Frannywanny

About 5 months ago, my dad had a bad fall. Actually, he missed a stepped and slipped in the bathroom. Perhaps for any ordinary person, one could easily just stand up and recover with probably just some minor bruising that an ice pack could easily fix. Unfortunately, as we age, so does our bones and for my 70-something Papa, this led to him damaging one of his hipbones. It was so bad that he felt so much pain and given his high tolerance for pain, we knew that something was just not right when he began complaining of the pain even with just very short distance walks. Anyway, long story short -- Papa had to undergo a partial hip replacement and that posed so much risk whether he can recover a.k.a. walk again. Thankfully, his surgery was a success thanks to his dream team (a.k.a. his team of doctors headed by my brother in law E). After surgery, he had to stay in the hospital for a few more days despite his wishes to go home right away as they wanted to get him started on his therapy. Fin...

If there's one thing that excites me is when I get to dine at a restaurant that retains the good ol' tradition in terms of their quality and taste yet one that is also bold enough to break the stereotype and continues to surprise their patrons with "something new." Take the Japanese cuisine for example. Immediately, visions of delicious and comforting bowls of ramen would come to mind, right? How about if I tell you that recently, I tried one that's served in a sizzling bowl. Yup! It's one thing that probably not a lot of people would imagine to have in a traditional Japanese restaurant setting. Thus, this is precisely what sets Kureji  apart. Situated along Malakas street in Quezon City, I immediately fell in love with the beautiful interiors of this restaurant. It has kept the structure of an old traditional Filipino bungalow-style home with rooms in split-levels and an old-school bodega  (storage room) situated at the back of the house with a few step...

I still remembered the day when I first met Chef Myke Tatung . It was to have a joint birthday celebration for my former boss D and a couple of our other colleagues. Working for a food magazine meant being in the company of food-loving people who have that special talent of searching for these hidden gems regardless of where it may be in the world. We had a delicious 4-course dinner in his cozy home in Quezon City. A few weeks after that, I went back with Paul and we enjoyed yet another delicious meal. Since then, I've been in touch with Chef Tatung as he would contribute to the magazine every now and then and we eventually became friends. A few years following that, Chef Tatung told us that he opened a new restaurant in Taguig which specialized in Filipino cuisine . Of course, our team went full force to support him. We have returned a lot more after that and his restaurant has been one of my favorite go-to place up until Paul and I moved to the Lion City. A few months ago,...

We all know that Metro Manila is literally bursting with so many restaurants, cafes, eateries and foodie spots found all over the 16 cities and 1 municipality of the region. I've lived there for 20+ years of my life and I can say that I still have a lifetime to go if I seriously want to try at least half of all the restaurants available. Despite the big number, when it comes to dining out with my family to celebrate a special occasion, we would always have just a handful of choices to choose from. Don't look at me. I'm not the only  picky eater in the family! Obviously, my picky taste must have originated from somewhere , right? ;) As the person who frequents the very few places that he loves to dine in, my Dad has quite a growing list of requirements whenever we go out to celebrate someone's birthday or a family milestone. Clean ambiance? Check! Delicious, high quality food? Check! Serves steak or beef? Check check check! So far, Mario's Restaurant has passed...

Early this year, I opened my travel journal again. Not known to many, I keep a notebook/scrapbook that documents all trips since Paul and I got married three years ago. It had photos, quotes, theme park tickets, boarding passes and a lot more. However, we got extremely busy and I now have a heavy box that goes with my journal filled with photos, receipts, tickets that have yet to be placed in this journal. What more now that I've relocated to another country?!  I think I need a whole new scrapbook as everything might not fit in my old journal anymore. Anyway, at the last page of my journal, I have a list. This list is something that I love referring back to once in a while. My goal is to visit at least one country per continent in my lifetime. So far I've covered two thus I have 5 more to go. Knowing that I won't be able to travel far this year, I went through the list to see which are the "doable" destinations. Vietnam . The land of pho and banh mi! L...

