Maru Korean Restaurant

Would you buy this under 500 pesos? I will! 

they use coconut shells for grilling coz their ashes dont fly around

tender strips of beef..ready to be grilled

cooking your own food makes you hungry

grill it till golden brown

frozen soju and korean ice cream for dessert!

very modern yet traditional interior design 

pieces of very nice artwork displayed 

photo from the 2nd floor. 

To tell you the truth, i have been really addicted eating korean food. I just love it so much. Its healthy..its more like a guilt free food for me. Imagine, a lean slice of beef then grilled using only its natural oils then served with fresh vegetables. Its simple, healthy and its heaven! Maru Korean restaurant is one of those restaurants that serve really delicious korean food. The best thing is, its only a couple of steps away from where i live. It is by far, one one of my favorite restaurants i dined in. It has a great interior design. The staff are really nice and hospitable. Its really clean and tidy. The area is safe and not that crowdy. Its a great place to bring your date..maybe you two want to enjoy cooking your own food while dining.. its such an experience. They serve the best Bulgogi and also try their Galbi Jum! Try also ordering a bottle of Soju and mix it with their watermelon juice. Its really good!  My experience here was amazing..i wanna go back here someday.. For more info and reservations you can always give them a call at (+632)403-9140 or at (+632)385-2792. You can also visit their facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/MaruKoreanRestaurantMakatiCity

Bowler Restaurant

When i was still working at NetCore Solutions at Valero St in Makati, everytime i go on a break, I always go down stairs and visit the local 7-11 and get some cold drinks and chips. Then i just sit along the curve and enjoying my snack. I always see this really nice restaurant beside 7-11 called "Bowler". I was intrigued because the place looks cozy and a lot of people hang out there during night time. I never had a chance getting inside back then until now. I am right. The place definitely rocks and the food is really delicious! Welcome to Bowler! They had a deal with Ensogo and they are serving really delicious breakfast meals for an affordable price.   

Photo on tops is their delicious scrambled eggs. This is probably the best scrambled eggs i ever tasted. Its absolutely more delicious than delicious! 

The insides has a lavish amount of bacon and the sauce is just awesome. I dunno what else is in there.. I just love it so much... If ever im coming back there, this is the one to order. Most definitely this is the one!  

This is some "sossy" breakfast. I wonder why do they call it Eggs Benedict? This is so good i tell you. They even blow torch this thing right in front of you when they serve it. To be honest, i never tasted eggs benedict before and i just see them in cooking shows. This is quite an experience...

Had a great time there. Many thanks to the staff of Bowler for their warm hospitality   and of course their great food. This is actually a delayed post and too bad their deal with Ensogo expired already. But then again, deal or no deal, id definitely go back here someday. Im actually craving for it right now... Visit their really nice restaurant at Valero corner Sedeno st in Makati. For inquiries, give em a call at (+632)894-3589.

Ho Galbi Korean Restaurant

This is probably one of the best Bulgogi I ever tasted! Its so delicious. I tried a lot of Beef Bulgogis before and by far this is the king. The meat is so tender. The taste is absolutely delicious! I also love the taste of the mushrooms once cooked..

I ate a lot of these actually. Im actually on a mission of eating healthy. Since this is pure lean beef and boiled.. i bet this is a perfect meal! And its so delicious. Its hard to find a healthy meal yet very good to my taste. This is my bet. One of their best sellers!

Part of the side dish is this one. Its baby potatoes drenched with this black caramel sauce sprinkled with sesame seeds... I also had a lot of these. Im a sucker for baby potatoes and i love them so much. I dunno how they made the sauce...Its just perfectly sweet. 

They also serve this dish called the Galbi Jum or better known as braised short ribs. They used angus beef on this one. This is mighty delicious. The taste is just.... ugh.. i dunno how to explain it. You might wanna order some extra rice for this one. This one is the champion... 

I also love their iced tea. It looks like a typical iced tea but to me its really good. 

I really enjoyed this photoshoot along with Second. The place packs up during lunch and a lot of people visit the place to enjoy great korean food. Hogalbi is located at Oranbo in Pasig City. Ensogo will be running a deal with them. Better watch that out coz they have a spectacular deal with their Beef Bulgogi and Galbi Jum at a very affordable price! 

