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I love olive oil-based pasta dishes. Not only it is easy to cook, but it is healthy as well. As soon as I got a bottle of Olivares Mendocinos, an Argentinian Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) brand I have tried during the Malbec World Day celebration a few weeks ago , the first dish I thought of cooking was this pasta dish.  Ingredients: 1 whole garlic, chopped 300 grams of pasta Olivares Mendocinos EVOO 1 can tuna, drained thyme salt and pepper to taste

From the desserts and appetizers , the second part of the our food tour focused on the main course.  8. Boqueria Restaurante + Chocolateria (closed) Ever a fan of churros and paella, I was very curious with Boqueria since it opened and was happy that my curiosity was answered by this food tour.  We were welcomed by two Spanish chefs, and was introduced to the dishes that they prepared for us.  Sangria Roja While sipping on Sangria Roja (Php 228), we were served Paella Queso Manchego (Php 398) and Churros (Php 160, 3 pcs). Paella Queso Manchego Churros As I always mention, I'm a huge fan of cheese and I love how they generously put manchego on the paella. I should go back to try their other dishes. 

I call SM Megamall my home base because I'm there almost every day. Aside from its proximity to my workplace, I love how vast its food selections are and made a lot better with the opening of the Mega Fashion Hall.  I was invited last week to an evening of good food with Anton Diaz of Our Awesome Planet and Mercato Centrale Group, where we tried the newest restaurants at SM Megamall, including the Michelin-star restaurant, Tim Ho Wan.  :) Here are some of the restaurants included in the tour: 1. Tim Ho Wan The cheapest Michelin-star restaurant opened its flagship restaurant to the public on the exact day of the tour. So yeah, we got the first dibs to Baked Pork Buns. :P Almost all ingredients come from Hong Kong, where Tim Ho Wan originated.  Baked Buns with BBQ Pork The Baked Buns with BBQ Pork (Php 145, 3 pcs) are quite delicate to handle as you eat it. The warm bun is very soft that you need to be extra careful with it. ...

After spending a lovely weekend at Casa San Pablo, our group decided to take a side trip to one of the San Pablo's seven lakes, Lake Pandin. To tell you the truth, this was not my first time to explore San Pablo, Laguna, as I have visited the seven lakes way back in high school, as part of our annual field trip. Now I feel grateful for my high school for taking field trips to the next level by planning out nature tripping, instead of the usual 'museum-hopping'. :) However, I couldn't recall much about the lakes, but I could remember swimming in one lovely lake, and that is Lake Pandin .  From Casa San Pablo, we rode a trike to Lake Pandin since we didn't know how to get there exactly. We later figured out that we could ride a jeep (to Liliw) to go to Lake Pandin. From the road, we endured a 1 kilometer hike to the lake. 

It has been a while since I last visited Amici , quite long that when I had dinner a few weeks ago with my high school friends, I have noticed that the interiors of the restaurant have changed.  Amici now has a rustic ambiance, a great improvement from its old interiors. I should say I really loved their new look.  We were celebrating our friend's birthday, and though we were pushing for Japanese food, we gave in to her cravings for Italian food. It's her day, after all. :) We ordered everything to share, starting with the Linguine Al Prosciutto E Tartufo (Php 298). Linguine Al Prosciutto E Tartufo   I have always loved truffle pasta, this lovely dish is made better with prosciutto, shiitake, and porcini. I must admit that I emptied the dish (after sharing, of course. :p). I would love to have this pasta again. 

Robinson's Magnolia indeed has a lot to offer. I myself have been there a numerous times, and tried some restaurants, but my list isn't even halfway. I was glad to be invited by Robinson's Residences to try out some of the food picks this mall has to offer. The food tour was led by RJ Ledesma and Anton Diaz , the people behind Mercato Centrale Group and Our Awesome Planet.  Here are a few of the places we have visited: 1. Villa del Conte (closed) Located at the upper ground floor, Villa del Conte offers authentic Italian chocolates from Pavlova, Italy. We were able to sample Praline Sticks in Milk Chocolate with Watermelon Cream Filling and Praline Balls in Dark Chocolate with Hazelnut Cream Filling . Both were so good the samples ran out quickly. :)

Note: This location is already closed.  After a hearty lunch at Tiolo , Zai took to me his another hang-out place, a very spacious milk tea shop creatively named Twittea .  Most people are studying, or doing online stuff, or playing the board games which you can borrow from the counter. 

UK's top kitchen appliance brand, Russell Hobbs , has arrived in the Philippines! Opening remarks by Clarence Cu, president of Tocoms Philippines Russell Hobbs is one of UK's leading brands and known for its timeless style and performance. Founded in 1952 by Bill Russell and Peter Hobbs, this brand is the first in the world to introduce the coffee pot with an automatic keep warm feature and the automatic electric kettle that revolutionized the kettle market. 

Note: This restaurant is already closed.  I went on another burger trip with my high school friends at a small restaurant located in the heart of Quezon City called Backyard Burgers . When I heard that this place opened, I first thought that it was the Manila branch of Backyard Burgers in Davao , but it isn't. The whole place is quite small and shares its alfresco area with the kebab resto beside it. I arrived while the rest of the group was finishing Nachos, so I ordered an additional Cheesy Fries (Php 95). Cheesy Fries I like my fries as sloppy as possible and this one passed my standards. Backyard Burgers proudly declares that they bake their own hoagie burger buns and create their own ice cream for the milkshakes.

After spending a day at the amusement park, I found myself standing in front of Caviar, wondering how and why my friend Jeng was able to convince me to dine here. However, anyone can lure me to good food.  The lounge (with a fireplace) and the champagne bar will welcome you upon entering the restaurant.  View from our booth The dining area is located on the other side of the lounge area, divided by the wine cellar. Fortunately, we arrived early so we got the booth. :)

Read Part 1 here . One thing that Casa San Pablo could really be proud of is their food.  Casa San Pablo serves home-cooked Southern Tagalog dishes, exactly as they serve it in Laguna. Some dishes are even recipes from the owners' grandmother, Sinforosa Azores-Gomez, who originally owns the place where Casa San Pablo is standing right now.  The dining room itself is a work of art, filled with art pieces, and magazine articles about Casa.  After we checked in our room, we were led to the dining hall for lunch. And we were welcomed with a feast!

I spent one weekend with my blogger friends in this lovely bed & breakfast place outside Manila named Casa San Pablo . Located in San Pablo City, Laguna, which is only 1.5 hours to 2 hours drive from Manila, Casa San Pablo offers rooms for overnight stays, venues for team building like clay workshops, native cooking tours and even venue for weddings.  Casa San Pablo is located inside Kay Inay Resort, so we had to walk from the gate and cross a small bridge to the reception area.  We were served welcome drinks as soon as we arrived, the first thing we noticed is the beautiful storyteller dolls created by one of the owners, Ms. An Alcantara.