Super Salads at Cafe Georg

I'm a big salad fan, if you know where to get the good stuff. Now I've found a great place to get hearty salads whenever I'm in Cebu, and it's not a secret to the Cebuanos.

Cafe Georg

Located in Banilad in Cebu City, Cafe Georg is a cutesy coffee shop-cum-meeting place for a lot of the locals. Many tourists would have a hard time locating the restaurant, but any well-fed Cebuano will lead you to Cafe Georg if your looking for easy eats and hearty meals.

Sunday Stovetop: Shrimp Scampi Pasta with Feta & Olives

Shrimp Scampi Pasta w Feta & Olives

Last Sunday I realized how much I had missed whipping up something in my kitchen. My S-i-L called me up and requested I make my Shrimp Scampi for a get together at her place, and I was all excited to be able to flex my cooking muscles. Here's the recipe, it's super easy and I'm sure you guys will love it as much as everyone at the party.

To make the Scampi you need several ingredients available on most supermarkets, nothing fancy over here... but I do have a secret weapon. I'm also not very keen on actual portioning since I usually eyeball things, so it's up to you how much or little you wanna add on some of the herbs.

 

Shrimp

To make Scampi, first you need some... well, scampi, otherwise known as Shrimp. I like to buy the shell-on kind so that the flavors are still intact. You need to peel them but you can use the shells and head as seasoning for another dish. Or for "Ginisa". Buy about half a kilo to a kilo, depends how generous you want to be with the shrimp.

Sunday Brunch at Chelsea & Mercato Centrale

 I haven't been spending a lot of time with the Choobear, so I decided to have a little play date with the critter at Bonifacio Global City.

 First stop was the much awaited Mercato Centrale @ BGC, brainchild of good blog-buddy, and Our Awesome Planet's Anton Diaz,

 It's the newest Farmers' Market on 32nd St & 9th Ave at The Fort, offering everything from  fresh produce, organic products, cooked food and other yummy goodies. I came in a bit late due to a mega HANGOVER from a bachelorette's party, but there were still people and produce to try and buy.

Spasso's Italian Specials

Did I really finish this entire platter of Lamb Chops? Better yet, where can you get this big serving of lamb for P850 ($19)?

Spasso Italian Tapas & Enoteca

Twice already, I've had the chance to dine at Spasso, an Italian wine & tapas bar that also serves up Italian fare for the hungry ones. It was one of those "where is it?" places, so I relished the thought of finding yet another under-the-radar eatery to try in the Metro.

SaturDate Cooking Spaghetti Bolognese

I'm turning cooking into the coolest weekend gimmick.

In an attempt to limit eating out, ToT decided to make SaturDate a Cooking In Date.

Since Mr. S is undoubtedly a Bolognese snob, I had to consult three different cookbooks to get familiar with cooking the Ragu sauce. One of them is the official Cookbook of Ristorante Za Za in Florence, given to me by a friend who had also studied in Florence.

I was too confused on which recipe to follow, so I decided to wing it and make my own ToT version of the classic Italian dish. Let me share with you how to make a delicious meal of Fettucine Bolognese, Mozzarella Bruschetta and Garlic & Rosemary Roasted Baby Potatoes, as well as how easy it is to make when you have someone else helping you.

Finding Comfort in Cheese and Cibo

I need to put my Hong Kong posting on hold. Just for a bit. After a string of busy days, crazy events, and being pulled here, there and literally almost everywhere, I really needed some comfort. Actually, I needed a lot of it. Something familiar and something that always hits a spot.

I ended up in Greenbelt 5 with a few hours to kill before another meeting. My destination? Cibo.

Cibo, is like the no-fail go-to place if you want some quick and tasty Italiano fare. It's not full-on Italiano like C's Italian , but it has its place in my heart. It's an enoteca (wine place), pasticceria (pastry shop), alimentari (food store) and... another thing, all rolled into one modern Italian resto. Every time I get hungry, but am unable to visualize where I'd like to eat or what exactly, I always find myself propped up on one of Cibo's usually colorful seats ordering "the usuals". Now I know some of you wonder why I would blog about Cibo when it's just a "normal" restaurant. But trust me, nothing beats consistently delicious food and great service, and even in LA or NY, you'll have trouble finding a chain that can rival that of Cibo.

