Good Earth Roast - Rockwell

Good Earth Roast (GER)...hay! Always a last choice, but always been a favorite place to hang out during my MBA days. 

I introduced GER to some of my friends and they find the place really cool.  Prices are affordable and it's a nice place to hang out, drink and chat!

Duck rice, or Roasted Duck Toppings is not as good as what they have in Hong Kong, but GER's duck version is good enough.  Chicken rice is good too! Try it with the chili sauce and ginger sauce.  Flavors will play inside your mouth. Just be careful with the oil!

The last time I went to GER was to meet up with some friends, eat dinner and drink after.  Ordered yung walang kamatayang Rum Coke in a Jar.  It's Php170/jar.  They run out of the "jar" so they asked us if it was ok to put it in 2 separate plastic glasses. Of course we agreed.  On our second round, they again served it in 2 separate plastic glasses.  This time, I could not figure it if it had any alcohol in it.  Asked my friends to taste and confirmed that they could not get a hint of alcohol.  Complained to the waiter who served it.  Guess what?!?!? He said that it was the manager who mixed it and that a lot of customers complain whenever the manager does the bartending.  Thumbs up to that waiter though, since he took our order and managed to add more rum in it. Promise, it taste like "JUST COKE", NO ALCOHOL!.

On our third round, it was the manager again who mixed it.  This time, we already asked for him.  He approached our table and asked "Any problem?" I remember when I was giving customer service training, I specifically emphasized not to ask questions that will lead you to a negative answer..meaning don't ask questions that has negative words in it.  And so this know-it-all manager insisted that he was just following the standard recipe.  Well it could be the real standard recipe of GER....if it was the standard recipe I would advice to PLEASE CHANGE OR ADJUST IT!

Been a loyal customer of GER and this was the first time that their rum coke tasted "JUST COKE", as in only COKE!

So, going back, this know-it-all manager, went back to our table and gave us 2 shots of rum.  

Then came our fourth round.  We were already full...of course..we had to much coke in our tummys.  When we got our 4th round, it again did not have any hint of alcohol at all!  We again called the manager and he insisted again that he was just following the standard recipe.  Arghhhhhh!  Then guess what....he said arrogantly "If you want I'll just give you 1 bottle!" We said..ok....We waited for it, but it never came.

Oh well, thanks for the good memories GER....I'll now have to think twice, even probably thrice or even 4 times before going back to your restaurant.  I'll probably come back if mister know-it-all manager is not on duty:)  When is his day off anyway?

Som's at Backwell

Hay! Som's it is!

Went for a joyride with a friend.  It was one super hot night.  On our way to Makati, we both agreed to eat at Som's.  

After realizing that the temperature was irritatingly high, we thought that it was not advisable to eat at Som's...you know, you eat outside, literally at the side walk. You are sweating because of the temperature and the spicyness of the food.  So we decided to transfer somewhere else. 

Of course, we still had to give a chance to our Som's cravings.  About 2 weeks after, we gave it another try. 

Of course the green curry chicken was a good one! Spicy but not to hot that you will no longer taste the chicken flavor.  

Fried spring rolls was also good. But it's not something you will dream about :)

Catfish salad was a "trying hard" one.  Was good though considering the price. But it was not comparable to Silk (the restaurant at Serendra).

Service was not super "fab".  Remember, it's a side street joint, at the back of Rockwell. Or should I say...BACKWELL

Quest for the best Green Tea Ice Cream & Cold Drink

And the finalists are:

For Ice Cream:
FIC
Haagen Dazs
Cool Spot's Big Scoop

For cold drinks:
Matcha Green Tea Cafe
Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf
Starbucks

And the winner is....will announce next week

Chelsea's Toblerone Torte

First time I tried Chelsea, I really loved it. I even promoted it to my friends. Love the salad, love the pizza, loved the baby back ribs, and most especially, loved the 4-layer toblerone torte. Its Php160 per slice but it's worth it.

Try the bread too! Order cheese to go with it.

Service is good too! Waiters suggests and asks you things. Not just like any other restaurants where waiters stops talking to you after getting your orders.

Ideal place when you are planning to catch up with old friends.

Tagaytay Steakhouse on a Holy Week?!?

All of my friends had something to do for Holy Week 2008. For me, it should have been really quite, alone and full of recollection.

On a last minute, my cousins and I planned to head to Tagaytay. Of course, this was a last minute planning. We agreed not to do anything there but rest..rest..and rest. That of course including..drink..drink..and drink..

