The Foodinista: November 2017

Pop's Original lumpianiza: A fusion of two Filipino favorites in one bite!

Monday, November 27, 2017

Charlie's Wanton Special, Mandaluyong

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

Charlie's Wanton Special is a Hole-In-The-Wall Chinese Restaurant in Mandaluyong. It reminds me a lot of Hap Chan and Mann Hann but this one is more straight forward and cheap! It's like an air-conditioned canteen pina-level up! The set up is not fancy at all, just your typical no-frills chinese restaurant from the outside. They have a lot of parking space in front of the restaurant and I was surprised that it still gets full during weekdays.

According to my boyfriend who lives in San Juan, it's a popular Chinese restaurant since he was a kid. It often gets jamp-packed and it's popular among the residents in the area. On my first visit I wasn't able to try their Siomai so I tried their Fish Fillet Taosi instead for P185. Their serving is pretty big and can be good for 2 people already. There's nothing distinct about the taste so I won't review it anymore.

Fish Fillet Taosi (Photo Taken from my Zomato Account)

I went to Charlie's three times just to have a taste of their famous Siomai. Unfortunately every time I go there it's already out of stock! So if you really want to try it make sure you drop by on a lunch time on weekdays and weekends. Ubusan daw talaga, that's how legit it is!

Beef Wanton Mami P185 - Regular

The Beef Wanton Mami is probably the most worthy one that we ordered. It is super worth it because of the serving and the taste reminds me a lot of Pares. AUTHENTIC CHINESE PARES. The beef was tender and tasty. The broth was beefy and aromatic. The noodles were hand-pulled, I can't believe i'm only paying P185 for this. It is really good!

Charlie's Siomai

Ta-Da!
Charlie's Siomai - one of the most hyped hole-in-the-wall Siomai's in town so I was happy to finally be able to try it. It's priced at P82 per order for three big pieces. The meat is really tender and it tasted like authentic pork and not the usual processed ones. It's freaking huge as compared to siomai stalls in malls. Though I won't give it a 5 out of 5 stars cause I think there's something lacking on the flavor of the meat but in terms of texture and authenticity, it is something i'd recommend to everyone!

Charlie's Asado Rice

Aside from the Siomai, my boyfriend insisted in ordering the Asado Rice for sharing. I really wanted a rice topping so this was the perfect meal to satisfy my craving.

THIS IS THE BEST ASADO RICE I have ever tried. The sauce is overflowing and I was surprised that it wasn't too flavorful or nakaka-umay. I just love how the meat was tender and just the perfect viand to the sauce rice. MUST TRY for rice-lovers like me!

If you're looking for cheap-eats Chinese Restaurant around San Juan then this is the perfect place to visit!

Buffet

Shabu Shabu Ichiban, Circuit Makati

Friday, November 17, 2017

My friends and I decided to surprise our friend Patrick for his Birthday at Shabu Shabu Ichiban just a few months ago. We went to their Circuit Makati Branch which is pretty accessible for all of us working in Makati. It's just located on the Ground Floor of Circuit Lane and there are a lot of parking space in the area so dropping by is hassle-free!

Circuit Makati Branch

Shabu-Shabu Ichiban is a popular hotpot restaurant from Nagoya, Japan. Ichiban, meaning "number one" in Japanese is envisioning to become the number one shabu-shabu chain in Asia. Anchoring on the Japanese's regard for quality, Shabu-Shabu Ichiban makes sure that all their meat and seafood options are only of top quality. The first of its kind, Shabu-Shabu Ichiban introduces an authentic Japanese hotpot experience through providing plenty of interesting soup base options and unlimited servings of meat and king crab legs.

They have three sets to choose from for the buffet:

Set A

Chinese Cabbage Kimchi / Vegetable Platter / US Beef Short Plate / Boston Butt (Pork shoulder) / Chicken Leg Quarter / Chicken & Pork Dumplings / Assorted Balls / Udon / Japanese Rice / Raw Egg / Drinks - FREE! Dessert / FREE! Kushikatsu or Japanese-Style Fried Chicken

Choice

Weekdays 488.00/588.00 Per HeadWeekends & Holidays 688.00 Per Head

Set B

Chinese Cabbage Kimchi / Sushi & Sashimi Platter / Vegetable Platter / US Angus Chuck Eye Roll / US Beef Short Plate / Boston Butt (Pork Shoulder) / Chicken Leg Quarter / Chicken & Pork / Dumplings / Assorted Balls / Edamame / Shrimp Tempura / Japanese Style Fried Chicken Wings / Kushikatsu / Japanese Rice / Udon / Raw Egg / Dessert / Drinks

