March 31, 2017

10 Restaurants To Try at the New North Wing of SM Mall of Asia #MOAEATS

SM Mall of Asia welcomed this year with a bang as more restaurants opened up on its new North Wing of the Entertainment Mall. The new wing features upcoming gastronomic destinations and promising food establishments, in addition to the mall's wide selection of restaurants.

Experience a palatable journey around the world, and explore the different cuisines from Japanese, Thai, Southwestern, American, and Filipino.

Last month, I was invited to attend the media launch of the new North Wing to discover more of #MOAEATS.


More than 15 restaurants will be found in the new food zone, but only 10 stores are currently open today.

We went on a food crawl to discover what each must-visit restaurant has to offer.

1. Agos by Chef Tatung


Agos is a Filipino-Spanish restaurant by award-winning chef-journalist Chef Myke "Tatung" Sarthou. It features Fil-Hispanic cuisine, inspired by local dishes, ingredients, and flavors of the Philippines.

One of Agos' signature dishes is the Paella Fiesta Filipina (P580)- a festive mix of seafood, chicken, smoked chorizo and vegetables on paella rice with achuete oil.


2. Basil


The Thai restaurant in While Plains now opens another branch in SM Mall of Asia. We've been to its Makati branch before, and I could still remember how we fell in love with the place and food.

Not to miss are Basil's bestselling Pad Thai (P360) and Crispy Fish with 3 Flavored Sauces (P825).


3. Botejyu Authentic Japanese Cuisine 


Botejyu is popularly known as one of the pioneers and innovators of the legendary Okonomiyaki of Osaka. It is also the inventor of Okosoba or "modernyaki", which is a combination of okonomiyaki and yakisoba.

Some of the must-try dishes at Botejyu are the Takoyaki All-Star (P245) and Premium Moonlight Okonomiyaki (P360).


4. Fiery Style Southwestern Flaming Grill


Fiery Style offers Southwestern Tex-Mex flaming grills with a complementing cocktails bar perfect for a good night out with friends and family.

This Chicken & Rib Combo (P998) offers the best of both worlds, with a half roasted jerk chicken, and smokey BBQ pork ribs, served with southwest rice and corn on the cob.


5. Morganfield's 


Home of the sticky bones, Morganfield's boasts to having the biggest ribs in town. Their baby back ribs and spareribs are cut from Iberian pigs, flown in all the way from Spain.

Here is a full slab of Inasal Pork Spareribs- a sweet and smokey baby back ribs suited to the Filipino palate.


I remember spotting these cute his and hers Think Pig mugs (P250) when we dined in their Uptown Mall branch in BGC.


6. Paper Moon Cafe 


The Japanese cafe of Tokyo, known for its signature mille crepe cakes hit the country by storm. Their Original Mille Crepe (P225/slice) is made with at least 20 layers of delicate, paper-thin, handmade crepes, with a heavenly light pastry cream in between.


7. Tenren's Tea 


For Taiwan's best-tasting tea, Tenren's Tea is the place to go. 913 King's Tea is an exclusive blend of high quality oolong, with a touch of ginseng to create an incredible aftertaste.

Tenren's tea uses milk powder for their milk teas, and fresh milk for their tea lattes. They also have fruit teas and slushies for a more refreshing drink option.


8. Tenya 


Tenya, home of the famous tempura and tendon of Asakusa, Tokyo, specializes in tempura and tempura donburi (tendon). Their best-selling All-Star Tendon (P295) has a little bit of everything like black tiger prawn, squid, salmon, kani stick, green beans, and mushroom, served atop steaming Japanese rice drizzled with their signature dontare sauce. 

The highlight of our visit was Tenya's new flavored salts- curry, yuzu (calamansi), and wasabi powder to heighten up the tempura experience. 


9. Tori Ichi Yakitori & Bar 


Tori Ichi specializes in yakitori or grilled meat skewers. They have a wide variety of meat and vegetable selections, plus classic Japanese ala carte dishes as well. 

We tried their Butabara (P75)- pork belly skewers, and Hasami (P75)- chicken and scallions skewers which were both tender and savory. 


10. Caramia Cakes & Gelato

For dessert, there is always Caramia to fix your gelato cravings. 


Good news to coffee lovers, there's also a Seattle's Best Coffee opening in the new north wing soon.

Head over to the food zone of the new North Wing of SM Mall of Asia, and discover what #MOAEATS is all about. 

March 30, 2017

Ready For A Leveled Up 2017 with #PiattosTime

Can’t believe March is over! It’s crazy how quickly time passes. Weren’t we just celebrating New Year’s Day a moment ago? I can still recall listing down my 2017 goals- every start of the year, we all have that urge to level up our past activities and be a better version of ourselves. Somehow, we want to beat our previous years' achievements and goals. That is why most of us come down with a list of resolutions to remind us of the challenge we are readily accepting for each new year.

Since we want to be a better version of ourselves, we find ways to level up the things we normally do.

This time, I am leveling up my year by enjoying more the good things that life brings. I'd like to travel more with friends and family, and enjoy delicious and good food both locally and internationally.

