New from Yellow Cab - Dear Darla Pizza

Yellow Cab Pizza... at first we thought this place was a franchise from some restaurant in the states.. Lo and Behold, the its all filipino.  Great concept, started out strongly. Our  favorite being the Shrimp and Garlic which was back then loaded with shrimp, but as the years went by, the shrimp was dwindling in quantity... 

They just introduced a new pizza in the market. Like the famous panizza of C italian(which we will feature soon) and the allegedly copycat version of Foccacia

Dear Darla pizza... we added some shrimps to our darla pizza, surprised that it came chopped...

Elle: the crust was very thin and crispy, but it lacked the cheese that I wanted.  It was a bit bland. It could have used a bit more garlic.  The extra shrimp was sliced too small. But overall, it was good.

Cody:  Their version of the pizza roll was passable. Not as great as the C Italian version, but as a fast food version, I think they did their job right. Like Elle, I would have wanted more cheese and the extra shrimp topping I ordered was surprisingly chopped…WTF….. well, I love how the dough was crispy yet soft enough to be rolled. 

Something we both would recommend.  Try it…..

Buffalo Wings and Things - Ortigas

While walking around trying to find a place to eat in Ortigas home Depot, We chanced upon this bright restaurant. Serving.... of course what else but Chicken wings, but not only Chicken Wings.. they have other stuff as well....

All the items are written on the board . THey have an open kitchen where you can see your food being cooked. Servers are dressed in ultra shorts short.

Cheesy Fries

Elle: Fries were really good. They were large wedges cooked just right, very warm and soft.  The cheese was very gooey and the amount of cheese was enough to cover the last piece of fries. 

Cody: Nothing beats thick cut fries as compared to the thin fries we get from fast food chains, lot of cheese, every fry had cheese sauce on it

1/2 pound Buffalo wings.

Cody: the wing sauce was excellent,  wings were freshly cooked, it was juicy anf hot, the only bad side here is that the breading was a tad too thick for my taste.  another surpirse was haf a pound is only 3 wings, cut by the joint giving you 6 pieces.

Elle: Chicken wings were perfectly cooked, golden and crispy and the meat was very tender.  The sauce was a combination of sweet, spicy and tangy.  

We love how they give each table a whole wad of thick tissues to use, cause its always better to eat with your hands... right?:)

Kagura - Little Tokyo, Pasong Tamo, Makati City

Restaurants in Japan are usually  specialty restaurants. Meaning they only do one type of dish and they do it well. There would be a place that specializes in fried items  or in Nabe(hot pot dishes), a ramen house, a udon house and the list goes on and on. Here in our country its usually not the case. Except for this little restaurant inside the Little Tokyo complex in Pasong Tamo Makati.

Okonomiyaki to those who are not familiar with it, it is a Japanese Pancake or a Japanese pizza, it’s a complete meal by itself, consisting of veggies, noodles(which you may have the option of not putting it) assorted meats and seafood, cheese. Everything comes together using a flour mixture that keeps it intact.

Cody: Since I tasted it few years back, this has been one of the things I usually order in a Japanese restaurant to know if the chef is truly knowledgable of Japanese cooking. Of all the okonomiyakis I have tried. This is so far the best.  In this country. Every order is cooked fresh

Elle: Yummy! The pancake was thick and filling.  It was a combination of crunchy and soft -  I liked the balance. Overall it tasted really good. 

Squid teppanyaki

Cody: I like this because it was cooked well, the squid was fresh,  and it was also seasoned just right. A little expensive though

Elle:  Squid wasn’t gummy, cooked right but nothing great or uniquely Japanese about the dish.  It was average.  Won’t order this again. 

Spinach with peanut something

Cody: this was also good, unique, and the taste grows on you.

Elle: Not a fan of peanuts but this one was good.  It was probably the sesame seeds that made it memorable.

Hai Shin Lou - Pasay Road, Makati City

Chinese Restaurants are not really a popular choice in the Makati City Area, most of the very good Chinese restaurants are in the Manila, Malate area. However there stood a chinese restaurant in Makati that has been there for quite some time now. And for Cody this was his first time to eat here. 

Freebie- Wanton Skin crisp

Cody: bottomless!!!! Love it, crunchy and seasoned very well, I asked for sweet and sour sauce 3x but it never came….

Elle: crunchy, not oily. A little bit salty

Peking Duck-Skin wrapped in Chinese pancake

Cody: Its nice that u can order half a duck for a small group of people. Pancake was made just right. The duck was tender and wonderful. The skin was very good

Elle : I like the pancake, it was thin and chewy, the duck skin was not really fatty, but it was still oily; as a whole it was very delicious 

Fish Lip soup

Cody:   it was good. Didn’t need the usual splash of black vinegar.

Elle: Warm and filling, not too salty and not too sour. I like it

Chili Garlic Fried Crab

Cody:  Crabs here can be expensive but prepared very well.

Elle: The crab shell was so thin and crispy that I was tempted to eat it. It was cooked with a lot of chili and garlic. The meat was soft. And tasted a lot like the seasoning.

Fried Tofu w Veggies

Cody: not really a dish I would order. The tofu was not of the silken variety. The veggies were cooked perfectly.