Choice

Weekdays 688.00/788.00 Per HeadWeekends & Holidays 888.00 Per Head

Set C

Chinese Cabbage Kimchi / Sushi & Sashimi Platter / Vegetable Platter / King Crab Legs / US Angus Chuck eye Roll / US Beef Short Plate / Boston Butt (Pork Shoulder) / Chicken Leg Quarter / Chicken & Pork Dumplings / Assorted Balls / Edamame / Shrimp Tempura / Japanese Style Fried Chicken Wings / Kushikatsu / Japanese Rice / Udon / Raw Egg / Dessert / Drinks

Choice

Weekdays 1788.00/1888.00 Per HeadWeekends & Holidays 1988.00 Per Head

After choosing your Set:

Step 1

Choose Your Drink

Choice

Iced Tea/Strawberry Red Iced Tea/Coke/Coke Zero/Pineapple Juice/Lemonade/Sprite/Royal

Step 2

Choose Your Soup

Choice

Konbu (seaweed)/Ginger/Vegetable/Plum Vegetable/Tomato/Tonkotsu/Tonkotsu Soy/Shoyu/Soy Milk/Soy Milk Sesame/Spicy Soy Milk/Soy Bean w/ Healthy Spice/Spicy Miso/Spicy Miso Butter/Spicy Miso Kimchi/Taiwan/Miso Taiwan/Spicy Healthy Spice/Kimchi/Tantan/Spicy Szechuan/Red Hot Szechuan/Curry/Basil Cream

Soup Base

What makes Shabu Shabu Ichiban stand out among the rest would be the way they present their raw meats & sushi. They also have a wide range of soup flavors to choose from.

They have freakin' 24 soup bases!!! OMYGOSH.

They have Communal Hot Pots in which you can choose 2 soup base at a time if you can't make up your mind and just wanted to give all the soup bases a try.

We chose the Spicy Miso Butter & Tonkotsu - bases that are a little contrasting to each other just so we can have the best of both worlds. One hot pot is good for 2 to 4 people already.

We chose Set A cause it's the cheapest and friendliest for first-timer plus we were treated by the celebrant so there's nothing to complain about HAHAHA XD Kidding! ; though if I would have extra money to spend I would want to try the Set D for the UNLI ALASKAN KING CRAB! Huhu!

SET A comes with one serving of Fried Ice Cream, Kushikatsu (Deep-Fried Skewered Meat), or Japanese-Style Fried Chicken Wings per person! Some of us ordered the Kushikatsu some ordered the chicken so we were all able to try it. The Deep Fried Skewered Meat is worth skipping especially if you are not a fan of anything breaded and skewered - but the Fried Chicken is just to die for I had 2 plates of it!

Beef Short Plate, US Angus Chuck Eye Roll, and Boston Butt Pork Shoulder

All of their meat and seafood options are only of top quality so you are sure to get only the best when you dine here with your family and friends.

As for the service, you don't have to stand up to order and get drinks. You can just call the waiters to get your orders which is convenient and less hassle for people who love pigging-out like me. I really get lazy especially when I am already in the ZONE, ya know?

It's not like your typical buffet that you have to stand up and get food which I think saves time and makes you decide earlier if you can still consume what you ordered. They charge P200 for leftovers so the serving of the food per plate is few.

Fried Chicken Wings

Php180 for 4 pieces, Php220 for 6 pieces

You might be thinking, why eat a fried chicken in a Shabu Shabu Restaurant?

I think this is one of the best fried chicken i've tried in a Japanese restaurant. Believe me when I say the crispy chicken skin and tasty chicken meat made the whole experience more complete.

This also caters to parents who plans on bringing their kids with them who might not be familiar with Shabu Shabu. It's like the safest food choice that I'm sure kids and people of all ages will like.

I forgot to take a photo cause I was busy munching on it - Ps. Don't judge me but I ate 5 chicken wings that night!

I was also able to try the BASIL CREAM Soup Base - It was oddly good! It's creamy and herby which reminds me a lot of my grand parents cause I know they will love this herby kind of soup - in a good way. It has a different savory freshness which I really liked!

Who doesn't love balls? (Pun Intented - Rated SPG) Haha!
When I think of Shabu Shabu this is actually the first thing I that I think of - BALLS!
We ordered all kinds of Balls but the ones that made a mark would be the Mozarella Cheese Balls cause it has a melted cheese inside that's really goey and delicious; I also liked the Lobster Ball which has a lobster salad sweet filling that's just the perfect contrast for the savory soup!

Assorted Meatballs

The staff was kind enough to help us do a mini-surprise by singing Patrick a Happy Birthday. Thanks for the California Maki Greetings!

