Cucina

Uno

Kahlua

Valor

Victorino's

Tokyo Cafe

Outback

Hanamaruken Ramen

Sir Christopher Lee

* photo from Wikipedia

Sir Christopher Lee

WWII Intelligence Officer & Actor

(1922 - 2015)

Dracula.

Scaramanga.

Count Dooku.

Saruman.

Lola Gunday's favorite actor.

In Memoriam.

Suntory

My trucker buddies always make it a point to bring liquid lightning to our gatherings.  This time, the flavor of month is Suntory whisky, which while quite popular, I strangely have only tasted now.  Smooth, clean, slightly sweet even. Distinctive kakubin (square) bottle.  This can get to be addictive...

The Plaza Corned Beef

I've written about ham from The Plaza before.  This time around, a friend of mine asked me to try their corned beef.  Absolutely wonderful!  Tender, still juicy, just the right amount of salt.  I think I'll have a second serving...

Cuba Kano

I enjoy road trips.  Driving out to the countryside can be a de-stressing exercise for me, and the great bonus comes in the form on discovering new places to eat in.  Mitzi, Gab, Monique and I were a bit dismayed at the ghost-town aura of Clark Field, but the day was saved by our newest find--Cuba Kano restaurant, serving juicy steaks, mouth-watering Cuban dishes (cochinillo and Latin subs included).

Willys Jeep

Our Independence Day road trip with Mitzi and Gab was to Clark Field, long the center of American air supremacy in Asia.  While driving around, we came across a Willys MB Jeep, complete with a mounted 50 caliber machine gun.  These vehicles were used extensively during WWII until the early seventies, and was the forerunner of our ubiquitous jeepney. This one we saw was in running condition and in pretty great shape, I'd say.

Shang Palace

Vicky has always been a fan of the P888 dimsum buffet at the Shang Palace of the Makati Shangri-la Hotel ever since her office mates introduced the concept to her a few years ago.  She has often talked about it, but only early this month did she take Monique and myself to enjoy the buffet.  

I came in a bit late, and they had already started on Siao Long Pao and taro puffs for starters.  I joined in with some hot & sour soup, and had a second cup of corn & chicken soup.  More dumplings and stewed chicken feet followed.

The main courses were quite enjoyable--hot prawn salad, scallops with asparagus spears, and sauteed beef & celery.  I would up the savory portion with crispy noodles.  At this point, my belt buckle was already beyond its stretch limit.

Chinese sweet treats are always welcome--egg tarts, mango with sago, black gulaman and Ma Lai Ko (puto).  We finished lunch by 2:30 pm, and spent some time checking out the function rooms for possible bookings in the future.

Sequoia Hotel

Anita and I took some time to check out hotels for bookings of some relatives this October.  We found ourselves in the Timog area, and came across the Sequoia Hotel along Mother Ignacia Avenue.  Clean and quiet, good location.  Not bad at all for room rates under P3,500 per night.  We'll definitely recommend this to Eddie.

Juanito's Bistro

It was nearing noontime, and Kong Kong and I were hungry.  We just had a long meeting with Andy, my roofing contractor, and we thus decided to have a quick lunch at the neighborhood restaurant, Juanito's Bistro, just off Commonwealth Avenue.

We had a simple but delightful meal of baked tahong, crispy boneless bangus and beef calderetta.   Not bad for P300 per head.  We were lucky to be the only customers that Sunday morning, and the air-conditioned dining area was cold enough to keep up the good spirits of Kong Kong.

At night, the place is usually swarming with patrons.  On our way home, Monique and I would pass by the place and even at midnight, some ten to twenty cars would still be parked outside.

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Nickolodeon produced some sixty episodes of a very rich and entertaining cartoon series in 2005, Avatar: The Last Airbender.  The story follows the adventures of Aang, a 12-year old reincarnation of the powerful Avatar, as he learns how to control his powers over the four elements--air, water, earth and fire--in preparation for his ultimate showdown with the Fire Lord who wants to dominate the world.  I was able to watch some episodes then on Cable TV, but never got around to appreciating the full story until recently.  I love the heartwarming twists of the story, and the artwork is pretty convincing.  Definitely two thumbs up!