Frannywanny

You know the age-old saying that "you can't have your cake and eat it too?"  For me, it means you can't just have it all. That's true and very realistic as life is never perfect. However, to celebrate Mother's Day, the sweet folks of  Holiday Inn & Suites Makati  has the perfect solution to counter this saying with their DIY Cake Box !  It's a special DIY box filled with all the essential ingredients to make your very own cake! One that you can also enjoy come Mother's Day (or any other day even before that if you just can't wait any longer). For only P1350, the box comes with specially packed and measured cake flour, buttercream icing, rainbow sprinkles, an 8-inch springform pan, a set of silicone baking utensils, 2 adult aprons and some freebies from Jack n Jill and Nissin. This is a great deal as the baking pan alone can be use for a really long time and it can help bring out the Baking Star in you.  I got this over the weekend an...

A couple of weeks ago, I got a message from one of my readers (hello to you!)  asking me for recommendations on the best brunch buffets in town. I had to stop a while and recall in order to give her my best recommendations as I didn't want to let her down. Eventually, I answered: "Personally, I love Mireio at Raffles Hotel, very good selections."  To my reader, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. :) Anyway, let me tell you more about my Sunday Brunch experience and why I think it was one of the best there is in town. First of all, the venue. Who doesn't love the luxurious feel of the Raffles Hotel in Makati. It may have a more corporate vibe as opposed to its Singapore counterpart which gives off a more garden feel but well, it's located right at the heart of Makati's busy district so it perfectly suits the vibe there. From the moment I arrived at the entrance of the hotel up until we were ushered up to the 9th floor where we were led towards the resta...

January flew by so fast for me. With three quick trips to Manila, the entire month went by like a blur but it was a fun and eventful one, I must say. The last trip was my favorite though as I was able to spend every waking hour with family. After all, it was to celebrate Mommy's birthday and we made sure to shower her with all the love that she deserved for days. On her actual birthday, we took her to her favorite restaurant -- Tapenade at Discovery Primea . Mommy can be a very picky eater and for her to rave about a particular restaurant for months on end definitely means something. She first told me about Tapenade  last October but since we had a very hectic schedule then, we were not able to push through with our family dinner at Tapenade . Then, the December holiday came and went, again another failed attempt to visit Tapenade . So, on her birthday, Pan and I made sure that we push through with it and while we miss Paul and my brother in law E who were both busy at work, it...

I've tried a number of Philly Cheese Steaks in the past but I never really got around to learning about its history. It was until that fateful evening when Paul and I got an invite to have dinner at the Cheese Steak Shop in Makati where we were told of the Philly Cheese Steak story and how it finally found its way here in Manila, Philippines. Given the name, this sandwich originated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by a couple who began serving thinly sliced steaks and cheese in a long sandwich bun. Very similar to a hotdog sandwich, the craze about this meaty sandwich spread like wildfire and soon Philly Cheese Steaks are not only available in Philadelphia but in other states all around the USA as well. Take Cheese Steak Shop for instance. It originated in San Francisco 29 years ago (yes, same age as me!) and makes use of authentic ingredients such as their Amoroso rolls and Tastykakes which are shipped all the way from Philadelphia. Here in Manila, we have owner Mai Uy to...

Last week, Paul and I were privileged to be invited to an intimate dinner to sample a number of signature dishes which will only be available for a very limited time at the Jasmine Restaurant of the New World Hotel in Makati . From September 19 to October 1 , that's a total of 13 days only, Chef Wong Kam Chung from Shanghai will serve his specialties to the patrons of the restaurant. Being the executive chef of the famous YUE 1525 in New World Hotel in Shanghai, Chef Wong is a veteran in preparing a number of Cantonese dishes including his special Double Boiled Whelk Soup with Chinese Herbs and a lot more. Since the drive from my office to Makati took a while, we arrived quite hungry and ready for our lauriat dinner. We began with two appetizers which were totally different from the usual cold cuts platter that we're all used to. We had Lotus roots stuffed with Glutinous Rice (Php. 480). A long platter where you get eight bite-sized pieces. It has a very sweet taste...