Frannywanny

I still remember how the food scene was just two years ago. As soon as we landed in Manila, the first thing that I asked my sister-in-law Achi J and my brother-in-law Ahia J was... "so what are the must eats here in Manila?" This was when they told us about the rising trend of food parks -- small, hole in the wall, highly instagrammable food concepts normally found in small neighborhood garage and built using old container shells. "Interesting" , I thought to myself. Achi J told me about several must-try concepts such as one with nachos topped with melted cheese, another with Iced Tea served in fish bowls that's good for 3-4 people to share. Somehow, it reminded me of Timbre+ in Singapore which, I'm happy to report, is still doing so well up until today. I wasted no time and brought my preggy self to try one of those much-talked-about food parks. Let's just say that after one short visit, I came to the conclusion that outdoor, al fresco dining in con...

I'll never forget having one of the best meals in Manila right before relocating to Singapore some four years ago. It was at Mesclun Cafe at Linden Suites where I fell deeply in love with Chef Katrina Kuhn-Alcantara's Ulang Thermidor and Sisig Spaghetti . In fact, I've been a fan of Chef Katrina's cooking from her Cuillere days followed by her amazing sandwiches at Chuck's Deli . Everything that comes out from her kitchen never fails to leave me in such a dreamy, happy state. So, when I got an invite to visit Aruga Cafe by Mesclun at the Rockwell Center, I made sure not to miss it! This time, Chef Katrina and her team leads the full operation of the hotel's in-house F&B establishment and she has prepared a varied menu for breakfast and for lunch and dinner too. Dining here should definitely be part of the to-do list of all hotel guests. It would definitely be a waste to not dine here and enjoy Chef Katrina's mouthwatering dishes. Our lunch be...

"I'm craving for Pinoy garlic rice, tocino, egg and atchara..ugh!" This is what I suddenly messaged my Pinoy lunch group at work yesterday. It's the type of craving that you can clearly imagine the food in your mind and you're starting to smell it too. Clearly, I'm missing home and I'm really bummed that my supposed flight home tonight won't be pushing through. Anyway, happy thoughts again..happy thoughts. I got to admit that I didn't grow up eating Filipino food on a daily basis as we got a very Chinese-style kitchen back home. In fact, not so long ago, I wouldn't even consider Filipino cuisine as one of my favorites. Well as they say, " absence makes the heart grow fonder"  and that's how I am towards Filipino food for the past 3 years plus. This is also why we make it a point to visit a Filipino restaurant whenever we fly home. So, on our most recent trip home, we brought the entire family out for lunch at Wooden Spoon ...

Let's take a walk down memory lane, shall we? Remember the 1st ever entry that I wrote here in Frannywanny.com ? It's about Angel's Kitchen, one of my favorite restaurants in Manila. Look how different my blog entry was then. Pure text and no photos. It even has a link to my now defunct Multiply account, the place where I really began food writing. No matter how "old school" this entry may feel, I really like it! Every time we get to visit Manila, sure we would try to visit as much new restaurants as we could. However, we also make it a point to re-visit some of our favorites. So, during this recent visit, Paul and I brought the entire family to AK Bistro in One Rockwell. It's the hipper, younger version of our favorite Angel's Kitchen as this caters to a younger market while the former is the go-to place for families. The menu is pretty much the same though which I find to be quite odd. Dining in a familiar place means ordering the same familiar ...