Nice surprise at Nathaniel's

If there's one newly-discovered (for me!) foodie place that I can heap superlatives on, it's Nathaniel's Bakeshop. If you haven't been there, well, it's not just a bakeshop, it's a restaurant, too, that offers a somewhat wide range of dishes aside from being a food store that sells a variety of breads and pastries, puto, siopao and many other munchies.  I tell you this, and I assure you I'm not kidding, what we ate there were the best in their own league. Consider this: the best pancit palabok, the best pancit sotanghon and the best burger steak this side of earth. Haha!! 

I first heard about Nathaniel's from Ate Baby, one of my co-workers, last month. She wanted to buy Buko Pandan, which, she attested, was so good there. A few days later, we went to the Timog Ave. branch. There were four of us aboard our officemate's L-300 van. At Ate Baby's urging, we ordered palabok for take out. We also bought other food items including pichi-pichi and asado roll for me and a box of sans rival for Pam. Back in the office minutes later, I dug into my palabok. Mmm.. I was in love in an instant! I kid you not, this was the best palabok I've ever had in my life! Since then, I'd been looking for a chance to bring my family to Nathaniel's. That chance came on Black Saturday but alas! The restaurant was closed. Finally, last Saturday, we had the opportunity again. Two of my kids and I dropped by Timog Ave. on our way to get our organic veggies at the QC Circle. 
These were our orders: 

Pancit Palabok, P70. Definitely a must-try!

Sotanghon Guisado, P70. Very yummy too!

Sizzling Burger Steak, P135. The best burger steak I've ever tasted!

Lumpiang Sariwa, P55. 

Siomai, P55.

Buko Pandan Juice, P50. Another must-try!

Brewed coffee, P45.


Man, did we enjoy our meal! All, except for one, was very good! My daughter enjoyed her palabok to the hilt. As I write this, she's asking me to buy her palabok tomorrow. Hehe. My little boy, who eats burger steak each time we're in Jollibee, also loved it here. His ate  and I shared his leftover patty. At P135 per order consisting of two large and thick patties, a generous serving of rice and buttered veggies -  sulit talaga! Meanwhile, my sotanghon guisado left me really full and satisfied. The serving was big (I wasn't able to finish it) and it was really delicious, with lots of meat and vegetables. Even the slice of bread that came with it was good. And the siomai? Delicious too! And unlike other food places that give 3 to 4 pieces per order, Nathaniel's serves 5 pieces of siomai per order. And what did we have that wasn't so good? It's the Lumpiang Sariwa. We (my daughter and I) concluded that the sauce was the culprit - too mild in flavor, it failed to bring out the goodness of the lumpia itself. But hey, there's another thing to heap superlatives on - the Buko Pandan Juice - Nathaniel's signature drink. It's like having a drink and dessert in one. Very refreshing! Well, I liked my brewed coffee too, though it was already a bit cold when I sipped it at the end of my meal. Also, it was served in a plastic cup, which I didn't like 
(BPA, you know!)
Well, where's the surprise I was saying?
It's in the take-out bag!

See? There's a Bible verse written on it, and one of my favorites at that! Thank you Lord 

for my surprise blessing. :-)

Inside Nathaniels's Bakeshop along Timog Ave. in Quezon City.

Nathaniel's Bakeshop traces its origin to the City of San Fernando in Pampanga, in 1994. Its popularity quickly grew, fueled by its siomai, puto pao and buko pandan. Now it has four branches in Pampanga and two in Metro Manila - along Timog Ave. and in Alabang, Muntinlupa City. For more information, check out their website here: http://www.nathaniels.com.ph/index.php

The real 'power breakfast'

What's your morning routine? Me, as I open my eyes and sit up the bed, I say a prayer to praise God and thank Him for giving me another day to serve Him in my own little way. Then I get up and do the things I have to do like clean the house, bathe the dog, cook, etc. And then I sit down for breakfast, after which (and sometimes during) I read the Word of God, the Holy Bible. Feeding the soul more than the physical body, for me, is the real "power breakfast" and the best way to start the day right.

My brekkie for the day - a cup of coffee and goodies from BreadTalk which my hubby brought home last night plus a few slices of garlic toast from French Baker. Here also is my Bible which I read everyday.

Have your fill of international food favorites at Nitz

Eating out in the company of family or friends and not agreeing on where to go to satisfy your varying cravings? Try Nitz Restaurant! Here you can have your fill of delicious Filipino, Italian, Japanese, American, even French food! For added bonus, menu prices won't burn a hole in your pocket. How's that for an interesting food trip?

The first time I ate at Nitz was about two months ago although I've been seeing this restaurant for a few years already whenever I would pass by the corners of P. Noval St. and Espana Blvd. near UST in Manila. I was amazed that this small, simple restaurant offered a wide variety of  dishes: Filipino - goto, tapsilog, different types of pancit, lomi, mami. kare-kare, dinuguan, etc.; a French classic - chicken cordon bleu; Italian - fish parmigiana, pasta (carbonara, lasagna, spaghetti); American - hamburger; and Japanese - katsudon, yakiniku,  gyudon, chicken teriyaki and tempura. It's almost like there's something for everyone here. Over the next weeks, my kids and I often ate at Nitz when we attended church service at Victory U-Belt. 

Here are the dishes that we've tried:

Yakiniku, P80.

Katsudon, P80.

Tocilog, P75. 

Tapsilog, P75.

Pancit Palabok, P50.

Lasagna, P60.

Spaghetti, P50.

Chicken Cordon Bleu, P80.

Siomai, P35.

Buko Pandan, P41.

