BENCH CAFE OPENS IN GREENBELT 3

Chef Carlo Miguel has taken the Bench brand, which is more known as clothing line, and turned it into a legitimate Filipino Restaurant Powerhouse. They recently opened in the heart of Makati, Greenbelt 3, so I had to visit to find out what they had in store for us!

Bench Cafe

Level 2, Greenbelt 3, 

Ayala Center, Greenbelt, 

Makati City

FILIPINO COMFORT FOOD.. NAMNAM STYLE!

       Late last year, during the "Sneak Eat" of BurgerBar to be exact, I bumped into Moment Group Co-Owner Jon Syjuco, a friend of mine since high school. Despite the burger madness that was going on, he graciously gave me a little tour of what was happening just a few feet below from us. Even though BurgerBar had yet to open its doors to the public, the Moment Group already had another ace up its sleeve, in the form of "Namnam, Filipino Comfort".  

        I will be the first to admit that outside of "Liempo", I've never been a huge fan of Filipino Cuisine. Which probably explains why I wasn't really too ecstatic about visiting Namnam Comfort Filipino restaurant at Greenbelt a month or so ago. I honestly had no expectations, and figured that it would be just another one of those Filipino restaurants that serves classic Pinoy food that we all know and love. 

       

        Little did I know that I would be walking into a restaurant that I now consider one of my favorites!

WELCOME BACK, CPK VINTAGE PIZZAS! BY RINAZ

I still remember the first time I ate in California Pizza Kitchen. It was a certain number of years ago when they had their branch at the bridgeway of Shanrgi-La Plaza. Yep! It was that long ago! And the very first pizza of theirs that I tasted was the wonder that is Peking Duck Pizza! And I fell in love!

CPK has been continuously innovating and experimenting one-of-a-kind pizza flavours (which is awesome) but somewhere along the way, our favorite Peking Duck Pizza faded from the menu to make room for the newbies. Awwww! So imagine our surprise and delight when CPK brought back this beloved Peking Duck pizza and 4 more pizzas and are re-introducing them as their Vintage Pizzas! And upon tasting their new old vintage pizzas, I can’t help but add more of their pizzas on my list of favourites! 

Richie couldn't resist trying the pizzas himself, he skipped out from work for during his lunch break, just to drop by CPK in Greenbelt!

SMOKING HOT BarBQ: GLOBAL FILIPINO CUISINE AT GREENBELT 3!

             I'll admit that i'm not the biggest fan of Filipino Food. Whenever we go to a Pinoy resto, my default order is Inihaw na Liempo (Grilled Pork Belly) and i'm good to go! But I had an eerie feeling that Smokin' Hot BBQ, the new Filipino restaurant by The Bistro Group, would be definitely something worth checking out.

       Going to Smoking Hot BBQ was a little bit bittersweet for me because it meant having to finally come to terms with the closing of fish and co.'s Greenbelt Branch.. A personal favorite of mine. Imagine how I felt.. The restaurant that serves the best fish and chips in town is being replaced by another whose cuisine i'm not too fond of. Hurts, right? 

         Nevertheless I decided to put my faith in Chef Josh Boutwood, and trust that he would do amazing things with Filipino Food.

       And boy, was I right.

A POWER LUNCH AT CHOPS CHICAGO STEAKHOUSE

          From the very first moment I laid my eyes on a small billboard inside the mall of Greenbelt Five that said "NOW OPEN: Chops Chicago Steakhouse" months ago, I made it my life's mission to eat there. It's no secret that I'm a lover of all things meat, which includes a fondness for steak, so that was a no-brainer. But what turned my "want" to eat at Chops into a "need", was when I saw their facebook post featuring their Charbroiled Bacon.

         Yes you read that correctly. 

         Char. Broiled. Bacon. 

      So, when I got an invite to sample Chops Chicago Steakhouse's Executive Lunch Menu, I said "YES" so fast, I could have sworn it came out sounding like, "Sss!".

WENDY'S XMAS GIFT TO THE WORLD: THE BBQNATOR

         I'm fairly simple when looking for a burger. In fact, I've noticed that I seem to always look for the same thing. Give me a nice, meaty patty (Or even two?), BACON (Of course), Onion Rings (Caramelized or fried, as long as its not raw), and BBQ Sauce instead of Ketchup. 

       Which is why I got the eerie feeling that Wendy's created their new BBQNator, with ME specifically in mind. 

BURGASM AT BURGERBAR IN GREENBELT!

         I'm not going to lie to ya... Being a food blogger is pretty awesome. For the first year of the existence of my blog, I would never accept any invitation from restaurant owners to dine at their establishment, simply because I was worried I would be pressured into giving a good review for a place I didn't like, putting any credibility I may have in jeopardy. 

