soundtripping: one day

one day is a song i first heard as a theme song to a radio drama i was listening to a few months ago. since it's an old song, it took me quite some time to find out its title and singer until i heard it played over 774, an AM oldies radio station. the version they played was that of vilma valera, a filipino actress/singer during the 1960's.

one day was originally sung by sandie shaw. she's one of the most successful female british singers back in the 1960's and was noted for her singing barefoot onstage. (kinda like bamboo singing with his back to the audience when he was still with rivermaya.) the song was written by chris andrews, a singer-songwriter in the same decade who also wrote other hit songs for sandie shaw. it was released in 1965 in shaw's second album, me. (source: wikipedia)

one thing i could truly say about one day is that it's riveting. the haunting music and lyrics coupled with shaw's dusky-sweet vocals makes the song very heartfelt. (i dunno if it's just me, but i think we don't get a lot of songs like that nowadays.)

just hit play. enjoy! =)

note: in addition to food and travel, i'll make my posts on music a regular fixture in this here blog. =)

pasig river ferry sights

previously, i've ridden the ferry at night time so there wasn't much to be seen, save from the well-lighted malacanang palace and the bridges (jones bridge, macarthur/sta.cruz bridge, quezon bridge, ayala bridge, etc.). as for the rest of the trip (from escolta to guadalupe)... it's dark save for the occasional twinkle of lights from factories and some shanties that dot both banks of the pasig river.

a few weeks ago though, i was able to ride the ferry again, this time during the day. this time around, i did not inconvenience myself. and i made sure i got off at the right station. lol.

here are some of the pics my bro took from a point-and-shoot camera (from inside the ferry).

quezon bridge

at some point during the ride (where there are shanties such as this one), we suddenly heard something hit the right-side window of the ferry hard. we looked back and saw a group of kids trying to throw rocks at the ferry. one got a direct hit, which resulted in a dent at the window. i kid you not. so if you see a dent in the right-side window towards the back of the ferry, then that's what i rode. seriously though, something has to be done in order to protect the ferries from being damaged.

i'm the king of the pasig river!!!

passengers alighting from an outrigger boat.

makati mahalin natin... atin ito!

old oil depot at rockwell

looks like people at first glance

so that's it for my first daytime pasig river ferry ride. though there isn't much to see, i kind of liked it. better during the day than at night, though riding at night does have its charms, especially when the bridges are lighted up. then again, more work needs to be done in cleaning up the river and its banks in order to prevent damages. if the person who threw the rock at the ferry was bigger and stronger, the rock might have cracked the window or worse, broke it.

pig face

this cute pig-faced bun caught my attention while walking along ongpin street. it's sold on a stall outside MXT (maxim's tea house) for P23. as i'm a bread person, i bought one and wasn't disappointed. the bun is filled with yummy pork asado (with no taba, may i add), and the bun itself is a bit sweet and has a nice chewy-ooey bite to it as well. its eyes are raisins. isn't this pig face just cute? love, love, love it. =)

pardon the plastic lol. =)

paalam, tiya dely

hindi ako makapaniwala. wala na si tiya dely magpayo.

si tiya dely ang isa sa mga idol ko sa radyo.

simula nung high school ako pinakikinggan ko na yung programa niya sa radyo na "ang mga liham kay tiya dely" at "ang tangi kong pag-ibig." walang humpay ang pakikinig ko sa mga programang iyon sa dzrh pwera lang kung may pasok ako noon. minsan pa nga naisip kong magpadala ng sulat sa kanya pero wala naman akong makukuwentong mabigat na problema o di kaya naman patungkol sa pag-ibig.

hindi ba't bagay na bagay ang pangalan niya sa kanyang ginagawa? kung napakinggan niyo yung "ang mga liham kay tiya dely," alam niyo kung paano magbigay ng payo si tiya dely sa mga letter sender niya---diretsahan at walang takot kahit ang ibig sabihin nun ay pagsasabihan niya yung letter sender. (yun ay kung walang sentido kumon yung tao lang naman). limampu't limang taon na ang programang ito at hanggang sa huli marami pa ring nakikinig at nagpapadala ng sulat.

