Vikings, Mall of Asia

Viking is a term used to describe a seafaring pirate and a trader who raided and settled in many parts of northwestern Europe. Norway, Sweden and Finland to be exact but this restaurant is nowhere Scandinavian... except for one of the buffet tables that resembled a Viking boat if you look at it at a certain angle. 

Well, that doesn't seem to matter because the place looks nice! Look around and you will see interesting patterns and they are decorated for the season, too. One of their dividers is actually made of a wine rack. Their ordinary hanging lights were made interesting with oversized glass containers and suicidal teddy bears! This restaurant has so much attention to detail that it makes that Japanese hair expert in that shampoo commercial a wuss.

It was actually my dad's and brother's birthday. Yes, they were born on the same day and the restaurant has a way of knowing if it's your birthday so they can hop on your table and sing a brutal song of "Bang the Maracas on Anything Solid Near You Happy Birthday". I swear, these guys were probably high. See that missing "H" and a half-eaten "a" on the sign? Now you know. It was an entertaining sight though ^^

Here's a disclaimer: I didn't take a lot of photos of food. I know, it's lame! I did that on purpose so I  have a reason to go back. Oh, di ba? Di ba? Here are some that I tried:

On the top left is Chawan Mushi or Japanese Egg Custard and the bottom right one is miso soup served in an small earthenware pot. The top part of the pot is a turned over sake cup and this is what you will use to sip that healthful soup.

The sushi and sashimi were fresher than fresh! Served straight from the fish's body that was just happily swimming in a happy tank minutes ago not knowing that he will be happily eaten by happy gluttons. Happiness transcends.

More great finds: Mini burgers and potato chips, assorted salad from several countries in Europe (I swear when you bite that potato, it crunches in German), I was excited too see plates of assorted caviar but then my brother said "Peke yan." Okay, fine. Talk about luxury food. Good thing there's a lechon station which also serves other cured meats. (May sakit lang? lol)

This is probably the section that I enjoyed the most. The dessert section located at the heart of the restaurant because it's their strategy to attract people in eating starch-enriched food first so they won't be able to indulge on other  delicacies hence money for them. I dunno, I might be wrong :D

Fruit jellies, Panna Cotta, cream puffs, custards, mallows, halohalo, a dude serving taho (sigaw ka ng "Kuya, sampung piso lang" lol), a Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj fountain... everything! If I would shoot a video here, it will turn out as one of those Katy Perry music videos.

Here are some interesting marvels. The salad is served on ice with blue backlight. It's either Pimp My Ride or it's radioactive. Same goes to that shrimp dish whose name I don't know how to pronounce. They look effin' cool! There's our table number. It makes me wanna shout "Sparta!" but I have 24 more and there's a crepe station. Kuya, wag feeler. Hindi ikaw pinipichuran ko!

I'll definitely come back! Here's my evalutaion:

Appeal: 4/5
Food: 4/5

Service: 4/5

Is it worth the money? If your stomach can be stretched, then yes. I guess that applies to all eat-all-you-can restaurants. 

Mikuru Tips:

1. Go on a weekday. You'll save a lot and there are less people.

2. Once you are in, everything is free! So go ahead, indulge! Run around!

3. There is a service charge so maximize your money's worth by going to manned counters and have your food prepared by them. Ex: Ask a chef to grill you a medium rare sirloin.

For Res pls call: 846-3888, 846-4888, 846-5888 and 0917-565-3888. Vikings: The Best Eat and Drink Buffet In Manila.Opens daily 11:00am- 2:30pm,5:30pm-10:00pm,Weekday Lunch is 688+,Weekday Dinner is 888+, Weekend Lunch and Dinner plus Holiday is 1088+. 

Their rates could change anytime so just call them up or contact them via 
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Vikings-Luxury-Buffet-Restaurant/113225315413751

The Max's Restaurant Story: The Start Of The End

(with a special participation of Country Style coffee)

Pantanggal umay

'Twas fun though. I had a lot of good laugh. I'm not really a huge coffee fan but I gave it a go... and just like this coffee... it's hot and bitter at first but eventually you will find it not bad at all. Yeah, let's just be friends although I know that things will never be the same again...

Remnants of the past

Did you know that food tastes better if you are with someone you like? It did! Until nagsabi siya na may boyfriend siya. I was disappointed and embarrassed at the same time. Maybe I was expecting too much? Well, who wouldn't with what we had previously? But why didn't you tell me dati pa?! This karekare lacks taste but I don't eat bagoong so I passed. I want to end thing right away but the fried chicken made me stay. The conversation went well after a few minutes and the food got its taste back... which is still a mystery to me.

