Frannywanny

So how does it feel to be a "tourist in your own country?" I never thought the time would come when Paul and I actually would feel that way. I guess it's pretty inevitable given that we've been away from Manila for more than 3 years and we only get to fly home at an average once every quarter and during those visits, we would only stay for a week or even less. For a country that's fast developing ( I hope ) and there are just a lot of new retail outlets and restaurants opening left and right, we recently found ourselves lost while navigating around... Bonifacio Global City  -- a place that we used to frequent more than once a week many years ago. Believe it or not, I even had to call my sister to help us find our way out to C5. Unbelievable. Anyway, before our little "lost in BGC" moment, Paul and I had a wonderful quadruple dinner date at the newly opened Salvatore Cuomo  with our long-time friends. I was so excited when A suggested that we try Sa...

During the recent Christmas break, my family and I headed up to our favorite weekend getaway, Tagaytay . Since we left the house close to lunch, we decided to stop over at Nuvali for lunch. I was tasked to take care of our dining itinerary so I had to do a thorough research given that we're quite a big group of 8. Luckily, I chanced upon Mama Lou's Italian Kitchen 's Facebook page and then remembered that I've been wanting to try it out after seeing how my fellow bloggers have been raving about their delicious risotto. I was so happy that they actually have a branch at Solenad 2 and their sister-restaurant Nonna's is located at Solenad 3. Two choices just in case one is really packed! Seeing that we got Kongkong with us, the very efficient server quickly ushered us to a long table with a couch on one side. We let the seniors ( heehee ) sit inside to make it more comfy for them. Of course, Papa refused to be counted as a senior citizen and insisted to sit on on...

Some days can get very stressful and when the pressure is on... I eat. Yup, I eat to my heart's desire! That's what I told my friend D recently when we were talking about our stress-coping mechanisms. D normally forgets about her hunger when she's stress while I told her that I'm such a stress-eater. One thing though, I don't just munch on anything within reach or within sight. I have my comfort food staples that never fail to make my tummy and heart happy. These include a delicious plate of well-done pasta and pizza among many others. I'd say, I'm very Italian by heart. I love my risotto and I always enjoy ending my meal with a scoop of gelato. Perhaps, my next travel destination should be Italy, don't you think? *cough* hello Paul! *cough* While that dream trip might come in the next few years, I'm lucky to discover Bottura , which I must say is one of the few good and authentic Italian restaurants here in Singapore. Located at the newest win...

How I wish I can enjoy my lunch while enjoying this view every day...  Well, there's no harm in dreaming right? At least this "dream" became a reality one fine day when I joined a couple of food bloggers for a nice Italian lunch at Dolce Vita in Mandarin Oriental Singapore . This was to give a warm welcome to Chef Omar Bernardi , the restaurant's new Chef de Cuisine. Chef Omar Bernardi began his culinary career in some of the top Italian restaurants back in his hometown in Milan, Italy. Restaurants such as two-Michelin-starred San Domenico Ristorante and one-Michelin -starred La Terezza dell'Eden among others became Chef Omar's training ground as he continued to hone his kitchen skills and created a number of gastronomical delights in the process. He later moved here to Singapore in 2011 and has recently joined  Mandarin Oriental Singapore . What's a chef welcome without good food right? For lunch that day, we had a feast! Chef Omar has special...