A KOREAN GEM: MATGALNE RESTAURANT

Ever since my office moved to Makati nearly six years ago, I’ve always been  on the lookout for new restaurants to eat at in the area– especially places whose prices that are friendly to the working man.  Recently, I was pleasantly surprised to find a small Korean restaurant in Makati called, “Matgalne”.  

 Matgalne is wonderful hidden gem that offers you not just an unlimited amount of Samgyupsal (which is more commonly known to us non-Korean speaking people as.. wait for it.. Pork Belly!!),  but an incredible buffet spread, consisting of about 20 other mouth watering dishes for only P299!

DELICIOUS ICE CREAM, IS JUST A COLD STONE AWAY! - RINAZ

          What could be more perfect this summer than an awesome ice cream place opening at the heart of The Fort? Nothing!!!

          Cold Stone Creamery is a premium ice cream brand that serves fresh, smooth, and creamy ice cream with an outstanding and wide variety of flavors you wouldn't believe. Their ice creams have a special formulation of premium milk, cream, and buttermilk fat. (Sounds good already!) It originated in Scottsdale, Arizona and is now here in Manila!

          What's special about Cold Stone is the customer's ability to customize their own ice cream. To give you an idea on how many possible concoctions you can create with Cold Stone Creamery, They have:

22 fresh flavors of ice cream and sorbet made fresh every day.

10 kinds of candy toppings

2 types of Nuts

8 types of fruits

9 other sinfully good toppings

To be more specific, here is a list of their Ice cream Flavors and list of Mix-Ins they currently have:

I can imagine your heads exploding with delight hehehe! The possibilities are really endless!

          You can choose from different cup sizes. I like how they named their sizes.

Waffle Cone

Waffle Bowl

          You can also have it on a waffle. From plain waffle cone / bowl (P35) , to coated waffle cone / bowl (P45).

          The customer chooses their ice cream / sorbet and mix ins. And then the crew mashes them together on a granite stone chilled to 16 degrees Fahrenheit and places it in the cup or waffle. Then presents it to you with a smile!

Two thumbs up!

          So anyway, I fell in line to order and thought of what flavor and mixes I can create. But once I saw the list of their signature creations, I was baffled! It made me want to try it all first before I attempted to create my own. It's like Sophie's Choice! So hard to choose!

          Get what I mean? They serve a variety of Signature Creations. And the ones mentioned in the two photos above is not the complete list. I'll show you later the complete menu.

I got an All Lovin', No Oven!

          I had the All Lovin' No Oven in a Like It size (P180). Forgive my melted photo. It was really a hot day and we were seated outside so it was perfect for me (not for my pictures hehe). It's made of cake batter ice cream, with cookie dough, fudge, and whipped cream. It really screams comfort ice cream! If you have a sweet tooth you will really love this.  But personally the cookie dough chunks were too sweet for me. But that's just me. But the Cake Batter ice cream was perfect!

My friend Gerry's Dark Chocolate with brownies!

          I was also able to try their Dark Chocolate with brownies. Actually it was my friend Gerry who tried it and I just took a bite hehe. I was so full from my All Lovin' No Oven. It was really good! I love dark chocolate and I looove brownies!

And of course where there is ice cream, there are shakes and smoothies!

          And signature ice cream cakes! Oh my! Any birthday with a Cold Stone Cake is a happy Birthday indeed! The launching of the store was jam-packed that I totally forgot to take photos of the interiors. There was a lot going on!

          Video interview of the President of Cold Stone Creamery, Mr. Michael McGill. (Bless you kind sir for bringing your product here in Manila!)

Cold Stone Philippine Crew doing a little cheer outside

          The staff can also do some barista moves where in they throw a scoop of ice cream in the air and another staff catches it with a cup. I had a hard time taking a video of it because every I saw it, it's already in mid air hahaha!

          Unfortunately, me and my friend had to leave for a dinner event. But I would definitely love to go back with Richie and Rain for a refreshing family day at Cold Stone! :-)

COLD STONE Menu, prices, and other amazing flavors!:

Grab a cup today!!! ;-)

Cold Stone Creamery is located at Serendra, Bonifacio Global city, Taguig City, 1634.

Follow them!

Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Pinterest : coldstoneph
Official Website: www.coldstonephilippines.com
Tel. No. : 846-0460

BREAKFAST, INTERRUPTED AT MALCOM'S DELI

            Even though I don't get a chance to have it on a daily basis, I am always on the lookout for a great place to have breakfast. I know it's considered the most important meal of the day, but when you're expected to be at the office by 10am everyday, it's pretty tough to make time for a morning meal. 

            I've heard of Malcom's Place, because their burgers are supposed to be stuff of legend. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to try it just yet. When I was told that their sister restaurant, Malcom's Deli at the Fort, was serving a Breakfast menu for us to sample, there's no way I was going to say no to that! 

LUCKY ME! SPECIAL PANCIT PALABOK!

It’s raining Pancit Palabok!

It was a scorching hot Sunday, and my stomach was growling, looking for an afternoon snack. I needed something not too heavy, as not to make me lose my appetite for dinner, but at the same time, something that could satisfy the needs of my growling tummy. 

Then suddenly, the doorbell rang at my home.  Little did I know, that I was in for a little surprise.

THIRD ANNIVERSARY/ RINA'S BIRTHDAY GIVEAWAY: YABU THE HOUSE OF KATSU!!

                      Greetings dearest friends! Our humble little Pickiest Eater In The World Blog will turn Three years old on June 25, and I have decided to begin the festivities early by holding the first of my giveaways a bit earlier.. to coincide with my wife's birthday, which is today, May 22! 

              I'm starting out by giving away P1,500 worth of GC's from Yabu: The House of Katsu to one lucky reader! 

QUICK PICK: YELLOW CAB'S MRS. HUDSON PIZZA

                I've declared my love for pizza on my blog very many times, with Yellow Cab's Manhattan Meat Lovers being high on my list of favorites. Unfortunately, due to my Hyper Acidity, Pizza to me is, like Kryptonite to Superman. Anything with tomato sauce has a crippling effect on me.. crippling in the sense that I'm practically stuck to in the bathroom all day (Totally worth it though). 

             In celebration of their 12th year and the opening of their 100th Store, Yellow Cab recently released a "Sauceless Pizza", which they were kind enough to have delivered to my door step (Love you guys). The absence of the tomato sauce was the go signal I needed to go wild on a dish I love so much. But naturally, I was also curious about what exactly was on that pizza. Without further ado, I lifted up the lid and discovered for myself.

         Prosciutto. On a Yellow Cab Pizza. 

          Whoever Mrs. Hudson is, I wish I sat beside her during Senior Year Calculus, because she's gotta be a GENIUS. 

A NIGHT AT RASTRO, BURGOS CIRCLE BY RINAZ

         "Boy, I missed this!" I thought to myself as I took another sip of my Guavatini.

          It's been X number of years since I went for a night out with my gal pals. And going to Rastro just reminded me how much I missed going out and having drinks. (Disclaimer: I only got super wasted one time during my friend Lia's birthday hehehe) Before Rastro, my favorite cocktail drink was frozen margarita. It still is. But my list of favorite drinks has just been expanded by Rastro!

BROTZEIT OPENS AT EDSA SHANGRILA MALL

One of my best friends in High School, Thomas, was a German national. His father was an expat, and his mother was a home maker, and they settled in and made the Philippines, Cebu in particular, their second home. During my High School days, it was usually me that was doing the hosting of sleepovers, but there were a couple of times that I crashed at Thomas' house after a night of.. umm.. As much as I would love to say "hard partying with some hot chicks", it was more like "A super cool night of Dungeons and Dragons".

Something I always looked forward to, was breakfast in Thomas' house. Thomas' mother, always made sure that despite the fact they were living in a country so different from their birthplace in so many ways, their original culture would not be forgotten by her son. And she did so in simple ways - one was their food.

Sure, after hanging out with us, Thomas got the hang of eating rice with every meal, but at home, when his mom would prepare breakfast, It would be the good old fashioned German way. I was treated to an array of sliced sausages that I had never tried before, different types of breads, and a whole slew of cheeses to choose from, all served up on wooden boards. That was a mere glimpse of how amazing German Cuisine could be, but ever since then, their food kept me enthralled.

