A FLURRY OF CURRY COMBINATIONS AT COCO ICHIBANYA CURRY HOUSE!

         If there's a craze that I am all for hitting the country. It's the Curry Craze. I think we have enough Ramen places in the country. There are more than enough Milk Tea joints, and don't get me started on Coffee Houses. What I would like to see more of right now, is places that specialize in the delicious art of cooking Curry. 

     Off the top of my head, I can think of only two places that is dedicated to making curry.. One is Izumi Curry at Podium, which I visited during my lunch break so I wasn't able to take decent enough pictures for my blog, and the other is Eri Curry, where I was blown away with the customizable dishes, which could lead to numerous meal combinations. 

     Now, Coco Ichibanya, the world's biggest name in Curry is poised to take the Philippines by storm.

TORCH: SETTING GREENBELT 5 ON FIRE!

     Torch is a restaurant that I've been wanting to go to for quite some time, but never got around to going. Rina constantly raves about it, but we never got to visit. In fact, she still has a Torch Gift Certificate from her visit at the San Juan Branch from two years ago kept in our little tin can of GCs.

   The Torch Restaurant brand has emerged as a legitimate player in the local chain restaurant scene, and now has a total of four branches - San Juan, Trinoma, UP Town Center and now, Greenbelt 5 around the metro. I was invited to finally get a taste of the Torch experience for myself, and try 8 of their new entrees! 

VIKINGS LUXURY BUFFET AT SM JAZZ: A PICKIEST EATER VLOG

          Rina and I, together with some of my blogger friends, were invited to visit the branch of Vikings Luxury Buffet at SM Jazz at the start of 2015. Unfortunately, we've been so busy that my friends and I couldn't seem to work out a common schedule until March! 

      After a few steps into the stunning Dining Area of Vikings SM Jazz, it was clear that this was going to be worth the wait. 

     The funny part was that, since this was going to be my third visit to Vikings, I kept pondering what I can do to make sure that the blog entry wouldn't seem redundant. 

    So I decided to create a VLOG on my experience of Vikings SM Jazz.. And what's nice is that I was accompanied by my niece Cara, who blogs at Crave The World! 

   The video "Webisodes" is something I plan on doing more of in the future! 

    Hope you guys enjoy :) 

BREAKFAST AT CHRISTINA'S.. BY THE BEACH With Transitions® Signature™ Adaptive Lenses!

        This year, our family got the chance to travel again to Boracay! I know a lot of people may feel that Boracay is already too commercialized. Which may be true, but they still have the best white, powdery sand I’ve ever felt and seen. And it’s because of this that we still enjoy going back.

        This summer, we stayed in the beautiful Henann Lagoon  And it is during this time that we realized how large the Boracay Regency properties are in Boracay. Large and beautiful! This includes Henann Lagoon, Henann Gardens, Boracay Regency, Sea Breeze Cafe, and this small little but lovely restaurant where we had a delicious breakfast... Christina’s.

THE DAWN OF DONS: YABU'S MASTER CLASS CREATIONS

(2015 version)

      I will forever be a fan of Yabu. Any restaurant that puts my picture near their toilet will always hold a special place in my heart. What I like about Yabu is how they never feel they should rest on the laurels of their success. Their kitchen is always coming up with new dishes that keeps their menu fresh, leaving their customers curious with what they might come up with next. 

     As the first quarter 2015 comes to a close, Yabu has unleashed two items that belong in their all new Premium line, that they have dubbed their "Master Class Creations". 

    Behold, the Dawn of the Dons is upon us. 

    And it is awesome :) 

THE ALL NEW SEA BREEZE CAFE AT BORACAY (AND A STOPOVER AT WAVE)

During my first trip to Boracay nearly five years ago, our very first stop was at Sea Breeze Cafe at Boracay Regency Hotel, where I discovered the altar of bacon. Rina and I ate so much that we blame that breakfast for wasting our first day in the beautiful island, because we were so stuffed, as soon as we got to the room (At 10 am.. we were allowed an early check in), we ended up oversleeping, only to wake up by 2pm!  

        During our most recent return to Boracay where we stayed at Henann Lagoon resort, one of the highlights of the itinerary was our meals at the newly renovated Sea Breeze Cafe! 