sa halos pitumpung taon niya sa radyo, marami na siyang natanggap na mga gawad-parangal. ganoon siya kagaling.

dahil sa pakikinig ko sa mga programa ni tiya dely, lalo akong nahasa sa pananagalog ko. nakatulong rin ito nang malaki sa bago kong trabaho ngayon. nagkaroon ako ng pagkakataong mapakinggan ang mga awitin ng ilan sa mga pilipinong mang-aawit tulad nina ric manrique at sylvia la torre. (marami pang iba pero sa ngayon di ko maalala ang mga pangalan nila). at higit sa lahat, lalo ko ring napahalagahan ang ating kultura.

nakalulungkot mang isipin na wala na si tiya dely, siguradong maraming magagandang alaala siyang naiwan sa mga kasamahan niya sa radyo at lalo sa kanyang mga tagapakinig. isa na ako doon.

with apologies to my foreign blogfriends who might be reading this post. i felt i should write this post in filipino in respect to tiya dely magpayo, one of the most respected radio personalities here in the philippines who just passed away due to stroke. TT_TT she's one of the people in the industry i look up to and she has even made a difference in my life, tho she doesn't know it. you can read the news item about her passing here.

some intramuros views

here are some pics i took while walking along the walls of intramuros. or at least, while walking along a part of it.

1861 or 1981?

smack at the center is the manila city hall and on your left is... sm manila. at the foreground is a part of the golf course just outside the walls of intramuros. it used to be a moat during the spanish colonial times, but when the americans came, they turned it into a golf course so that they could play golf all they want... not! lol seriously, the americans filled up the moat in order to curb the mosquito-borne diseases. but if you think about it, they're really hitting two birds with one stone--improving the health of the filipinos during that time and at the same time improving their golf scores. LOL

fill in the blank: manila city hall is _________ away from intramuros. (hehe. you'll know what i mean if you have also joined the old manila walking tours. :-D)

tunnel to puerta real, which is one of the entry gates to intramuros. at present, puerta real is one of the favorite places to hold weddings. in fact, one of my titos got married here. (in the garden, not in the tunnel. hehe.)

the inscription on the gate of puerta real.

ying ying tea house pt.2

after what seemed like eons (about 6 months to be exact), i was able to go back to the places i love most in manila: binondo and intramuros. ;) it's also about the same length of time since i had an honest-to-goodness food trip. haha.

back in february, my friend h and i discovered ying ying tea house at the corner of dasmariñas and yuchengco (formerly nueva) streets in binondo. it was still on its soft opening at that time, and when my bro and i went back there today, the place was up and hopping with lots of customers. and yeah, if on my previous post on this resto didn't have any photos, well, i now dub this one---

a food trip with images. yay!

when it comes to eating in chinese restos, i usually order the same stuff: noodle soup and dimsum (usually siopao). so this day isn't so different except that for dimsum, i ordered something funky-sounding: ham soy kok, which is glutinous rice ball with pork filling. at P50 for 3 pieces, i can say that it was really filling, no pun intended.

funky-looking too, eh?

pork filling

the noodle soup i ordered this time around is exactly the same item i ordered the first time: wanton noodle soup. i noticed some changes though, like the won tons weren't that tightly packed like they were before, but still big just the same. still for P80, it was worth it.

wanton noodle soup

pictured here are: clockwise, l-r: wanton noodle soup, fried dumplings with sweet and sour dip, chicken feet and pork and century egg congee.

the fried dumplings cost P120 for 8 pieces. 8. large. packed. tasty. pieces. dip 'em in the sweet and sour sauce... heaven.

for P90, the pork and century egg congee was filled up to the bowl's brim. very, very filling, with lots of pork slices, century egg and garnishings.

chicken feet, chicken feet... as i'm not partial to this, i didn't even try it. but as with the other items we ordered, one order of chicken feet gives you 3 pieces at P55 per order.

and so, as it was when i first ate at ying ying tea house, every bit and morsel of what my bro and i savored today was very filling and satisfying. and yes, easy on the pocket. just make sure you order what you can finish, though. my bro and i were stuffed. thank goodness for the free house tea. even so, you can be sure i'll be back there for the third time. and the fourth. and the fifth...

