Bay Area Eats: In-N-Out!

When I was planning my trip to Bay Area in California, I only had two places I needed to go to, no matter what it takes.

Those are:

The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco

AND

IN-N-OUT!

In-N-Out Burger is a fastfood chain in the US with locations in the west coast, and a few branches in Texas. I really didn't know what the fuss is about, so I did a little research. 

In-N-Out is a fully family-owned restaurant, which means that all locations are owned by the company, with no franchises until now. In-N-Out is also known for its "secret menu", which can be found on their website. Another thing that In-N-Out is known for is its food quality. I actually saw potatoes being peeled in the store to be made into fries.  

Home Cooking 101: Slow Cooker Oxtail Kare-Kare

Having a slow cooker is a game changer for me. I was never keen on using the pressure cooker for safety purposes (among other things), but I didn't have to worry about these things with my slow cooker. 

I use the slow cooker for beef stew, nilagang baka and even chicken adobo (so I wouldn't have to shred the chicken to flakes. LOL). I have recently made my all-time favorite Filipino dish: Kare-Kare. Note that I did not use any recipe mixes for this so all the ingredients are estimated.

Ingredients:

1.5 to 2 lbs (around 1 kg) Oxtail

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup crushed peanuts

1 onion, sliced

32 oz beef broth

2 to 3 stalks bok choy or pechay

1/2 to 1 cup green beans or sitaw

1/2 eggplant, sliced

annatto powder, diluted in water

cornstarch, diluted in water

water

oil

Bagoong or shrimp paste

BadWolf Public House: Not Just for the Beer Drinkers

Another place in Old Town Manassas that we love visiting over and over is the newly-opened BadWolf Public House. This place is our go-to spot for dinner most of the time because it's open until late night. 

BadWolf Public House by the same owners as Bad Wolf Brewing Company and CJ Finz Raw Bar & Grille, so if you love beer, this is the place you should visit. But more than the beer, this restaurant serves food from brunch to dinner. 

For appetizers, we have tried the Poutine ($10) and the Mediterranean Board ($9).

Poutine

Mediterranean Board 

Poutine is hand cut fries with cheddar cheese curds and beef gravy, while the Mediterranean Board is homemade hummus served with marinated olives, artichokes, roasted red peppers, and warm naan. I'm partial to Poutine since I'm a fries junkie, however, the Mediterranean Board isn't bad either. I'd just rather go to Katerina's for hummus. 

Bay Area Eats: Cupertino

Apologies for the lack of posts the past few months. Trying my best to get back to blogging. Will

be posting an alternate of backlogs and recent experience more often. I promise!

This took a while, but I cannot not share the area in the US the I liked most (so far): Bay Area in California. :)

Here are the awesome places we have tried and enjoyed during our stay in Cupertino area. I tried my best to remember all the names of the dishes, but my memory failed me. Sorry. :p

1. Parkview Kitchen and Spirits

Located inside Juniper Hotel Cupertino, Parkview Kitchen & Spirits serves breakfast, brunch, lunch, to dinner. This place is also perfect for happy hours. 

We ordered Joe's Special ($15), a salad and a soup for brunch. 

Joe's Special

Joe's Special has ground chuck, baby spinach, cheddar, and onions, served with Parmesan bread and toasted Juniper butter. The food and service were amazing, but it's somewhere you'd want to go if you want to spend a bit more. 

2. Aqui 

Aqui is a California Mexican restaurant that serves delicious Mexican-inspired dishes and industrial strength margaritas.

Father's Day Gift Ideas from Gifts Less Ordinary!

Father's Day is almost here!

In case you haven't got anything for your dads (and granddads) yet, here are my gift suggestions from Gifts Less Ordinary. What's awesome is you can personalize these gifts too!

1. Personalized Watch Box (for 3 watches)

This watch box is perfect for watch-loving dads. You may also add a watch (or two) along with this item. ;)

2. Personalized Mini Cocktail Shaker for Dad

This cocktail shaker is perfect for making solo cocktails. Your dad will have fun making his own drinks at home. 

