Off Topic: The Royal Wedding

And they lived happily ever after.

Prince William and soon to be Princess Catherine

Exactly four hours from now, the much awaited Royal Wedding of the Century will took place at the Westminster Abbey in London which will be watched by two billion people all over the world.

A lot of people already camped out since yesterday.

This is the last time the world will see Kate Middleton as a commoner before she becomes Princess Catherine.  A real life princess!

The Royal Wedding details.

Official Programme

The Royal Wedding Procession

The Seating Plan

The Security

Now that the most eligible royal bachelor is taken, all eyes turn to Prince Harry, who is Prince William's Best Man.

Is it just me or is he getting hotter by the day?

You can watch the Royal Wedding here.

Disclaimer:  Photos were grabbed from www.dailymail.co.uk

Dinner at Maru

DB:  What do you want to eat?

Me:  I want to go back to Shabu Yaki.

DB:  Are you serious? Its summer and you want hotpot?

Me:  Why not?

DB:  Think of something else.

In short, I didn't win.  Being the DB that he is, he still brought me to a Korean Restaurant but with high ceiling and ample air conditioning in case I still wanted to have hotpot. I did not realize its been a long time since we dined at Maru (read my first post about it here).

We started off with appetizers, though I was quite disappointed they did not have the sweet baby potatoes that I like that night.

Spicy zucchini

Radish

Kimchi

Pork innards

Sweet peanuts

Bean sprouts

Another set of kimchi

Spinach

We ordered the more famous Korean dishes as the main course -- Yukhoe Bibimbap and Bulgogi.

Yukhoe Bibimbap (Hoe is Korean for raw dish)

Served with raw beef, bean sprouts, spinach, gim (Korean style edible seaweed) and other
seasoned vegetables I am not familiar.  The chili pepper paste is served separately
so you can manage how spicy you want your Bibimbap to be.

Bulgogi.  Thinly sliced sirloin marinated in soy sauce, olive oil, garlic,
sesame seeds and a dash of sugar.  So flavorful!

Jal Meogeosseumnida! (English translation: It was a great meal!)

~o~o~o~

Maru Korean Restaurant 

HK Sun Plaza

Macapagal Avenue, Pasay City

Philippines
Tel.: (632) 391-3034

Bacolod Chicken Parilla

After four failed attempts, I finally had the chance to try out Bacolod Chicken Parilla.  We've been meaning to go here but it was either closed because we arrived late or closed due to holiday.  But last Saturday was a success.  Hooray!

Masskara Festival and Inasal are the things that comes to my mind
whenever I think of  Bacolod.

I've heard great things about this place from DB so imagine my excitement when the waiter handed me the menu.

Menu was simple but full of good stuff.

Festive interiors with colorful tables and chairs and masks adorning the walls.

On the table

Inasal na Pak-pak (wings), Baticolon (gizzard) and Paa (breast and thigh) were grilled perfectly. 
I guess they have mastered the art of grilling, no more charred or undercooked grilled chicken!

Spareribs was DB's constant order and now I know why.  The meat literally
fell of the bone! Its so soft and tasty.

Kilawin Tangigue.  I love that its not that sour (as compared to other Kilawin I
have tried) and the fish was fresh it hardly tasted raw.

I dread waiting and I don't believe in second chances, but after trying out Bacolod Chicken Parilla, I might just have a change of heart.

~o~o~o~

Bacolod Chicken Parilla

Corner of Scouts Gandia and Reyes

Quezon City, Philippines

Chung Mi Rae Korean & Chinese Restaurant

Its not a surprise that a lot of Korean restaurants have sprouted all over the Metro. Aside from the influx of Koreans in the Philippines, Korean cuisine is also one of the more interesting and diverse food to have invaded our country.

Still in the quest for the best Korean restaurant in the country, DB suggested we go try out Chung Mi Rae Korean & Chinese Restaurant.

On the table

Complimentary rice tea was served as soon as we got to our seats.

Kimbap is quite like Japanese's Futo Maki.

I was kind of looking forward to the appetizers that I can't stop glancing on the next table.  So when the waiter served these to us, I had to ask him how come we only have three appetizers.  He told us that its not included on the dishes we ordered.  Anyway, since our orders were already placed and we cannot change them anymore, we just ate the Kimbap while waiting for the Yangnyeom Fried Chicken.

Greens with mayonnaise and ketchup, which sounded err weird so I passed.

Radish was left untouched.

Kimchi was spicy as usual.

Miso Soup was tasty.

I've been craving for Bonchon for quite some time now and when DB told me that this is the original Korean Fried Chicken, my taste buds suddenly went all crazy and excited!

Yangnyeom Fried Chicken.  I ate like four to five pieces, its so good!  Crunchy on
the outside but tender and juicy on the inside, just the way I like it.

Sweeter, more garlicky and sticky version as compared to Bonchon's fried chicken.

I was so sleepy the entire night so pardon my eye bags.

The owner who also cooks most of the food is a Korean expat, so if you're looking for authentic Korean dishes, Chung Mi Rae is a place worth trying out.  Only downside was that the orders took forever to arrive (to think that only four tables were occupied) and the waiters were nowhere to be found most of the time.  Hope the service would improve soon.

~o~o~o~

Chung Mi Rae Korean & Chinese Restaurant

Corner of Scout Tuazon and Timog Avenue

Quezon City, Philippines

Hongkong Cafe

No, I did not go to Hongkong (as much as I want to) to have a taste of this.

Cafe de Coral's Baked Pork Chop Rice

When DB told me that there's a restaurant in Banawe which serves Baked Pork Chop Rice and other Hongkong favorites, I begged him to go.

I was kind of dreaming I was at CDC, but failed.

The Menu

It is getting hotter and more humid each day so no more tight fitting clothes for now.

On the table

Iced milk tea was so sweet!  Just look at the condensed milk at the bottom of the glass.

DB had the Salmon Baked Rice.

I ordered the Baked Pork Chop Rice not knowing they serve two kinds of sauces, white and red (which
I like more).  The sauce tasted bland and the pork chop was over fried it was bitter already.

I am still dreaming of eating Baked Pork Chop Rice at Cafe de Coral.  Can somebody get a franchise already?

~o~o~o~

Hongkong Cafe

Along Banawe Street

Quezon City, Philippines

Syoti's Noodles & Toppings Express

If you're on a budget and looking for a decent place to dine in the Timog Avenue area,  may I suggest Syoti's Noodles & Toppings Express.

On the table

Boneless Bangus Rice

Tausi Fish Fillet Rice

No meat! (Just for this week)

It was Lenten Season so its either fish or vegetable only.  I had the Boneless Bangus Rice while DB ordered  the Tausi Fish Fillet Rice.  Both dishes were okay, on the other hand, how can you go wrong with fried fish right?  Then our bill came. I had to take a second look because it was less than Php200, which was even cheaper than my usual lunch at McDonald's!  Beat that!

~o~o~o~

Syoti's Noodles & Toppings Express

Unit 9 Commercial Complex

Timog Avenue corner Panay Avenue

Quezon City, Philippines

Tel.: (632) 376-7197

Earth Day

Take nothing but pictures.

I would never take this home thank you very much.

Leave nothing but footprints.

Pagudpud is one of the cleanest beach I have ever been to.

Kill nothing but time.

When there isn't anything to do, just strike a pose! You'll never know, there's a
camera ready to take your candid shots.

Let us continue loving and caring for Mother Earth even in our own little ways.  Let us make each day Earth Day.