walkable san francisco

san francisco is no doubt one of the most walkable cities i've ever been to, and just about now i read a news article on yahoo saying that san francisco is the most walkable city in the US according to walkscore.com, garnering a score of 86 out of 100. new york city got second place with 83.

amazing. and they are both two of my most favorite cities in the world, right next to manila. =)

for my take on walking the streets of san francisco, click here. =)

saturday night dinner

my cousin and his family went to our house for dinner tonight. it's been quite a while since we last saw them, so our creativity in the kitchen went on full blast. ;-)

menu:
pasta alla carlotta ;-)
roast chicken alla teresa
green salad alla josefina
pineapple butter cake (which i made from a wonderful mix; just added pineapple tidbits to it)
decadent cake (bought in a grocery store--yummy too!)

for pasta alla carlotta, what i did was to stew whole tomatoes then just sliced them to get the seeds out. unfortunately i overstewed them so the insides of the tomatoes became quite mushy. scraping the seeds out was quite a messy job, but scraped them off i (and my mum) did. then i minced two heads of garlic and browned them over a generous amount of olive oil, after which i added the stewed tomatoes, dried basil and salt. simmer for about 20 minutes. for the pasta i used angel hair, which only takes all of two minutes to cook. mix the sauce and pasta, sprinkle some parmesan cheese, and voila! a very delicious pasta, if i do say so myself. (despite the mushy tomatoes at the beginning--it wasn't obvious at the end result though) =)

the two roast chickens, (although the bigger of the two roasts was a wee bit undercooked the first time it was served) tasted good as well. my tita used fresh thyme and lemon wedges which she simply stuffed into the cavity of the chickens, added sliced carrots and potatoes into the pan, and roasted in the oven for about 1 1/2 - 2 hours at 350 degrees fahrenheit.

the simplest recipe of all: salad alla josefina: just take some mixed salad greens and arrange them nicely in a big bowl. then just add some balsamic vinegar, olive oil and parmesan cheese to your liking.

needless to say, everyone had a great time together. =) i hope there'll be more times like this in the future.

picture, picture! (finally... hehe)

first plate

second plate (with the pineapple butter cake and decadent cake)

Old Manila

have you ever wondered what old manila looked like before the war? below are two videos that show exactly just that. the first one is a collection of video clips around manila. one of the songs that accompany it is "maybe" by the ink spots (which i've featured in an earlier entry).

the second video is by andre de la varre, who created it in 1938 after he visited manila. it is entitled "manila, queen of the pacific."

many thanks to señor enrique for the heads-up on these vids. enjoy! =)

old manila



manila, queen of the pacific

just breezin' through

allo,

i'll be posting again soon just dunno when. been going through a transition lately (a good one at that) so i won't be having that much time to blog. (awww shucks. have lots, btw.) anyways will still go bloghopping from time to time when i'll be able to go online.

see ya in yer blogs! :D

concert observations

in my lifetime (as if it's been that long), i've been to a grand total of three concerts: mandy moore (at the araneta coliseum in 2003), sarah brightman (harem world tour at the philsports arena in 2004) and swing out sister (beautiful mess), which was just last night, april 7, 2008, also at the araneta. here are a few observations i've made in last night's concert:


1. it took an hour and a half for swing out sister to go onstage. they were on after half an hour faith cuneta opened the show but for the record, the long wait was SO WORTH IT. two hours of SOS's music and energy weren't enough; we all wanted more! still enjoying a hangover here. =)

2. the antsy audience didn't take kindly at first to the front act, who was faith cuneta. the audience was waiting for 30 minutes already after the supposed start of the show when she came onstage. but because she's a really good singer (and stayed cheerful all throughout despite some acerbic remarks from some people), she got a sincere round of applause and cheers.

