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.

Amber on a 'Black Saturday'

It was the Lent Saturday, which Roman Catholics call "Black Saturday". With this, a lot of restaurants were closed along the stretch of Timog Avenue as well as Tomas Morato in Quezon City (This area is a true foodie's haven because almost all buildings here have restaurants). Thankfully, Amber was open as I was craving for some really good Pancit Malabon. The first and last time I ate Amber's Pancit Malabon was around August last year when one of my co-workers fed us in the office with it as her birthday treat. I liked it so much that since then, I've been wanting to have it again. And yesterday, I finally had that chance. Sadly, it was Black Saturday and fewer customers came by, probably the reason a lot of items on the menu that we (two of the kids were with me) wanted to try were not available. There wasn't even a grain of rice, much to the dismay of my bunso (youngest child), who eats rice for merienda (snacks) The only noodle dishes available were spaghetti and the pancit malabon. I was quite disappointed because we wanted to also have pancit bihon or sotanghon and buttered fried chicken. The server said they could prepare it but we would have to wait 30-40 minutes for it. Whaaat? No, our grumbling tummies could not wait that long. Hehe. These were our orders:

Pancit Malabon, P55.

Spaghetti, P65.

Lumpiang shanghai, P8 apiece; Barbecue, P20 per stick.

The lumpiang shanghai is quite big.

Yummy barbecue!

The Pancit Malabon did not disappoint, it was as good as I remembered. My daughter didn't like the spaghetti that much, though. Even the lumpiang shanghai was forgettable. But the barbecue, it was delicious, we all liked it. One more thing I liked here, the food gave the bang for the buck! Where else can you have barbecue for only P20? On the street, of course, but no other restaurant that I know of can equal that offer. I disliked, however, that they only used disposable plates and utensils. A turnoff for me. But all in all, Amber is still a nice place to eat. 

Inside Amber 

Amber at Tomas Morato cor.  Scout Castor St. in Quezon City



Amber has branches in Filmore corner Emilia Sts., Brgy. Palanan, Makati City; South National Highway, between kilometers 26 & 27 Brgy. Bayanan, Muntinlupa City; 19 EDSA, Brgy. Barangka Ilaya, Mandaluyong City; 175 Tomas Morato corner Scout Castor Brgy. Laging Handa, Quezon City; 8261 Dr. A. Santos Avenue (formerly Sucat Road) Brgy. San Dionisio, Paranaque City; Ground Floor, PELBEL Bldg., 2019 Shaw Boulevard Brgy. Oranbo, Pasig City; Unit 3, Ground Floor, Madison Square Building Madison Street corner Ortigas Avenue; Brgy. North Greenhills, San Juan City and on Kalaw St., in front of the 
National Library in Manila. 

Of birthdays and cupcakes

Today, March 29, our family celebrates the 21st birthday of my eldest daughter Nikki. Today too, I mark a milestone as a blogger because 
The Awesome Grind is now one-year-old! Yeeeey! And yesterday, our dog Odie turned three. Whew! Three occasions to celebrate! And what's a lovelier way to celebrate than with pretty, pretty and oh-so-sweet cupcakes! As today is also Good Friday, we opt to go meatless as a little sacrifice for the Lord Jesus. So, aside from cupcakes, we're having tuna pasta, too, for merienda. 
Have a blessed Holy Week everyone!

Which one do I eat?

Mini chocolates lie on a soft bed of white fluffy icing.

Wacko for yellow!

Pink and pretty.

As blue as the summer sky.

Full and satisfied at Yoshinoya

It always makes me happy having a good, satisfying meal that at the same time gives a bang for the buck – exactly my experience at dinner last Saturday. Just as church service was starting at the Cathedral of Praise, I felt hungry and started wondering where we could eat afterward. After a few minutes of thinking,  I decided on Yoshinoya. My daughter agreed but my little boy protested. To solve the dilemma, we went to Yoshinoya  (4^th level, SM Manila) but daughter bought the little rascal’s dinner from Jollibee.  

Yoshinoya is one of the fast food chains in Japan that first opened in the “Land of the Rising Sun” in 1899, offering beef bowl as its specialty. The food chain reached the Philippine shore in 2001 and now has seven branches located at SM Mega Mall,  Robinsons Galleria,  SM Mall of Asia, SM North Edsa, Glorietta, SM Pampanga and SM Manila. Bestsellers are beef, chicken, and tempura on Japanese rice bowls and noodles. It now also offers Curry Meals, 
Jumbo Meals, and Bento Meals.

Last Saturday, it was our first time trying out Yoshinoya and we walked away with happy tummies.  These were our orders:

Grilled Beef Maki, P59.

Veggie Beef Bowl (Regular), P99, with drink

Ebi Tempura Bento, P159.

Shrimp and veggie tempura

Mixed vegetables

Rice with black sesame seeds

Fruit salad

Green tea ice cream, P45. 

Mixed fruit iced tea, P45 (large)

I loved everything in my bento especially the tempura.  Though it was a little lacking in crunchiness, the flavor saved the day. Even the mixed veggies was good, and the fruit salad provided the sweet ending to my dinner.  Meanwhile, the beef bowl left my daughter satisfied as well and the green tea ice cream ended her meal with a smile on her face. The only thing we didn’t like much was the Grilled Beef Maki. I’m sure it would have been different if we had California Maki instead but they’d run out of it at 8 p.m.  By the way, they offer a 50% discount on all kinds of maki, presumably just they before they close at night.
All in all, my daughter and I loved our Yoshinoya experience. We were really full without having to go big on spending.