Gardenia Squidball Croquettes

Ingredients :

-8 slices Gardenia Classic White Bread

-8 pcs Squidballs, thawed

-2 cups Squidballs, minced

-200 ml Fresh milk  

-Oil, for deep frying

For sauce: 

-50 ml water

-3 tbsp. Soy sauce

-1 1/2 tbsp. Vinegar

-2 tbsp. Cornstarch 

-1 tbsp. Onions, chopped

Procedure:

1. For the sauce, mix and boil water, soy sauce and vinegar.

2. When the mixture starts to boil, mix about 2 tsp of slurry (mixed of water and cornstarch). Cook the mixture until thick. Set aside.

3. Blanch the squidballs for 5 minutes, drain and set aside.

4. Trim the sides of the bread then press it using your palm. Soak the flatten breads in milk.

5. Wrap the squidballs with soaked bread. Form a ball shape.

6. Roll the balls on minced squidballs, it will serve as the breadcrumbs.

7. Deep fry until golden brown. Strain.

8. Plate and serve with sauce on the side.

Food Trip: Dexter's Bakeshop & Coffee Shop

One of the perks of freelancing - we get to bring the kids everywhere. One of our latest client's office is around Katipunan and we need a place to keep the toddlers cool from the afternoon sun. So before our meeting, we looked for a place to stay and this caught my toddler's eyes.

The huge cakes in the display window did it for him. Just in time for mom's craving for pasta!

Pumpkin Soup (Php120.00)

Dave finished half of his soup! Clyde loved the crunchy croutons, too.

Kwento: He opens the menu and pick this pasta with a photo in it. His order arrived and he checked to make sure his order (in the photo) is exactly like the one on his table. He also asked me to take two photos: of his order, and of himself with his order. I obliged!

Hungarian Sausage Pasta (Php180.00)

Putanesca (Php150.00)

They do have a powder room. Staff are friendly and very accommodating. Aside from soups, salads, sandwiches and pasta, the menu has Pinoy Favorites like Special Palabok, Inihaw na Liempo, Inihaw na Pusit and Tanique Steak. All-Day Breakfast includes my all-time favorite Longganiza with rice and egg. The Tawilis with salted egg also looks scrumptious. Rice & Specialties includes Korean Beef Stew, Beef Teriyaki and Salpicao. They also offer special cakes, pastries, desserts and pies!

We can't wait to have another meeting with our clients and be back here, to our newest hangout to try for more!

Dexter's Bakeshop & Coffee Shop, 146 Katipunan Road, St. Ignatius village, Q.C.

Tel No. 912-0311

Store Hours: 8am-8pm Monday to Saturday, 8am-7pm Sunday.

Website: www.dexterbakeshop.com

Doughnuts with a character (^^)

Nowadays, our daily communication with our friends and families revolve around text and chat messages from different social media platforms, and messaging has become more fun since the addition of emojis. Our messages can now be sent with a smile, a wink, a laugh, a kiss and many more. And even the use of just emojis can convey your message itself or your current mood! But did you know that emojis are no longer limited to our messages anymore? That’s because Krispy Kreme has recently launched their limited Emoji doughnuts last February 20, 2016.

To make this event more enjoyable, they held fun activities at the park right in front of their store in BGC so people could join in the fun and games.

You can make your own emoji doughnuts, both kids and adult alike have enjoyed dipping doughnuts into chocolate, adding sprinkles and of course, decorating it with their choice of emojis! And these are the emojis you can choose from:

• Smiley
• LOL
• Love
• Kiss Me
• Hearts
• Strawberry Sprinkles
• Hot Cup
• Flowers
• 2K’s
• Thumbs Up

You can also participate in the interactive game - Catch the Emoji and win a Krispy Kreme T-shirt.

So many kids also had fun at the Emoji Ball Pit and had their face painted.

In addition to these, you can also avail of their Personalized Emoji T-shirts by simply purchasing half a dozen doughnuts. It was a fun-filled day at the Emoji Park with activities catered to both kids and adults. So, don't miss out on these limited edition doughnuts and give your love ones a sweet treat with a character, an emoji character that is! #SharetheKK

Top 3 Child-Friendly Restaurants

There are three kinds of restaurants out there. The restaurants, the hate-children restaurants, and the child-friendly restaurants. As obvious as it is, I'll be sharing my top 3 child-friendly restaurants! First off, we are located inside Makati near the borderline of Taguig, Pasig and Mandaluyong, so all of the restaurants that I will feature in this segment would be located near or inside these areas. I also think that we should be aware of restaurants policies when it comes to children, because believe it or not, there are unfriendly to kids restaurants out there!