After all the Shabu Shabu goodness, we ordered strawberry and vanilla flavoured ice creams for dessert. This is also Unlimited by the way! It was just unfortunate that we weren't able to try their fried ice cream cause it wasn't available at that moment :( Boo!

If you're a fan of everything Japanese, now's the perfect time to satiate your cravings with a sumptuous Japanese Buffet at Shabu-shabu Ichiban Circuit Makati!

Chilled Taho

Soy Yummy, SM San lazaro: Yummy talaga!

Thursday, November 16, 2017

American Food

IHOP, Mall of Asia

Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Ihop Tacos

Ihop has been operating in the Philippines for about 3 years now. I remember those days when the hype was so real people were falling in line when they opened their first ever branch at The Fort, BGC Taguig.

I had the privilege to visit their 2nd branch which is in Mall of Asia and I was able to visit their Century City Mall branch as well in Makati so I was able to compare and find out the difference.

Ihop Mall of Asia Branch

Ihop Mall of Asia Branch is open from 7am to 11pm. It is located in the ground floor, entertainment mall, Mall of Asia. They are known for their big servings of great all-day American breakfast especially their pancakes!

This branch is pretty spacious and they even have outdoor seating and smoking area. What I didn't like about this branch is the poor ventilation. Aside from the slow service, the temperature of the place made us upset. I was disappointed cause I thought they have high standards for their amenities since this is an international brand.

Syrups

FOOD

I was craving for something light and healthy so I ordered the Grilled Chicken Ceasar Salad.

Grilled chicken breast served on Romaine Lettuce with parmesan cheese and croutons tossed in ceasar dressing served with garlic bread. I really like this one cause the lettuce were fresh and the meal was filling but they served it way too late so I already lost my appetite when it came. This is a really good to-go meal, it's healthy and it tastes good too!

Grilled Chicken Ceasar Salad P295

When I saw the Bacon Mac & Cheese on the menu I knew that I had to order it so I did. Classic macaroni and cheese made with bacons, onions, and bell peppers mixed with homemade cheese sauce. I have mixed feelings about this dish. I hated it cause the bell peppers were really off and overpowered the whole meal. I wish they just took it out cause it didn't made the dish better. It was all over the place to the point that I wasn't able to enjoy the cheese sauce anymore. The cheese weren't sharp and tasted a little blunt as well so i'm giving this a 3 out of 5 stars.

Bacon Mac & Cheese Pasta

Grrr. At this point I was already furious and wished I had eaten somewhere else because the food coming in weren't delicious at all. Good thing Kevin and I ordered the IHOP Cheeseburger, this is probably the only thing that didn't disappoint me that day. Their 100% beef burger is topped with American cheese, lettuce, tomato, red onion on a grilled bun.

The burger was perfect. It was so tender and tasted legit! Nothing extravagant but something I would order when I am craving for a good burger. The fries on the side is also something to take note of!

Cheese Burger P295

Angus Burger Steak Rice topped with mushroom gravy served with a side of steamed rice and corn.

When the boyfie saw my disappointment on their Tacos he insisted for me to order this one instead. I enjoyed it but it wasn't so good as well. A pretty filling meal that isn't worth ordering. I also wonder if the patty used here is any different on the cheeseburger that I ordered cause this one was dry and hard to munch on while the burger was freshly made and tender.

Angus Burger Steak Rice P250

The famous Ihop Tacos. Everyone I know was raving for this so I ordered it for the sake of trying and again to be honest it was just a 3 out of 5 for me. Pancake house' tastes better. This is made with marinated ground beef with diced tomatoes, onions lettuce shreds and grated cheddar cheese in taco shell. The meat was dry, I wish it was a little more sinful! I appreciate that they sprinkled it with loads of cheese but it didn't make it any better.

IHOP Tacos P195

IHOP TACOS

Soda Ice Cream Float

Java Chip Frappe

Verdict

Good thing I didn't use my money to spend for all of this! I was really disappointed with the quality of service they have. Century mall had a better service and ambiance than MOA so if ever I will come back I would probably dine in Century or in BGC branch. In terms of pricing, the serving is a pretty good catch for the amount you are paying for, focusing more on the quantity rather than the quality. I'd still prefer Pancake House over this. :( TBH

I wasn't able to try their pancakes cause I wasn't craving for it that time. Do you think it's worth trying? Let me know if you have recommendations!

Pages

The Foodinista

Pop's Original lumpianiza: A fusion of two Filipino favorites in one bite!

Charlie's Wanton Special, Mandaluyong

Shabu Shabu Ichiban, Circuit Makati

Soy Yummy, SM San lazaro: Yummy talaga!

IHOP, Mall of Asia

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