Japanese curry is love at Coco Ichibanya

There are some things about a restaurant that make you decide to actually step inside to eat. If you're not sure about the food, the store's physical appearance could get a hold on you. Me, among the things that meet the eye which draw me to a place are the wall colors, ambient lighting, furniture, and sometimes, faux food on display! I have always loved faux food since I was a little girl and even now at middle age. Hahaha! 
And this is exactly what attracted me to Coco Ichibanya. I was never a fan of curries but hey, they have these colorful, yummy-looking display of "play food" outside so one day, I found myself tagging along my daughter and her boyfriend to eat 
at Coco Ichibanya in Robinsons Place Manila. These kids are huge fans of curry so there was no problem hauling them off to the restaurant. 
And they knew exactly what to order!

Coco Ichibanya, I learned, holds a Guiness World Record for being the largest chain of curry restaurants with a stunning 1,400 stores around the world! The franchise from Japan came to Philippine shores in 2015 and at present,
 has at least nine branches already. 
Anyway, these were our orders for dinner:

Fried chicken salad 

Pork cutlet and vegetable

Pork cutlet and vegetable set (with ice cream and a drink -- milk tea)

Curry udon

Menu 

Interiors

Delicious-looking faux food! 

Coco Ichibanya at the ground level of Robinsons Place Manila 
near the Pedro Gil entrance

I must admit that the pork curry was really good, with its excellent gravy-sauce that was oozing with flavors. The thick sauce  was earthy - mildly sweet and a tad spicy (you can choose the level of spiciness!). The perfectly breaded and fried katsu with generous curry sauce was an absolutely delightful partner to a serving of steamed white rice. It actually caused me to have a change of heart about curry! Yum! 

The udon wasn't much to my liking, though. The curry soup had pretty much the same earthy, tangy flavor but for me, the thick noodles made the dish cloying. I only had a few forkful of the noodles and some sips of the thick soup and that was it.

The fried chicken salad was a different story, though. There was no sad thing to say about it. It was so good! First of all, the serving was big and the greens were bright -- fresh and crunchy. And who doesn't love fried chicken? Certainly not me 'coz it's my most favorite thing to eat in this world. Hahaha! They're bite-sized, with a hint of sweetness and wholly delicious! If you're going low-carb, the Fried Chicken Salad could be a great thing to order 'coz it will satisfy you without much of the starch. Even if only for this, yes, I would go back to Coco Ichibanya. 
But wait, there's more! The ice cream and milk tea were delish as well. The milk was served separately from the iced brewed tea so it's up to you whether you want 
to put in a lot or just a little. Whatever suits your taste! 
All in all, it was a delightful dinner that we had at Coco Ichibanya, a new experience and taste for my palate. Curry isn't so bad, after all. In fact, I feel like I could use 
a serving of katsu curry as I write this post! 
Try Coco Ichibanya, folks. They have branches at Bonifacio Global City, Greenbelt, Greenhills, Pasig, Rockwell, Vertis North, Eastwood and in Cebu, aside from the one at Robinsons Place in Ermita, Manila. 
Happy eating!

Delicious Pinoy comfort food at Bench Cafe

Folks, if you belong to my generation, you, like me, probably began buying Bench clothes and other stuff in your teenage years. This iconic Pinoy brand was established in 1987. I was in college when I started patronising it, and loved the brand-embroidered face towel which I, and many of 
my friends, used as a hankie. 
Now, 32 years later, Bench is not just about shirts and towels, 
not even just about scents and bags and other life must-haves, 
it is also about food - - and good food, for that matter. 
Bench Cafe opened in 2017 at the flagship Bench store and headquarters in Taguig City. A branch opened this year at Robinsons Place Manila, which is near where I go to church so I was able to finally try this modern-looking cafe and 
have gone back on multiple occasions since July.
Bench Cafe serves traditional Filipino dishes and comfort food with a twist plus street food, without giving you the fear of jaundice-causing virus. I was fascinated by the menu so I keep on coming back to try new dishes.
 These are what I/my companions have so far enjoyed: 

Bagnet Kare-kare Bench-to 

The Benchto is Bench Cafe's own version of the Japanese bento. There's a cup of steaming white rice, your choice of viand, plus veggies. The Kare-kare was my daughter's choice. It was good! And nostalgic...it almost tasted like home. 

Inasal na Liempo Bench-to

The thick slice of pork appealed to me. It was also flavorful and tender. 

Lechon Kawali Bench-to

This was my choice. I'm a big fan of deep-fried pork! But although I liked the lechon kawali itself, the brown sauce underneath wasn't so much to my liking. I wasn't sure if it was lechon sauce but it was bland for my taste. The laing side dish was superb though. It was creamy and mushy - - the way laing should be.

Pancit Guisado
This has a mixture of bihon and canton noodles, with veggies, some meat slices and chicharon toppings. Good! My sister loved this one. 

Palabok

I'm also a fan of this kind of pansit but Bench Cafe's version was sadly not up to par. It was dry and the noodles seemed to be rather undercooked. I hope this isn't always the case 'coz I would want to order it again. 

Arroz Caldo 

Now this was a game-changer. Rice porridge with all the works! There's fried pulled pork on top, crispy garlic bits which I absolutely love, poached egg and meatballs. I was famished when I arrived at the cafe and having this hot bowl of arroz caldo gave much comfort to my "hangry" tummy. Each spoonful was made even more delicious when I added some of the mashed ginger it was served with. Yummy! 

