Binyag/Baptism Supplier Review: 2kh foodhouse

Peso Power: 150/pax for 4 dishes(1 pork, 1 fish, 1 chicken, 1 veggie) + rice, dessert, bottomless iced tea

use of buffet table, cake table, chafing dishes, utensils, plates and glasses

*tables and chairs not included

Website: https://www.facebook.com/2KHFoodHouse

http://twokhfoodhouse.wix.com/2khcateringservices

Rating: 4/5

Side Kwento:

I wanted to get a caterer pero sobrang limited lang naman ang budget namin kasi we have a huge guest list of 100(mostly my relatives). Prior to coming across 2kh, I almost accepted na magluluto nalang kami but after hours of scrolling across ads in sulit.com.ph, nakita ko sila. Thank God, hindi na kami namalengke, naghiwa, nagluto at naghugas ng pinggan.hahahaa. Nakakatuwa pa kasi they're literally in the next neighborhood kaya ang dali lang ng meet up

Review:

Chicken with mushroom: For me, this dish was a cross between Chicken Pastel and Potato Salad- mas maliit kasi sa Pastel ung hiwa nya and aside from the mushroom, it was creamy and had bite size potatoes. I liked it because it was creamy, milky and created a nice balance with the other dishes.

Pork Teriyaki: It was okay though it was not exceptional for me. Lagi kasi kami nagluluto nito and we like it very sticky- ung matagal nakasalang sa pan tapos halos manikit na kaya malagkit talaga. Nonetheless, their Teriyaki was very tender which was good.

Fish Fillet with Tartar Sauce: I was pleased with this one kasi malalaki ung fillets, almost the size of a patty, I was expecting them to be bite size kasi, parang fingers lang. The tartar sauce was also good, not too rich though mejo malapot.

Buttered Vegetables: Nothing much to say though for me, mejo kulang sa butter but the vegetables were cooked well- hindi nasobrahan sa luto pero hindi rin naman hilaw.

Coffee Jelly: This was a hit among many guests especially with the kids. I think they found the idea of coffee jelly very rebellious while my sister who has tried coffee jelly before said she liked it because it tasted better than another version she sampled before.

Pros:

1. Sobrang Mura

ito talaga yung deciding factor why we booked them. Imagine, we could have fed 100 people with just 15,000 pesos whereas most suppliers charge 300-500 for the same menu.

2. The serving was fair

There were last minute fallouts so we estimated that only about 80 guests(90 tops) came. Naturally, there were left overs and with managed servings, it can actually feed 10-15 people.

3. The presentation was okay

I set my expectations low kasi we had no prior experience of their service and sobrang mura lang naman. Sabi ko, basta okay yung food, okay nako. Thus, I was pleasantly surprised with the iced tea tower, kala ko jug lang gagamitin nila for serving. hehe. I also liked it that they served the coffee jelly in shot glasses, feel na feel tuloi ng mga bata na umiinom sila ng alak. It was also a bonus that they had spotlight for the food kasi shempre dagdag effect din ^_^

Our picture of the actual setup. Notice the coffee jelly in the far corner. Spaghetti are our own(not included in the package)

4. Accommodating staff

Mababait waiters nila and professional. At 2:30, nobody was getting food anymore but since the contract said service time was until 3pm, hindi pa sila nagpack up and I was the one who told them they can pack up. Our ice was stocked in a different place pero when guests requested ice for the beer, they were generous even though hindi na dapat un included sa kanila. We also added some of our food and they washed some of our dishes.