We did not have any 'program' (only my cousins will understand what program I am talking about hehehe). Except that we planned to leave on Good Friday lunch time, of course hindi nanyari yun...we left probably at around 2pm.

When we arrived, my cousin Dindo, mentioned that he wanted to eat steak. Honestly for me, I am not really a practicing Catholic, so not that it did not matter to me, but I sort of had an excuse for eating steak (please do not :( curse me).

We craved for the rib-eye steak from Tagaytay Highlands Steakhouse! When my uncle called for a reservation, they said it was already full and the only option was to be listed in the waiting list.

My cousins and I agreed to patiently wait that night. While waiting for time, Victor, our Chef Driver (driver --- family driver kasi talaga sha..magaling lang magluto) cooked tenderloin steak for my aunt and uncle. Shempre, naamoy namin, we all sat down on the dining table, not even asking each other about the change of plans...ayun..sung-gaban na ng kanya kanyang tenderloin steak. Victor really cooks good steak so it was a winner!

Next day, Black Saturday, this time, we promised that we will really patiently wait. Notwithstanding the fact na nauubos na yung ulam sa bahay, so we really had to eat out. We called Tagaytay Steakhouse for a reservation...ayun...fully booked ulit. So meaning, wait listing nanaman ito. First we thought that coming in early that day, would somehow give us the chance to get good sits. We went at around 6pm. When we arrived, we were on the 13th in the waiting list.

We realized that we really had to give in to our cravings, so we headed back to Belle View. Ate a little and patiently waited.

At around 9oopm, we called again. Are you kidding me..we were only on the 7th in the waiting list. My nephew was really hungry so we decided to go there already and take a second chance. We even planned that in case they could not really accommodate us, then we will just opt to eat at the Korean Restaurant located in the golf clubhouse.

We arrived 930pm. My gosh! We got seats!

I ordered Rib-eye Steak..which is by the way expensive, Php950 a piece..plus the fact that we had to add Php100 for the soup and salad. Pero generous naman yung serving.

The soup was so salty while the salad's dressing needs salt. Amazing combination! Sana pala pinaghalo namin yung soup and salad dressing hehehehe. Good thing the steak was really to die for! Na compensate yung sama ng lasa nag soup and salad.

I really loved it. It was perfect! Truly a corn-fed cow! Perfect marble! Definitely not a murdered steak! Was really tender, juicy and flavorful. And that was a real Medium Well cooking!

Loved the gravy too! Keep it up! See you on my next visit!


P.s. service was ok. nothing fancy. was standard. people were courteous as well.

Food Delivery...Mc Donald's, Jollibee, Tapa King, North Park, Shakey's, Pizza Hut, Max's Restaurant

Gosh! It's been a long time since I last blogged in! Too busy trying to figure out how to make money...hehehehe. But because of the convenience of food delivery..i can't save up by just cooking meals at home.

For the past 3 months...i have been indulging myself to order food from restaurants offering delivery services. Mind you, as in almost every night! I find it very convenient and fattening! :)

Because of this, i now consider myself a food delivery critic and guru...of course! with all the money, time I spent calling and the pounds added, I am definitely an expert.

I alternately ordered from 7 food establishments namely: Mc Donald's, Jollibee, Tapa King, North Park, Shakey's, Pizza Hut, Max's Restaurant.

Mc Donald's, I think has the best delivery service....prior to the 3 month food delivery journey that I took and is still into...I have been always faithful and loyal with Mc Donald's....aside from the easy 5 number delivery contact number, they are always on time, delivers the right order, temperature of food is acceptable, polite delivery service personnel, polite call center people, tells you when your food will take long than usual and gives me a lot of ketchup when I ask for it. They are also the only 24-hour delivery food establishment in the Philippines. Thank God for Mc Do! Without them, i might have been really bored eating canned goods during those times I craved for food after midnight.

