heavenly steak at La Madeleine

nothing can top this...



one of the best meals i've ever had. bife de chorizo served with fresh salad made up of lettuce, prosciutto, cheese, carrot strips with red wine vinaigrette and a glass of red wine. sounds classy? it sure is, but it was definitely not expensive. all i could remember was that the steak costs around 9 argentine peso...roughly 180 philippine pesos so the entire dinner probably cost less than 500 PHP.

there's a place in buenos aires called puerto madero and it's a strip of red brick buildings housing the finest restos in buenos aires. starved with only having eaten empanadas for lunch (yes it's supposed to be a complete meal in argentina) my officemates and i headed to this popular spot in town. we didn't know which resto to go to so we just picked out la madeleine at random. armed with a bit of spanish i made sure that they will serve us a well done steak, i was a bit wary since having it well done might jeopardize the tenderness of the beef but i don't know how to say medium well in spanish. we anxiously waited for our steak while munching on some bread and butter. i was a bit worried since only a few people were dining at the place but it was only around 6-7 and dinner time usually starts at 10. finally it came, and we just couldn't believe that it was well done and yet was so tender. i could not explain it but it seems that the beef melts in your mouth. the meat is all brown (well cooked) but it was still tender. it was probably because of the way they cooked it, the grill marks somehow made it crunchy but the inside was still tender so the instense heat probably locked up all the juices. it was really divine.

you might say that it goes the same for all the restos in buenos aires, after all, they are known for their beef. but nothing came close to the steak at la madeleine. we've eaten in a lot of restos in buenos aires but nothing was comparable to la madeleine's steak. i might not be able to come back to buenos aires but the memory of that bife chorizo will always linger.

btw, i went there 2 years ago but i just saw the picture recently so i decided to share it to everyone who might stumble upon my humble blog.

chinois cuisine: ubiquitous as it can be

chinois is chinese in french and you can find chinese food almost everywhere. but lately, a lot of chinese restos have been sprawling around the metro. i realized that i had to write something about it in line with my recent chinese food experience. when i was young, the only chinese resto i knew was Maxim's...it's my dad's favorite - beef wanton noodles forever!

then i heard of this resto in greenhills called Le Ching famous for its shark's fin and rice toppings of chicken and mushroom and pork spareribs. but what makes this resto one of my favorites is their garlicky chili garlic oil. ignore the ambience, i find it similar to the typical hole in the wall dimsum houses i see in pictures and movies. this place is a must especially when you're in greenhills starved by shopping.

next one is North Park. i've heard about it from a college friend she said it serves the best yang chow (fried rice) but she said it's in banawe (my dad will not go as far as that). anyway, i then found out that there's a couple of branches in the makati area. my first love from this resto is not their yang chow which i find better when you have it delivered (tip!) but their humongous chicken feet. i believe that they have the best chicken feet among the chinese restos i've tried.

next one is Super Bowl of China and Big Buddha(Greenbelt Name). nothing special with this resto but they serve good food at pretty reasonable prices plus you can see them almost everywhere (the major shopping areas i mean). this has become my dad's favorite. kung baga walang panama ang Maxim's hehe. i love eating here especially when i crave for chinese food since i'm pretty sure that this is the only place nearby which serves decent chinese cuisine.

this one is my mom's favorite chinese resto...superceding Super Bowl which she adored as well.it's Causeway, i've heard so much about this resto that i've been telling my mom about it and when she finally got to eat there i was so envious. they say it's the same resto which serves the best dimsum in Hongkong. all i can say is...all praises to their yummy hakao (shrimp dumplings) this is the best hakaw i've ever tasted super big chunks of shrimp wrapped and steamed perfectly.

and the newest addition to my list is Luk Yuen, prices are affordable and the food is good as well.



digging into my hakao while it's still hot

but my favorite would be the seafood roll wrapped with nori. because of this i know that i will be a regular patron of this resto. but really you need to take my word for it you oughta try.

it's the one on upper right

well anyway here's the list of restos and the dishes i recommend.

