Just Get In!

No, that wasn't an order, I was telling you the name of this restaurant in Quiapo that recently became my favorite Chinese food place. Located along Villalobos St., it's named "Just get in" and looks interesting enough to make people "obey". Aside from the restaurant's quirky name, another thing drew me closer to the place--people crowding around a table just outside the door, buying fried siopao that looked yummy! So, I was one of those who "obeyed" and got in. Hahaha! The first visit was followed by another one, tagging along my youngest child. From the looks of it, a third visit is looming quite soon. We loved the food especially the fried siopao, which I buy 
for take out whenever there's an opportunity.

These are so far what we have tried from the menu :

Braised Beef Noodles
Half a boiled egg, noodles, chunks of beef, bokchoy and broth -- the elements of a perfect comfort food to warm a hungry tummy. This was delicious and the serving was huge it could feed two less hungry people. The strong Chinese spice 
(was it star anise?) might be adverse to some, though. 

Fried Chicken with Rice

My son's order. All kids love fried chicken, I suppose? But the mom, does, too, so I had a bite and loved the leg that was perfectly spiced and fried to a perfect crunch. I was 

a bit surprised - and happy to find halved boiled egg on this plate.

Fried Breaded Pork

This is originally served with plain rice but you can ask that it be replaced with fried rice, like I did. The saltiness of the breaded pork was just right but the crunch that I was anticipating when I bit into it was missing and that left me kinda sad. 

I loved the fried rice, tho.

Fried siopao
Now this, for me, was the "bomb" at Just Get In. The dough was firm but tender and the filling -- there was a lot and very tasty, too! The minced pork was gingery, with a hint of sweetness and soy. I love this fried siopao so much that I make it a point 
to buy some whenever I go to Quiapo. And then I make it 
my baon to work for a few days in a row.

My take out 
Look at the thick filling! 

Free peanuts and tea
On my first visit, I was served free adobo peanuts while I waited for my order.
There is complimentary hot tea, too, but you have to ask for it. 
They don't offer it. Lol.

Menu

Inside Just Get In

Fried siopao for sale outside

Just Get In near the end of Villalobos St. in Quiapo, Manila 
going to the Quinta Market.


Visit Just Get In, folks, when you're in Manila's Quiapo district. There's a lot to try here, whether you're coming for breakfast, lunch, meryenda or dinner. Enjoy tasty Chinese dishes at prices that won't break the bank. Dont forget 
to take home some fried siopao, too!
Happy eating!

Bulalo Point and Turo-turo Grill in Tagaytay

For foodies, Tagaytay is almost synonimous to bulalo and tawilis as those craving for the hot beef and bone marrow dish and the crunchy small fish go this city in Cavite to satisfy their cravings. We're one of them! Months before the sad occurrence of the Taal Volcano eruption, our family spent a night in Tagaytay. We arrived quite late as we came all the way from Lucena City. We decided to have dinner at one of the popular bulalo restaurants there located at Mendez Crossing East: Bulalo Point Turo-turo Grill. It was almost closing time so we just ordered two viands 
so they won't take much time preparing. 
What we had:

Nilagang Bulalo, P480.

Calamares, P230.

Ripe mango shake P80.

There's no contention as to how good the bulalo was. The beef was really tender and the soup was hot, flavorful and extremely satisfying! With a dipping sauce of "toyo", "kalamansi" and "sili", I could have bulalo this good everyday. Haha! 
Meanwhile, the calamares was delicious too, and the kids loved 
it with the mayo-ketchup dip. 

Menu

Inside Bulalo Point

Bulalo Point and Turo-turo Grill at Mendez Crossing East in Tagaytay City


We came famished but went out full and satisfied. 
Hope to be back to Bulalo Point soon for more of the unforgettable nilagang bulalo. 
Try this place, folks, when you're spending a day 
or two in the cool city of Tagaytay. 
Happy eating!

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!