      Things changed after Rina gave birth to Rain. After all the hospital expenses had been paid, It was clear that the shelling out of money that comes with having a child had only just begun. I came to a realization that one way to be able to sustain my blog and the financial demands of a new born baby, was to finally accept those invitations. So my New Year's Resolution as a blogger for 2012, was to begin attending blogger events and restaurant invitations. After the first couple of visits, I realized that my fears of being pressured turned out to be unfounded. For the record, every restaurant that has invited me have been extremely gracious with my comments, both positive and negative.  

          So through the course of the year, I've been incredibly blessed to have been able to sample the menu of some amazing restaurants. I probably would have gone to them on my own volition, but I undoubtedly would not have been able to taste the same number of dishes.

         A couple of weeks ago, I got a very fascinating invitation. I'm grateful for every invitation that I get, but this particular one was rather different. This was a chance for me to dine at a restaurant and sample their dishes, BEFORE they opened their doors to the paying public.  

        And I don't want to sound arrogant or anything like that, but I think I was the right guy for the job. Why? 

        Because the name of the restaurant is "BurgerBar". 

THE BETRAYAL AT RESTORANTE PIA Y DAMASO

What devious plan am I concocting with this piece of Crocodile Meat?

           During my years as a resident of Makati, Rina and I made a trip to Greenbelt a weekly tradition. Admittedly, Restaurante Pia y Damaso was a restaurant that wasn't quick to catch my attention, because I thought it was a Spanish Restaurant. As I've mentioned in the past, I have a high standard for that Spanish food, because my mother's side of the family is extremely adept at coming up with restaurant quality dishes from Spain. 

       In a classic case of my calculus teacher being totally right about my attention span, had I read their signages further, I would have seen that their tagline is "Subversive Filipino Cuisine". 

THE PICKIEST EATER VIDEO BLOG: TONKATSU 101 AT MA MAISON

                   Take a rare behind the scenes look at how Japanese-Western Fusion restaurant Ma Maison prepares one of their signature dishes.. Tonkatsu!

    Click here for the full story

MA MAISON PART DEUX & THE BISTRO GROUP GC WINNER!

         I had been to Ma Maison once before, and was more than satisfied with my order, the pork Tonkatsu. unfortunately, Rina was not with me, and I was forced to rely on my trusty Galaxy S2 camera for the pictures. Though it did a noble job, it really can't compare to the photos that Rina has taken in the past.

      Funnily enough, When I started the Bistro Group give away, Rina saw the pictures from my Ma Maison entry and reminded me that i still hadn't taken her to try their famed Japanese Western fusion dishes like I had promised many moons ago. I told her that by the time the winner of the giveaway has been announced, she would have tasted their innovative meals.

     I didnt realize time would pass by so quickly! So if the giveaway ended on Saturday, this was our trip to Ma Maison on the following Monday. 

        Oh and guess what? If you read on, you'll find out if YOU won the coveted P3,000 GC from THE BISTRO GROUP!

I LUV FISH & CO. !

You bet your butt I do

    Part of my being a "Picky Eater" is my aversion to seafood. With the sole exception of fish (which I actually love), I make it a point to stay away from creatures from the sea. There are a few incarnations of seafood dishes that I eat, but on the whole, it would be safe to say that i'm a carnivore, through and through. 

    I don't eat Squid (except Calamares from some restaurants), nor do I eat shrimp or prawns (except for tempura and more recently, the blackened shrimp of Village Tavern, mainly because you could pour the sauce on a rubber slipper and I would still probably eat it). And to date, there are only two crab dishes that I would be willing to eat willingly.. The Crab Wonton from P.F. Changs (which doesn't taste like crab) and the Crab Cakes of Village Tavern. 

     I don't eat clams, oysters, Mussels (yes, that includes baked tahong dripping with cheese), scallops and even lobsters. So as you can imagine, I'm no fun at Dampa and other seafood restaurants (I imagine it would be like taking a vegetarian to a place like Zark's Burgers or Brazil Brazil). 

    But there is one Seafood Restaurant that I can never say no to, because they have one dish that is a member of the "One of the Best Things Ever" Club. 


   True to it's name, Fish and Co. really does have "The Best Fish and Chips In Town".  

DINNER AT CASA ARMAS

     Casa Armas is one of those restaurants that I've passed by over and over again, yet for some reason I had never tried it yet. When I lived in Makati, I'd walk past it all the time in Greenbelt. When I was staying in Ortigas, I'd see it whenever I'd go to Podium. 


    However, when I was invited to dinner at Casa Armas by my buddy Spanky Enriquez to give their dishes a try, I didnt think twice. Not just because I'm a fan of free food, but because of Casa Armas reputation as one of the top restaurants of choice when it comes to Spanish Cuisine.    
     

