Sundays at Infinitea

After church, I always look forward for hanging out with the family after all Sunday is family day. I just wanted to relax so I asked my mom if she wanted a cup of tea. Lucky for me she said, yes. The nearest tea shop at our place would be INFINITEA at Brusmick Place and that's where we headed. 

We arrived too early that everything else was not available except for their Frappe.

Here are our orders.

Blueberry Cheesecake (left) ; Strawberry Mousse (middle) ; Green Tea (right)

I get to try their Blueberry Cheesecake Frappe and I assure you this is worth a try because it's definitely good. It is very creamy but surprisingly not too sweet.

My mom had the Strawberry Mousse it was also good but at 50% sugar level I still find the sweetness overwhelming.

 

And of course my all time favorite, Green Tea Frappe. It's my favorite for a reason that green tea is said to be healthy. LOL. I had an acquired taste for green tea, I just love it.  It tasted like Starbucks but only a lot cheaper, a very good alternative. *wink*

The price is affordable. The ambiance is relaxing. The place is well ventilated. The only missing is some music but overall. Approved!

Go try it! Ciao! 

Asian Traveller's Hotel & Restaurant

If you happen to be in Sta. Cruz, Laguna area and you're tired of the usual fast food joints, why not try something more local. Like, Asian Travellers Hotel/Restaurant located at Pagsawitan Road near/across the DLTB terminal.

My mom and I were to go to SSS Sta. Cruz but it was already lunch time so we decided to have our fill first. I was thinking about Chowking (again) but then my mom told me there was this restaurant that my father and his colleagues used to dine in after their municipal sessions. It's none other than Asian Traveller's Hotel & Restaurant. It offers both Filipino and Chinese cuisine.

This place is not a fine dining of sort, so don't expect anything grand but even with a non-air conditioned place and simple facade, Asian Traveller's has already made it's mark and is evident with a fully packed dining area.

 

 

 

We were just lucky that we were given a seat at once. And, because we were so hungry we ordered promptly. Unfortunately, the people on the other side of our table walked out because their food had taken so long to be served and there is a slight misunderstanding with the servers. Good thing our food was served 20 minutes after.

 

I wanted something hot to fill my hungry tummy so I ordered their Special Chicken Mami. The taste was ordinary and forgettable. It lacks seasoning so I had to add a lot of pepper to give it a kick. I like that it has lots of chicken and an egg on it.

While my mom opted for rice and an order of Beef with Ampalaya. An order is good enough for two. The beef may be a bit tough but the sauce tasted like asado siopao sauce so I like it. Hehe. The ampalaya was bitter, my mom can cook ampalaya without the bitter taste. I swear.

Asian Traveller's Hotel & Restaurant is so affordable and tummy filling. Will I go back? Maybe. They offer a lot of other dishes that I wanted to try. I heard that their Buttered Chicken is good. I have to try it.

Ciao!

SumoSam ~ Crafted the Japanese way

I'm back! I am apologizing for the delayed posting in this little world of mine. I'm fixing a lot of things from the real world which is becoming so stressing I think I'm growing eye-bags and wrinkles... NOoooo!!! And there's not a lot of things to share except for personal issues which I doubt someone would like to hear. But I did find a spare time to finally share a little get together with my mom and two brothers. It's my younger bros 18th birthday, yikes! Our baby is no longer a baby. How time flies really fast. Happy Birthday my dearest brother you know I love you to the moon and back.

Birthdays like this means complete family, the dad, the mom, the two brothers and I. Now I know it'll never be. I was really hesitant for a celebration because my father passed away two months ago. Heck, I didn't celebrate my own birthday because I'm not up for it. But we have too, because apparently life has to go on and I know my dad doesn't want us to stay hidden on our caves. Life is a celebration and we have to make the most out of it and make memories to cherish.

So off we went to Nuvali to scout the area and have a breathe of fresh air or not. *hehe* in the midst of the city. Here are some of the pictures I've taken:

I remembered I told you once that occasions like this means Chinese or Japanese food, a lot of things changed but this one, NEVER. Brother like japanese food, we had it his way. We had chosen SumoSam since we haven't tried it.

If you know me well, you know that I will always have a serving of ramen but my two brothers beat me for it, they both ordered TONKOTSO RAMEN and CHASU RAMEN. So I did settle for a CHICKEN TERIYAKI BENTO while my mom had TONKOTSU SET ( Pork loin).

Tonkotso Ramen

You can choose from either SHOYU and MISO base. The shoyu is sweet while miso has a combination of both sweet and salty. My brother chose the latter. I get to taste the base and it has the right balance of sweet and salty. My brother agreed with me. He finished it to the bottom.

Chasu Ramen

I forgot to asked what the base is but it has subtle and slightly sweet taste compared to Tonkotso Ramen.  

Tonkotso Set

I haven't tried Yabu but this looks like Yabu except for the part that you'll do your own grinding for the sauce they don't do that here in SumoSam. I was actually looking forward for it because the pictures say so but instead they gave us I dont know what it's called but it's not the mortar and pestle thing. The set comes with a handful of cabbage and a miso soup and some picked veggies for the side.

The big bento box

Chicken Teriyaki

Sashimi. My Favorite

For myself, I had Chicken Teriyaki and it was served in a big bento box that I wanted to take home myself. *heehee. It comes with a miso soup and slices of pineapple for dessert. The Chicken Teriyaki is tender and is not too sweet. The sashimi is fresh and it melt's in your mouth.

The food may come as a bit pricey for me but considering the huge serving, who am I to complain right? Not to mention you can also ask for additional cabbage and miso soup. That is so awesome because I love both! Heehee!

The mini celebration dinner turns out great we share laughs and tears, we all miss our dad and his jokes. He's the strict but funny guy that everyone loves. He may not be physically here to celebrate with us but I know he's smiling on us from heaven. We're taking small steps dad. One day at a time.

Till next time! Ciao! 

Foodtrip: Open Kitchen Bistro

I've been meaning to try Open Kitchen Bistro near our place in Sta. Rosa. It was a small-in-a-hole diner that can sit around 10-15 people. The place was always crowded whenever I pass the area and most often people are standing waiting for their turn to be seated. Curiosity got me on why a newly opened place gather the people while Atoy's Porkchop a few blocks away and has already established its name always has none.

It was one Sunday evening that I get to try Open Kitchen along with my brother. The place was fully packed when we arrived. Luckily we don't have to wait that long. Their menu is limited to Chicken Kebab, Grilled Liempo, Sizzling Sisig and Beef Pares priced at only Php 58. Very affordable!

Open Kitchen's kitchen is literally open. You can watch them cook and the smell of the food is WOW! It really makes me hungry. 

Condiments

I had Chicken Kebab with Yogurt. You have to add Php 10 for the yogurt.

Chicken Kebab

The presentation was perfectly executed! The smell alone tells you that you're in for something good. The taste was over the top. Smoky, savory and juicy kebab dipped in yogurt was simply amazing. I really love it! What's more to love is that it is very cheap at Php 68. Oh yeah!

While my brother ordered the sizzling sisig.

The sisig was also delicious the amount of heat was just right. I only try a little because I stay away from this (bad for me). Some food blogger I am.. Heehee

Two thumbs up for our Open Kitchen Bistro experience.

Ciao!