MOUTH-WATERING COOKIES FROM COOKIES UNLIMITED ~RinaZ

        Have you ever heard of lace cookies? A few years back, (this was back in Cebu during one of my first leisure trips there with Richie) when I first heard of that term, I literally thought of a lace. How will it look like?  Apparently they made the cookie per se so incredibly thin, so thin that it looked like the cookie batter was just brushed on the baking tin. That thin. And for it to hold longer, there's a slather of some spread (usually chocolate) in the middle just to hold 2 thin lace crisp cookies together. 

        It's really a different take on cookies. And I'm glad that there's already a maker of lace cookies here in Manila! (That I know of...)

Meet Cookies Unlimited!!!

THE BEAUTY OF BORACAY CAPTURED IN HENANN LAGOON RESORT

"Pa-humble effect"

         I have to admit, I got into the Boracay game really late. It wasn't until late 2010 that I made my first trip to the Philippines popular party island. It was more than a year since our second trip to Boracay, but our first with Rain, and we were looking forward to making plans for the summer. 

    Thankfully, the plans were made for us, when Henann Lagoon Resort graciously invited us to visit their stunning home in Boracay! 

    Ain't nobody gonna say no to that!   

SIMPLY SEAFOOD: A FRESH OCEAN HARVEST BUFFET AT MARRIOTT MANILA

Fresh catch of the day!!! Simply Seafood at Marriott Cafe here at @manilamarriott ! #marriottmanila #seafood #buffet #seafoodbuffet

A video posted by Rina Zamora 🌈 (@rinasrainbow) on Mar 14, 2015 at 5:30am PDT

Seafood...

Buffet...

        The two words that got me excited as a kid waiting for Disneyland to open. Disclaimer, I can't say I'm a really huge fan of seafood. There are some things that I don't eat. But I do like tahong, osyters, and shrimps! Ooooh shrimps! And salmon! So when I heard that Marriott Manila was going to have a whole buffet spread highlighting fresh seafood, I knew I had to try it! 

Let's walk through this seafood wonderland, shall we?  Presenting, the Marriott Manila's Ocean Harvest Seafood Buffet!

WIN A TRIP TO CHIANG MAI: NORTHERN THAI CUSINE AT BENJARONG, DUSIT THANI MANILA!

     I still remember the first time I went to Dusit Thani Manila. It was roughly around six years ago, before our blogging days, when I took Rina to their newly opened "Crossover Buffet". The crossover concept allowed me to start my meal at Basix, and literally walk over to their restaurants, Umu (Japanese), Tosca (Italian) and Benjarong (Thai), and grab some dishes from there. My only problem was that Tosca and Benjarong are both located on the mezzanine floor, meaning in order for me to walk on over there, I would need to climb the lobby staircase. 

   If you have seen me in person, you would know that my body is not made for climbing up on stairs, so I took the elevator. I must admit, I was slightly embarrassed when the elevator door opened to reveal that it was packed with Japanese guests. And there I was, standing in front of them with a plate full of food. They graciously moved aside to make room for me, but you could see they were curious where this little guy was going with all that food. 

   Something I remember very clearly, is the Pad Thai, which was stir fried by this tiny older Thai woman while you wait, was absolutely delicious. In fact, everything I had tried was nothing short of phenomenal, but it was really the Pad Thai that stuck. 

   Just a few days ago, I was elated to finally get an opportunity to return to Dusit Thani Manila. This time, I would be taking our taste buds on a trek to Northern Thailand through the culinary delights of Benjarong!

   And guess what? They're offering one lucky guest a chance to win a trip to Chiang Mai! 

101 THINGS TO DO AT SM BY THE BAY!

        Ever since I could remember, SM has been the go-to mall of everyone. And this has not changed. In fact, there’s practically an SM Mall in all major cities of the Philippines now. SM Mall of Asia in Pasay being the 3rd biggest of all the SM Supermalls. So big that I have never had the chance to really explore the whole mall. But the humongous size of this mall isn’t the only thing that makes this mall unique. Go towards the back end of the MOA complex and you will see a long entertainment complex for the whole family! Rides, events places, and tons of restaurants with the Manila Bay as your natural background!

GOING WILD AT BUFFALO WILD WINGS ESTANCIA MALL

"Batang may labaaaaaaaaan"

      Being a Picky Eater makes the simple comfort of American food very appealing to me. As proven in the past, I'm a huge fan of burgers and ribs. But I never really picked up on the Buffalo Wings craze. Buffalo Wings? Yeah, that does sounds cool.. but Buffalo THIGHS..? THAT sounds even better! But I get it.. Wings makes for excellent Bar Chow, and perfect when watching sports.  

