#FoodStarsBanaweEats: Eat Fresh Hong Kong Famous Street Food, Quezon City, Philippines

When searching for somewhere to eat in Banawe, don't miss out on trying this no-fuss restaurant that serves up Hong Kong street food. 

Our first foray to Street Food Eating was a yummy experience so there were high hopes that the same would happen here.

Eat Fresh's Claypot dishes has been getting rave reviews online but unfortunately, we were practicing #NoMeatFridays. After looking through their menu, we decided to have a seafood feast! ;p

A shot of how our table looked like.

Saturday Dimsum at Tien Ma's Taiwanese Cuisine, D. Tuazon, Quezon City, Philippines

Looking to hit a restaurant that tastes good & easy on the pocket? Well look no further and head on to Tien Ma's Taiwanese Cuisine. 

With huge tables & long benches that calls for group eating, you know that Tien Ma's all about food sharing. Don't expect any glitz & glamour here, the classiest thing you'll see will be the glass table tops (that goes through thorough cleaning after every session). As seen in the picture above, at 7:30 in the evening, all tables were filled & there was already a waiting list.

Tonight's menu choices comes from my mom's recommendations. 

A photo posted by Food Stars (@foodstars) on Feb 14, 2016 at 6:35pm PST

This is Japanese Tofu with Century Egg. The thinly sliced Japanese tofu is delicate and just melts in your mouth while the Century Egg gives texture to the dish. Don't forget to spoon over the sweet soy sauce. Food-Stars Verdict? You can never go wrong with silky tofu & sweet soy sauce.

Xiao Long Bao is 😍 #FoodStars #foodie #foodstagram #FoodStarsBites #xiaolongbao #chinese #tienma #tienmaph #taiwanese #FoodStarsAtQC #dimsum #igersmanila #foodphotography #philippines

A photo posted by Food Stars (@foodstars) on Feb 14, 2016 at 5:03pm PST

The craze for this soupy dim sum dumpling is greatly fueled by the coming of the Michelin-starred dim sum franchise from Taiwan. Tien Ma's version (Xiao Long Bao Php 200) is a nice homage to the dish. They serve it steaming hot & what I really liked about it was the fact that the "skin" doesn't tear easily. Picking it up with chopsticks is an ease. Food-Stars Verdict? Tien Ma's XLB is tasty & had none of the flour taste that some places have. The ginger sauce though lacked that certain kick that ups the flavor as you chew & swallow. 

Hand Made Pork with Kutchay Dumplings (Php 150)

This is basically seasoned ground pork with garlic chives. They steamed it just right and this tasted quite good. The sauce that comes with it really helps the flavor of the dumplings a lot so I strongly advise you to put lots of it before each bite. Food-Stars Verdict? Although I would've loved it more if they served it in bamboo baskets, this is a definite crowd pleaser.

Three Cup Chicken (Php 199)

There's nothing like Three-Cup Chicken to remind you of rich Asian flavors. I was looking for well-coated tender chicken bites swimming in sesame oil. Tien Ma's was able to deliver that but it wasn't exactly bursting in flavor. Food-Stars Verdict? Good but could've been better. 

Family Time at Mann Hann, Z Square Mall, Quezon City, Philippines

Dinner with my side of the family is now becoming a weekly thing. For nights when we plan a massage session after eating, we usually don't venture far from our favorite spa place at Z Square Mall.

This new mall of sorts offers a pretty limited selection of restaurants to choose from. It didn't take long before Mann Hann was the only restaurant left to try. 

We were there pretty early, about 5 in the afternoon, and we were the only ones in the restaurant. :x 

Since Mommy & the rest of the family were running a bit late, we ordered ahead.

Dimsum downtime #FoodStars #foodie #foodstagram #mannhann #dimsum #hakaw #siomai #FoodStarsAtZSquare

A photo posted by Food Stars (@foodstars) on Dec 31, 2015 at 11:36pm PST

Hakaw (Php 130)

Surprised that Mann Hann's Hakaw only comes in 3's. 

Siomai (Php 120)

Their siomai was just okay; nothing special.

Sweet & Sour Pork (Php 295)

We were always on the look out for good Sweet & Sour Pork so we knew we had to try Mann Hann's version. Food-Stars Verdict? Tasty but wasn't as crunchy as we hoped. 

By 7pm, everyone arrived. 
Here's a shot of our 2nd batch of orders.

Final Lunch of 2015 at Nihonbashi Tei, Tomas Morato, Quezon City, Philippines

For our last lunch of 2015, it was decided that we would be going for Japanese. We set our sights on the newly opened branch of Nihonbashi Tei in Tomas Morato.

Don't let the facade fool you, it may look a bit old & decrepit on the outside...

... it's all brand spankin' new on the inside :) 

Got reservations for their mini function room which can fit 6-8 people easy. While waiting for our to-grill meats to arrive, we ordered a few items from the appetizer menu.

California Maki (Php 250)

 We got 2 orders of their California Maki to start us off. Food-Stars Verdict? The rice was sticky enough to hold its shape and there were mango slices in each one so there's that. But overall, it tastes just like any other california maki.

Clams with Asari Sake Mushi (Php 180)

 Fresh clams dipped in this tasty sauce is a nice start.

Toro Spicy Sashimi (Php 270)

This orange tinged sashimi is a must try. You get to choose either salmon or tuna, we got the tuna version. The spicy kick plus the crunchy fried bits on top are the perfect complement to the fresh tuna. Food-Stars Verdict? Yummy but the serving size will definitely leave you wanting more. 

