Thursday Thought

"You must not lose faith in humanity.  Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty."

-Mahatma Gandhi

"There are causes worth dying for, but none worth killing for."

-Albert Camus

"Never think that war, no matter how necessary, nor how justified, is not a crime."

-Ernest Hemingway

"There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people."

-Howard Zinn

"The world is full enough of hurts and mischances without wars to multiply them."

-J.R.R. Tolkien

"No one won the last war, and no one will win the next war."

-Eleanor Roosevelt

My heart is breaking with what's happening in our world.  It's not just about what's happening in Gaza, it's also because of North Korea's threats, those plane crashes and disappearance, and let's not forget the bombings and shootings all over the world.  What happened to humanity?  What happened to us?  What triggered us to become these monsters?  I don't know all the truths, but with what I've been reading, we're all crazy messed up.  I know this blog post isn't gonna solve our problems, but I just want to put my thoughts out and shed a little awareness.  Even just a bit.  It's crazy how some of us, including myself, are complaining about silly things while hundreds of people are being bombed at in their own home. *sigh*

Simplicity.

I always notice this restaurant in the corner of Trinoma Mall's 2nd floor North Ave side called Recipes every time I pass by there.  The area is small and really simple, but it's always jam packed.  And we all know, there's only one possible reason for that, the food might be good.  So my companions and I decided to have our late-lunch-early-dinner there. :)

"Our life is frittered away by detail.  Simplify, simplify."

-Henry David Thoreau

Adobo Flakes (Php 180.00)

Out of all the rice meals, I would probably pick this one as the best.  It's crunchy and soft.  It's tasteful and kid-friendly.  My brother loved it, and he's a real picky eater.  This one's a steal!  Look at that portion. :)

Crispy Bangus (Php 185.00)

And the 2nd place goes to this milkfish dish.  If you wanna go a bit healthier, go for this one.  I said, a bit because it's still fried food, you know. :D

Korean BBQ Short Ribs (Php 175.00)

A little dry, isn't it?  I personally think you can order better than this.  I expected a little more sauce and moist, but for the price of the meal, it's still quite okay.  But reality check, okay is not good. :)

Pork Inihaw (Php 170.00)

I recommend everyone not to pick this one.  Look at that, it makes me sad just by looking at it.

All of the viands above includes a cup of plain rice and an iced tea, and with just an additional of (Php 10.00), you can have a cup of garlic rice instead. :)

Lechon Kawali with Kangkong (Php 218.00)

Crispy fried pork + stir fried water spinach = a really good balance of good and bad.  Well, in my opinion. :p  You may disagree, but you can't change my mind. :) 

Gising Gising (Php 175.00)

This is one of my favorite vegetable dish, ever.  It contains ground pork, green beans, coconut milk, shrimp paste, and seasonings.  It taste heavenly!  I can eat it everyday. :)

Their rice meals are really affordable; they're actually budget friendly with options from every possible food category.  I think their a la carte choices were better tasting, so you might wanna lean over that side of the menu in picking what to eat.  There were hits and misses but I still recommend this restaurant to everyone, especially students who are tired of eating at the same fastfood joints over and over again. :)

                                                                                       Later!☺

Music Monday

London Grammar is one of my favorite underrated bands.  I stumble upon them while I was watching random youtube videos probably around this time last year.  I still remember that Wasting My Young Years is the first song I heard from them and I instantly loved them.  Hannah Reid's voice is magical!  I initially thought Hannah Reid is London Grammar, just like Foxes or Birdy, but then I googled London Grammar and to my surprise it's a band!  An amazing one at that. :)

Devil Inside is not London Grammar's original song, but it's a cover song from INXS.  This wonderful cover was used for Game of Thrones's Season 4 trailer early this year.  I love it so much, I decided to put it here. :)

They're really amazing, aren't they?!  I love the melody, the lyrics, Hannah's voice, the instruments' combinations; everything perfectly fits.♥

I've read over the web that they're amazing live and I wish to see them perform a few meters away from me anytime soon, or merely in my lifetime would be more than enough.  If you liked them, go get their album called If You Wait.  If you didn't liked them, you need to get your ears checked.  Kidding aside, try listening to their other songs; aside from the songs shared or mentioned above, I also like Strong, Nightcall, Metal & Dust, and If You Wait.  :)



                                                                                            Ta Ta!☺

Me-time.

