Gumbo: A Taste of New Orleans in Mall of Asia

I don't know much about New Orleans except for its annual carnival celebration - the Mardi Gras, its jazz music, and sports teams, the Pelicans and the Saints. But last week, I may had just a taste of their food right here in our own SM Mall of Asia.

Ratings:
Food: 4/5, delicious and tasty, my personal favorite is their Baby Back ribs.
Place: 4/5, Mardi Gras masks are all around, which gives you the authentic New Orleans feel.
Service: 5/5, the servers were attentive to our needs.
Prices: 4/5, a platter of around PHP 500 can be shared by two or three people.

The Food
Right off the bat, my thoughts when I got inside this New Orleans-themed restaurant was to order shrimps because Gumbo, as you may know, is a famous shrimp dish from Louisiana. But when we saw the menu, we were so tempted by the Bourbon-Style Baby Back Ribs. So, we went with the Baby Back Ribs, and Shrimp New Orleans.

Complimentary bread for appetizer.

While waiting for our order, we were served a complimentary loaf of bread as an appetizer. It comes with an olive oil with garlic as a dip.

Their Bourbon-Style Baby Ribs is excellent. It has a smoky, spicy flavor which I really liked. It would have been perfect if they made the meat more tender that it would fall off the bone. It comes with two choice of side dishes - you can select from: Cajun Rice, Coleslaw, Red Beans, Mashed Potato, Corn-on-a-Cob, French Fries, and Mixed Vegetables. We chose the Cajun Rice. A petite order of this is just PHP 595 (good for 2-3)

Petite order of Bourbon-style Baby Back Ribs

The "Grande" platter of Shrimp New Orleans is made up of Cajun shrimps, U.S. Fries, tartar sauce and huge onion rings! I got my stomach full just eating two pieces of those onion rings. The Cajun Shrimps are breaded but underneath all those breading is a delicious, soft but crunchy prawn. The U.S. Fries (note not French) are cut big too. An order of this grande platter of Shrimp New Orleans is just PHP 525. In my estimate, it can feed 2-3 hungry adults.

Shrimp New Orleans - cajun shrimps, U.S. Fries, onion rings

The Place
Gumbo is an American-themed restaurant, and you will instantly feel it upon entering. Their speakers were blasting Southern Rock songs, and occasional jazz songs which are popular in New Orleans. They also have a wide screen television playing NBA TV, which kinda makes me wonder if this is also a sports bar.

I liked the colorful Mardi Gras maskes on the walls, and their comfortable diner couch.We went here an hour before lunch on a Sunday but it still wasn't crowded yet. Because there were not a lot of people during our meal, we got a superb service from the waitress.

Tips for Wandering Peasants

• we got a "one free meal if you avail one main entree" coupon, if you have a chance to grab one of these from, go get them! 
• after we got the bill, they gave us another "free meal" coupon. We didn't really know if they have a promo or something but my best guess is maybe because we were the first customers of the day.

Location 

SM Mall of Asia , 2nd Floor, Entertainment Mall, Pasay City. 

They also have other branches around the Metro, including: SM City North Edsa, SM Megamall, Robinsons Place Ermita, and Gateway Mall in Cubao.

Useful Links and Info 

website

menu

facebook page

other branches and contact info

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Galli Village Cafe: Paella Treat at Maginhawa Street

We got a voucher from CashCashPinoy for a Galli Village Cafe meal for PHP 299. The deal is for a Paella set meal for two which consists of Albonidagas Soup, Paella Valenciana, two iced teas, and two Leche Flans for dessert.

Ratings:
Food: 3/5, average, their specialty, the Paella Valenciana is decent
Prices: 3/5, prices are ok, leaning towards affordable which it should be since the restaurant is near college campuses.
Place: 4/5, small cozy place, it was hard to find a parking slot in the area, though.

The Food
When we arrived and presented our voucher to the waitress, we were told that waiting time for the order is around an hour. No problem there since that's already pointed out on the voucher, and we have tried paellas from other restaurants such as Dulcinea, and the cooking time is at around forty-five minutes.

Albondigas soup

We started off with Albondigas soup as an appetizer. The soup tasted plain but it was a welcome break while we were waiting for our main course to arrive. It contained flat noodles, a meatball and a creamy soup.

