Hawaiian Mid-afternoon Snack-out

doesn't look like a resto from afar...

We were out to meet someone at UP Ayala Techno-Hub when we spotted this interestingly blue colored store that lie amidst all the different restos that forms a semi circle food hub. From afar, it didn't look anything like a resto. Compared to the rest of the food shoppes in the area, this one looked surprisingly lonely.... Had it not been for the poster with an ice cream on it, one would really think that it was an outlet store selling surfing gears.

Anyhow, we went inside and saw that it was indeed quiet. Just one man was seated in one of it's tables. We proceeded to order at the counter. It's like a fast-food chain, you place your order, pay at the counter, then after a while, your name will be called to pick up the goodies from the counter. We tried out their "best seller" wipe out burger and had cheese added to it. We also tried out their phat fries, which notably had fatter potato slices compared to most fries. For our drinks, she had a north shore pine iced tea, while he had the regular lemon iced tea.

burger to wipe out your hunger, 1/3lb beef patty!

Location: Hawaii's North Shore, UP-Ayala Techno-Hub
Food Ordered and Cost: Wipe Out Burger 1/3 lb patty-P165, add-on Cheddar Cheese-P15, Phat Fries-P60, North Shore Pine Tea (regular)-P60, Lemon Tea (large)-P50
Total Cost:P350

dining on a surfboard!

She says...

I like the ambiance of the place. They play soft but not sleepy kind of music. The surf board tables were really cute! As for the burger, it was really juicy. The patty was soft and tender. It was not like some other burger which have very rubbery and rigid patties. I also like the dressing that they placed on the burger, it had an adequate mix of sweetness, sourness, and yumminess. I also like how they sliced up the veggie into bits and pieces as it's often annoying when the lettuce just comes off when you bite off a burger.

The fries on the other hand was alright. It was not so crunchy but it wasn't flabby either. But like any other fries, it felt really fat-loaded.

The pine tea was interesting. It was not your usually iced tea. It had a hint of raspberry and a bit minty, just a little. Most importantly, it just had the right amount of sweetness.

Oh, I also received a freebie, a vanilla ice cream twirl since our bill had exceeded P180. Despite the rainy and cold weather, I enjoyed it so much. It actually had nothing fancy on it. It was just plain vanilla ice cream, but sometimes simple flavors, as long as they are full, can really make our palates happy.

She rates: 3.5/5 Wipe Out Burger, 3.5/5 Phat Fries, 4/5 Pine Tea, 4/5 Vanilla Iced Cream

pine or lemon?

phat or fat?

He says....

When I first saw their sign, I thought "What the heck? Hawaiian theme is sooo late 80s!" I went inside expecting some native-ish decor and hawaiian shirts and skirts but I was surprised that by Hawaiian they actually meant surfboards. They had surfboards for table.

Fancy.

This is a new food shop so we ordered their best selling stuff which is the burger. Amusing thing about their burger is that aside from the typical burger ingredients, you can add ingredients to them depending on your taste. We added cheese.

There were a few customers in the place so I expected their food to suck. They didn't. The burger, although not as dense and thick as the other burgers of its price range, was very delicious.

We also had their phat fries. They're thickly cut fries served with tomato. We ordered two. It was that good.

I don't know why there were so few people there. Maybe because it was raining really hard that day.

He rates...

4/5

An Evening in Muang Thai

half serving of pad thai noodles @Muang Thai

Just finished a session of Aikido at the Philippine Heart Center dojo and we were so hungry. We thought of eating in the nearby concessionaires like Jollibee and Chow King but felt we needed something new, something different on our palates. Thus just a few strides behind Philippine Heart Center, along Malakas St. I think, we found a resto, Muang Thai, that looks like a cute house. It's just close to McDonald's (which is currently on renovation) and just right beside Pancake House. They serve authentic Thai cuisine as well as sell embellishments that bear Thai influence like pots and serving bowls as well as other goodies. 

We ordered half binagoongan rice, half pad thai noodles (yes, although not stated in their menu, they do allow you to order just half-a-serving), and grilled pork. We also had house iced tea for their drink.

half serving of binagoongan rice @Muang Thai

grilled pork on a hot plate @Muang Thai

Location: Muang Thai, Malakas St.

Food Ordered: 1/2 Pad Thai Noodles, 1/2 Binagoongan Rice, Grilled Pork, 2 Bottomless Iced Tea

Cost: Total of P508 (Can't give you a breakdown, my apologies)

in my favorite corner spot...

She says...

I loved Pad Thai noodles. The texture of the noodles was just right, 'al dente' perhaps. It was really flavorful and had a certain nutty taste owing to the crushed peanuts that topped the the noodles. The binagoongan rice was just as yummy. It was topped with caramelized pork, strips of green mango, and strips of egg omelet. The different textures and tastes was just perfectly in harmony with each other. The grilled pork on the other hand tasted like any other marinated pork, however, when we poured the sauce over the pork, which was served in a sizzling pan, there was a significant difference in taste, a bit sweet, a bit salty, and truly meaty taste. The iced tea on the other hand was just your normal sweet cold iced tea.

third refill...

What I like about the place on the other hand was its homey feel. It was like an old house with tables and chair made of hard wood (seats were not cushioned). The large water fountain on the side added a relaxing feeing to the total ambience of the place. The people there were pleasant and most of all, they give additional discount to PHC employees!

She rates: Pad Thai: 5/5, Binagoongan Rice: 4.5/5, Grilled pork: 4.5/5, Iced Tea: 3/5, Place: 4/5, Service: 4/5

He says...

I love this place. The food is very compatible with my taste and yet so unique in its own way. The Pad Thai noodles was especially delicious. I cannot recommend it enough. It is one of the most delicious pasta-like food stuff out there, even better than our own pancits.

The Grilled Pork was also delicious if you mix it with their vinegar mix. Without the vinegar it tastes just like an average steak but with it, it becomes the most delicious.

He rates: 5/5 for the food. 3/5 for the iced tea.

Alain's Exploits: The Tea Bar

V-Mall (formerly Vira Mall) in Greenhills (or GH, as I call it) is not exactly known for its food choices. It's the place to go if you're looking for affordable clothes and gadget--- that is if you're a good haggler.

They do have a food court and some food shops scattered all over the mall. Since I usually go there for my gadget fix and was sorta hungry and curious, I decided to try one of the food shops I often pass by on my rounds: The Tea Bar.

The Tea Bar is a comfy enough place. It has warm lighting which is inviting and relaxing, this is specially good for eating. The chairs are soft (at least the one I sat on) and the tables were clean as should all restaurants be.

The only unusual thing about the place was the strong smell of tea. I'm saying unusual because I can't decide if it's pleasant or awful.

Their menu book looks tattered from old use and was very weird to hold and look at so I just ordered two things just to get rid of it. First is the basket of chicken.

The pieces were a bit smaller than I'm used to but there were 6 pieces so it's forgivable. The taste is.. meh. Not a very exciting taste.

The Earl Grey Iced Tea on the other hand is very good. I was a bit surprised to be served with an Iced Earl Grey when I'm used to it being hot but they did good with it. The taste of this drink is very strong but not like strong-tasting iced tea of other food shops. The strong taste here doesn't come from too much sugar, like other shops, but from the strong tea flavor. This is probably the only real iced tea I've had.

Rating:

Service: 4/5

Place: 3.5/5

Chicken: 2.5/5

Iced Tea: 4.5/5