MAKING PEACE AT BULGOGI BROTHERS

        Over the past couple of years, I've shared with you my love-hate relationship with "The Bistro Group", the organization that has brought to our country some of the best restaurants chains from around the world, (Fridays, Italianni's, Fish and Co.,  etc..). 

        My love for them springs from the quality of their food and service. I can safely say that I haven't had any major standout problem with either. In fact, I would rate their service of their many restaurant as consistently excellent, and food.. well.. their restaurants would not have been successful had they been serving turds on a plate, right?

       The "Hate" in our relationship, comes from me hating the fact that I never got my hard card when I signed up for membership of the "Bistro Frequent Food (BFF)" discount card. Despite numerous follow ups via email and phone calls, I was forced to use a tattered up piece of card board for a year. Though they honored it just the same, I did feel a tad bit short changed  because I never received the actual card. 

       After the card expired, I didn't renew. Instead, I stood at the tip of a mountain top in the dead of the night and screamed at the food gods, swearing I would never EVER return to a Bistro Group restaurant until I they explained to me what happened to my card. 

         

         Yeah, that really didn't work out. 

      Much to the hilarity of the food gods, during the duration of my "boycott", I ended up going to each and every one of those restaurants at one point or another. Sometimes unwittingly (Pig Out, Ma Maison, Stock Market Cafe, Krazy Garlik), and the rest, it was more like.. After seeing a picture on display at the mall.. "Ah screw the boycott! I'm hungry!" (Italianni's, Flapjacks).  

            I recently found out that the Korean BBQ place I had been eyeing in Greenbelt 5, "Bulgogi Brothers", was also part of The Bistro Group. So as my way of "saving face", no matter how enticing the thought of their BBQ would be, I decided that would be my final hold out until I hear an explanation from them.  

     
         Man, was it worth the wait. 

THE SOLE OF MR. ROCKEFELLER

             A few years ago, (way before my blogging days) my boss brought my to a restaurant at Greenbelt for a meeting, called "Rockefeller". The place featured oysters and ribs, among many other things. I don't recall what dish I ordered that day, meaning it wasn't very memorable to me. But what did ingrain into my psychosis for years to come was the dish that my boss ordered: The Alaskan Sole Fillet with Garlic Noodles. 


       Early last year, I thought they had closed up shop already, because I saw the doors being boarded up. Thankfully, I saw from my friends at En Route that they actually just did a little renovation (and I suspect, new management). 

         A couple of weeks ago, Rina took me to work so she could run some errands as well, so I decided to invite her to lunch at Greenbelt, together lunch buddies, My Giant Joel and the Lovely Donna. I hadn't visited the place in over a year, so I was ready to be reunited with my Sole Filet.

JAPANESE-WESTERN FUSION AT MA MAISON

            Just so you guys know, I don't live in Greenbelt. I know I have a lot of posts from Greenbelt, but that's due to three reasons: The first being I lived two blocks away from it for two years, the second is because I've worked in that area for the past five years, and lastly, Greenbelt 3 Cinemas is our default movie theater of choice when Rina and I watch a movie, so it's more convenient to eat there before a movie (The fourth reason is I'm actually lazy to go looking for anywhere else). That being said, during a stroll along the area with some officemates, I noticed a new restaurant had opened up, named "Ma Maison". 

          From the name alone, I couldn't figure out what cuisine they were serving. I knew "Maison" was French (isn't it?) but the word "Ma" before it, threw in a for a loop. And there were some Asian characters that confused me even more. Further inquiries helped me discover that Ma Maison is actually a Japanese-Western Fusion restaurant. 

        One fine working day, when My Giant Joel and my friend, the lovely Donna got sick of the usual suspects for lunch, we decided to go to Greenbelt for something different for lunch. And it helped that we had just gotten our 13 month bonus (May it Rest In Peace.. Sniff).  

RINA'S GREENBELT DATE WITH EDWARD, JACOB &.. FELIX!?

         Convincing Rina to leave the house without Baby Rain is next to impossible. But I can't blame her either. Rain is still just one month and five days old, and we're both first time parents, so even a trip to the bathroom that takes longer than it should can induce the feeling of panic. But even when Rain was still a little speck in her mommy's tummy, Rina was already making plans on who would take care of our daughter on the weekend of November 20. 

     Why? Because Breaking Dawn Part 1 would be showing that weekend. 

      I'm not ashamed to admit that I've read all the Twilight Books, and save for the first one, I actually enjoyed them. The movies, on the other hand, are another story. But Rina and her sister Chaikka are crazy over both, and both were asking me to reserve tickets for "Breaking Dawn" as early as the closing credits of the midnight screen of "Eclipse" in 2010.