Cons:

1. Tables and Chairs are not included- this is a disadvantage if you want a real hassle free preparation because of course, you'll be talking to more suppliers but for us, it was an advantage kasi sa bahay ung party. Caterers normally prepare 1:1 for food and chairs meaning 1 chair is rented for every meal that you book. The disadvantage with that is you pay for all chairs even though you dont need them all. In our case, we had existing monobloc chairs and since sa bahay ung handaan, we assumed people will move around and need less chairs. We only rented 30 chairs and 4 small tables for 490 which means we only paid 4.9 pesos per guest for the chairs and tables, kaya 155 lang total budget namin per pax

2. They were a bit confused with their things

When we talked to Mrs. Marquez(shocks, tama ba?), she mentioned that we can request additional equipment at no extra cost. Come baptism day, wala ung table na nirequest namin. Luckily, their place is near so nakabalik agad for the cake table.

Also, before they left, one of the waiters approached me to ask about plates- kulang daw kasi ng dalawa. Initially, we couldnt find the plates. When they've left already, we found one plate(not two) , three shot glasses and two drinking glasses. We were just puzzled why they didnt look for the shot glasses and the drinking glasses.

Final Verdict:

We'd book them again for simple gatherings especially birthdays, when you just to celebrate and not worry about the food. They're also highly recommended for intimate office/company functions when you have ready tables and chairs.    

Until the next review!

Cakes by Cianelli: Binyag/Baptism Cake Supplier

Peso power: 1,000 2 layer all edible cake with petal icing design

bottom cake: 9" diameter Chocolate cake with Vanilla Buttercream, chocolate chips, and chocolate sauce 

top cake is 7" diameter Vanilla Chiffon with cream custard filling

*DISCLAIMER: This is a pretty lengthy post.. pasensha na... ^_^

Good points in dealing with the supplier:

It was easy talking to her and I found that the cake was a good deal for its price. Personalized Cakes at the mall cost double. Also, she lives within the area so getting the cake was hassle free for both of us.She was prompt in answering queries plus she was on time on the agreed upon pick up time.

Side kwento about The cake:

We stored it at room temperature because 
1. Viands occupied our fridge space and there just wasnt enough space for a two layer cake
2. We were going to display it at room temperature the next day so I wanted to know if it would hold up until the celebration is over

The cake before I added personal touches, photo taken by the supplier

I added cut outs para personalized pa din ung cake ng anak ko kahit hindi sya fondant :D

Chocolate Cake: I liked that it was super moist at sobrang sarap nya, but in a sad way. I wanted to eat more pero one regular slice was enough, mejo nalungkot ako na hindi nako makaulit.hehehe

Super moist...The icing has been ruined but it was due to the fact na ilang beses na sya naglakbay sa ibat ibang mesa ^_^

Vanilla Chiffon: I wasnt sure if it was meant to be that way o dahil the next day pa namin kinain pero I could taste the custard in the cake itself which I liked kasi kapit ung lasa. It wasnt the ordinary chiffon na nakakahirin at kailangan eh may katabi kang baso ng tubig, which was a good point dahil moist sya.

The Vanilla Chiffon was the top cake and note that the icing was still presentable after 26 hours, though slightly melted upon closer inspection

The Icing: I am no expert in the subject of icings but I think this cake's icing is buttercream. I loved that the petal design was done very well and even my sister who is very OC and a cake savant was satisfied. I was also impressed that even though the cake was stored at room temperature, hindi sya bumigay during the party. Of course, it looked different dahil nga natutunaw na pero ung integrity ng design, na-maintain. We actually ate the cake 26 hours after it was delivered so more than one day na sya nun. But even when it was melted at the time na kainin namin, it still tasted okay and hindi "fluid" ung lasa.

I wonder if would have tasted better if we ate it on the day of delivery. i dont like butter very much kasi ^_^

Final verdict: We would definite order again in the future! :) Please do visit her page 
https://www.facebook.com/CakesByCianelli?fref=ts

Side Kwento why we booked this supplier: 

Ordering from her was kinda a last minute decision because I actually had three "failed" suppliers before I contacted Cianelli.

