Frannywanny

It's no secret that my family and I are such big fans of Chef Cecille Chang's Thai Bistro in Robinson Magnolia. I think there was even a time that every single Sunday lunch was spent there as well as our birthdays and even our despedida party last year. It's funny though that we would order almost the same dishes during every visit and still leave the restaurant constantly raving about it as if we just tasted it for the first time. Thus, when Paul and I were to have lunch at Chef Cecille's newest restaurant called Silk Road , we immediately said YES! Stepping inside Silk Road , we immediately knew that this caters to a higher market. I love the pretty, well-lit and very modern interiors which I honestly prefer over the rather dark ambiance of Thai Bistro. Of course, we didn't just settle for a dish or two. What we had was a spread good for about 8 people to enjoy but we were able to finish most of it anyway. Ooops! Lunch began with a bowl of Tom Yum Kung (...

You got it folks! It's THAT time of the year again where all foodies troop to one venue to spend one whole day eating, sampling, buying and learning how to COOK! I'd go as far to say that this could be the Philippine's very own National Foodie Day... it's Yummy Eats 2013 after all! So, if you're the kind who's always on a look out for what's yummy out there then please mark your calendar and remember THE date -- May 18, 2013 . I may be miles away but this event (and the magazine) is very close to my heart. I can still remember my very first Yummy Eats back in 2011 and I can't believe they're now on their 3rd year! Woohoo! This time, it's the baby of my dear friend ML so please show her the love and be there at the NBC Tent on May 18, 2013 (it's a Saturday!) from 10AM to 6PM . There will be 50 new food finds for you to check out and who knows, you might just find a couple of favourites. Yummy Eats 2013 will be one fun day filled...

Growing up, Mommy and Papa always remind us that " the early bird catches the worm ." They have been repeating this saying over and over again year on year as they remind us to try our darnest to make it to school on time. Well, sadly Pan and I are not natural early risers and till this day, we do value sleep so much that we can actually stay in bed all day long. If there's one thing that could easily make us get up early on a Saturday morning then it would probably be...FOOD. I've mentioned a number of times before how much I love going out for brunch. Fellow food blogger Anton must be right in predicting that this must be the start of an All-Day Breakfast or perhaps, Brunch craze in Manila . I hope he's right at it would be so fun to be able to meet up with friends over brunch on a lazy weekday morning. So far, I personally do enjoy having brunch at Milky & Sunny in Kapitolyo and at the Cake Club in Bonifacio Highstreet Central .Thus, when Pan and I hea...

Mommy loves drinking tea. Thus growing up, Pan and I were taught to appreciate the flavor of all sorts of tea blends at a very young age. We would have pots after pots of Chrysanthemum Tea whenever we're enjoying dimsum in Hong Kong, a cup of Earl Grey to go with our choice of macarons or tea sandwiches and even the deep and dark ones like TieGuanYin . Like Mommy, we've learned to drink tea either with honey or with a few drops of sugar cubes. Lately, wanting to stay healthy, I've been having my cup of tea without any sweeteners added into it. I've learned to love it in its purest form. Upon hearing about Da.U.De (da-you-de) Tea Lounge , I set a brunch date with Mommy and Pan after our morning working at the Bonifacio Global City. Da.U.De Tea Lounge is located at the ground floor of the Net Lima Building which is right beside the Mini Showroom. It may be a bit of a challenge to locate but believe me, it'll be worth it. We were greeted by the bright, sunsh...

Quietly tucked in one of the hidden corners of Bonifacio Global City is a bright and inviting Italian restaurant called Tuscano . Upon receiving an invite to have lunch there with fellow foodies Richard and Irene , Paul and I found the restaurant after a wrong turn and a phone call to Richard for more verifications. The restaurant is located at the ground floor of The Fort Residences thus parking is pretty limited. We truly welcomed the Valet Parking service that the restaurant offers allowing us to just hand over our keys to the valet and he'll do the rest. I love Italian food mainly because I love pasta! Luckily, Manila is booming with more and more restaurants that would save you the plane ticket to Italy and still you'll be able to enjoy a good plate of pasta or some freshly baked thin-crusted pizza anytime you want! Still, I wish that Paul and I will one day be able to visit Europe and eat all the pizza, bread, pasta and cheeses to our hearts delight. Someday...someda...

