Frannywanny

Cucina  is the all-day International dining restaurant of Marco Polo Ortigas Manila  and is one of my favorite hotel buffet restaurants in the metro too. While it may not have the widest array of dishes to choose from, I love how each dish is well-curated making it go very well with the rest of the line-up. I also love how they make it a point to change the themes every so often so I don't feel like I'm having the same old, same old in every visit. One visit, I had Italian , the next I had Thai, in another visit I enjoyed the best Filipino dishes and so on. There was even that one lunch wherein we had the most authentic British fare too . Despite the regular thematic changes, the top favorites are there to stay. I also love breakfast at Cucina ! I'll never forget that one memorable breakfast during our babymoon staycation at the hotel and I woke up so early because I was starving. I tell you, pregnancy hormones can sometimes just get so crazy. So there I was, part of th...

One thing that I noticed when I first relocated back home was the growing popularity of eat-all-you-can Korean BBQ restaurants and they're priced really affordable too! It seems like every mall would have long queues leading to these restaurants that offer a buffet of Korean bbq meats and cooked dishes for less than P500 only. Before I left the country, the buffet has been on a rise and it came to a point when hotel buffets and restaurant buffets are charging fees somewhat close to each other. Classy interiors, impressive buffet line-up, that was the food trend back in 2012. Filipino love to eat. There's no denying there and this is probably why buffets and eat-all-you-can promotion will always be well received by the eating public. Anyway, I remembered my first eat-all-you-can KBBQ experience. I was close to my delivery date then thus I was literally heavily pregnant with my twins and we entered this popular Korean restaurant where we were led to the second floor dining area...

I can't believe I've never written about Market Cafe . Being a huge fan of what was then the Hyatt Hotel in Manila where Paul and I would frequent Lili and The Fireplace , I can't believe that I never got around to writing my experiences at their all-day buffet restaurant, Market Cafe . The hotel is now under a new management and is now known as AG New World Manila Bay Hotel . Despite the name change, the enticing and very welcoming look of Market Cafe stayed the same. One thing that I remember about dining here is that even their drinks are part of the buffet. This is just a minor add-on but it's really the little details that make the difference, right? The selection is not as wide as perhaps its hotel buffet counterparts but rest assured that it's well curated and the quality is top notch. Start your meal by visiting the Cheese and Cold Cuts station . I really like starting with small bite-sized portions of these appetizers every time I dine at a buffet. ...

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...

Rise and Shine, Manila! Today will be extra bright and sunshine-y because...the weekend is finally here! This means more hours to do the things we love -- sleep, eat, hang out with friends, spend time with loved ones, catch a movie and more! I know waking up early doesn't really go very well with the ultimate weekend plan but what if it involves indulging in the yummiest, fluffiest pancakes and waffles plus some more delicious dishes? Sounds like a good plan? For those who have been following my blog for a long time, you'd know how much I love love love having brunches. There's really something extra special about this meal which doesn't exactly requires you to wake up at the crack of dawn nor wait till mid-day to eat. It's when you're nearing lunch and yet you can have your favorite breakfast meal without having to explain why you're having it so late. I've never been an early riser and I struggle even more now that sleep has not been part of my voc...

When it comes to hotel buffet restaurants, Marriott Cafe continues to stay at the top of our list ever since we first dined there back in 2010 . Since then, we've frequent Marriott Cafe to celebrate various milestones or whenever the craving for good buffet food hits. Even when we relocated to Singapore, I remembered dining at Marriott Cafe for our 5th Wedding Anniversary . I guess, one reason that makes us want to keep going back to Marriott Cafe is the good variety of dishes available all the time. Also, they always keep a conscious effort to keep on changing their menu making it so exciting to dine there every single time. Take this July for instance, it's all about greeting Annyeong-haseyo  as they're currently running a delicious Korean Food Festival  from the 11th of July up until the 31st.  Be ready to satisfy your oppa-tite (hehe sorry I can't help it!)  as they even flew in 4 Korean guests chefs so you can be assured that all the dishes offered...

The 4th of July marked the Independence Day of the United States of America and while they may be 8,222 miles away from the Philippines, I got to tell you that our American influence and heritage stays strong through all these years. For one thing, we have adapted the US English system, basketball is clearly our national sport and every Filipino just loves his or her burger, fries and hotdogs. So, it's no big surprise that we also do celebrate this fun occasion here in our island too. Personally, I love the 4th of July. This day just means allowing ourselves to enjoy all things American! I'll never forget the time when I was invited to visit the US Embassy here in Manila where we were treated to an amazing barbecue spread and we got to watch a beautiful fireworks display too. That was probably one of the best 4th of July celebrations I've had so far. Over at Flavors in Holiday Inn Makati , they are currently running a gastronomic all-American feast every weekend of ...