One day for some reason, my Mc Do call (8-MCDO) is not connecting. By the way, since I do not have a land line, i use a mobile phone to call for food deliveries. So I tried, for the first time, to check out Jollibee. Since I was not familiar with the delivery system and procedure, my call took about 5 minutes, as compared to Mc Donald's which would take an average of 2 minutes per call of delivery. I ordered for the sandwich meal and a spaghetti. The person who took my call promised a 30-minute waiting time. She even gave a guarantee that the delivery will be at the front desk of my condo on or before 30-minutes after our call. That if they are not able to do so, they will automatically give me a Php200 worth of gift certificate valid on my next delivery order. As per my calculation, my food should have arrived at around 930pm. And so I was already expecting a gift certificate...At about 945pm, I called up again the delivery trunk line. The person who took my call was clueless, and to me it seemed that my order was not processed. He took again my order and promised that it will be delivered on or before 30 minutes. So this means that my "re"-order should have arrived at around 1015pm. At about 1030pm, I called up again the trunk line and they advised me that the delivery is on its way. That it was the mistake of the first order taker since he did not process my order. GOsh...do they really have to say that? excuses excuses.... Anyway, I requested to get the number of the Jollibee branch who have processed my order. I called and verified myself if my orders were already dispatched and that since It was already an hour late, they should already give me my gift certificate, and they said yes, they will issue it to me. 1045pm, my order arrived, I gave my money and got my food..to my surprise...they forgot the drinks! I told the delivery personnel to get my drinks first. He said if I could sign first the receipt. I asked for a ballpen, and he does not have any. Gosh! what a service! Anyway, I asked if he brought with him my Php200 worth of gift certificate, and he said he forgot it and that he will just come back for it. I told him that since I already paid for my meal, what is my guarantee that I will get my GCs. Of course, as expected, he couldn't give me an answer. So I asked him to give back my money. Told him that I will pay for my meal after he comes back for my GC. Funny coz he never came back. Probably because my total bill was only less than Php180.

Next is Tapa King...Tapa King is second on my list for the best delivery service. in terms of packaging, it's not so flashy....but delivery is prompt and food quality is the same as what you will get from eating in their outlet. Maybe if they could just train their staff who takes the delivery calls. They need to be extra friendly. Maybe they do not have a standard script for taking orders. but just the same, everything is super ok. I love the tapa queen..love the longganisa...love the red egg with tomato! I was just wondering, with almost 2x a week that I call them for delivery service for the past 3 months, they still do not have a record of my address. Whenever they answer my call I still need to say that I wanted a delivery and will still ask where I leave and that they will still verify if they could deliver it...oh well....at least they are prompt and food is great!

North Park! I used to love this restaurant. I started to avail of their delivery services when I had to prepare lunch for 3 of my friends coming for a visit. Shempre nahiya naman ko if pizza lang...and of course..i was craving for Chinese food that day. Minimum total bill is reasonable, containers are really impressive, and food is definitely good! But one Monday evening, I was tired from work and felt that I deserve to have a nice dinner. I called North Park 7-3-7-3-7 number. Ordered my usual...Lechon rice toppings and other inclusions to reach the minimum total bill. When my food arrived, I paid for it and even gave a tip to the delivery personnel. Was so excited to eat and to my surprise...WALANG KANIN!!!! I immediately called the delivery call center and asked them to inform the branch who took and delivered my food. I also got the direct contact number of the branch. I called and asked if it would take them long to deliver the rice. They said..about 10-15 minutes only. So i waited...waited..waited...It arrived 45 minutes later. I was so angry, probably because I was so hungry! I called again and spoke to the manager. She was very defensive in short.."nangangatwiran!" I asked her: "are you sure you are the restaurant manager? You don't sound like one! Can i speak with the restaurant manager please?" Then she replied, "Mam ako po yung restaurant manager." Then I said, "well iha..you didn't handle my complaint like how managers should handle one. I am a food service trainer and I think you were very defensive. You first should listen...wag kang sasabat agad.!" In fairness, she apologized and told me not to pay for my food anymore...HUWHAT!!!! She's really not paying attention, I already paid for my food remember.. then she said that she'll just bring a dessert --- "on the house!" Who cares what she will give to please me. Hello...i was dead hungry. I told her to just ask his immediate superior to call me first thing the next morning and give me a results of her investigation of what happened! Talk about being a manager..hehehehehe..Report naman sha agad. The next day...the area manager called me and invited me to come visit their restaurant again and that they will pay for whatever I will order. Told him that I was really disappointed and I am not sure if I still plan to eat at their restaurant. Since mataas pride ko...of course I never called and came. But frankly miss those North Park night dinner! And hats off with how they handled a difficult customer like me..

