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Valentine’s Day was very special for me because Mr. Boyfriend surprised me with a bouquet of flowers in the morning and a fancy dinner later in the day. What made it even more special was that he took me to a very nice restaurant called Chef’s Table. 

Chef’s Table is located at the Infinity Tower at 26th Street, The Fort Global City, Taguig. You won’t miss it because there’s a big signage at the entrance that says Chef’s Table. Parking is free at the basement below.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by the staff and ushered to our table. Everybody was warm and friendly.

Jave (AKA Mr. Boyrfriend) purchased Deal Grocer vouchers for our date. It was for a special Valentine-themed 4-course meal which was called *ehem* “Lust”.

But before we proceed with the food, let’s talk about the restaurant…

Chef’s Table is the brainchild of Chef Bruce Lim. He graduated from a prestigious culinary school London and he’s also a celebrity chef with his own show in Asian Food Channel called Tablescapes. I’ve also seen him guest on various local TV shows.

Here’s a fun fact, he was able to train under the tutelage of Mr. Hell’s Kitchen himself, Chef Gordon Ramsay. Speaking of television shows, are you a fan of Top Chef, Hell’s Kitchen, or any other reality TV cooking shows? If so then Chef’s Table is perfect for you.

With its unique layout and design, Chef’s Table is perfect for culinary enthusiasts as it provides diners with a full and unadulterated view of the kitchen. If you seat yourself by the specially designed bar tables, it’s like watching your very own live cooking show. That way, you’ll have no doubts about the preparation, hygiene, and overall effort that goes into making your food. I’m guessing this is where the concept of the resto’s name came from- Chef’s Table. You can eat literally alongside the chef’s table where they’re chopping ingredients and plating dishes.

The ambience of the restaurant is intimate but not stuffy. It has modern furnishings matched by little details that are very Pinoy. The dim-lighting and accents add to the fine dining experience, but you don’t feel threatened by the understated panache.

Here’s another fun fact, we noticed that both the (male) chefs and servers were all bald (or skinhead). I asked our server and he said that it was really a requirement by Chef Bruce who is also proudly bald. It’s obviously great for hygienic purposes but, it is very cute too. It makes the staff look like a well-knit team. Like how the UP cheerdancers once cut all of their hairs short. Or how the DLSU basketball team shaved their heads.

The layout of the restaurant is also pretty unique. It reminds me of an open-space loft where there’s one big, high-ceiling room and a mezzanine-like second floor. As I’ve said, the restaurant doesn’t feel stuffy. It’s easy to move around in, and I’m sure this works well for both the customers and the staff. It’s probably good for Feng Shui too. Hehe.

By the way, I checked out their second floor and it seems like a nice place to hold small corporate meetings or special events. The space is limited though so it’s just for intimate affairs.

Since it was Valentine’s Day, they added a little romantic touch to the tables with red rose petals surrounding the candlelight. They also gave out long-stemmed roses to the ladies. It was a very nice gesture indeed.

Now on to the food!

The meal started with the special Love Potion No. 5 Cocktail which Jave and I really liked. It’s a sweet, red drink that tasted very similar to a Sangria. It was the perfect way to begin the celebration/meal.

Next came the  Spicy Ginataang Seafood Soup which contained local Capiz shellfish simmered in lemongrass coconut seafood broth. I must admit that I’m not a huge fan of neither seafood nor soups, but this really turned me around. The soup was divine! It tasted both simple and complicated at the same time, like an upgraded and upscale version of the soup that your mom would make. It wasn’t too spicy which I appreciated a lot.

This was followed by the Gayuma Platter which contained spiced and marinated fresh oysters, and sautéed balut in chili garlic. To tell you the truth, the looks of the dish freaked me out a little. I have never eaten balut before. But since it was a special night, I was up for the challenge! I didn’t eat the part that looked like a little chick already. Hehe. It was a fun experience though, like a cool way to break the ice, something to spark up laughter and conversation.

