There’s a new bar and grill that recently opened in Ortigas Home Depot called Obsidian Bar and Grill. Aside from being a drinking venue and a place to watch local bands perform, they also boast their delicious pica-pica treats for everyone. Well, they weren’t wrong.

About 2 weeks ago, a friend of ours from Obsidian invited us to have a glimpse of their pica-picas before they formally open. We feasted on the dishes that are the must-orders when you come to their bar to watch great bands perform.

What I liked about their menu is that it’s simple and had all the pica-picas that must be ordered when you’re in a bar. Nothing really complicated. You might think that it’s just appetizers, they also have dishes that can be paired with rice. Well, we’re Filipinos and very flexible on what we want to pair with rice .

We first had Pork Barbeque which was a standard appetizer for Filipinos. It’s composed of 5 barbeques per order which only costs Php 100. It comes with a sauce which you can dip the pork barbeque into for more flavor but the barbeque can stand alone.

Spicy Chicken Wings @ Php 179

The Spicy Chicken Wings (or Buttered Chicken) is our most favorite dish in Obsidian. One order is composed of 8 chicken wings. The chickens were very tasty and you’ll not be satisfied with only just one. It’s  like Buffalo Wings but the spiciness is tolerable. My suggestion to them is that they can also have some dips (blue cheese dip) for added flavor. But this dish can stand alone just like the barbeque above.

Bicol Express @ Php 169

I love Bicol Express, in fact, I love everything with coconut milk. This is one of the dishes that somewhat became weird for me because I am used to the Bicol Express having the taste of coconut milk. In here, I wasn’t able to taste the coconut milk. In fact, it tasted sweet, which was very unexpected. It was pretty ok as it is but it seems that it can’t be called Bicol Express.

Sisig @ Php 169

This is probably one of the best sisigs I have tasted ever in my life. It’s cooked Pampanga style – meaning it’s not well done. They didn’t use the instant sisigs that are being sold in the markets. Real pig’s ears were used combined with pig’s lungs. I’m not really fond of eating the pig’s insides but for this one, it wasn’t noticeable that’s why it’s ok to eat it as it is.

Crispy Pata @ Php 389

Obsidian’s Crispy Pata is one of the cheapest that in Manila. It’s served without the big bone anymore so that customers won’t have a hard time getting the meat out from the bone. I liked this one very much as it’s very tender and the meat is very tasty. It’s served with a sauce which my guess contains Worcestershire sauce, pepper, salt, sugar and soy sauce. The sauce tasted weird at that time because the Worcestershire sauce was too strong, I suggest that they lessen this. I think that the Crispy Pata can also stand alone as the meat itself is already tasty.

Binagoongan @ Php 169

Binagoongan or Pork Stewed with Shrimp Paste tasted ok. I hope that they add more Shrimp Paste to actually taste it.

Chicharong Bulaklak @ Php 169

The Chicharong Bulaklak was superb! This is a great appetizer to pair with an ice cold beer.

Chicken Adobo @ Php 169

Here’s another favorite of mine, the Chicken Adobo. The chicken was marinated long enough which resulted to a tastier chicken meat. This is a good dish to pair with rice!

Tapa @ 169

The Beef Tapa is another favorite of mine. The beef is very tender and again, very tasty. It’s not cooked well done, in fact it was cooked just. It tasted a bit sweet and salty.

Who says you can’t combine beer drinking and band watching with good food?  Obsidian Bar and Grill showcases different appetizers which you can enjoy while hanging out with friends. They also added the usual street foods that we know such as fish balls and squid balls as well as fish dishes in their menu.

Obsidian Bar and Grill

Unit 149/150 Bldg C Ortigas Home Depot Complex
(near Pier 1)

Related posts:

1. Albay Food Tour Series #1: 1st Colonial Grill Malunggay, Sili and Tinutong Ice Cream, 79 pesos (single...
2. Adobong Manok sa Gata (Chicken Stewed in Coconut Cream) (apologies for the ugly picture, I just used my...
3. Unit 8 Cafe: Italian Fusion Cuisine By the Bay Fruity Wonton Salad @Php 285 SM Mall of Asia...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Polvoron is a Filipino dessert that is made up of toasted flour, powdered milk, sugar and melted butter. I like polvoron that is compact and that is not too sweet.

I love the polvoron from HOP. My favorite polvoron variant from HOP is the pinipig. Their other polvoron variants are: Classic, Pili, Cashew and Cookies and Cream. Even though the other variants are good, pinipig has been my all-time favorite.

