We waited for almost 2months just for this dinner! We booked the 6pm slot but waited more than an hour to eat (there were a lot of guests).
Taste - 4/5 Food were okay - we ordered shrimp pasta, sandwich and sisig.
For coffee, I had butterscotch which was so sweet. I can't even tell if there's really coffee, hence, I'm giving it a 3/5 rating while my friend wasn't satisfied with her matcha drink too.
Ambiance - 3.5/5 I find the place so crowded that I can hear the other table's topics as well.
However, the Manila Cathedral as backdrop or 'view' at night, gave off a solemn vibe, with bell chiming from time to time. The lights too was relaxing and we felt sleepy 😅
Price - 3.5/5 The ambiance is one of the things that you paid for and the food prices were reasonable.
Due to pandemic, the cafes implements the following guidelines before you're allowed to order:
1. Sanitize your hand 2. Fill out the contact tracing form via online or paper 3. A staff will scan your body temperature
Physical distancing is also implemented, making the cafe less crowded than usual. I actually like it better than before since I find the situation conducive for thinking alone or 'Me' time.
TIM HORTONS (Makati)
I'm out for an errand and it was too hot outside, so I ordered an iced latte with sandwich and fries.
This is the very 1st time that I had coffee outside home while the city is still in quarantine status (GCQ).
FRENCH BAKER (SM North)
It took a bit of time to find a place for a quick snack and coffee. Back then, few cafes are open for dine-in.
Not happy with the danish bread.
COFFEE BEAN and TEA LEAF (SM North)
Usual order: Hot Double Chocolate Latte
It was a good thing that we came around 3pm since seats were limited due to the implemented physical distancing.
BO'S COFFEE (SM North)
A local coffeeshop, originated from Cebu, uses homegrown coffee.
Usual order: Hot Latte
We also ordered a slice each of cheesecake and carrotcake.
STARBUCKS (Trinoma)
A famous international coffeechain with a lot of branches all over the Philippines.
Usual order: White Mocha Americano (thanks to my friend for introducing this to me) and Soy Latte (I had tried it first during 1 of my travels)
My order at that time: Pumpkin Spiced Latte
It tasted like real pumpkin with coffee and had an aftertaste. It was very sweet.
I've also added two milktea shops for your reference.
TIGER SUGAR (Glorietta)
I ordered brown sugar boba just to satisfy my craving for milktea.
Our first 'commercialized' milktea while the city is still in quarantine (MGCQ).
COCO (Glorietta)
Once in a while I crave for milktea, so at that time, I bought one from Coco.
I got 1 order of 2 ladies, zero % sugar.
ALSO -
Have you tried cola with caffeine? I bought this at a supermarket, with hopes that it tasted good.
We actually planned to visit a bee farm but the place was fully booked, hence, we end up trying Yellow Bird Cafe x Kitchen for brunch.
Here's a quick summary of our trip!
Yellow Bird Cafe x Kitchen
Book a table prior visit 'coz the place can only accomodate few guests(?).
We had sandwich, pasta and shanghai. We didn't order any from their specialty menu.
Pasta and shanghai tasted okay too.
Tried coffee (macadamia nut) and cold drinks as well.
Taste: 3.5/5 Food tastes not that wow but its okay. I do have expectations when it comes to coffee since I always want my coffee strong. The coffee I ordered tastes more of milk.
Ambiance: 4/5 I was expecting an overlooking view but failed (I thought there is since social media photos showed a view or maybe if we went to the 2nd floor).
The cafe is inside a subdivision.
But credits to the gentle and relaxing interior of the cafe. The staff were accomodating too.
Price: 4/5 Affordable but I cannot say value for money since food tastes average.
Upper Sumulong Pasalubong Lane Mangga, Suman, Kasuy - we bought suman and kasuy!
Kasuy were sold in adobo and plain flavors, per kilo or per 'takal.' I recommend adobo flavored kasuy! Once you start eating, you won't stop 😁
The vendor also offers free taste, so please ensure your hands are sanitized before taking a piece since you will get a piece directly from the container.
Casa Santa Museum Merry Christmas! 🎄
I totally agree! Everyday is Christmas here at Casa Santa 🎄
I recommend this museum for Santa loving people and kid at heart! The house is full of different types of Santa and decorations.
I just hope they added bits of information for each decor or maybe as a group 'coz that will make it more interesting, like where this came from, where they bought it, or any trivia. I hope they hire someone who would actually spend at least 15mins to show the visitors around and discuss a bit about what's displayed.