Fire up the grill! For the past weekends since April, buffet diners of The Carvery have been enjoying a very indulgent meat buffet where the meat are carefully roasted over the restaurant's brand new Argentinian Grill. What makes this different from all other barbecue pits or grills is that it has an adjustable platform allowing the chef to control the heat depending on the type of meat being grilled. He can raise the platform higher for those that shouldn't be in close contact with the fire and lower for those that should have a smokier flavor. It also evenly cooks the meat as all are laid down on the platform and are cooked in one go. As you all know, the secret to getting that perfect barbecued meat lies on the wood being used to cook. Chef Robert Chan specifically made sure that he uses a mix of firewood -- Hickory and Mesquite to bring out a distinct flavor that we later got to enjoy in our cuts of meat. For our preview dinner, we got to try a good selection of ro...

I'm aliveeeeeeeee!!! This is probably the fist time in 10 years that my blog has been this quiet but I got a couple of good excuses reasons why. First of all, Paul and I have been busy the past few months as we have decided to finally relocate back to Manila. Yes, you read that right. We're finally back home and we haven't been happier. Don't get me wrong, our life in Singapore was nothing but a dream come true but every good chapter should have an equally good ending and so we have decided to close that chapter just at the perfect time as we await to start a new one. Secondly, speaking of opening a new chapter. I'm so excited to share with you all that another dream of ours is about to unfold in the next few months, Paul and I will be welcoming our bundles of joy. That wasn't a grammatical error. We prayed so hard for almost a year and God answered our prayers by not only blessing us with one but with two beautiful babies whom we're both so excited to me...

Chef Lee Hoong Wan of Hotel Jen Orchardgateway did it again!  Remember that time when I got to taste his delicious Laksa Fried Rice  and promised to myself that I need to visit Hotel Jen Orchardgateway to have more? Well, I kept my promise and so, to celebrate our 13th year anniversary as a couple, Paul and I agreed to have our dinner date at Hotel Jen Orchardgateway's restaurant Makan@Jen . Call it perfect timing but the restaurant was holding a two month long Ultimate Prawn Party  and we couldn't be happier as we love seafood and crustaceans the most. Oh, I can feel my mouth water by just thinking about it. From the 3rd of October till the 1st of December , patrons of Makan@Jen can indulge in a wide array of prawn-filled dishes from the mouthwatering Salted Egg Prawns to the very comforting Prawn Noodle Soup and more. Mind you, I'm not talking about your average prawns that you get to see in the market everyday. These are specially imported prawns such as the T...

To borrow Andy William's famous line, "It's the most wonderful time of the yearrrrr!" While he's definitely pertaining to Christmas which, which by the way, is 87 days away (yahooo!!) , I'm talking about The Great Meat Feast  at The Carvery  in Park Hotel Alexandra . I still remember when the hotel opened a little more than a year ago, I've been getting positive feedback and raves from fellow food bloggers about their amazing buffet line-up which is said to have one of the best steaks in town. That's really a bold statement given that there are a lot of steak restaurants here in Singapore and some are even owned by Celebrity Chefs and Michelin-star Chefs too. With testimonies like that, I was certain that The Carvery  was definitely worth checking out. So, when I got an invite to be part of an exclusive sneak peek session of The Great Meat Feast  at The Carvery , I made sure that I won't miss it no matter what! Our tasting took place more tha...

As we all know, Singapore is a very small country. With its land area spanning no more than 719km 2 and a population of about 5 million people, what not a lot of people know is that Asia's "Little Red Dot"  has a very rich cultural background which is brought about by the different races and nationalities that you can find here. Given that, expect to entice your taste buds to a myriad of flavors and cuisines available locally. Correct me if I'm wrong but I feel that one of the most underrated cuisines here in Singapore is the Peranakan , otherwise known as Nonya, cuisine. Take a quick look at the hawker centers and you'll see a mix of Teochew, Hokkien, Cantonese, Indian, Malay, Western and even some Thai and Vietnamese dishes readily available. Save for stalls selling Laksa, rarely do we get to encounter any other stalls that specialize in purely Peranakan food. This is one thing that I wish more of the newer generation hawkers and restaurateurs would consider ...

One of my favorite time of the year is here and we only got 2 weeks to enjoy it! It's time for Melt Cafe 's annual Flavours of India  promotion and if there's any buffet theme that I love the most about Melt then this would probably be it. You see, Melt Cafe offers a wide range of dishes from a good selection of fresh seafood to an interesting line-up of salads, roasted meats, desserts, cheese, Western and Asian dishes but did you know that they also serve one of the yummiest Indian dishes in town? For instance, always make sure to try their freshly made prata (I love the garlic and cheese variants) as well as their curries and tandooris too. I was fortunate to try last year's Flavours of India  where we had an interesting wine pairing dinner which was actually my first time to have wine with Indian food. Normally, I'd go for some Mango Lassi to balance out the possible spiciness of some of the dishes. This time around, Chef Santosh Kumar outdid himself aga...

Rise & Shine!  It's the start of a new week and while it may be hard to pull yourself up from bed today, I hope that these visions of delicious, mouthwatering food will be a good reason to greet this day with a big smile. One of the highlights of our last two visits to Manila were spent really early as we drove all the way to Roxas Boulevard to meet up with our fellow foodies for breakfast at Nobu Restaurant Manila . Since we were all so excited for this much-awaited breakfast meet-up. Of course, we didn't waste any time and decided to order practically everything on the menu. Let me share with you some of my top picks: Black Cod Tinapa Melt-in-your-mouth smoked black cod served on top of a bed of fluffy and fragrant garlic rice and a serving of runny scrambled egg. I'm glad though that Nobu's serving was just right for one to enjoy yet it's not too much allowing you to still have room to order more!

