Back in UST after a year! - 1st vlog in 2019

Passion Made Possible - Singapore Travel Vlog 2017!

What to do in Central Japan in 4 days? - Japan Travel Vlog 2018

What to do in Central Japan in 4 days? Check my first travel blog below :)

Roundy Eats! Ka Tunying's Cafe

Ka Tunying's is one of my go to comfort food restaurants, and also because it's just walking distance from our home. The weather's been not so good and very cold and gloomy for the past few days, and what a perfect way to warm those hearts and tummies than eating at Ka Tunying's? They offer a variety of pinoy inspired dishes, most of them are what typically pinoys have for breakfast. One of their dishes that I can say they've perfected, and a favorite of mine, is their champorado. 

From the first time up to now, it has always brought me closer to home. It reminds me of my mom's home cooked champorado that we always have when we were kids during the rainy season. It's served on a huge bowl, good for 2, and chunks of tuyo and a cup of milk on the side. They didn't skip on the ingredients and the quality as you can taste real tablea; legit chocolatey goodness.

 So those who are lonely, feeling under the weather, or just wants to chill and feel like they're at the comforts of their home, I really recommend that you check out this place. Definitely, you won't regret it.

Roundy Eats! Tra Vinh

Ever since I watched an episode from one of my favorite youtube channels, Best Ever Food Review Show, I've wondered what Pho tastes like. Pho is Viatnamese noodle soup with rice noodles, herbs, and slices of beef or chicken (not sure if they serve it with pork). Since I love noodles, and I enjoy slurping some hot meaty soup, I went out to find some Pho. Upon searching through Zomato, I found a highly rated restaurant around Banawe area that serves legit Pho.

Located along N.S. Amoranto, there's no chance you would miss this one with their huge name display outside. I went around 3PM, so there isn't a lot of people yet cause hey, who would want to have hot noodles soup on a hot sunny afternoon right?

The resto is quite spacious with a lot of tables and chairs, though the interiors could use a modern flair to it. And after being they seated, they provided these chopsticks in a glass filled with boiling hot water, which I really appreciated as it adds value to the overall experience. Who wouldn't want sterilized chopsticks?

I asked the server what is or are their best sellers and specialty, and since I love spicy food, she recommended the Spicy Combination Noodle Soup (Bun Bo Hue). I ordered a large one for P300. And it finally came. My first reaction was OMG! The serving is huge and even the bowl is huge!

Normally, large isn't really "large" when is comes to serving size or portions, but this time it's an exception. This in fact is good for 2 or maybe 3 people. So let's dig in.

Always, the first thing to do is taste the broth itself as is, not mixing anything up yet. It's very meaty, quite spicy, and herb-y. However, I didn't like that it's also very oily; they must have used chili oil. I would have preferred chili powder or pepper to amp up that spiciness level. For this dish, I opted for the flat rice noodles.

 It has a good portion, but a bit overcooked for me. What I loved most about this noodle soup is the amount of "sahog" there is. About 5 slices of beef, 5 big shrimps, 3 halved squid balls, and squid.

Like authentic Vietnamese Pho, there's also leaves or herbs and sprouts on the side, with chilis and lime.

Overall, I enjoyed the experience though, I didn't finish the soup since it's a bit overwhelming if eaten on its own.




Rating:
Ambiance: 7/10
Food: 8.5/10
Service: 10/10
Price: 10/10

Roundy Eats! Cara Mia Cakes & Gelato

Cara Mia Cakes and Gelato offers a variety of cakes and gelato flavors at an affordable price. Recently, they had this buy 1 take 1 promo of cakes on their opening day. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to avail of this ( hoping they will have this again soon). I recently subscribed to Booky prime and one of the restaurants which offers discount or buy 1 take 1 is Cara Mia. 

Saved P90 through booky app

Avail of 1 scoop of gelato for P90 and get another scoop for free; not bad of a deal. I had the Mango Cream Pie and the other one is Coffee Mudslide Gelato. They are both creamy, not too sweet, though I don't like coffee flavored ice cream that much, I loved the mango flavored one.

Their cakes look good yummy and tasty too! I would definitely try those next time.

Address

Third Floor, Trinoma Mall, Bagong Pag-Asa, Quezon City

Roundy Eats! La Carnita Modern Mexican Cantina

Do you love nachos? Are you a cheese-crazy-addict type of person? If you're both of these, then you're in for a treat! One of the well known food stalls in the Food Hive, La Carnita offers one of the best nachos-cheese in the metro. For P195, they will serve you THE BOMB, aka Nachos A la Bomba.

They will serve it to you with a generous amount of nacho chips then they will pull out this pan of freshly grilled cheese, pour it on top of the nachos, and voila! A picture perfect, mouth-watering nachos and cheese! It also comes with 3 dips; garlic mayo, salsa, and like a mild sriracha sauce.

Personally, I'm not really a fan of nachos but this one blew my mind that I was craving for more even after I finished the whole thing.

So, if ever you happen to pass by Visayas Ave, be sure to check out this place. A seriously definitely must try.

Roundy Eats! Caffe da Illy

Tucked in a corner in Z Square, it sure is amazing how this cafe survived when all its neighboring restos in Z Square already closed down. We've always seen it but it didn't cross our minds to try it...until last weekend.

We arrived around dinner time and the place was not full. It's quite a small place with a few tables and chairs. The overall ambience feels a little bit homey though it has a modern interior design.

I ordered their pesto pasta with chicken while my gf had the chicken alfredo.

For drinks, I had iced hazelnut and iced white mocha for my gf.