Before writing down my Top 3 favorites, I'm curious to know on how you can tell if it's child-friendly or not. Looks can be deceiving, but how do I know if the restaurants are child-friendly? Here are some of my must-see:

• Pro-breastfeeding.
• High chairs are visible.
• Powder/Comfort room have diaper changing table.
• Wash area have lower lavatory for kids.
• Designated playing area are visible.
• Menu includes meals for children.

Moving on here are my Top 3 Child-Friendly Restaurants in no particular order:

• Andale by Agave.

Simply because "Kids Eat Free Every Weekends" – little Mexicans aged 10 and below can choose one free kid’s meal with purchase of each regular menu item.

• T.G.I. Fridays.

Aside from their seasonal menus and Kid's meals, they also five kids coloring pages, activity sheets and crayons to keep them busy while waiting for the orders to come. Plus, they decorative walls would surely keep their eyes and imagination full.

• Shakey's.

Family deals, monsters meal. What's more is that they give Do-It-Yourself sticker pizza, and a Captain Shakeys Arcade Toy Capture Machine. Family fun, indeed!

There you go! My Top 3 Child-Friendly restaurants will grow to 10! So watch out for that! If you have more clues on knowing whether a restau is child-friendly or not, hit the comment section below... Now, if you want to find more restaurants near you, or if you

Got a Restaurant Bucketlist? Fulfill it with Foozap!

Foodzap is a brain child of Japanese foodie and self-proclaimed Japanese ramen consultant in the Philippines, Gaku Nakamura. He used to roam around the metro in search for good food, and later on started sharing his good experience by writing about top ramen places in Manila. Of course, his love for food goes beyond ramen, that, and his will to build a community of foodies encouraged him to create a site. A venue where foodies could "talk about good food", besides good food means food life, right?

 

Foodzap is basically a social reviewing site that originates its name to the combination of the word “Food” and “Usap” (Filipino word for “talk”). This is where everyone shares their restaurant experience and create their own foodie community by following other users. Foozap wants to connect people and what better way to do it, than through food! With the never-ending list of “Top 10” recommended dishes and eat strips mushrooming all over Metro Manila, eating out nowadays has never been this social. It has evolved into a collective activity in which friends are invited, selfies are snapped and food is captioned -- not to mention, #hashtagged. In fact, “sharing your food” can mean so many things from passing on the plate to posting artful pictures of your order and giving a shoutout to your favorite hangouts. In all these so-called food trips, foodscapades, or food adventures”, Foozap is there to share your moments.

 

Now go search for cuisines you currently crave, read reviews of other people or write reviews of your own, and post photos from a restaurant you recently tried, add a restaurant into your “Wish” list and get notifications if any of your friends visited and reviewed your wished restaurant.

Exciting upgrades are also coming to the site, as it will soon allow users to automatically share their review on social media, add user widgets to their personal websites and become ranked as one of the top users of the month. Start your own food journey with Foozap! Simply sign up to www.foozap.ph or download the android app. You can also like their Facebook page at www.fb.com/foozap.ph where weekly contests are being held, giving away vouchers to your favorite restos in Manila!

 

For more information about Foozap, login to their website www.foozap.ph, download the Foozap Android app on Google Play, and like them of Facebook via www.fb.com/foozap.ph.

2015 Best Ramen in Manila by a Japanese Reviewer

Gaku Nakamura is a self-styled Japanese Ramen Consultant living in Manila. Last year,

he listed his top 10 ramen with Ramen Nagi topping the list. But with a number of new

and authentic restaurants popping up, here is some of Gaku-san’s top ramen for 2015!

#5 Mendokoro Ramenba

MUST TRY: Shoyu Tonkatsu

Gaku says: “Mendokoro has tonkotsu-based ramen with chashu. The restaurant looks

just like a Japanese-style kitchen and it reminds me of a good ramen restaurant in

Japan, Afuri. The taste of the broth and chasu is very nice.”

#4 Mitsuyado Seimen

MUST TRY: Cheese Tsukemen

Gaku says: “Tsukemen soup is yuzu flavor and the noodles are thick. I have never

thought that cheese can fit wih Tsukemen, but you will be satisfied once you taste it at

Mitsuyado!

#3 Ramen Daisho

MUST TRY: Miso Ramen

Gaku says: “The best Miso ramen in Manila! It is located along Shaw Blvd. Although

not located in a major mall, lots of people go there just to eat Daisho's delicious ramen.

Not only ramen, but their gyoza are also delicious.”