Two years ago, Penang was declared by Lonely Planet as the Top Foodie Destination in 2014 . I personally haven't been to this part of Malaysia but after being convinced by my good friend K to go and visit for a nice weekend food trip, I know that I got to make it happen soon. Call it perfect timing. I was recently invited by York Hotel  to check out their latest buffet promotion featuring the top hawkers of Penang . Apparently, this has been running for 30 years already! Can you imagine? That was back in 1986 when Singapore was surely not the modern cosmopolitan, clean and green city that it is today. This was created during the time when travelling to Penang wasn't that easy yet and so the hotel decided to treat its patrons with the best of what Penang has to offer by running this buffet promotion three times a year. Today, flying to Penang will only take you an hour or so but for those who can't really take a leave from work or would rather stay in Singapore for...

Truth to be told, I'm not really much of a TV person. In fact, I can really count in my hands the number of times I've actually sat down and watched an entire TV show this year alone. Paul, on the other hand, cannot live without television. He has a list of weekly TV shows that he religiously follows and the remote is the first thing he looks for the moment he gets home from work. You can say that the secret to a happy marriage is not having to fight over the remote . Haha!  The only time I get to watch TV is during meal time. For instance, we would put Masterchef Asia on in the background while enjoying our meal. That's one of the few shows that I really enjoy as you all know, to me, chefs are like celebrity! Happy to share our first meal in Manila with our favorite food bloggers! #goodvibes So, when my favorite hotel buffet outlet, HEAT , invited Paul and I over to try their new signature dishes which were specially created by 8 chefs, we were beyond ecstatic! H...

Annyeong Haseyo! Konichiwa! 你好 ! This just got to be one of the best culinary showdowns that has ever graced the kitchen stadium ! In corner we got the fiery hot, yet ever colorful Korean cuisine. On the other side, there's the fresh and always attractively-packaged Japanese masterpiece. Last but not the least, the comforting flavors from China which most of us grew up with. This was definitely one thing that I couldn't miss during my recent trip back home and I got my entire family to enjoy it with me. Running up until October 15, 2015, this buffet will entice your taste buds with the gastronomic flavors from the North Asian region. This is indeed the time when Bibimbap, Pajeon, Sushi and Dimsum takes center stage. You all know that Marriott Cafe is one of my favorite hotel buffets in Manila as I just love the wide selection of dishes available and it's presented in such as way that it doesn't overwhelmed you that you'll feel too full to really enjoy yo...

Gimme FIVE ! To celebrate five years of (okay, I'm saying it now...so Paul, read this --->) marital bliss, we made reservations for a nice dinner date at Marriott Cafe . Trust me, planning for this day took two-weeks worth of research, several shortlists created and a couple of discussions here and there. We seriously went from "what if we go for steak dinner at _____" to "let's try French or Italian instead" and so on. Since we both wanted so many things and we found it really difficult to make one final choice, we agreed to try the famous Marriott Cafe Dinner Buffet which specializes in seafood, steak and a wide-variety of cuisines too. Of course, hubby immediately agreed as he also got a 1-for-1 deal at Marriott Cafe from his Entertainer App  too! I married a smart guy, huh? We got to Marriott Hotel just right on time for our 8pm reservation and were quickly ushered to our table. First things first, I did a quick scan of the buffet line. Would...

We all love to brunch. Who doesn't, right? However, when you're too tired to wake up a little before lunch then you can now have Tunch ! I tell you, it just gets brilliant each time. Tunch is the perfect combination of lunch and tea time allowing yourselves to enjoy a wide-array of dishes with the addition of your favorite tea time selections. Last weekend, I was invited to try the Long Weekend Tunch at Grand Park City Hall . The buffet line-up closely focuses on a number of Asian favorites such as the local Rojak, Kueh Pai Ti, two types of congee and what I loved most was the dimsum station. I have to admit that there weren't a lot of items to choose from but the best buffets are really about quality over quantity right? Let me take you on a tour around Indulge at Park  and tell you more about the dishes that won my heart (and tummy) that afternoon. I always like to start my meal with a plate of sushi and sashimi. Look at this "bento box" of colorfu...

Paul and I got to try the new  Vikings  at the SM Megamall Fashion Hall a couple of months ago to celebrate the birthdays of Ahia J, Achi M and our cutie nephew and godson, Jairus. We started planning for this dinner months in advance as you know, early notification is necessary for the *ahem* OFW members of the family as our schedule is always crazy hectic and given that, we somehow managed to still arrive half an hour late and almost everyone were on their 3rd 4th 5th plates already! Even my favorite (she's my one and only) niece, Julia was busy enjoying her plate of marshmallows and chocolate too! Let us go on a quick tour around Vikings : Start your meal with some of these bite-sized appetizers Salad corner with a selection of hard cheeses