My First Visita Iglesia

I have been hearing and seeing churches that can be visited during “visita iglesia”, but I really don’t know what it is all about. What is Visita Iglesia? I have read that Visita Iglesia is a Holy Week practice wherein devotees visit and pray in at least 7 different churches and it was introduced by the Augustinian missioners to the Philippines since 1560s. “It can be done in one day, usually on Maundy Thursday, or it can takedays until before Easter Sunday if churches are far apart. Initially, thepurpose of this Holy Week practice was to honor the Blessed Sacrament, whenJesus established the Sacrament of the Eucharist.” 

And since I haven’t done this ever in my life, I asked some friends to join me, but they already have activities with family, so I decided to do it alone. I was quite hesitant for a few seconds, I thought that it would be quite boring and lonely to do it all alone, but since I would really like to do it, I just ignored my hesitations and just decided to go for it wholeheartedly.

My first stop was San Agustine Church which is located in Intramurous, Manila. It is one of the UNESCO World Heritage churches here in the Philippines. I went here before but the church was closed, so this is my first time to go inside the church. The interior of the church is old, yet it is well-preserved.  This is one of the best interior that I have seen ( apart from the Jaro Cathedral in Iloilo City ) here in the Metro.

Inside of San Agustine Church

Entrance of San Agustine

My second stop is the newly renovated and re-opened Manila Cathedral. It is also situated just near San Agustine Church.  I was expecting more for interior since it was closed for nearly 2 years for renovation. But when I entered the church, it was a safe scenery for me. 

Organ on the Second Floor of Manila Cathedral

Entrance to Manila Cathedral

Third stop, Malate Church along M.H. del Pilar street, Malate, Manila.

Fourth stop, Sta. Cruz Church located in Sta. Cruz, Manila. What really caught my attention is the painting of deer just above the altar. It really looks familiar but I can’t remember exactly when was the first time that I saw it. I even asked my mom if we went there when I was younger, but my mom told me that she can’t remember.

Binondo Church in Binondo, Manila is my fifth stop. It was my first time to visit this church, even though I have been seeing it since I was schooling. I was impressed by the interior of the church. It has a pink tone paint of the altar and it has great paintings on the ceiling of the church. I am very happy that I’ve got the chance to visit this church.

My sixth stop was the famous Quiapo Church located in the heart of Quiapo, Manilw. It is well-known because of the Black Nazarene, the patron saint.

Entrance of Quaipo Church

People kneeling as "panata"  inside the Quiapo Church 

My feet is now hurting since I have been walking along Ongpin street, from Sta. Cruz church to Binondo Church and to Quiapo Church. I was looking for a jeepney passing through San Sebastian Church. But I was walking towards the jeepney station, I saw the tower of San Sebastian Church. Even though my feet almost wants to give up, I decided to walk towards my seventh stop,  San Sebastian Church. It is also located in Quiapo, Manila, near San Sebastian College and Centro Escolar University. The architectural and interior design of this church really stands out. It is said to be the only all-steel church or basilica in Asia, and claimed as the only prefabricated steel church in the world. It was also included in the tentative list for possible designation as a World Heritage Site last 2006.

Entrance of San Sebastian Church

My eight and ninth stop  is St. Anthony Church and Our Lady of Loreto, respectively. They are both located in just one compound in Sampaloc, Manila.

St. Anthony Church

Our Lady of Loreto

My tenth and final stop is UST Chapel: Santisimo Rosario Parish Church, which can be seen inside the UST campus.

This entire experience is both new and fulfilling for me. I was able to visit 10 churches today.  I have walked for hours; tired and thirsty along the way, but I am still able to manage to fulfil my plan and reach my target to be able to visit different churches to say my thanks and my prayers. At first, I thought that I would feel alone and lonely since I’ll be doing it all by myself, but after my first stop, I felt fulfilled and renewed after each visit to the church. I was able maximize my time to visit, pray and give thanks wholeheartedly. I don’t know when will I be able to do this again, but I am very happy and thankful that I was able to do make my first Visita Iglesia. 