For the main dish we had two options- oven-roasted Chili Prawns or Spiced Pork Ribs. Jave went with the Chili Prawns and I chose the Ribs. Both tasted great! In fact, Jave wished he could have had more of the Prawns.

Dessert came and we were both excited. When the Dark Chocolate Panna Cotta was served, we eagerly dipped our spoons and scooped away. The Panna Cotta was very rich and smooth, and the nuts on the side paired with it perfectly to add texture. To sum the dessert in one word- YUMMMM!

I loved the food! But what I really loved more was the fact that Chef Bruce himself visited our table about three of four times to ask if we were okay or if we liked the food. It made us feel that we were really being taken care of and that he really wants to ensure our enjoyment.

What’s funny is that the first few times he came over, all Jave and I could say were one-liners like “Yes“, “Great” and my personal favorite “Yeah“. Talk about spacing out! =)) Eventually we were able to blurt out entire sentences. Thank goodness!

Most of the things on our special Valentine dinner are not on their regular menu but they do have a lot of other offerings that look very interesting. They have dishes such as:

• Ensaladang Tuna at Salmon
• Kangkong Melon Soup
• Inasal na Chicken Ceasar Salad
• Adobong Pusit Pasta
• Ilocano Table on a Plate 
• Buko Pie Martini

Note: Prices range from PHP200-550 per dish +service charge.

Very playfully Pinoy right? With these other dishes to look forward to and the nice experience we got, surely we’ll be coming back to Chef’s Table in the future.

For more information about Chef’s table, visit their website here. 

Milk Tea has become so popular in Manila that now, even well-established coffee shops are trying to join in on the fun. Two of the most popular cafe’s are now serving milk tea drinks to its patrons. The question is, were they able to pull it off? Or are their efforts to win back the market segment going to end up in spoiled defeat.

Case # 1: Seattle’s Best Coffee – SBC Milk Tea

What I thought about it: 

SBC offers milk tea in both hot and cold variants. I ordered a regular cup of iced milk tea a few weeks ago for PHP 110 (large costs PHP120). As of the moment, these drinks will be available only until March 2012.

At first glance, the drink looks pretty similar to most of the milk tea drinks out there except for one thing, SBC’s drink has red pearls. How did I like it? Err. Actually, it didn’t look too appetizing for me. I’m already used to black pearls way back from when Zagu first hit the market. Seeing red balls in my drink didn’t give me the same feelings of looking forward to the yummy, gummy sinkers. And once I tried them, they were soft on the outside but a little hard on the inside. It felt like the pearls weren’t properly cooked. They reminded me of regular gulaman but with a more solid center. So for the red pearls, the drink gets a fail mark for me.

Let’s now move on to the taste of the milk tea itself (the liquid part). I personally find the drink too sweet. I was expecting them to give me a more defined tea-taste but it was the other way around. Compared to most tea drinks out there, SBC’s milk tea leans toward the sweeter end of the spectrum. It’s also important to note that the sugar levels cannot be altered. The drink can’t be personalized for that matter.

To tell you the truth, I didn’t bother finishing my cup that day. After about trying 1/3 of the drink, I gave up.

PS: I have one friend who completely agrees with me on this drink. She’s a more fanatic milk tea fan than me. However, I do know of another friend who gave good comments about this drink. She says that she likes the sweetness and loves the red pearls. Personally, I found that weird, but of course I respect her own opinions. =) She’s not a big fan of milk tea.