There aren't very many German restaurants to choose from here, so hearing about Brotzeit German Beir Bar & Restaurant opening in Manila brought music to my ears.

(Cue in "99 Luft Balloons" here.. Sorry that's the only German song I can think of right now).

HOTEL HOTSPOTS: RESTO-GO-ROUND AT INTERCONTINENTAL MANILA!

              Dining at a hotel has an air of exclusivity. If you tell someone you're going to have dinner at a hotel, and more often than not, their response will be "Sosyal!". And of course, it's totally warranted. Even the thought of a few hours of parking at a hotel would make one consider a trip to the ATM before pulling your car out. 

          But what if I told you that you could enjoy a sumptuous feast at not one, not two, but THREE first class restaurants in a luxurious hotel, without having to stop by the blood bank to earn some extra cash? 

           Have you heard of Intercontinental Manila's Resto-Go-Round?

HOTEL HOTSPOTS: DIMSUM ALL YOU CAN AT LI LI IN HYATT HOTEL & CASINO MANILA

           In case the 24 entries weren't enough to clue you in, i'm going to go on the record now and say that I LOVE Chinese food. If you ask me one of my all time favorite restaurants, I'd easily tell you that it's Harbor City in Cebu.. A simple restaurant known for its Dimsum. 

           I'm always on the look out for amazing places to get some Siomai, Steamed Spareribs and Spring Rolls. So when I got the chanceto try the Dimsum Eat All You Can of Li Li at Hyatt Hotel and Casino, I knew that was one opportunity I couldn't miss. 

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Baby Rain's simple gift to her mommy on Mother's day :) 

Happy Mother's Day to all you amazing mothers out there! 

As they say.. 

"The Hardest Job In The World, Is also the Best Job in the World" 

Funny Story... Baby Rain doesn't recognize herself as the Baby in the last picture so she throws a fit everytime she sees it, because she gets jealous of the thought of Rina hugging another baby hehe

SMOKING HOT BarBQ: GLOBAL FILIPINO CUISINE AT GREENBELT 3!

             I'll admit that i'm not the biggest fan of Filipino Food. Whenever we go to a Pinoy resto, my default order is Inihaw na Liempo (Grilled Pork Belly) and i'm good to go! But I had an eerie feeling that Smokin' Hot BBQ, the new Filipino restaurant by The Bistro Group, would be definitely something worth checking out.

       Going to Smoking Hot BBQ was a little bit bittersweet for me because it meant having to finally come to terms with the closing of fish and co.'s Greenbelt Branch.. A personal favorite of mine. Imagine how I felt.. The restaurant that serves the best fish and chips in town is being replaced by another whose cuisine i'm not too fond of. Hurts, right? 

         Nevertheless I decided to put my faith in Chef Josh Boutwood, and trust that he would do amazing things with Filipino Food.

       And boy, was I right.

CUPCAKES BY SONJA AT GLORIETTA!

      "A red velvet cupcake?".

      Those were exactly my thoughts when a friend of mine, Zee, mentioned about this tiny wonderful cupcake shop in Serendra sometime in 2006. Until now, due to my lack of knowledge in anything culinary, I still don't know what flavor / ingredient red velvet really is. Aaaanyway, I'm getting off track. This shop was probably the daintiest shop I have ever seen at that time. It was just so pretty that I felt so ugly in it! And it wasn't just the shop that was pretty. It was their cupcakes too! I know I took photos during my first visit but I can't remember where I put them. I'm sure it's long gone :( Sniff...

This was the first shop I have ever been in that exclusively sold cupcakes, and the Red Velvet Vixen was the first ever Red Velvet treat I devoured. So just like the rest of Manila, I was hooked! Cupcakes by Sonja was amazing! The taste you get from each bite is truly a pleasure in the mouth! (Confession: I thought this whole time it was pronounced "Sonya" hehehehe *blush*) As for the price, at first I found it a bit steep but after tasting the cupcakes, it all started to make sense.

THE MITSUYADO SEI-MEN GC WINNER IS....

               I'm so sorry for the long wait! Been busy with work and stuff.. but fear not, the two winners of the GC's form Mitsuyado Sei-men shall be announced NOW!