First on my menu:

San Pellegrino Aranciata

Dreaming of Damaso... Sigh

After being eternally bedridden these past three days to due a recurring flu aka trangkaso, I finally generated enough braincells to go back to finishing up the long list of blogs waiting to be written. For some reason, I've been itching to write this blog because, from what I remember of the nibbles and the bites... this was one good experience.

I'm quite convinced that my fingers wanted to type away because tasting absolutely nothing, on my sad little food tray brought to my bedside, just pisses me and my tummy off. Not to mention ToT. I NEED TO TASTE SOMETHING!

Last week, my (almost always mistaken as a fraternal twin) brother and I decide to go "malling" during the afternoon to check out some watches. Now the term "malling", if everyone remembers correctly, means heading out to the mall to chill out. I don't remember the last time I've done it past high school... but I remember a disturbing mention the term while he and some middle aged men were found strolling around the mall in the heat of the afternoon, malling. Shudder.

Anyway, one thing bro and I both share so generously is a never ending appetite and ever present desire to eat out. Having lived in LA together, I've infected his masculinity by introducing him to the haven that is Fred Segal's and coordinated garb, while he has killed my femininity by infecting me with his burly appetite. Being 6'1'', he needed someone dependable enough to eat next to his side through thick waist or thinning hair. From taking Pepperdine University's Waves Cafe and turning it into a degustation experience for college kids, we've graduated to actual degustations at Lolo Dads, Aubergine and Peter Luger's

For our afternoon delight date, we decide to set up shop in Greenbelt 5's Damaso restaurant, home of the infamous Brazo de Mercedes I so excitedly blogged about previously.

Italia-mania at C's

Being a temporary resident of a foreign country exposes you to so many different aspects of their culture: language, lifestyle and cuisine. Obviously, the latter is my favorite of all even though the others are still on my shortlist.

When mi studiare a Firenze, I made sure that no meal was left uneaten, no vino left uncorked, no cappuccino unsipped, no cured meat untouched, and no gelato unenjoyed. And here's proof!

Gelato craze

Pizza from Napoli

Fave meat shop for some Prosciutto

Ristorante Ciak for some Pasta Ciak

Cafe Liberta's signature cappuccino

Trattoria Za Za's mouthwatering Bistecca FiorentinaLimoncello shots at SpleenAcqua Al Due's Trio Di Bistecca Fiorentina: Balsamic, Blueberry and Filetto

The crap part about being exposed to such authenticity is the sheer frustration and withdrawal syndrome that follows suit when, upon returning to the motherland, one finds herself faced with faux-talian food that is reminiscent of 3M pizza or kiddie spaghetti with ketchup as base. I like them and still crave for them when I'm on children's party mode. But still... you can't mess with Italian!

Nostalgia Wins

A friend and I were out for some wine last night, discussing diving, food and Italy, when we went off on a full on tirade about pasta Carbonara. Where to find the best (I said Chelsea, friend said Rome duh), how to make it, and why we love it. I guess the discussion went for quite some time, because 3 bottles of vino went coming and going before realizing the time.

So today what can I think of?
Carbonara
Carbonaraaaa
CARBONARA!

Its wrath reached its fullest when, at the gym, I was staring at Giada Dilaurentiis noshing on Braciola while working up a sweat on the cross trainer. I finish my time on the sweat-o-rator and went in a scurry back home.

Specifically, my kitchen.

I won't elaborate too much on the process... just know that it was worth every calorie ingested.

Enter The Usual Suspects

Prosciutto, Bacon, Onion, Parmigiano Reggiano, Egg, and Spinach Fettucini

Hello Tummy, I Want Chelsea

So this is what I've had this weekend alone (not including meals which don't deserve a shout out):

Five Cheese Macaroni with Garlic Mozzarella Toast



Read this post on the NEW ToT: 
http://www.triportreats.com/2009/07/26/hello-tummy-i-want-chelsea/