sticks used as the traditional eating utensils of China and its diaspora, Japan, Korea, Vietnam and Northern provinces of Laos, Thailand and Burma.

Appetizer: prawn crackers until the main course is served

Wonton and beef brisket noodle soup

Wontons are made by spreading a wrapper flat in the palm of ones hand, placing a small amount of filling in the center, and sealing the wonton into the desired shape by compressing the wrapper's edges together with the fingers.

Wontons are usually boiled and served in soups and sometimes deep-fried.
Wonton is also spelled wantan, wanton, wuntun and is a type of dumpling sold in the streets after World War Two.

Dim sum: shrimp dumpling (ha gauu), shaomai, siopao (bau),
chicken feet (fung zao), vegetarian spring rolls

Dim sum is a type of Chinese meal that involves small individual portions of food, usually food is pushed around on carts by servers and served in a small steamer baskets or on small plates.

Super Bowl of China is the best place to be for this kind of food at P300.

Spice up the life for Thailand on day three. There are many herbs and spices but I only saw few of them and knew very less of them.

Thai food is known for being spicy. And Dusit Thani, the restaurant with foreign and local clientele, is the first to pop on my mind.

Tom yum seafood: mushrooms and mixed seafood
in spicy creamy coconut milk

Tom yum served in traditional Chinese hot-pot

Pad Thai

Pad Thai is a dish of stir-fried rice noodles with eggs, fish sauce, tamarind juice, red chilli pepper, plus any combination of bean sprouts, shrimp, chicken or tofu, garnished with crushed peanuts, coriander and lime, the juice of which can be added along with Thai condiments.

A meal from Dusit Thani is P300 and an experience to eat with a foreign dignitary on the table beside you.

There's still time to drop by Vietnam before the day ends, so I headed to Pho Bac Restaurant to complete my day. Forget the motorbikes and coffee and milk combo, this one will be a heavy one for me.



Pomelo salad



Cambodian noodles

A meal at Pho Bac Restaurant is at P250.

So much to say, so little time. I'm full, satisfied and happy. All the foods that I've tried truly speaks of each country's origin and lifestyle.

Who knows, next time I'll be in Europe, Eat Pray Love style.

Capricciosa

Capricciosa: whimsical, capricious or undecided. Like me, during those times when I cannot decide where and what to eat. So there's this one time, I'm walking lazily at Greenbelt mall, killing my time on one of those boring and unpleasant hot days. I'm bored and hungry.

Then I caught sight of a restaurant. It caught my attention. So I walked inside, requested for a table for one and check on the menu. Hmmm...

The menu are new to the eyes and the names, some of them are not easy to remember.



Penne in spicy tomato sauce

Penne in spicy tomato sauce. I've asked the staff if this truly is spicy and true to their word, it's spicy enough to keep you awake.


Calamari and onion on squid ink sauce

Shame on me for ordering calamari and onion on squid ink sauce. You know why? This menu is so messy to eat. You'll be all black on your mouth and the squid ink really sticks it. I've used so many tissues just to wipe it off my mouth. The taste, delicious.



Apple a la Mode

 Just in time for dessert does the staff put on the table my order for my sweets. Yummy, by the looks of it, and because I'm craving for an apple pie that's why I ordered apple a la mode. It's a traditional American apple pie with cheese-flavored ice cream on top.  


Hot milk

 And to ease off the aftertaste of all the foods I ordered and ate, I ordered a cup full of hot milk.

And now I'm full, so much for my food tripping in one day.

The next time that I went to Capricciosa, I was with Mimi, Emy and Mafe. This dinner was planned for my birthday three weeks prior but because of schedule conflicts, it took us three weeks.




Italian mixed salad

 
Italian mixed salad as appetizer. I chose this because of the cold cuts and big chunks of cheese.

Mushroom spaghetti in tomato cream sauce

 Since it's my day, three weeks late, I let them choose what to eat. Mushroom spaghetti in tomato cream sauce, the mushroom acts as replacement for meat.



Lasagna Capricciosa

Lasagna Capricciosa did not disappoint. It's Capricciosa's signature dish with loads of meat and mozarella cheese. And they serve it hot!


Strawberry panna cotta

 As for the dessert, apple a la mode is also at the top of the list along with strawberry panna cotta.

We enjoyed the night with stories and happy thoughts as well as we enjoyed the foods. It's like we're at home hanging out at Capricciosa with their good, clean and refreshing dining environment as well as the hospitable staff.

 I enjoyed the food as well and being a critic, I would say Capricciosa is up to my standard and I'm sure they can up the ante with the foods.

A good sized meal for a person is P500.

Third Time Is A Charm

It has been that every other week, we made it a point that we get together even for just a simple dinner: me, Angel and Bel. And this time we're eating out at Piadina Italiana, again, for the third time.

While we wait for the food to be served, the usual talks or "kumustahan" and then on to the conversation about work and movies.



Calzone and penne with white mushroom sauce
 Calzone: a baked or fried Italian turnover
of pizza dough filled with vegetables, meat, or cheese



Grissini di Pizza and penne with white mushroom sauce
Grissini di Pizza: garlic bread sticks with cheese dip



Roasted chicken, garlic bread and penne
with white mushroom sauce



Panna cotta: an Italian dessert made
by simmering together cream, milk and sugar,
mixing this with gelatin, and letting it cool until set.

Banana Cheesecake

P200 is enough for one per person a meal.