Frannywanny

Allow me to make yet another fearless forecast -- I smell another food trend coming our way and it's in the form of these nice corrugated boxes that's filled with all sorts of ingredients that's packed and carefully sealed. DIY Kits  are here and it means allowing all of us to take our cooking/baking skills to the next level! Since we all have to stay home and to keep ourselves safe from the virus, why not recreate some of your restaurant favorites and enjoy these with the family. I've actually been cooking and baking more since the start of the quarantine and I have to say that I have became more bold and creative in the kitchen. Back then, I'd stick to the usual baked goodies, easy pasta dishes, stir-fries and steamed dishes. For the past weeks, I've learned to make more seafood dishes, cook steak properly, bake a variety of treats and just tonight, I made Galbi Jjim -- a dish that I've been planning to make for months.  A few weeks ago, I rece...

Oh boy, time flies so so so fast! Has it really been 7 long years since my visit to Taipei, Taiwan ? Still, memories of visiting their delicious night markets and indulging in the yummiest street food is still very clear in my memory. I particularly love the Oyster Cake (orh-tsien) as well as this Baked Stuffed Potato that got me so addicted for all 3 days that we were there. Our visit to Taipei was super short and I can't wait to go back! I'm sure my twins will love munching around town with us too. Someday.. someday. Since, my twins are still in the process of enjoying their first taste of solid food, Paul and I can relive our gastronomic Taiwan trip right here in Manila! Finally, I was able to visit Fat Fook Kitchen , which opened a new branch at SM Megamall. I've been wanting to try this out since they opened at SM North EDSA last year but the proximity and my delicate pregnancy just made it really challenging. So, imagine my excitement as I stepped into their SM ...

Metro Manila is roughly 600km² big but with the crazy traffic jam that happens everywhere in the metro, every single day, it somehow makes going from one point to another feel like an out of town drive. Since I spent most of my days with Kongkong and Ama in Quezon City, you'll noticed that most of the places that I've visited for this trip is just within this vicinity. Not a big problem there as Quezon City is one of the biggest cities and there sure are a LOT of dining options to choose from. Let me start with my latest find -- Tien Ma's Taiwanese Cuisine . I've actually heard of this restaurant from Mommy who even called me when I was here in Singapore to tell me about their latest food discovery. It must be that good that Mommy couldn't wait to tell me in person, right? Located along the busy intersection of N.S. Amoranto and D. Tuazon, parking may be a bit of a challenge but luckily, we went there for late lunch so it was easy to spot an empty slot. The me...

Every time we fly home, Paul and I would go over our growing list of restaurants to try in Manila. I tell you, it has really been a challenge to keep up as there's just too many new restaurants and only a couple of visiting days available. As much as we love trying new restaurants, we also take this opportunity to re-visit our favorites. I'd say we get better in planning our itinerary through time. Take this recent visit for example, this is finally the only trip where we got to spend a lot of time with both families. Spending lunches with my in laws and dinners with my side, we took a break from our crazy back-to-back schedule to have quiet meals at home, long hours catching up or dining at our favorite places. So, for our first dinner in Manila, Mommy suggested that we go to Lugang Cafe . This has been one of my family's favorite restaurants as we are all fans of xiao long bao (steamed soupy dumplings) and Lugang Cafe makes one of the best in town. I'm so happy t...

Do you remember this totally adorable 7-second line? Indeed, the world went crazy over little Agnes of Despicable Me and her cute ways that this winning one-liner totally stayed on longer than the movie itself. Case in point, I suddenly had this line in mind the moment Paul and I walk into Fluffy Dessert  in Tanjong Pagar Road. Fluffy Dessert specializes in Taiwanese ice desserts and it was just perfect timing for Paul and I to chance upon this little store as we were walking around the area in search for a place to have dessert one evening. I always give great importance to first impressions and I immediately liked what I saw.

For someone who spends her weekends trying a restaurant or two, there are just days wherein I would go back to the ones that I've tried and "tasted"  through time. These are the restaurants that I have full confidence in bringing a guest to as I know the best dishes by heart and I have full confidence that it will be just as good as how I've enjoyed it the last time..and the time before that. One of my favorites here in Singapore (and basically in most parts in Asia) is Din Tai Fung . A restaurant that originated in Taiwan, they are very popular worldwide for their to-die-for Xiao Long Bao which is one of my all-time comfort food wherever I go. In fact, our first taste of Din Tai Fung was back in 2010 here in Singapore . We've been to a few more outlets after that, even to the one in Taiwan too.  It has been 4 years of non-stop patronage and loyalty still Din Tai Fung serves consistently the best Xiao Long Bao for me. In addition to their XLBs, let me...

