One of the coffee shops with the best ambiance I’ve seen so far. Enjoy the homey and relaxed neighborhood vibe instead of the busy commercial energy from other more well known shops. I could imagine myself spending an afternoon here, finally making that novel or the script / show bible I’ve always intended to write. It’s filled with trinkets for display. You’ll find something interesting … Continue reading Leyte 2019: [05] Jose Karlo’s Cafe
City tour of Tacloban! For the 2nd quarter of our day (1st quarter was the morning walk), we went to some landmarks in the city. Sto. Nino Shrine and Heritage Museum FYI this is different from the church downtown. Rather, this houses artifacts, art and other historical items dating back from the Marcos regime. There’s a fee to enter the museum portion but it is … Continue reading Leyte 2019: [04] Downtown Tacloban
Another must-go place is Jewel at Changi. To have ample time to eat and explore, we booked a ride via GoJek, similar to Grab. First view of the control tower. Through the automatic doors, here’s a shaky video entering Jewel. Hear the rush of the Vortex, the tallest indoor waterfall in the world. But before we bask in viewing area, we had to get some … Continue reading Singapore 2019: Jewel Changi and Departure
What’s a trip without buying some chocolates from the airport? Here’s what I got from the Cocoa Trees store in Changi Terminal 1. Valrhona 70% Dark Chocolate Guanaja Starts with a stone fruit flavor – I quote from a the website – as I could not pinpoint that flavor that flavor when you take the first bite. Not really sure what it meant since I’m … Continue reading Singapore 2019: Valrhona and Neuhaus Chocolates
Immediately got the botanical vibes when I peeked over the available gelato variants. They got it covered from fruits and flowers, plus herbs and spices with flavors like White Chrysanthemum, Spiced Pear, Strawberry Basil, plain Basil, Lychee Raspberry, Peach and Rose sorbet. Well if you’re more into spices than sweets they’ve got Masala Spice flavored gelato as well. What flavor did we get? Hazelnut for … Continue reading Singapore 2019: Birds of Paradise Gelato
Lobster Roll – my target all along. My recent taste of live lobster cooked fresh after you order (in a restaurant back home) started a search on how delicious lobsters can get. The one I tasted in a hotel buffet didn’t fare well compared to the taste of the live lobster. All I remember was regular shellfish meat, unlike the sweet and juicy one of … Continue reading Singapore 2019: Burger & Lobster @ Changi
Headed toward the city downtown to the National Library to pick up my cousin from a spoken word poetry contest (she won!). The architecture at The Pod, the events area on the top floor, is kinda cool with the rounded glass walls/windows. Went to a mall in Bugis for a short break at Starbucks and a little window shopping. [Read Starbucks review here]. Too bad … Continue reading Singapore 2019: [Part 5] Downtown – National Library, Bugis stop, Merlion, and Church
New Rice Series of KyoChon Philippines ! Chicken pieces are coated then fried with a special batter made from rice flour for extra crispiness. Here’s a whole chicken order of the rice series variant for takeout. Perfect with a cold drink for movie / game nights. Or in our case, for lunch! With the small cuts, you are guaranteed to a crispy bite with flavor … Continue reading Food: KyoChon Rice Series
A few weeks ago I got a chance to sample this sundae cone from Sundays by Merry Moo at Podium Corner Market together with other foodies. Choose your 3 ice cream scoops from a variety classic and uncommon flavors. And also, choose your waffle cone flavor. Mine was composed of scoops of Almond Lychee, Black Sesame Oreo, and Matcha over an Ube waffle cone. I … Continue reading Food: Sundays by Merry Moo
The Gastronomer's Diary 