Just a few days ago, I got into a conversation with a colleague. She asked me how many siblings I have and when I told her I just have Pan, my younger sister; she suddenly goes.. "ohhh no wonder! you're the eldest." There have been studies actually that people share similar personalities and behavior with someone of the same birth order. I actually do believe in this. For instance, most of my friends and relatives who are the eldest in the family tend to be natural decision-makers. We think and decide fast, this probably comes with the many years of leading the brood (well I just have one tagging along me all the time heehee) that we are used to being the leader. Most of the youngest in the family, on the other hand, are more carefree and fun-loving. This is not saying that we first borns are boring but it's just that by the time they're growing up, most parents are more lenient and would just let them do their thing. I may be wrong but that's all based on...

Last week crawled by sooooo slowly that I was really ecstatic when Friday finally came! All the more, I was also so excited to have dinner that day. Why? Well, first was because I couldn't wait to see my college best friend L and I was hoping her baby bump would finally show. The next reason was because we agreed to have dinner at Basil , a new Thai restaurant along White Plains and after reading several blogs raving about it , I couldn't wait to try it out myself. Traffic has horrible that we got there an hour after our agreed meeting time. Good thing, we still managed to get a table despite not being able to reserve ahead of time. The restaurant was packed and parking was very limited but thankfully it went smoothly for us. I'm happy that both L and T were just as excited as we were to try Basil out. I just love how my friends share the same love and passion for food. Basil's ambiance is different from any ordinary Thai restaurant out there. I love how ther...

While Paul and I love going out with our friends and family; once in a while, we make time to just spend a quiet evening enjoying each other's company. One Saturday night, we decided to have dinner out at the newly opened Greenhills Town Center located along Granada which is adjacent to Gilmore and Ortigas Avenue. We've been looking forward to checking this place out as it's located so close to home. Another place to consider when dining out most especially when we want to avoid the Greenhills Shopping Center traffic. Greenhills Town Center is a small commercial complex that houses a number of food establishments like McDonald's, Ha Yuan , Seattle's Best Coffee, Red Buffalo and our dinner choice for that evening -- Sumo Sam . There are quite a number of new food shops that I will make sure to visit in the coming months. Sumo Sam is located right at the entrance of Greenhills Town Center making it very easy to locate. Note though that parking is quite limi...

Remember my search for the best Ribs in town ? It's funny that I first found my favorite rib places in Angeles, Pampanga and as far as California, USA but none yet close to home. My search for the best rack of ribs never stopped though as I am determined to find THE ONE. That perfect ribs place that will allow me to go back to over and over again. Wonder when will my luck strike? Ever since Paul and I tied the knot a year and five months ago, we have been planning to have dinner with our every talented wedding coordinators and host . Since we all live extremely hectic lives, this has been pushed back a million times until last Wednesday when we finally found time and met up for dinner. Jerome , our host, is also a foodie. This is also one reason why we instantly clicked as he's a great fan of the magazine that I work for and our pre-wedding meetings would also end up with us talking about food, food and more food. He was the one who suggested that we try Rub Ribs ...

When I got an invite to visit H Cuisine by Chef Hannah Herrera, I suddenly remembered the time when I visited the Corinthian Hills Weekend Market 3 years ago where I first learned about H Cuisine and was able to try a couple of their dishes. Sadly, my memory is pretty terrible that I couldn't really remember exactly what dishes I was able to try but I figured that it must be good as I do not have any bad memories about it. Together with Richard and Irene , Ro and Peter , Jane , Abet and Joan , Paul and I had an intimate dinner at H Cuisine hosted by none other but Chef Hannah herself. We were led up to the second floor where two round tables were prepared just for us. At one side is a buffet spread featuring several dishes that H Cuisine specializes in. To start the evening, Chef Hannah conducted a simple cooking demo showing us how to cook her best-selling Angus Beef Belly and the many variations of it such as the Angus Fried Rice and the Angus Beef Panini. Sadly, al...

