Clucky's

November 2, 2013


as shared in my other posts, whenever Jeff and I would want to try new food, we'd usually check out SM North Edsa Annex area particularly where Save More used to be

and usually we'd find ourselves a newly-opened resto naman in fairness

this time, our newest food discovery was Clucky's

Clucky's is attempting to compete with the likes of BonChon, Chicken Charlie with its Korean fried chicken

our choices:

1) Parmesan fries (Php 49) [also comes in a bigger size at Php 85]
2) Bulgogi meal with 12 oz drink (Php 149)
3) Kimchi meal with 12 oz drink (Php 149
4) Wings Solo (Php 125) solo

I liked their rice topping meals a lot. they had quite big servings and Jeff and I were able to share pa. yung parmesan fries nothing too extraordinary. the dip I really didn't get the taste so much.

not too happy about the chicken though - at first glance it seemed very artificial particularly yung skin breading. when I ate it, the whole thing practically came off na parang kinabit lang sya when it was fried! taste wise so-so lang din

I think if I were to return here though I would go back for the rice toppings lang. hehe


Clucky's
SM North Edsa, G/F Annex

Floridablanca

November 1, 2013

I rarely look forward going to Pampanga as it is practically an extension of Manila for us. we go here at least once every quarter ata and it has always been the same.

sure the travel is much faster and more convenient and we now have better mobile phone signal + wi-fi + cable; but beyond that there really is nothing much else left to do. (oh no, I'm starting to sound like my younger siblings na!)

#agileworking Pampanga style

over the weekend however, whilst there was work to be done (which addresses my issue on the lack of anything to do) I was able to see our home town in a really different light, unintentionally, haha

Floridablanca Town Hall

I went along with my parents to Floridablanca, which was just right next to Guagua, the town Mama grew up in. they had to buy some things at the market, and I badly needed to get meds naman for my colds

while waiting, I walked around muna and made my way towards the church. I know I had mass in this town a decade ago pero I couldn't remember if this was the same one.

I only got to take photos from my outside since it was already quite dark na. I already applied some filters in the one I took below just to make it more visible

this was the San Isidro Labrador (St. Joseph the Worker) Parish Church pala which was built in 1867 and it was actually considered a heritage church... sweet!

actually just before we reached the town proper itself, we also passed by this house below:

reading about it when we got home, it turns out to be another historical landmark, this time in the form of an ancestral mansion

this house was referred to pala as the Bahay na Puti or the Alvendia House

it is presently owned, preserved and maintaned by the Justice Carmerlino Avendia Sr. -- galing!

since we only passed by it, there was only so much info I can get. so I made a mental note to make sure I get to go back and have more time to spend in this town and see what else I can discover!

speaking of, just before heading back to Guagua, I chanced upon this Coke-branded bicycle --pretty cool!

looking forward to where else my feet will take me!

Shared Services Halloween 2013

October 30, 2013

here's just to share some photos from our halloween celebration at the office last week. the Shared Services/Functions group came together to have a United Nations themed halloween party for the kiddos

candy anyone?

Andrew brought Kimi and Mia for trick or treat!

the kiddos invading the HR building

some of cute kids who visited us at the HR building for trick or treat!

looking forward to next year's celebration!

19 East + Side A

October 29, 2013


I honestly was not too thrilled about this plan at first but since Jeff was away then plus the place was just less than 15 mins away from the house, so might as well. haha

I love OPM a lot and I liked some songs of Side A, but I just thought then na 'lipas' na sila + super 'gasgas' na the songs that made them big then

well naisip ko na lang better Side A than Freestyle which was the group's first option, hehe

as early as 730 pm we were already at 19 East. the show was scheduled at 930 pm which gave us just enough time to have dinner.

this was actually my first time to 19 East considering that I live along Sucat lang. I've always wanted to go especially before Sugarfree disbanded, but just never got the chance to

we went inside the Music Hall to make sure we get the best seats, unfortunately they were still setting up, so we had to go out and have dinner outside at the garden

okay naman yung garden. we opted for a table which was overlooking Laguna de Bay (albeit dark) so it was a breezy and added to a good, relaxed atmosphere

19 East (view of the music hall from the garden)

unfortunately lighting wasn't that good, so I opted not to take photos of the dishes we ordered, but to share:

