Emerald Garden Restaurant's Siopao

I apologize for the intermittent posts. The past weeks have been crazy, and much as I wanted to write more regularly, I still have to attend to work (yes, I do have a day job) and other obligations. By the way I have set up this blog's Facebook page. Clink the link here, and if the posts leave you hungry and hankering for more, please be a dear by hitting the like button. By liking it you'll receive posts from me in your Facebook wall on my recent blog-posts, as well as snapshots of all the research I have to do for this blog (smile). 

Now to the task at hand. This month's posts, if you have noticed, have been quite Manila-centric. This is not deliberate, but it lends itself to addressing my ignorance of food hotspots in the metro. Today's post is all about Emerald Garden Restaurant's ginormous siopao. You can read about my other entry from the restaurant here. 

this  could easily feed three

Siopao is derived from the Hookien baozi, meaning steamed buns. The filling  comes in two variants: asado (sweetish pork or beef cooked in soy sauce) and bola-bola (chopped pork or beef, chorizo, and salted eggs). 

I'm partial to siopao asado, and it's always a treat to have this in Chinese-style restaurants. Aside from ensaymada and hopia, this is one of my favorite childhood snacks. I usually take a preliminary bite or two before pouring the sauce inside the bun, being careful not to let it spill. Emerald's siopao bola-bola is huge, already a meal in itself. It's filling is generous, and the bun is soft and packed. I had left-overs the next day and it was still delicious. 

For orders call (+63) 02 523-8510

My Kitchen by Chef Chris' Panizza

The night before I had panizza from another establishment. It was bland and forgettable. On a whim, I dragged two office-mates (they came willingly) to Oasis Hotel in Paco to try My Kitchen's panizza. Panizza is thin crust pizza rolled with aragula leaves and alfalfa sprouts. 

We asked for the bestsellers. Kristina, made of bacon, ham, caramelized onion, sun dried tomatoes, and mushrooms, was tops among the panizza. We paired it with Paco, made of herbed chicken fillet, smoked bacon, portabello and golden mushrooms, capers, and kalamata olives. Kristina didn't disappoint. Perfectly balanced, it made our hearts sing. All thoughts of bringing some slices back to the office were forgotten. 

I thought the panizza was already excellent, until my companions said I try it with a few drops of chili oil. The  combination was divine.

We also tried other popular items, like the sphagetti con frutti di mare, made with salmon, dorado, snapper, prawns, and mussels sauteed in olive oil, tomato, olives, and capers.  Again, the pasta was well-balanced and multi-layered, reminding of the superb spicy tuyo pasta of the Bencab Museum's Cafe Sabel.

For dessert we had two. The decadent cake, made of chocolate cake and caramel sauce, made me rethink my indifference to chocolates. I like that it was not too sweet, and the caramel sauce was a perfect foil for the chocolate.

I was partial to the lemon and lime cheesecake--baked cheesecake with a crust of fine almonds, sweet lemon lime sauce, and almonds. Sweet, tangy, and nutty, smooth, crunchy, and crisp.

We were fortunate Chef Chris Locher was at the place, and he graciously joined us for a photo. Chef Chris used to pack them in at C Italian in Angeles. 

notice the country's map on chef chris' uniform? 

This is quite pricey, so dress smart. This is perfect place for dates. 

My Kitchen by Chef Chirs
The Oasis Paco Park Hotel
(+63) 02 521-2371 to 75

Myron's Place for The President Steak and Caesar Salad

It was my friend Lulu's birthday, and for her we'd brave Friday traffic to be at Powerplant, Rockwell. Our first pick for dinner was packed--we forgot to make reservations, so off to the basement we go. Myron's Place was not bad at all. We ordered Oysters Rockefeller and two soups, Cream of Pumpkin and Cappuccino of Mushroom, but two items stood out: the President Steak and the Caesar Salad.  

see the pink himalayan salt crystals sprinkled on top of the steak?
by the way, the  onion rings were ginormous

this was the prettiest caesar salad i've seen

We ordered the President Steak, made of  US certified Angus beef rib-eye, medium rare. It was soft and juicy. When served, they tilted the plate to allow the juices to settle at the bottom. The fried rice that went with it was divine--perfectly cooked, a little on the dry side, just like what my grandmother's household do. The garlicky rice helped cut the richness of the steak. Pink Himalayan salt added a nice touch, but I don't know if it added to the flavor at all.