Failed supplier 1: A supplier from Navotas I'd rather not name

I actually had a voucher from groupon/beeconomic for a 6" fondant cake + 20 individually wrapped cupcakes with tags pero naloka ako sa supplier. I asked if nagdedeliver sila sa fairview, hindi daw so I said sige, for meet up nalang sa Trinoma as indicated in the voucher. Pagkasabi ko nun, she said na may delivery fee na 300 sa trinoma(which was not indicated in the deal) but I agreed kasi Navotas pa sila galing. I said the date when we need the cake and sabi nya she'll check her schedule kasi from what she remembers, fully booked na ung date and she'll send me a text message. She never did so I just cancelled the deal.

Failed Supplier 2: Brownies Unlimited

They sell round and heart shaped fudge cakes for only 175 so I thought it would be a cute idea to put two cakes on top of one another with their cupcakes. To test if my idea worked, I pre-ordered them in time for Reese's 2nd month para matest ko. Come the day for pick up, only the cupcakes were ready. Ang sabi sakin, wala daw ung cakes kasi "seasonal" daw yun. I wanted to curse right there and then. What is the point of ordering kung seasonal din naman pala? They shouldnt have taken my order kung nakadepend din pala sa kanila yung availability. It was a good thing that I was only going to test it, kung hindi walang cake sa binyag ng anak ko.

Failed Supplier 3: Another cake maker

-This one didnt do anything actually, we exchanged a few messages pero hindi ko lang nafeel na at ease ako sa kanya.hahaha. Ang arte lang.

Buti nalang talaga I came across her page kung hindi, nauwi kami sa Goldilocks.hahaha. Until the next thought bubble!

Post Partum Depression aka Baliw-baliwan after manganak

I never thought I'd have Post Partum Depression for one simple reason: Reese was, is, and always will be the greatest blessing that God has given us as a couple. Before getting pregnant, I actually feared that I might never bear a child. My weight then was borderline obese and there were months when my period would skip- when there's too much stress or a major change that happened. My OB actually asked me to lose weight to increase my chances of getting pregnant and after five months, Reese came into our lives.

Even while it was happening, it was hard to admit that I was depressed. However, when it came to a point when I refused to talk to my husband and I cried every time I got up to feed Reese at night, I had to admit that I needed help, or at the very least, needed to let somebody know before it got out of control.Basically, there were three categories that caused my depression: Taking Care of Reese, My Husband, and My Support Group

1. Taking Care of Reese

One of the hardest The hardest thing about taking care of Reese was getting up despite the fact that I was so sleepy. Before pregnancy, my body wanted at least 7 hours of sleep and so if I sleep for less than 6 hours, I consider myself puyat. In the final stretch of my pregnancy, however, sleep was very elusive and of course, it did not improve after giving birth because I had to take care of a growing baby. There were days when I was so groggy that I'd stare at his milk for seconds as if I am unsure what to do. Also, my cs incision still hurt up until 7 weeks after I gave birth and there were days when I wished somebody would take my place, where there is a magical place where we can leave kids ala package counter if we wish to since I was also recovering from the operation.

Somebody turns very very red when milk gets delayed. :P

2. My Husband

Though others may deny it, marriage involves a love and hate relationship and in those times when I was feeling down, it was more so than ever. I felt like my husband was going into extremes- there were days when I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs because I felt like he had no idea what I was going through and there were days when he was overprotective (and he didnt need to) and annoying. In the first few weeks, I was the only one who got up at night and I was angry and hurt emotionally. I felt like it wasnt fair since we are both parents and it was even harder for me since I just went through the operation. I also feared that the same set up would continue once I work again and I thought it was unacceptable- I work just as hard and we should share the workload and hardship of getting up at night. My self esteem was also at an all time low- I was never slim and since a few pounds added up to my already heavy body, I feared that he'll be unfaithful and I suspected everybody and I mean everybody- from our son's yaya to other people we know to random people I see on his Facebook account.

