#FoodStarsAtUptownMall: Cowboy Grub at Texas Roadhouse, Uptown Mall, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City, Philippines

My feed has been filling up with alerts from the newly opened Texas Roadhouse in Uptown Mall. As luck would have it, we were invited to a birthday celebration on the week of its opening.

Due to its soft opening, phone lines were either down or no one was answering hence we were forced to go without a reservation.  Wisely used the time taking pictures while we waited to be seated.

To keep us from losing our cool ('coz they were really making us wait a long time), they began serving their complementary wares.

.... and I must say, they should've served this earlier. These freshly baked bread rolls with cinnamon butter is enough to cool off any hot heads in sight. I couldn't stop raving about this and our dinner was yet to start.  Food-Stars Tip: Ask for a butter knife for spreading the butter since they don't serve it with one. Here's a little incident that happened to us. One of the managers who apparently didn't want to go back to the kitchen & get one told us to use the ones on the table instead. When we unwrapped the napkins, the knife he was talking about was bigger than the rolls 'coz it was a steak knife. I would've understood if that was the same case for everyone but our other table got a butter knife. Tsk tsk. Tamad 101. I just asked for one from a server instead. 

Bonding over Wings at Wingman, Newport Mall, Pasay Philippines

Wingman's wings was our current favorite. This time around, I invited my mom to come with us to taste the yummy wings at their Newport branch.

Iron Skillet Queso (Php 268.80)

The nacho chips here were crunchier & tastier. Also, the cheese tasted better.

 For tonight, we wanted to let Mom try as many flavors as possible. We got 2 dozen in 4 flavors.

Hubby's favorite (Buffalo Classic Medium) once again makes its appearance. Tangy orange goodness in every bite. The one the right is Prairie Fire, a combination of Buffalo & the Ranch dressing.

Another flavor that's sure to always be present in any of our Wingman eat out is their Garlic Parmesan. But mom's favorite of the night was the Hickory Barbecue (left). Smoky & well-coated, I found myself nodding in approval.

Wingman's Cheesesteak (Php 270 )

Served on a wooden chopping board with a side of onion rings. By the looks alone, this was a HUGE serving of cheesesteak; the bread bun couldn't hold all of it up. We couldn't wait to take the first bite.... and felt like the taste greatly resembled something. Funnily, this tasted exactly like the Skillet Quezo, just in sandwich form. Food-Stars Verdict? Liked the Skillet Quezo version better.

Homerun Sliders (Php 260 )

Aptly named, these mini burgers were to-die-for.

 

The Cowboy Burger

Juicy ground beef with smoky bacon is always a good combination. Add the caramelized onion & their homemade hickory barbecue sauce; you're in for a real treat. The homemade fries on the side practically flew off the table, everyone couldn't get enough of it. Suffice to say, Wingman has a winner here. ;9

Take a bow Wingman, you're now our favorite wings place! ;9

'Til our next Good Eat!

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SERVICE:

TASTE:

VALUE FOR YOUR MONEY:

Wingman, Newport Mall

Butterfly Garden, Newport City Complex
Pasay, Metro Manila

Facebook: WingmanGrill

Instagram: @wingman_ph

Twitter: @wingman_ph

Korean Night at Korean Village Restaurant, Malate Manila, Philippines

It's been awhile since we've been in the Malate area either for errands or for eating. If I remember correctly we only traverse the streets of Malate for 2 restaurants, either Tao Yuan or Korean Village Restaurant. The choice for tonight was Korean.

Korean Village Restaurant

Korean appetizers

The last time we were here was years ago for a cousin's birthday. All I can remember is that it was a night of good food. So I was hoping that through the years, the taste stayed the same. 

To make things more interesting, aside from ordering ala carte we also wanted to do a bit of grilling.

Here's our for-grilling orders.

   We take our grilling seriously. We got shrimps, chicken, pork & squid. As the designated chef of the night, it took a few tries before I got the right cooking temperature for each. ;)

The seafood (shrimp & squid) were the quickest to cook. Shrimps curl up when done & the squid "pop" up. Our Food-Stars Advice is don't overcook the squid; they become rubbery and hard to chew.

The meats take a much longer time to grill. For the chicken, leave them on a bit until the sides get a bit blackish-brown. As for the pork, as soon as the whole piece becomes brown then you're all set. 


And now for our ala carte choices of the night.

Beef Rib Stew (Php 250)

Although the beef slices were juicy & tender, it lacked flavor. It didn't have that spicy kick as well that I love in Korean Beef Stews. Sigh. 

Tempura Shrimp (Php 240)

These were just okay; crunchy & lightly breaded. 

This chicken dish was cooked just right; juicy & flavorful. 

Spicy Squid (Php 300)

This comes to your table piping hot; you can even see the steam in the picture. Our Food-Stars Recommendation is to order this rather than grilling it yourself. It's a bit spicy so eating it with rice is a good idea.

