Kira's New Adventures

Kira in the car and feeling the wind

Lounging Kira

Kira in line to buy tickets to watch Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 2

Happy Lemon

I just love the way Happy Lemon serves their drinks.

Instead of the usual number, they have this.

Cool, isn't it?

Happy Lemon is located at the 5th floor of the Eastwood Mall right beside Starbucks and the cinemas.

L' Art De La Degustation - A Beer Appreciation Dinner by San Miguel

French cuisine and beer make a superb match.

This power combination is what the dynamic culinary expert Karen Martin served last night straight from the kitchen of La Regalade French Bistro where she dons the executive sous chef toque for 2 years now.

Perhaps it’s her young age or her exposure to European and Mediterranean cooking abroad that sets her apart from the traditional. Chef Karen is proud to share among guests what’s new on her menu, with the three “Lifestyle Brews” of San Miguel Beer as her star beverage.

“Filipinos I would say are more beer drinkers than wine drinkers due to several factors. Number one would be the fact that we are living in a tropical country and it is but natural that we opt for a refreshing and invigorating type of beverage. I think that a deeply thought of and a harmoniously paired beer with food is a great way to serve a meal,” the 23-year old Filipina explains.

Chef Karen, who was trained by the Alain Raye -- the chef extraordinaire awarded with two Michelin stars -- will take her guests to the gastronomic adventures of savoring rabbit, tuna, snapper, lamb, goat cheese, calamari, chorizo and Belgian dark chocolates in a six-fare dinner hosted by San Miguel Premium All-Malt Beer, San Miguel Super Dry and Cerveza Negra on the second year of its signature Beer and Food pairing event.

First on the table are the Rabbit Rillete with Djon Mustard and the flavorful Terrine Maison with Onion Marmalade and Pearl Onion Tuna Carpaccio with Ten Spice Rub. These Canapes and Hor d’ Oeuvres perfectly complement the malty aroma and accented flavor of San Miguel Premium All Malt Beer, which Chef Karen describes as a “versatile and brilliant beer.”

For the appetizer, guests will discover that sautéed calamari and chorizo Pamplona, spiced with tomato, spring onion and hints of Spanish paprika create a delightful symphony.

“This appetizer is best enjoyed with San Miguel Super Dry. The robust taste of the chorizo complements the crisp and moderate taste of the beer,” she adds.

The salad is something to look forward to: fried goat cheese on a bed of young spinach leaves tossed in walnut and red wine vinaigrette with sautéed pears. Cerveza Negra’s innate pleasantness definitely matches the creaminess and slight salinity of the goat cheese.

All three dishes are no doubt an exciting prelude to the two main courses of seafood and meat. The Snapper with Rosemary Butter is a welcome treat, especially when paired with San Miguel Premium All Malt. The citrusy hop notes on the perfectly balance beer invigorates the succulence of the snapper fillet along with the velvet feel of the highly flavourful butter.

For the meat main dish, Chef Karen prepares Lamb Navarin with Couscous. She pairs this stewed lamb dish with hints of ginger, curry and dried apricots with the San Miguel Super Dry, her choice of refreshment after a long day in the hot kitchen.

“The quick and elegant finish of San Miguel Super Dry, as well as its moderate bitterness, renders this spiced dish delightful for the palate, “she describes.

The dessert is also an affair to remember, Creme Chocolate, dark Belgian chocolate custard served with almond and coconut tuille. And who says desserts are only for coffee? Cerveza Negra proves to be a perfect companion for this sweet, creamy and frothy indulgence.

“This is actually my second time to do beer pairing. The first was for a Portuguese beer where we focused on serving appetizers. The difference with taking part in this activity with the San Miguel Lifestyle Brews apart from myself being an avid consumer of San Miguel and a firm believer that San Miguel Beer is truly among the best beers in the world, there is this deeper sense of Filipino pride,” she adds.

The Curls are Back

I finally had the time to get curls again.

This time I went to Beauty Brick Salon as this was highly recommended in several forums and sites. Mr. Shin does the best perms around.

When I arrived, it sure looked like he was good because there were a lot of people, but it was a Saturday after all.

The best part is that the price of the perm is not too expensive. It only cost me around P3,300.00 for my waist-length hair whereas my previous perm that I had made in David's Salos cost me around P5,000.00, and that was just bra-length hair.

I love the finish product.

Before
After
Thanks to Mr. Shin and the nice staff at Beauty Brick!

Chick Boy

Another new restaurant that we were able to try is Chickboy.

The ambience is very similar to Mang Inasal's concept. They had the same food choices of Inasal, unlimited rice and unlimited Iced tea.

The difference is that they serve a mean cebu lechon liempo. They are also open 24 hours and serves beer.

This branch is in Jupiter Street in Makati. They had a lot of staff running around as this was apparently the branch where they train new staff before they are deployed to the different branches.

I know there are already a lot of branches of Chickboy, one in Shaw, Quezon City and from what I heard the manager said, they recently opened in Dagupan and their target is to have 100 branches by the end of the year.

Sango Burger

Since Mac loves burgers, I wanted him to try the Sango burger in Shangrila.

We originally wanted to watch Transformers but the line was too long so we just decided to eat and since there is a sale in Shangrila until the end of the month, we decided to just shop.

Anyway, back to Sango. Mac liked the taste of the burger but according to him, his number 1 is still Charlie's.

Forgot what this was called, but the waiter said this was one of their best selling drinks. And it is good.

This was our favorite.
Mac had the Master Burger

Bonchon Chicken in Megamall

Bonchon chicken officially opened in the ground floor of SM Megamall Building A a few weeks ago.

They have combo meals of either 3 pcs of wings or drumsticks for only around P150.00. Mac and I loves the Soy Garlic flavor.

Crispiness of the double-fried chicken is yum!