Case # 2: Figaro’s Milk Tea Craze

What I thought about it:

Figaro took the milk tea craze a little more seriously by naming their new line of drinks just that- Milk Tea Craze. Unlike SBC that offered only one flavor, Figaro went ahead and experimented with five variants:

• Taro Pudding Milk Tea (PHP89)
• Strawberry Lemon Iced Tea (PHP75)
• Taro Pudding Chiller Feast (PHP100)
• Raspberry Milk Tea with Yakult (PHP90)
• Strawberry Milk Tea with Yakult (PHP90)

Last week, I went ahead and tried their Strawberry Milk Tea with Yakult. In all fairness to Figaro, I have to give them props for trying to create unique flavors of their own. Although I will put this a couple of notches higher that SBC’s milk tea offering, I can’t say that I’m in love with the drink either. There wasn’t anything wrong that I can pinpoint so let me just summarize that for me, strawberry+milk+tea+yakult=weird. :p

But because they have other flavors however, there’s a huge possibility that I’ll come back and try them too.

I think that tea drinkers who prefer fruity, tangy tastes should try this new product line.

My two cents on these two drinks:

Big coffee chains adding milk tea to their menu says a lot about just how big the Taiwanese drinks have hit Manila. However, I’m not so sure if these attempts at joining the bandwagon will pay off for them. After all, I think one of the main reasons on why these drinks are so popular is because they’re a nice alternative for when you’re not in the mood to go to a coffee shop or get a macchiato. Coffee drinking especially for young people (the students to yuppies age group) has reached its height already and of course, the market is always scouting for new options. Diversifying can be a great thing, but sometimes, it’s best to stick at what you’re good at and improve on that instead.

Instead of mimicking the Taiwanese pearl milk tea drinks, why don’t they create hot tea lattes instead a la CBTL.

As for the taste, I personally didn’t enjoy their bets but maybe others out there will. (If you’ve tasted them yourself, please feel free to comment below)

They also missed an important angle in the milk tea craze, the healthy option angle. Most tea shops can customize the drink’s sugar levels depending on the customer’s preference. Removing this option is a bit of a downer.

But again, kudos to these brands for responding to the market and paying close attention to what the people want. (I highly doubt that Starbucks will jump on the bandwagon though)

All in all, as a customer, all of this is great news to me. The more options I have, the happier I will be.

Note:  By most milk tea shops, I’m referring to Serenitea, Chatime, Gong Cha, etc.

Having super powers doesn’t automatically make you a superhero.

The unique story angle and attack of Chronicle (2012) makes that clear and simple. Power affects people. How people react to power however, is an entirely different thing.

So how does one get super powers? Some get bitten by radioactive spiders. Others have their alien ancestors to thank. Some, well… attend a rave party, goof around into a freaky hole in the ground, encounter an unexplained power source and POOF! Powers.. That’s what happens to teenagers Matt (Alex Rusell), Steve (Michael B. Jordan) and Andrew (Dane DeHaan).

Doesn’t sound too glamorous right?

Well, that’s what Chronicle is. It’s a different spin on the superhero genre. Unlike most hero movies that focus on how awesome the (adult) hero is as he beats up bad guys and fights crime, Chronicle takes a closer look at how power starts, how it evolves and how it affects the lives of three teenagers.

The Approach

The movie is entitled Chronicle for good reason. One of the main characters, Andrew, is fond of documenting his life and his surroundings with the use of video cameras. That’s where the POV mostly lies. As for the rest of the film, it switches between surveillance cameras and mobile phone usisero (curious bystander) shots. To give you an idea, think Cloverfield and Paranormal Activity. Don’t worry, thanks to Andrew’s rapidly improving powers, the cinematography isn’t going to be shaky and unfocused throughout the entire film. He’ll even take care of the whole handheld-dilemma .

What the treatment shows is an intimate glimpse at the life of a young, troubled kid. The personal approach reveals to us how sad he is because of his sick mother, how badly his father treats him, how cruelly he gets bullied in school, and how very lonely he feels. Of course it also shows us the fun games that the trio plays as they explore their powers, the various experiments they perform to test their limits, and the nasty turning points in their relationship.

This fascination turned obsession of chronicling his daily activities is reminiscent of how most modern teenagers act today. Some do it with photos, Facebook status updates, tweets, and yes, even vLogs or video blogs. I think it’s a result of the need for self-expression mixed with the joy of having to talk to someone who will silently listen to whatever you have to say, which in this case is the technology.