Tomato Kesong Puti Pandesal
More fried egg taste, less of kesong puti. I loved the fried potato 
and "kamote" (sweet potato) chips, though. 

Tinapa Cones
These look like ice cream, I know, but they aren't cold. Haha! Cones made from fried lumpia wrappers are filled with creamy tinapa mousse. Because I'm such a huge fan of tinapa or smoked fish, I loved this one though I admit it was kinda cloying 
so I wasn't able to finish all three.

Street Food Platter

One time, I came not so hungry so I only had this together with the Ube Latte. It was good to have street food in a "sosyal" setting. Haha! No fear of "hepa" too!

Banana Cue

I was happy to find this on the Bench Cafe menu and for only P20! Sweet and delicious, it was the perfect thing to have with a cup of kapeng barako. 
What a divine pair! 

Bibingka Cheesecake 
This is a dense cheesecake that's not too sweet. The infusion of "bibingka" (a type of native rice cake) flavors renders some saltiness to it. There's even a slice of salted egg on top for a more bibingka look and taste, and which 
gives this dessert a Christmas-y feel. 

Turon ala Mode

If the turon looks boring to you, it's because it doesn't have any sugar, just as I requested, to compensate for the sweetness I would take in from the ube ice cream. Too much of a good thing is bad. Haha! I was happy my request for a sugarless 
turon was granted. Kudos to the cook! 

Ube Halo-Halo

This was a guilt-laden thing to cap a good meal with. It was sweet and delicious! This halo-halo uses shaved ice that's already mixed with Ube, so you could just imagine how flavor-packed it was. The ice was smooth to the tongue, really creamy and definitely heavenly. This Ube Halo-Halo is a must-try! 

Ube Grass Latte

Obviously, this one changes the way you drink your coffee with the 
clever addition of lemongrass and some ube halaya. Another must-try! 

Pakwan Shake

I asked for a sugarless serving and got what I wanted, thank you. 
A guilt-free drink for me! 

Kapeng Barako

Gave me my needed caffeine jolt. Not for the faint of heart 'coz it really is strong!

Sago't Gulaman

Looked good to me but it wasn't mine. Haha! 

Benchanted Iced Tea

My daughter's choice. She said she liked the blend as it 
wasn't too sweet and was refreshing.

Menu

Interiors

Bench Cafe at the ground floor of Robinsons Place Manila

There's a lot more appetizing dishes to try at Bench Cafe and I'm just so sure to keep coming back. It has become my favorite place for a meal and a good drink at Robinsons Place Manila. I definitely recommend that you bring your squad there to enjoy, too, not just the tummy-fillers but the chic, elegant interiors and ambiance as well. The prices, if you ask me, are reasonable, and the crews are very friendly 
and helpful, always willing to grant the customer's request. 
What's not to love about Bench Cafe? 

Awesome egg tarts and more at Honolulu HK Cafe

One of the malls I frequently visit is Robinsons Place Manila because it is near our church and I would go there either before or after worship service. I love this mall for the dynamic dining experience it offers not just for the diversity in cuisine but also for the fact that it has restaurants you can't find in every other mall.

This year, two new restaurants opened that have become my favorite and one of them is Honolulu HK Cafe. It's a franchise from Hong Kong, where the first store opened 
in 1940. I tell you, their coffee and egg tarts are to die for! 
But aside from these, there's a lot of other things to love this resto for such as their savory rice toppings, noodles and meat-filled buns. 
So far, these are my favorites:

Egg tart
The outside is flaky while the golden yellow center has the texture of panna cotta - smooth and soft and is just mildly sweet. I swear, this is sooo good! On some days, the egg tarts are history by 6 p.m. so better come earlier 
if you wanna try these fantastic treats. 

Roast Pork Bun
Flaky on the outside, soft on the inside. With really good saucy roast pork filling. 
This bun is perfect for merienda with a steaming cup of coffee. 

Chicken and mushroom casserole
Tender pieces of chicken with slices of mushrooms covered in a bit of delicately flavored thin sauce top steamed white rice. The serving is huge and 
the topping's sooo good! Two thumbs up!

Fried noodles with pork
I am such a sucker for pancit so this was the very first dish I ordered at Honolulu HK Cafe. The only thing that made me a little disappointed was that the noodles weren't crunchy anymore. Flavor-wise, the dish was a bomb, though, really flavorful. And you would love to munch on the slightly toasted pork slices as you gobble up the noodles. Delish! 

Soy chicken
The meat was really tender and the soy didn't go overboard in its saltiness, thankfully. There's also a hint of sweetness, thus a balance in flavors. I loved this as well, though I wished there was more of the chicken just like in the casserole. 

Hong Kong style coffee

They serve brewed coffee with some milk already and for me, the blend is nothing short of perfect! Still strong, but not too much. I find myself always 

craving for this cup of joe. 

An assortment of bread and pastries

Menu

Interiors

Compared to most Chinese restaurants, Honolulu HK Cafe's interiors has a more contemporary and laid-back look with bright colors and modern lighting fixtures.

Honolulu HK Cafe at the ground floor of Robinsons Place Manila

Honolulu HK Cafe is a great place for lovers of Chinese cuisine. I always leave satisfied after dining here because the main course, dessert and coffee are superb. I haven't had anything that I didn't like. The crew are also welcoming and happy to serve -- another plus! Try Honolulu HK Cafe, folks.

 I highly recommend this place. 

Happy eating!