3. My Support Group

Let's define my support group as my family, my relatives, in-laws, my friends and acquaintances who interact with me after becoming a mom. To wrap it up, I felt like each person was a nosy, know-it-all, annoying, insensitive person who didnt understand what I was going through. I felt like they asked too many questions that I wasnt willing to answer. However, there were also instances when I felt like they were being insensitive and should give me more credit for what I went through. I felt like they gave too much advice- some of which I agreed with and some which I didnt. I felt like they were judging me for my choices as a mother.  

Which brings me to my next point... How did I overcome 'em all? All the craziness, paranoia and negative emotions?

1. I had to accept what I was going through and that I needed to discuss it with someone-either my husband or my mom. 

One Friday afternoon, I finally burst into tears after not talking to my husband all day. I think he never fully understood what I felt and just said "Huwag kana kasi masyado mag-isip" but just letting it all out was enough to make me feel loads better. Since then, he also shared the task of getting up at night and though he still leaves up the task of changing dirty nappies to me, it was loads better than having to do everything by myself.

2. I had to remind myself that it was still the hormones talking

All the craziness of pregnancy- higher blood pressure, extreme swelling, being too emotionally sensitive and unstable didnt subside until the 4th week after I gave birth. I gave birth on the 38th week so technically it was two weeks after my due date that my body started to realize that the hormones- and all the craziness that came with it should go away. I literally felt loads lighter emotionally when it happened and it was amazing.

I feel loads lighter after coming to terms with myself. Motherhood is fun!

3. I had to be kinder to myself.
Honestly, half most of the things that brought me stress post partum were caused by my paranoia and over thinking. I had to remember that though I had to take care of Reese, I had needs of my own that I needed to address. I had to remember that the people around me only had the best intentions in whatever they said. I had to remember that my husband married me because he loved me and it would take more than a few extra pounds and a cs scar to change his mind.

Eight Years and Twenty Pounds Later since we became a couple, We're happy parents to a chubby baby boy ('',)

Lastly, taking loads of pictures of Reese was fun...and made spending time with him extra special.It felt like if I blinked, he'd grow a full centimeter and I'd miss it. :D

Hard to believe that these are pictures of the same boy
Left: Reese at 2 weeks and Right: Reese at 10 weeks

Until the next thought bubble comes to life. Tah-tuh!

My baby's first smile and a world of other parenting firsts

This morning is special not only because it marks the start of Reese's 11th week but also because he smiled at me for the first time. It wasn't the "fake" smile that we've captured so many times and uploaded on facebook- nope, this was a genuine smile, a social smile if you want to be technical, a reciprocation of the action after receiving one.

It was my first week back to work and so even though I was drowning from exhaustion, I savored every second when I woke up to change his diapers. I talked to him in my usual, typical, way-too-sweet-I-hope-I-dont-sound-like-this-when-I-talk-to-my-boss voice and smiled continuously and there it was, he smiled back at me. I couldn't stop myself and I cried. He looked at me in a puzzled sort of way, wondering if he was also supposed to copy the bizarre act of smiling and crying.

Back in the day when putting his bib wasnt much of a chore- kitang kita pa ung leeg nya ^_^

I am not even sure if this is really first social smile, but somehow I didnt care. His smile opened a whole of new emotions for me. I realized that for the next "firsts", it doesnt matter if it was the actual first, because what matters is that, it was the first time for the two of us. We would have a world of firsts, in the same way that I realized that Reese would have a world of firsts and not all of them would be with me. We would go to Jollibee and Mcdonalds for his first tastes of burger, fries and spaghetti(wow, talk about healthy food choices) in the same way that his father would teach him to ride a bike for the first time. I'd let him pick a toy for the first time, in the same way that he would run to his grandparents for the first time to look for allies because he didnt get his way with us. Hopefully, I'd be there on the first time that he crawls, stands up and walks, in the same way that other people in his life would be there for him on other instances. What matters is that I am there when he needs me, and that I'll be there to share that first moment that was meant to be for the two of us.