Elle: the tofu was crispy but softened by the sauce. This dish is something vegetarians would like.

EFU noodles

Cody: Veering away form the usual Birthday noodles, this is what we ordered. Sauteed quickly with few ingredients. This dish doesn’t have much flavor but it helped in filling up the tummyJ

Elle: I liked the blandness and simplicity of the noodles. It was not too complicated and did not have to much ingredients

Yang Chow Fried Rice

Cody:  They do their yang chow wonderfully. Not oily. Every grain bursting with flavor from the seasoning and accompanied diced meat and veggies

Elle:  their fried rice is really good. Seasoned well, with visible shrimp pieces and roasted pork asado

Minced duck in Lettuce Cups

Cody: After devouring the skin, this was our choice of cooking style for the rest of the duck. Salty and sweet, served with fresh lettuce leaves that are crisp. It was good. Too bad they only serve a few pieces of the lettuce leaves. Didn’t bother to ask for more

Elle: Perfect combination of the soft duck meat and crispy singkamas cubes and fried noodles. Very tasty 

Peppercorn Spareribs

Cody:  Ribs were friend to crispy perfection. The marinade penetrated the meat to the bone. Delicious eaten with vinegar dip

One of he family's favorite restaurant to eat at to celebrate events or just to satisfy Chinese food craving. Always recommended. Always good

Okura Fusion Japanese Restaurant - Jupiter St. Makati City

Driving thru Jupiter street, there are a number of newly opened restaurants. One of interest is this restaurant which is perhaps the only Japanese restaurant in Jupiter, not counting Teriyaki boy.

Formerly known as Hae Song, they maintained almost all of the interiors.. you can still see the name sand blasted on the glass panels. Although the msenu has changed. Showed more dishes and incorporated some fusion items.

Service a little disappointing. You have to call their attention even when the place is not that full.

Funny menu typos---they serve crap!!!!!

Freebie:  Salad-

Cody: fresh, served with a miso dressing. Love the freshness of the salad, Crunchy, clean. The dressing has the right amount of tang and sweetness

Elle: I liked the miso dressing as well.  The dressing was unique but had that Japanese taste.  Would have been more interesting if they used other vegetables rather than the usual iceberg lettuce, sliced carrots and raddish.

Drinks: Mango Kiwi- P100

Cody: Never thought that this combination would be nice. It suited each other .

Elle: Great, great, great! Perfectly blended without milk/cream! Presentation was funky…a thinly sliced kiwi seen through the glass made it more than just a regular fruit shake.  

Manhattan Roll- Filled with mango, Cucumber,  Kani, wrapped in Fresh salmon Slices, drizzled with Japanese mayo, thousand island and sprinkled with crunchy tempura batter bits. P380

Cody: I just love this roll, big and satisfying. The sushi rice was excellent, the salmon outside was indeed fresh and the filling was just a wonderful medley of flavors.

Elle: A unique sushi roll.  I liked the presentation- it was inside out.  Not really a fan of salmon but this was good and fresh.  It didn’t taste too fatty and oily.  Too bad the wasabi didn’t have that much of a kick no matter the amount 

Agedashi Tofu with cheese: Stuffed tofu with cheese, battered then deep fried, served with tempura sauce. P220

Cody: Combination of silky tofu and gooey gooey cheese. Terrific. Good thing the cheese didn’t melt away while it was being fried. Would have loved it if it was served agedashi style meaning swimming in a sweet soy sauce

Elle: Disappointed with how it was served.  There was another dish called Agedashi tofu on the menu which was served in a sauce with mushrooms.  So I was expecting this dish we ordered to be served in the same sauce the only difference was the tofu.  However, this was totally different.  Redeeming factor was the soft and creamy tofu which was perfectly fried.  Dipping sauce was bland. 

Ebi Tempura P250

Cody: I was surprised the serve their tempura head on, but it was fried beautifully, the batter being light didn’t overpower or cover the ebi too much. The head you can eat as is. Tastes like crunchy shrimp cracker. One bad note here is the accompanied fried items. They were all sweet potato, it would have been nice if they used different veggies like eggplant or onions.

Elle:  Crispy ebi.  I liked the crunchiness of the shrimp head.  Overall it was just okay.  

Chicken Teriyaki Don P340

Now this is the bomb.. and I mean the bomb.. look at the pictures closely. This dish consists of thinly sliced chicken breast. Brushed with teriyaki sauce. The chicken was OVERCOOKED. And sliced again.. THINLY. It was hard and argh!!!!! A mistake to order. Worst chicken teriyaki dish I’ve ever tasted. Tokyo Tokyo Chiken teriyaki is better than this place. And for the price… Outrageous.

Elle:  DISAPPOINTING! This has got to be the worst chicken teriyaki don I have ever tried.  The chicken pieces were too thin and hard – it’s a battle to eat the chicken. For the price of the dish I would have expected a better dish.  Not only was the chicken as stiff as a board but it didn’t even taste like teriyaki.  If you want a Japanese version of chicken tocino/Chinese beef jerky try this dish.  

Freebie: Pineapple. Sweet J