Le Ching - shark's fin and the rice toppings
Northpark - chicken feet, salted garlic squid, salted fish fried rice
Superbowl of China - i like the birthday noodles and dimsum
Big Buddha - steamed fish with garlic
Causeway - hakaw/hakao!!!, fish with ginger and tausi (something like that)
Mann Hann - tofu/bean curd that's sauteed with something i forgot but it was yummy
Luk Yuen - seafood roll and suckling pig yumyum.

More food tips in my upcoming blogs.

going japanese

i hate japanese food. number one reason is, i love my food piping hot and most japanese food are savory but cold. second, is that they serve a variety of raw fish/seafoods. third, i puked when i ate a very inviting sushi with a humongous crabstick on top. since then, i vowed not to eat anything japanese except for tempura. and then one time my friend convinced me to eat at teriyaki boy...it was a fairly new japanese restaurant back then. i was convinced primarily because of the tofu steak...i'm such a tofu fanatic. then she asked me to try out the california maki i knew that it might end my teriyaki boy experience in an instant, however it proved me otherwise. the maki was different because it has japanese mayo...making it creamy (i love mayo) and the ebikko provides a different texture, making my california maki experience worthwhile. since then, i have been a fan of teriyaki boy's california maki...i repeat it should be teriyaki boy's i don't care if it is a bit pricey compared to other's. but lately i have been surrounded by japanese food enthusiasts that eating maki from any resto has become normal. i am even suprised to find myself craving for a maki. but now, i still have another feat to conquer and that is eating sashimi, only then will i be able to say that i am a complete convert. next time i eat out i'll try taking pictures to put into this blog. well till next time.

simply melts in your mouth

when you hear the phrase melts in your mouth, you would think about M&Ms or a delectable dessert but i was actually referring to the newest fish and chips in town. the singaporean based fish and co. recently opened here in manila and i must say that the fish really melts in your mouth. the batter is so thin and yet not oily and the fish is very tender. it has lived up to the reviews i have been hearing and i'm glad i tried it out. oh well, that was my recent culinary adventure, just thought i should mention it.

yummy steak

i went out yesterday and my friends and i had a feast. i loved the steak at red crab and i'm denifintely coming back for it.too bad there was no buffet at their shangri-la branch but it was a blessing in disguise since i was able to discover that they serve a pretty decent steak. and i also loved the norwegian salmon and mushroom pilaf that was served with it. i also had some ideas for a new pasta recipe.will write an entry for my fave pastas soon.

so i still have a couple of restos to eat at but the red crab is gonna be at my list of restos to choose from whenever i crave for a steak. i can't wait for my next foodtrip.

fresh pasta...

pasta is one of my favorite things to eat. i could never get enough of it and i don't think anyone would get tired of eating it. well as i've mentioned earlier i took a workshop at Maya Kitchen and they provided a recipe for making fresh pasta. interesting i must say, i'm contemplating on buying a pasta machine, it was so fun extruding the dough through the machine. well enough about that...let's start cooking.

ingredients:
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour (semolina is better)
1 egg beaten
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. oil
2-3 tbsp. water

procedure:
in a bowl, combine the flour, egg, salt and oil. stir to blend.
add 1 tbsp of water at a time. if it's too moist add more flour, if it's too dry add more water. knead dough until smooth and form into a ball.the longer you knead the dough the better. pass thru the pasta machine, there are seven settings, use each and everyone of them once or twice depending on the consistency of the dough. it is better to dust them with a bit of flour so that they won't stick. cut them into strips to resemble fettuccine.

in a stock pot boil water with enough salt. once the water is in a rolling boil put the pasta. cook until done (1-2 mins). drain and set aside.put some butter so that they won't stick.


pasta machine/maker 

well that's it, you now have fresh pasta and you can cook any sauce you want for it.

back again...

oh gheez i feel bad that i haven't updated this for a long time. well i didn't have enough culinary inspiration to write about food but now i do. i just attended a cooking workshop. nothing special...typical dishes that people eat everyday well not everyday but you can get them when you dine out. anyway watch out for the next post, it's gonna be interesting.