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New Hatchin Japanese Grocery - Probably, the Best Japanese Grocery in Manila

Authentic Takoyaki (P78 for 8 pieces)

New Hatchin Japanese Grocery continues to be voted by both Filipino and Japanese as the number 1 Japanese Grocery Store in Manila. It is famous for Fresh Sashimi, Authentic Takoyaki, and Dorayaki (A pancake with sweet red bean paste inside).

8 Things I learned About Home Schooling in the Philippines

I'm seriously considering to home school Aidan in 2009. I would like to be one out of the 4,000+ Homeschoolers in the Philippines.

Chef Peter Ayson and Raymund Magdaluyo's Texas Smoke 'Em

Texas Smoke 'Em Menu: TSE Smoke house, Wraps, and Lucks | Small Blinds, Bonus, Drinks and Cocktails

Texas Smoke 'Em (or TSE for short) is the newest BBQ/ Mexican Fast Food Restaurant in town by Chef Peter Ayson (of Red Crab fame) and Restaurateur Raymund Magdaluyo. I'm not really a fan of any of the restaurant chains of Red Crab, Claw Daddy, or New Orleans. We decided to give this a try because we are looking for a good barbecue and mexican place in the Metro.

My Votes for the Manila’s Best Kept Restaurant Secrets Award

I would like to share with you my perspective on my votes for the MBKRS Awards. I based my votes on the personality of the restaurant, the overall awesome experience it provides and the positive buzz it gets from the community.

The voting period ended last November 14, and the winners will be announced on November 26 in the Enderun Colleges at the Fort. Thank you to Ines Cabarrus and Elian Habayeb for including me as one of the judges.

What is the MBKRS Awards?

• The First Annual Manila’s Best Kept Restaurant Secrets Award promise to be "the Oscars" of Manila's restaurant industry, and there are approximately 100 judges in total deciding the MBKRS Awards, made up mostly of restaurant owners, top-chefs, educators in the hospitality industry, hotel GMs, columnists and food critics, magazine editors, and other celebrities and reputable foodies.
• The awards are named after and inspired by the bestselling coffee-table book MANILA'S BEST KEPT RESTAURANT SECRETS, available at all major bookstores nationwide and now available internationally through Amazon.com.
• As a general rule, we avoid franchises and prefer family-owned restaurants, with few locations (preferably only one), not located in malls (or originating outside of shopping malls, before having moved to a mall location). All restaurants must have authentic quality food, excellent service, and a great ambiance.
• The MBKRS Awarding Ceremony is an invite only event that will happen on November 26 at Enderun Colleges, Fort Bonifacio Campus

1. Best Italian Restaurant
I voted for Bellini's because of the Italian personalities behind the restaurant and its warm family ambiance. a) L'Opera

b) Café Caruso
c) Bellini's
d) Amoroma (I've never been to Amoroma and I will review it soon :)
e) L'Incontro
f) Other: C Italian Dining (The number 1 Italian Restaurant for me is C Italian Dining in Angeles, Pampanga. But ever since Chef Chris Locher is not anymore connected with C Italian Dining, I cannot vote for it anymore. I'm surprised that the MBKRS Awards did not include him in the nominated list. )

2. Best French Restaurant
Je Suis Gourmand is probably one of the few restaurants that consistently WOW its customers and I've never heard any negative reviews about it.

a) Le Soufflé (Fort)
b) Je Suis Gourmand
c) La Cabane
d) La Regalade
e) Cuillère
f) Other: Cicou (Watch out for my review next week)

3. Best Spanish Restaurant
I don't really have a solid opinion on Spanish restaurant because my standard for good Spanish food is Chef Ed's Mestizo Spanish cuisine and Market Manila's Paella. . I voted for my favorite -- Terry's Selection (and it should be in Pasong Tamo Ext.).

a) Alba Restaurante Español (Makati)
b) La Tienda
c) Terry's Selection (Pasong Tamo Ext.)
d) Amalia's ( must confess that I've never been to Amalia so I will review it soon too :)
e) Casa Armas (Malate)
f) Other: Chef Ed's 21 Restaurant

