July 29, 2013

A BGC Eats Food Tour Experience with Chef JJ Yulo- Vask, Orale!, Crystal Jade Dining In and Slice Hight St.

Last Saturday, The Foodies Circle along with D joined the last batch of BGC Eats. We were fortunate to score the last few remaining tickets for the July 20 (final batch) tour date. 



Tour begins at the Hop On, Hop Off bus stop in 9th St. between Nike and Bo Concept store at exactly 3pm. 


The food tour was curated and guided by Chef JJ Yulo of Pinoy Eats World, a company famous for their guerilla dinners, food tours and themed dinners. 

I've had a chance to attend one of their mystery dinner sometime ago which was really unique and different.  


Ukalele Manila also joined the tour as they serenade everyone on every food destination. 


The Foodies Circle

My Foodie Buddy D 

Located at the 5th level of Clipp Center, Vask is actually outside the commercial and bustling area of BGC. Even though D and I frequent the Fort area, I can't remember passing by Clipp Center or seeing signs of Vask. 


Vask is a Spanish restaurant helmed by world renowned Chef Jose Luis "Chele" Gonzales. We were told that he actually worked at some of the world's best restaurants like El Bulli, El Celler de Can Roca, Mugaritz, and Arzak. Honestly, I haven't been to Spain, so I haven't heard or tried any of these restaurants before. But to have worked with the best restaurant's in the world, Chef Luis Gonzales made us feel privileged and honored to dine at Vask. 

We were led to the first section of Vask which is the Tapas Bar & Dining Room area. 


The place looks really elegant with artistic decors and modern accents. 

They started bringing out some Pintxos/Pinchos of gourmet toasts for everyone to try.

We were able to sample three of the five available pintxos:
  • Eggplant, Parmesan, Garlic, Red Capsicum Confit w/ Quail Egg (P95)
  • Salmon and Crab Tartare (P95)
  • Sous Vide Tuna, Garlic Chili Oil, Caramelized Onion, Piquillo Pepper (P95)
Other selections are:
  • Jamon Parmesan Mousse (P95)
  • Curried Prawns and Green Asparagus (P95
My favorites would be the Eggplant and Salmon :) 

Then we were also served with their famous Foie Gras on Mango Toast (P695- 5 pcs.)- rich and savory foie gras mousse atop mango balls. Yum! 

And to cap off our Vask food tour were some Chocolate Truffle Petits Fours- Dark Chocolate+White Chocolate+Extra Virgin Olive Oil= the best! :) 


We were then led to another section of Vask which is the Degustation Art Gallery


The place is ideal for private functions and is equipped with an open kitchen wherein you could actually see how the chefs prepare your food. It will soon be opened for Degustation priced at P5,000+ per person. Expensive, I know, but with a man like Chef Luis Gonzales preparing your food, the rate is totally reasonable compared to dining somewhere else in the world. 

Lastly, a relaxing and fun time at the Deck.


Our short trip to Vask was really a moment to remember. Imagine being able to sample dishes from a world class chef without going too far. I really hope D and I could come back here. :) 

We hopped on the Hoho bus again and made our way to a much familiar destination..The Fort Strip.




Heard really good reviews about Orale! that occupies a small corner spot at The Fort Strip

We were graciously welcomed by the owner themselves, Mr and Mrs. Nikki Confiado as they gave us a brief background of Orale. 

They first served us with a mini version of their Tostadas, then 2 new menu items: Chili Verde and Chilaquiles Verdes Con Pollo.



My personal favorite would be the Tostadas. I just love the simple combination of ingredients. The last 2 dishes were really spicy. But it's that good kind of spiciness for me. D who found it really spicy loved it as well. He promised that we will go back here and try their other food offerings :) 

The Foodies Circle

From Spain to Mexico, we boarded the Hoho bus again for some Chinese afternoon delights at the Bonifacio High Street Central

3rd Stop- Crystal Jade Dining In


A different concept from the Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao in Greenhills, Crystal Jade Dining In is a fine dining restaurant that specializes in Cantonese fare. 

We were warmly welcomed by Mr. Kenneth Yu as we settled in one of their round tables. They served us with a glass of refreshing Iced Tea which surprisingly tasted like orange juice. 