Shakey's....love the pizza! love the monster spaghetti meatball...love the garlic bread. fast delivery, courteous staff. But here's the thing. Please give more than enough hot sauce when your customers requests for more. Provide a bigger spoon for your monster spaghetti meatball. Monster nga eh..so please make your plastic spoon a little bit bigger, not as small as those used for kiddie parties. Oh I remember something.. One drinking session night with my cousin at home, she asked me if I wanted pizza. Since we practically grew up with Shakey's, it was no longer a debate. We called. Again, since I don't have a land line, I used my mobile phone. After about 30 minutes, I got a text from the branch who took our order and asked me to call them! HUWHAT!!!!! To finish our agony of waiting...I called and they asked if we wanted to change our order because they accidentally overcooked our thin crust shakey's special and that they didn't have any thin crust dough left. So it means..we were left with the pan pizza..which we never really liked. I responded, "Miss, nakakahiya naman yung branch nyo. Don't ask your customer to call you. Hindi na nga namin makukuha yung gusto naming order tas ako pa pinatawag mo! NAkakahiya naman Shakey's.. Buti pa ang Mc Do, may load pang tawag!" Guess what..she replied, "Pashensha na kayo miss, wala kasi kaming load." HUWHAT!!! Ano kaya ginagawa ng 109 sa PLDT line or ask your Manager to buy a load. Talk about customer service! Anyway so ang ending.. Nag Pizza Hut kami.

With Pizza Hut, I think amongst all delivery services..they are the MASTER DELIVERY GUYS! Whenever you want to eat on time without any hustle, with friendly guys taking your call, giving you idea on what to order and checking back whether they got your orders correct, Pizza Hut is the best. Love the cheese stuffed crust pizza. Only thing is, pizza is oily, crust is so filling and it's expensive.

Last but not the least... Max's Restaurant. I've had some unforgettable moments with Max's back in 2005 when our company got them as caterer for our Christmas Party. Found something inside the chicken (please I don't want to discuss it anymore..maybe in a separate blog entry), but just to give you an idea..it was very yuckee. They explained that they have food safety procedures and that they are doing their best to find out what happened. Ever since that incident, I promised myself not to eat at Max's anymore. I tell you, they even gave me a gift certificate with my name on it so that they are assured that I will come back and forgive them. But I guess past is past. After about 3 years of a Max's boycott, left my finger and called their delivery services about a month ago. I realized that i really missed their chicken. Nothing much to say about their delivery services. It was the usual delivery service, nothing really fancy or should i say, nothing really unforgettable experience, or nothing noticeable worth including in this blog. Oh well, at least napatunayan ko that I can forgive and forget. And lastly, the chicken is still the same. Paki damihan lang yung ketchup.

To the 7 restaurants! Cheers to you for taking my complaints and for making my hips heavier!!! :)

BUTTER DINER

It has been months since I last ate at Butter Diner. My last recollection of my experience at Butter Diner was I think...if I am not mistaken...May of last year. Indeed bad luck comes in threes. When my order came, I did not like the taste, it tasted like burnt cheese. They took it from me and informed that they will change it. To my surprise, the new one was just the old one, but this time, they probably scraped all the cheese and coated it with a new one. I recognized that it was the same meat since I made a triangle cut from it, a marker to let me know that it was the same meat. When I complained about it, they immediately asked me to just change my order. I asked the waiter to suggest a food for me.....another bad luck...i did not like it. Came dessert, when I ordered for an ice cream dessert, in the menu, it stated that it had some nuts on it. When the ice cream dessert came....of course....again..bad luck comes in threes...and to complete it...it had no NUTS! I asked the waiter where the nuts are and he answered that the ice cream dessert I ordered didn't really had nuts in it. I asked the waiter to give a the menu and I showed him that it was part of the description. He then got plate of nuts and gave it to me. When it was time to get the bill, the manager gave the ice cream dessert on the house and gave me a discount. I didn't really asked for that but more of a conversation with the Manager...baka kasi pipe sha...or bingi..hehehehe

Then just last Tuesday, I again ate there. The show plate provided had butter in it. Kaya siguro Butter Diner! hehehe. Plates were not so clean. Salt and Pepper Shaker were not properly filled and the container was so dirty.

But the food was good. Un nga lang when my friend's tapa came, we had to ask for vinegar. Isn't that tapa goes with vinegar even without asking for it? The omelette ok...not so much of a killer. The butter...which was suppose to be the highlight of the meal wasn't that of a big deal. It was not creamy. It was hard to spread it.

Service was average. Price was...ah...ah...ah...ok...considering the serving portion. But for me...it might be another year again before I go back again.