Thoughts: Bialetti Cafe

Bialetti Cafe
Diliman 44 Matino Cor. Matahimik St., Barangay Malaya, Quezon City, Matahimik Street, Diliman, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines

Bialetti Cafe opened some time when I was in college - probably around 2009? I'm sorry I'm not really sure... but the reason I've been there since day one is because it's a few steps away from Monica's house. I remember grabbing coffee from Bialetti before we head to school together.

It's the first time I'm ever going to blog about it because there was something that made a mark on me today. When I ordered my Iced Mocha, their staff served it on my table and asked me to taste it immediately so she could alter my drink in case there's something I want to be added/changed. After tasting it, I told her that it was already okay, but a little more milk would make it even better. She then went back inside and brought me my extra milk.

I mean, isn't it nice? You don't really get this kind of service from other coffee shops...at least not from where I usually go. This is the first time this happened to me after years of patronage because I used to order their Cookies & Cream drink and it's blended so there's pretty much nothing they can do in case I say I want more milk in my drink.

Aside from the fact that it's so close to Nika's place, we keep on hanging out here because it's not as crowded as the more popular coffee shops, and fortunately for us, we always have parking.

Additional Information:

There is a restaurant connected to the cafe and is owned by the same owner - I haven't really tried the food there yet but if you're thinking of chilling with your friends over coffee all day and your tummies beging looking for food, this would be a perfect place for you to try out.

Food: Racks

As mentioned on my previous entry, I've decided to create a series of blogs about my favorites. Racks, claiming to have the best ribs in town, is actually my personal favorite "ribs in town". 

Rab and I always choose to eat at Racks (whichever branch is the closest from where we are) when we both crave for ribs. Their tag line for their ribs is: "Flame Grilled - Falls Off the Bone". As a frequent Racks eater, I would agree to this a million times.

Racks Baby Ribs

Half Slab

Side Dish: 2 cups of rice

P480

We would always order Racks Baby Ribs. Just like any other restaurant, they set their tables with spoon, fork, and a knife. Western people, if I'm not mistaken, they eat using knives and forks. As a proud Filipino, I am used to using spoon and fork. Usually, I would still use the given knife because other restaurants slightly fail on serving a really tender set of ribs. With Racks, you wouldn't really need the knife to slice a piece. It literally falls off the bone. About the taste, I would give it a score of 90, and the remaining 10 would go to their sauce that goes really well with it; so they still get a score of 100 from me. 

Aside from great food, most Racks branches we've been to have really great service. They'd always tell you that it will be served within 15 minutes, and most of the time, our order would arrive in less than 15 minutes. In addition, you need not ask for water for their staff automatically serves glasses of water to be followed by a pitcher. 

We've eaten at Racks Megamall, SM North, and Magallanes, but this certain dine in was at their Timog branch. You can check out all their other branches here at their Munchpunch page.

Food: Cafe Breton

Throughout my short blogging hiatus, I still kept on reading famous blogs and noticed how most of them have very organized entries. I'm not trying to be as good as these people, but I thought it would be better for my own (personal) blog if I would create categories. I came up with Favorites Edition and would think of other terms/names for other entries I am to write.

Cafe Breton is considered as one of my favorites and I visit any branch at least once a month. I always crave for their crepes. I don't order coffee there that much because I am such a Starbucks person, and also because in my opinion, they have something better in store for me.

Butter and Sugar Crepe with extra fresh cream

P88 + P43 

They have a lot more choices for crepes but this really captured my heart. I believe it is the cheapest because it's somewhat plain, but I love how it tastes perfectly. I always order extra fresh cream because without it, it's really really plain. It's not too sweet, and it is exactly what I am looking for in a crepe. When I was in college, we had a crepe stand in our cafeteria and I always ordered something too sweet and that's probably why I prefer just the right amount of sweet. I'm sorry, make that the perfect amount of sweet. During my first few months of Butter and Sugar Crepe addiction, I order two extra fresh creams until I decided to stick with just one. I don't pour the cream on my crepe - I cut a small piece and then dip it on the cream. Uh, perf.

Banana Fruit Slush

P105 

As mentioned above, I don't order coffee that much unless I really need one. I always order their Banana Slush. It's obviously made of fresh bananas, but it doesn't have milk. You can order the Banana Shake if you want milk to be added. I prefer the slush over the shake because sometimes, the milk and sugar overpowers the taste of the banana. I like it fresh-er.

My favorite Cafe Breton branches are:
Greenbelt 3
Tomas Morato
Techno Hub

There are a lot more branches like TriNoma, Westgate Center, Podium, SM Mall of Asia, Robinsons Midtown, and The Hub.

Go and visit the branches closest to you!

Food: Monday's Feast

My godmother's leaving early morning today to go back to the States, so we had dinner last night. I was very delighted to know that we were eating at Relish. I cannot forget how tasty their steak is so I ordered their Rib-Eye Steak again.

As usual, I ordered rice as my side dish. Although I wasn't able to finish the rice because the steak was just too heavy, it doesn't mean that it wasn't good. It was very tasty - it wasn't too salty but it wasn't bitter. So much steak-goodness in every bite.

Who doesn't like Kebab?