A box (18 pieces) of each polvoron variant costs 100 pesos while a box of assorted polvoron (20 pieces) is being sold at 108 pesos. If you’re having a hard time choosing which polvoron variant you would try, I suggest that you get the assorted so that you could also try the other variants.

Related posts:

1. Red Mango in Trinoma It was Friday last week when we first tried...
2. Food Tripping by the Taal Lake And so, my other camera failed me to be...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

PenPen Restaurant is located at 105-C Scout Castor, Brgy. Laging Handa, QC.

Related posts:

1. Enjoy Comfort Food at PenPen Crispy Liempo, 125 pesos per order PenPen is the...
2. Binondo Food Tour Series #1: Sincerity Restaurant Fried Chicken @ around P150 half order A Fried...
3. Cheap Pasta at Ravioli Ravioli is truly a treasure found in the food...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Yummy Magazine has ventured into making simple cookbooks so I decided to try some of the recipes there. The recipe can be found in “Meals in Minutes”. In the book, they used Tilapia but since my mom and I weren’t able to get Tilapia from the nearby groceries, we just used filleted Asohos as an alternative. Asohos (Silago in English) is perfect when it’s fried and crispy. This fish is commonly cooked as Tempura. This recipe is also perfect for pulutan and very easy to prepare.

Ingredients:

400 grams Asohos fillets
salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2-3 cups oil

For the vinaigrette:

finely chopped garlic
finely chopped onions
soy sauce
vinegar
siling labuyo (bird’s eye chili)

Procedure:

1. Slice fish fillets in strips. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Coat with cornstarch
3. Fry in hot oil until crisp and golden brown.
4. Combine ingredients for the vinaigrette. Estimate the amount of ingredients to mix. It really depends on  your preference. You can have equal parts of soy sauce and vinegar.
   

Related posts:

1. Chicken Satay with Cucumber Salad I am not really a peanut butter loving person...
2. Adobong Manok sa Gata (Chicken Stewed in Coconut Cream) (apologies for the ugly picture, I just used my...
3. Creamed Tuna and Mushroom Pasta Christmas dinner with my mom is done and now...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Related posts:

1. Chap Chee (Korean noodles) Marinate 1/4 kilo thinly sliced rib eye (Sukiyaki cut)...
2. Chicken Satay with Cucumber Salad I am not really a peanut butter loving person...
3. Happy 2nd Anniversary to Yummy Magazine! Hope you continue to share yummy recipes and foodie...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

When I was in Legazpi, I announced in Facebook that I was there when suddenly, Denden Villanueva, my grade school batchmate in St. Scho Manila  messaged me to visit her restaurant in Daraga. I felt excited about it because it’s been ages since we’ve seen each other. Imagine, we were in prep when we became classmates. I didn’t realize that she’s now managing her family’s restaurant. The restaurant started years ago and was dormant like the Mayon Volcano nearby and just recently opened last May 2009, now with my schoolmate managing it.

The restaurant is called Balay Cena Una (in Filipino, Sinaunang Bahay) which is situated in Daraga, Albay. From the name itself you’re going to get a hint what the restaurant is all about. It’s a two-storey restaurant which used to be an old colonial house. The interiors of the place is a combination of the old and modern colonial theme. The place felt very relaxing and with the delicious food, you’re definitely not gonna go wrong with this. Actually, this is a fine dining place especially during dinner time because most guests from high end hotels in Albay dine here.

Heart of Palm and Apple Salad @ Php 85

Now the most important part is the food. They serve European-Asian fusion cuisine. Of course they have the usual Bicolano dishes but they added some twist. The owners of the restaurant boast their chefs who were trained in Europe but Bicolano at heart: Chef Dick and Connie Condeno.

We started with our appetizers. The first one was the Heart of Palm (ubod in Filipino) and Apple Salad. Actually the apple in there is Makopa (Java apple or Mountain apple in English). This is my first time to eat a dish which has Makopa in it and the most interesting part is that it’s combined with ubod. The salad indeed is very refreshing because of the hint of light vinaigrette.

Makopa Shake @ Php 60

We were also served Makopa Shakes. This one is mixed with coconut milk to add flavor to Makopa because it can’t stand alone. The Makopa gave texture to this very delicious and refreshing shake. Good job on the makopa shake, I really loved it!

Fresh Lumpiang Ubod @ Php 85

Another appetizer is the Fresh Lumpiang Ubod which is a very common Filipino dish. This one is just like your home made lumpiang ubod which can’t go wrong.