Some might say that this camera technique is an attempt to look “indie” or the effect of being “low budget” but I don’t think so. It’s obvious that the semi-documentary style (for lack of a better term) was intended to help flesh out the emotions from the main characters. To give a raw and intimate attack. To make everything seem real.

Snazzy and Shiny Super Heroes

Speaking of getting real, I love how Chronicle gives a fresh take on the usual superhero story. Unlike Spiderman, Batman, Ironman and Captain America, the characters here aren’t shiny and perfect. They’re real people who battle the issues of having rare abilities. Just teens trying to go through highschool.

I know the story sounds a little similar to X-Men and Heroes, but in Chronicle there’s no real villain to battle. There’s no big mission. It’s all about the journey.

I think the cinematography supports this concept very well by not being too overtly “Hollywood”. Don’t get me wrong, there are special effects that are pretty well-made, but they were done in the grittiest, roughest form. Nothing snazzy. Nothing spectacularly grand. It’s simple and straight to the point.

The Characters

Chronicle stars three pretty unknown actors but that’s okay. For me, they did a great job at letting the audience into their lives. Steve is outspoken and very charming (which will greatly affect how he turns out in the film). Matt plays it safe and is what society will consider “cool” and “normal”. Andrew is disturbingly and deliciously tormented. But I really do have to give it to Dane DeHaan here. He does his role so well that you will surely feel all sorts of emotion for his character- hate, happiness, pity, anger and disbelief.

The Verdict

I LIKE IT! I like it a whole lot. I actually wish for this movie to have a part two- a very rare case btw.

If you haven’t seen it yet, please do so.

I promise you that this will be ten times better than the disappointing flops of a few weeks before (Underworld and Darkest Hour).

It’s a pretty great time to catch up on superhero roots before we embark on a summer filled with surefire hero spectacles packed with all the bells and whistles that Hollywood can buy (The Avengers anyone?). 

Chronicle is a very nice movie.

Chronicle is directed by Josh Trank. Written by Max Landis and Josh Trank.  

This is going to be a short post, I just want to share this nifty thing that I found at a Japanese thrift store (dollar store) last week. I believe that they are a must-have for every techie out there…

The packaging says fasteners but for me, I call them cord organizers! I have been searching for these for a looong time! They’re basically little velcro strips that can really help in organizing the cords from your gadgets and their corresponding chargers.

For a clear example, take a look at a before and after shot of my laptop’s charger.

Amaaazing!

I especially love these babies because they come in different colors.

They’re simple little things, but they can really help in keeping your room clutter free. PLUS they can prevent headaches from those moments when you have to untangle messy wires. They’re also great for those who like to travel and of course, for good ol’ neat freaks as well.

Just look at how useful they are!

I got these bad boys for only PHP 66 at the 66-Peso Store (not sure if it’s Japan Home Center) in Park Square 1, Ayala Center, Makati.

Dear friends, I am worried. It seems to me that a lot of our youth are ashamed to be Filipinos. They feel that saying things like “Proud to be Pinoy” or “It’s more fun in the Philippines” is a shameful thing to do, something that should be abhorred and ultimately stopped.

HERE’S THE STORY…

Last week I was browsing 9Gag -it’s a popular website that’s filled with funny mini-comic strips and graphic artworks submitted by its followers- and saw this clever gag that relates our very own Taal Volcano to Inception‘s story of a dream within a dream…

I found it so amazing that I even shared it on my Facebook wall with the statement “Islands. More fun in the Philippines! ”, because I’m proud that our country has an amazing natural wonder like that, and of course, to promote the new Department of Tourism tagline of It’s More Fun in the Philippines. 

Then I decided to click on  the image and check out what other 9Gaggers had to say about the graphic art. I wasn’t expecting the things I saw there.