Dimsum and Dumplings

Time for some dimsum baby! Oh yeah. I so love dimsum. I had another photoshoot at Dimsum and Dumplings. They will be running a deal soon at Ensogo.  These dumplings are are quite special, and healthy because they are organic. Made entirely of vegetables! They taste really good. 

Their seafood macaroni is one of the best out their! If you love tahong, shrimps and fish onto your macaroni then topped with cheese.., this meal is for you.

 Their crispy noodles is also delicious!!! i so love shrimps.

 Their pesto is also a must-try. Len, my co-worker actually had this one to go! 

Their chicken with baked potatoes are also a winner! 

Watch out for Dimsum and Dumpling's deal at Ensogo! If you love delicious food and its easy on budget, try Dimsum and Dumpling's a shot and im sure you will be satisfied! 

Mrs. Fields

Another food adventure! This time its at Mrs. Fields over at Mckinley Hill in Bonifacio Global City. It was an early shoot and my head is heavy as hell due to lack of sleep. Good thing a cup of Mrs. Fields Cappuccino gave me a wake-up call. I wanted something to pair up with my coffee and this milk chocolate cupcake seems to perfect! Those two are like peas and carrots i tell you. Its so good! 

These are called Brownie Nibblers and damn its so good. If you love brownies, these are one of the best ones. You got to try it to appreciate. I tell you its really good. 

Of course, I also tried Mrs. Fields delicious cookies. One of my favorites are the Chocolate Chip! These are just heaven... These are my favorites actually... If you have cravings for some utterly delicious cookies, brownies and cupcakes, visit Mrs. Fields at a store near you.

Many thanks to Aila for all the help and also to Ms Frances for being so nice with us. Thank you mam! 

T.G.I. Friday's

I so love eating at Friday's. Their wide array of meals is just delicious! Im excited that i had a chance to take pictures of their top dishes for their promo at ensogo. Im gonna be shooting burgers, their salad, their famous fish n chips and their super delicious dessert, the Oreo Madness! Photo on top is their ultimate cheese burger with 2 slices of cheese and  a quarter pound of that juicy meat. Served hot with fries. Delicious.. really delicious!

 Also had a taste of their delicious garden salad. Its crunchy.. its so fresh.. i love the dressing. tastes really good. Perfect for those who look for their diet.. ;) 

 Their Fish n Chips is one of the best i ever tasted. I like this one specially with a pinch of lemon.. Its really good. I dunno why some people dont like cream dorry coz maybe its kinda bland to taste but for me., i love it.. Specially this one. Dunk it in to their special onion sauce and its heaven.. You got to try this i swear. Its really good. 

Now for my favorite ending, the Oreo Madness.. This is definitely madness right here! Vanilla Ice Cream topped with mashed oreo cookies then drizzled with ample amount of caramel and chocolate syrup! Talk about calories bro. This one is screaming sugar! But hell this is rally good... 

Many thanks to Meggy for dragging me out here at Friday's in Rob Galleria. You just gave me an extra inch under my belt! Thank you! Thanks also to the staff.. to Mam Chi.. ur' so kind.. I just realized ladies who call themselves chi are not only beautiful but kind and friendly as well.. :) 

Thanks again for the experience!

Dakasi Milk Tea

I have to admit that I am somehow addicted to the newest milk tea joints in town, the Dakasi Milk Tea. According to its label, it is based in Taiwan and its branches can be found all over the globe. Its delicious specially their best seller, the Bubble Milk Tea. Try it for yourself! 

The Tattoo Wives Photoshoot at P&P Tattoo

To be honest, i really find women with tattoos...very sexy, alluring and hot. Im actually lost in words to describe them. This is a great privilege shooting at P&P Tattoo in Makati. Many thanks to my officemate, Rona, for inviting me at this shoot. She is writing a blog titled " The Tattoo Wives ". She needs portraits of these lovely ladies who are the wives of Tattoo artists. It was a lonely friday night and I got nowhere else to go but home and I was glad Rona saved me. Me and my other officemate EJ worked our cameras and lights for this one of a kind shoot. 

Raquel and Carol were very easy to work with. They were like professional models actually. They know how to pose, how to project, and they were very patient. The first location was at the Hotel room. I played with my lights on this one using a 2-strobe set-up. I placed my huge softbox umbrella top left and another speedlight on the right with an improvised snoot. The shadows at the back are kinda weird..but..i dunno it kinda looks cool though.. I made this one black and white to add a little drama..  

