Breakfast for Dinner at IHop Araneta Center Cubao

I've been reading a lot of good reviews from IHop since it opened last year and I've been meaning to try out their dishes if not for the long queu. So when they decided to open a branch at Araneta Center Cubao, it was the perfect chance to try out their famed pancakes.

After getting tired of roaming around, me and my boyfriend decided to have our dinner. He knows I've been eyeing IHop since it first opened last July 19 so he decided to take me there. We were in luck because there were only two seats left then. We were handed out menus and I chose their Rooty Tooty Fresh and Fruity dish which consists of two eggs, two bacon strips, two pork sausage links and two buttermilk pancakes crowned with whipped topping and your choice of cool strawberry topping, warm blueberry compote or cinnamon apple compote. I wanted to try their warm blueberry compote because the weather is a bit chilly.This dish costs 308php. My boyfriend settled for their Belgian Waffle combo which is served with two eggs, your choice of two bacon strips or two pork sausage links. This meal costs 263php.

We waited around 10-15 minutes before our food was served. We didn't really mind because we were playing Metal Slug Defense in my phone lol. When the plates were served, i suddenly realized I'm hungry and I needed to sink in my teeth to the much talked about pancakes. At first bite, I knew the batter they used was different from any ordinary pancake establishments. Theirs was fluffier and fuller and may I add..sweeter. I decided to save it for later and dig in to my perfect sunny side up eggs. The pork sausage links were delicious. Even my boyfriend liked how it leaves a certain herbal scent. Like it's been smoked and the herbs blended well with the meat. The bacon is perfectly cooked as well. I got to taste his belgian waffle and I must say that I liked it better than my pancakes. We finished our main course in no time. I had to pour their Old Fashioned pancake syrup onto my pancake to lessen its sweetness and because the blueberries are nakaka umay already. I was already so stuffed I had to let my boyfriend finish the remaining half for me. 

We paid a total of 697php for the meal we ate. A bit steep for us but we did enjoy the food. Till our next food adventure!

My Rooty Tooty set

The uber sweet Blueberry compote pancakes

Belgian waffle set

The table set. We're missing their Old Fashioned syrup

IHop Araneta Center

The verdict: 

Place- 4/5      Very homey and it reminded me of an American diner

Food- 4/5      Just because the pancake is too sweet to my liking

Service- 5/5    The staff were very courteous and even asked us if we were satisfied with the food we ordered.

IHOP RestaurantAraneta Center Cubao

Gen Araneta CubaoCubao, Quezon City

8 Cuts Burger blend date

Long before we decided to eat here, I've been already eyeing this burger joint for the blogs I've read about it. The opportunity came when we went on a date last Sunday and is trying to find a new place to eat. Upon entering the place, we were then ushered to a table for two.

Outside 8 Cuts Burger Megamall. Notice the long queu?

Once seated we were handed out their menu. I had a hard time choosing because they all looked appetizing. I let my boyfriend customize his own burger while I, in the end settled for their four cheese burger and also ordered to cans of Mug to wash down the meat. I was looking at the table on our left and immediately noticed their basket of onion rings and then it hit me. That will make our dining experience complete. So I also ordered a basket for ourselves. We waited around five minuted before we were served. First came our drinks then the basket of onion rings. We took a bite of their onion rings and it was so tasty. The batter coated the onion rings perfectly and evenly and the barbeque powder sprayed on the top worked. My boyfriend didn't like the barbeque powder sprayed saying that the onion rings were better off without them. 

Never order their burgers without this. I swear it's that good (65php)

Either way we still enjoyed them and in no time our burgers came. I was really thrilled and to document what we ate, I took the liberty to take photos of the food before gobbling them all down. My burger, had loads of cheese and tasted heavenly. My boyfriend said it reminded him of Sbarro's Chicago white deep dish. The meat, coupled with parmesan, yellow cheddar, aged gruyere and mozarella was certainly a winner and a must order. His burger on the other hand is a nice surprise. I was hesitant to try the ox meat blend because I've never really tried anything with ox but it was really good. To be honest I liked his customized burger more. He instructed the staff to put in all the toppings they have to offer just to get a taste of what they have to offer. And the result came out more like Tropical Hut's Classic burger. His patty was so juicy and really flavorful. 

Four Cheese burger (255php)

Customized burger with ox meat blend patty (190php)

We were so full when we finished our meal. For only 687php we got to enjoy artisan burgers. The staff were also courteous and assisted us in all our needs. This restaurant is now definitely included on my list of favorites.