What I love about old school Japanese restaurants nowadays is the fact that they give bang for your buck when you dine during lunch. At Nihonbashi Tei Tomas Morato from 11am-5pm, every main dish/ ala carte order comes with miso soup, salad, appetizer, rice & iced coffee. Can you say sulit? ;)

Ebi Tempura (Php 380)

Surprised to see that each order had 4 pieces of tempura only. Fried 'til crunchy, Nihonbashi Tei's version was not bad. Oh, and Ebi Tempura counts as a main dish so you get all the works with this order.

Now on to the meats. 

Snack Bites at Potato Corner, Maginhawa Street, Quezon City Philippines

Sometimes, it's good to come back to something old & familiar. 

Giga Fries in BBQ & Cheese flavor (Php 169)

Shoti requested for one before the ride home from The Nook Cafe. 

And a Potato Corner stop is always a good idea! ;)

'Til our next Good Eat!

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Potato Corner

104 Maginhawa St., UP Village,

Quezon City

Facebook: PotatoCornerPH

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Potter Heads at The Nook Cafe, Maginhawa Street, Quezon City, Philippines

When I read about this Harry Potter Cafe in Quezon City, I knew I just had to visit. More than anything, I was in it for the Butterbeer. Yup, still a foodie through and through.

I timed it with my Sunday visit to my mom's house; I planned on bringing her here for some drinks & snacks. Unfortunately, she wasn't home & failed to let me know beforehand (attended a Tagaytay wedding). Brought my shoti along who was left home alone.

Phoned ahead & asked if we can make a reservation; but they only follow a "first-come-first-served" policy and even informed us that there's no guarantee that we would be able to get inside. :x 

Decided to still go ahead. 

Arrived just in time before the rain started pouring. Here's the first Potter art you'll see; Hedwig chillin' in the tree. 

After signing in at the counter, be prepared to wait for about 30-40 minutes for an available table downstairs. A request to be seated upstairs takes about another 20 minutes.

Here's a shot of their counter which was constantly buzzing with activity due to nonstop people lining up to order or to ask whether their table's ready.

A Night of Color at Sip and Gogh, Paint and Sip Studio Quezon City, Philippines

For this particular Saturday, we took a break from our usual Mystery Night & decided to try something new. A night of painting while enjoying a glass of wine sounds like just the thing. 

Welcome to Sip & Gogh. 

We wanted to put our artistic skills to the test & Starry Starry Night by Van Gogh promises to do just that. 

1 Snack Platter per couple

Sip & Gogh offers sessions that caters for both newbies (like us) & those who already dabbled in art. Different (brush)strokes for different folks! ;)

Veggie Night at Caffe Dolce, Banawe Street Quezon City, Philippines

We were meeting up with my mom for dinner around QC. For a change, she suggested a vegetarian place that she frequents with her friends. Since we were trying to improve our lifestyle by being more active, I guess the next obvious step would be eating healthy as well. 

So here's our first ever all-veggie dinner :)

As the doors of the elevator opens, Caffe Dolce is the first thing you'll see. While Mommy & I were gushing about the cute decor, Hubby was busying fiddling with his phone. I think he found the place too girly ;)

Caffe Dolce offers a wide array of seating areas; the alcove with 2 sofa sets, the dining area with crystal-legged chairs & the huge red couches.  

Since traffic followed us from Makati to QC, we were all famished. After perusing their menu & mommy suggesting their tastiest dishes, here's what we had for dinner....

Fresh Tropical Fruit Tea Pot (Php 160)

Hubby was still nursing a bit of a cough so this was a perfect drink to soothe his throat. To maintain its constant hotness, they serve this with a table top burner. Clever right? Mom was raving about this & with just one sip I was a convert. This smelled heavenly & is now on top of our favorite tea list. ;)

Sherlock Night at Mystery Manila, Libis Quezon City, Philippines

It's been a long time since I've managed to post something I'm so excited about. I'll have to be honest, the first time I heard about it, I couldn't quite get how on earth people trapped in a room for an hour would have so much fun. 

Welcome to Mystery Manila; one of the first escape room concept here in the Philippines. With 3 rooms to choose from their Libis branch, we signed up for #JusticeForJamila. Here you get to be a private investigator hired to deduce who the murder suspect is.

After having them play back the answering machine message (just enough to memorize it by heart), our team was ready to go. Food-Stars Tip? Keep on looking!! ;)

Here's the Mystery Manila Leaderboard where the fastest mystery-solver teams get to be etched in history with a free shirt to boot! For teams who solve it in 45 mins or less, you get a pen. For those who finish it before the 1-hour limit is up (that's us!), you get stickers ;) 

Loved reading their post-it wall! Some of the funniest I've read "Friends pa din kami!" & "Pumasok ng married, came out single na!". I could totally relate! This was sixty minutes of heart pumping, nerve wracking, adrenalin high & "nandyan lang pala" moments that I'll never forget. Thanks Mystery Manila for a truly fun night! ;)

Don't forget to take a photo with their brag-worthy "Mystery Solved" placard or the dreaded "Mystery Fail" one. ;)

** I'm happy to announce that they'll be launching new rooms at their Libis branch this October so book now & get #JusticeForJamila or escape #TheChainedChamber before they're gone! **

Other Mystery Manila Rooms we tried:

Rebecca's Room

World of Wizardry

Buried Bodies

Reversed Reality

Sinister Sensorium

'Til our next Good Eat!

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Mystery Manila, Libis Quezon City

Unit 9A, JW Plaza Building, 195 E. Rodriguez Jr Ave. 

501-2824 or 0917-5820808 

Mystery Manila, Jupiter Makati

2nd floor, G. A. Yupangco Building, Jupiter St. 

Gil Puyat Avenue corner Reposo St., Brgy. Bel Air

869-2001 or 0915-4287113 

Website: http://www.mysterymanila.com

Facebook: MysteryManila

Instagram: @mystery_manila

Twitter: @MysteryManila