Chopchae (Php 200)

This was the surprise of the night; I couldn't stop eating this. The glass noodles had just the right amount of sweetness and loved the fact  that Korean Village Restaurant serve theirs hot. Thumbs up in my book! ;)

Food-Stars Verdict? I'm having mixed emotions. The dishes that I previously liked before were just so-so but I'm glad to have found news ones to like. ;9

SERVICE:

TASTE:

VALUE FOR YOUR MONEY:

Korean Village Restaurant

566 J Nakpil StMalate, Manila(02) 524-4958

'Til our next Good Eat!

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Ice Cream Fix at Mad Mark's Creamery & Good Eats, Glorietta 5 Makati Philippines

Glorietta 5 has now become one of our new food stops. Housing restaurants such as Yabu, Buffalo Wings 'N Things and Giligan's; a stroll here always ends with us going home with happy tummies ;) It came as no surprise that tonight another one of Glorietta 5's food haunts made our list.

Say hello to Mad Mark's Creamery.  

Staff had a bit of an attitude, which was a bad start to any food trip. Normally we would've just walked out at this point but we were in a good mood and let it slide nalang. Bumawi naman when they gamely posed for the camera.

Moving on...

You walk up the counter and order from their clipboard menu.
We were eyeing Mad Mark's Grill Works which had 3 easy steps.

STEP ONE (Choose your meat & doneness): Got their Regular Steak which was 200g USDA Steak with 2 sides. For the Steak Doneness, we opted to have it Medium Well.  Also got their Creole Grilled Chicken which was basically grilled chicken with 2 sides.

STEP TWO (Pick a Sauce): Went with the staff's recommendation and got Bootstrap Steak Sauce for our steak and Roasted Nut Sauce for the chicken.

STEP THREE (Choose your side dishes): It was Smashed Potatoes all the way! ;)

We knew to save room for dessert. Heard about their Homemade Ice Cream & we wanted to be sure to try them out.

 ** Food-Stars Tip: Ask for a free taste of their ice cream so you can pick your favorite. **

They give you this wooden plank with a number printed on as you wait for them to serve your order. We got lucky number 4 for the night.

#FoodStarsFoodAlerts: KFC Afternoon Rollback Promo

Get your chicken on!

'Til our next Good Eat!

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KFC Facebook Page
KFC Website
Delivery Hotline: 887-8888
KFC Twitter

YUCKY Night at Racks, The Fort Strip Makati

This is one of the reasons why I regret giving restaurants second chances. It's like hitting yourself on a head with a brick. And in the end, you have no one to blame but yourself. Sigh.

We were having cravings for ribs. Rub was too far a drive so we thought of the next best thing, Racks. We decided to go to a different branch to avoid the yucky cockroach-in-our-iced-tea-pitcher incident at your Magallanes branch. Hubby called ahead inquiring about their store hours. The girl said that they were opened 'til 12mn. Seeing that it was only 10pm, we had time to spare.

Racks, The Fort Strip

We arrived at 10:30pm and were welcomed with this sight. Hmm... No one was eating. We sat down & placed our order. A few minutes later, the waiter comes back and says that half of their side dishes were not available & that the chicken is not available because they already closed the kitchen. This sounded funny; it was only 10:45pm. This was when he informed us that their closing was 11pm. This was the strike one of the night. Misinformation. Okay so we didn't want to order the chicken anymore but after gesturing with the other people in the kitchen, the waiter then said it was available but it would take 15mins. Okay, no problem. 

A few minutes later the waiter proceeds to mop the floor with bleach. You can just imagine the stench filling our nostrils. Excuse me, there are still customers inside. It's not our fault that your cashier gave us the wrong store hours. You should at least have the decency to clean up after we go. But we let this one go. We just wanted to sink our teeth into their ribs & go home happy.

VMS: Bon Chon Chicken

Craving for chicken, we decided it's high time we tried Bon Chon.

Bon Chon

Packaged in a take away box with red & orange stripes, this looked like a preview of what's to come. Couldn't wait to dig in. :)

Mom's Day Lunch 2012 (Part One) at Brasserie Boheme by the Gustavian, Makati

As the hullabaloo of Mother's Day died down, it's time for FS Mother's Day Good Eats. First up is our celebration with the M-I-L (that's short for mom-in-law). 

In the heart of Makati, we found this quaint little European fusion restaurant. 

Brasserie Boheme by the Gustavian, Salcedo Village Makati

The place was a bit small since it was located inside a lobby of The Picasso Boutique Serviced Residences (like a condo-tel). Had to wait for a few minutes to be escorted to our seats.

Racks of Wine

One of their main decors was this ceiling to floor wine selection. 

Chicken Run at Classic Savory, The Link Building Makati

Hearing of the SM Advantage promo through the grapevine, we decided to eat dinner at Classic Savory. 

SM Advantage Savory Promo

We've had their chicken before but this would be the first we were having Savory's Lomi. With tummies rumbling, we soon found ourselves in front of Classic Savory, The Link Building in Makati.

Table wares & Chairs

 I know it sounds silly but with the cover picture of chicken in their menu and the wooden table & chairs, I couldn't help but think that we were at Max's Restaurant. But the similarities end there.