4. Best Continental Cuisine
Antonio's is the Best Restaurant in the Philippines and Still the Best after all these years!

a) Chateau 1771
b) Sala
c) Aubergine
d) Lolo Dad's
e) Katre
f) Lemuria
g) Antonio's
h) Other: __________

5. Best Steakhouse
My vote goes to Elbert and the buzz is he is the undisputed king of steaks in Manila!

a) Fire Lake Grill
b) Mamou
c) Elbert's Steak Room
d) Myron's Place
e) Duo
f) Other: House of Wagyu

6. Best Japanese Restaurant
Seryna is the only Japanese restaurant that is loved by both Filipino Foodies and Japanese in Manila.

a) Sushi Tsumura
b) Tsukiji
c) Kai
d) Sugi (Greenbelt)
e) Seryna
f) Other: __________

7. Best Filipino Restaurant
Cafe Juanita's ambiance resembles a typical filipino home and serves authentic Filipino cuisine (not fusion).

a) Café Juanita
b) Harbor View
c) Abé
d) Laudico Bistro Filipino
e) La Cocina de Tita Moning
f) Other: Adarna

8. Best Thai Restaurant
I don't think we have a really good Thai restaurant in Manila. The closest would be People's Palace.

a) Silk
b) Azuthai
c) People's Palace
d) Kingdom (I can't wait to try this in Angeles, Pampanga)
e) Other: __________

9. Best Chinese Restaurant
Choi Garden in Greenhills and Golden Fortune in Binondo are the best Chinese restaurant for me!

a) Zong (Fort)
b) Hai Shin Lou
c) Gloria Maris (Greenhills)
d) The Good Earth (Fort)
e) Cantonese Kitchen
f) Other: Choi Garden

10. Best Central European Restaurant
I love Vieux Chalet because of the fresh ingredients used in the dishes, and spectacular view of Manila (from Antipolo)

a) Schwartzwalder
b) Old Swiss Inn (Makati)
c) Bianca's
d) Mickey's Deli (Makati)
e) Vieux Chalet
f) Other: Chateau Hestia

Bungee is Out, Swinging is the "IN" Thing... (Caption This!)

Edwin Sacdalan gave us a sneak peek on his latest crazy idea of doing a pendulum swing, high above the tree in Camp Sabros. I must admit, I did not have the guts to try it. Instead of Bungee jumping, you got to try pendulum swinging instead!

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Tree Rappelling - The Latest and Most Raved About Experience in Camp Sabros

The latest addition to the zip line adventure in Camp Sabros is the 80ft. Tree Rappelling. Most of the people I met who tried it, raved about it more than the longest zip line ride.

At the time that we did this, the attraction was only 2 weeks old. First you have to zip seated on your harness to the _________ tree.

The adventure is to rappel down the swaying 80-feet high tree via the Freefall Rapelling technique.

It looks so easy from this photo of Rache rappelling midway down the tree with no hands on the rope.

To go down, you grip a rappel device by your right hand which releases the rope steadily while your left hand guides the rope behind your waist.

400m Zip Line - Longest Zip Line in the Philippines (or is it the 700m of Outland Adventure?)

The second time around was more fun. Rache is more confident now to attempt the zip on her own.

We knew the drill and we felt totally safe. The thing that will scare you is thinking about "what if you fall?"


You need to relax and just fly like superman.

Flying Like Superman in Camp Sabros!

Anton: "Do you want to fly like Superman, Aidan?"
Aidan: "Yes, Poppa."

Rache: "This is the first time we are doing this... Can we really do it?"

This was our first tandem zip line ride. There's no turning back...

All set to fly with Aidan riding on my back while holding on the cables.

Yes, we are flying! (Look at Aidan's face :)

Tandem Flying in the 380 meters zip line in Camp Sambros, Davao del Sur --- Our best family adventure to date! Priceless!