Life, Day by Day

A few months ago while waiting for my new tires to be mounted, I decided to bring my 81 year old mother to one of the newer restaurants in town, KUYA J, and surprise, surprise...she liked it!  This was great news because as she is getting on in years, my mom's taste buds have changed, and more often than not, eating has become like a chore for her. She was also very picky when it comes to eating out. And so it was a joy to see her enjoying the food and eating with gusto the dishes set before her.  I was so tempted to shout, Hurray for Kuya J !  This family oriented restaurant that serves authentic Filipino dishes, began in Cebu and is now one of the fastest growing chain of restaurants in the country.

My relatives in Metro Manila are regulars and would rave about it, posting their enviable pictures on social media. And so, when we probinsyano s first saw this Vikings logo in SM City Bacolod, there was a lot of excitement and anticipation among us. It was something that everyone I knew was looking forward to and our conversations would often touch on the question of when it will open. Well, finally people of Bacolod and Negros, PREPARE TO FEAST! Our long wait is over. This October 2015, VIKINGS SM City Bacolod will officially open!

If you are looking for a different kind of dining experience, then Blackbeard's Seafood Island is the place for you. The restaurant which recently opened at The District, Ayala North Point in Talisay City is known for it's "boodle style" of serving food.  For those unfamiliar with this style of eating, Boodle originated from the military (Boodle Fight) where "long tables are prepared and food are on top of the banana leaves. Viands and rice ready to eat using your bare hands, jugs of water are prepared on the side to wash hands before the “eating combat”. With the signal to start the boodle fight, everyone aims for his/her position".  Of course, at Blackbeard's Seafood Island, the boodle which was the brainchild of Chef Chang Magdaluyo , part-owner and resident chef is done with a lot more finesse and style.  Take a look at the different boodle feasts in their menu list:

I love Japanese food and so, I was looking forward with great anticipation to the grand opening of the first ever SumoSam restaurant in Negros Occidental.  This is their 28th store in the country and is located at the The District North Point in Talisay City.  "This is clearly another milestone for us", Marvin Agustin , actor turned entrepreneur and chef said, referring to the fast pace of the chain's growth in recent years.  SumoSam was started 8 years ago by Marvin together with two friends, Raymund Magdaluyo and Ricky Laudico.   According to him there is always something new in their menu every 6 months and that they have roving Chefs from their head office to ensure the consistency and quality of their food in all their stores. All their kitchen have stations manned by “specialists”, such as as the sushi, teppan and the ramen stations.  It was also mentioned that they would source locally whatever fresh produce they need, as long as it is availabl...

Who likes Mexican food?  I do!  And so when the chance to check out Spice Kitchen, a restaurant in Bacolod specializing in Mediterranean/Mexican food, I immediately said yes.  I was familiar with the name since they have a food booth at the University of St. La Salle covered court and I have tried their rice meals there.  I would usually get their chorizo or sausage rice.  And so, it is good that they have decided to open a regular restaurant where people can sit, be comfortable and enjoy delicious food and great company.

I finally got to experience what many of my blogger friends are talking about...the good food of Saigon Cafe, albeit an abbreviated one.  Together with two co-workers, I decided to go for the Pho Bo Friday Special last April 26.   As I wrote in my previous post , the location of the place and the time were mainly the reasons why I did not go with my blogger friends when they checked out the place.  Surprisingly, although out of my usual way, the place was not hard to find.  From Pepsi, all I did was to go straight ahead, then turned left into the Marapara road (you can see the sign: Bacolod Golf and Country Club), then again going straight and turned left in the first corner I saw (thank you Glady of Experience Negros for pointing out that it was in the street right after Marapara Golf).  But it was in this narrow street that I got a little lost since I was looking for a big sign.  Asking around, I was pointed in the direction of a house with a bamboo...

My cousin works in Saigon and Hanoi, and he has entertained us with stories about his great food experience there.  Well, I have always been curious about Vietnam and was very surprised to learn that there is a relatively new Vietnamese restaurant in town that my blogger and non-blogger friends are raving about.  Three weeks ago, I was invited to join some of them for food tasting in the Saigon Cafe-Garden Resto , unfortunately because of myriad reasons (foremost of which was the time and distance), I have been unable to go.  However, my blogger friends Rick Gotera of Adventures of Hijo A de Pongol  who made the first two invitations, Sigrid Lo of Mama Cooks  and Glady Reyes of Experience Negros  wrote great reviews of the place and they must have love it because in a span of two weeks, they all went back a few more times bringing with them their families.  I feel bad not coming along and so, to atone for this, I am posting some pictures taken from th...

Last July 27, Mark Magallanes of RepublicaNegrense came home to Bacolod for business and pleasure. On his itinerary was doing food reviews of famous and not-so famous food establishments in Bacolod and so, he invited some local bloggers to join him. I chose to go to Felicia's Cafe and Steak Room in 6th Street. Remember my post , about how happy I was to see that Felicia's opened a branch at Robinson's Central Citywalk and why I have never been to their main store yet? Well, now was my chance to go with a group and at the same time get to meet other bloggers.