Yaku Japanese Grill Restaurant at The Podium Mall

For over a decade now, Yaku Japanese Grill located at The Podium Mall in Ortigas has been dishing out reasonably priced Japanese cuisine with impressive quality to boot. Japanese restaurants in Manila are aplenty but great profusion does not always commensurate to the assurance that everything will be well worth neither your money nor your time. Thanks to our friends from Zodio for organizing an intimate dinner at Yaku as it introduced me to the fact that Yaku Japanese Grill restaurant is one of those who are worth it.

Yaku Japanese Grill joined the numbers of restaurants at The Podium Mall in the early 2000. It started as a yakitori place and then eventually expanded their menu and turned into a full blown Japanese restaurant. The word "Yaku" is a Japanese word which means grill, hence their specialty.

With expertise on grilled Japanese food on its helm, Yaku, up to this day, still serves yakitori alongside variety of Japanese goodies such as sushi, sashimi, tempura, donburi, teppanyaki, and more.  Although tucked in an unassuming corner with a gigantic pillar of a post blocking its façade, Yaku is definitely one of those you should not miss when craving for authentic Japanese cuisine.

The Ultimate Taste Test 2013 at Rockwell

The time has come to once again enjoy the fun of being a food critic for a day through Our Awesome Planet and San Miguel Lifestyle Brews’ The Ultimate Taste Test 2013.

Now on its 11th roll and the 3rd time in partnership with Rockwell, The Ultimate Taste Test 2013 will once again rock the foodie world on September 14, 2013 from 11am to 9pm at The Rockwell Tent, Powerplant Mall.

I have always been a fan of food feasts such as The Ultimate Taste Test and based on my previous UTT experiences, I am confident that this 11th installment will be equally delightful.

Diplahan Lechon: A Taste of Zamboanga in Manila

In a perfect world where high level of cholesterol can get us nowhere near six feet under, lechon rules. We will surely eat our way to oblivion without giving flying hoots to our own mortality because hey, it’ll be pure porcine bliss, buddy.

But we are not in a perfect world. So, occasional glimpse to the perfect world that a perfectly roasted pig could bring will do. And a glimpse to that perfect world we were given indeed, when we were introduced to Diplahan Lechon of Zamboanga City weeks ago.

No plane ticket required to experience the wonder that is Diplahan Lechon, all thanks to the great people who brought them here in Manila. Yes, Diplahan Lechon from the south made its way to Manila, ready to rock our world inside out.

High Tea Wednesdays at Wine Depot Featuring French Tea Brand, La Maison Du The

Afternoon High Tea. Big words. It sounds so royal and regal; it’s a thread away from intimidating. For some it can be a total strange concept. But with the emergence of restaurants and cafes in Manila offering afternoon high tea packages, our culture that is rather familiar with coffee is now slowly being introduced to what started as a social event for upper class men in Europe. Recent addition to the establishments offering afternoon high tea is Wine Depot with branches at Alabang, Makati, and Greenhills. Yes, Wine Depot does not just sells wines, they also have café with good selections of gourmet food and drinks.

Wine Depot, in partnership with La Maison Du The, a tea brand of delicately handcrafted premium French tea, celebrates the beauty of tea culture through their High Tea Wednesdays. Although rooted from the much celebrated tea gathering, Wine Depot’s High Tea Wednesdays suggests a different tea culture but not devoid of respect for the traditional ritual.

For a start, High Tea Wednesdays at Wine Depot is priced at Php500 only. An affordable feat considering most high tea packages served in Manila are not as friendly in terms of its price. Second, Wine Depot has this “not just tea” feature thrown in the mix for a good measure. Indeed, it’s a different tea culture that Wine Depot is introducing, so intimidation may take a back seat.

A Beautiful Breakfast at Malcolm's Deli, The Fort BGC

Drowsy run of egg yolk, glistening pieces of fat laden sauteed slices of beef flirting with mushroom and beautifully wilted spinach, freshly baked bread, bountiful greens of impeccable hue, and crisp cubes of perfectly fried potatoes with color reminiscent of golden sunset. It was a beautiful breakfast on a plate. So beautiful that it made my first visit at Malcolm’s Deli located at The Fort almost a communion with the sublime. The experience may be fleeting, but the palatable memories remained ephemeral.

That breezy morning at Malcolm’s Deli, the comforting jolt from freshly brewed coffee prompted me with the fact that breakfast was meant to remind us what our daily ways of survival lured us to forget. Breakfast was that merciful flicker of sustenance before we head for the hunt amidst the meandering chaos we sometimes called life.  

Breakfast should always be beautiful. And that morning, it was. Not that it mattered in the grand scheme of human history, but it was a late breakfast disguised as brunch. Nevertheless, it was the breakfast fares at Malcolm’s Deli we feasted on, and sticking with the definite word breakfast could never break a bone. The great company I was with should be given credit for that beautiful morning feast. However, I am confident that no one would disagree if I said that the food deserved majority of the recognition.