8 Cuts Burger
Bldg. B Dona Julia Vargas Ave.,
SM Megamall, Mandaluyong City
631-4388

Our favorite Chinese place, Wai Ying Binondo Manila

We were once again out to fully maximize our weekend together and this time, we decided to explore Quiapo after of course, buying our new bike. The day started pretty good. We left after eating our late breakfast. We went over bicycle shops first to snag a better price. We ended up with a very handsome Trix gray mountain bike. Since we didn't get to eat lunch before leaving and it is already way past lunch, we decided to go grab some food.

We decided on Wai Ying. We biked. And by biked meaning he did all the footwork. The place was packed. It was already past 2PM and we were still put on waiting list. We decided to wait up until 2:30PM. Luckily we were seated before that. Menu on our hand, I decided to get Shrimp Chong Fan. At that time I don't know what it's called. I tried to visually tell it to the lady taking our orders. Luckily, she knew what we were talking about as it is one of their best sellers. Of course we also ordered Shrimp Hakaw, my Peking duck rice meal and his Chicken feet and ribs meal. We waited around less than ten minutes before our orders arrived. Since it is our first time eating Shrimp Chong Fan, we tried it first. And it did not disappoint. It is indeed one of the best appetizers I've tasted. The sauce gave it a wonderful touch. Alone it could've been another hakaw but with the sauce, we're ta;king about a different class of dimsum. It's so good, my boyfriend even asked if we could take out an order of it. If we're not riding (sharing) a bike we could've. He also added an order of their version of milktea which is by the way delicious. I personally can't get enough of it.

Shrimp Chong Fan

Chicken feet and ribs rice meal

Shrimp Hakaw minus 1 piece :>

Roast Peking duck meal

 All in all we paid around 550php which is really sulit by the way since our tummies are full to the brim. When we're around Quiapo or Divisoria, it's already a no-brainer for us that we'll go to Wai Ying to eat.


Wai Ying 
Benavidez St.,
Sta. Cruz, Manila

Family get together at Rub Ribs BBQ, Tomas Morato

It has become our habit to eat out every time our parents or one of them come and visit us here in Manila. To change the ambiance a bit, I decided to look for for a restaurant that serves lip smacking ribs. Now I don't know what came to my mind as to why I chose that specific food but I vaguely recalled or has read somewhere that there is such a place in Tomas Morato. With the help of my old friend, Google, I chanced upon Rub Ribs BBQ. Reading other people's blog about them made me hungry. The photos are reaching out to me. I mentally took note of the place and since it's a Friday, I told myself to book a reservation because I read the place is relatively small. My family needed no convincing and as I was calling them to book for a reservation, I was informed that they do not accept reservations during weekends. Asking what time they get most of their customers, the guy I was talking to told me that customers come and go every hour especially during weekends. Tough luck! At that time, I was thinking we better get there a bit early to secure seats. Come weekend we rode a cab to Sct. Rallos in search of this much talked about rib place. I was all eyes at the restaurants we would pass by so as not to miss the place. I immediately spotted the place when we took a right turn from Tomas Morato to Sct. Rallos. It's just beside H Cuisine. Unfortunately, when we came there are no seats available.We had to wait for another 30 minutes or so before we're seated.

Manong Guard checking if there's still available seats for us

Love their framed walls

Good thing we weren't that hungry when we came there. We decided to order while waiting.We decided on their Family Brunch with our choice of three sides which is already good for four people. I took the liberty of choosing their Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Garlic Spinach and Mushroom and their Sprice (spiced rice). I had to order three additional rice for them, a basket of Buffalo Wings with Bleu cheese dip, their fried Oreos and their Houseblend iced tea in a pitcher. Once we were escorted to our seats upstairs, we were immediately served our drinks. My brother didn't like the taste of their Houseblend tea saying it tasted more tea. I mean, it does say Houseblend TEA right? I, on the other hand loved it. Very refreshing and light to the taste. A few more minutes and our Family Brunch came.

Ribs!!! (L-R Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Garlic Spinach and Mushroom and their Sprice)

My sister took this photo. I believe she's already famished and was in a hurry before we grab all the wings to ourselves.  :p

Fried Oreos <3

 At first I thought it would only be two huge servings of ribs with our choice of three sides but they served us three. Which is great by the way and I am not complaining because we were hungry by then. We took photos first (for my blog of course) before we ravaged the set. I love the fact that the meat is really tender and the rub is not bad either. The sauce really compliments the meat and paired with Sprice, it is a winning combo. I had to ditch my utensils when grabbing the meat because it is best eaten using my hands. My brother consumed three cups of their rice. I devoured most of their mashed potatoes and part of the spinach. It was indeed a very wonderful and hearty dinner spent with my family. The staff attending us upstairs were also quick to aid our needs. The staff were also accomodating and greeted us as we entered and made our exit. Although, our basket of buffalo chicken came quite late, the Bleu Cheese dip made all the difference. At the end of our meal, we were rubbing our bellies full lol. We had one teenie tiny space left for our dessert, Fried Oreos and our night was made. All in all we spent about 1,700 php. For a meal as satisfyingly cheap as this, I can go every week! Highly recommended. 