Pinoy style with a twist : Kanto Freestyle Breakfast

I have been hearing this food place from my friends, but I never really tried to visit it. There was once when I had planned it with my friends, but we never got a chance because there were no longer seats available. And so when another set of friends asked me if I would like to try it, I never have to twice think about it and said a big “YES!”

From what I’ve heard, they offer Filipino known dishes and some American dishes, what’s the catch? Their food presentation and price range. And now that it is happening, I am very excited to see for myself what it really is.

This is the main entrance of Kanto Freestyle Breakfast. It may look so “kanto”, but wait till you their food presentation. Luckily, we arrived there around 11AM, so there were few costumers and we were able to get a table for us. We ordered for tapa rice, chicken rice, strawberry and blueberry pancakes and peanut butter and banana pancakes. We waited for roughly 20-3o minutes, and diiiinnnngg! The food is now served.

Beef tapa with rice

Chicken with rice

Strawberry and blueberry Pancake

Peanut Butter and Banana Pancake

How about the taste? Awesome!! It really tastes good, plus their food presentation, it makes me feel like I am dining in a fine dining place. But wait, how about the price? Very affordable! If I remembered it correctly, most of our orders are all less than a hundred pesos. Yes! Less than a hundred pesos only! I would definitely go back and try their other dish.

Tips:

1. If you want to dine in, go there as early as possible and/or in-between breakfast, lunch and dinner time. It is less crowded and cooking and serving may take faster than their usual 30 minutes waiting time.

2. They don’t have really have any parking space, but you can park your car nearby the establishment.(BTW, it is located in a residential area.)

3. They don’t have air-conditioned rooms for dine ins. But they have well ventilated space for it.

For more information, feel free to visit their Facebook page at Kanto Freestyle Breakfast

KANTO FREESTYLE BREAKFAST
Telephone: (02) 4002268
Address: 549 San Joaquin Street, Plainview, Mandaluyong City

Korean Café along Taft Avenue: Café de Seoul and Noriter

If you are an enthusiastic Korean fanatic, Taft Avenue is a MUST visit place for you. I have featured a Korean Restaurant in my previous blog, SHP Bibimbab Cafe and Restaurant. 

But for today, I will be introducing two of my favourite Korean café’ in the metro, Café de Seoul and Noriter.

Café de Seoul

Café de Seoul is situated in Unit 12, 2/F One Archer’s Building, which is a block away from De LaSalle University. It is open from 8:00 am – 1:00 am during Mondays to Thursdays; and from 9:00 am – 12:30 am during Fridays to Sundays.

The interior is really nice, it may not be as cozy as the other café , but it has this quirky and imaginative design. And once you open the door, you can always hear Kpop music playing, and the staffs will all greet you with a smile, and would even recommend what to drink and eat.

What really stands out with their interior is that each table is equipped with a Samsung tablet wherein you can use to browse the net or even play with the games downloaded in each tablet. You can ask in the counter for the password so that you can access their wifi. When I first saw it, all I can say was “COOOLLL!” 

I have been here for a couple times, I have tried their waffles, bingsoo and some coffee and mocktails. The prices are almost the same as of the other café’s here in the metro. If you would want to check their menu, please check out their website at http://www.cafedeseoul.com/menu.htm .

With great food and drinks, good service, and very accommodating staffs, no wonder I would always and definitely visit Café de Seoul whenever I got the chance to stroll along Taft!

Noriter

Noriter is located at 2nd Floor Reyes Bldg., Estrada St. cor. Taft Ave.and they are open during Mondays to Saturdays, from 10 AM until 9PM. For first timers, it may be hard to locate, it is situated the same building as the Tapa King along Taft, walk straight beside Tapa King and look up and you will see the Noriter signage, and if you see a stair by the door, then you are in the right track.

The interior gives me a cozy feeling, wherein you can just sit back and just chat with your friends while enjoying their coffee and ambiance. You can also bring some electronic device to keep you company. Just asked in the counter for the wifi password and you can now access the net. They also play different Kpop songs for you to enjoy.