Started my resolution early when the parents and I went to China during the holidays. Of course, I didn't forget to bring my favorite snack with us while exploring the natural beauty of Guilin, China, definitely a fun and exciting #PiattosTime.

March 25, 2017

Namoo House Premium Korean BBQ- Experience Seoul BBQ in Uptown Parade, BGC

One of our family’s favorite cuisine is Korean. We used to dine at different Korean buffets around the metro because we get to enjoy various meat selections and Korean dishes to our hearts’ content. But ever since my dad underwent angioplasty a year ago, our family became more conscious on the food we eat, when dining at home and in restaurants.

While we stayed away from buffets and other eat-all-you-can establishments, we still enjoyed eating Korean food since it is has a lot of healthy grilled options and vegetables.

It was a post-birthday celebration for my Dad and the brother decided to treat the family. We went to Uptown Parade in BGC and chanced upon this Korean restaurant called Namoo House


Like most Korean restaurants, we were served with some complimentary banchans while waiting for our orders. Their appetizers consisted of mixed greens with sesame dressing, kimchi, anchovies, omelette, steamed and pickled veggies.


March 22, 2017

Boulangerie22 Pokémon Cakes and Macarons- Gotta Eat 'em All!

Still hooked with the addicting Pokémon Go craze? Good news to all Pokemon fans! You don't have to walk, run, or drive far enough to catch the sweetest Pokemon creatures around. 

Boulangerie 22, a bakery and dessert cafe serving specialty cakes and pastries, recently launched their Pokémon Cakes and Pokémon Macarons, to add to its growing selection of delectable and fun character-themed cakes and macarons.

For my birthday, I got myself the Jigglypuff Strawberry Cake (P699) which is a vanilla chiffon cake layered with strawberry buttercream of real fresh strawberries.


March 17, 2017

SM By The Bay: The 8th Philippine International Pyromusical Competition- Germany

The Philippine International Pyromusical Competition is now on its 8th year of illuminating the city's night sky with a spectacular fireworks display, coupled with a magnificent play of thrilling sounds and vivid colors. 

The annual extravaganza gathers some of the best fireworks manufacturers around the world, with two participants showcasing their pyrotechnic artistry and craft every Saturday night at the SM By The Bay in SM Mall of Asia.


This year's competition, is joined by France, Germany, China, Canada, United Kingdom, and Australia, with an opening and closing exhibition by the Philippines as host country. 

I haven't witnessed a single pyromusical competition during the last seven years, but finally, I experienced the outstanding performances of Germany's Steffes-Olig Feuerwerke, and Nico Events last February 18.

Instead of going out to a fancy dinner, we spent our Valentine weekend at SM By The Bay to witness this grand and majestic spectacle.

Doors open at 4pm, and first firing starts at 8pm. Since we arrived early for the event, we decided to check out the Love Locks by the bay near the patron area.




There were also some carnival-inspired game booths to enjoy while passing the time until the show starts.


Here are the ticket prices for the event:
Patron with dinner- Php 1500
VIP- Php 600
Gold- Php 300
Silver- Php 100

While I used to think that it is better to watch the fireworks display at a far distance, getting front row seats got some perks as well. One, the patron and vip area are much less crowded than the gold and silver section. Secondly, watching the whole exhibition at a very close distance was most certainly a sight to behold. It was like the whole display was within arm's reach as lights illuminate the sky with a bright spectrum of colors.

The first presenter from team Germany was Nico Events.






After the first show, an intermission performance by Kitchie Nadal entertained the guests.


The second presenter was Steffes-Olig Feuerwerke of Germany.





While both German competitors put up a magnificent show, I personally liked Steffes-Olig Feuerwerke better. They literally lit up the sky and filled the night with colors and music. It was such an overwhelming spectacle, and I couldn't think of a better way to have spent the Valentine weekend than watching the 8th Philippine International Pyromusical Competition in SM Mall of Asia.


You can still catch the last exihibition on:
March 18- Australia & Philippines (Closing Show)

Get your tickets now!!

March 13, 2017

Kodanda Archery Range Opens New Branch in Cyber & Fashion Mall Eastwood

Are you looking for a unique activity to do, other than watching movies, eating out, or strolling around the mall? Why don't you try a basic archery session at Kodanda Archery Range.


We have tried archery once at Gandiva Archery and Cafe in Pasig, and it was so fun! I remember wanting to go back to hone our archery skills, and at the same time just do something different for our usual dates.


This time, went to another archery range - Kodanda Archery Range which recently opened their fourth and newest branch at the second level of Cyber & Fashion Mall in Eastwood, Libis.


It has been a year since our last archery session, so we definitely needed a refresher course to start.
Good thing Kodanda staff were kind enough to refresh our memory and gave us instructions to follow.


March 9, 2017

Chibo Okonomiyaki- Osaka's Okonomiyaki and Teppanyaki in S Maison, Conrad Manila

Ever since Conrad Manila opened, we've been eyeing to try some of the new restaurants located in S Maison. However, all our attempts have been in vain as most establishments were always fully booked during weekends. 

Few months after, we finally had a chance to dine at Chibo Okonomiyaki one Saturday afternoon with our favorite double-date buddies, Sumi and J. 


We started off with a couple of appetizers before the main event.