Then they gave each of us a plate of their Steamed Cream Custard Bun w/ Salted Egg Yolk (P160- 3 pcs.) and Baked Bo Lo Bbq Pork Bun (P180-3 pcs.)

The buns were served fresh and hot making it more enjoyable to eat. It was love at first bite for the Baked Bo Lo Bbq Pork Bun. It was soft, sweet and savory at the same time. I'm a sucker for sweets so some people might find this too sweet compared to other pork buns out there.


The Sauteed E-Fu Noodles probably was the least appealing dish for me. It was tasty, but I'd appreciate more toppings to it.

And to end our afternoon snack, we were served with their Japanese Glutinous Rice Dumpling with Mango and Cream (P160-3 pcs.). Another must-try! The texture of the mochi was so soft and the filling kinda reminds me of alsa gulaman :) 

Will definitely go back to Crystal Jade Dining In! :) Perhaps I should take home some of those baked pork buns every time we're around the area :) 

And as if the dessert at Crystal Jade was not enough, we walked our way to our final destination for more desserts and sweets.



Slice is owned by Senator Pia Cayetano who decided to share her passion for healthy eating to customers. But during our visit, we were in for a complete indulgence. It rained cakes and cupcakes that day. Good thing there were many of us sharing so we got to taste a little bit of everything. 

Cakes and Cupcakes we've tired:
  • Double Chocolate Yema Cupcake
  • Red Velvet Cupcake
  • Nuts About Banana 
  • Chocnut Peanut Butter Cupcake 
  • Turtle Pie 
  • Yema Cheesecake 
  • Ube Cupcake
  • Lemon Pie
  • Very Berry Cupcake 
  • Rocky Smores Cupcake
  • Double Choco Yema Cake 

It was like a dessert haven at Slice. Aside from sweets, Slice also offers soups, salads, sandwiches, pasta and healthy rice meals that are equally tasty and filling. 

And that ends our BGC Eats food adventure. It was a fun-filled restaurant hopping around BGC that made us discover new food destinations. I really hope they'd come up with another round of BGC Eats soon. :) 

15 comments:

  1. This was fun! Thanks for our tix heh. Hope we'll have more food tours coming our way!

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  2. Jakey JunkieJuly 29, 2013

    Blast! I saw this foodie tour posted on Spot.ph before and was interested to join. I never got the time. From the looks of it, you had fun and the food awesome.

    The last time we had our own "foodventure" there at BGC was at Shawarma Guys there at The Fort Strip. Have you tried their food?



    ~ Jakey Junkie (http://jakeyjunkie.blogspot.com)

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  3. Really enjoyed the food tour with you girls and D! :D Let's have more food trips soon, self-curated food crawl naman next~

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  4. super! cheers to more food tours hehe :)

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  5. yes tried sharwarma guys na before.. i like their lamb steak shawarma :)

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  6. game!! ang sarap tlga kumain no? hahaha!! lets plan the next one na.. :)

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  7. a food tour! wow, i love it. sana they can hold one here in cebu. hehe. inggitera mode na talaga ako. :)

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  8. christian edward paul deeJuly 30, 2013

    pasama naman jan...hehehehe... cute naman ng mga chinita bloggers...hehehe...ikaw lang may kasamang bf noh?

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  9. hehe! we'll never know db? or maybe you and your friends can make your own food tour in cebu! :)

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  10. hehe thanks christian! :) yes, 4 lang kmi magkakasma :) d nkapnta bf ni sumi e so partner muna cla ni stacy :)

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  11. the food dudeJuly 31, 2013

    Awesome food tour! I have yet to try Vask, and the photos look great!

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  12. Thank you for including Ukulele Manila in this feature! Visit us at www.UkuleleManila.com! :)

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  13. What a blast! nakakainggit naman oh!

    Lysa of www.hellolysa.blogspot.com

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  14. yvonnembertoldo .June 15, 2015

    How do you join an event like this? It looks so much fun and nakakabusog :p

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  15. luckyelleJune 17, 2015

    WoW! Food Tour!!! #foodtrip!

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