Once heard my friend all praise for Mooon Cafe when she was in Cebu. One chilly Friday night, when in Abreeza Mall in Davao, found myself ecstatic to try that went straight to Mooon cafe.

The mooon and the stars

So what exactly do they serve in the Mooon? Pizzas. Quesadillas. Pastas. Roast beef. Baby Back Ribs. Something in between Italian and Mexican.

Quesadilla Uno

Toasted flour tortilla stuffed with onion and cheese served with salsa rojo and sour cream.

6 pcs to share

For cheese lovers, this will surely be a hit. I love the portion, though of the peak of the triangle. It balances the cheese, beef and tomato flavors. The presentation is cute, too.

Bacon and Mushroom Pizza. 

A duet of bacon and button mushroom combined with mozarella. 

Cheesy and yummy

Soft and cheesy. Their pizzas are baked to perfection. Well, I don't know. I'm just a plain fan of pizzas.

Spaghetti Ala Gambas. 

Shrimps sauteed in butter, garlic, cayenne and paprika.

Served with toasted bread

Quite garlicky. With considerable amount of gambas. Those who love lighter pastas might love this. But I'm a saucy lover.

Mexican Baby Back Ribs.

Grilled pork ribs marinated in herbs. With Buttered vegetable sidings.

Sarap to the bones 'din naman :)

It was tender, yes but not the best out there. But I like this better than the Mooon Steak. 

Mooon Steak

Sizzling pork with gravy sauce, served with garlic rice and vegetable sidings. 

Hello, genie. Make this yummy.

This is the only dish that I didn't quite enjoy. It wasn't tender enough. With sauce or as is, it didn't make that much difference to me.

All in all, it was an average treat. Again, I value more the experience in dining here. Did I forget that the attendants wore cute Mexican skirts?

Mooon Cafe has a branch in:

Zone 1, 2nd Level Abreeza Ayala Mall, 
J.P. Laurel, Bajada, 
Davao City, Davao del Sur

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Tuesday, December 30, 2014

"Life's a box of chocolates, Forrest. You never know what you're gonna get."

Truly. Definitely. I agree. Exactly because Bubba Gump's not what's we're craving for. But then when it's there already, you have to grab it and Run, Forrest, Run!

And we stopped, so here we are with Speckled Lemonade. One of the few non-alcoholic drinks here.

Eventually we stopped so hello there, Forrest! Here we are in Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. in Greenbelt 3! And it's a nice place to be after a tiring day. Feels really like an American home beside the sea.

Hello, there!

Seafood lovers, commence! For Appetizers:

House Special Calamari Rings (Php 370) is truly a delight! Oh calamari deep fried with two dippin' sauces. I can just munch all the time. Perfectly crisp!

Share the love <3

Ping Pong Shrimp (Php 345) lightly breaded each with mango pineapple salsa on top. Unbelievably yummy with a little spicy kick! A must try. The bottom is full of cabbages, too that we don't know what to make of. Care to explain?

Good choice!

There comes my favorite salad. Here we had Shrimp BLT Salad (Php 585) with Romaine lettuce, bacon, tomatoes in Ranch dressing. It's also with special Bleu cheese and shrimps. It's good but not a fan of this particular salad. I prefer their Classic Caesar Salad with Grilled Chicken, classic to the core at Php 440 (not in the picture). 

Hi shrimps with B-acon, L-ettuce and T-omatoes!

Here comes Forrest's Favorites:

Dixie Style Baby Back Ribs (Php 995) slow-roasted and served with fries and coleslaw. It looks mouthwatering and it is! I need not much effort on slicing. It almost slices by itself. Wickedly great! And it's not shrimp--let's take a break ;).

Mouthwatering!

Forrest's Seafood Feast (Php 590) is a taste of many of their fried foods: shrimps, fish and chips, croquettes, hush pups and coleslaw plus dips such as tartar, cocktail and remoulade. I especially enjoyed the croquettes here and oh, the coleslaw. But too much fried can hurt, too. ;)

A hodge-podge of everything!

And of course, Bubba's Shrimp Specials:

Shrimper's Net Catch (Php 770) right from the casserole for the shrimp lovers. But don't get too excited, it's not a good catch as in the picture. Anyhow, it's served with veggies and Secret Recipe Cajun Spice. Can be with Bubba's Garlic spice, too.

Not a good catch, eh?

And oh, although a tad expensive, this one is a good treat too. Not the Chocolate Rootbeer Float at Php 300+ but the glass with dancing lights. 

Run it home!

All in all, expensive, some serving not many, all things considered, it's a great treat. Once in a while. Sometimes too, it's all about the experience.

 
Rating: 3.5


Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. is located at:


Level 2, Greenbelt 3
Ayala Center, 
Makati City

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Saturday, December 20, 2014

Mama Lou's Italian Kitchen is one unique but not so cheap restaurant that's a gem here down South. Whenever I pass by this place straight for a food trip in Aguirre Ave., a famous street inside BF Homes because of the many good restos, I always tell myself that I'll find an occasion to celebrate here with my family.

Good thing it came sooner! So we all hopped to BF's famous Italian Kitchen: Mama Lou's! It is really a two-storey house transformed into a full-time restaurant. It's like being invited in a friend's house to feast on their homemade specialty. Talk about hospitality!

(But beware, though. The place can really be jam-packed at many times. So as not to be disappointed, it's better to call for reservations.)

While waiting for the orders to be served, they offer free bread in salsa and pesto dippings. They used to serve crostini-type but I like this better. It can be refilled!

Our third refill :)

For the starters, Chef Salad (Php 275) is perfect with fresh iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, mushrooms, garlic sausage drizzled with Italian vinaigrette dressing. Serving is good for my family of five.

