Back in Manila - A weekend of eating and relaxing.

Mijo and I were in Manila for a short stay - before we flew to Boracay and after the family trip to Singapore. In that short stay, we ate and ate a lot and saw a really good live theater.

We always have a great time when in Manila!

We were fortunate to have spent a Saturday in Manila during our very short stay there because we got to go to the Salcedo Village farmer's market. Mijo and I enjoy going there because we get to sample as many food as we can eat.

[read my Manila blog, June 2014]

It is a farmers market where one can buy fresh produce and at the same time cooked food are sold there. Food, snacks, hot meals, desserts, sweets, Western food, Filipino food. Indian and Middle Eastern food as well.

Salcedo Village is not only a place where people work in but more and more people live there too with the proliferation of new condo developments in the area. I think this is the reason why the market is always packed and crowded. Bring enough cash with you because some vendors do not accept credit cards.

[read my Manila blog, January 2013]

Mijo and I would eat food, in any order, when we are in Salcedo Village Farmers market. Sweet first, and then savory, and then sweet again, and then savory again. What ever we see and if we like it and still have room for it, we'd get it.

A purist foodie probably won't approve how we approach this whole Salcedo Village farmers market food scene. Because of how the taste buds change depending on the intensity of the flavors, others might eat less flavorful food first and then gradually moving to the next intense flavor and also sampling savory dishes first and the sweet ones last. The great thing is that Mijo and I don't consider ourselves foodies. We just like to eat good food, that's all.

The way we did this was the just exact opposite. We sampled random food that was completely unrelated and tastes quite differently.

As an example, we started with this super tasty soy bean curd or locally called taho. Although this would be considered a designer version in terms of its price, the taste is very close or as good as the ones sold in the streets.

And then we sampled this delicious seafood paella next.

Next was this corn on the cob just off the grill and slathered with margarine and sprinkled with sea salt. It is locally called inihaw na mais.

We washed down the food with this super refreshing coconut water or locally called buko juice.

We rested for a bit. Walked around the market for a bit and then we started sampling random food again. Next in our list was this tender juicy chicken barbecue.

And then this hearty and chunky arroz caldo. This arroz caldo was different from the one I'm used to. This one was soupy with generous serving of chicken meat and vegetables.

How could I not have a sample of these?

Locally called suman, a few of them are salty but they are generally sweet and made from sticky rice or cassava. Think of Mexican tamales but with a Filipino twist.

Later that day, we took it easy and decided to see a live theater production by Repertory Philippines called The Dresser.

I was not familiar with the who's who of the local theatre scene in Manila but I saw the name Audi Gemora as one of the cast members. I had seen him in a play years ago during a school field trip as Joseph the Dreamer.

The play was very well acted. It was a great production overall.

My visit to Manila won't be complete without going to Mary Grace Cafe for breakfast and getting my favorite dish called bangsilog. I am salivating just writing about this. I went to their location at Greenbelt 2.

Mijo and I went to Century Mall in Makati for the first time and found this place called Overdoughs selling sweet snacks. We tried this fried dough with a matcha dip. It was so addicting!

We also had a light meal at a restaurant called Mesa Filipino Moderne located on the ground level of Greenbelt 5. I tried this refreshing watermelon shake.

This fish lumpia has layers and layers of tastiness. We also tried their modern style and reduced chicken and pork adobo.

We also had time to shop for coffee to bring back with us to the States. The coffee sold at Little Farmers Coffee Brim are good.

It was our first time to dine at Katherine's Cafe. We've heard good things about it from family and friends but it was only during this trip that we've had the chance to eat there.

I ordered this puttanesca pasta and it was al dente and molto bene. I would order this again.

I also sampled Mijo's order of shrimp pasta. It was equally tasty as well.

For Mijo, no trip to Manila is complete without a brunch at Wildflour. I always order their Golden Juice whenever we go there. It is refreshing, earthy and very full bodied. It contains orange, pineapple, carrots, ginger and turmeric.

I was told that Cronuts is one of the more popular pastries there. I am not surprised because it is really good. It reminds me of malasadas sold on Waikiki Beach.

Mijo ordered this Chorizo Fundido.

I ordered their signature breakfast plate of eggs, potatoes and homemade sausage. The sausage has hints of anise and was very good.

For traditional Filipino snacks, I found this vendor selling kakanin. These are starchy sweets either made from rice or cassava.

It was a difficult process to narrow down my choices to four. These were my kakanin selections. From left to right:  
bibingka cassava, pichi pichi, bibingka malagkit and maja blanca.

This delicious lunch at Ilonggo Grill only cost us $3USD.

Having tea and coffee at Figaro, our favorite place for unwinding.

My friends from highschool took me to Bo's Coffee in Quezon City. It was my first time at Bo's Coffee.

Mijo's favorite - Banana Leaf's sticky rice.

It is always a joy to be in Manila.

Mijo and I love the Manila food scene. Lots to choose from, lots of variety. It is also evolving. We always find new restaurants and new ways of serving traditional dishes. 

Until the next time, Manila!

~rl