My darling on his first month :)

And yet somehow, it  made sense as well for me to miss some of these moments. For every school program that I miss, it means that he would get to share it with his father or grandparents who would take my place and spend it with him. For every toy that we, as parents refuse to buy, means that a loving lolo or lola would get to spoil their grandson. For every morning when I oversleep means that his titos and titas get to take care of him and spend time with him. For every afternoon nap that I fail to impose means that Reese would discover what really happens at two o'clock in the afternoon when he's asked to sleep inside.

That might have gotten you confused, but I guess parenting indeed, if not the most, is one of the most confusing things that ever occurred. It makes you work harder, only to spend a great deal of your income on a person other than yourself. It makes you wish that you can experience pain instead of the other, so as to spare your child from whatever is causing that pain. It makes you nurture your child with all that you can give, all that you have and all that you know, only to wish that later in life, that same person will be ready to live on his or her own.

quite happy after feeding...note however, that the neck is nowhere to be found at 7weeks :)

I'm not sure if I'd still feel the same tomorrow. How I feel now might change after a few hours of sleep or once little baby boy becomes cranky again. One thing's for sure though, this will only be one of many posts as I go through this exhilarating, exciting, fun, challenging and sometimes confusing thing called parenthood.

P.S.

Sorry, crazy emotional mama hormones kicked in so I wasnt able to capture the infamous smile but I'll surely do and upload a pic in the weeks to come :D

At long last

There was a time when I didn't write for a very long time because I was sad that I didn't know the identity that I wanted to build for this blog.

*Do I want it to be about food reviews about new things we've tried? I thought I wasnt much of an expert.

*Do I want it to be about the hiking trips we've had? But we only climb "mainstream" mountains, and really, it's more about the overall experience and not the technical aspects of it.

*Do I want it to be about parenthood? Not so sure because at 8 weeks, I hardly consider myself an expert..

But why choose when I can do all three! After all, I am a foodie, I am a mountaineer and I am a mother..so blogging about any of these three would still make me true to who I am. I might get lost at some point but it doesnt matter. Get lost with me.

My Plate in Ristorante Bigoli, a place I've been dying to review but havent had time to do so

My first and last hiking trip as a preggy woman at 21 weeks

My darling boy at 4 weeks, aka Mr. Pogi :)

Maiba naman sa usual flash back friday crap. Haha. Till Next time!

Motherhood 101

It's 3am and I'm still awake because I just put Reese to sleep. He had his milk, I changed his diapers and checked his temperature because he had a fever earlier tonight because of his vaccines. For all that these statements represent, I decided there's no better timing than now to publish this blog.

Going back to the title..Motherhood 101. Of course, there's no such thing because motherhood, just like any relationship, will be different for every person..Nonetheless, I'd like to share in a nutshell what I've learned in the past eight weeks.

1. Havin a baby is expensive

I know it sounds stupid because as we all know, having a baby really is expensive but I didn't know that it would be this expensive. Sure, I accepted that we'd have to adjust our budget but not this much. Lemme give you a rundown of our fixed and varied monthly expenses after having Reese:

1. Yaya's salary- 2,000( we have an all-around housekeeper and that's my share for her salary)

2. Milk- 4,000( Reese's milk is Nan Pro One and we buy approximately 4 1, 000 peso packs per month)

3. Diapers- 700( He uses Mamy Poko's Power Slim diapers alternately with reusable cloth diapers. We buy 28-piece-packs every week, which costs 155-170 per pack depending on where we buy it)

*Most people think Mamy Poko is expensive but this variant is actually cheaper than Pampers comfort. It's the blue variant that is actually expensive, close to the price of Huggies

4. Distilled Water- 300(we buy 10-liter water bottles for his milk

that's already 7,000 and it still doesnt include expenses that vary such as monthly birthday cakes, sickness check ups, vitamins, vaccines and clothes. Truth be told, we've already switched to the barangay health center for his vaccines because they cost 800-4,000 per shot if we avail it from his pedia.