Starting the meal right with a salad

Off course, an Italian meal wouldn't be so without pizza. Opted for a Pizza Bianca, with mozzarella, bacon and mushroom. A large one costs Php 800+. Price for this big I think's not on their menu. I'm a big fan of pizza, really! But maybe this isn't the flavor for me. Better try some other next time.

Or bad me. Should have I tried it with Arugula and Alfalfa sprouts?

What's better than the Bianca?

Served with Alfalfa and Arugula

Good thing, when it comes to pasta I enjoyed. For the red sauce, Italian Sausage Pomodoro (Php 295). It has spicy Italian sausage, tomatoes, garlic and herbs. I love the generous helping of sausage slices!

Can make out the sausages from here ;) 

Carbonara (Php 295) with creamy Parmesan and bacon pancetta. It's really creamy. Just the right amount that it bordered on too good. Two-thumbs up!

The king of the night!

It's really good to come back to Mama Lou's after several years (and after some 'no available seat' trips in between). What's more is that this haven is just few miles from home. Great!

 
Rating: 4.0


Mama Lou's Italian Kitchen is located at:


Blk 1 Lot 36 Tropical Ave., cor Palace St.,
BF International,
Las Piñas City

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Monday, December 15, 2014

When a survey is asked, "Where best to eat in Tagaytay?", among the many names I can bet that Josephine Restuarant will come up in the list. It's been loved for almost 40 years. And it's been comforting weekend warriors delicious treats in the cold weather.

Christmas at Josephine

So as not to make the food cold, let the feast begin!

For appetizers, Crispy Kangkong (Php 220) will never fail. Served crisp, of course, with special mayo. The dip was good!

Perfect combo

Then comes Seafood Paella (Php 520) of which I was excited about primarily because I love Valenciana (they don't have this on the menu) and I always eat that than Paella. After devouring though, I still love our homemade Valenciana. To start off, our malagkit is sticky awesome. And the flavor of meat, chorizo, prunes all complement perfectly together. Not what I tasted with this Paella. Although in terms of seafood variety, there's a lot from shrimp, squid to crabs. And it can feed many, too.

This Paella can feed many!

Tagaytay is famous for this.  Josephine's Bulalo (Php 540) is surely a nice kick fit for the weather. It's flavorful and comforting. But not necessarily the best in town, though.

Are those 'utak' that I see? :)

Now then, Baked Talaba (Php 260)! Not a fan of this slimy treat but then in an instant, it's gone! It's talaba without so much fuss in seasonings. Just an exhibit of its delicate freshness.

Sorry for the not so nice photos but here are: Baked Talaba (lower portion) and Kare-Kare on the upper.

Kare-Kare (Php 395) is one of my favorites. But nothing beats Little Quiapo's. It's nice to note though that it's served heftily and the meat's tender!

Bangus to love!

I also enjoyed their Boneless Bangus (Php 340). It's crispy and tasty. Good even without soy sauce or dips!

Now this is fun, their Fresh Fruit Salad (Php 90)! With mangoes, melon, watermelon in a coconut husk plus whip! Too cute to eat.

Fruits in a fruit

They also have a very yummy Blueberry Cheesecake (Php 95). The cheesecake's so pure added with just the right amount of blueberry. It must have been baked fresh everyday!

Blueberry yum!

Also tried their Kahlua Sans Rival (Php 95) (not in the photo). Layer after layer of Sans rival goodness made special with Kahlua wine. I love their desserts!

The food is okay but love their ambiance more and attentive servers. And did I just forget that the cold weather was the icing on the cake?

  
Rating: 3


Josehphine Restaurant is located at:


Km. 58, Gen. Aguinaldo Hi-way,
Maharlika West, 
Tagaytay City

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Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Down South, there's a homey restaurant really worth trying. I mean, there are so many things to try right inside the comfort of the South. But this one, just inside BF Resort Village, is once again making abuzz: the brand new old Skillets and Grill. They serve Filipino comfort foods with a twist!

Let me start with rice, my guess of the restaurant's name: rice served in a skillet. That's a total of six (6) cups of rice, by the way.

Rice straight from the skillet! How can that be!

Its menu, according to its chef-owner Ed, was from years before and used it again when they 'reopened'. Thus the picture below. He said they haven't changed even the price. Whoa!

The old menu used in the new

For starters, their Onion Rings (Php 108), good for sharing, tastes just crispy right. It's served with everyone's favorite, ketchup-mayo sauce. I enjoyed eating this crunchy circles!

The favorite pica food

Their Boneless Chicken's (Php 208) a good try, too. Two 1/4 chicken served in their yummy white sauce. Even after the chicken's gone, it's still enjoyable 'licking' off the remnants. If they have bread, I could have sworn to wipe it off with that, too.

The first time I ate here, serving of chicken was three. Two's good, alright.

Then comes their Squid Alajillo (Php 168) recommended by their in-house chef. I don't particularly enjoy squid if it's not calamari. So I rely on my family's approval of these squishy squid. It's good, they say.

Want squid at less than Php 200?

When I'm with family too, always there should be Pork Sisig with Egg (Php 158). Who wouldn't love sinful sisig, right? I love it, too. Albeit, I find much tasty those served in food courts.

Colorful sisig

Lastly, Beef Salpicao (Php 199) served with native vinegar. I didn't pay too much attention with the beef itself but coupled with vinegar, it's a surprisingly good combination.

Served right with a native vinegar. 

Every Sunday and even on weeknights, when I go home, I see so many families and friends feasting here. And it's good to see that Skillet and Grill's once again up and about. Kudos!

 
Rating: 4


Skillets and Grill Restaurant us located at:

No. 47, BF Resort Drive,
BF Resort, 
Las Piñas City

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Monday, December 01, 2014