Pasta Cena Una Especial @ Php 180

This one is really my favorite, Pasta Cena Una Especial. It’s made of fettuccine mixed with coconut milk, taro leaves, saffron and shrimps. Mmm. I really love this (did you realize that I said this twice??). This pasta is really unforgettable. Now this is European-Bicolano fusion cuisine.

Marinated Boneless Chicken @ Php 195

The next dish is the Marinated Boneless Chicken. The chicken was marinated with fresh lemon juice. This dish is complimented with rice. I liked chicken because it was very tender and tasty. The mixture of sweet and sour is very pleasing to the palate.

Cena Una Chocolate Cake @ Php 80

Now we go our favorite part of the meal, desserts. Balay Cena Una is famous for its scrumptious desserts. Denden sampled us with 2 of their best desserts: Cena Una Chocolate Cake and Mt. Mayon’s Choco Boulder.

The Chocolate Cake was very moist and it’s so delicious! It wasn’t that sweet.

Mt. Mayon’s Choco Boulder @ Php 60

If you’re a person who likes fruity desserts as well as rhum, now this is the dessert for you. I also enjoyed this dessert but I like the Chocolate Cake more .

Albay food tripping is incomplete without going to Balay Cena Una. For urban people, this fine dining restaurant is way cheaper than what we have in Manila. Every centavo is well spent in this restaurant. By the way, they have lunch buffet on Sundays for only Php 395 (?).

Balay Cena Una is also a venue for private functions and gatherings. They have a big function room at the back of the restaurant. Also, they have a small house wherein guests can stay overnight. The room can accommodate a family. Very cozy.

For inquiries, you may contact Lourdes (Denden) Villanueva at 09178684030 or you may email at balaycenauna@gmail.com. You can visit their Facebook page here.

Balay Cena Una

Calle F. Lotivio Street
Daraga, Albay

Related posts:

1. Albay Food Tour Series #1: 1st Colonial Grill Malunggay, Sili and Tinutong Ice Cream, 79 pesos (single...
2. Binondo Food Tour Series #1: Sincerity Restaurant Fried Chicken @ around P150 half order A Fried...
3. La Mia Tazza Coffee in Legazpi, Albay La Mia Tazza Coffee was a coffee shop that...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

First Colonial Grill is just amongst the restaurants that you should not miss when you’re in Legazpi City, Albay.They currently have two branches, one in Pacific Mall and one in the Old Albay District.

We visited the branch in the Old Albay District, which is one jeep ride away from Sampaguita Tourist Inn (the hotel we’re staying at). Their first branch has two floors, but we chose to stay in the second floor because we went there around lunch time.

Laing, 135 pesos per order

We went there to try out their ice cream, but since it’s lunch time, we might as well try their other dishes. We ordered Laing and their Five-Spice Grilled Chicken which are amongst the favorites of their customers.

I enjoyed eating their Laing simply because I didn’t feel any itchiness in my throat. I remember before experiencing such when I ate Pinangat (which also includes gabi leaves) here in Manila. Whenever the gabi leaves are stirred too much, when one eats it (the Laing), the tendency is that there might be some itchy feeling in the throat.

Five-Spice Grilled Chicken, 180 pesos (half order of chicken)

Their five-spice grilled chicken is amongst the must tries in the said restaurant. It’s very juicy and tasty. It seems to us that they’ve used Worcestershire sauce in glazing the chicken.

And for our dessert, we tried their Malunggay, Sili and Tinuto Ice cream flavors. Amongst the three ice cream flavors, Sili ice cream topped in our list. The Sili ice cream is sweet at first, and after a few seconds you will suddenly taste that it’s spicy.

Our overall experience in eating at 1st Colonial Grill is a great one.

1st Colonial Grill
Old Albay District
Rizal Street, Legazpi City
Tel. No. 481-1212

1st Colonial Grill
Pacific Mall, Legazpi City
Tel. No. 820-0985

Related posts:

1. Albay Food Tour Series #2: Balay Cena Una When I was in Legazpi, I announced in Facebook...
2. La Mia Tazza Coffee in Legazpi, Albay La Mia Tazza Coffee was a coffee shop that...
3. Binondo Food Tour Series #1: Sincerity Restaurant Fried Chicken @ around P150 half order A Fried...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

If you were able to watch Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations episode on the Philippines, chances are, you may have heard of Zubuchon. Zubuchon is not your typical lechon with smooth skin. I think the skin is pricked while it’s being cooked.

