Pancake House at Cash and Carry, Makati City

When i was still a child, one of the 'malls' that we always go to when we travel to Manila from the province is Cash & Carry. It wasn't really a mall then but a supermarket with stalls where you can buy imported (px) goods. You can also buy here cheap appliances. The elders love going here because this is where they can get imported Maling (canned luncheon meat) and Target corned beef. This is also where they buy Nissin's Ramen (Japanese Cup Noodles). I wonder if our relatives who come from abroad buy their pasalubongs for us here. You see, common pasalubongs are the things I mentioned above. And of course the Dove soap for the moms and the Old Spice for the dads. Dove and Old Spice are also available here. You can also buy here 'branded' shoes for Kuya's and Ate's.

Anyway, Cash & Carry is no longer just a supermarket. It is  now a mall. There are specialty boutiques. There are also stalls for different famous clothing brands. They still have px stores but prices of px goods are I think higher now - perhaps because of higher rentals. There are also lots of restaurants and one of which is Pancake House.

Here are pictures from my latest visit. We had Pan Chicken and Burger. I love their fried chicken - one of the best here in the metro (along with Shakey's, Jollibee, etc.). The burger on the other hand is also good. Who wouldn't want that thick  beef patty. Hmmmm.....

Don't you just love the WELCOME HOME tag?

Look! The burger almost covered the entire plate.

Thick slices of potatoes. Still crunchy even if they're thick.

See how thick that burger is? Yo really need a fork and a knife for this one.

Oh! Love! Love! Love! Crispy chicken. No need for that gravy.

Wham! Burger - katipunan, Quezon City

A few days  ago, my friends and I went all the way from Makati to Katipunan, Quezon City just to eat at Wham! Burger. We heard about it from a few friends so we wanted to try. Our expectations were high given the feedback that we received. On the way we were discussing other burger shops like Burger King, Brothers Burger and Carl's Jr. (it's no longer existing here in the country, right?) just so we could compare later on.

It was a very long drive. When we saw the place it was on the other side so we looked for a U turn slot. We thought there was one in front of Ateneo but unfortunately there was none. The U turn slot was in front of Miriam. The search for that U turn slot made the trip even longer.

Finally we reached Wham! Burger. The guard wasn't outside the store to help us park. He was inside, with his uniform unbuttoned, texting on his cellular phone. The place has seen better days. The walls, not to mention the tables and chairs could use some repainting.

We ordered Wham burger, Bronco Burger, Onion Rings and Sarsi. The Bronco burger is BIG. It has a thick beef patty, cheese, bacon, onions and barbecue sauce - Western style. I love the barbecue sauce. I like the sweet taste. Overall i like the burger. It was worth the trip. However, this doesn't mean that I will say that it is better than the others I mentioned above. You be the  judge. It actually didn't meet our expectations but just the same I can say I like it. The Wham burger was better for my other friends. They didn't like the barbecue dressing much so they prefer the rather plain - with lettuce, cheese and other burger basics - Wham burger. It wasn't really plain nothing unique about the add-ons. The Onion rings was also good. Crunchy! And the onion has no bitter taste.

Wham! Burger, Katipunan, Quezon City

Bronco. See how thick the beef patty is?

bacon, cheese, onions, barbecue sauce

Wham burger

The crispy onion rings

The burgers at Wham! Burger are reasonably priced. Wham costs P 108 and Bronco P 165. The onion rings  is worth P 66.

As said, the burgers are okay. The experience was actually good. I just hope that next time, the place will be cleaner. By the  way, the guard helped us when we went out of the parking area. 

California Pizza Kitchen - Promenade, Greenhills

Last night I watched the musical Mama Mia at Teatrino in Greenhills. It was just a one-night production of a school. After the show we had dinner at California Pizza Kitchen. It was my first time there so I was excited. Unfortunately, I was with my bosses so I was not able to take pictures of what we ate. I think that is something you can understand, right? I felt it wasn't proper for me to 'delay' the meal just for me to take pictures. But anyway, we ordered Wild Mushroom Pizza, Caesar Salad, Chinese Chicken Salad (or was it oriental) and Spinach something (you'll find this on the the appetizer list).

The Wild Mushroom Pizza was great. It was great because it's unique. I mean it tasted far from all the other pizzas I've ever eaten. Meat lovers may not go crazy over this but it's worth a try. The Caesar Salad was also good. It has lots of Parmesan cheese. And the croutons are crispy (even after about an hour of being exposed). The Chicken Salad was very good. I don't know what the brown 'things' they put on top are but they sure made the salad crunchy so eating it wasnt boring. I'm not really a salad fan but this twist was very much welcome for me. The Spinach appetizer was also nice. It's actually nacho chips with spinach dressing. Yum. I love it.

I do not like raspberry very much but I ordered Raspberry Iced Tea just the same - 'for a change'. I was bent on having Lemon Iced Tea to be safe but I figured that would be boring. It's good I tried the new one because it was good. You should try it too. It was bottomless - I had two and a half glasses.

California Pizza Kitchen is at thwe Promenade in Greenhills. It's beside Bizu. I know they also have a branch in Makati - Glorietta 1?   

Mushroom Burger - That Burger House in Tagaytay

The first time I went to Tagaytay my friends brought me to Mushroom Burger. That was in 1992. They said one must not leave Tagaytay without eating at Mushroom Burger. My first experience there was good that's why every time I would be in Tagaytay I always look forward to eating there. However, the itinerary changed during the past few years. Instead going to a burger house we would always spend time in coffee shops and/or bulalohan. Mushroom Burger was totally forgotten.