3. Wooden Wireless Phone Charger

Does your daddy always forgets his charger? Mine does. :P This item is a classy gift that he can use easier than the regular chargers. Works for selected phones only.

4. Personalized Cafetiere for Dad

If your dad loves coffee, he'll definitely love this! You can add coffee beans and coffee cups, if you want. :)

Gifts Less Ordinary currently ships to Australia, New Zealand, the US, Japan, Singapore, and Hong Kong. Check out the website for more gift ideas for any occasion. 

All photos are from Gifts Less Ordinary. 

Press Release: Old Orchard Cranberry’s Summer Cooler Recipes

With summer’s scorching heat around, there’s nothing more delightful than sipping something cold and fruity. However, when you’re after a refreshing drink with the right balance of sweetness-and-tartness, Old Orchard Cranberry Juice is the answer. 

This thirst quenching drink can complement any meal and can serve as a base for easy-to-prepare mocktails. So whether you’re at home, on a vacation-out-of-town, or at a get-together party, these delightful non-alcoholic infusions would surely be a good company and help bring along the fun!

Non-Alcoholic Sangria

Ingredients: 

1 bottle Old Orchard Cranberry 64 oz.

1.5 liter lemon soda

1 orange

1 lemon

24 pieces of grapes

Directions:

1. Combine chilled Old Orchard Cranberry  and chilled soda in a punch bowl. 

2. Wash fruit. Halve grapes and place in the bunch bowl. 

3. Cut the orange and lemon into wedges. 

4. Place the orange and lemon slices into the punch bowl. Stir and enjoy. 

Summertime Kiddie Cocktail

Katerina's Greek Cuisine

One of the first homegrown restaurants that I have visited in my area is Katerina's Greek Cuisine in Old Town Manassas. I have always been a fan of Mediterranean cuisine and wished the cuisine I grew up with is as healthy as the Greeks. 

It was said that this restaurant is always full during weekends, so I was glad we went for lunch on a weekday. 

We shared the Greek Sampler ($13) for starters. 

Greek Sampler

The Greek Sampler has olives, huge chunks of feta cheese, stuffed grape leaves, tomatoes,  anchovies, cucumber, peppers, pepperoncini, tirokafteri, and tzatziki served with pita bread. The homemade pita bread was delicious on its own, but a lot better with the tzatziki and tirokafteri.

The boyfie had the Greek Salad ($10), which has lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, Kalamata olives, pepperoncinis, feta cheese and special Greek dressing.

Greek Salad

Reality Bites: On Living and Settling Overseas

IT'S TRUE. 

Living outside the Philippines is not as fun. Nothing can beat the hustle and bustle of Manila streets, the noise from the neighbors singing videoke early in the morning, the lovely smell of the freshly baked pan de sal from the bakery in the corner (or Pan de Manila), the unforgiving heat even in the monsoon season. I definitely miss those and more every day that I'm here in the US. 

But we all are entitled to make our own choices, and I am one of the few who chose to live elsewhere. However, this doesn't mean that the choice I made is an easy one. 

To be honest, I underestimated homesickness. I never thought I would have to deal with it as I enjoy being away from home, but settling to a new environment hit me like a ton of bricks. 

I never thought that I would start bawling watching a Jollibee ad, or cry for no reason at all. I must admit, even the most optimistic part of me cannot override the loneliness. 

It is true. Some friends who you thought will stay in touch will just disappear. They must be too busy with their own lives to deal with my drama, or may not realize that I would appreciate a simple 'Hi!' in my inbox. 

It is true. Life is more convenient here, and everything is done faster and better, but that doesn't mean I am living the 'good life'. We don't. We work as hard as you do. 

Traditional Meets Modern at Manam in BGC

Weeks before I left the Philippines, I was having separation anxiety with Filipino food. I am glad my friends are willing to indulge me. One of the most unforgettable Filipino restaurants I have visited before I left is Manam Comfort Filipino in BGC. 

Caramelized Patis Wings

Manam's menu is divided into two categories: the Classics and the Twists. All dishes are available in 3 serving sizes: S (good for 1), M (good for 3), and L (good for 6). 

