Cafe Breton

Café Breton, Greenbelt 3

G/F Greenbelt 3, Paseo de Roxas cor. Legaspi St., Ayala Center, Makati City

757-4124 to 25

This is our go to dessert place in Greenbelt. They have yummy crepes! Although this particular branch is full of.....you know girls and their respective white-haired partners, we still enjoy going here because of it's accessibility and ambiance. We recently tried their sandwiches and savory crepes, they too did not disappoint. Parking is easy. Nearest parking space is in Greenbelt 3, near the cinema area.

 Now on to our food adventures in Café Breton…….

Let’s do savory dishes first. Our favorite is the Galette Super Complete – ham, eggs, cheese, tomatoes, mushroom, onion. Egg on top makes it perfect.

Galette Rustique – smoked bacon, tomato provencal, mozzarella, egg. The Smoked Bacon in this dish deserves an applause.

Tuna Melt Sandwich – Creamy tuna spread with melted cheese. Go for this if you want the yummy healthy option.

Mozzarella Burger - Juicy all beef burger patty with a mozzarella surprise, served with a side salad.

Sweet treats…

La Pinay – mango, mango ice cream (supposedly vanilla), and chocolate sauce. This is everyone’s favorite crepe here so we decided to try it. No doubt why it’s the best seller in this restaurant!

Chuck and I decided to be adventurous in one of our crepe so we went with PB&J with Coffee Ice Cream. Heaven on earth! Believe us, it will take you to childhood memory lane. Yum!

 

I was recently introduced to my now favorite Crepe here in Café Breton….Butter and Sugar with Condensed Milk. You might think it’s plain but believe us, this is the best crepe here! You can opt to have fruits with it, but our taste buds are satisfied with just this. Considering that it is the cheapest crepe here, makes it more amazing that it’s our favorite!

Beverages..

We tried their drinks as well. I ordered Café Mocha. Too much froth for me, but taste is good. Best ordered during a rainy day.

Chuck tried their Rootbeer Float. Tasted like a Rootbeer Float. Haha

All enjoyed with my support group.:)

Verdict:

- Dessert place for any type of company.

- Thinking if we can finish their menu in a year. haha

- Price is okay given the serving size and taste.

- Will come back for more crepe because we are addicted to it!

The Ice Cream Bar

The Ice Cream Bar

Joya Tower, Joya Drive, Rockwell Center

Makati City, Metro Manila

403-0891
Sun, Mon, Tues, Wed, Thurs: 12:00 pm - 12:00 mn
Fri, Sat: 12:00 pm - 1:00 am

This is our go to dessert restaurant. It’s in Rockwell so it’s very accessible for us. The place is chill so it’s nice to hang out with friends as well. Problem is parking. You can opt to park on the streets outside the restaurant if you get lucky and find one or park in Rockwell and just walk. 

Been here a couple of times so the below is the compilation of our visits. J First is their Heavenly Tuna Melt. We tried eating dinner here before. Sandwich is okay. Nothing fantastic. Ikya tasted something funny about it, but it was okay for me.
 

Chocolaty goodness is what we can say about the Cookies and Cream Split. You can eat this if you are not so mindful of the calories. ;)Best part is the stick-o. Brings back childhood memories. :)

Something Filipino would be the Mangga’t Suman. Thumbs up on this one! Mango ice cream goes really well with the suman. YUM!

Let’s go fruity and healthy with Strawberry Granola Yogurt. Hmmm…naaahhh. Won’t try it again. Didn’t satisfy our dessert craving. Too healthy. Haha

Another fruity dessert, but worth tasting is the Mango Manila Dream. You have to compliment it’s presentation – Martini Glass.

And here is Chuck ready to murder the Strawberry…sundae? Honestly, we don’t remember how this tastes like. But then, we know how forgettable food taste like...unforgettable! haha

Last is my ULTIMATE FAVORITE in this restaurant…Toasted Marshmallow Milkshake. Nothing can better describe how this drink makes me feel but CONTENTMENT. MUST TRY!!! We swear you won’t regret it.

  

Enjoyed with family. :)

Verdict:

- Go to restaurant for a chill dessert place

- Price is okay given the taste and ambient of place

- Will try to taste all their desserts! Goal set!