While I was wondering around, these cups really caught my attention. I was amused that there were all hand-drawn by different costumers that went here.

You can also choose if you want to sit on their chairs and tables, or if you want to feel a bit Korean, you can choose to sit on the floor with a little side table for your drinks and foods. But you can only stay for like an hour, in order to give way for other costumers who would also like to enjoy the Korean style of sitting on the floor while enjoying the food and company.

I have tried their best seller Honey Bread, and some of their coffee. The taste is not that good, but it was not bad either, but still I keep on coming back here for the good ambiance and cozy feeling. 

If you are in Cebu, you can also drop by their branch located in One Acacia Place Unit 10-11 Arch Bishop Reyes Ave Cebu City, and they are open from 11AM until 9PM.

Asian Fusion Cafe: Oliva Bistro Cafe

Our main plan of venue for our food trip for our breakfast is somewhere in Mandaluyong City, but when we got there, there is no seat available (roughly around 9:30 AM) and since we all haven’t eaten breakfast yet, my friend decided to bring us to a new place that she recommended and without any second thoughts, we are already heading towards Quezon City. Since it is Sunday morning, it only took us about nearly half an hour drive and tadaaaa! Here we are at Oliva Bistro Café.

Their interior design gives me a cozy and homey feeling. And since we are all very hungry -- especially one friend of mine, we asked and checked for their menu. Their menu is consists of Asian and Western foods. I am really a food enthusiast; I am very excited to try on their dishes. 

APPETIZERS

First on the list is their Roti Prata (P80) that comes with their own curry sauce which is really good! The roti prata’s bread is not too thick, yet not too thin which makes a great balance of taste with the curry sauce.

Potato and Green Pea Samosa (P120) is the vegetarian Indian empanada. I like this food because it does not only look like the empanada which is very Filipino, but its fillings are all vegetables which is very healthy, except for the frying process though.

This is Tandoori Chicken Tikka (P195) which is composed of boneless cubes of chicken breast which is coated with orange color sauce which is chutney and yogurt raita. You can choose the level of spiciness – either mild or spicy.

Buffalo Wings with Deep Blue Cheese (P180)

SALAD

Chef’s Wife Salad (P195) is one of their best-seller foods. It has grilled chicken, caramelized walnuts, sliced mangoes and grapes, drizzled with dill dressing. I really love this dish, the taste, the texture and the dressing is just so flavourful. I might sound exaggerating, but for not a salad-lover like me, I was really enticed by taste of this salad. I would really recommend that this dish is a must-try dish on their menu!

MAIN COURSE

Butter Chicken Masala (P230) is consists of boneless chicken breast cooked with Indian spices in tomato and butter sauce, served with parsley rice. This is also one of my favourite! A must try dish on their menu. What I liked about this dish is the sauce – you can even use the sauce as your dip for your Roti Prata.

Olivia’s Breakfast has strips of bacon, scrambled egg, hotdog with rice.

The food is great; the staffs are also very accommodating and nice. And since we are the only costumers around, we really felt like home – chatting and laughing out loud, in which we can’t do in crowded places. Oliva Bistro Café I located in Unit 101 Ground Floor, 77 Visayas Avenue, Quezon City. For more information, you can check their website at http://www.olivabistrocafe.com/ .

Taiwan's Hot-Star Large Fried Chicken ( 豪大大雞排） is now in the Philippines!

Fried chicken legs or ji pai tui （雞排腿）is one of the common food stalls that you can see in most night markets in Taipei. Unlike here in the Philippines, fried chicken always goes with rice and drinks as a meal, but in Taipei, this kind of fried chicken will be cut into smaller pieces and will be put in into small paper bags with sticks wherein you can munch on it while strolling around their night markets. I am really missing Taiwan’s food when I came to know of this newly opened establishment that was said to be from Taiwan.