We tried dishes from the Classics and Twists menu. 

For starters, we had the Caramelized Patis Wings (Php 165 for S, Php 295 for M, Php 525 for L). We also ordered Crispy Pork Binagoongan (Php 205 for S, Php 360 for M, Php 645 for L).

Crispy Pork Binagoongan

I love the salty and sweet combination of the Caramelized Patis Wings, I wished I discovered that patis is amazing with chicken wings. I'm not much of a fan of bagoong (unless it's for Kare-Kare), but the Crispy Pork Binagoongan is impressive. 

IHOP Philippines Join in Celebrating the 3rd National Pancake Day On March 7, 2017!

On March 7, all IHOP® restaurants in the Philippines will once again join locations throughout the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, Guam and Mexico in celebrating a unique and beloved IHOP restaurant tradition: National Pancake Day.

From 7AM to 10PM on Tuesday, March 7th, all 5 IHOP locations will be offering guests the opportunity to enjoy unlimited servings of their world famous buttermilk pancakes for only Php 250, to enjoy in the restaurant. Php 200 out of the Php 250 generated from those pancakes will once again be donated to the Kythe Foundation, which provides children with cancer and chronic illnesses the chance to learn, play, and grow while in treatment, even if they’re in the hospital.

National Pancake Day began in the United States in 2006 and in the past decade has raised $20 million dollars for children’s health charities in the local communities. Last year, IHOP Philippines joined the celebration, raising nearly Php 400,000 for the local Kythe Foundation charity.

Life Recently

It's been a month since I moved to the US and my whole life did a complete 360-degree turn. It's also the same reason why I haven't been blogging for a while. I am currently juggling new roles and I could say that I'm adjusting well to this new life. 

Homemaker

Kitchen experiments: Chicken with Mushroom Sauce with Mashed Potatoes and Veggies / Baked Rosemary Chicken with Veggies

Because I am not a 'housewife' yet, homemaker seems to fit me better. I am living with my boyfriend, which gives me a lot of household chores: cleaning, laundry, cooking, ironing (!), etc. Oh boy, it is not easy to maintain a whole house by yourself, and harder for somebody who was never used to doing chores regularly. I feel frustrated at myself sometimes on why I didn't learn these things earlier. However, I'm learning and getting better at it (especially cooking). Thanks to the boyfie for being so patient with me. 

Student

Inside my university

I went back to school last January for my graduate degree in George Mason University. For the longest time, I have this fear of doing academics again as I was 'traumatized' by the constant pressure back in college. Fortunately, the school environment here in the US is completely different from the Philippines. I am grateful that my professors and classmates are quite welcoming and helpful, my class schedule is awesome, and my university is so beautiful.

Life Away From The Philippines

Moving

The past year has been challenging yet amazing for me. It was a series of ups and downs that had challenged my emotional strength and at times, my sanity. 

As a blogger, I was given wonderful opportunities to feature trusted brands, and I even got a chance to fly to Cebu to experience Sinulog for the first time! I turned down a majority of event invites the past year as I needed to allot more time to other things. 

I took digital marketing more seriously by taking up certificate courses. I also became the digital PR and social media manager for a restaurant, where I got to practice what I have learned from the courses I took and my experiences as a food blogger.

I got my US visa approved and flew to the US twice: in New York and DC and in California. I will share my California visit to you soon.

I have learned some things this past year.

The past year, I have learned to take better care of my health. I'm almost 30 so I need to be more careful with what I eat and exercise regularly. I began taking yoga but found it expensive so I switched to doing zumba and cardio. 

The past year, I have learned to hold on to the things that are valuable and let go of what is not, that I need to stand by my own beliefs and care less about what other people think. 

The past year, I have learned to reach for more and learn more. 

In a few days, I will be moving to the US to study for a graduate degree and be with the most important person in my life. I'm experiencing a rollercoaster of emotions (as cliche as it may sound) as I leave the places that I usually go to and the things I usually do and move on to the next chapter in my life. 

I wish all of you the best in this coming year and let us hope for better times for all of us.

Happy New Year everyone!