I love that the skin of the lechon (roasted pig) is crunchy and the fact that I don’t need a lechon sauce to eat it. The meat is juicy and tender.

According to Marketman, they don’t use MSG, they don’t paint the skin of the pig with soy sauce, they don’t use blowtorches and they don’t use very large pigs.

BANILAD TOWN CENTER
Sunday Market in the Lobby
Sunday, 10am-1pm
Zubuchon at PHP385/kilo

Related posts:

1. Cebu Foodtripping #1: Abuhan Dos Just recently, we were in Cebu for the Philippine...
2. Green Mango Yogurt Ice Cream Here’s another yogurt ice cream place you can add...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Just recently, we were in Cebu for the Philippine Blog Awards Visayas. Of course, prior to the event itself, we had a day and a half to taste Cebu’s food tripping places. The night we arrived in Cebu, our blogger friends were already done with dinner at Abuhan Dos. Even though it’s already almost 11 pm, we headed our way to Abuhan Dos to taste one of their specialties which is the Sizzling Pochero.

In Cebu, Pochero is what most of us know as Bulalo. It’s not your usual beef stewed in tomato sauce with vegetables. So therefore, Sizzling Pochero = Sizzling Bulalo.

And there it was. The most beautiful sizzling bulalo I have ever seen! I know I have already tried a number of Sizzling Bulalos in my entire life here in Manila but nothing compared to theirs. The meat was very tender and does not have lots of tendons. I’m not really a fan of tendons but it’s still good that it has tendons because it brings out the flavor more. The gravy sauce is mixed with a somewhat bechamel sauce (because it’s white) which makes the bulalo taste butter-y. The first time I tasted it, I said to myself “Oh, this is heaven!” Too bad we weren’t able to taste the soup version of it because we’re still full but according to our friends, this tastes much better than the soup version.

Abuhan Dos is a popular Filipino restaurant in Cebu and is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can have your Sizzling Pochero fiesta anytime you want to!

Related posts:

1. Cebu foodtripping #2: Zubuchon If you were able to watch Anthony Bourdain’s No...
2. Solihiya: Filipino and Chinese Fusion We were looking for restaurants to eat around Greenbelt...
3. Classic Cuisine (C2): Familiar Filipino Dishes with a Twist Aligue Rice, 125 pesos per order It was our...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

(apologies for the ugly picture, I just used my mobile phone then)

I was inspired to cook when I watched the premiere of Julie and Julia a few weeks ago so I bought the September issue of Yummy Magazine and tried out this recipe called Adobong Manok sa Gata (Chicken stewed in coconut cream). There are many kinds of adobo in the Philippines but this has the Bicol touch because of the use of coconut cream. I love anything that has coconut cream in it so I decided to try this one in preparation for our Bicol trip next month.

The Adobong Manok was very delicious, although my presentation isn’t nice to look at. The recipe is very easy to do and the ingredients are not hard to find.

This was actually my first time to try this kind of recipe and was thinking of doing some variation after my first trial, maybe in the near future. So here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 1/2 kilo chicken, cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups soy sauce
1 cup white vinegar
1/2 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 cup julienned ginger
1/2 cup coconut cream (kakang gata) from 2 matured coconuts
4 pieces bayleaf
2 tablespoons fish sauce (patis)
5 Bicol chilies or jalapeno peppers
4 finger chilies

Procedure:

1. Marinate the chicken in soy sauce, vinegar and black pepper for at least 2 hours in a covered container at room temperature. (tip: use a glass bowl instead of the aluminum ones, plus cover it with saran)
2. In a pan, saute garlic, ginger, and onions, then add the drained marinated chicken. When the chicken is half-cooked, add the coconut cream and bay leaves.
3. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Season with fish sauce, add the chilies then serve immediately.

For my second trial, I’ll marinate the chicken with soy sauce, vinegar and black pepper first. Then saute the garlic, ginger and onions then I’ll pour the marinade (soy sauce, vinegar and black pepper) until the chicken is half-cooked. When it is already half-cooked, I can add the coconut cream and bay leaves. Once I’ve tried that kind of procedure, I’ll tell you about it.

Related posts:

1. Chicken Satay with Cucumber Salad I am not really a peanut butter loving person...
2. Asohos Strips with Soy Vinaigrette Yummy Magazine has ventured into making simple cookbooks so...
3. Creamed Tuna and Mushroom Pasta Christmas dinner with my mom is done and now...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.