The salad was flavorful, and almost as good as those of TGIF, the standard by which I measure those of others. I love the way Myron's plated the salad, you have to see it for yourself. My picture didn't do it justice.

In fine the dinner went well and most of what we ordered were good. I appreciate the effort they put in presenting their dishes, and this is as it should be, since the place is quite pricey. From other blogs I noticed that the Greenbelt branch looks better, and I made a mental note to visit it soon.

Myron's Place
Powerplant Mall, Estrella St. cor. Rockwell Drive
Makati
(+63) 02 728-9898

Tagaytay City's Amy's Eatery for Bulalo, Beefsteak, and Fried Tawilis

My quest for the ultimate bulalo (beef shank soup) continues. Last time I reported on my find in Mandaluyong City. This time I'll be reporting from Tagaytay. 

This is my second go in Tagaytay. Weeks ago we tried to go to the city's Mahogany Market, which is beef central in these parts. One can buy the freshest beef here, from locally raised cows butchered that very morning. A skip, hop, and a jump away are open-air food stalls popular for selling bulalo. Unfortunately, we reached the place around 9 p.m., and by that time the stalls were closed.

This time we were at Mahogany at 7 p.m. Earlier I polled my colleagues for the best place to eat, and Amy's was a unanimous choice. It was raining hard that day, but nothing's going to stop this quest. Below are the best of what we ordered. 

bulalo--beef shank boiled for hours, flavored with fish sauce,
with cabbage and other available vegetables added to the mix 

bistek tagalog--strips of sirloin beef and onion rings cooked in soy sauce and calamansi juice

fried tawilis--freshwater sardines found only in taal lake

The bulalo and bistek were brimming with beefy goodness. We noticed that the bulalo broth remained clear even in the cool weather. I had posted on fried tawilis before, and this comes close to that wonderful experience, minus the fancy ambiance. Many of my colleagues were preparing for a marathon, but any thoughts on diet were put on hold while we ate to our heart's content. And oh, as a nice touch, we were given fresh pineapple and bananas for dessert.  

This is, by far, the best bulalo yet for me. 

The Cake Club's Baked Cheesecake and Supermoist Chocolate Cake

During my friend Lulu's birthday get-together, we decided to eat cake. Not just ordinary cakes, dear readers, but those by Diamond Hotel's Cake Club. And so off to the Bonifacio High Street Branch we went. 

We ordered three, two of which were bestsellers. These did not disappoint

baked cheesecake

supermoist chocolate cake

I'm a fan of cheesecakes, so this one had me at hello. It's cheesy, and the almond bits lend texture. I'm not crazy about chocolate, but like its companion this was moist and not cloyingly sweet.

In my next visit, I'm gunning for the ensaymada and the ice cream.

The Cake Club

Bonifacio High Street, 7th Avenue

Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City
(+63) 02 621 3176

Tacloban City's Penduko's Barbecue for Grilled Chicken Skin

This is one find I'm happy I took pictures of, proof that indeed I ate there. There appears to be no mention of Penduko Barbecue online.  Your best bet is a local to get you there. I fell in love with the skewered chicken skin and longaniza. 

(L-R) skewered chicken skin, pork, longaniza (pork sausage) and chicken 

Penduko Barbecue is one of many stalls facing Real Street in Tacloban. It's the one with the longest line, which is always a safe bet when picking the better eateries.  Offerings included chicken thighs and wings, skin, intestines, liver, longaniza and pork. 

After making our selection, we were led to our table while our orders were grilled. Rice came wrapped in coconut. The locals call these puso. 

The sauce, which was also used to baste the barbecue, came in regular or spicy. I chose the latter.

the secret is in the sauce 

Tagaytay City's Amira's Buco (Coconut) Tart Haus

"Researching" for this blog has taken a toll on my body. The search for the object of the next post has made getting trim quite tricky, so in between posts I adopted some ways to prevent packing in more pounds. One such strategy is sharing my loot.  

Amira's has been a fixture in Tagaytay City for quite some time (it opened in 2003), and many of my colleagues swear by it. They recommend the silvanas, which I find too rich for my taste. The house specialty, on the other had, hits the right spot--not too sweet, just right. 

I bought a box of nine for three sets of friends on different occasions, and the same thing happened--the contents were gone in an instant. Each set costs P170.00, and comes in other flavors like apple, pineapple, ube (purpel yam), and mango. 

Amira's Buco Tart Haus

Aguinaldo Highway cor. SVD Road

Maitim 2nd Tagaytay East

Tagaytay City, Cavite

(+63) 46 413-1491