 The pasta were perfectly cooked, though both are very bland for my taste despite being covered in cream sauce and pesto. The chicken strips didn't taste fresh so it's really a downer. The coffee were good, but nothing special. For dessert, we ordered their oreo cheesecake and this is where they make up for the subpar pasta dishes. I really hate gelatinous cheesecake, but theirs is legit. I really enjoyed every spoonful of that sweet and slightly sour cheesecake.

I recommend their coffee and dessert but their pasta is a no no. I would try other foods on their menu next time.

The Newest and Cheesiest Craze!

Tori Chizu Ph opened up its newest branch in Trinoma barely a month ago and the hype has been real especially for all the cheese and cheesy lovers out there. Their specialty, the japanese doria,has been introduced in the country for many years now and I can tell you, theirs is one of the best. Basically, a Doria is made up of rice topped with mozzarella cheese, cream, and a variety of meat like pork and chicken glazed in teriyaki sauce, and baked to perfection.

I arrived before the opening of Trinoma, and I'm already excited to try out their famous Doria. I was the first customer so the service was quite fast, only took about 10 minutes for my food to be served. I had one of their best sellers, the Chicken Teriyaki Doria. It was a sight to behold;piping hot mouth watering cheesy goodness topped with a generous serving of chicken bits. That first spoonful of cheese, rice, and chicken was glorious though, it can be a bit nakakaumay as I chomped down on the rest of the food. The chicken teriyaki has like a burger texture to it, quite a bit mushy just to note. Since they offer desserts, I suggest to have it with your doria.

For P149, it's super duper worth it. Will I come back? Definitely. I would try their other best sellers next time.

Roundy Eats! Manilachon

When you think of the best Pinoy food, lechon would definitely be on top of the list. Let's discover and taste Manilachon's take on this well known pinoy dish.

Manilachon opened it's not so new branch in SM North in late 2017. Their version of lechon, which they are known for, is the Italian inspired porchetta, spicy porchetta for that matter. For P163, you get a fairly generous serving of pork meat and skin, a cup of rice either plain or java, slices of tomatoes on the side, and a small bowl for unli serving of soup/broth.

Personally, the expectation was not that high since I've been to different lechon restos already but been disappointed all the same. The good news is, this is one  of the few better lechon restos which serves somewhat still crispy pork skin, thumbs up for that. Meanwhile, the meat is very tender, flavorful, has that herby taste to it, and a little bit spicy but tends to be on the salty side.

My verdict, if you're hungry and craving for lechon, then this will surely satisfy you. But if you seek for the authentic lechon experience, of course, nothing beats the freshly roasted lechon. 

Review: Seoul Express

I have been a fan of korean food since my college days; I consider it a healthy soul food. My favorite korean food is bibimbap. The local version, since I have not tried the legit one in Korea, consists of ground meat (pork,chicken or beef), veggies (carrots,onions,bean sprouts, kimchi), rice, and topped with sunny-side up egg.

It was a rainy night, I was craving for ramen but all the ramen shops I went to were packed with people so I decided to search for alternatives. I happen to pass by fort strip and saw Seoul Express. I remembered my friend mentioned some carinderia-like-korean-restaurant that offers affordable korean food around the area, so this must be it. The place is quite small with a few tables and it's outside seating just to note if you decide to eat here.

So, I order just the basic Bibimbap.

 I was surprised when the server brought it to my table; the serving was huge! Well, unfortunately, that's only the good thing about it. The veggies are not very fresh, and it doesn't have enough meat, but it has a lot of rice. The gochujang that comes with it doesn't taste good or anything at all for that matter; it's only a lil bit spicy but very bland. Not worth P230 for me. I do recommend their tteokbokki, tastes quite good but still, at P200+, so-so.

Review: Mendokoro Ramenba

Mendokoro opens its newest branch in BGC and people are lining up for their near perfect ramen. I also joined the hype cause finally, it's near my workplace.

Ofcourse, I ordered my favorite tsukemen but this time, instead of the usual Karai Tokusei, I opted for the Tonkotsu Tsukemen while my gf had her usual Super Chashu ramen. Well, I'm glad that I tried a different tsukemen this time. The broth being tonkotsu based, by default, is very flavorful already and by adding huge chunks of chashu, brings a different kind of meatiness and depth to it. It was on a tsukemen level of its own. I love the noodles of tsukemen, chewier and fatter compared to ramen noodles. Look at these mouthwatering and glorious pictures of tsukemen.

Our visit would not be complete without us ordering one of their secret menu ramens, the Super Chashu. The picture below speaks for itself. The chashu is like a 1/2 lb patty, HUGE!!

You should definitely come here and eat and experience it yourself. It's like alcohol, it's perfect when you want to temporarily forget your stress, problems, and all the difficulties in life, and just be happy.

Review: Ramen Kuroda

The first time I discovered Ramen Kuroda was when our office was still located in RCBC Plaza in Makati. Ever since then, their ramen has been one of my staples, and basically what I consider as an everyday ramen. For more or less P180, you can already afford a deliciously legit bowl of ramen without emptying your wallet.

About a few weeks ago, we visited one of their newest branch in Eton Centris Quezon City. It was dinner time and luckily, it was not yet full at that time and we arrived and were seated immediately. To add to that experience, we were lucky because that week, the branch is offering unli noodles. Ofcourse, we ordered our favorite, the Aka Ramen.

We always order this ramen cause it has this perfect combination of heat from the chili oil and satisfyingly savory tonkotsu broth. Unlike in most ramen shops, their broth is very light considering that it's pork based. The noodles on the other hand is thin and very chewy, and to top it off, it's hand made. The serving is generous enough to satisfy any hungry person. 

Like what I've said, it's an everyday affordable ramen but it doesn't sacrifice its overall quality and taste. 

I'm looking forward to the opening of their new branch in SM North, a bowl of ramen every other day? Definitely.