Cozy Afternoons at Cafe Xocolat

If you are ever in the Katipunan area, and you find yourself looking for a place to:

1. treat yourself to some nice comfort food
2. spend a lazy afternoon catching up with an old friend
3. just chill out and curl up with your laptop or book while enjoying a nice cup of hot chocolate

... then Xocolat is the place for you!

I can't believe I've never blogged about this place. This is definitely one of my ultimate go-to place, and why shouldn't it be? A small, cozy cafe converted from the sala of an old house, Xocolat definitely has that homey feel that makes me want to stay here all day. In addition, with the friendly staff, eclectic decor and of course, the consistently good food, I kind of wonder why I haven't just moved in already (well, they're not open 24/7 for one).

Xocolat's comfy vibe makes it the ultimate chill-out place

The food... oh, the food. Obviously, for a place named after the world's favorite food, Xocolat offers excellent chocolate. Their signature beverages and cakes are some of the most decadent chocolate offerings this side of town. Because of this, you'd think that those exotic creatures called people who don't like chocolate won't have any reason to come here, but actually, Xocolat offers so much more. The menu is a labor of love, carefully crafted to bring you all the best comfort food.

Sancho Churreria: Part 4 of The Great Maginhawa Food Trip

This post is the fourth of a five-part series called The Great Maginhawa Food Trip.
Part 1: Tomato Kick
Part 2: Friuli Trattoria
Part 3: Cocina Juan

Part 4: Sancho Churreria
Part 5: Cha Dao Tea Place

We're now nearing the end of The Great Maginhawa Food Trip, and our fourth installment features a little, old-fashioned cafe called Sancho Churreria Manila. What is a churreria, you ask? Why, a store that sells churros, of course! And excellent churros, at that!

Even before entering, the glass panels already make the store look very warm and inviting, with sunlight streaming through from outside. The interior isn't very spacious, but the displays of yummy goodies as well as the cozy furniture and decor help you feel right at home. The store was packed when we were there, with people having important business meetings, long overdue reunions with friends, or maybe just some lazy afternoon coffee. I never wanted to leave.

Another Side of Manila: Mofara's Halal Food Haus

Strangely, I have never been to Quiapo, despite having lived in Manila for my whole life, so some time ago, my friends decided to take me on a Quiapo adventure. We visited a few churches, took a look at some fascinating ancestral houses, shopped for handmade souvenirs under a bridge, and also dropped by the Muslim mosque as well as the neighboring shops. I was eventually led to this quaint little eatery, Mofara's Halal Food Haus, that served halal Maranao cuisine. Something new and different? Excellent!

(Fun facts: Maranao refers to the people of Lanao, a predominantly Muslim region in Mindanao.)

Mofara's, a small open-air restaurant that's the exact definition of "hole-in-the-wall", also served non-Muslim, regular cafeteria fare, but why would we want to try that? We quickly ordered several exotic-looking dishes to try by pointing them out in the display case in front of the store, and eagerly took our orange seats to wait for our orders.

Bibingkinitan

I've first heard of Bibingkinitan when I was supposed to introduce Mr. Richard Sanz (owner of Bibingkinitan) in an event and heard how successful he made the business. From research, I found out that the main selling point of Bibingkinitan is that it's a smaller version of the Filipino favorite snack Bibingka, which usually bought or served in large quantities. There are a lot of people who could not finish such a big serving, thus the idea of selling smaller portions called Bibingkinitan was born.

So of course after knowing all this, I just had to try it.

Baguio Part 2

So here's Part 2 of Baguio Foods! It's actually kinda hard to look for really good authentic Baguio dishes. We were asking the local people for recommendations, but the only food place that was always directed to us was the ones in Session Road. But there are mostly just fast food here, so we got the most different one. And that's the reason why we ate at the Sizzling Plate Baguio.

Baguio Part 1

Hi everyone! I have something wonderful to share today and of course, it's once again related to food! haha. So today, I'll be sharing you something about the food in Baguio. As most people know, Baguio is known for its strawberries. And guess what! It's strawberry season! hahaha. So here are my strawberry highlights in Baguio:

We ate breakfast one time at the G and C Cafe. The place is just small, but good food and good service =)

Mushroomburger-- Totally Confused

I didn't really plan to write a blog about Mushroomburger BUT I just had to share my confusion... THIS.

Car seats at Mushroomburger

Yes, that's Mushroomburger at Katipunan. My reaction went like this "What??? Am I seeing things?.... Why???" So you could really feel my confusion upon entering the place. At first I thought it was just the new addition of pancit in bilao that was a weird addition to the chain, but now this! Why car seats??????

Anyway, since I have expressed enough confusion already, I shall now comment on the food. It was my first time to realize that there are rice meals there actually hahaha I thought it was all just burgers (it's named MushroomBURGER for a reason).. and to think that it's not my first time to visit =P So of course, I tried their Mushroom Beef rice meal with the side dish of Mushroom Fiesta.

Great Food and the Company of Friends at Manang's

If you have friends studying at Ateneo de Manila University, you've probably heard about Manang's at least once. Ateneans love it, Ateneans rave about it, and Ateneans, when they graduate, miss it more than anything else in the school.

Manang's is a cozy little corner right next to the Covered Courts where most freshmen and sophomores have their PE classes. In the morning, you can already smell them grilling their signature liempo (pork belly), for which eager diners line up for during lunch time. The open air space is packed with hungry students who come to meet up with their friends, relax, unwind, and simply have some great home-cooked food.

Manang's at Ateneo de Manila University

Local Specialties - Davao Tuna Grill

Being someone who likes to try different things, we're always bombarded with so many choices. This is why my rule of thumb is always to ask for the bestseller or the local specialty. At least that way if the best they could offer does not taste good, you'll have every right to complain, just kidding haha.

Anyway, I was walking around Trinoma last night trying to choose a place to eat. Since I was alone, I don't want to eat Chinese food because that cuisine is meant for sharing. So even though that was the first thing that came to mind, I had to choose a place where I could finish the food and do some work in peace. My directionless wandering eventually got me to the food court of Landmark. Ok fine, it wasn't exactly directionless. I just didn't want to eat inside the Trinoma atrium since it was so loud and crowded all the time, and the food court not only offers a lot of choices, it's near the supermarket too! hahaha.