King Chef

King Chef restaurant along Banawe St. in Quezon City is located pretty much at the end of Banawe, near Del Monte Avenue and Sgt. Rivera.  As such, I haven't been to the place until my cousins hosted a family lunch there a couple of weeks ago.  The place was nice and neat, and the second floor area was spacious enough to hold big banquets of say 15 tables of 12 people each.  Our meal consisted of several viands--the works from soup, fish, vegetables, chicken, beef and pork to dessert (sesame balls).  Good Chinese cuisine, which is what Banawe St. is known for.

Contemporary Hotel

We had the immediate need to book some visiting family members at a hotel in the Araneta Avenue area, and the Contemporary Hotel presented itself as the fastest solution.  Located just beside the Arlington Memorial Homes, the hotel is a budget hotel that charges around P2,500 per room night.  Rooms were spacious, but spartan, fulfilling just the basic necessities.  Cousin Ed wasn't too happy about the place though, and if not for the convenient location, would have chosen some other hotel in the Manila area.

Highlands Coffee

With so many coffee shops sprouting around town, we've been pretty much oblivious to the the details that each new chain would bring in.  The other night, we were riding along Espana Extension in Quezon City with some friends, and as a ritual, had to stop by some eating place just before heading home.  While we thought that Bo's coffee shop was still around in the Waltermart area, we got to the place just to find that Highlands Coffee had taken its place.  Not knowing this brand, we were pleasantly surprised to find out that the coffee shop was originally conceived in Vietnam and is now expanding its presence in the Philippines.

I took the mango ice tea, which was served with a special twist--mango scoops were mixed in with the drink, a treat that was sort of in-between drink and dessert.  My friends had coffee, and from what I understand, this Vietnamese version had a stronger caffeine presence and packed a mean wake-up wallop!  Typical coffee shop pricing--with around P100 you can have a drink, and if you want some desserts, you may have to add another P100 to your budget.  Being very near St. Luke's hospital and several other schools, I wasn't surprised that the place was patronized by several students, who were all busy reading their class materials.

Xocolat

Chocolate lovers unite!  Seems to me that the battle cry rings in my ears every time I pass by a chocolate store--whether it be a chocolate candy store or a chocolate cafe.  Xocolat at the ground floor of the Promenade in Greenhills has a pleasant and relaxed atmosphere, and I enjoyed the business meeting I had there last week.  My chocolate drink came reasonably hot, not too thick nor too sweet.  Reasonable spend, just under P150 per person.  Nice place to lounge around while waiting for friends or family to finish up with the movies.  Next time, I'd probably try out their cakes, they looked delicious from afar.

Nozomi

The variety of eating places in the Ortigas area isn't a broad and extensive as that of Makati.  Take Japanese cuisine, for example--in Makati, one can find the full range of places to eat, from inexpensive fast food to the most exquisite restaurants.  I've been looking for a good mid-range Japanese place in the Ortigas Center, and until last week, wasn't to happy with the number of choices I had.  Nozomi, at the 6th floor of the One Corporate Center, was a good find.  The restaurant has a good range of available dishes, from simple fast meals like udon, ramen and donburi, to fresh sashimi and sushi, to more popular sukiyaki, teppanyaki, tempura, teriyaki.  Set meals are available too, and overall spend is something at the level of P350 per head.  The restaurant is only a few months old, and it seems that the place has already built a good following.  Function rooms are also available for small groups.

The Perfect 10

It's Olympic season once more, and my first memories of watching the games rush back to mind.  That was 1976, the Montreal games, when Nadia Comaneci managed to pull off the perfect score of 10 at the uneven bars, the first in Olympic gymnastics history.  We stayed up late at night to watch the TV reruns, and the mostly unheard of sport of gymnastics became the hottest topic in school.  At that time, I didn't quite understand world events, and it only became apparent in later years--coming after the horrible terrorist attack in the 1972 Munich game, the triumph of the perfect 10 roused the human spirit from oblivion, a sort of catharsis for humanity.  Nadia not only became a hero of the sport, but also helped to keep the Olympic ideals alive.  When Nadia was in Manila a few years ago, I recall reading with delight her interview in the local dailies--it was about how she gave encouragement and hope to aspiring local athletes.  Putting the story of her sporting victories alongside the story of her persecution in Romania and subsequent defection to the United States, I'd say that her tale is a one that serves as a beacon of inspiration to us all.

Cafe 1771

I am quite particular about how a good dish of callos should taste, and I was very happy with the way Cafe 1771 prepared the dish for me.  Part of the Chateau group, this coffee shop & restaurant is a pleasure to dine in, with well-appointed interiors, courteous staff and fine food.  Located at the El Pueblo compound along Julia Vargas Avenue in the Ortigas Center, the only drawback for the place is that parking space is quite limited, you have to be early for your appointments just to be sure that parking is available.

The business part of the meeting was over in a jiffy, and we enjoyed the rest of the meal as the food came in.  My colleagues had salad, baked fish, and pasta, all of which looked quite appetizing.  Pricing is such that you can spend anywhere from P500 for a fast lunch all the way to P1,500 (the works).