Our usual drink - C2 iced tea

Inside Nitz Restaurant on Espana Blvd. in Manila

Lasagna is the bestseller at Nitz and rightly so, I may say, 'coz it tastes really great - a wee bit sour, a little sweet and a lot creamy! However, the serving is too small that it will leave you wanting for more especially when you're ravenous. Also unforgettable here is their spaghetti. It's Pinoy-style but not too sweet; so yummy! - the reason it was a big hit for my youngest child. I liked the Chicken Cordon Bleu as well. 

Nitz Restaurant has three branches in Sampaloc, Manila: at Espana Blvd.corner P. Noval, R. Papa St. and Dapitan corner Asturias Streets. There's one, too along Regalado corner Buick Streets in West Fairview, Quezon City (in front of FEU Hospital) and at TUP Bldg. on 

San Marcelino St., Ermita, Manila.    

A 'blockbuster' lunch!

            No, we didn't lunch on juicy steaks, nor prime ribs, nor the freshest seafood. We had..err..donuts. So, why do I say 'blockbuster'? Because the line to get our lunch lasted some 20 minutes, like we were queuing for tickets to a blockbuster movie. Truth was, we were still lucky that the line when we came was short (this was outside, but there's still a line inside!) because it was still lunchtime. Well, that was the strategy because not many people equate lunch with just donuts right? Hehe.. Lines at J. CO since it opened at Trinoma mall last year have been crazy especially on peak hours in the afternoon till evenings, so I thought we ought to buy and eat there around lunchtime. But alas! We didn't escape the queue though it was 
not very long, thankfully. 

J. CO Donuts is today's fastest growing donut and coffee chain in South-East Asia that traces its roots to Jakarta, Indonesia, where it began its operations in 2005. In March 2012, the first 
J. CO branch in the Philippines opened at SM Megamall. At present, other stores are found at Trinoma (which my kids and I visited for the first time last Friday), Mall of Asia, Greenbelt 3, Ayala Town Center and Eastwood City,

Before I got to taste a J. CO donut, I was wondering about and amused by the long lines. But when I tasted those melt-in-the-mouth donuts especially the J. Club donut sandwich, my question was answered. Now I know why people are crazy about them. They're unlike the donuts we grew up with. They're chewy-soft, come in new, delightful flavors (ex. tiramisu, lychee, avocado) and do not overwhelm you with sweetness. The donuts also come in cute names such as Why Nut, and some, with celebrity-sounding names like Avocado Dicaprio, Blueberry More and Berry Spears. These sweet munchies have become such a huge hit among Filipinos that often, you'd see people going out the store or on the streets carrying boxes, not just a few pieces of J. CO donuts. 
Anyway, these were what we had during last Friday's lunch out from the office:

J. Club Cheezy Rich (P45 each).  This donut sandwich is sooo yummy it'll make you forget your name!

Blueberry More

See that creamy filling oozing out? Delicious!

Alcapone. Some people swear this is the most delicious J. CO donut.

Berry Spears. We pulled this out of our take-home box, the reason it looks squished.

Complimentary Glazzy Donuts  :-)

My daughter's drink - Cappuccino Frappe (P130)

My little boy's drink - Iced Chocolate (P115)

My drink - Americano coffee (P85)

We bought 2-dozen donuts, most of them for my officemates (pabili. hehe..).

This whole box of 12 donuts was for my boss, who says she can finish 3 in one sitting. Hehe..

J. Pops baby donuts on display (P250/2 dozens). Aren't they real cuties?

The counters inside J. CO

The lines inside (not including the peeps queing outside). There's a separate line for dine in and take out.

J. CO donuts cost P42 apiece. When you buy a dozen, you'll pay less at P350, and even lesser at P550 when you buy 2 dozens.

Loving lunch-outs at Ninang's Pansit Malabon

My little boy and I have a new favorite foodie place - Ninang's Pansit Malabon, which has a branch near our office on Visayas Ave. in Quezon City. Two weeks ago, it was our place for lunch and it was then that my son professed love for Ninang's sinigang na baboy. Last Monday, it was our second time there but now also with us were one of my daughters and our two doggies. Yup, they were all with me as I went to work.  Talk about chaos in the office. Hehe..
Anyway, all of us enjoyed Monday's lunch. Yep, including the dogs. Haha! The first time, I learned that the dinuguan at Ninang's was delicious and on the second time, I hailed the boneless daing na bangus! It was rightly seasoned (just a hint of vinegar so not too sour)  and had a crunch to it. My son, on both occasions, ordered sinigang na baboy, while the daughter went for pork binagoongan with rice and Pansit Malabon. The three of us shared our food with the four-legged creatures and there was nary a complaint from the doggies. Hehe... With the prices of food at Ninang's, there wasn't a hint of protest from my purse as well! 
The restaurant offers combo meals consisting of a viand (choices of pork barbecue, daing na bangus, lumpiang shanghai, dinuguan), rice and Pansit Malabon, the latter being the specialty here. Some viands are served with only rice plus iced tea. There are also other ala carte dishes such as the Pinoy favorites kare-kare and crispy pata. Meanwhile, Pansit Malabon can be ordered for take-out on bilao of various sizes.  

Pansit Malabon, P55.

Daing na bangus meal, P75.

Dinuguan meal, P75.

Dinuguan is also perfect with puto (which is available at Ninang's too), for snacks.

Sinigang na baboy meal (with rice and iced tea), P75.

Binagoongan (w/ rice and iced tea), P75.

My boy makes himself sinigang rice topping.

I go after him and make myself dinuguan rice topping. :-)

Choose your bilao size. 

Various food items are for sale here too.

Good thing we were allowed to bring our minipins Odie and Tiger Lily inside.  They enjoyed
the food at Ninang's too! :-)

Other branches of Ninang's Pansit Malabon that I know of are in Tandang Sora and Fairview, both in Quezon City and on G. Tuazon St. in Sampaloc, Manila.