3. as with other foreign acts, the audience totally ate up corinne drewery's and andy connell's efforts to speak in tagalog: "kamusta na kayo?", "ang init pala dito," "ayos kayong lahat," and "salamat," just to name a few. i must say i liked that myself. =)

4. because the concert featured more songs from SOS's new album, beautiful mess, most of the people in the audience simply sat and grooved on their seats. maybe because the songs are relatively new...? but when they played surrender, you on my mind, breakout, forever blue, am i the same girl, and a couple more of their hits, that's when the audience really partied. especially on you on my mind. (i just love that song.) needless to say, the songs from the new album exuded the same style SOS had in their songs from way back that had endeared them to their listeners--plus more.

5. oh yeah, corinne drewery's "barongette" (her feminine version of a barong) looked great on her. it's long that it looks like a gown with slits on each side. she pulled off that one very well.

i'm sure that even with the long wait, the people who watched the concert last night left araneta coliseum feeling very satisfied and happy. swing out sister's concert was definitely a big success. 21 years after the release of breakout, swing out sister's definitely still swinging out their groove. =)

photo source

update: here's a promotional video of something every day, the first track in their new album beautiful mess.

blast to the past

i would just like to share a couple of songs that's been riding on my earwaves (yes, you read right hehehe ü) lately. these songs are by the ink spots circa 1930's. if i didn't care was written by jack lawrence and was released in 1939. it was also the ink spots' first big hit. i'm not sure though when maybe was released. anyways, i hope you enjoy these songs.

just hit play =)

barya

*barya (Tagalog): loose change (coins); change; smaller bills

i was the third person in line at 7-11. for some reason the cashier was taking a bit too long in serving the customers and it became even longer when the first person in line gave the cashier P500.

cashier: miss, wala po ba kayong barya? (miss, don't you have a smaller bill?)

well, obviously the customer didn't have any so the cashier went over to the other counter to ask for smaller bills in order to give the customer her change.

the seconds ticked by oh, so, sloooooowly.

then--the next person. finally. he bought about ten bottles of water and when he gave the cashier P500--yep, you guessed it right: "wala po ba kayong barya?"

and so the rigodon has started again. i wasn't exactly in a hurry, but i couldn't help but wonder why the till doesn't have enough change. oh well. when the other counter became vacant once more i quickly transferred there. in less than 20 seconds i made my purchase and as i went out of the store...

cashier (to yet another customer): ma'am, baka may barya po kayo.

i kid you not.

happy list

while i'm waiting for some pics for a food post (man, i really need to get me own cam... :P), here's a tag from beng:

The rules are easy. Just post 10 things that recently made you happy! Then tag 10 people and force them to post this meme on their blogs…

1. finally getting the daishi dance cd i asked my cousin to buy for me last year--and she bought the latest one--melodies (thanks cuz!!!!!)

2. hanging out with H and L again on friday night for much-needed girl talk hahaha :D

3. meeting a whole lotta cool new friends from the recently-concluded workshop i attended

4. nice weather

5. continuous music streaming while i work

6. finishing several crossword puzzles in the newspaper. yea! :D

7. new job/racket prospect

8. new eats--posts coming soon :)

9. sleep, glorious sleep... been so tired lately so the moment my head hits the pillow, it's heaven. :D

10. hanging out with cousins at amici and pier one last saturday


then again, i won't be tagging anyone for this :D

wednesday wramblings (conclusion)

finally... haven't i told you wednesday was a loooooong day for me? well, it just got longer. if there is a misadventure to end all misadventures, this certainly takes the cake.

somwhere between PNU and binondo, h excitedly suggested we take the pasig river ferry going home. and since i like inconveniencing myself most of the time, i agreed. i mean, i could have gotten home the fast way (g. liner bus) or the faster way (lrt 2), right? but noooo siree. an opportunity to ride the pasig river is always considered a treat. and so the ferry wins hands down.

after buying some treats at eng bee tin over at ongpin, we walked back to escolta to the ferry station. the ferry was already there as we were buying our tickets for guadalupe so at least we didn't have to wait for it anymore. it was 7pm at the time already so there's no point in trying to take a look at the view. so h and i engaged in an intense girl talk all the way to guadalupe... or so we thought.

so deep in conversation were we that the announcement that we were in guadalupe just flew over our heads. the only thing that brought us back to earth--with a big bump, i may add-- was the rumbling of the engines, signalling that we were leaving guadalupe station. we were in utter and total shock that we actually couldn't speak for a few seconds. then...

