Burgers, Fries and Shakes at Shake Shack, BGC, Philippines

Here’s how our first visit to Shake Shack went.

Since Hubby volunteered to stay with our newborn, my toddler & I quickly got dressed and head on out to Central Square. The lines were taking up almost half of the ground floor. They hand you their menu while you wait. Good thing, we had priority so it didn’t take that long before we got to the order counter. 

Shake Shack Counter

We decided to get 3 burgers, 2 cheesy fries and 2 ube shakes to go. They hand you this rectangular buzzer that lights up & vibrates when it's time to pick up your food. It didn't take long (about 15 mins) when I felt the burgers "calling".

Love the Star Wars reference

They pack everything in a brown paper bag for easy handling. Maybe providing a cover or at least sealing it a bit (especially since I will be walking outside to the car) would be better so that the food would be safe from the elements (such as smoke & dirt). The burgers and fries were too exposed for my liking. 

When we arrived home, we basically skipped up the stairs and excitedly handed one of the paper bags to my husband (luckily our baby girl was still sleeping). We each unwrapped one of the burgers, while our toddler happily waited to see which ones we will be letting him try.

Persian Recovery Massage at Aramesh Spa and Wellness, Salcedo Village, Makati City, Philippines

In line with our #RoadToGoodHealth journey (peppered with weekly runs and a healthy diet); I would like to take this time to emphasize the need for a good recovery regimen. Aside from resting and eating the designated post-workout food, I believe getting massages or at least foot spas are a must for any runner. You can choose to have a session after every run or once a month, it's really up to you; but nothing comes close to the feeling of relief after having your tight and overworked muscles kneaded by professionals especially after hitting your PR (personal best).

For this particular massage recovery session, we decided to try the Aramesh Spa & Wellness. Tagged as the 1st one to offer Persian massage in the Philippines and ranking top 1 in TripAdvisor, these were reasons enough for us to try them out.

Notice the Fashion Smile Dental Clinic signage? Yeah, we did too. It is a bit unconventional and unnerving to see a spa place right beside a dental clinic.

But they do their best in alleviating your apprehensions by showcasing their awards and trophies all lined up in a row for all to see.

To fully immerse your sense to the relaxation to come, they serve you this hot delicious tea served in a pot and cup adorned with intricate details. Then they give you a questionnaire wherein you check your choice of either soft or hard massage and which part of the body you wish your therapist concentrates on. This is an efficient way to communicate your massage expectations without the need of speaking later on during the actual session; they want you to fully enjoy the service in tranquil silence.

The Persian theme continued all throughout the place. Lights were dimmed as well to further relax your senses.

Foul Night at Bad Bird, Hole in the Wall Century City Mall Philippines

Remember our first Century City Mall's Hole in the Wall visit? Well, this time around we got to try the much raved about umami fried chicken by Bad Bird with Myka & Joseph. ;)

 After waiting in line for about 25-30 minutes, you choose from their menu, pay for it & they give you this huge black button that vibrates once your order's ready for pick up. Bad Bird cooks as you order so at least you get your chicken fresh from the pan.

Here's when the night turned interesting; the button vibrated & Hubby went to get our order. Lo and behold, the cashier then tells us that the side we ordered was out of stock. This was after 20 minutes of waiting. Bad communication between the kitchen & the cashier should not be our problem. The fact that you ask us to pay even before we get our order guarantees that the item being sold IS in stock right? Hay grabe. 

After that entire hullabaloo, we still tried to enjoy the night. Believe me, we all hoped that the Umami Fried Chicken would be the saving grace.... it wasn't.

Dirty Rice Plate with Spicy Hotness Level (Php 300)

Dirty Rice Plate with Safe Hotness Level (Php 300)

Dirty Rice Plate comes with 2 pieces of chicken with Dirty Rice & Kimchi.  First impression? I felt puzzled. Was this the chicken that were getting raves from the social media sites? Really? I took another bite just to make sure & knew right there that Bad Bird is nothing special. True, the chicken is crunchy on the outside & juicy on the inside but the flavor was not that good. The dirty rice & kimchi fared better.

Pizza Afternoon at Motorino Pizza, Greenbelt 3, Makati Philippines

Having had the chance to try Neapolitan pizza & loving it, I was really excited about eating at Motorino. ;)

This used to be a different Italian restaurant. Hmmmm.. that seems to be the trend for this specific space in Greenbelt.  

Loved how the shiny ceiling & red lights connects with the wall painting; it makes you feel like you're really driving on the bridge. ;)

If you aren't into all that stainless, they have this booth. Here they keep it simple & woodsy. 