I just love the feeling of being happy while eating! Yes, that truly sounded very much like a glutton talking but eating makes me happy and what I love most is when I dine at a restaurant that just gives a very happy vibe all together. This was how I felt the moment Paul and I discovered Hapadog at the Sky Garden of SM City North EDSA . We rarely reach this part of town but whenever there's a need to drive all the way to the north, we have to ensure we make the most of it. I've been hearing about Hapadog from my friend Richard who has been inviting The Food Club to check it out together. Due to all our conflicting schedules, it has been months since Richard's initial invite and sadly this plan still hasn't pushed through. Luckily, Paul and I found Hapadog which was strategically located beside Gong Cha and is just a few steps away from Starbucks Coffee. As we entered the very tiny restaurant, the server immediately handed us the menu and the first thing that ...

Lately, I've been missing a number of my childhood favorites -- there's that delicious kakanin and chicken pie from La Chesca , Baked Mac from Petit Four , salad bar and steak from San Francisco Steak House and to-die-for Korean BBQ dinners at Arirang . *sigh* For my family, these are some of the best restaurants/cafes in town and we're extremely sad that they're no longer around anymore. *sniffle* Why oh why?!?! Luckily, there's one restaurant that we also love that is still around and I believe will continue to live on for more and more decades to go! Hooray! Ha Yuan is a popular Chinese go-to place when you're craving for a delicious bowl of Maki Mi or perhaps for a piece of Fresh Amoy Lumpia. I remember my Mom would even bring our stainless steel container to the store for them to just put the Maki Mi there and she would just re-heat this for dinner at home. One Sunday afternoon, Paul and I found ourselves at the Mother Ignacia branch of Ha Yuan...

I first met Chef Him Uy de Baron when I contacted him to cater for my very first event for RL. It was a mall display event that opened with an unveiling ceremony and cocktails for our valued advertisers and media partners. My goal was to be able to serve really good food that is sure to wow my guests. Chef Him was recommended to me by my boss and after a series of smooth negotiations, I knew right there and then that it will be a breeze working with him. He was very professional that he would always abide by our agreed call time and not only were his dishes amazingly good but it never fails to exceed my expectations too. I love how creative Chef Him can be when it comes to making his dishes very presentable. Meatballs in soup spoons, Nachos and Salsa in shot glasses, to name a few. Needless to say, I have been getting him for every single book launches, mall displays and other events thereafter. A few weeks ago, I landed at a Facebook page which immediately gave me the impression ...

We're on a roll!! After celebrating our 1st wedding anniversary with an eat-all-you-can dinner at YakiMIX , I found myself on the way to Eastwood City with Paul and my sister last Saturday night to try another popular yakiniku grill-all-you-can place -- Sambo Kojin . My friends who have tried both, have been telling me that is the BEST yakiniku grill-all-you-can place in town and I believe them. This time, I also did my research. I read up on blogs and website who did reviews on the restaurant and even bump into an old friend that morning who assured me that I won't be disappointed. Needless to say, I arrived at Sambo Kojin with really high expectations. The place was packed and luckily we had a reservation. The friendly receptionist led us to our table and we were greeted by Jeffrey John , our server for the evening. On our table were two small platters filled with some Korean appetizers. We settled down and began by trying the kimchi, bean sprouts, potatoes, dilis...

Through the years as Paul and I have visited thousands of restaurants here and abroad, we have opened our eyes to the different themes and styles imaginable. Normally, restaurants would just have the fun, casual vibe that matches their food. It's either that or a more refined, formal setting for fine dining restaurants. Aside from coffee shops that continue to grow in every corner of the metro, I secretly wish that there would be a little restaurant that would be inviting enough for you to stay and daydream the afternoon away. I'm talking about a restaurant with pretty interiors matched with classy trinkets decorated here and there. Perhaps they can throw in a nice reading nook where I can keep myself engrossed in my favorite chic lit novel while enjoying a piping hot plate of pasta. This is probably the kind of restaurant I'd have someday...the kind that girls like me can stay for hours on end as they catch up with their friends or spend that much-needed me-time. It s...