   U.S. Franchise Buffalo Wild Wings has now arrived in the Philippines, bringing with them a mouthwatering selection of flavors that made a Wing believer out of me!

HATSUNE AUTHENTIC JAPANESE RESTAURANT: A NEW CHOICE AT BELLEVUE HOTEL!

   For me, dining at Bellevue Hotel is synonymous with their Chinese restaurant, Phoenix Court. Phoenix Court is one of my favorite restaurants, and whenever we head out to the South, there is always a quick deliberation between Rina and I, regarding if we will make a stopover for some dimsum all you can. Recently however, a new restaurant named, "Hatsune", has opened in Bellevue Hotel, that further looks to reaffirm the hotel's claim of having some of the best food in the South. 

   And considering they have Japanese master chef Hiro Yamaguchi in charge of the kitchen, it's quite difficult to argue with that!  

NEIL'S KITCHEN: A NEW LEVEL OF FILIPINO FOOD!

        If I had a Match.com account (I don't, Rina, I swear!), my profile would probably say, "Richie enjoys reading adventure novels, writing poetry and long walks to the fridge.".  Come and get some, ladies.

      It's always fun to eat at a place that doesn't take itself too seriously, which is the relaxed vibe that you feel when you dine at Neil's Kitchen, a new restaurant that takes Filipino dishes to a whole new level! 

ACACIA HOTEL: A FILIPINO HOTEL LIKE NO OTHER

    Rina and I have been fortunate to have stayed in not one, but two of the best hotels that the ever growing business center of Alabang has to offer. Another hotel in the area that also boasts "Five Star" status is Acacia Hotel. 

    Though I had dined in the hotel before, I never had the opportunity to stay in Acacia. Leave it to my self-appointed Publicist, Jane Go, to make sure that was rectified. The fabulous Mommy Blogger was kind enough to tag me and my family along with her in celebration of her Birthday Weekend.. What better way but through a staycation?  

SEEING BAGUIO THE MARIO'S WAY! (WITH TRANSITIONS SIGNATURE LENSES)

        When I hear “Baguio”, I always feel like I’ve just been there a year or two ago. But a few weeks ago, when our plan to visit Baguio along with our other blogger friends finally pushed through, that’s when my wife and I realized that we haven’t been in Baguio since after our wedding. And that was SEVEN years ago! That’s a long time! No wonder there had been a lot of changes there, including a bunch more new restaurants that’s really worth visiting!

        But even with the new restaurants there getting good raves through word of mouth, the classic restaurants still get a lot of customers, one of which is Mario’s, where we had a delicious lunch under the beautiful Pine trees and the refreshing cool weather of Baguio! It was a perfect last stop during our Baguio trip!

HOUSE OF WAGYU: A NEW SAGA BEGINS

         It was in late 2014 that I had what was perhaps the greatest steak dinners I've ever had in my lifetime. I've always been more of a quality over quantity guy, so it wasn't so much about the number of steaks that what was placed in front of me, but the incredible level of tenderness and flavor that I had never experienced before in all my years of being a lover of all things steak. Nonetheless, imagine an evening, having four different cuts of mouth-watering, High grade Wagyu Steaks sizzling in stone slabs right in front of you? It's hard to imagine a steak dinner getting any better than that! 

     Or so I thought.  

      Just when I thought I would never find higher quality of meat than I did that magical evening, House of Wagyu once again raises the bar when it comes to steak dining in the Philippines, by introducing to our shores The A5 Prime Grade 11 Wagyu from the Saga Prefecture in Japan.

SOUTHERN STEAKS: A STEAKHOUSE AT ACACIA HOTEL!

      It was in 2012 that Rina and I first visited Acacia Hotel in Filinvest City in Alabang, where Rina and I were invited to try the buffet of their Cafe Acaci. Unfortunately since then, we never had the opportunity to go back. 

   That all changed when the Queen of the South, Jane Go, the Mommy(?) Blogger known as Sugar & Spice for a remarkable weekend in Alabang, including a stay at Acacia Hotel. 

   After checking into our rooms, we were treated to an amazing lunch at Acacia Hotels' newest dining spot.. A STEAKHOUSE!