Chocolate Fire

Chocolate Fire

PDCP Bank Centre, Corner of Leviste Street and Rufino Street

Salcedo Village, Makati

Mon-Thurs: 10:00 am - 12:00am

Fri: 10:00am - 2:00am

Sat: 4:00pm - 2:00am

Sun: 4:00pm - 11:00pm

840 FIRE (3473) or after office hours 840 0808. 

For reservations - 0928-2826527

Ikya had her OJT in Geiser Maclang at Tordesillas Makati. I'd pick her up at around 5 in the afternoon and we'd have dinner somewhere together. On our way home, we'd drive by this restaurant that seems so interesting because of its name, Chocolate Fire. Well, a few months passed and we finally had the courage to go. Why wouldn't we when ikya's favorite food is chocolate? I guess we really had to hahaha! You won't miss it since it has an eye-catching sign. Parking is a bit tricky since its in the makati CBD area. As usual, pay parking, but after 7 its gonna be free. If you get lucky, you'll get parking just outside the restaurant on the streets.

When you step in the restaurant, you'll be surprised how chill this place is. It has a lodge/deli feel to it. They have a sandwich and chocolate area where you can check what they have or opt to view their menu. Here is what we ordered:

Banoffee Pie - Hands down this is the best Banoffee Pie we ever tasted! No kidding. ikya usually doesn't eat Banoffee Pie even in Starbucks, but she tried it in this restaurant to give the dessert another chance. We weren't disappointed. This dessert is the 'must try' of this restaurant.

Their chocolate bar offers customers a whole bunch of shaped chocolates, but really they are all the same. You can choose either milk, chocolate, or dark chocolate to go with your preferred shape. We suggest get the most cheapest shape and pick all the three types of chocolate. You'll be getting the same experience at a cheaper cost. :) But if you want to take a good picture, buy the oddly shaped chocolates like the frog. 

They also offer other food dipped in chocolate like pringles, strawberries, etc... You can choose to try those too. Or try the chocolate with bark. We are not a fan, but that's just us.

We also tried this cake. Forgot the name...so yes taste is normal. Nothing spectacular.

Trying to take a picture of everything....

Verdict:
- Great restaurant where people can talk and hangout. 

- A bit on the pricey side, but it's worth it granted the quality of their products.

- Their service can be improved because chocolate fire neophytes wouldn't really know what to order since there are so many to choose from. So a little help wouldn't hurt.

- We will defintely be coming back for more chocolate and coffee to match!

Happy Lemon

Happy Lemon

G/F Promenade, Greenhills, San Juan
4/F Eastwood Mall, Libis, Quezon City
2/F Archaeology Wing, Power Plant Mall, Rockwell Center, Makati    

"What is all this commotion about milk tea???" That's how we used to view this big phenomenon in Manila. Everything changed when we came across Happy Lemon at Greenhills.

MY ULTIMATE FAVORITE DRINK IS COCOA WITH ROCK SALT AND CHEESE and EXTRA CHEESE! Haha! This drink beats all my cravings! It's the middle and the right most drink below. :) The one on the left is Green Tea with Rock Salt and Cheese. That's my sister's favorite. I personally don't like Green Tea in general. I've also tried the Coffee with Rock Salt and Cheese. Still hands down to Cocoa even though I'm a coffee drinker.

Chuck and I tried the Lemon Yakult as well. He loved it. :) It's the one on the right. Of course, I ordered Cocoa with Rock Salt and Cheese again. :)

A friend of mine, Tracy Ayson, introduced this drink to me and I will forever be grateful. :) Read her blog on Happy Lemon here: http://tracyayson.tumblr.com/post/8994917398

Here's a picture of their buzzer when you order a drink from them. It's cool because you can walk around the mall and not have to stand by the restaurant. You still get your drink on time. :)

Verdict:
- Best Milk Tea restaurant for us compared to Cha Time and Serenitea to name a few.
- Price is reasonable.
- Service is fast given the long line in GH.
- Will always come back! Hoping for the Rockwell branch to open soon!! The closer the better!