"where are we going?"

unconsciously we were waiting for all the passengers to disembark as we fully understood that guadalupe was the last station. apparently our memory of the route was still stuck in last year's. so as the ferry rumbled on towards the next unknown destination, we sat there, quietly losing our minds and bashing ourselves in our minds for being so heedless. for what seemed like hours (which was actually just 10 or 15 minutes), we finally docked to the next station which is san joaquin (pasig). imagine our shock as we got out of the station and into a street basketball game in a quiet neighborhood (thank God for that).

well, needless to say, we got out of that scrape by asking the old man who sat a few rows in front of us in the ferry where to go and walking alongside the river until we got to the main road.

we had an uneventful taxi ride home.

so, okay! here's a list of the stations along the pasig river ferry route:

Plaza Mexico (operational)

Escolta (operational)

Quiapo/Quezon Bridge (operational)

PUP (operational)

Sta. Ana (operational)

Lambingan (operational)

Valenzuela

Hulo (operational)

Guadalupe (operational)

San Joaquin (operational)

Napindan

Marcos Bridge

Riverbanks Mall

Sta. Elena

ps. most probably napindan is operational as well as there were still passengers after we disembarked. i was still in a state of shock then so i didn't even remember to ask what the latest operational station is. if there's anyone here who knows, well, let me know. ^________^

wednesday wramblings part 2

after heidz was done, we left PNU with growling stomachs. so where were we to go? if you have read our minds, you would know where we went: binondo. ;p

here's a little un-secret of mine. whenever i'm in someplace whether familiar or unfamiliar and i'm not... familiar with the how-to's to get to my destination by public transportation especially by jeepney, i walk. i don't care how long it will take me as long as i arrive at my destination provided i'm going at my own leisurely speed. more often than not i get to my desired destination albeit a bit walked-out and sorta smoked like an eagle with all those jeepney fumes everywhere. if someone's with me, it's important that he or she would not mind walking. another thing that i like about walking is that i get to experience new things, which, in this case, leads us now to--

a new food trip without images. bow.

we originally planned to try out polland bakery along escolta, but discovered to our dismay that there was no place to rest our weary feet. what else can we do but to leave and continue walking down nueva (now yuchengco) street. when we reached the corner of dasmarinas street a strange yet wonderful sight filled our eyes: dimsum containers are stacked by the dozen on a counter along the sidewalk of dasmarinas street, and beside the counter of dimsum containers sat a steamer. ladies and gentlemen, the newest food stop in binondo is called ying ying tea house, and it just opened last week, at the corner of dasmarinas and yuchengco streets. judging from the number of people eating there we decided to try it out as well. with all that walking, who wouldn't go hungry?

the interior of the tea house is cozy though it's a bit warm on the ground floor. fortunately it has three levels though i have reason to believe it goes up to the 4th floor of the building. the second level is simply a room for large private parties (it can sit up to 15 pax at most from what i saw, with a large round table and a lazy susan) while the third floor is more spacious with another area set off for large parties as well. we got a table on the third level where we were the only customers until it filled up after about an hour.

here's what we ordered:

moi: wanton noodle soup (P80) and shrimp cheong fan (P60, 3 pcs. per order)
heidz: lemon chicken with rice (P90)

let me start with the lemon chicken. presentation was so-so, with the breaded chicken placed beside the rather large cup of rice and watery lemon sauce that was obviously poured over the chicken just before serving. and because the sauce was a bit watery, most of it was soaked up by the rice. maybe it would look better if they mixed the sauce and chicken up a bit so the white bits of cornstarch wouldn't show, and it would look more glossy. the portion of rice and chicken were at par with each other though and it's filling. in addition, the taste makes up for the presentation.

the wanton noodle soup is a different story. the soup was steaming hot, which means it came from a continuously simmering pot because if it didn't, it would have turned cold much faster. the five pieces of wanton that top the soup were quite surprising as they were packed solid with meat which, for me, took two bites unlike other wanton which i could pop whole into my mouth and still manage not to look like a chipmunk. ;-) the kind of noodles they used is my favorite kind, the long, thin egg noodles same as what le ching in greenhills uses. don't be deceived by the medium-sized bowl. the serving might just look little but i tell you the noodle soup can be good for two--i was just halfway through the meal when i already felt full--and i haven't even started on my share of the cheong fan yet.

