Frannywanny

Being Filipinos, our local dishes are highly influenced by a number of other cuisines. We have strong Chinese influence as seen in our Humba (stewed pork), Pancit (noodles) and Chopsuey (mixed stir-fried vegetables) to name a few. Americans have influenced us with our love for steak, ribs and burger. However, I think the most prominent and strongest influence came during the Spanish era. A number of well-loved restaurants that has been around for decades showcase a mix of Filipino-Spanish dishes. Even my family who would feast on a 12-course Chinese lauriat dinner during birthdays and weddings would celebrate with paella, cochinillo and gambas on super special occasions. I remember my last weekend as single girl before I tied the knot with Paul, my mom hosted dinner for our immediate family at Casa Armas in Podium. Both mommy and my Kongkong loves paella and for them, the best one left is Casa Armas as most of the restaurants that they used to frequent have closed shop years ago. ...

I hope you're all up for a cheezy love story. A story that I never thought I'd be able to tell. It all began on that fateful evening when I entered the restaurant with no expectations whatsoever. I kept my mind open but somehow deep inside me, I was a bit excited. Not really sure of what or who I was supposed to see but all I knew was I couldn't wait for this evening to come and when it finally did, I was just in a happy and giddy disposition. Carefully but slowly, I walked around Spectrum , Fairmont Makati's new all-day dining restaurant. The posh and sexy decor by the entrance immediately caught my attention. Clean and classy, just the way I love it. As they say, first impressions last . This one will surely do. But I went there with a mission. I was there on a search and so I moved on. Trying to stay focused on the impressive buffet spread. As I went about checking each station out, I was determined to continue on before finally grabbing a plate to start the ...

I believe that shopping and eating goes hand and hand. Like peanut butter and jelly. Like salt and pepper. Perhaps, even like strawberries and cream. Both fills a need, are pretty much therapeutic and at the end of doing either of the two, one always ends up feeling extra happy. No need to pop in the happy pill as this is a natural way of achieving that ultimate satisfaction and happiness. Agree? Rustan's Department Store has been around for years. This has been almost every grandmother's favorite shopping place and to this day, Rustan's has been my go to place when buying a wedding gift. In fact, it was also here where Paul and I did our gift registry for our very own BIG day. I love Rustan's for its quality choice of brands be it for the home, for your personal use or even for men. I really love it when department stores also think of their client's well-being in the middle of having their retail therapy. Shopping can be tiring and what better way to take a ...