Pork Sisig (Php 198)
Halaan Soup (Php 179)
Grilled Squid (Php 93/100g)
Sizzling Veggies with Squid (Php 179)
Liempo (Php 179)
Beef Salpicao (Php 235)

haha 179 is the default price ata dito. the food was actually quite good. I especially liked the sisig. medyo medium rare lang ang luto ng salpicao kaya I didn't like it as much, pero malasa. over-all good food na for the price

by 9 pm we made our way inside since a lot of people started coming in na rin while we were having dinner. apparently Radha was there pala together with Jomari Yllana 

IG @jobnacpil tonight! #hrkaladkarins

it was only at around past 10 pm however when the band came in. you could tell they were just firming up their song list when they got there. I guess they also considered the demographics of the audience

iba talaga ang voice ni Joey G. still as good as how it was then. it was interesting to note too that all the band members pala can sing, and it was good that they were also able to showcase this as they took turns singing. I also noticed that they have younger members this time

I particularly liked their other vocalist, Lee Von. he has a deeper voice which helped complement Joey G's higher range; crazy guitar skills + he was kinda cute rin

IG @jobnacpil live music at its finest #SideA

I was actually expecting them to sing their original songs lang or the songs they covered in their albums so I got really thrilled when they started playing the likes of Africa (Toto) and The Man Who Can't Be Moved (The Script)

lalo when they did a cover of Kenny Loggins' Heart to Heart -- classic!

here's a quick video I took pala when they covered the song

during their 2nd set pala they even invited Radha over and she sang a couple of songs too. they started playing some sappy love songs though which I didn't enjoy so much and since it was already past 1 am, I opted to leave before the gig. hehe.

ibang klase talaga 'pag live music. sa totoo lang it has been decades ata since I last went to a legit concert. so I'm really looking forward to being able going to a big one atleast next year!

for now I think I'm gonna monitor that 19 East gig list and watch out for other performers too. but I sure won't mind catching Side A (and Lee Von) again soon!

IG @jobnacpil #Repost from @marijoanne #goodtimes with the #hrkaladkarins #Side A

19 East Bar and Grill

Km 19 East Service Road

Sucat, Muntinlupa City

http://19east.com/index.php

Weekend Eats (Round 5)

October 27

more weekend food finds this time with the family:

after mass, with grumbling tummies but no specific destination in mind, we set forth towards Aguirre Avenue to look for a place to have dinner

I was thinking of Mama Lou's, while Mama was thinking of Shabu-Shabu naman, tapos si Papa wanted something light, while the little sister just wanted Silvanas. period. haha.

somehow though we ended up in Dusadee Thai. 

I first chanced upon this place weeks back, when Jeff and I were in the same situation. unsure about where to eat. but we sped by fast and I only got to see the sign

the place was small lang but it was well-lighted and I liked the ambiance naman kahit open-air sya

I'm quite selective when it comes to Thai food particularly because of some herb/spice used in cooking (which one it is I can't recall lang now); hoping for the best in this one

Mama had an interesting choice in the form of the Tamarind juice (Php 35) which was surprisingly good

we each ordered Bagoong rice which came with mangoes and onions, strips of scrambled egg and our meat of choice: fish, chicken or beef (Php 80 each)

I also ordered a Pad Thai (Php 120) for sharing

I found the Pad Thai a little too saucy and peanuty but it was good naman. it was the first time I tried it with kalamansi, and I have to say I'll take it as is next time

yung Bagoong rice lacked flavor pa. but I did like the sides. yung meat was a tad too sweet for me and medyo I didn't like the chili powder they had in the store.

while service was quite fast, the food wasn't that hot though when it was served to us, so that's an OFI. still sulit naman for the price and while I could never say 'aroi makmak' or sobrang sarap about Dusadee Thai; would be keen to take Jeff here para I can try their Tom Yum soup naman

just before we got to Dusadee Thai, we also chanced upon Marisa's; and since the little girl craved for Silvanas, we made sure to drop by here just before coming home

Marisa's was just across Serenitea, also along Aguirre Avenue. it had a home-y feel because of the front porch area outside + the sofas + paintings inside the shop

neat artwork

and without further ado we went straight to the cashier to get the little girl a box of Silvanas (Php 222); (it was actually Php 18 each. so a box of 12 should just be Php 216 right? hmmm. I just realized that when I was doing this blog. shouldn't it be cheaper when you buy a box. Php 6 for packaging doesn't seem right?)

oh well. it came in 4 flavors: Original, Pandan, Ube and Chocolate

well little girl's verdict was it wasn't the best she's had but pwede na. haha. kasi the one that she likes a lot can be bought pa all the way in Pampanga, so a nearer option is good enough.