Pampering oneself is very important.  It relieves stress, it makes you look good, it makes you feel better, and it makes you happy.  A few hours of indulgence isn't so bad, when you think about it.  So last Friday, I decided to have my nails done at Kamp Nail Hub, one of the newly opened nail salon at U.P. Village.  If you want to visit or contact them, just click on KNH's name for their site. :)

I had their for the Ladies package, if I remember correctly.  It includes a manicure, a pedicure, a foot spa with mask, and a foot massage.  I wanna go back!  And next time, I wanna bring my friends or my cousins over for some girly time. :)

I forgot Ate's name but she's an angel!  She has the gentlest hand, ever!  I mean, in my entire life, ever!! :)

I was the only customer that time and I loved every single minute of it!  I needed that serenity.  And I also loved the temperature of the room!  It's probably 20 degree Celsius, a great escape from the 35 degree Celsius temp outside. :)

I opted for matte black nail polish just because.  If I could wear this color forever, I would.  I love love love black and recently, I'm obsessing over matte black anything.☺

Close-up!♥

                                                                                            Bisous!☺

Music Monday

There are two reasons why I decided to share this artist or this song this week.  (That's a lot of this in one sentence.)  When I first saw the video below, I literally shed a few tears!  I'm not kidding or exaggerating.  I merely can relate with what the video is portraying.  Self-esteem is not so easy to acquire.  It's something we all work on everyday.  I really commend John Legend for making this video, it's amazing, uplifting, and real.  And for the song, he never fails to make a girl feel better and feel special.

Have you seen it?  Now, how do you feel?☺  Anyhoo, another reason why I wanted to showcase John Legend this week is because he's coming back to Manila this year!  AAAAAH!!  I missed him last time that's why I want to catch him this time!  I wanna watch him perform live the song above, All Of Me, Everybody Knows, Take Me Away, Save Room, and Ordinary People.  Ordinary-freaking-People!!!  Where's a genie or a fairy godmother when you need one?  I hope I get to save money before the ticket sells out.  Or I wish for a good samaritan to give me a ticket.♥

                                                                                                                    See you in his concert!!☺ 

                                                                                                                *fingers-crossed*

Agape.

How Do I Love Thee?

by: Elizabeth Barrett Browning

How do I love thee?  Let me count the ways.

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height

My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight

For the ends of being and ideal grace.

I love thee to the level of every day's

Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.

I love thee freely, as men strive for right.

I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.

I love thee with the passion put to use

In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith.

I love thee with a love I seemed to lose

With my lost saints.  I love thee with the breath,

Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,

I shall but love thee better after death.



How Do I Love Thee?, Sonnet 43 from Sonnets from the Portuguese by Elizabeth Barrett Browning is one of my favorite poetry, ever.  It's said that she wrote it for her husband, Robert Browning, and I find it amusing because I grew up with non-romantic parents and I can't help but wonder what if they were, what would have happened then.  I discovered the poem when I was still in high school and up until now, I still love it.  It just never gets old and whether you're in a relationship or not, you can appreciate it.  It makes you, actually it makes me, believe in love every time I read it.  Real, unconditional, loyal, and forgiving love exists.  It's never gonna be easy, it's not gonna be a walk in the park finding it, or keeping it, or sustaining it, but it exists.  And sometimes that's all I need to think or hear. :)



                                                                                         Ta Ta!☺

Upcoming.

Last week, a very good friend of mine invited me to have an early dinner in her friend's restaurant at Ampid, San Mateo, Rizal named Estancia de Lorenzo.  It's a farm to table restaurant that will be open to the general public soon; but so far, they're still on soft opening exclusively for family, colleagues, and friends. :)

Estancia's Duck Burger

This couldn't be more perfect to be their signature dish.  It deserves to have the restaurant's name on it.  I'm obsessed with their Kamias vinaigrette!!  It's tangy, sweet and uniquely refreshing!♥  And the salad matches the burger perfectly.  The patty tasted good but the seasoning was a little unbalanced, there were saltier parts and a little more binder was really needed to refrain it from falling apart but I really love that it's not oily or gamy.  The buns were falling to pieces too, so that needs to be fixed as well but so far so good.  :)

Duck Ragu Bolognese

I was told every dish were made from scratch!  I was really impressed because it could only get better from here. :)  What I love about this pasta is the chicharon-like bits.  I couldn't get enough of it! :D  Anyhoo, this dish is already A-okay, I don't have any critical comments. :)