It was for another thirty minutes until our paella arrived. In between orders, I had to check the car since we were parked on a street far from the restaurant, and we are well aware of the numerous car theft incidents in Quezon City.

The Paella Valenciana that we had was good for two persons, and when they said good for two, they really mean it was good for two. On the platter, there were two pieces of shrimps, three small tahong (mussels), a hard boiled egg, which was sliced into four, and two or three tiny portions of pork. It didn't come with a sliced lemon, though. They said they didn't have any and asked us if we wanted calamansi as replacement instead. We didn't take the calamansi because it might not give the same flavor as the lemon usually does to a paella.

For the taste, the Galli Village Cafe's paella is fine, but a touch of lemon could have made it better for us. There's nothing special about it, though and they could do for a little more serving of meat on that platter. 

After the main course, we had Leche Flan for dessert. Their Leche Flan is not that sweet, which is good, but it's not that soft, too. It was soft on the inside but not so on the edges. It's texture kinda reminds me of a cooked tofu

Leche Flan for dessert

The Place

For a restaurant located in a cramped village near college campuses, Galli Village Cafe is small but the owners designed it to be cozy. If you eat outside, you'll be greeted by large plants in pots that would make it feel like a garden dinner.

Inside, there are vibrant paintings, wine bottles mounted on the wall shelves, elegant-looking ceiling lamps, and a cashier podium decorated with artificial vines and hanging wine glasses. It sure was a relaxing ambiance for a dinner.

Tips for Wandering Peasants 

• Paella is a hard dish to prepare, better to call ahead for reservations and ask them to prepare the order to rid of the waiting time. 
•  always do your best to search discount vouchers online, but don't expect too much when it's time to redeem them. They are discounted for a reason, but not all though.

Location

Maginhawa Branch: 154 Maginhawa St., Sikatuna Village, Quezon City

Galli Village Cafe Makati Branch:

G/F YMCA Hotel, 7 Sacred Heart St San Antonio, Makati

Useful Links and Infos

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/GalliVillageCafe

Contact numbers:

Maginhawa Branch (open daily 11 AM to 10 PM) : (02) 434 6716

Makati Branch: 09063501704

Menu (as of May 2015):

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MOA Arena: Host of The First NBA Game in the Philippines

Because it's the NBA Playoffs season, I got inspired to share my first live NBA game experience. Well, it's not a regular season game, but for an avid basketball fan like me, a pre-season game is good enough. Good enough for me to shell out PHP 4,000 for a general admission ticket. After all, it was the first time an NBA game will be held here in the Philippines, and of course, I wanted to be a part of it. I bought three tickets: one for me, one for my father, and one for my nephew - three generation of basketball-lovers.

Ratings:
Place: 3/5, when this event happened in October 2013, the Mall of Asia arena was still fairly new, so the place felt bare, but I imagine this place would be world class and could host to more international events in the future
The Game: 4/5, it's my first NBA game (albeit preseason) so it had to be good for me. I wanted to see more of Dwight Howard though.
Price: 2/5, seats are very expensive - PHP 4,000 for a General Admission ticket
Food: 3/5, our tickets came with a free hotdog sandwich and a free NBA tumbler (which I thought would be filled with the free soda they would be giving us for the game). What we got were soda in a plastic bottle and popcorn - not what we expected.

The Game
The game itself is typical of what you may expect from a pre-season game. It was a fun exhibition game, with no real aggressiveness seen from the players. The superstars' exposure was just enough for the fans to see them dunk a few baskets, or do some fancy moves. Dwight Howard got into an early foul trouble, though, and I'm kind of disappointed at Paul George's performance that night since I was expecting his flashy, athletic plays but he played more of the long ball that night. The most exciting plays came from the Rockets squad, especially James Harden, Jeremy Lin, and Chandler Parsons. Dwight Howard and Roy Hibbert had been entangling themselves when playing defense against each other. David West was also superb. He was one of the bright spots for the Pacers that night along with Paul George.