One Cocoa with Rock Salt and Cheese a day, makes the bad vibes go away. ;)

Burgoo

Burgoo

3/L Powerplant Mall,
Rockwell Center,
Makati City
898.18.15 to 17

One of the restaurants with the “Friday’s” feel to it. Been here with Chuck before. Instead of watching a movie, we decided to eat instead. Most recent visit was awhile ago with officemates during our lunch break for the IMMAP seminar in Rockwell Cinemas. We were given a list of participating restaurants that we can claim our lunch worth P400 from and they include Crustacia, C2, Astralis, Coffee Bean, Cucina Victoria, Elbert’s Cheesesteak Sandwiches, Sango, Kaya Express, Kulinarya, Oliver’s, Pepper Lunch, Oyster Bar, and Zaifu. Our top three picks were Burgoo, Zaifu, and Cucina Victoria. For today, we went with Burgoo. Parking isn’t a problem since this is situated inside Rockwell mall.

On both visits, it was hard for me and my company to choose what to eat because they have a lot of good choices in their menu. Below is a compilation of the two separate occasions that I've eaten in Burgoo.

For starters, We've tried the Taco Salad - a combination of crisp lettuce, fresh tomatoes, ranch dressing, taco meat sauce, green onions, salsa and cheddar cheese served in edible taco bowl. I find the "plating" very clever - something new. Taste is awesome and serving is good for two already considering this will be your appetizer. For P295, this is worth it.

Another salad dish we tasted is the Seafood Caesar Supreme - traditional Caesar salad topped with friend calamari, grilled shrimps, crabmeat and parmesan cheese. A great twist to the normal and we believe the most ordered salad in the Philippines. Toppings added extra flavor to the dish which makes it great for a P325 dish.

Now on to the main dishes. First is the Fish and Chips - Fresh cream dory, seasoned and deep fried. Served with French fries, coleslaw and tartar sauce. Good dish. Nothing new though. I do not know if I will commend the softness of the dory or not - it's hard to eat because it disintegrates easily. Anyway, it's fish and chips with the traditional tartar sauce. Given the price of P375, we recommend trying other dishes instead.

For pasta, we tried the Chicken Diane - Tender and juicy grilled chicken fillet, served with garlic spaghetti on a pool of creamy Diane sauce. If you want a healthier option in pasta, we believe this is the way to go. The chicken is soooo good even though it's just grilled. Lotsa flavor. :) Spaghetti and the Diance sauce complements it well. P345.

What's pasta without pizza? Pizza Sampler - Combination of four different pizza flavors of your choice for only P395. We chose Margherita, Pepperoni, Taco, and Meatza. All we can say is BUURRRRP! Cheers to this resto for their great tasting pizzas. :)

Only tried Sarsi float and Lemonade here because every time we eat, we never have room for drinks. Sooooo full of food.

Had photo taken with officemates, Luanne and Jheric. :) 

Verdict:

- For all occasions type of restaurant. Kids will mostly enjoy eating here since they can draw on the table paper mat thing. Actually even us adults enjoy drawing with crayons.

- Expect prices to range from P300-P600 depending on the serving size you want.

- Service is a bit slow on both visits. They can improve on this. Staff were friendly though.

- Will probably come back during a special occasion? Lots more restaurants to write reviews on! :p

Borough

Borough

Ground Floor, Unit 107A, The Podium Mall (beside Gloria Maris)
12 ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong

Ortigas Center, Pasig City
Tel. No. 570-8906

We discovered this place because our friend's relatives own it. It's a very chill place in Ortigas - a full on restaurant from morning until dinner time and a drinking place with friends after that. There is parking in the mall. However, Podium i think has the smallest parking ever, so sometimes you'd have to park outside.

We first ate here when they were still finalizing their menu. Great food by the way. Now they are set with their food and drinks menu. They gave it a creative twist to connect with their NY inspired restaurant.

Been here a couple of times so below compilation is what we’ve tried so far.

As appetizers, their chips and dip is addicting. It’s made in-house and served with sour cream and onion dip. Chips were not too salty like other restaurant made chips are and it goes well with the dip they served it with. (will update with a photo next time. Sorry Fran!)