But last month I decided to drop by Mushroom Burger again. It was again a nice experience. There have been changes already in many different ways but the taste of their burgers remained. Anyway, here are some pictures of the place and burger I got.

Their burgers: pinoy, royal, regular, sandwich and king.

The King burger is served in this plastic container (when will Tagaytay go eco-friendly?)

King size it is!

Double patties!

Mushroom for dessert, anyone?

Do you know that you do not need to go to Tagaytay to eat Mushroom Burger? They now have Mushroom Burger along Katipunan and West Avenue in Quezon City. But if you want to really have the feel of the "old" Mushroom Burger, then  go to Tagaytay.

Other Places to Eat in Cebu

Do you know that most of the readers who check this site land here because they are searching for good restaurants in CEBU? Most read articles are The Port, Seafood Restaurant, Waterfron Hotel, Lahug, Cebu City and STK ta Bay! Paolito's Seafood House, Orchid Street, Cebu City. The post Vanille Cafe and Patisserie, Ayala Center, Cebu City also gets a lot of visits. I now regret that I did not take note of the other places I had lunch or dinner in in Cebu. However, I remember I spent an hour or two at a bar at the IT Park where I had a bottle of beer and plate of button mushrooms. What place was that? Oh, wait! I'll check my pictures. I might find the name there.

Ok! The picture does not clearly say the name of the bar/restaurant but it has East, West on its name. There aren't many bars and restaurants at the IT Park so you would easily find it. Their sizzling button mushrooms taste good. It's good for pulutan or pica-pica. The beer is also reasonably priced.

There's also a stall at the food choices of Ayala Center where you can eat Lechon Cebu at an affordable price. As expected, the lechon tasted great. The meat is tender. There is no need for lechon sauce. The skin is also crispy. I was told there are other restaurants in Cebu that serve better tasting lechon. I can imagine that. But this lechon stall is already okay for those who do not want to go far.

Heading for CWC? - Eat at Kapitbahay Food Center in Gumaca, Quezon

When you think of going on a vacation, what is the first place that comes into mind? Chances are you'll say Boracay. Or perhaps Palawan. Or maybe even Bohol. These are the popular vacation places that we have here in the Philippines. And this is expected because these are really beautiful places. But in the past few years, another place is gaining popularity among tourists. This place is the CWC or Camsur Watersports Complex in Camarines Sur. This is in the Bicol region - south of Luzon. It is a 6 - 8 hour drive from Metro Manila.

6 to 8 hours is quite a long trip so I'm sure at some point you would want to stop to look for a good place to eat. One ideal stop would be Gumaca, Quezon. It is a small town that is about an hour drive from Lucena City - the provincial capital. Here you can find a very good family restaurant where you can have a great meal. Ask anybody for a good place to eat and they'll point you to Kapitbahay Food Center.

Kapitbahay has two branches. The original branch is along the highway while the second branch - which is actually bigger - is on a small street perpendicular to the highway. It is actually at the back of the former.

There are a lot of different dishes that you can order to satisfy every member of your group. I'll describe some of them for you.

Do not leave the place without trying their Pancit Lucban - yes, you do not need to go  to Lucban, Quezon where this type of pancit originated. You can have one of the best Pancit Lucbans in this part of the province. Kapitbahay's pancit is saucy that's why it is really flavorful. It is best eaten with vinegar. I don't know why vinegar is the best partner of Pancit Lucban but people have been using this for as long as I can remember.

You can also try their spaghetti. They have a very good Filipino style spaghetti that people of all ages will love. And just like in any birthday party, their spaghetti is best paired with fried chicken. Kapitbahay's fried chicken is very crunchy. Actually, my problem with their fried chicken is that I cannot stop at having just one piece. Surely, you or your kids will ask for extras. But do not worry, food at Kapitbahay is affordable. Even if you are on a tight budget you will not have problems.

You should also try their fresh lumpiang ubod. Unlike lumpiang ubod served here in the metro, they use soft ubod. You wouldn't have the feeling that you are eating coco lumber which is usually the case in many Manila restaurants. I just don't know if they serve this everyday.

The next time you'll go to the Bicol region (whether in Cam Sur, Albay to see Mayon Volcano, the Caramoan, Donsol to see the butanding, or the Misibis Bay), make sure to drop by Kapitbahay Food Center in Gumaca, Quezon.

 

Lenten Season - Where to Eat Especially on Fridays part 3

It's Friday again and time to abstain from eating meat. have you tried out the restaurants I suggested (Lenten Season 1 and Lenten Season 2)? Here is a few.

Try XO kitchen along Jupiter St., Makati City. I suggest you order their Squid Ink Rice and their salt and pepper squid. Yeah! I know! I know! They're both squid. But who cares? They both taste good and they taste good together. Try it. Try it now.

Try Amici also. They have seafood pasta and seafood pizza. The seafood pasta that I strongly suggest is their new one. Just ask any waitress and she'll surely be able to tell you what new one I'm talking about. I'm sorry I didn't get the name because I was kinda in hurry when I ate there the last time. We only had like 30 minutes to spend for lunch so I failed to grab my pen and paper (and not to mention my camera). Don't worry coz next time I'll surely order it again.

 Happy eating!