I never realized that catsup and worcestershire sauce, with a little bit of hot sauce, make a nice dipping sauce! There are a lot of good stuff out there that makes a good combination. You just have to look for it and one you find it, do not ever let it go.

Sago at Gulaman...

That's how well we blended. A concoction that is so convincingly good, I wished it'll be the last drink that will quench my eternal thirst for love... but I forget that ice will eventually melt and once it's diluted, the original taste will never ever come back. All that will remain is just a memory of how good things were before.

This story of mine is actually in reverse. I began with the ending and ended with the beginning because this is the start of the end... but of course, there's more to that.Thank you for reading.

Pinoy Scramble!

Ice scramble, ice crumble, i-scramble, iskramble... whatever you call it as long as the schwa is there and a wonderful sight of this amazes you:

They say this delicious treat originated from Iloilo. It's basically shaven ice mixed with either artificial or natural flavours and topped with a variety of sweets like - chocolate syrup, strawberry syrup, powdered milk, chocolate chips, colorful sprinkles, mallows, rice crispies, etc.

It is very popular among kids and adults alike, specially during the summer! Iskrambol is now enjoying a makeover since 2010 - affordable food franchises and food carts are taking this unique pinoy treat from the streets to malls, amusement parks, cinemas, etc. and nostalgic patrons line up for a cup of their childhood memories.

Bulalo in Tagaytay

There's something about Tagaytay's bulalo.

This is a soupy dish that consists of boiled marrow-rich cow's leg bone (preferably that of the foreshank or hindshank) with cartilage and few meats still attached on it and also has some potatoes, whole onions, string beans and cabbage.

Not all that glitters is gold. Sometimes, it's bulalo. =)

My brother said Tagaytay's bulalo has a distinct and unique flavor compared to other bulalos and indeed it is! I don't know if the cool weather and other living conditions of cows have something to do about it, but this is a very hearty dish!

Nature's cannon ball is definitely refreshing!

I ordered Buko (coconut) juice immediately when I saw it on the menu (I need a break from iced tea) and to my surprise it was served with the jelly meat in the shell! So cute!

We also had tawilis, it is more or less the size of your middle finger. Sardinella tawilis (sometimes obscurely referred to as the Freshwater Sardinella) is a freshwater sardine found exclusively in the Philippines. It is unique in that it is the only member of the family Clupeidae that is known to exist entirely in freshwater.

It was lightly battered then fried and served with achara. My brother taught me how to eat it the right way - hold it by the tail, dip in soy sauce (or whatever) and eat it whole!

Homemade Chicharon

Healthy eating is my game! And like in every other game - I cheat! And I cheat a lot! LOL

Mom has this habit of trimming off excess fat on meat every time she cooks em. So the other day we had Sinigang na Baboy and I used the cut off fat and skin to make chicharon!

So I had these babies washed, seasoned with McCormick, a little salt and ground pepper.

... and deep fried 'em!

and after about cooking for 20 minutes on medium flame...
... calorie bombs that will surely blow you away!

Good stuff, and I mean really really goo-ood! Best with rice and sweet 'n sour sauce! Pig out!

Burned Lumpia

Controlling temperature is a challenge every time I cook in this electric stove
That's the aftermath

and this is the finished product
Yes! I burned my lumpia. Our electric stove's "deep fry" setting has 80 degrees for it's minimum temperature. Tried that, but it took forever to cook my bangus lumpia but the next temperature setting is at 180. a 100 degree difference! Next time, I'll use the conventional stove. =) I still ate this though... with kimchi, of course.

Kimchi Stew and Pancit with Kimchi

I love kimchi! I eat it with anything!
So my dad brought home 2 of this:
Kimchi Stew! Just heat it (you can add tofu) and it's ready to be served!
It was too spicy for me! So I added 3 tablespoons of sugar to the whole package and it turned out tolerable.

But when I checked the label...
It's already expired! Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!
Good thing we stock up on kimchi... so i used a store bought one and topped it on pancit!
A filling merienda! Let's eat!

Kanin Club

After a mass one sunny Sunday morning, we headed to Kanin Club in WestGate, Alabang. We usually eat out for lunch every Sunday so my brother suggested this place.

The place is just small, pretty much half of a basketball court in size but there's a second floor. The first thing that you'll notice upon entering are these...
Paintings by Filipino artists (I suppose), stained glass, native handicrafts and there is even native music being played to complete that Filipino vibe. That staircase by the way leads to the second floor. Nice ambiance overall, though it is almost claustrophobic but anyway... the food... ah yes, the food...
Their vegetable curry was a hit! I was a bit worried that the vegetables will be too soft but it turned out just fine, I liked it a lot! I also love their "Sinigang na Baboy sa Miso". (Pork in Miso Soup) The soup was rich and not too strong. The meat was also tender, I had no difficulty scraping all the goodness off the bone.

Ordering Tokwa't Baboy (Tofu and Pork) was not really part of the plan. You see, why would you order something that you can eat elsewhere? I mean, we went here to try different stuff we don't usually get to eat at home but something tells me this dish is special so I went ahead and ordered one. Then it came in a deep bowl, it usually has a dipping sauce comprised of soy sauce and other stuff but this came with none so I asked the waiter for some but he told me it is already IN the sauce. I dug deeper and yeah, hidden under this mountain of crispiness is a spring of delectable sauce! I mixed everything up with a spoon and 3 words - "OMG!". Okay, three letters. Haha! Very delicious!
I got excited with their brown rice, I immediately ordered it when I saw it on the menu. It is said that 2 cups of this is equal to 1 cup of rice so if I'll be eating a lot getting this would be a wise choice.

They offer bottomless iced teas. My family ordered the regular one but I opted for the green tea. They are refreshingly good!
That one on top is a very interesting dish. They call it "Sinangag na Sinigang". Two methods of cooking - "sinangag" and "sinigang". Think about it this way - a sinigang dish that is stir fried. Some of the veggies like the lettuce and okra were lightly battered and fried so they were crispy which reminded me of crispy kangkong. There is also a pork cutlet and it was soft and chewy.

Below is Seafood Karekare! Squid, shellfish, veggies and an unidentifiable sea critter make up this orgy of goodness! It looked too oily for me but it didn't taste like and I assume they used healthy oils. It came with bagoong or fish paste but you don't really need it, trust me.
Above is Pad Thai. I had my first Pad Thai a few days before going here and I like it a lot so I ordered a plate for the whole family to try! This stir-fry is Thailand's most famous noodle dish. It contains cooked rice noodles, tofu, shrimp, crushed peanuts, nam pla, bean sprouts, garlic, chiles and eggs. Unfortunately, it's not their cup of tea so I ate most of it.

And finally, Crispy Dinuguan! This, I have to say is the star of the day! Imagine - lechong macau in pork's blood coupled with spices. Ah! This is heaven! I liked it a lot! You could really hear the crunch and the pork's blood is flavorful!

We had a lot of fun here @ Kanin Club. A lot of dishes were unexpectedly good! We will definitely go back here! The only thing we didn't like is their slow service. We waited for almost 45 minutes! It's worth the wait but mom is unhappy. Just look at her face. Haha!
Kanin Club, Westgate Mall

Commercial Ctr., FAI Admin Bldg., Alabang

Muntinlupa City, Metro Manila

Philippines

(02) 771-1400

Summer at Batangas

Destination: Munting Buhangin Beach Resort, Nasugbu, Batangas

It's a looong ride but the thrills brought by sight-seeing is worth it. We stopped over Tagaytay for a quick lunch on these rent-a-table place. We had roasted chicken and liempo while enjoying the breath-taking view of Taal Lake. Taal Lake is the 3rd largest lake in the Philippines and it serves as the throne for Taal Volcano a not-so-active volcano situated in an island which is called Volcano Island.
After almost 3 hours of travel time and a gruesome downhill trek, we finally made it! It's not white sand though, but the water is nice! Not too salty even though it's salt water.
And on our way home, the next day, we grabbed some of the best fruits of summer!

Menudo with Kimchi

I really hate anything spicy. I don't like the burning sensation in my mouth because it makes me uncomfortable. But you know what, I think I am getting the hang of it. Since I tried making my own kimchi sandwich, I always find myself looking for ways to make something with kimchi.

Mom had to go somewhere so I took over the kitchen. *Evil grin* A big mistake, mama, a big mistake. The ingredients were already prepared and she was about to cook Menudo when a man, talking through a speaker box asked for urgent back-up. Btw, for those who are not familiar with Menudo... it is a stew dish of diced pork, chicken, sausage, potatoes, carrots, peas, and tomato sauce usually eaten with rice on the side. Not everything mentioned should be present, just as long as any meat, carrots and potatoes are cooked in tomato sauce, you can drop the technicality.

Saute garlic and onion then add pork cut into cubes. let them brown a little then add water and let it boil.

Froth starts to appear once it boils, just scoop them out with a spatula. Add tomato sauce, ketchup, a pinch of salt and pepper, and a little sugar. Let it simmer a bit then toss in your diced carrots, potatoes and green or red (or both) bell peppers cut into strips.

As an added twist to the traditional Menudo, I added a can of corned tuna, button mushrooms and murdered a bottle of kimchi.

You know it's already cooked if the veggies are already soft. And as usual... delicious!

Corned Beef v.s. Corned Tuna

Move over corned beef, here comes corned tuna! Corned tuna is widely promoted here in the Philippines as an alternative to corned beef. If you check google for "corned tuna", it's likely that you will get results from the Philippines. In Yahoo! Answers, some people (obviously outside of the Philippines) are not even familiar with the term "corned beef" (see "other answers"). Which brings me to a conclusion that this phenomena started in the Philippines considering that google corrected me when I asked who invented corned tuna. So anyway...

So What's the Difference?
Brands like this, claim that corned tuna has the same taste of corned beef but has all the benefits of canned tuna which includes - Omega 3 DHA which is good for the heart, low in cholesterol and high in protein. With the wide campaign of corned tuna brands as a healthy alternative, (not to mention Derek Ramsey) more and more people are trying it out!

Even for Corned Tuna, sex sells...

And the list gets longer...

So is it the end for corned beef? Not quite! Argentina corned beef came up with a vengeance.

It's so true, it doesn't taste like corned beef I have tried it myself. If they do, then there must be something in it that makes the taste similar because tuna will never taste like beef on its own. The feud will never end, both had the word "corned" but that doesn't mean there should only be one. Corned beef is delicious and so is corned tuna... but I don't like the fact that corned tuna is marketed as "I taste like corned beef". Why not just embrace the natural taste of tuna?

Saisaki, Kamayan and Dads

The power of three... and I'm not referring to 3 sisters living a life of endless demon banishing related activities, I'm talking about three restos where you can eat all you can for just less than 600 php! It's a great bargain actually, considering there is a wide range of food selection - from Japanese to Filipino to European and American cuisine!
It's like a food bazaar! Everywhere you look there are stations serving a certain kind of cuisine. It's like a festival of delicious food!
On top is the ramen station where you can order ramen, cold Japanese nodles, sukiyaki, etc. Ingredients are laid out in front of you, just tell the chef what you want and how you want it then he'll prepare it for you. There is also a grilling station where Japanese style skewered meats and salmon (and corn, too) are displayed, just grab a plate and put in everything you want and they will grill it for you... or if you don't want to wait, there are already-grilled meats on a platter.
On top, there's the fried rice and next to it are different kinds of tempura (pork, chicken, crab, shrimp and vegetables). The sushi is a blockbuster, when I went to that station, a lot of people are just grabbing what they see so I ended up with that pick. We had sukiyaki, ramen and they also have kimchee. I also love their tofu topped with crab stick, it's so delicious!
So there's my plate, I got a lot of gyoza, fancy sushi and for dessert, I got a lot of creampuffs, blueberry squares, some random unidentified sweets and chocolate coated apples and mallows via chocolate fountain.
You can create your own nachos or taco salad at that area and on the left are several custards and candied coconuts for dessert, those are cakes served in small squares, they also have pudding and on its left is the salad bar. Fruit, potato, macaroni, veggie... you name it, it's there! Several ingredients are also available so you can customize your salad the way you want it.
Those are french breads with fancy spreads and they even have an oven toaster! And there is the roasted chicken and ham station, the chef carves out a slice or two then just stretch out your plate.
And for the win, there is also a bibingka station where a chef cooks bibingka on the spot! It's really fun to watch him. He even posed when I took a picture. There are a lot of Filipino rice cakes and jellies in this station.
They also have a pasta section. Different kinds of pasta and sauces are up for grabs... I was wondering though why this station is empty. And to complete the fun atmosphere, there's a band!

It's a long stretch of food! I believe I only tried 20% of what's being served there. I am planning to go back. This is definitely a place where you get value for your money! The food is great, too!

2nd Level, Glorietta 3 Ayala Center, Makati

Telephone nos.

(02) 892-8897
(02) 892-8908 to 09