The Island Explorer

It's been more than two months since I've been to Greenbelt, and I really haven't explored much of the new Greenbelt 5. So when I saw the new row of restos in their ground floor near the garden, I just had to try one of them. For this, we wanted meat, so we headed straight to Myron's Place. The ambience in this part of Greenbelt was classy, and I thought Myron's interiors weren't as great as the others around it. Though with a garden outside like that, it's so inviting to just take a table outside. However, we sat inside because I was feeling hot. Unfortunately, the aircon was not working properly, so it eventually became hotter inside than outside. Quite a big no-no for a high end place. Anyway, on to the food. We were given dark rye bread for free. It wasn't great, but the butter cream was good. Our appetizer, the Risotto Balls with Chorizo was then served. We initially wanted oysters, but decided to jsut go with something new. Hence, the risotto mixed...

After eating at Manang's (yes, the timeless Ateneo College food spot), we had this sudden craving for ice cream. I was headed back to the office in Ortigas, so I figured, why not make it the best time to try FIC Ice Cream Bar in Rockwell (a bit out of the way I know, but I really wanted to visit this place a long time ago). FIC Ice Cream Bar in Rockwell is located at the shops a the ground floor of Joya, one of the newest condos there. The place is bright and cheerful with its white interiors. It really does look like an ice cream bar from childhood. I am a fan of FIC Ice Cream, especially its green tea ice cream which I think is my most commercially favorite ice cream. Serve it, I'll ask for more. FIC has really stepped up its presence by opening this place and I must say, I just want to congratulate the owners. I have no other thing to say but this place is perfect. Seeing the menu will make your mouth water instantly. I wanted this and that, seeing the fantastic ice cream sh...

Ok, the name attracts. It works. Put art in the name and the restaurant instantly charms. Leona Art Restaurant is located along White Plains Ave., just near the intersection of Boni Serrano near Monterey Meatshop but on the opposite side of the road. It was a spur of the moment visit, as we were headed somewhere else for dinner. But I always keep passing by this resto, and I just had to stop and finally visit it. The place is indeed charming. It's a house converted resto, and I just love the ambience of these kinds of places. I was surprised to see that the place was full on a Tuesday night, so I was expecting. It seems that big groups frequented the place, since it also doubles as a great drinking spot (cheap beers). So, that was a bit of confusion. When a resto becomes a beer joint, questions about the food are raised. The menu was simple. Rice and pasta dishes. There was pizza and some other stuff. Not that much to choose from, but they have this cool concept of making your own ...

I love islands, so even though I am an avid promoter of Philippine beaches, I still manage to land in a lot of islands in Asia. Having been to a lot of beach destinations around the region just lets me compare the ones we have here and theirs. The latest destination was Koh Chang, a side trip weekend during a business trip to Thailand. It has been almost 6 months since I last visited Thailand, and being there almost every month before, I told myself I should visit a beach while there. I was choosing between Samui and Koh Chang. I ended up with the latter, given my limited budget. Going to Koh Chang can be done conveniently by bus. The journey on a first class bus from Bangkok Ekemai Station is 5 hours, with a stop for around 15 minutes. The ride was so comfortable and the government bus I took even served snacks (think airplane). I dozed off for most of the trip so the next thing I knew, I was in Trang, the province where the Koh Chang Marine National Park is situated. A 45-minute ferr...

After more than a month of hibernation at work, I am back. I hope to get this blog updated. The next entries will be a mix of my adventures here and abroad particularly in Hong Kong, Macau and Thailand. So come back in time for a barrage of experiences.