Toast Box

the food

Nasi Lemak

the menu

Location: Trinoma in Quezon City
My Take: The place is a bit cozy - maybe coz of the lights. It's a small place beside Bread Talk and Gourdo's in Trinoma, which serves Asia cuisine - Indonesian, Singaporean. It has a 'pay as you order' scheme. You could actually watch them prepare your food. We had Nasi Lemak, their best seller,which is a combination of chicken, egg, anchovies and rice cooked in coconut milk with iced tea that tastes like tea from a teabag. My verdict? It's too pricey for PhP 219.00 - small serving, you can actually get better taste from other resto. Well, to be fair, the anchovies taste good. But all in all, it's not a place where I would eat if I want to have Asian inspired cuisine.. Good thing, the dinner's free! Haha! :)

Little Tokyo

the place

me enjoyin' the ramen

Hana (one of the restos)

the view from the outside

asparagus with bacon

ramen

curry tonkatsu rice

cheese-somethin. this tastes good!

chinese style chicken

italian style chicken

bonsai

japanese guy cooking takoyaki

takoyaki

Location: Between Amorsolo and Pasong Tamo (just beside Makati Cinema Square)

Place: It actually looks like a li'l Jap town within Makati. Cozy ambiance, really a Japanese themed place.
Although, the view from outside is a busy street - it's afterall, almost along Pasay Rd. And MCS is not really that kind of mall you see within Makati (if you know what I mean). But the strip of Japanese restos outside really looks inviting, that I guess, I will surely try one of these days. Once you enter and walk inside Little Tokyo, you'll have a lot of choices - more of like a food park that comes with doors. They have a common restroom which I find not too nice. :P The place is secluded, you wouldn't actually know it exists! The chefs are authentic Japanese, and the servers are Filipino. No, I don't mean anything with that. :D

My Take: The food's great. I love the takoyaki (it's main ingredient is octopus).. Its PhP100 per order (6 balls on a plate).. not bad.. I was craving for some maki, but, for heaven's sake, Hana, the resto where we ate, doesn't serve any. But I think, that's a good one. At least, we got to try other Jap food. Afterall, cali maki is available in almost all Jap restos I usually go to. Anyway, my boyfriend and I actually ordered a lot. I think, enouh to feed 3-5 persons. Haha! But, what the heck? I had a long day at work, and besides, I WAS really hungry that time. :P The cheese something (sorry, I forgot the name) is so yummy. I mean, one should try it when you go to Hana. And, yes, even if we were in a Japanese resto, we ordered Italian and Chinese style chicken, which actually tastes so good. I don't like curry, so I didn't really enjoy the curret tonkatsu rice. I loved the ramen, with all the generous ingredients, I think it's worth your PhP 180. The asparagus with bacon is just the normal asparagus with bacon, only better coz of the Japanese sauce they used.
All the ingredients, I think, are authentic... IF not, for sure, of high quality. I loved what they did with the cabbage as the side dish. I don't normally eat cabbage or coleslaw, but I loved the way they prepared it. It is delicious. I noticed, too, that they love using ginger, but not the usual ginger we see. It's actually orange, which I thought was carrot, but it turned out it's ginger. It's not too strong and it really blends well with the food's taste. I was actually sooo full afterwards. Imagine eating (or tasting) different dishes for dinner. BUT the good thing is, it won't actually leave you that guilty and bloated feeling. Weird, but nice. :)
The price is ok, not too pricey, I think. Coz for all that we ordered, it cost us Php 1400.

Sonya's Garden

dessert - sweetened kamote

dessert - turon

yummy chocolate cake

taragon tea

for pasta

for pasta

dips

bread

salad

my messy salad :P

Location: Batangas (Just outside Tagaytay)

Place: Cozy, peaceful, quiet. They have big space for plants, people and photo-ops - whatever that means. Anyway, it's a nice get away for healthy (and I mean, healthy, organic) food trip or spa or overnight (they have bed and breakfast). It's peaceful, serene and is definitely a place for rejuvenation and relaxation.

Price: The buffet costs PhP 610.00. Eat all you can salad, pasta, dalanghita juice, bread, dips, dessert (except for the choco cake).

My Take: If you're a heavy eater - meaning, you love meat, meat and less veggies, then this place is not for you. But if you want to just try out a different kind of menu, then buffet at Sonya's is a must try. Believe me, even if you eat a lot, you won't have the guilt-feeling afterwards. Afterall, you'll be eating all organic, all healthy food. :)