I have to say I liked the Pandan flavor a lot. so-so lang ung Ube, but the Chocolate variant naman we did not like at all

still a good option for a dessert fix if within BF area. they also had cakes so should be good to try rin next time

Dusadee Thai

40 Aguirre Avenue

BF Homes, Paranaque City

Marisa's

Silvanas & Sans Rival

67-A Aguirre Avenue

BF Homes, Paranaque City

Weekend Eats (Round 4)

we go north to south with two more food finds for the weekend

October 25

Pino Resto Bar

yes, this was a long time coming. we've gone here numerous times only to end up across the street at Don Day or other nearby restos.

I guess we were just lucky last Friday night. haha. while a lot of cars were parked outside, the resto wasn't as packed as it usually was

cool artpieces

while I've had my share of Kare-Kare na the past week, I still wanted to taste one of their specialities which was the Kare-Kareng Bagnet (Php 265). Jeff naman went for the Ginataang Bopis (Php 185). we also got a pitcher of their iced tea (Php 125)

sobrang sarap parehas haha. I actually wanted to get an extra rice pa dahil ang dami ng serving nung bopis. medyo na-guilty lang ako sa bagnet but it was just so good I could not stop having some more.

next time will be sure to try the binagoongang bagnet naman + their desserts na rin. 'til then I can't wait!


October 26

Ritchie's Diner

sa pauli-ulit naming dumaan sa Aguirre Avenue sa BF, we'd often see Ritchie's diner but never really considered eating there

for one, we weren't too sure what there offering was and we didn't really bother checking it out rin naman.

that night though we just wanted to try something new. Period.

we actually were planning to try Borgo Cafe or the Knuckle Sandwich Station kaya we parked in that side. but we got intrigued since a lot of people were eating at Ritchie's and so we crossed the street to check out the place

the place had a cool vibe. good attempt at an American diner. but not quite yet. haha.  even their servers were dressed up for the part. I did like their choice of music though. 80's.

while American diner ang concept they did serve Pinoy breakfast

being the burger fanatic that I am, I played it safe with the Ritchie's burger which came with a plate of fries. I got a bit worried with the description highlighting how cheezy it was though. but might as well give it a shot.

I was relieved to play it safe, dahil the burger was really good. I loooooved the melted cheese! medyo gnaw-y lang for me ang burger kaya I had to use a knife to cut through it. but undoubtedly it was pure beef naman daw sabi ni Jeff. I think we a little more tenderizing then it would have been great.

Jeff had the beef tapa. which was good naman though a bit on the sweet side, but not something I'd go back for.

this is a good alternative to Gourmet Charbroiled burgers as a snack place :)


Pino Resto Bar
39 Malingap St.
Teacher Village - East, Quezon City

Ritchie's Diner303 Aguirre AvenueBF Homes Paranaque City

Cultural Night at Barbara's

October 22

our HRVP for SEAA, Lennard visited the PH and so as a way to welcome him, the team arranged for dinner at Barbara's

I've long heard about this place since I started in ULP, as they would often take foreign guests here when they come to visit the PH

I would also often see groupons offering lunch buffet and have considered buying it before, so this was a good opportunity to finally try out the place

Barbara's was directly across the San Agustin Church pala

below was a photo taken on a sidestreet beside Barbara's

here's the entrance to Barbara's

when we got there, the show just started and we were situated at a table which was right beside the performance area so we saw performers up close (may be too close, actually)

Rondalla performing

Pastores

Sayaw sa Bangko

Tinikling

the performance was amazing! sayang didn't get to take photos of all the dances, but there was one Mindanao dance that I saw for the first time and which really drew cheers/applause from the crowd

at the end of the show we all had photo-ops with the performers and we even got to sing a happy birthday song for Kary together with the Rondalla

over-all it was a remarkable cultural night. the performances were great, the place itself was amazing. unfortunately I could not say the same for the food :(

while they had a buffet, I only had a plateful and decided not to go back na. I didn't even get to try the dessert!