"San Juan is turning into a mini Taiwan !" I caught this comment over Twitter a few weeks ago and I couldn't help but agree. First, we saw the fast emergence of milk tea shops starting with Serenitea followed by ChaTime , TeaTap and now ShareTea from Taiwan is opening pretty soon. There are also a lot of Taiwanese bakeries and restaurants in the area like Feng Wei Wee and their delicious dumplings and Cold Layers for authentic Taiwanese Ice Desserts. A few months ago, a Taiwanese establishment called Taibun Bakery and Coffee Shop opened just a few blocks away from my home. One thing that I noticed is that they actually have a cool discount schedule where they give price-offs for their bread products  from 6AM to 10AM and from 9PM to 12MN. I guess this is their way of making sure their bread gets sold quickly to keep it fresh all the time. I also noticed that they operate with very long hours! Imagine being open from 6AM to 12MN? Wow! After watching No Oth...

I truly appreciate restaurants and coffee shops that dedicates a sufficient amount of time and effort to details . For me details is just as important as making sure you get the word out there, it's just as crucial as ensuring that your products are of top quality. Details creates the best ambiance and by giving your customers a good feeling every time they step into your store will surely bring back bigger rewards. Tonight, Paul and I went out on a date. Yes, after killing ourselves with months filled with busy weekends, we decided to just relax and go out tonight. Let me tell you more about our *ahem* romantic dinner date in the next few days. What I'm excited to share is where we ended up hanging out for our night cap before heading back home. After dinner, I decided to text my two girl friends J1 and J2 to ask what were their Saturday night plans. J1 told me she's spending time with her family while J2 immediately called me and invited us to join her and boyfriend ...

Last night, I met up with my friends B and K. I met them while working for the Green Siren and coincidentally we have all moved on and have pursued other careers: I went to publishing, B is now the Marketing Head / Trade Head / CEO (hehe) of a premium beauty brand and K is handling research for one of the country's biggest food empire. I love the fact that we still manage to keep in touch even if we don't get to see each other on a daily basis anymore. Definitely, food will keep us together ♥. We agreed to have dinner at Northeast Square in Greenhills. This is really sweet of B and K to agree to meet up in San Juan since B lives in Makati and K is from Manila. I definitely love these girls! Dinner was at the new Japanese restaurant Yumemiya , which I will tell you more about in my next entry. As we were going through the menu, B mentioned that there's a dessert place called Cold Layers located at the 2nd level of the same commercial complex and that her friend has b...

One of our agenda as we were planning for our trip to Taiwan was to make sure that that our evenings are well-spent in various night markets scattered around Taipei . Reading up on Taiwan, we found out that there are a lot of night markets all over the country. It surely looks like everyone in Taiwan has an amazing gastronomical night life ! This is one thing I was looking forward to and my excitement grows as the day gets nearer. On our first night, we took the MRT from Danshui and headed to the Ximen Station . It was around 5PM when we got to Ximen and decided to check out the Red House which is just a few steps away from the MRT exit. This is an old market turned into a movie theater turned into a gallery/cafe/performance hall. It has been around for more than a century and still they have maintained the beautiful red exteriors that we saw up close. From The Red House, we crossed the street and followed the huge crowd towards the Ximending Night Market . Near this area is a...

Here's a story about a quiet city at the northern tip of Taipei. We first heard about this place from our friends Richard and Irene who have nothing but raves about their market. Researching about Danshui more, I found out that it's also a must to visit the Lover's Bridge and the Fisherman's Wharf which are both located a good fifteen minutes bus ride away from the main station. This was our next stop after our cultural morning at the Chiang-Kai Shek Memorial Hall . It was very easy to get here, just hop on the MRT and ride up until the end of the Red Line, that's Danshui Station . Coming from the station, we walked towards the riverside and followed the steady stream of people heading towards the Danshui Food Market. You won't miss it! From the station, look for Mister Donut and turn right, you'll go through a park and keep your eyes to your right. The first thing that you'll see the Ji Guang Delicious Fried Chicken kiosk . This one seems to b...