Good meal shared with the fambam

P.S. I just had to take out a serving of their ribs for my boyfriend to try. He loves meat and I'm pretty sure he'll like (love me more for) this. 

RUB Ribs and Barbecue

64 Scout Rallos,

Tomas Morato, Quezon City

(632) 501 2799

Operating HoursMonday to Sunday

11:00am to 12:00am

Ice Master Beef Yakiniku pizza and Strawberry Yogurt drink review

After a tiring day walking around the National Museum for our Sundate, my boyfriend and I went to Robinsons Place Manila to rest and eat our meryenda. We were a bit soaked from the sudden rain and a bit grumpy since we didn't expect the downpour. 

We were searching around for a place to eat when my boyfriend spotted their stall at the 4th floor of the malls Midtown Wing. 

Photo grabbed from the internet

Scanning their menu, I was glad to see their yogurt drinks series and my search immediately zoomed onto their Strawberry Yogurt drink. My boyfriend decided to go for their large drink which was only 95php, so we can share. As for something to bite on, we were contemplating on whether to have their waffles or their pizza. We decided on their pizza unanimously and chose their Beef Teppanyaki flavored pizza. We then got our seats and got ourselves settled. Five minutes after, our drink arrived. I was surprised at the size of the glass used for our drink because it actually is big, without actually spending more than a hundred bucks. And it was filled to the brim. I especially enjoyed the right amount of yogurt incorporated with the strawberry and that the concoction created a perfect balance and not overpowering each other's taste. I actually enjoyed that drink. More so that it easily toppled the last best drink I had this past few months. I can't wait to try their other yogurt drink.

Just looking at this made me crave for another glass

 Another five minutes before our pizza finally came. We decided to try their 8 inch pizza together with the drink we ordered. The pizza was surprisingly juicy. I smothered mine with hot sauce because I like mine hot. The first bite sent trails of meaty juice down my fingers. This is the first pizza I ate without the usual tomato base. I don't really know what they used but it worked. Although my boyfriend noted that the dough is not freshly made, the toppings used saved this dish. It's best consumed hot and fresh from the oven. For the price of 169 php, we definitely enjoyed our pan pizza.

Wasn't able to get a decent shot because we were starving! :D

The verdict: 

Place- 4/5      I actually like their stall and the open place setting. 

Food- 5/5      The drink made this score possible. 

Service- 4/5    Only because they forgot to give us hot sauce for our pizza and only gave us one napkin for the whole meal. But nothing really majorly bad in their service.

Ice Master- Level 4, Midtown Wing, Robinsons Place Manila, M. Adriatico St., Ermita, Manila Tel No. 554-0927 Cp# 09189639335

P.S. They now do pizza deliveries in Metro Manila ^^

Mother's Day celebration at Contis Rob Magnolia

Hi folks! This post will highlight a special occasion for my mom which is Mother's Day. I really wanted to make it special for her so I decided to take her out to Contis Rob Magnolia.

I love the presentation of those plates. And the lighting as well.

On our way to the restaurant, I forgot I still have to withdraw money so I told my mom and my sister to go ahead. On my way to the ATM, I spotted edible roses being sold at the foodcourt so I bought three to surprise my mom. True enough she was elated. She immediately wanted to pose with her candied flowers and post it on Facebook for everybody to see. Moving on, we were handed out the menu. We moved to a more comfortable seat by the window.


 For starters, we ordered two bowls of Chicken Potato Salad because I can never get enough of it. My sister ordered Roast Beef with Garlic rice and Green Mango shake. Mom ordered their Maple glazed ribs with Garlic rice as well. I was supposed to order their USDA Steak but they only have one cut available and it is way too hefty for me so I settled with their Roasted beef belly with mashed potatoes and buttered veggies. What surprised me first was the huge portion of each dish. I enjoyed it tremendously and was really satisfied with what I got. The sauce topped on my beef belly tasted a bit like wasabi-mayo. Just the right spice to whet my palate. My mom's dish is also a revelation. The ribs were sweet and very tender and this also applies to my sister's Roast beef. As for our drinks, me and my mom preferred bottomless iced tea for our drink. Of course, this special meal wouldn't be complete without dessert :) We ordered three different cakes so we can all taste and compare them. We had Mango tart, Peach Walnut Torte and the all time favorite Mango Bravo. All of them are delicious on their own but I just had to say that they become even more delicious combined. I combined the Mango tart's crust with the Peach Walnut Torte's filling and it was heavenly. I saved the walnut for last of course! We really had a great time and meal here at Contis.