Around September last year, Paul and I learned about the arrival of the first ever food truck called Guactruck from fellow food blogger Anton . According to his blog entry, food lovers will be able to see and try Guactruck's specialties at Mercato Centrale. Since then, Guactruck has been around, mostly within the Bonifacio Global City (BGC) area. We've been so excited to check this out due to our failed attempt at spotting a single food truck while vacationing in the US last year. I'm not giving up and I'm so glad that I don't have to book a plane ticket to see one up close. While strolling around BGC last week, my sister pointed out the brightly-lit food truck that was parked right in front of the Fort Legend building and Tully's Coffee. I totally forgot about Guactruck being in BGC and I was so happy that we finally spotted it! After having coffee, I dragged my family to check the food truck out. It was quite dark already however the bright LED lig...

I can still remember my first Boracay trip. It was the summer of '07 the same year Frannywanny.com was born. Paul and I went with my big big group from work. Finally after many failed attempts, I excitedly sat through our 50-minute flight to Kalibo where we had to take an hour and a half car drive to Caticlan and endure another 10 minute boat ride to the sunny island of Boracay. "This should be worth the wait." I thought to myself. From the moment we got to our resort at Station 1, I held my breath at the beautiful crystal clear water and white powdery sand. This truly was paradise. Definitely worth the wait, dear readers. :) As soon as we dropped off our bags and changed into our beach clothes, off we went in search for a good place to have our very first lunch. Following the lead of my colleagues who have been to Boracay more than I could count with my fingers, we headed to D'Mall. They told us this was the central, go-to place for all Boracay visitors and...

In a week's time, we will be bidding the Year of the Rabbit good bye and will gladly welcome the arrival of the Water Dragon. Coincidentally, this year's Chinese New Year is also the day of my dear Mommy's birthday!! Thus, my sister and I have been planning on where to host her birthday lunch with our extended family for days now. Since January 23 was also declared a holiday, we know we are running out of time as we expect that a lot of people will surely be out celebrating the Chinese New Year making almost all Chinese restaurants in town to be fully booked. I've been doing a number of research and luckily have been invited by some to have a preview of their Chinese New Year offering. Allow me to share them all with you in the coming days. Let me start with the Chinese New Year menu of F Restauran t of the Best Western Premier F1 Hotel . This is the first hotel to open at the Bonifacio Global City and is located right in front of Starbucks Coffee and is just wi...

I love Japanese food! It's my ultimate comfort cuisine and luckily, there seems to be a surge of Japanese restaurants opening here and there . A week ago, The Food Club was invited to try Yakitori Kitchen , owned and managed by the same group as Ramen Bar . Upon receiving the invite, Paul and I immediately sent our confirmation. We were so excited that we were actually the first to arrive that evening. While waiting for the group to be complete, we were served with a bowl of Chicken Broth Soup which I find very refreshing. It actually reminds me of the yummy Emperor's Soup of Sugi. I loved it so much that I had two bowls of this for dinner that evening. I was able to meet the man behind Yakitori Kitchen and he explained that Yaki means Grill/Grilling while Tori means Chicken in Japanese. This was after I asked him how come they have mostly chicken parts listed in the menu. I didn't mind at all as I love chicken! For those who are not big fans of chicken th...

I am pretty blessed to have friends who share my passion and love for food. We all get excited over new food finds and our radars get stronger as we discover newly opened restaurants all over town together. After enjoying our first ever meet-up over delicious President's Steak *drool* at Myron's Place , it was time for another dinner out with my two favorite food bloggers Jin and Leslie and this time, it's Jin's treat. I first heard about Tourne from fellow blogger Richard who dined there a few days before our visit when he went with his talented and lovely wife Irene and Sister-in-Law. Richard has been raving about the Southern Airline Chicken saying that it is so delicious, in fact it's "the best tasting chicken breast he has ever had" . As much as I was curious to try this amazing chicken dish, what held me back was the fact that it was served with cornbread stuffing. Sadly, I am not allowed to eat corn except when it's mashed or cooked pol...