2. Motherhood aint just about googly eyes and candy sprinkles and angelic baby faces you upload on Facebook and Instagram. Motherhood is hard
Being an ECCD (early childhood care and development) degree holder, former preschool teacher, an Ate who took take of her two younger siblings + the power of the Internet, I was disillusioned that I'd revolutionize motherhood and somehow do most things right. To say that I was wrong does not even begin to cover it. It's been eight weeks and somehow I've eaten my words in countless ways, to name a couple:

*I've read about Dr. Ferber and the theory or method that babies are supposed to and have the ability to go to sleep on their own without rocking them to sleep, lullabies and habits that may be hard to break. When I was still pregnant, I promised myself I'd do it and after 8weeks, here's what I'd say. Ferberize my ass. If you have a crying baby at 10pm who cant go to sleep, and a household of people who have to get up at 6am the next morning to go to work or school, the only sensible thing to do is to put that baby to sleep by all means possible. Nuff said.

*For all its benefits, I said I'd breastfeed exclusively until I get back to work. I'm about to go back to work in two weeks time and I havent exclusively breastfed my son for one single day..because it's harder than I thought. I delivered via C section because of my highblood pressure and it took a while for my blood pressure to go down. While I was drinking meds, my son's pedia didnt want me to breastfeed so I just pumped it diligently and threw away the milk. By the time I've stopped drinking meds, my son was already used to his feeding bottle and so he got frustrated in sucking my nipple which yielded very little milk. I tried to make him suck once a day but after a few days, the routine of making him suck and making him frustrated, pumping the milk and adding it to his formula milk became too tedious for a mom who was still bearing the pains after the operation, continuing her home based job and tended to a growing baby who wanted milk every two hours, woke up from time to time and needed changing. So to conclude, I gave up breastfeeding because of these complex concerns.

There are many others and sometimes, I stare into nothingness thinking of how I want to be a better mother, doubting myself if I am really cut out for this, on how I could make better choices for Reese. There are times when he'd cry longer than necessary either because a)my stupid brain is darn slow in sending signals that my son is crying (bakit na nga ako nagising? you moron, your son is hungry!) or b)I am finding strength in the depths of my sleep deprived body to get up and feed him. There are also days when I'd reach into that pack of disposable diapers even though it can cause skin irritation if used too frequently because it is much more convenient than to use his reusable cloth diapers that get soaked much more quickly and needs to be washed. I am not proud, and sometimes I am not sure if the courage and character that I have are enough to be a mother.

3. Motherhood causes a whirwind of emotions
I thought post partum depression was a laughingstock because I thought..how can the joy of an angel overpower anything else? but then again, when it was my turn, I understood how it happens to some of us moms because of the change in dynamics of my relationship with people around me.

*There are days when I'd look at my husband and thank him silently for without him, I wouldnt have Reese; there are days when I'd resent him for sleeping so soundly while I try all means possible to put Reese to sleep. There are days when I love him more for all that he has done for us but there are days when I doubt how long his fidelity will last after I look at my stretch marks and smell myself after a days worth of sweat, dirty nappies and puke.

*There are days when I love my Mom more after taking care of me and taking care of Reese but there are days when I wish she wouldnt give as much advice about child rearing. There are days when I thank her silently for letting me take care of my sisters because it taught me a lot and there are days when I feel like a bad mother because I cannot be more like her.

* I love Reese more than life itself but there are days when I say crazy things to him..(cge ka, itatapon na kita sa ilog...gusto mo ba mabigay sa Intsik????) and he continues crying nonetheless.There are days when I rush home after a trip to the supermarket, because being away from him for more than two hours makes me anxious but there are days when I'd feel bad because of all the hiking trips I've missed during and after pregnancy.

 4. Motherhood is all that mushy crap and more.
You might have heard a lot of mushy crap from people and whatever it was, it's true. Loving Reese is like puppy love on a whole new level. I cant seem to talk about anything else except him. Every little thing he does fascinates me in ways I do not understand. I lose my appetite when he's ill in the same way that I feel so good when he's okay. I've seen other boys but to me, he'll always be more handsome.

