May 13

Tokyo Series : Ramen somewhere in Tokyo :)

I am a huge HUGE huge ramen fan. I lived off ramen when I was a student – specifically the instant ones my student allowance can afford. And, as time passes by, I transitioned from instant ones to actual bowls of ramen in real restaurants (achieve na achieve diba?! haha).  So, when I was in Tokyo & my colleagues asked what I wanted to eat, but of course the first thing I said was ‘RAMEN’.  I mean, this is it! I’ve finally arrived to the land of ramen so I had to have it! :)  My colleagues though looked hesitant to bring me to the ramen places.  I had a funny feeling that when they have guests, a ramen place is not one of the top of mind usual places they take them to.  Also, later that day I found that ramen places near the office are for ‘MEN’ only (although, ladies are ‘welcome’ to come in, if they wish). Apparently in Japan, it’s considered to be more of a ‘men’ dish (? – Japanese friends, correct me if my understanding is wrong!). It’s ‘heavy’ & ‘oily’ & something women (in Japan) would not normally eat.   But I was persistent. I think it’s the man in  me (macho lang ang peg dahil opo, lalaki po ako dati. LOL hahaha) calling out for Ramen. And, since I was the guest, they had to give in :)

It was a very cosy place --- and although it didn't show in the picture, yes, this place was full of men & no women! (well except for us

So even if I did not understand what was on the menu, I just got what I thought was good. It was a tough choice. All of them looked good! :)

Ohhh. Yummy. Hearty. Good. So Good!

with rice, of course!

I heart thee, Tokyo.  This is another one of those off my list. ☑☑☑

xoxo, S ✌

 

Apr 29

Tokyo Series: Restaurants:Doma-doma Izakaya @ Ginza✌

Izakayas are casual dining & drinking places which are super popular in Japan.  My colleagues say they would usually head to an Izakaya with their friends afterwork. It’s the perfect place to chill, have some (maybe, A LOT in Philippines’ standards) drinks & enjoy good food.   On our first night in Tokyo, our colleague/friend took us to Doma-Doma Ginzaicchome, which is one of the good inexpensive (in Japanese standards) Izakaya chains in the city.

What I like most about Doma-Doma is that it was in such a fancy building that you would have never guessed this is what it looks like inside. Traditional Japanese. Very cosy & such a relaxing atmosphere. Love.

Upon entering, we were asked to remove our shoes before we step into the tatami mats.  They have these old-school lockers with wooden keys – so damn cool.

My shoe locker for the day! Out of this world cool.

We were greeted with a variety of mushroom appetizer, some of which are gelatinous in texture — everything tasted good! I can’t remember the Japanese name for it though. I was busy eating & enjoying myself :)

We ordered several dishes to share. I was told that Japanese eat several rounds of these dishes when they are out with friends but I was already so full from the first round.  Here’s the array of decadent Japanese goodness we had. I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking otherwise I would sound like a gushing teenager LOL

Sashimi Platter : Octopus, Tuna w/ Fish Roe Eggs & Salmon. Fresh. Yummy. Delicious!

I can't remember the name - my friend ordered for us. But it kinda reminds me of burrito so I guess this is a Japanese sushi version of it? Whatever it was called, it tasted goood!

Yakitori Platter : Chicken cooked in different ways + Liver (I'm just naming them as I remembered tasting them LOL) LOVED the liver! :)

Shabu-shabu of assorted vegetables & beef. Love.

Tuna & fish roe salad with sesame dressing! Sarap!

Japanese Fried Chicken!

Even if I was extremely full after eating all these, I did not have the willpower to refuse an extremely tempting green tea parfait dessert. I just have to indulge a little bit more :

Vanilla ice topped with light cream & matcha green tea powder. Divine! I LOVE THIS DESSERT.

Our stuffed well-fed happy faces ☺

This was such a great welcome for our 1st night in Tokyo. The experience is indeed priceless, which is why I keep on repeating to myself that even if the total bill is JPY 7500+ (converted is almost PHP4000) in the bigger picture, it is really just a small price to pay. (And yes, Doma-Doma is one of the ‘inexpensive chains’ in Tokyo. LOL)

Arigatou gozaimasu ✌ ☺ ♥,

S.

Apr 29

Random thoughts : Konichiwa Tokyo! ✌ ☺ ♥

There are simply no words to describe how I feel about Tokyo.  What strikes me the most is to be in Tokyo is like  being taken to a completely different world — somewhere that’s just totally incredibly awesome & yet for my Japanese friends, it is what they consider, ‘normal’.  It is anything BUT normal & I am just thankful I have been given this opportunity to see, breathe & live in the city at its most beautiful time of the year, Sakura Season.