#2 Ramen Nagi

MUST TRY: Butao Ramen

Gaku says: “Nagi’s tonkotsu-based broth tastes like real Japanese tonkotsu. If you’re a

first-time visitor, try Butao. When you've eaten half of it, try to add their Fire sauce to

change the taste. You can also change the firmness of the ramen and the toppings

based on your preference.”

#1 Find out Gaku-san’s #1 best ramen in Manila, check out the full list on

www.foozap.ph

Talk about Good Food on Foozap!

Foozap is your personal food diary loaded online. From the words, “Food” and “Usap”

(Filipino word for “talk”), Foozap allows you to share your food adventures, search and

discover the best restaurants, and create your own foodie community.

You can check out food reviews from the top food bloggers, post photos of restaurants

you’ve recently tried, add restaurants on your “Wish” list and get notifications if any of

your friends visited and reviewed your wished restaurant.

Check out Foozap to start your own food journey! Simply log-in www.foozap.ph or

download the android app. You can also like their facebook page, www.fb.com/foozap

to join giveaways to your favorite restaurants.

Blogapalooza: All About The Panda, FOODPANDA

via

I love pandas! Aside from the fact that he's Asian, he's white, he's black, he is chubby too! Talk about having NO favoritism! Just like for food, who says I have favorites? As long as it's edible, it's good! Let's do some Math! Let's add one of the things I love about China (Panda) and my favorite hobby (eating), what do you get? Foodpanda!!!

Foodpanda? If you haven't got a clue yet, this kind of panda is a master of art, the art of eating! It is the leading global online food ordering marketplace that lets their hungry customers conveniently discover what is edible-available out there and directly order their cravings online or via smartphones. See? Another reason why phones aren't just swag, they're a necessity nowadays, but that's another story.

Moving on, Foodpanda was founded in may 2002 at the always-hungry-but-too-busy-to-eat-out-or-cook headquarter in Berlin, Germany and has operated in more than 40 countries across the 5 continents. Oh, this panda is busy conquering the world! Locally, Foodpanda here in the Philippines is still a cub. Launched last June 2014, the hungry cub of a panda grown to over 1000 restaurants nationwide! Foodpanda is part of the German group called Rocket Internet - a platform that identifies and builds internet business models such as Lazada and Zalora. This panda is not just a foodie, but a techy too!

How does it work? Search. Choose. Pay. Enjoy!

Hungry customers simply need to download the foodpanda app from the App Store or Google Play. Or if you don't have enough space on your smartphones, just log on to www.foodpanda.ph, enter your location and select the restaurant that serves your cravings! Once you finalize your order and the transaction is completed, foodpanda sends the order information to the restaurant, and upon confirmation of the merchant, notifies the customer that the order is on its way- to your belly. Foodpanda is recently colonized Cebu aside from major cities in the metro including Las Pinas, Makati, Mandaluyong, Paranaque, Pasay, Pasig, Rizal and Taguig. It's arms are ready to expand its service to deliver good food fast and fresh to more hungry pinoys!

Feeling Japanese? Get the chopsticks ready as the foodpanda offers a wide variety of cuisines, ranging from American, Asian, Filipino, Greek, Mexican and Middle Eastern among others while making sure that the best restaurants and food brands out there didn't miss to hop on board!

Why not like, but LOVE the Foodpanda? Restaurant partners are able to reach more customers with the help of this generous Foodpanda's delivery service and online visibility.

Did I mention that this panda is not just a foodie, but a techy too! Follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

BLOGAPALOOZA: Chips Delight, Araw Araw Delight!

I want my coffee black, because I want my cookies, Chip Delight!

***
Rainy days and Mondays? Heartbreaks and bad luck? I'm never afraid to face these dreaded moments because I can eat my way through it.

via

When it comes to these kinds of sneaky moments which is also manipulative (because it could easily turn your unicorns to ogres, if you know what I mean) I release the Kraken! Err, my coffee beans - brewed and what's the key to a delightful day? Chip Delight Soft Soft Brownie Cookies and eat my heart out... to its full content.

I also use the power of delight to break the ice and move on from awkward moments.

Chips Delight has 11 variants based on Filipino-alltime favorites including
-Chocolate Chip Cookies
-Striped Chocolate Chip Cookies
-Butter Oatmeal Choco Chip Cookies
-Chocolate Chip Cookies (No Added Sugar)
-Rainbow Candy Cookies
-Peanut and Caramel Chip Cookies
-Striped Cappuccino Cookies
-Chocolate Chip Brittle Brownies
-Soft Brownie Cookies
-Triple Chocolate Overload Cookies
-Coffee Caramel Chip Cookies

Negatron on the move? Release the Kraken! Err, the Cookie Monster in you! Follow the end of Chips Delight rainbow and amaze yourself on how you could turn from fear and sorrow to fierce and more Chips Delight please!