It's been 9months since I first saw him as a tiny speck in my uterus. He's been out for eight weeks and I've had more than eight weeks of sleep-deprived, poop-laiden, hiking-free days but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

a chubby boy named Reese Franco is gonna be 2mos old next  week!

Thanks.. till next time!

Food Review: Moshi Moshi Katipunan

I got a voucher for this place from deal grocer way way back ( March, I think) and pleaded for husband for us to use it before it expires next week. Luckily, he was planning to buy something and after we came from Ortigas yesterday, we headed to Katipunan.

Moshi Moshi is in Regis, Center in Katipunan and if you're like me whose not very good with names and remembers landmarks instead, it's the glass building across Ateneo, the one with Fully Booked and CBTL in the ground floor and BonChon and Mom and Tina's on the second floor.

I called to reserve and said that we'll be there 4 or 5ish but since we finished early, hubby and I were already there by 3. The place was pretty much deserted at that time and so we were able to get couch seats to ourselves.

Look, they have Green Tea Kitkat!

The cashier is up front and the menu is behind her, just like in a regular fast food. I ordered Mayodon and hubby had Katsudon for our main entries, plus California Maki and Crepe.

Moi while the cashier explains their menu

I sure hope this is a "thing" in Japan that they copied..because I found it weird. Reminds you of stuff sold in school supply stores that lure kids in. :)

The Maki, Mayodon and Katsudon came in less than 15 minutes and since hubby and I hadnt had lunch, we munched away immediately.

Maki(79 4 pieces)
It arrived quicker than expected, which I was thankful for since I was already hungry. Nothing much to say, it was good- not too bad for me to regret ordering it, not too exceptional as well for me to remember every detail :)

uma-art sa shot just because our new lens makes it easy :)

MAYODON(165 level up size)

My Mayodon was "level up" or upsized but truth be told, I wasnt sure if it was. My bowl was the same size as hubby's and since we got different kinds, I had nothing to compare to if mine was really upsized. It got its name from the mayo drizzled on top of the chicken .The chicken in the Mayodon were crunchy, crispy and juicy bite size pieces and under it were shreds of white cabbage ala coleslaw

KATSUDON(135)

Theirs is rare (or medium rare?) compared to other versions I've had but I'm not complaining...It made the meat juicier and less oily. The seasoning was also less salty than the Mayodon, which was good.

CREPE ALA MODE(90)
They have three kinds of crepe- "crepe" which was the crepe with mango slices, "crepe ala mode" which was crepe+ice cream and "Moshi-Moshi Special Crepe" which was crepe with cheesecake, more like a dessert sampler. I wanted to try the last one but at 145, it was a bit expensive for something I'm skeptical about so we just ordered ala mode, which was fine though the mango slices were a bit sour, I guess because they were off season.

decent enough

Final verdict:

If you've read my entry about Crazy Katsu, I said their food was a tad too sweet. For this one, since 2/3 dishes we ordered were salty, I'd say their food is a tad too salty but since I seem to have blander taste than these two Jap restos' cooks, what do I know, I might be weird all along. Hehehe...

As for the value for money, I'd say it's so-so - Our total bill was 495 and since we had a voucher, it wasnt so expensive ( A food joint falls under the expensive category if the breakdown is more than 300/person for  a meal consisting a main dish + 1-2 other stuff)

As for my desire to go back, I'd love to try their other dishes but I wont have a hankering to drive all the way to Katipunan from Novaliches to go back, I'll probably do it once I'm in the area again or it's on the way

I'll give it a 4/5 with 5 as the highest.

P.S.
I bought this bottled water for 28 pesos so you'd know right away I didnt get it to quench my thirst but as a souvenir.hehehe.

too lazy to take a full shot- its appearance is a cross between a  perfume bottle and a toy rocketship

Whoa..I'm really an impulsive blogger.Didnt blog for weeks and now I've finished two posts in a row.

Til next time!