Here are just a few highlights of my trip (on top of cluster engagement of course — to my boss & colleagues  who may read this post LOL)

Seeing the Cherry Blossoms

Cherry Blossoms @ Shinjuku. The Sakura Season (Cherry Blossoms) only last for two weeks. To quote www.japantravelinfo.com, For many Japanese people, the blooming of the cherry trees symbolize human life, transience and nobleness. They celebrate and cherish their beauty while it lasts. Unquote. Gandaaaaaaaa! Yun pa lang, happy happy joy joy na ako! :)

Eating Japanese food in Japan

For someone like me who loves adores to eat Japanese food,  this is a dream come true.

Everything just tastes better in Japan. It's my Italy in Asia. I love love love love love Japanese food! Did I say I love love love love love it? :) Posts on food I had coming up soon!

Japanese Toilets

I swear,  they have the b.e.s.t toilets in the world. Where else can you get this?!

I mean, c'mon. You can even opt to warm the seats to suit your needs. LOL Out.of.this.world! Why not diba?Hahaha

World of contrasts

We were living in Ginza, which is Japan's famous upmarket shopping,dining & business district. It's probably one of the most expensive places in Japan. I love the fact though that even if it looks completely 5th avenue, in the nooks & crannies, you will come smack to restuarants such as ...

This! That is so traditional Japanese in architecture. I love it!

Streets. Fashion

And of course, I just had to go to Harajuku even when it was late & there was nothing much to see. We had a super tight schedule so we always end up working late at night. But that didn’t stop me to actually go & see the famous Harajuku street.  My colleagues thought I was crazy  LOL What can I say, I’m a huge Gwen Stefani fan & through her, I have always wanted to see Harajuku! PLUS…if you are just a fashion addict like me, this is definitely a must. One thing crossed out my list!

One thing off my list ☑☑☑

Streets of Shinjuku. Where the 'young' people go! Sabeeeeeh!

 A lot of goodies to take home! 

We raided their local convenience store (as in 7-11) to get most of my pasalubongs! There were really just a lot of good things in those stores.  However, some of the best things that I took home, which I got from the airport were :

Strawberry Mochi, Kyoto Cookies & Otabe! They are wrapped so beautifully that it's almost a shame to open them!

Japanese mindset & people

I got this when I arrived in the airport. They were conducting a survey on the queuing time. They were also so precise in saying from this point of the line, you are x minutes away from getting out of the airport. This mindset of just wanting to do better things & to keep on improving what you have is something I have much respect for, especially in my current work. It is also through this discipline that despite the many adversities they face, the Japanese always seem to come out of it with as winners, with quiet dignity & amazing strength. I can only hope Philippines can be like that someday. #wishfulthinking

The Japanese are the toughest clients I've ever had --- both external & internal. They are perfectionists, expecting & demanding only the best. It takes time to gain their trust but once you do, you can expect loyalty in the true sense of the word. I'm just happy that through this trip, I made a lot of new friends & had the chance to meet up with my old classmates :) With Sachiko, my Japanese counterpart.

 I can go on & on & on and bore you with my obsession with Japan but truly it’s a country that’s best experienced live. Above barely scratches the surface & there is just so much to see.  If you get any chance to visit any country,  Japan should definitely top your list.  It is definitely on top of mine i.e. to go back again & experience it with my loves.

Trivia : In the office, people don’t say : Goodbye, see you tomorrow! when they leave the office. Instead, they say : OTSUKARE SAMA DESU, which means, Thanks for your hard work today or Hardworking day today!

So my dear readers, I bid you OTSUKARE SAMA DESU!

xxx,

S ✌

Feb 26

Restaurants : Sentro 1771 @ Serendra, Fort!

Sentro 1771 @ Serendra Fort is one of the highly recommended Filipino restaurants by our friends.  However for some reason, we never went. Maybe it’s because we always go to Abe’s or Crisostomo’s when we have guests — as we have tried and tested these two restos ourselves. So, when Tita was here a few weeks back, and she wanted to have some fried fish — of course Abe’s was the first restaurant to come to mind. I mean, have you seen & tasted their Pinaputok na Pla-Pla? Delicioso.  So off we went to Abe’s and only to find out that the restaurant has ‘siesta’ and they close @ 2:30 in the afternoon.  They would only open in time for the dinner service @ 18:00H.  The nearest Filipino restaurant open was Sentro 1771 — and decided to give it a shot.

Such a nice relaxing atmosphere. I like the high ceiling when you go inside. Great service too!

So first on the agenda is to find that fried fish our guest has been craving for in ages! And, we found a good one in their Rated GG : Fried Galunggong topped with brown garlic bits. It was cooked to perfection – crispy & garlicky love.

Rated GG : Galunggong Fillets fried in garlic oil topped with brown garlic! ADDICTING. Php 230/445 for Solo/Sharing

Another fish specialty : Catfish sentro sytle : Fillet of catfish glazed with Japanese Ponzu sauce (touch of sweet-sour soy). Seriously, if you eat @ Sentro, you gotta try this. It's delish! The sauce goes well with the rice too! Php 350/solo

Another thing that caught our eye was their Catfish Adobo Style : Hito cooked adobo style in vinegar, native garlic & yellow ginger and then fried with all the garlic until crisp. This was also nice but personally like Rated GG better!