i first tried cheong fan in a dimsum resto in texas last year. it was so good that i was happy when i also found it on the menu of some chinese restos here, and i couldn't wait to try it. at ying ying tea house i chose the shrimp cheong fan. each cheong fan only has two shrimps apiece and i only tasted more of the semi-sweet (at least, to my taste) wrapper as it was kinda thick. to me it seemed like a salty-sweet kind of dessert.

the prices at ying ying tea house are very affordable, which ranges from P55 (mostly dimsum, dessert, drinks) to P400 (mostly for the short orders and takeout).

heidz and i were so full afterwards, we needed another round of walking. i will definitely come back to this resto to try more of their food.

stay tuned for part 3... :-)

wednesday wramblings part 1

yesterday afternoon brought me once more to the manila area when my friend heidz texted me if i could come with her to Philippine Normal University (PNU) as she was planning to apply for their 18 unit teaching course. well, who am i to say no, especially when i've always wanted to go there? it was an uneventful bus ride to PNU from robinson's galleria which cost us P20.50. i don't know, but the prospect of going to PNU got me really excited. maybe because it was of the really old structures which i longingly stared at every time i pass it going to intramuros, maybe because of the fact that my lola studied there in the late 1930's, or maybe both. either way, i was like some giggly teenage girl silently freaking out (in a good way) when heidz and i entered the main building. and so while heidz was agonizing over the computations in her transcript, i amused myself by going around the campus--erm, i mean just around the main building, and just as far as the culture and arts building. going around wasn't any problem at all as i could easily pass for a student (naks!). from the looks of the campus grounds, there was a cultural festival courtesy of the PNU Lopez, Quezon campus although there's no program at the time except for a band practicing the philippine national anthem. inside the auditorium in the main building, however, a contest called battle of the chem masters was going on. chemistry. hrrmmph. aside from that, the whole atmosphere in the school was quite relaxing if you ask me.

PNU fast facts:

- it is the university that specializes in teacher education. it opened on september 1, 1901 as Philippine Normal School (PNS) by the americans.

- PNS was converted to Philippine Normal College (PNC) in 1949 and along with it came the introduction of new four-year courses such as bs elementary education, bse with specialization in elementary education and bse major in home economics.

- the graduate school was established in 1953.

- the school was elevated into university status on december 26, 1991, 90 years after it first opened.

- it celebrated its centennial year on september 1, 2001.

- there are four other PNU campuses around the country--in agusan, cadiz city, isabela and quezon.

(source: PNU website)

more ramblings to come later. it has been a loooong day yesterday... ;-)

love-hate relationships

one of the tags-in-waiting by pusang maganda =)

I love to eat: double bacon cheeseburger, pizza, and any dessert that's very creamy =)
I hate to eat: innards at most, but i can still change me mind
I love to go: anywhere that's far from the madding crowd--like the beach--anywhere as long as it's quiet
I hate to go: to shopping malls
I love it when: something unexpected and exciting happens
I hate it when: i get rudely interrupted when i'm very busy doing something.
I love to see: new sceneries
I hate to see: tv commercials that pander to every woman's vanity ;p
I love to hear: wind, crash of waves on the shore; music as long as it ain't metal or hiphop.
I hate to hear: unearthly noises coming from the nearby police station--police singing on the videoke at night...!