Organic Duck Salpicao

People who like healthy organic food will really love EDL.  I would probably enjoyed this dish more if it came with mashed potato or twice baked potato or rice.  Haha! :p  The duck cubes were a little tough and chewy, probably from overcooking.  The sauce tasted amazing, it's salty with a hint of sweetness.  I personally prefer salpicao to be really garlic-y and pepper-y but I understand that some people don't like that. :)

Minted Kamias and Pineapple Basil

I was kind of disappointed with my Minted Kamias because I did not, in any way, tasted any hint of mint.  I expected it to be really refreshing because I imagined the coldness of mint and the sourness of kamias combined but I got shocked when I sipped and tasted what seems to taste like a candied kamias shake.  My friend opted for their Pineapple Basil and the combination was divine!☺

Triple Chocolate Tablea Smores

This dessert was not too sweet and the chocolate wafer won me over.  Think of champorado with a twist.  The smores were unavailable at the time so I'm kind of excited to go back and try this once again complete with smores. :)

Pandan Cheesecake

Sumptuous, isn't it?  I really like that the pandan flavor was incorporated really well in the cheesecake and the ice cream makes the ensemble burst flavors in your mouth. :)

I really believe that with a few alterations and innovations, Estancia de Lorenzo has a potential to be one of the best farm to table restaurant in the metro despite of being hidden in the suburbs of Rizal. :)  I want to thank my friend, Tweetums, for the invitation and the Lorenzo family, especially Katrina and Catherine, for the awesome dining experience, for the complimentary food, and for taking my comments with kindness and respect. :)

                                                                                             Toodles!☺

Music Monday

In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart.  -Anne Frank

I find this MV so cute and I really like the song.  I've been reading a lot of bad reviews regarding Robin Thicke's latest album named 'Paula' because they said it's too personal and not meant to be publicized.  But personally, I like the album and actually the track above is my favorite among the songs.  I will never know what truly happened between the couple but I really hope they sort it out.  I'm not sure if the album was honestly made for apologizing and for winning her back or for publicity purposes; If the reason is the former, I want to commend Robin Thicke for admitting his shortcomings through some of the songs and for trying to win her wife's heart back.  Not everyone is strong enough to do that, more so to do that with the world watching.

P.S.

I'm sorry for being too serious with this post.  I just don't like separations and break ups.  It's always personal for me, and besides I really feel sorry for their kid.  The innocents are the ones who suffer the most.

                                                                                  Love,

UP Town Girl

A few weeks ago, my classes ended early and I got a bunch of time to spare before my brother's dismissal that's why I decided to stay at UP Town Center in Katipunan.  There are a couple of restaurants, a coffee shop, and a boutique store in the building.  It's not entirely finished yet, so there might be more businesses to open soon. :)

I was alone at first, coming from school, and I chose to stay at Vanilla Cupcake Bakery to try it out for the first time.  Once I entered the shop, I can't help but to fangirl over the sweet treats!  It's like being in a bookstore for readers and being in a toy store for kids! :)

Vanilla Milkshake (Php 120.00)

Safe bet.  I was not feeling adventurous at the time so I opted for my truly trusted basic milkshake.

Oreo Cheesecake Cupcake (Php 95.00)

Cheesecake is one of my favorite cakes ever!  I have an experience making one and it's easy and hard at the same time.  I don't wanna go into details about my baking success and mishaps stories, just trust me on this one.  So I ordered this cupcake to see if they have what it takes to last in the competitive specialty restaurant world; And girl, they can in my opinion!  The cheesecake is dense and velvety.  It's also not too sweet.  The balance of oreo bits, oreo crust, cheesecake, and whipped cream is phenomenal!! :)

While I was there, my cousin arrived and we decided to try 8 Cuts Burger Blends because I've been reading a lot of fuss about it.  I wasn't able to take a photo of the interiors but I really dig it!  It's rustic-industrial.  I really love the unfinished vibe!

We picked the Rated GP (Add: Php 90.00) on the menu, that made our chosen burger a complete meal--with fries and soda.  Nothing special with the fries, just your regular fries with a little barbecue flavoring.

