Saturday Salcedo Market Day =)

My mom, ate linda and I wanted to go to Salcedo Market in Makati for so long but we just haven't gotten to it. After seeing it get featured on TV, it seemed pretty nice so I finally said I'll wake up early Sat morning and invite them to go to the market. And we weren't disappointed.. it was much more than we expected.

The Salcedo Market is only open every SATURDAY which is situated at the JAIME C. VELASQUEZ CARPARK which is on the corner of Tordesillas St. and Toledo St. You can't miss the stream of people, many white tents and the road jampacked with parked cars. They actually converted the carpark into a market. For parking, there are nearby parking areas nearby or if you're early or lucky, you can park on the side of the road.

The market is filled with a variety of options ---- fresh vegetables, crabs, herbs to authentic cooked food (ie. italian, indian, spanish, filipino, vietnamese, etc.). The Saturday Salcedo market is actually much bigger than the Sunday Legazpi market. Although I did see some familiar concessionaires from the Legazpi market who are also participating in the Salcedo market. What's interesting is that there are actually grocery shopping carts (precious few) that's available so you can be sure that people who go here actually buy a lot. The picture below is actually our second round of purchases already.

My mom bought chicken empanadas at Something Different which she liked a lot. For me, it was ok and has a simple taste. Nothing beats Red Ribbon chicken empanada for me :)

I saw this stall selling roti prata, roti naan, pita bread, etc. I actually liked roti prata because of its light, thin bread consistency and its sweet taste complemented with a curry-looking dip (but its pleasantly not curry tasting) which is really yummy. Each bread package costs only P50. It's value for money given the size and quality of the bread plus the yummy dip :)

I got to buy japanese pancake and is pleasantly surprised with several flavors to choose from. Of course I tried the hazelnut choco filling which is really good. Not only is the filling good but the pancake itself is light, soft and fluffy. I can't wait to try the other flavors. Plus it's so cheap at just P12, you already have a filling snack.

I was also able to find authentic thai iced tea which I like but found it a bit pricey at P70 for a 12oz cup.

Then, I happen to pass by another stall selling thai iced tea which is of the same quality but only at P40 for 12oz cup also. Better if you buy from the hiphop guys. :)

The girl at the real Cuban sandwich stall was so nice to give me a P20 discount for the Cuban sandwich (its original price is P120). It was interesting as it was filled with thinly sliced parma ham, pickles, roastbeef and mustard in a long tasty bread.

We got to buy lots of fruits --- chico, avocado, langka, atis. We ate them at home and so far all of them are sweet.

Ate linda bought puto filled in leaves but wasn't that tasty as expected.

I'm definitely going back to the Saturday Salcedo Market!

P.S.

For dog lovers, unfortunately we can't bring our beloved dogs with us. Good thing I didn't bring my cute sophie.

My First Run!

I finally got to run in my first ever run in fort which was sponsored by Globe. It was really fun and motivating to see a lot of people who enjoy running. Aside from scuba and golf, I've found another love and what's great is it's not that expensive :)

I finished the 3km in about 32 minutes which is not half bad considering I didn't go with my "true full speed" yet. I got my race results from Globe site which was tracked via a chip (real techie, it's so cool :) The detail into the result was more than I expected. I can't wait to go on the Kenny night run on Aug 15 which will use the same technology and compare results. The difference though is I'll now be running 5km instead of 3km which I know I'm ready for.

My Top Restaurants in Metro Manila - By Cuisine!

My family loves eating out and I also like discovering new nice places to eat that I can recommend to my family. For now, I'll share you with you my list of top restaurants in Metro Manila (well, for me that is! :) I'll make write-ups and share pics on these places as I go back to them.

Not in order of priority (yet!)

JAPANESE

1. Tsukiji - yummy yakiniku and one-of-a-kind kani salad

2. Sakura Yakiniku - cook your own yakiniku with a special sweet soy dipping sauce

3. Nihonbashitei - katsu ju (don set), tamago, futomaki, gyoza, kani salad, etc (everything is just really good and authentic!)

4. Kagura - mouth-watering okonomiyaki (jap pizza topped with sauteed jap noodles on top)

5. Misato - Gyudon

6. Bubble Tea - authentic jap milk tea (i like almond the best) and chicken doria

7. Kimono Ken - Gyudon

8. Kamirori - Gyudon

9. Ran Ramen Tei - Okonomiyaki, Gyoza

10. Shinjuku - Kanitama (crab omelette with savory sauce)

11. John and Yoko

12. Hana - authentic takoyaki

13. Sizzling Pepper Steak

14. Yaku

CHINESE

1. Emerald Garden - garlic and onion lobster, fried crab, sharksfin soup (too many to enumerate!)

2. Hap Chan - 2 way of fresh lapu-lapu (steamed & soup), salt and pepper squid, etc

3. Jade Palace - Nido Soup! Asado siopao

4. Luk Yuen - authentic chinese bolabola congee, asado siopao, taro puff, king dao

5. Tian-Tian - shabu shabu

6. Mini-Shabu-Shabu

7. Eat Well

8. Jade Palace

ITALIAN

1. Cibo

2. Cafe Puccini

3. Pasto

4. Tratorria

5. California Pizza Kitchen

6. Yellow Cab

7. Sbarro

8. Carlo's Pizza

GREEK/MEDITERRENEAN

1. Cyma

2. Hosseins

3. Persiana

4. Uncle Moe's

STEAKHOUSE

1. Mamou

2. Melo's

3. Santi's

4. Outback

AMERICAN

1. Tony Romas

2. Fridays

SPANISH

1. Casa Armas

2. Alba

KOREAN

1. Korean Garden Restaurant

2. Kaya

FILIPINO

1. Dencio's

2. Ken Afford

3. Ineng's

4. Tapa King

5. Rufo's

6. Serye

7. Jay Jay's

8. Kanin Club

THAI

1. Som's

2. My Thai

BURGER PLACE

1. Brother's Burger

2. Wham Burger

3. Hotshots

SPECIALTY RESTOS

1. Aubergine

2. Portico

3. Conti's

4. Chelsea

If you think there are other good restos for me to try. Do let me know. I'm game to try out new taste, new foodie experience :)