I would probably go back though, but perhaps just to watch the show and to go around the restaurant

Barbara's Restaurant and Catering
Plaza San Luis Complex
Gen. Luna St, Manila 1002

Rexona Run 2013

October 20

this truly was the biggest rexona run ever. my parents and I have been joining this run since I started working in Unilever in 2010 - so yes this was our 3rd run!

what's different this year was the theme Run to Your Beat. throughout the race there was pulsating live music from guest DJs and bands

actually muntik ko pang hindi maisama ang parents ko. haha. as a ULP employee, we got to sign up for this for free months back. kaso the procrastinator that I am. akala ko kasi they'd have discounted sign up booths again in the office just like last year kaya I held off in signing up at the Riovana stores.

so I think I kind of underestimated the force that the Rexona run had this year. at least 2 weeks before the run there were news that they've closed registration na and had run out of race kits.

that got me worried since my parents would look forward to this run every year.

buti na lang I came across a tweet about extended sign-ups in the Riovana store in BGC. and thankfully nakapag-sign up pa ko for them!

that was a hard lesson learned! haha. I'll be sure to sign up in advance na next year :)

following the theme, the race had to start way earlier than usual. last year we signed up for 5K and the gun start then was at 5:30 am. this year though, 5K started at 3:45 am!

since we signed up na for 10K our gun start was at 3.30 am, so as early as 2 am we were already up to prepare.

when we got to the MoA complex, most of the open air parking slots were already full! sobrang daming tao! we had to park pa in the covered parking slots adjacent to the mall.

when we got to the race area, it was just 10 minutes before the 10K gun start. we made it just in time. haha

pre-run shot of my parents

and after a quick warm-up we were off!!

this truly was one running spectacle!

one thing I looked forward to was the tunnel of lights before the 1K mark

it really got everyone excited when we got there. and you couldn't help but stop and take a quick photo.

I think I had a good start in the race up until the 5K mark. it has been weeks since my last run so I really did not get to prepare well for this.

still I think I ended in an acceptable time naman. haha.

finally caught up with my parents post-race

by this time Rico Blanco was about to perform so after claiming our finisher kits, we headed off inside to the concert area.

this truly was a first of its kind race. it was actually a good refreshing way to end that 10K run.

they were actually giving out ice cream and there was also a mobile bar. and there were a lot of brand booths too. actually when you use the official #: runtoyourbeat and rexonadomore to post photos, you can claim print outs! really cool!

my parents seemed to have a really good time and we ended up staying until the end of the programme!

can't wait for the next Rexona Run! wonder what they will have in store for us next? :)

P.S. our official race results below, haha :)

Tagaytay - Cavite Weekend

October 20, 2013

I never seem to get tired of going to Tagaytay especially when with the family. the last we were here was for a distant relative's wedding and prior to that was our mini-reunion gathering at Bag of Beans.

this time we were meeting up with a family friend from Japan who came to visit. originally I thought we were just dropping by her relative's place in Amadeo. yun pala first on the agenda was an early lunch in Tagaytay.

I've always thought Leslie's was overrated. the last I ate here was with Jeff's former colleagues in DSI. but that was in another branch in Batangas. after that we'd often go to Green ATS na for our bulalo fix. so this was technically my first time at Leslie's Tagaytay

first look

I have to say consistent talaga sila sa ambiance. it had a the woodland type of vibe which was  similar to the one we ate in before.

what's unique about this one though is of course the scenic view of the Taal lake, which is no match for the other bulalo places, I have to say

whenever we get to go to a bulalo place. I only have 2 requests - syempre bulalo and fried tawilis

for a group of 8, we ended up ordering for 10 people. haha. apart from Bulalo and Tawilis, our meal also included Fried Kangkong, Ensaladang Mangga, Inihaw na Liempo, Ginataang Kalabasa at Sitaw, Fried Chicken and Leche Flan -- that was really a mouthful!

our photo below was a before shot. so you could just imagine how fuller we looked post-meal

by this time the fog had started creeping in. thus the view of the lake now gone

and after what probably was a 3-hour lunch, we then set off for Amadeo to visit Tita Menchie's relatives

here are some shots of the place:

side trip | backyard pineapples
taken from my IG account @jobnacpil

the property was actually within a golf course as they were the ones looking after the place.

it was quite a laughter-filled afternoon sharing stories and making plans about future trips back to Japan. we even ended up taking home bunches of banana, papayas and cooked-ube.

nothing beats a day spent with family and friends :)

Leslie's Tagaytay
Aguinaldo Highway Crossing
Silang West, Tagaytay