Burger with Sauce No. 3 (Php 145.00)

My cousin ordered this and it's practically the same everything with my order sans the cheese, so my full review or reaction will be below. :D

Music Monday

Sam Smith is my greatest 2014 artist discovery.  Well, yes, I've been living under a rock for quite some time that's why I just discovered Sam a couple of months ago this year.  And man, I love him!  I listen to him every day to make up for the loss time.  I hope I'm not the only one who do that!  Anyway, a lot of us have been hearing his songs playing over the radio specifically Latch, Money on my Mind, La La La, and Stay With Me so I personally opted to not share those songs for my Music Monday. :)

I am sharing my most favorite track from Sam Smith's In the Lonely Hour album...

I love the song so much!  There are just so many feelings when I'm listening to it.  If you have ever been in an unrequited love, I know you're gonna understand.  Sam Smith himself mentioned in an interview that his album is inspired by a one-sided love affair.  The whole album is really heartbreakingly beautiful!  Someone said he's like the male version of Adele, and I couldn't agree more.  He can absolutely tug your heartstrings!  What's up with these brilliant British artists these past few years?  They've been dominating the music industry. :)

                                                                                        Ta Ta!☺

Affamato.

Eating some where I've never eaten before is one of my favorite things in the world.  It's like reading a book or watching a movie for the first time, it's always refreshing whether the experience is good or not.  

Friuli Trattoria is a well-known Italian restaurant in Maginhawa Street or the "eat street" of Quezon City.  My cousin, Mim, recommended this hole in the wall to me a while back.  But they renovated and closed the shop for some time that's why I just recently tried dining there. :)

Their menu.  The vibe of the restaurant isn't Italian-y and more on the low key side of interior design.  The whole area is also quite small but homey! :)

Mozzarella Sticks (Php 135.00)

I hate to put this out here but I think I'm a rat in my past life.  I am deeply and madly in love with cheese.  It's like bacon for me, and that's a big deal.  You know it! :)  This mozzarella sticks are crunchy and chewy, there's a good breading and filling proportion too!  And last but not the least, the salsa compliments the sticks so well!  I finished two sticks and probably would eat them all if I'm not with companions!♥

Tuna and Mushroom (Php 110.00)

I'm gonna be biased with this one because we, my cousins and I, always cook this at home!  So I found it fine tasting but not appetizing enough to make me get some more; Though there was a good portion of mushroom and tuna in the creamy sauce.  I think other people will really like this! :)

Pesto (Php 140.00)

Honestly, I was so disappointed with this pesto!  Out of all the pasta we ordered, this one's my idea because I love anything pesto.  To my dismay, it was so dry and bland. :(  My suggestion to make this dish better is I believe they should put more cheese on the pesto sauce to make it more creamy.

Spaghetti Meatsauce (Php 125.00)

I rarely order spaghetti meat sauce in restaurants.  Mainly because my mother make the best spaghetti meat sauce, ever.  Like, in the whole wide world!  Though I've never been everywhere, I know in my heart that's true.  And our relatives would agree, I swear!  Cross my heart! :)  So after tasting this one, I was kind of shocked that I liked it!  It's in the middle of filipino style and italian style spaghetti.  It has the right balance of sweetness and sourness, and it's also creamy care of the cheese. :)

Il mio piatto.♥

Viva Venezia (Php 210.00)

Ever since I can remember, I have always been a thin crust kind of girl.  I love the crisp and the ease in eating it.  I also like eating everything, no leftover for anyone to see. :D  I'm not sure if pizza can be described as hearty, but I'm gonna stand my ground and say this one is! :)

Tre Formaggi (Php 180.00)

Three cheese pizza!  Aaaah!  The death of me.  I guess I reached the verge of my allowable cheese consumption that day!  This pizza was good, a little salty but still good.  I ended up feeling nauseous with everything cheesy I ate, I swear never again. :)

My support group!☺  Cousins and friends that can talk about anything and everything happening in our lives!  No holds barred.♥ 

(T-B) Dianne, Arianne, Irisse, Mariz, Alyssa ☺

"Boyfriends and girlfriends come and go, but this is for life!"

-Phoebe Buffay, F.R.I.E.N.D.S

                                                                                                  Arrivederci!☺

Hulyo.

Hello July!☺  I'm quite ambivalent with you.  You're my least and at the same time my most favorite month.  I love celebrating my birthday, I like feeling special(who doesn't?) but I hate adding another number on my age.  Anyhoo, I'm claiming that this year is gonna be my best birthday yet!  And I'm not saying party-great but overall life-amazing, God knows what I mean. :)

                                                                                       Later!☺