Want to try something new? Order the Chocolate Chicken Wings. This garnered mixed reviews from us and our friends. Personally, we didn’t like it that much. We didn’t really taste the chocolate. It was more of cinnamon and chili. But if you want to be adventurous in your food choices, this is worth trying.

http://kitchenhopping.com/featured-restaurants/borough/ :)

A dish with great plating is their Eggplant Parmigiana – Panko Crusted Eggplant covered in Mozzarella and sprinkled with Parmesan. Served with Buttered Spaghetti. We love how the taste of the eggplant is balanced by the buttered spaghetti. Serving can be good for two already if you still want to order appetizers and desserts.

Since ikya’s favorite part of a meal is dessert, we ordered more of this than the main course. First off is Mom’s Milk and Cookies – Chewy fresh baked cookies served with a pitcher of cold milk (house blend). Ultimate comfort food. Surprisingly, ikya loved the house blend milk. She never drinks milk if it’s not as a milkshake or in cereals. So thumbs up to Borough on this one!

Next up is the Banana Amaretto French Toast – Homemade French toast pre-soaked in banana custard. Topped with Amaretto caramel flambe, whipped cream, and toasted almonds. Another comfort food. It’s part of their All-day breakfast menu, but for us, it’s definitely dessert/comfort food/heaven.

  

Last and ikya’s favorite is The Elvis – Fried peanut butter and banana sandwich served with coconut dulce de leche and sour cream dip. We have around 4 different pictures of this one because every time we come to Borough, we never fail to order this. DEFINITELY A MUST TRY.

One of our memorable times here in Borough is the time we met Captain Jack Sparrow!!!

Haha just kidding. He came with his crew….including a mermaid. Yep. There was a girl half naked in Borough during the first day screening of the last Pirates of the Caribbean.

Verdict:

- Go to restaurant if you want good food to enjoy with any type of company

- Price is okay. Some are not too expensive and some are. BUT, taste is worth your money

- Service is great since we already know them. This is evidence that we keep coming back. Haha

- Borough will always be top of mind restaurant when we are in the area. Will come back to try more dishes, but will keep The Elvis part of the meal every time. :)

Cafe 1771

Café 1771

El Pueblo Real de Manila 

Julia Vargas cor. ADB Ave., Ortigas Center, Pasig, Metro Manila

631-7340

Mondays to Saturdays: 7:00am to 10:00pm
Sundays: 7:00am to 3:00pm 

--note: we went here before on a late Sunday afternoon. It was a sad experience. =))

Before Chuck left for a month-long line up of tournaments, we decided to have a date night at Café 1771. It’s a cute white restaurant in El Pueblo. Parking is not a problem when it’s not rush hour since there is parking right outside the restaurant. The only problem is that there are other restaurants that share the parking space.

They have three menus: main dishes, desserts, and beverages.

 

They serve free popcorn upon seating. It’s salty good. :)

Apart from the popcorn as a starter, we ordered chocolate, strawberry, and coffee macaroons. My favorite is strawberry, while Chuck prefers coffee.

For the main event, I ordered Salmon Lasagna - Salmon flakes, bechamel, Emmenthal cheese and Parmesan cheese. It is salmon sent from heaven. You can taste the salmon throughout the dish. They were really generous with the ingredient. The mozzarella cheese goes perfect with it as well as the thinly sliced lasagna pasta. The serving is good for two so we had to take some of it home. 

Chuck ordered Spanish Paprika Chicken - Grilled chicken breast rubbed with pimenton, turmeric and olive oil, tomato rice. It was really healthy being that it was chicken breast. The sauce failed to give us a punch but the serving was really filling.

 

Since it was a rainy night, we ordered hot drinks. I ordered Café Au Chocolat. It’s basically a chocolate drink with a hint of orange. When they said hint of orange, they were lying. Haha I could really taste the orange which made the drink somewhat weird on the tastebuds.

Chuck ordered his regular brewed coffee. What else can we say about that? =))

,
All enjoyed with good company. :) <3

 

Verdict:

- “Get ready to spend for food” type of restaurant

- Although their servings were big, price is a bit high

- Service is great, but the food took a long time to cook. However, once it gets to your table, you can see why.

- Will come back for a special occasion to try their other dishes!