The HUGE oven where all the pizza magic happens! ;)

Pork Bun Mania at Tim Ho Wan, SM Mega Fashion Hall, Philippines

Photos of those 3 pcs puffy barbecue buns were filling up my timeline lately. You know what I'm talking about. So without further ado, since you've shown me yours I'll show you mine... ;)

Pork Bun Mania!!!

Yes, I've joined in the bandwagon and had a chance to try Philippine's first Michelin-starred dim sum from Hong Kong.

Say hello to Tim Ho Wan at SM Mega Fashion Hall; famous for not only the pork buns but its long lines as well. Came for a late lunch around 1pm and got seated by 1:20pm. Hmmm... an average of 15-20 minute wait is not bad. Definitely off to a good start.

Placemat/ Menu

Here, they don't give you menus. Instead, their placemats already have their dim sum offerings printed on complete with prices. And after choosing your favorites, they give a piece of pen and this...

A checklist with columns to fill in how many you'd like to order of each dish.

We were excited to try out as many dishes as we can so here's what our table looked like...

Glutinous Rice with Lotus Leaf (Php 150)

This was served steaming hot. Looked like "Lo Mai Kai", tasted like "Lo Mai Kai". 

Inside this sticky fragrant rice is sliced pork & mushroom. FS Verdict? The rice by itself was already a nice treat; the meats inside though was another story. They all tasted a bit bland.

Rice with Chicken, Sausage & Mushroom (Php 170)

I was quite surprised to see this dish served in a stainless cup. Don't let the size fool you, the serving is enough for 2 people. At first, we couldn't figure out how to eat this but threw all our hesitations out the window and carefully tipped the cup over and began eating. This tasted like Hainanese Rice with chicken. The 2 pieces of Chinese sausages were yum but bitin.

Pan Fried Carrot Cake (Php 145)

This is one of the 4 Heavenly King dim dum of Tim Ho Wan. Although under a different name, this is actually Raddish Cake.  Hubby had this toasted, just the way he liked it. Food-Stars Verdict? This was okay but I couldn't taste anything special about it.

Vermicelli Roll with Shrimp (Php 190)

This is shrimps wrapped in wide strips of rice noodles aka Shrimp Rice Roll (one of Hubby's dim sum favorite). I was happy to note that they weren't stingy with the shrimps. Food-Stars Recommendation? Ask for more sweet soy sauce. 

It won't be a dimsum party without these 2 staples, Prawn Dumpling & Pork Dumpling with Shrimp (Hakaw & Siomai). 


The Hakaw was packed with shrimps and tasted okay.

The Siomai was also quite ordinary. 

Wasabi Salad Prawn Dumpling (Php 140)

For something different and palate cleansing, we decided to try this out. Crunchy with shrimps in every mouthful, this would've been an instant favorite if only it had more wasabi. Food-Stars Recommendation? Maybe a serving of wasabi on the side for those who are more into spicy foods would be a nice option.

Baked Bun with BBQ Pork (Php 145/ 3 pcs)

And the main reason why we're here... Pork Buns! ;)

This 3 pcs of puffy sweet buns is a winner in my book. 

We'll definitely be back for this! ;9

Mango Pomelo Sago (Php 90)

We wanted to end with something sweet and chose their Mango Pomelo Sago. I would've wanted this a bit sweeter but the slivers of pomelo were a nice touch. 

And of course, take out for the in-laws.

Pork Buns

Steamed Egg Cake (Php 85)

Food-Stars Verdict? There were some dishes that needed more flavor but the Pork Buns made it all worth it! ;9

Are we coming back to Tim Ho Wan? For sure! ;9

SERVICE:

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'Til our next Good Eat!

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Tim Ho Wan, SM Mega Fashion Hall

UG/F SM Megamall, Fashion Hall, 

Julia Vargas Ave cor EDSA

Wack Wack, Mandaluyong

Food-Stars Goes to Singapore: Hollywood China Bistro, Universal Studios Singapore

Here's a continuation post of our Sinapore travelogue! ;)

'Coz no Singapore trip is complete without visiting Universal Studios!

Our second visit but our first time to experience their version of "Parade of the Stars!" ;)

Please excuse the rope. It was so hard to get a nice angle from our spot.

Here's Woody!

Here's our Madagascar friends!

Sweet Tooth Pit Stop at Milkyway, Power Plant Mall, Makati Philippines

Walking around Power Plant Mall, looking for something cool and sweet, this bluish silver glow from one of the restaurants caught our eye.

Welcome to Milkyway.

Milkyway, Power Plant Mall, Makati

With this long spoon, can you guess what dessert we ordered???