What's your comfort food? I've asked this question a number of times and for me my comfort food is simply a plate of Farfalle alla Genovese from Cibo . I can have this at any given time of the day and it never fails to put a smile on my face. After working our hearts out at the recently concluded Yummy Eats , my boss treated us to lunch to celebrate our victory and to unwind. His choice was perfect -- 2nd's . A restaurant that aims to feature comfort food with a twist. I trust my boss for his taste in food that I easily rely on him to give amazing restaurant suggestions and dishes to try. We arrived at Bonifacio Highstreet just in time to beat the lunch crowd and I initially wasn't able to spot 2nd's right away as there was nothing but a simple signage by the building's facade. To easily guide you, 2nd's is located across Cav Wine Bar currently occupying the space where Mag:Net used to be. We took the elevator up and followed the signage tellin...

On our first weekend back in Manila, Paul and I were busy dealing with terrible jet lag. We were up at exactly 6AM and was fast asleep by 9PM. Thus, evening social activities were totally out of the question yet the good side is we get to make the most of our mornings for almost a week and a half. Both wide awake at 6AM on a Sunday morning, we decided to head to Mercato Centrale to check out the weekend market scene. Mommy agreed to join us and off we went to the Bonifacio Global City ready to eat, eat and eat! It was a very warm Sunday morning and after quenching our thirst with Iced Barako Latte and filling our tummy with Angus Beef Tapsilog, Mommy wanted to continue our bonding session somewhere with air conditioning this time. So off we went to Serendra Piazza where we had an early lunch at Mary Grace Cafe . It's funny because I frequently buy from the Mary Grace kiosk in Greenhills but I've never dined in her Cafe. My mom, on the other hand, is a huge fan and she was...

A couple of weeks ago, I received an invite from Mr. Binondo food walker himself, Ivan ManDy , to join his special food walk around posh and upscale Bonifacio Global City I immediately hit the reply button and sent him our confirmation initially for April 24. Unfortunately, we had to move our reservation to May 1 to give way to our growing list of tasks for our upcoming BIG day. Ivan was so nice to accommodate our request. Still, our plan to arrive on time did not push thru and we found ourselves exactly an hour late. Luck must have been on our side as we decided to proceed directly to The Stock Market as we were also invited by Tita Yoli Celdran of Fruits in Ice Cream to try their mouthwatering desserts. It was a good decision as the group's next stop was exactly at The Stock Market! While chatting with the organizer, we found out that we just missed out on three stops and we can actually join the group up until the end of the event. Hooray! Not long after, the group final...

Deciding on where to have dinner one evening, I simply asked Paul , "What do you feel like having tonight -- Burger or Pizza?" He immediately said, "I think I'm craving for burger." So burger it was! Actually we both have been craving for burger a week ago but after a failed attempt to order burgers over at a neighborhood burger stop, we are determined to satisfy our craving that evening. Since we were already in Makati for some errands before dinner, I suggested that we pass by A. Venue Mall to check out Burger Avenue . This was highly recommended to us by our friends R and L. Find a parking spot at A.Venue was a breeze! Probably because we were there on a weeknight but with an underground and outside parking, it's highly unlikely that you would have to spend a lot of time looking for an empty parking slot. Welcome to Burger Avenue Burger Avenue is located at the far end of the mall. Don't worry, the mall is not that big and it wouldn't be a chall...

Here are some reasons why I love my job... ... being able to see amazing party set-ups ... allowing myself to get star-strucked upon seeing lots and lots of local celebrities ... watching talented performers on stage ...and lastly, having the privilege to hang out with my pretty colleagues It sure was a fun fun evening! Congratulations to everyone who worked sooooo hard to make this party a SUCCESS! How I wish you can organize my big day too.. (teehee)