There were tons of comments from young Filipinos expressing their disgust in other Pinoys who were posting proud to be Pinoy-related comments. Some were even apologizing to the other (foreign) audience of the website for the apparently improper and shameful behavior of their kababayans (countrymen) who were posting pride-related messagess.

Here are some of the posts that really got my blood running…

I was so shocked by the comments I saw and the number of likes that those comments got. What’s wrong with these kids? I couldn’t fathom their (insert hateful words here)! So, I blurted out my anger in these not-so-kind words in a comment:

Shame on you Pinoys who feel like they have to be ashamed of feeling proud for their country. You guys are insecure morons who want to feel cool. There is NOTHING wrong with being proud of your race and heritage. What is up with you people? Even if every single Filipino became obsessed with the country, that will be GREAT not only for tourism but national pride as well. Shame on you guys. Effin’ hipsters. Go migrate to somewhere else if you don’t want to be proud of where you came from. We don’t need you here anyway. Kthnxbye. #ican’tbelieveyoueguys

One commenter even attempted to battle me in the thread and well, let’s just say that he was a waste of time. To him though, I said:

 Nobody’s shoving Pinoy pride into anyone. Nobody’s saying that we are better than anybody else. It only becomes “wrong” if you elevate yourself above all other cultures/races/countries and look down on others. However, if it’s just you saying that you are proud to be Pinoy or you love the Philippines, there is NOTHING wrong with that. Don’t call it overrated. It’s shouldn’t be a passing trend but something ingrained into our heads, DNA and everyday actions.

AND NOW FOR THE BLOW BY BLOW:

• Saying that you are proud of where you came from is NOT A BAD THING. Some of the very intelligent trolls in the threads argued that pride has to come from one’s personal achievements. If that is so, then is it also wrong for you to be proud of your parents, brothers or sisters? Is it also wrong to be proud of your alma mater and so on? NO. According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary pride can mean “delight or elation arising from some act, possession, or relationship <parental pride>”. So there’s one arguement down the drain.

• Misguided pride? Misplaced Pride? When has the internet not been a good place to show your pride for your motherland? The internet provides some of the best avenues for communication. If you ask me, the internet is the BEST place to tell the world about how much you love the Philippines. If Pinoy pride goes viral, in what universe is that a bad thing?

• Shoving it into other people’s faces? I don’t see how saying “It’s more fun in the Philippines” equates to shoving it into someone’s face. As I’ve mentioned earlier, it only becomes bad if you belittle others or if you blatantly put down or mock other countries/people. Does Amazing Thailand or Malaysia Truly Asia mean that they too are being obnoxious braggarts?

• Humility. Expressing your support for a natural wonder in your country does not mean that you’re being boastful. If we don’t spread word about how awesome our country is, who will? Will we just hope and pray for foreigners to say that? Should we abolish all promotional projects of the DOT now?

• How dare they declare that they’re Filipino? If it were only possible, I would strip these (insert more hateful words here) of their citizenship. You cannot say that you’re proud of your country and then tell your countrymen to zip their mouths instead of shouting it out loud. Proclaiming that they are Filipino as well (while bashing their brethren) is way more shameful than whatever it is they are arguing about. Their comments show the other foreign 9Gaggers that there is a terrible discord amongst Filipinos and that we are ashamed of who we are.

BE AFRAID. BE VERY AFRAID… 

9Gag is a very popular site among college and highschool students in the Philippines. (Okay, there are yuppies too. ) But if the number of haters on this post is any indication of how our youth feels about our country, I think that we are in big, BIG trouble.

How will we produce great leaders if the future of our country (insert Dr. Jose Rizal quote here) is filled with 0% pride for our country, our people, our culture, our heritage?

What will become of the Philippines once these kids grow up? 

I personally think that these trolls should be the ones to (in their own words) STFU.

*Islandception gag and screenshot of comments were from www.9Gag.com. It is not my purpose to hurt anyone, but rather, to spread awareness about this alarming issue and to express my own personal views about it.