7-Eleven

7-Eleven
(Sendai, Japan)

Last week, I went to Sendai City, Japan to attend the APRU-IRIDeS Multi-Hazards Summer School. This was the first time I’m going to Japan and actually traveling alone, so I did some pre-travel research regarding budget and location of food places. Since I’m a fan of Japanese culture, I already know that I’d most likely be visiting a konbini, specifically 7-Eleven. Oh, and since I was travelling alone, I did not have my Beloved photographer with me, so the qualities of the photos might not be up to standard; gomen.

Saigon Pho Vietnamese Noodle House

Saigon Pho Vietnamese Noodle House
(Maginhawa)

Beloved and I had a slightly late lunch at Saigon Pho Vietnamese Noodle House some weeks past. This Vietnamese restaurant is slightly new in Maginhawa street, and we assumed, based on its name, that it’s a direct competitor for Pho Hoa. While it’s not the only Vietnamese place in Maginhawa right now, it’s still one of the less-represented cuisines in the area. Knowing that Beloved and I like Pho (considering they allow removal of cilantro), we decided to try it out.

Saram Korean BBQ Grill Buffet

Saram Korean BBQ Grill Buffet
(V. Luna Extension)

Beloved and I had dinner with Const at Saram Korean BBQ Grill Buffet a couple of weeks ago. This newly-opened Korean barbecue buffet is located at V. Luna Extension, in the same building as Snack Shack. Meant to compete against the ever-growing number of sub-500 Php all-you-can-eat Korean barbecues, this isn’t actually the first in the area. However, it’s now officially the closest from our place. Since we pass this by frequently, with the advantage of no longer needing to take a tricycle, we found little reason not to try it out.

Cafe Sweet Inspirations

Cafe Sweet Inspirations
(Katipunan)

Beloved and I had dinner at Cafe Sweet Inspirations a few weeks ago. Despite being a cafe, this is actually more famous for their all-you-can-eat Mongolian rice bowls. I’ve been a patron of this place for a good couple of decades already, as this was a go-to place while I was still residing and studying near the Diliman university belt. Since knowing about this place and since affoding to go here on my own, there’s almost never a year that passed that I haven’t been here.

The Dimsum Place

The Dimsum Place
(Fishermall)

Beloved and I had dinner at The Dimsum Place a few weeks back. We’re semi-regulars of this place, mainly because Fishermall doesn’t have a lot of places to eat in that we particularly fancy. The Dimsum Place stands out in that it’s in the more affordable side and they have both Beloved’s and my favorite dimsum.

Jin Joo

Jin Joo
(Eastwood)

Beloved and I had dinner at Jin Joo a month ago. This was during our 10th anniversary, and right after we went bowling and had lunch at our beloved Ippudo (linked is the Megamall branch, but we ate at Eastwood). This Korean place was having an ongoing promo where they offered 499 Php unlimited samgyupsal, or grilled pork. Honestly, we weren’t too hungry, but I reckoned that we won’t be going back to Eastwood for a while and the limited offer might no longer be available when we do get back, so we tried it out anyway.

UNANI Yakitori + Sushi

UNANI Yakitori + Sushi
(Maginhawa)

Beloved and I had a late lunch at UNANI Yakitori + Sushi a couple of weeks ago. I’m expediting this review despite having a couple of new places in the backlog for reasons I’ll explain in the last paragraph. Anyway, we’ve always passed by this place, located at what I’d like to call the “dead zone” of popular foodie street Maginhawa of UP Teacher’s village. I call it such because it seems aside from Papa Diddi’s, all other restaurants and even food parks seem to struggle in this place and close down within their first couple of years of service.

Pancake House -  Taco-All-You-Can Wednesdays

Pancake House - Taco-All-You-Can Wednesdays
(Quezon Avenue)

Me and Const partook of Pancake House’s Taco All You Can Wednesdays promotion last Wednesday. I’m actually skipping some reviews in the backlog because this promo is only for the month of June, 2018. Pancake House, for the uninformed, specializes in pancakes. Now that I mention it, we haven’t done a good review of the place. Beloved and myself, and sometimes with her family, go here to eat not their pancakes, but their other food like their pan-fried chicken, salisbury steak, and pastas. Their pancakes, ironically, is pretty low on our choice here, and we often go for their waffles instead. Oh, and their tacos are pretty good too, which is why Const and I went ahead and tried out this promotion.

Gloria Maris - Revisited

Gloria Maris - Revisited
(Gateway)

Beloved and I revisited Gloria Maris at Gateway almost a month ago. We celebrated the eve of our anniversary here. It’s been almost five years since our first visit, and I am partly curious how inflation comes into play. Anyway, we went here since we were somewhat craving for seafood and this was one of the few decent places in Cubao that we know of.

Botejyu

Botejyu
(Vertis North)

Beloved, myself, and a couple of friends ate at Botejyu a few weeks ago. This Japanese place is one of the few places open at Vertis Ginza, the Japanese “section” of Vertis North. The restaurant features Osaka specialties, which I honestly don’t know much about. The place seemed intimidating which is why we haven’t tried this place before, but after a recommendation from another common friend, we decided to try it out.