Baguio Roadtrip - Part 3

Aside from the usual trip to Good Shepherd at Mines' View Park to buy warm ube and other delish items, another first experience that was a special treat was the STRAWBERRY TAHO - same great tasting taho and pearls but with strawberry syrup and tidbits. Honestly, it lacked the pizzazz you get from the traditional taho with its sweet dark syrup ("arnibal"). Replacing the "arnibal" syrup was strawberry syrup which tastes similar to diluted strawberry jam. I'd still go for the traditional taho any day. BUT of course, you can only try strawberry taho in Baguio so I'd recommend to try this regional exclusive treat, especially since it only costs P15 per plastic cup.

Baguio Roadtrip - Part 2

We also went to Camp John Hay where we dropped by CHOCO-LATE DE BATIROL for a hot mug of native chocolate which you can drink traditional or mixed with other flavors like almond essence, kahlua, etc. We also ate crispy and sweet turon with our hot choco drinks. Just right to warm us up during the cool Baguio afternoon.

It's a nice place to chill and just chat with friends. Place has a rustic outdoor charm to it. It's definitely a must-go-place in Baguio. :)

Baguio Roadtrip - Part 1

I went up to baguio with my closest friends after a looong time and it was really fun because it was full of firsts!

First, once we got to cool Baguio, we went straight to BALAJADIA RESTAURANT in SLAUGHTERHOUSE for lunch - mind you, it's just a term of the place where it's near the area where pigs/cows are butchered and sold in a market.

Not really familiar on the directions but you can ask around and look for barangay sto. nino slaughterhouse.

Balajadia serves simple and affordable Filipino dishes. We ordered bulalo,bistek, tenga ng baboy and inihaw na liempo (meat overload!) plus rice and softdrinks. We also had complimentary hot bulalo soup while we waited for our food.

We spent around P500 which was good for 5 persons. Overall, the meal is reminiscent of a simple yet filling, home-cooked meal.

Legazpi Sunday Market - Feast for the eyes and the stomach

After recently learning about the unique Legazpi market in Makati city which only assembles every Sunday, I just had to see for myself if it was really worth the buzz about its different gastronomic offerings. So, I woke up on this lazy Sunday morning to check it out.

Where is it located? The Legazpi Sunday Market is located at Makati City along V.A. Rufino St. (formerly Herrera st.). From Ayala, turn left to V.A. Rufino St. and then turn lef

t at the next street. On your right is the Legazpi Sunday market which is set up of big tents in an open parking lot. 

The Legazpi Sunday Market Experience

When I finally got there, I was impressed with its size and variety. Almost 2/3 of the market was composed of varied and unique cuisines and treats that's one-of-a-kind and not available elsewhere.

Cuisines (food below doesn't capture everything that's being sold. Just what I remember :)

1. Mediterennean - shawarma, hummus & pita, baklava

2. Italian - eggplant lasagna, freshly baked pizza, crepes

3. Spanish - Paella, Chorizo

4. Portuguese - Bacalao

5. Filipino - BBQ, Inihaw, Kakanin 

6. Chinese - Sauteed Brocolli & Mushroom

7. Indonesian - Nasi Goreng

8. Japanese - Takoyaki, Sushi

9. Korean - Chap Chae

10. Malaysian - Satay

11. American - Grilled quarter or half pounders

12. English - Beef & Mushroom pie, chicken pie, vegetable pie

Not sure if I got all the cuisine in but Legazpi Sunday Market is a food haven for those looking for a real gastronomic adventure.

Here are some of the foodies I bought:

I ate Takoyaki - looks like squid balls but its made up flour and vegetables with octopus inside and topped with sauce and mayo. I bought 5 pcs at P40 which was really value for money. Wished though that they used the actual Japenese takoyaki sauce that I loved.

Baklava sold here is REALLY GOOD. It's finely chopped nuts with sweet and succulent sauce generously coming out from the flaky crust. There are 3 baklava options: walnut, pistachio and hazelnut. Each piece costs P30 but you can buy a small pack containing 8 pcs for just P150. 

 

I also tried their Spinach & Feta cheese quiche at P75. The flaky crust was good but it rather lacked the taste I was hoping for. *ate this at home already*

The mango frozen yogurt was rich and tasty which I bought at P65 was good but I found it a bit pricey. Tried the other flavors ---- chocolate, banana, passion fruit -- but I liked mango the best. Too bad the vanilla got sold out already.

Last item that we bought was the chicken pie costing P50. It had a generous filling of chicken and mushroom filled in a flaky crust. I really don't have a benchmark for the pie as it's my first time to eat such food but overall it was OKAY. Too bad the beef and mushroom pie was already sold out. Maybe next time. :) *ate this at home already*

Aside from the food, there are also other unique and one-of-a-kind items being sold in the market:

paintings

bags

personalized jewelry

personalized cards

handicrafts

clothes

spa essentials

organic vegetables

THE VERDICT

Overall, it was a phenomenal gastronomic delight. I wasn't able to try a lot of the food items which I wanted to try like Tong's coffee, Arroz ala cubana because I was so full already. But what's good is that there's always NEXT SUNDAY. :)