It was not a bad experience for a first-timer. We really enjoyed the game, and the break-time entertainments were crazy! Boomer, the Pacers mascot, can really do amazing tricks like dunking off a trampoline, and Clutch, the Rockets', he's a funny one. My nephew loved him. We were also lucky enough to see NBA legends like Larry Bird, who's part of the Pacers management; his former teammate Kevin McHale, who's now a head coach for the Rockets; Robert Horry, Clyde Drexler, Jalen Rose, Ron Harper, and the former NBA Commissioner himself, David Stern. It was also a great time for me to practice shooting indoor sports with my camera using a zoom lens since we were seated way up in the General Admission area.

The Rockets won convincingly over the Pacers that night, but after the final buzzer sounded, the crowd didn't seem to want to go as most of us are still hoping to catch a final glimpse of our favorite NBA players. This is how crazy Filipinos are about basketball, so the NBA should visit this country more frequently in the future.

David West nailed this fadeaway jumper.

Dwight Howard being hounded inside.

George Hill protecting the ball against Jeremy Lin

The Arena

MOA Arena was still fairly new when this game took place in October of 2013, almost two years ago. The arena lobby felt bare, the floor, and the ceiling weren't completely furnished yet.

I was impressed with the inside of the arena. It felt like we were in the a home court of one of the NBA teams. There's a huge video screen in the center of the ceiling where you can see the box scores, live action and replays.

I truly believe the arena has a potential to be world class and could be a host to more international events in the future.

Then NBA Commissioner David Stern.

Tips for Wandering Peasants

• the PHP 4,000 General Admission ticket was too high, but if you're a big hoops fan like me, it was well worth it.
• with a General Admission ticket in this arena, bring a good DSLR camera with a zoom lens with you so you could capture the moment

Location
Mall of Asia Arena is at the corner of JW Diokno Blvd and Marina Way at the Mall of Asia Complex.

Useful Links and Info
website: http://mallofasia-arena.com/
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/mallofasiaarena/
Phone: (02) 470-2222

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Tristian's Cafe: Coffee, Pastries and Ice Cream

Someone I know said that the best blueberry cheesecake he ever tasted was here at Tristian's Cafe. He sounded so convincing that when we passed by Paseo de Sta. Rosa in Laguna, we had to try for ourselves.

Ratings:
Food: 3/5, the food here are average but they sure are a welcome break from the pastries and beverage we get at the more popular coffee houses.
Place: 4/5, it was not crowded each time we visited so it's good
Service: 3/5, average

The Food
As strongly recommended by someone we know, we had to try the blueberry cheesecake here. Their blueberry cheesecake may have the heaviest amount of cheese on any cheesecake I have eaten. For me, I have to agree that it's good, but it's not the best. What I liked about it is that it's not that sweet, its serving is quite big and of course, it's overloaded with cheese

They also have other pastries like the walnut cake below. Their food serving here is kinda bigger than the other cafes but it comes with a price because for a coffee shop located in the suburbs, the food here are a little expensive.

For the hot summer weather, you can hangout at this place and order some ice cream or frappe. Their ice creams are softer than the normal ones, and are a lot creamier.

enjoy cold frappe with pastries

creamy ice cream!

French Macarons

Beverages

Choose from an assortment of hot and cold beverages. There are the usual hot coffee, frappes, and fruit-flavored smoothies.

Mango Smoothie	Choco Blend	Capuccino

Strawberry Smoothie

The Place

If you want to enjoy coffee without the crowd, go to this shop. There's not once, every time we pass by this place, that I've seen all the tables filled. It's not that the food here ain't good. Probably, it's more because of the price. The place has a classy feel into it, though, especially the lamps and the paintings.

Tips for Wandering Peasants

• if you want to try their ice cream, there are cheaper ice creams on their menu and surprisingly, those are the ones that came with a cone. Probably not as rich-tasting as the ones we tried, though.
• prices here are kinda steep for a coffee shop located in the suburbs, so share a cake when necessary
• try this shop, it's nice to veer away from the popular coffee shops once in a while. No crowd here :)

Location

Unit 6-7 G , Ground Flr Laguna Central Bldg 1 , Brgy Don Jose, Santa Rosa, Laguna

From Sta. Rosa Exit in SLEX, turn right heading to Paseo de Sta Rosa. Tristian's is located on the ground floor of Shopwise.

Useful Links and Info

Facebook page 

Contact number: 0917 887 6227

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