I really wanted to highlight Raquel's rose tattoo in this picture. 

We went downstairs to the tattoo parlor and images are starting to flicker inside my head. I thought of something like this. I wanted to capture Carol, in her fair white skin, being inked., like her first time... Again placed my ever reliable softbox umbrella top left.. and another speedlight with a snoot on lower right of the model. I really want that dark background to conceive the clutter from behind. Im happy with this one. This is one of my favorite photos from the shoot.   

 Its Raquel's turn and I also asked her to do the same pose but this time in her arm. Id like to thank Francis, Rona's husband for being so cooperative.

I made Francis and Rona a portrait. I find this one really nice. Francis is one of P&P Tattoo's premiere tattoo artists. He's one of the best in his craft.  

 Like I said earlier, i am really honored to be part of this photoshoot. I had fun and I really had a great time.  This is actually my first time to shoot inside a tattoo parlor. Not only that, this is my first time to do a portrait shoot with  tattooed women! Another addition to my portrait porfolio, something new. Maiba naman hindi puro food... :)  I wanna thank again Rona for this one., for the invite. I wanna thank our lovely models, Carol and Raquel. I also wanna thank Francis.. i dragged him to do the poses.. and also to my fellow photographer E.J. for lending me his extra flash.. thanks bro! Id love to have another shoot like this someday. 

Visit Rona's awesome blog about the Tattoo Wives at lippiestick.blogspot.com 

Another happy shoot. It was tiring but very fulfilling. 

Bolinao Madness!

This is my 1st time to visit the beautiful city of Bolinao in Pangasinan. I never knew that place is really nice... I saw the pictures from blogs and they'r beaches are so beautiful! My officemates marie and tracy are kinda celebrating their birthdays with the rest of the production team and they decided to go to this awesome place. I was lucky to be invited and all of us were really excited for the trip. It was a long long drive.. its a 7 hour trip from our office in Global City all the way to Pangasinan. Our butts really cramped out but its all good! 

First up is the majestic Bolinao Falls! It looks really good! The water is soooo cold. Such a magnificent place and I do hope that the locals maintain this natural thing of beauty for the other generations to enjoy...

Then we went to visit St. James the Fortress church at the town proper of Bolinao. Church was really old..  its been there during as early as 1600's. It was built by the Augustinians in 1609. 

Facing the church is the Bolinao Townhall. It looks really old as well. Its like a national treasure. One of the oldest looking buildings that i saw there..

Right at the entrance of the church, you'l see a lot of these. Its a local delicacy called "Binunguey" or simply suman sa kawayan. Me and E.J. was curious how it tastes and we bought 4 huge pcs for only 100pesos. It tastes good actually. Its very heavy in the tummy!

We went to this place close to the townhall., im sorry i forgot the name of the place. Its actually a hotel and their restaurant is at the top and they serve one of the most delicious sisig ever. Look at it.. its heaven on a sizzling plate! Its really good... 

What good is a plate of sizzling sisig without beer! We enjoyed this one, down to the last drop! Kampai Kampai!! *Burp! 

This is the view from the window. You can see there rice fields and the waves. Its a sight to see.. better after you just ate a lot! 

Then we went to this place called the Bolinao Lighthouse. Looks old as well.. I had some photo ops here with my buddies.

I even had a photo op of my own! Damn i look funny...and weird.. i dunno..

Time to hit the beach!!!! Oh yeah baby. The beach was awesome. White sands... and it felt really good touching my feet. Its been a while since i went to the beach.. I definitely missed it. Right now as im writing this blog.. i still imagine my feet buried beneath the sands... 

Camera has this really nice panoramic feature and took advantage of it... 

Tracy along with her boys! 

Beach Bumms! We bought some beers, some chips.. then i cranked up my Creative speakers, (oh yes i brought it along!) and played some Bob Marley and 311 songs! It was paradise at that moment! Time stopped...forgot about anything.. until some of us received a call and had to finish some tasks at work... Even at the beach, work still haunts us...

But then again we still had fun! Goodtimes...

One of my favorite captured moments from the trip. 

It was an awesome adventure. We really had fun that day. We visited some local sites, experienced a local delicacy, visited a really old church then we went to the beach., listened to Bob Marley along with overflowing ice cold RedHorse! What a vacation. It was short.. but it was sweet. We really enjoyed it! Till next time. I hope everybody from prod team will be there next time..