Obviously, this dish is grilled. It wasn't dry at all, and just like my steak, it was hella good.

This Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder went really well with the aioli dip. If you haven't tried any dish with aioli on the side, aioli is a dip that's made of garlic, olive, eggs, and seasonings. I tried the kebab and steak with it too. Relish probably has one of the best aioli dips I've ever tasted.

My personal favorite Callos is from Conti's, but Relish Special Callos is indeed, special. It's best mixed with Tabasco to have a little extra kick. I ordered Callos for the sole reason that my mom wanted me to enjoy it for her, since she's not here right now.

The Beef Salpicao was good, but I liked the Pork Salpicao better last night. I think it has something to do with the beef. Nevertheless, it was still delicious.

Blogworthy & Travel: Boracay 2013

View from our villa

I was going through my photos and I saw my 2013 Boracay photos. I checked my past entries and was surprised I didn't post a single entry for this trip. Call me weird, or whatever you want, but I really want to (still) blog about this because our stay here deserves a post... two years after.

✰ This post is going to include LOTS of photos ✰

My family and I are Shangri-La fans mainly because they have the best service ever. There are other 5-Star hotels in the Metro and in places like Boracay, but in our hearts and minds, we are sure that nothing will ever beat their service.

1. Arrival at Caticlan Airport ✦ Shangri-La Lounge

As we arrived at the airport, there were already people from Shangri-La waiting for us and they assisted us with our luggage - we didn't have to pick them up. They asked us to tell them which were ours and they would do all the job. I had to mention this because the expressions of their personnel didn't show any hesitation with all the help they give. They always talk to you in smiles unlike other personnel who makes you feel that they're just doing their job. These people have the "happy to serve you" face all the time.

I was pretty delighted to find out about the lounge. If I remember it correctly, there were three lounges: Shangri-La, Discovery Suites and the general lounge. Obviously, it was air conditioned, they had nice and soft couches, super friendly staff (as usual), and they served juice. We only stayed at the lounge because we were waiting for the speedboat that would take us to Boracay. The waiting wasn't really that long; I know because I didn't finish my juice and I am a sucker for Calamansi Juice.

2. Speedboat to Boracay

In my other Boracay entry, I posted there a photo of the boat we rode. Of course, this would be far better since there's actually no cheap room in the hotel so they just better give you a good ride.

My brother would usually get seasick, but this short ride from the airport to Boracay didn't make him feel dizzy or anything. Personally, I liked the white - it kept the simple yet sophisticated look. The seats were very comfortable, I must add. 

3. Villa 8 ✦ Villa Kanluran

Welcome to Villa 8 ✦ Living Room / Receiving Area

This is my favorite (smoking) spot. Wouldn't you enjoy this view?

4. Rooms

Master's Bedroom & Bathroom

Master's Walk-In Closet + Display & the other bedroom and bathroom

I'm telling you - they aren't just photogenic. It would even more appropriate if I say that it looks even better in person. The ventilation and temperature were perfect. The pillows, bed, towels - they were all soft and smelled really good.

...but these photos do not give justice yet. Here's my favorite part of the Master's Bedroom:

Paradise at your doorstep

Yes, that's right. When you leave the curtains on the side, you have a view of the ocean and the sky. Isn't it AMAZING?! It has access to the back part of the villa. I was slightly disappointed to know that my mom didn't know that it was a door, not a full window. Nevertheless, she enjoyed her view before sleeping and waking up.

The villa included two butlers (yes, butler): One during the day and one during the night. If you're seated on the porch and you want water, juice, or anything you like, you can just call or text him and he would bring you what you requested. And yes, it came with a cell phone. That's where the butler's number is (well, duh).

5. Restaurants: Vintana Cafe & Sirena

Vintana Cafe

So these are the only photos I have of the restaurant. We had lunch here after checking in. I remember ordering my all-time favorite, Adobo. My brother had Steak, and forgot what my parents ordered. Regardless, we all know Shangri-La restaurants serve good food.

This is also where the breakfast buffet is held.

Sirena

From their website:

Perched on a cliff top above crystal-blue waters, Sirena, the resort's signature seafood restaurant, provides a casual, carefree dining experience.

Sirena serves culinary creations fresh from the market and a wonderful selection of wines from around the world.

Food was great, as usual. It's the experience I wanna talk about. Never in my life did I imagine that I'd get to have dinner by a cliff. Spending this quality time with your family is another thing.

Exemplary Service:

My brother was whining about his eye being itchy, and the waiter who was serving us noticed and asked what the problem was. When my brother told him about his eye, he excused himself and came back with an eye drop, and told him to keep it. Again, this is with no hesitation and was done with his lips smiling from ear to ear. Well, let me reiterate - we didn't request for an eye drop. 

Random words:

I was browsing through tumblr when I saw this photo:

I feel overwhelmingly blessed to have experienced this while it's on most people's bucket list. I need not to explain, but this photo, that spot, is exactly where we were seated (as seen on photo above). When I saw this on my feed, I immediately thought, "hey, this looks familiar". 

Given these, can you just imagine how I'm pretty pissed with myself for not blogging about this earlier? 

and YES, we had our own pool. 

MORE PHOTOS: