Sunday Brunch at Dome

It's been years the last time I had a meal at Dome Cafe so we decided to have brunch here , at the Shang,  before watching Just Go With It.

We ordered the beef quesadillas because I needed the iron ( but I wasn't really expecting much since it isn't Ristras or a Mexican joint), three kinds mushroom on spinach pasta with fish fingers and a ceasar salad.

The salad was ok and pleasant.

The beef quesadillas were ok but for two small pieces at P380 or P390 it was ridiculously overpriced. Ristras is definitely better tasting  and more bang for the buck. Dome's quesadillas weren't even topped with guacomole or sour cream except for the tiny serving of salsa and store bought chips.

beef quesadillas 

The pasta turned out to be the best dish we ordered. It had three kinds of mushrooms ( enoki, shitake and button ) in a cream based sauce with spinach noodles. It had generous fish fingers as toppings. We loved this dish but something I can easily make at home.

It was an enjoyable brunch but I really didn't miss much , guess will have to try their other items to think otherwise.

Tummy Trip in Europe: Czech Mate! Food finds in Prague

When you visit beautiful, romantic, mysterious Prague also called Praha, say goodbye to your diet because Czech cuisine is really heavy on meat and starches.  Thankfully, the D word doesn't exist in my vocabulary so for five days we happily feasted on their local cuisine. Seafood tend to be limited also because Czech Republic is land locked so it,s nowhere near a body of water , so get ready to fan the carnivore in you when get to Praha .haha..

But before I forget, Czech beer is world famous too and they invented the Pils beer so if you're a beer drinker then you'll surely enjoy Prague. 

Our first meal was in Kolkovna at the Old Town Square. I love Old Town Square!!!  It's one of the most beautiful squares in Europe, the most historical in Prague and given the volume of tourists , it is the heart of Prague. Anyone who has been to Prague simply loves Old Town Square. 

at night..

The Prague Post described Kolkovna as the "the best Czech and Slovak restaurant" and "best pub" for 2004. It got good reviews in Lonely Planet as well and the in flight magazine of Czech Airlines cited it too, for traditional Czech cooking that will make grandma proud... Good thing  we didn't have a hard time looking for it. 

Their menu is just right, not confusingly extensive and it did offer traditional Czech cuisine, mostly beef, lamb, venison, roast pork and chicken.  They have goulash also since they were influenced by the Hungarians. 

I ordered  the beef goulash with potato pancakes and bread dumplings while Marco had the braised lamb with spinach and potato dumplings. Wow! They were serious when they said its hearty and heavy.

The goulash was delicious ( topmost image). The chunks of beef in the rich, reddish  brown sauce were tender with the right amount of the marbled fat peeking outside. This version is different from the Hungarian goulash, both are equally good , this version used more sauce and is thicker in consistency. In other words, perfect for 2 or 3 cups of rice hahaha..They served it with potato pancakes similar to hash browns, golden and crispy and bread dumplings. That really did it for me. The bread dumplings are solid slices of bread, so compact they look like they've been put on steroids. But the dish was so good I didn't have a hard time finishing it. 

The braised lamb with spinach and potato dumplings bottom image is equally good as well. The lamb was tender and simmered well with the right spices. Until now, I distinctly remember tasting rosemary and garlic. 

The spinach was creamy and provided the right amount of veggies with all the meaty goodness around. The potato dumplings were ok too, it was the healthier version of my potato pancakes. 

Pilsner Urquell!!!

Both dishes are perfect with Pilsner Urquell, the world famous Czech beer! And Kolkovna serves it fresh so more brownie points for this establishment. Being a wine drinker, I didn't guzzle up but Marco sure did enjoy. 

To say it was a good meal is an understatement coz we really , really enjoyed the dishes in Kolkovna. It was the perfect choice and it wasn't a surprise they got that award in 2004. 

For dessert , we tried Cafe Ebel, again Lonely Planet mentioned it as quaint cafe serving really good coffee and pastries in Prague ...

a cozy cafe to hang out..

We were so full but we really wanted to try the coffee and dessert. I got this fruit and nut pastry which was really good. The crust itself is good , not too sweet , to balance the topping of caramel , sliced almonds, macadamia and one blueberry. I miss Cafe Ebel already! 

More food finds in the days that followed. This is Half & Half, a self service Czech diner at Wenceslas Square.

The food here was really good too. In fact, we ate here twice or thrice i think..

I tried their chicken schnitzel with roasted potatoes and salad. Good!!! It was perfect with the tartar sauce.

And their goulash soup.. yummy too!

Marco tried the roast chicken ... yummy as well

Their pizza is good too and the Greek salad.

We enjoyed all these treats in Half & Half while watching live the Europe Cup. Good food plus live football in Prague..sigh : )

checking out a local bakery cafe .. yummy pastries

even the ice cream was good........

Even our hotel served us a good buffet breakfast everyday.  Hotel Chopin Prague is the best place to stay since it's across Hlavni Nadrazi , I highly recommend it to those interested in visiting Prague.

There are other gems discovered that we forgot to take pictures of like the sandwich bar at the train station (Nadrazi) that sells good chicken barbecue chunks on a baguette. It was perfect with their local potato chips. Yum!!  I heart Praha. We sure do. Those five days were well spent not only exploring this beautiful city but savoring the mouthwatering delights Prague has to offer to the curious and definitely hungry travellers like us.

Note: You can check Kolkovna's website at www.kolkovna.cz

Ristras Mexican Grill, the best quesadillas...

I'm craving for Mexican now that's why I'm posting pictures of the huge quesadillas of Ristras Mexican Grill. This is the best quesadilla in Metro Manila for me..

Ristras' grilled chicken quesadilla 

They don't scrimp on the filling and everything tastes FRESH , the corn, pico de gallo, the tender cubes of chicken, cheese,  onions.. yummy!  I like their homemade tortilla , they grill it until its lightly toasted. You get four huge slices per order so it's good for two  ( two slices will really pack a punch) . The quesadillas come with salsa, sour cream, guacamole.. quesadilla heaven!

I like their salsa too, it had the right piquant taste and  perfect with the tortilla chips.

Let's not forget their burritos!  They remind me of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the US.

 Yum,yum, yum! I wanna run to J. Abad right now to satisfy my Mexican craving  : ))))

Tummy Trip in Europe: L'Alsace, at the most beautiful avenue in the world..

Yes, I'm biased but I'm sure millions will agree , The Avenue des Champs Elysees in Paris is the most beautiful avenue..sigh..sigh..sigh...It runs two kilometers along the 8th arrondisement and home to specialty shops, cafes , cinemas with the beautiful nipped trees dotting the entire avenue. I love the Champs!  I love walking the entire stretch and even if you don't buy or eat anything,  which is impossible really, simply soaking in the vibe is pure bliss.

It was a sunny Saturday and perfect for a leisurely walk and lunch coupled with some window shopping along the Champs.  For a moment or two , I was debating whether to eat in a bistro or a quaint cafe somewhere in Montmarte or the Marais, or a brasserie  in the 6th , 7th or 10th arrondissement. Being a culinary superpower, there are so many restaurants in Paris,  I can't imagine how many per square foot but I love it.  You can choose  from the Michelin rated to the legendary ones where luminaries once occupied tables or the nondescript family style kitchen offering classic, no frills French dishes and you have  20 arrondissements (districts) to consider. You'll go crazy before you can even say " une table pour deux s'il vous plait " : )

We spotted L'Alsace because of its great location and since the place was moderately packed with diners, we opted to have lunch there. We got a good table inside, close enough to the sidewalk but not really outside wherein the tourists passing by can scrutinize your food.

We ordered the french onion soup. I love French onion soup and when you're in France or Paris, this is a must!

L'Alsace's french onion soup is perfect for me. The caramelized onion in the rich beef stock topped with baguette and swiss cheese was heavenly...

We tried the chicken salad as well.

This is a simple salad of chicken breast strips, fresh greens, tomatoes and a light dressing. It tasted alright nothing really fancy but it has that French flair which made it picture perfect. Notice how lovely the color of the tomatoes with the greens.. hmmmm..it could use a bit of salt actually but I didn't seem to mind hehe..The place is just so beautiful they could have given me crumbs and I would just let it slide hahaha...
But to be fair , the salad was OK . It went well with the warm bread and butter.

For the main course, we had the chicken with fresh pasta and the fresh knuckle of pork with sauerkraut.

                                           chicken with fresh pasta


The chicken was ok , it was a bit dry but I like the mild flavor with the fresh chives. The fresh pasta was delicious. Nothing beats fresh pasta and I like the homemade tomato sauce but they should have added a few more tablespoons of it to compensate for the texture of the chicken.

                                           fresh knucke of pork with sauerkraut

The knuckle of pork turned out to be a huge dish good for two. Doesn't it look like a pata (pork hock, knuckle )  that's waiting to be fried to golden crispy perfection? Crispy pata in the making right? Hehe..Though I really prefer crispy pata, this knuckle of pork was boiled fork tender and very flavorful , its really good and we had it with fresh mustard, potatoes and sauerkraut. If you're a fan of fresh corned beef, then this dish is for you.

We had a great time at L'Alsace . The wait staff,  though they looked harassed ,  were friendly and attentive.  And what more can I say ? You're in Paris baby!  at "La plus belle avenue du monde" ! : )

Lunch at HK Choi

There's Choi Garden, Mr. Choi Kitchen and HK Choi. HK Choi is the one located at the SM Megamall Atrium , operated by Choi Garden also.

We ordered the spinach with seafood soup. I love soups. I prefer starting my meals with a hot soup ( at home, we always have a soup stock on stand by).

It looks small but the serving size was enough for our group of 5. Minced seafood mixed with healthy spinach leaves in a thick broth. Yummy! It wasn't salty and I hope no MSG was added .

We tried the seafood salad roll. This is such a winner. Crabstick, fish fillet, shrimps in a creamy salad dressing  wrapped in breadcrumbs and fried until they're golden brown. I love this dish because I'm fond of croquettes ( and other crispy and crunchy stuff) .   Actually, this dish reminds me of a hot prawn salad in disguise.

We had 3 or 4 orders of dimsum but they vanished quickly , just took one picture of the hakaw/hargow.  I still prefer the dimsum in Gloria Maris Greenhills but it was ok.

The beef with broccoli was good. The beef was tender and I liked that they fully cooked the broccoli. I don't like half cooked veggies, I feel that they don't get digested easily.

This is their version of the lemon chicken. It looks funny. I was expecting plump chicken breasts or boneless thighs instead of strips. Next dish please..

The lohon chay vegetables with tofu made up for the lemon chicken.

Except for the lemon chicken , everything was perfect with rice, lots of it...

 More carbs from the birthday noodles. I love noodles but got disappointed with this dish, something is missing , it's neither here nor there..

Still, it was a good lunch even with a few misses. The restaurant is spacious enough for big family gatherings and service wasn't bad at all.

Tummy Trip in Europe - Best Eats in Hungary

Budapest. Paris of Eastern Europe. This Hungarian capital has breathtaking and grand architecture , old world and mysterious charm , history seeping in every corner and great food that awaits every visitor.

Budapest from Buda castle..

the Parliament

The famous Chain Bridge divides Budapest into Buda and Pest and in terms of finding good chows, it doesn't matter which side you end up with because for sure, you will spot a cafe or eatery serving heartwarming hungarian goulash , stews and other famous Magyar dishes aside from the Hungarian sausage.

                the Chain bridge by the Danube..

 Hungarian cuisine uses a lot of paprika, sour cream, onions and garlic. We were able to sample most of the top dishes to try in Hungary starting off with the most famous goulash. The first goulash we had was in Menza , a modern cafe /bistro type popular with the locals and tourists. It is located along Ference ter 2 and very near the bustling Andrassy utca. Lonely Planet and Trip Advisor mentioned Menza as go to the place for authentic Hungarian cuisine in an art deco setting.

Goulash is like our beef caldereta. It uses tenderloin or sirloin with tomatoes, paprika , garlic , boiled tender topped with sour cream. It is usually served with spatzel or flour dumplings.

                                             Hungarian goulash with spatzel


I ordered their garlic soup with bread which reminded me of a donut. I love the creamy soup soup with the mild garlic taste, just right.

                                                  garlic soup and bread with sour cream

We also tried their version of a grilled chicken with sour cream on a sandwich. This was really yummy!

                                            take out !
Menza was great.  Prices were just right , the service was ok , the staff were friendly, making our first meal in Budapest really a wonderful experience.

For the next few days, we made it a goal to try the other local favorites like cabbage rolls, chicken paprika , sausages and the Dobos cake, a sponge cake filled with cream and caramel.. ..

Thankfully, the next day we spotted this cafe along Vaci Utca serving guess what? cabbage rolls and chicken paprika so we opted to eat there...

We had goulash soup to start since it was cold that day in Budapest and we had quite a walk from Buda castle and the Parliament ...

                                             Goulash soup

Their goulash soup was really tender and piping hot, perfect for chilled diners like us... It even comes with a basket of freshly baked bread , perfect for getting the remaining contents of the cup.

                                           my order of  cabbage rolls

I got the cabbage rolls. Cabbage rolls  are,  well, cabbage slices with meat filling and sometimes rice,  cooked in tomatoes and paprika topped with sour cream.  These rolls are really good, they even served it with sauerkraut.

                                           chicken paprika with baked spatzel

Marco got the chicken paprika with spatzel ( flour dumplings). This dish was very creamy with the right amount of heat, they used mild paprika and the sauce was perfect for the spatzel. Spatzel is actually made from flour and cooked in butter. It serves as the rice or carbs for the meat.

More Magyar delights the next few days..

At Cafe Montmarte ( a French cafe in Budapest hmmm..)

Having brocolli soup with panini and pizza for a light snack ..

                                          the brocolli soup was good...

                                            the panini was good too..

We visited the Central Market Hall, the largest covered market in Budapest selling everything from paprika to sausages, baked desserts, souvenir items, cheese and endless rows of food stalls serving authentic Hungarian cuisine for a cheaper price...

paprika everywhere..

sausages and other deli

tried their rice based lasagna...

its really good unfortunately it just collapsed ..flavorful meat , rice , cheese, sour cream and what else paprika ..

Budapest has good desserts and pastries...i bought the Dobos for just one Hungarian forint..Dobos as mentioned earlier is a sponge cake with cream filling  and a flaky crust...

We tried Tao, their local Chinese resto , it was packed with students and office workers. It's a self service casual dining place wherein diners choose the dishes they like from the buffet...

the food was good ..

Even our hotel served Hungarian food in the breakfast buffet along with other continental staples like cereals, breads, fruits , yoghurt etc..Ever present of course were the assorted Hungarian sausages hehe..

I can't forget about this rice dish they served for breakfast..Rice cooked with tomatoes, onions and paprika..Perfect with Hungarian sausages..

love this rice! 

french toast with sugar beets and sausage..

We truly enjoyed Hungarian cuisine  and the other delights Budapest has to offer and though Magyar dishes may be  rich or heavy  for some, it sure did warm not only our tummies but our hearts as well.