Chips Delight Philippines Official Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ChipsDelightPH

Food Trip: Vikings Luxury Buffet

One of the rising buffets in the metro is none other than the Vikings! Just by the name of it, I picture a humongous chunk of a dinosaur leg held by the massive hand of a Viking who just got home from sailing a massive water vessel! Whew! What a massive imagination! I know!

...and now I'm ready for a massive food tripping indulgence!

There are three buffet stations placed evenly apart that showcases extensive diversity of entrees; a wide variety of quality dishes from different cuisines.

This was my first time on Vikings, SM Megamall located at Mega Fashion Hall. The elegant dining area was just as huge as the buffet stations with modern and comfortable furnitures for best buffet experience.

I adore this abstract-striped ceiling. It's cool, modern and very artsy!

They offer a wide variety of food palates, from fresh seafood to juicy Angus steaks!

I love the DIY pizza! Loads of pineapple and bell pepper pizza please!

Of course I wouldn't pass my chance to serve babe his favorite ingredients on his pizza

- black olives and button mushrooms! :D

Another favorite of mine is the bottomless Shabu-Shabu where you could create and choose what ingredients to put. Seafood with lotsa corn please!

My dad's favorite Japanese sushis are here too, including the sashimi. I have to skip this though, sashimis' not a pregnant food.

I just wish they have more soup selection. I want creamy mushroom soup that night and all they have were a sour broth of Sinigang na Manok and Crab Soup.

You want to be a Viking for a day and eat like one? Well, first off, you have to get a reservation especially if you'll come with your entire clan, or entire class, or entire office floor. Get it? Queue on the waiting list is a pain in the butt especially on holidays plus if you will go there by batch and you are in the waiting list, do not expect to be placed on a long table! The staffs are very friendly, they would even suggest what you should get on your DIY palate, plus they will recommend what's best.

Food Trip: The Watercress Salad - The Best of Baguio in a Bowl

Watercress is one of the veggies I learned to love when I was in Baguio. Most especially when I was pregnant, and now that I am again, I'm craving for some watercress stew.

Beef stew with watercress is the best hot-pot my mom used to cook for us, especially for me - I miss watercress' sweet delicate taste and I was amaze to see it on my favorite pizza parlor - Shakey's!

Crisp watercress and purple  lettuce, fresh strawberries, red radish, cherry tomatoes, with rich feta cheese and crushed candied walnuts, all tossed together with or house-made raspberry vinaigrette for an enticing starter.

ELIZABETH: Mango Tree Restaurant

FRESH POMELO SALAD

Prawns with fresh grated coconut.

STIR FRIED RICE NOODLES

with vegetables in special Thai sauce.

PORK SATAY

Served with cucumber and peanut dipping sauce.

SHRIMP SPRING ROLLS

Served with sweet chili sauce.

WATERMELON SHAKE

table setup..
.

We actually attended the event of Dyson Technology in BGC, and after that, they invite us here in Mango Tree for some snack.

my sister, with other bloggers... ;)

With my hubby after the event, he's with baby clyde at the starbucks while we're on the event, they have bonding time together until baby fall asleep! hehe! ;) 

live, love, laugh,
Beth :)

ELIZABETH: Family Night at Friday's! :)

SOUTHWEST SHRIMP CAESAR SALAD - Php.595.00

Grilled blackened shrimp on top of Southwestern salad. Served with yummy tortilla cheese crisps.

PENNE BRISKET BOLOGNESE - Php.445.00

Hearty sauce with tender beef brisket slimmered with red wine, thyme, garlic, oregano and plum tomatoes tossed with Parmesan cheese and fresh ground pepper.

FRIES AND CHICKEN FINGER

HONEY BARBEQUE WINGS - Php.485.00

Crisp deep fried wings tossed in homemade sweet and tangy barbeque sauce.

SHRIMP MANGO QUESADILLA - Php.295.00

Tender diced shrimp with sweet ripe mango and pico de gallo layered with Monterey jack cheese in crisp flour tortillas. Served with mango lime slaw.

FRIDAY'S CHEESEBURGER SLIDERS - Php.455.00

Four mouthwatering chargrilled all beef patties topped with caramelized onions and American cheese. Served with crispy seasoned fries, chips and salsa.

BROWNIE OBSESSION - Php.325.00

A warm brownie covered in dark and rich chocolate fudge, topped with vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce and pecans.

with my family! :) 

live, love, laugh,

Beth :)