=)

birthday dinner at choi garden

note: sorry there ain't no pics yet but i'm posting this now before i forget what i want to write. =)

my family and i went to choi garden in annapolis, greenhills last night to celebrate my pa's birthday. by far, it was the best restaurant i've eaten in after cyma. notwithstanding my bros' allergies to seafood (my older bro being the more delicate one), all of us enjoyed our time together.

the restaurant occupies the same building where country waffles used to be. of course they had to change the structure to look more chinese than an american country house. the ground floor glowed red in all its glory from the outside, as all the interiors are in my fave colors--red and black.

upon entry, a short hallway reminiscent of a moon gate greets the guests. it's sort of like a tunnel to another dimension if you ask me. aside from the red and black interiors, another cool thing in the restaurant are the tanks of huge, live seafood imaginable: lobsters, crabs, prawns, etc. and along with the nice chinese music playing in the background, the reddish-black atmosphere of the whole restaurant looks something straight out of a gangster movie. trés cool.

judging from the number of people eating there, it seemed like we won't be getting a table for a while but fortunately a table was just vacated so we snapped that one up immediately. make sure you make a reservation first (especially if you're gonna eat at dinnertime) before winging it out or else you'd have to wait for quite some time like we almost did.

the food... it also took us time to get what we wanted. in the menu is basically your typical chinese fare: fried rice, roast fowl, noodle soups, dim sum, congee, sweet and sour pork, hot pot, the works. there are several items NOT on the menu, though, so ask your friendly waiter for the chef's specials. two such items not on the menu are the hot and sour soup and beef with broccoli in oyster sauce, which we ordered.

besides the hot and sour soup and beef with broccoli in oyster sauce, here are the other items we ordered: braised fish fillet with bean curd in pot, fried pork ribs with salt and pepper (that comes with seasoned vinegar), and birthday noodles, which is simply pancit canton with quail eggs.

because we were so intent on choosing the items carefully (like making sure there's neither shrimp nor crab in deference to me bros), we forgot one important thing: order the rice. the waiter had all but already gone to the kitchen with our order when we suddenly remembered we haven't ordered the freakin' rice. funny, eh? anyhow we got five nice, fragrant cups of steamed rice.

everything we've ordered really tasted great. the amount of salt on each dish is just right, the soup as well the sauces of the braised fish fillet and beef with broccoli are just about the right thickness; the fish fillets, bean curd and beef slices tender to the bite and thick enough for that "oomph" when biting into them; and the pork ribs are well cooked. the birthday noodles, however, just had a few veggies and seafood, not that it mattered to me as i like noodles better than veggies anyway. they don't use msg on their dishes, btw.

but what about the price? you may ask. well, all i can say is that my money was all worth it. the pricing starts at around 170PHP-up, small size. for medium and large, you just multiply the price by 2 and 3, respectively. don't be fooled by the small size as it's good for 3-4 people, 5 even. there were 5 of us and though all the dishes we ordered are small, the servings were generous. to say that we were full is an understatement--we're more like stuffed. and the grand total? P1,290 minus senior citizen (46.07) plus 12% vat = P1,243. that's about P250 per person rounded off. now if there is another resto that serves great food with generous servings at an affordable price like this, let me know.

=)

a (re)new(ed) endeavor

i just recently bought this lovely boxed set of larousse gastronomique (in three easy installments ;-p) from my cousin N, who is a certified foodie herself. from the moment i saw it on her multiply site, i knew i had to have it (talk about impulse buying). impulse buying or not, larousse gastronomique is considered to be the encyclopedia of gastronomy of professional chefs since its first publication in 1938. (now i ain't no professional chef but i can cook pretty well, if i do say so myself.)

this edition of larousse gastronomique is divided into four parts to make the recipes easy to follow: fish & seafood; vegetables & salad; meat, poultry & game; and desserts, cakes & pastries. each book has basic recipes for the sauces, pastries, garnishes, etc... another great thing about this is that it includes all the different measurements for wet and dry ingredients and even for the oven temperature. for someone who shudders at the very thought of conversion like yours truly, this is heaven-sent. basically, most of the recipes in larousse gastronomique are french (duh!) but over the years recipes from different cuisines have also been incorporated into it whilst retaining its very essence.

when there's the time and opportunity, i will post here the dishes that i'd have tried cooking already. to try and cook the recipes presents a challenge to me as i haven't cooked that much in a long time--except for my spontaneous cooking inventions and the obligatory holiday meals which are far and few in between. now the question is, do i have the guts to try and cook these wonderful recipes?

oh, yes. i do.

who knows, maybe this impulse will pay off.

wish me luck!