Roast beef with Garlic rice

Maple glazed ribs with garlic rice and a bowl of their Chicken Potato Salad

Roasted beef belly with mashed potatoes and buttered veggies

Peach Walnut Torte

Mango Tart

 All in all, I only spent 1,900php. Not bad for a 3 main course dish with dessert and a drink of our choice. So if you're planning to go out and spend quality time with your loved ones without shedding too much money, Contis is wise choice.  And mind you, the place gets full even before dinner so I suggest you phone them early for a reservation or come in earlier to get the best seat. 

The verdict: 

Place- 4/5      I like their wall decorations and the music.

Food- 4/5         Super satisfied with the food. Although I would've wanted to try their USDA Steak that time.

Service- 4/5      They have friendly waiters and they assisted us well enough. It just took a couple of calls before they finally noticed us and our take out took longer than expected, but hey, they still did a great job serving us

Komoro Soba SM Megamall

My boyfriend and I were once again out on a date and this time, we are celebrating our fourth year together! Yey! After our disappointing trip to his old highschool, we decided to go to our comfort mall and by comfort I mean where we usually hang out. So SM Megamall it is. The boyfriend was getting a bit cranky about how we missed the opportunity to go inside his high school but I know much more. He's hungry. So let's skip the drama and go to the dining part. I had soba in my mind that day. And I spotted a self proclaimed authentic Japanese restau along one of the sides of that mall. I forgot the name of the restaurant we were supposed to dine that day so we landed on Komoro Soba. Anything Japanese drives me nuts so we decided to give it a shot. What made us stay was that the menu was pretty straight forward and the price was decent. On to the goods:

Sorry for the crappy angle. I guess you can just zoom in the picture to get a better view of what they offer :P

The place was so-so. But it didn't bother me that much. I read from other blogs that this restaurant has been there since forever. I guess they got their patrons coming back for more.
We decided to order two different dishes and zoomed in on their two best looking dishes. I went for the Ebi Tempura soba set and he ordered the Komoro bento set which is their version of grilled Yakiniku plus a small bowl of Green tea ice cream for dessert. We waited for about 10 minutes before our order arrived.


My dish came in first. It was a feast for my eyes. I really love Japanese food especially if it is plated tastefully. The bento set came in after a few seconds. Now what I really regret in this whole meal is that I forgot to ask for Tongarashi which is a spice used to enhance the flavor of the soba broth. Anyway, the food was pretty decent

Ebi Tempura set

(or were we just hungry?).




 One thing though, we were the ones who got our own water and only one waiter was roaming the area and it's only to serve the orders to customers. Maybe they impose self service in getting your own water. Back to our food, the soba, though not as good as the one I had at Hana in Little Tokyo, is enough to satisfy my craving. The bowl had a decent serving of soba noodles and a huge prawn on top of it. Two slices of carrots and onion spring can also be found beside the prawn. Along with it came a small bowl of Katsu don with egg and caramelized sweet onions. This meal I like best. I dip it with the sauce that came from the bento set and it was really good. I full when I finished the set. I gave the free miso soup to my boyfriend but that doesn't mean I like it any less. to my surprise, it goes at par with the best miso soup I've ever tasted. And my boyfriend also gave his two thumbs up to it.

The Yakiniku bento, their newest offer yet, was also a revelation. My boyfriend was cranky from all our misfortunes and this uplifted his mood. The beef was bacon like at first glance. But when I took a bite, it was really tasty. One tip: It's best to pair it with a piece of cabbage that came with the meal then dip it in sauce before you gobble the whole thing up. The meal also comes with rice, two orange slices, cabbage and a small serving of macaroni salad. My boyfriend pointed out that the salad seemed to ruin the Japanese feel while we were enjoying our meal so he left me in charge of eating most of it.

Yakiniku bento

After that, we went to get our dessert which was the green tea ice cream. It was not that special but not that bad as well.

Greentea ice cream

All in all, we had a satisfying time at Komoro Soba. For only 400 bucks we were able to get our tummy's fill. To me, Komoro Soba is just a notch higher that Tokyo Tokyo. There's still a lot to be improved but what they have right now, and with all the patrons coming back, I know they won't go out soon.

The verdict: 

Place- 3.5/5      Still needs a lot of improvement but the place is decent enough to dine

Food- 4/5         Wanna try their other soba dishes and bento set. And I hope they would improve on their selection of drinks. Our options are limited

Service- 3/5       Only because I had to get my own water and had to remind them to serve our desert 

Komoro Soba – Building A, SM Megamall. When you see the SM supermarket, turn right into the area with Roti Mum and Almon Marina. Walk straight and you’ll see it on your right.