        I bought a voucher from CashCashPinoy to the restaurant, "Felix" in Greenbelt 5 a couple of months back, hoping to use it during one of our movie trips. (After a few experiences in different cinemas, we resolved that, with its online reservation and forgive me for a lack of a better term but its "Classier" crowd, Greenbelt 3 Cinemas would always be our default choice when wanting to watch a movie). 

     So since everything just seemed to be timed so perfectly, Rina finally got to go on her date with Edward, Jacob, and Felix. 

    (Oh and yeah, I was there too.)

A GOOD DAY FOR GOOD EARTH

Life is good :)

           Having lived in Makati for two years, I used to frequent Greenbelt a lot (hence the large amount of Makati (17) and  Greenbelt (7) posts in my blog) so i was a little bit surprised when I saw a Groupon deal for "Good Earth" in Greenbelt 3. For the life of my, I couldn't recall ever seeing a Good Earth restaurant there. A few friends of mine that I had asked said they think they recall seeing a restaurant of that name there, but wasn't entirely sure. 


       The name "Good Earth" though rang some bells, because it's a Chinese restaurant, and for some reason, names of Chinese restaurants seem to stick in the inner recesses of my brain. At any rate, I thought it was a great opportunity to try the place, and with a deal like P199 for a Chinese food Buffet? That's a pretty hard deal to pass up. 

OUT OF THE TOAST BOX

 

Talk about Great Expectations

       If you are reading this post sometime between March 2-5, then that means I am now in Singapore with my wife Rina, her sister Chaikka, and hopefully her boyfriend Don. At this very moment, I am probably feasting on some chicken rice, or riding a roller coaster in Universal Studios, or having pictures taken at the Merlion statue (I wonder if i'm allowed to eat that hehe).

       In honor of my trip, I'm posting my two visits to the Singapore based "Toast Box", the newest coffee shop from the people who brought you the very awesome, "Bread Talk". I'm a big fan of Bread Talk, (especially their Cheese Floss), so hearing that they were the brains behind this operation got me all giddy. 

     One of my Bosses at work, Miss Menchu, had been here already, and she suggested I try a few things. Unfortunately, she and I have the complete opposite tastes when it comes to food (I'm a firm believer that bacon should be a part of everyone's diet, while she can live on salads and tofu and all that gunk), so i wasn't sure what to expect from her suggestions. 

    Nevertheless, Rina and I trooped over to Greenbelt 5 (I'm there a lot, I know) to get us a taste of some of Singapore's finest food. (Not to mention, to meet up with our friends Ted and Karen as well).

ONE KRAZY GARLIK NIGHT!

Perhaps my first post that features my own personal photography-

which apparently sucks.
(Rina had work so she couldn't join me)

 
For some reason when I do it, it's not sexy. Not even a little bit.

 

     One of my (many) Bosses', Marcus, invited me and my giant buddy Joel for dinner one night to help him out on a little project that he and and his Fiancee', Marjo are planning. Sir Marcus knows about my blog, so when he asked where we could meet, he said, "Where haven't you been to yet that you've been wanting to check out?" My being the shy type I am (believe it), I told him I'd be more than happy to go to wherever he recommends. Sir Marcus is also notorious for his love of awesome food (and funnily enough, instant noodles) so I trusted his taste. 

    I was actually really glad he suggested Krazy Garlik, because I've had quite a few people tell me I should try it, especially their Crispy Pata.  I was so excited when he said it, I don't think I even let him finish his sentence when I agreed. He kinda said, "Do you want to meet in Krazy Gar-" and I butted in and said "OK!!". 

THE MYSTERIES OF THE AYALA TRIANGLE: THE BONCHON CHICKEN CRAZE

Learning to fly.. but I Ain't got wings...

         Late last year, when Bon Chon Chicken opened up shop at the Ayala Triangle Gardens, I had so many people go up to me to ask if I'd ever been there, and I got tagged to numerous pictures of half bitten chicken wings on face book! To be honest, I had never heard of Bon Chon Chicken before seeing the sign in Green Belt where there second branch was set to open by late December. A little research showed it was voted the "Best Chicken in America" (Although I'm sure Foghorn Leghorn demanded a recount).

        One evening, in which the schedule of Rina and I finally matched, we decided to check out what the hype was all about. What is it with this chicken that seemed to drive people insane? Rina's good friend, Zee always gives us some awesome suggestions for places to try. She was the one that suggested we go try Wingman. This time, however, she was emphatic that we try Bon Chon - almost like our lives depended on it.

      Taking that into consideration, Rina and I, armed with her trusty camera, and my voracious appetite, embarked on a journey that would unveil the secrets that lurk within the mysterious Ayala Triangle, and Bon Chon Chicken.