In anticipation of our upcoming trip, Paul and I decided to have lunch at Feng Wei Wee which is our neighborhood's Taiwanese food stop. We've dined here before back when they used to have a different type of interiors and manner of service . A year ago, you enter Feng Wei Wee and see a serving area where you basically have to point out the things you like and the server will gladly serve this to you. Thus, in Tagalog, it's called Turo-turo . Today, Paul and I were surprised that there was no service area showing the dishes and they have a more cozy-looking interior design with a couch on one side and better looking seats around. It's just like any other restaurant where the server hands you the menu and you choose from there.

I'm addicted once again. After being witnessing my long running addiction to Serenitea , here I am again falling in love with another milk tea brand that has just recently opened its doors to the Philippine market. I would like to introduce you to ChaTime . It's actually a big milk tea company that originated in Taiwan and has a number of branches in Malaysia, China, USA, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and Australia, plus new stores opening soon in Korea, Japan and the Philippines! (source: ChaTime Philippines' FB Page ) I'm lucky because ChaTime's first official branch is located once again just a stone's throw away from my workplace. Just like Cab Cafe , I can easily go there via a short tricycle ride. On my first visit, it was after doing overtime work at the office as Paul and I made it to ChaTime at 9PM. Despite being a few days old, there was already a long line inside the store. I like the clean and brightly-lit interiors. They also have a ...

Four years. It has been four long years since college friends Daff, Anne, Tim, Len, Paul and yours truly shared a meal together. Call it falling out. We've had our own drama episodes in the past until little by little we've learned to pull down our pride and agreed to start on a clean slate. After all, that's what friendship is all about, right? Paul and I would regularly double date with soon-to-wed Len and Tim and last Wednesday night was no different. I sent Len an SMS to ask how she's doing and she invited me out to dinner. Only this time, she asked if I am game to invite Anne and Daff to join us. Without hesitation, I texted back, "sure, why not?!" I haven't seen them for a long time and it would really be nice to catch up with old friends..after all, we've known each other for more than a decade already. Looking back, they were all seated at the front row as they watched my love story with Paul unfold. We agreed to meet at Shi Lin a...

While waiting for our table at Crystal Jade one evening, my best friend T told me about the new restaurant that has recently opened just a few blocks away called Lugang Cafe . It's a new franchise brought in by the famous Bellagio Group which originated from Shanghai . Since T stayed in Shanghai for a while and has been going back and forth since then, she immediately tried Lugang Cafe the moment their first branch opened along Connecticut street in Greenhills. She was happy with the quality of the food and told me that some of the servers there were the same ones who were in the Shanghai branch. I was sold. I really trust T for her taste in food and after hearing her raves about Lugang Cafe , I made reservations to have dinner there with my college best friend L and her fiance T a week after. Paul and I really look forward to dinners with them as we have been double-dating for more than seven years already! You see, both T and Paul courted L and I almost around the same ...

This 2010, we have witnessed the entrance of a number of food carts, restaurants and products that continues to take our taste buds and dining experiences to new heights. Gone are days when frozen yogurts would take the forefront of the trend race. Now, Asian snacks have invaded the dining scene -- here we see delicious milk teas, peppered corns and crunchy chicken pieces called Chicken Chops. Then we have Big Daddy's Chicken . A local brand conceptualized by partners Kimberly and Jerry, who after graduating from college, were inspired to bring the authentic Taiwanese Chicken Chops to our market. Importing the exact machine that will enable them to create the right crunchy chicken and pork chops that have took Taiwan's food scene by storm, they have experimented with various flavors to make each diner's experience truly memorable. I'm lucky to have one of the branches of Big Daddy's Chicken within the neighborhood. I've been noticing that a number of peop...

Regular visitors of my blog can say how much I love this particular dimsum called Xiao Long Pao . I love how each piece was carefully crafted to keep the delicious soup intact and the meat flavorful and tender. It's always a delight to carefully take a small bite, slurp the soup and pour in a few drops of special Xiao Long Pao vinegar before popping the entire thing into your mouth. On our second day in beautiful Singapore, we met up with Paul's cousin J for dinner and I'm so glad we went with my request to dine at Din Tai Fung . For those who are not aware, Din Tai Fung is really known for their Xiao Long Pao as repeatedly told to me by my mom, aunt and friends. My aunt loved it so much that she even thought of bringing Din Tai Fung to Manila (now I wonder what ever happened to that negotiation) . Din Tai Fung has various branches in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, the US, in Taiwan where it originated and a lot more! J regularly dines at Din Tai Fung and so we lef...