The entrance fee is 250php/person and it includes just the museum but you may roam around Jardin de Miramar.
Jardin de Miramar is an event place and Casa Santa is located inside. It will be nice to have a small cafe since Jardin itself has a relaxing ambiance.
Do not forget to bring your own water since there's no shop inside and you might get thirsty.
Visit their website for more details if you plan to spend a bit of time here.
Enjoy! Merry 2020 Christmas again!
Cafe Augusta
Last stop, merienda/dinner as we wait for the sunset. We're lucky to get a seat at the viewdeck area.
I've realized that I wasn't able to take a photo or video of the cafe itself since we were all engrossed with the ray of sun, sunset and view 🤣
Taste: 4/5 I like my spicy chicken and rice meal. We like the cold drinks too. It was refreshing. I had cappuccino paired with cheesecake for dessert. I don't like the blueberry cheesecake since it tasted more of cream than cheese. As for coffee - average but I like it better than the macadamia nut I had earlier.
Ambiance: 5/5 That overlooking view of the city (especially at night) and the sunset view in the afternoon is the selling point of this cafe.
We were there at around 3 to 4pm and waited until sunset. You'll see the clip and photos in the short summary video that I did.
It was indeed a nice place to cap off our Antipolo trip!
Better call them for reservation or arrive early to get good seats.
Price: 4/5 Affordable and value for money. Taste of food and amibiance did not disappoint.
Almost every resto that I've been to that allows dine-in service follows 3 simple steps:
1. Sanitize/pass sanitation booth (hands and shoes) 2. Body Temperature check or scan 3. Online form or hardcopy form for contact tracing
In addition, here's a quick video of the food I've/we've ordered including what few restaurants look like inside.
BENCH CAFÉ
Trinoma branch was a bit small, hence, it is understandable that few tables are available for dine-in.
Value for money: BenchTo meals
TRES (SM North)
We had sisig, kare-kare, gambas and shanghai. I can consider it as home-cooked meals.
MAD MARK'S (Glorietta) The place is small hence most of the tables are for solo dine-in.
Nothing goes wrong with a medium-rare signature steak with bootsrap steak sauce.
BLAKE'S WINGS AND STEAKS (SM North)
Must try: Buffalo wings
We also ordered potato fries in truffle oil.
HAWKER CHAN (Glorietta)
Ordered my favorite roasted pork rice! They do have a sanitation booth before you enter.
KATHERINE'S (Vertis North)
First time to try stuffed pork plate and I like that they stuffed pork with veggies.
Usual order: Chicken with waffles
We also ordered spicy cereal fried chicken with rice and puttanesca pasta.
FOOD COURT (Glorietta)
Solo tables only. Ordered from different food stalls.
Other restaurants for lunch or merienda:
Din Tai Fung (Greenbelt) McDonald's (Glorietta) Popeye's (Makati) Burger King (Glorietta) Shakeys (SM North)
For fastfood restaurants:
Restos inside malls will just check the customer's body temperature but the QR code or contact tracing form is provided on the side. Hence, please be responsible to take the initiative to fill out the form and submit even if you already did during the time you entered the mall.
Bonus: A glimpse of Drive-in Theater! I guess it was a parking lot that was converted to an open theater.
Again, as a reminder, make sure to always wear your face mask and face shield when outside.
Sharing with you the snacks, breads, sweets and desserts that I've paired up with coffee these past few weeks while at home.
I'd like to highlight the following shops/merienda for your reference too:
SELF ESPRESSO
Donuts in flavors of blueberry and milky cheese. Next time I'll try other flavors!
I like the bread itself. It's soft and best when warmed. Of course, it is sweet.
NONPROCOOK
Flan de queso is a combination of leche flan and cheese. We ordered a slice of their classic flavor (maybe next time I'll try espresso flavor). They also sell it as a whole if you plan to share the cake.
It tastes closer to a cheesecake instead of leche flan. Its not that sweet too.
SUMAN MORON
Discovered when a friend brought some from her hometown. I forgot if it was her aunt or her mom who cooked the suman.
Since then, I became fond of suman moron and also realized that commercialized version like the one I've bought from bazaar tastes different from the homecooked version.
ROSALIE'S UBE HALAYA SUMAN
Next time, I'll choose the original flavor. I have nothing against ube halaya suman but I find it too sweet.
Still, this brand is one of my trusted suman brands usually seen in bazaars.
Tempted to buy donuts or flan de queso? What about suman? 😁