 

It was last February 25 of this year that the Taiwan's Hot-Star Large Fried Chicken officially opened their first branch here in the Philippines, and it is situated just here in the Metro.  It is located at the Blue Bay Walk along Macapagal Avenue, few blocks away from SM MOA.  I am very excited to try this one, I may not be able to taste their branch in Taiwan but I was able to try on different  friend chicken legs(雞排腿 ) from different night markets, and I would like to compare the taste from what my taste buds remembers back when I was still in Taiwan. And together with a friend, we gave it a visit.

When I saw their menu, I was surprise to know that it is quite affordable.  Hot Star’s signature deep fried chicken breast comes in three different flavors: the Original Large Fried Chicken, the Crispy Large Fried Chicken, and the BBQ Large Fried Chicken -- all ingredients are from Taiwan. The rest of the menu includes Classic Spaghetti, Chicken Popcorn, a Large Fish Sandwich, and a Large Chicken Sandwich. They also have side dishes and desserts.

I ordered for their BBQ Fried Chicken (125 pesos) and my friend ordered for the Crispy Fried Chicken(110 pesos). We didn’t order for rice as we felt that we couldn’t finish everything, but if you want add rice with drinks, additional 35 pesos will be collected. We ordered separately for a drink (45 pesos). And in few more minutes, we will be able to taste their chicken.

And tadaaaaa! It really smells good that I wasn’t able to resist to pinched a little and taste it before taking a picture. The size is really bigger compared to those commercialized establishments selling chickens. They are indeed LARGE CHICKEN!  As for the taste, I liked the BBQ flavored chicken more than the Crispy one, mainly because the chicken skin was glazed with BBQ sauce. But with the chicken meat, they both have the same taste.  The taste is somewhat close to what I’ve tasted in Taipei, though I still like the Taipei version better.

Affordable price? Check! LARGE CHICKEN? Double check! Sumptuous taste? Check!  Go ahead and check their famous Large Chicken!

New Korean Cafe: SHP Bibimbab Café & Restaurant

Korean craze has been really quite evident here in the Philippines. From their tv dramas, to their K-pop music, even their Korean fashion, and foods; there is no doubt that we are embracing their culture. I, myself is a self-proclaimed Korean fanatic. There had been a lot of new Korean shops , cafés and restaurants, and even supermarket that had been opening around the city. And I will introduce and show you a new found Korean café in the metro.

I had known of this place through some post of my friends over the net. I became curious about this place because the posts that I had been seeing are pictures of the interior designs of this café. Together with some friends, we decided to give it a visit.

SHP Bibimbab Café & Restaurant is located in P.Ocampo Street, Taft, Manila. You wouldn’t miss this place as it is beside College of Saint Benilde’s Design Building and across of St. Scholastica College. You will see a small signage hanging outside the building. You need to go up the second floor,  and there you will see the big blue door. When it opens, all the staff will greet you in Korean, saying “Anyeohaseyo!” .

The interior of the café is really homey and cozy. It is mostly made of woods, with double deck tables and individual dining tables wherein you really need to sit on the mat, which is so Korean! That kind of interior is what really stands out as a trademark of Korean culture. They also have tables with chairs if you wouldn’t like to sit on the mat. But since we are so into Korean culture, we chose to sit in one of the tables with mats. They also have big and small stuff toys that adds cuteness into their interior design. You can actually get it and take pictures with them. We really enjoyed taking pictures all over this café , mainly because there was only few costumers at that time and we really want to make use of all their stuff inside the café.  One more thing that is so Korean about this café is that the music that they are playing are all K-pop. So for those K-pop lovers out there, you should never miss this place!

The food is not that bad either. We ordered their best seller beef bulgogi, ramen, and chicken bibimbab. The price ranges from 160 pesos onwards for the meal and 100 pesos onwards for their drinks. They have a wide variety of food and drink options, but if you would like to just have water, they also have self-service house water.

 It is indeed a very giyomi café – cute, cozy ambiance with good food and nice staffs, I really recommend that you should try this place!