I know I know, I jumped right into the main course. Sorry got a little excited because Rated GG was really good! For starters, we got this Fried Kesong Puti (Php180/320 for solo/sharing). The dip is garlic mayo & guava sauce. These were also very addictingly good.

Another starters option was the Fresh Smoked Fried Fish Spring Rolls (Php270). It looked like the Vietnamese spring rolls but super Pinoy in taste. Tinapa ba naman! haha I loved it!Here's another photo of the Fresh Smoked Fish Spring Rolls. Artistic naman ang peg. ☺

Of course, we had to try the house specialty : Sinigang na Corned Beef. It was a huge hit. Salty & tangy. Excellent sinigang. What I also liked, which I've never experienced in other restaurants was they came to our table and ask us to taste-test if the soup was as per our liking. If we wish it to be more salty, sour etc then we can tell them to adjust. Kinda like a wine test before you get the bottle. Cool huh?!

And of course, despite eating so much food, I've always leave some room for dessert. Hell I can eat it before and after haha. I ordered their creme brulee & it was goooooooooood! Yum yum yummy!

We also got their maja blanca! I wasn't able to taste it but Mickey G said it was also good. Doesn't look like the normal maja blanca, eh? But I trust his judgment!

It was an incredibly good meal ; and it’s safe to say we left the restaurant happy & satisfied.  In a way, I was thankful that Abe’s was close & we were able to try something new. As what I posted the other day, most of the times, we have a tendency to stick to our comfort zones & so we may miss the magic that’s happening outside of it.  And I would have missed the magic that is Sentro had it not been siesta time for Abe’s! ☺

Happy weekend everyone!

xxx,

Superstar Me!

 

 

 

 

Feb 25

Drinks : Rockstar + Zubrowka Vodka

We’ve been scouring the city to get some of this Rockstar Energy drinks :

Rockstar Energy Drink : Party like a rockstar ♛!

Main reason : to create the new best drink in town : ROCKSTAR VODKA!   I wasn’t in the mood to be drinking anything — and if I was, I would probably have chosen my now go-to White Russian.  But, since we couldn’t find Kahlua, I decided just to kick back, relax and sip some H2O. LOL  But I was offered one glass and out of curiosity wanted to taste it :

Mmm. Refreshing! For some reason the best taste I can allude it to is the Danish Kransekage! Haha Surprisingly good!

It’s my first time also to have a taste of Zubrowka Vodka or in English, Bison Grass Vodka <so bad-ass named, if you ask me!>.  As the wiki page says, it’s a dry herbed-flavored vodka distilled from rye & bottled @ 40%.  This thing is 80% proof –might be the reason why I’m swooning a little bit while I’m typing this post. LOL

Zubrowka - Bison Grass Vodka. Rawr.

So I guess – we bid Redbull goodbye & usher Rockstar in!

Lethal Combo. Activates my ADD self. LOL

I’ve been having one of those really rough work weeks & now, I’m just thankful to have some time to chill and be with the people I love.

So, when the going gets tough, this week at least I'm gonna keep calm & drink up! Nostrovia!

Happy weekend everyone! I’m hoping that in your own worlds, you are partying like a rockstar!

♔ Nostrovia ♔

xxx,

Superstar Me!

 

Feb 24

Restaurants : Gaudi Modern Spanish Cuisine @ Serendra, Fort

We passed by Gaudi @ Serendra several times but for some reason, we never end up going – until last week <3

We’ve always been big fans of tapas.  I personally think it’s an excellent way of eating — paired with a great tasting cold glass of sangria and of course some lovely company  — it’s a feel good, must-experience foodie delight!

Gaudi Modern Spanish Cuisine, G/F Serendra, McKinley Parkway, Bonifacio Global City Taguig City, Metro Manila Philippines

So straight to business :

Gambas Al Ajillo <Sauteed shrimp with chili, garlic & olive oil>. Gooooddd!

This I really love. Croquetas Mixtas - chicken, serrano ham & bacalao croquettes. Sarap, super addicting!

Surtido de 8 Pintxos Frios, which is a selection of 8 cold tapas. We had blue cheese & anchovies fillet <definitely my type of food>, crab salad, tuna, and the rest I still have to figure out. Like everything else - these were good!

 

Plato de Ibericos : Serrano ham, salami, chorizo and manchego cheese platter!

All these paired with this baby :

Innocent looking but damn, I was knocked out! LOL

Incidentally, it seems that Gaudi has been consistently rated as one of the best restaurants in Manila. Not bad huh? :) People alsorave about their Chuleton Villagodio – certified angus beef steak.  Something to try when we go back I guess!

Over-all, yo soy muy feliz contigo, Gaudi! <3

What a great way to end an uber busy day and spend time with the person I love the most.

because love doesn't need any time, day, date, month for it to be celebrated. you just live and breathe it. every damn time <3

 xxx,

Superstar Me!