Tell me what does "a warm welcome" mean to you? An friendly handshakes? An affectionate embrace? Air kisses? A french kiss? Or even an azz kiss? Oh, those are sooooo OUT!
The moment I arrived our Manila office, I was welcomed by my worst nightmare. That's right! A terrifying nightmare! Nono, I wasn't presented with a basket of baluts (the one day chick eggs) nor a heaping bowl of jiggly woodworms....but I was confronted by.....
A MEASURING TAPE!!!
...and a BATHROOM SCALE!!! ARRRRRGGGHHHHHH!!!!!
I was absolutely terrified. I fear them. I tried to avoid them the best I could my whole life..and they were right there in front of me! A colleague held out a list of waist line records, another circled the tape around my ever expanding waist, and then another asked me to step onto the scale. Oh gosh, I was trembling inside, I tried to maintain a nonchalant facade, and I think it was pretty damn convincing. LOL!!!! I've faced my fear, and I realized that I NEED to do something about my weight. Denial is over. So, with a newfound strength, I've decided to eat all I could during my trip, enjoy each and every meal and every pound I gain. HAHA!!!
I think my workmates in Manila has successfully given the term "a warm welcome" a bad name. LOL
A dear friend of mine, Suzette, will be a guest writer for my Manila food posts. She is a food fanatic, just like the rest of us, her knowledge about food is simply unbelievable, and she is a fantastic cook! I was so lucky to have gone around with her and tasted her food. It was one of the best trips in my life, I almost forgot that it was a business trip. ^_*
Rita's Manila Food Diary
(by Suzette Mendoza, Suzette's picture by Peewee & PS. I added my comments in italic)
Day 1 Lunch - Max's Restaurant
Sinigang Prawns - Tamarind based soup with prawns, long beans, okra, sliced raddish
It tastes refreshingly sour, a perfect accompaniment for rich & deep fried dishes
Kare kare - Beef and vegetables in peanut sauce - eaten with shrimp paste (it's creamy because its mixed with either flour or ground rice (powder); a typical filipino viand eaten with rice during family occassions or during festivals
Rich and creamy...the meat is gelatinous and rich in collagen. I might get fat, but I'll have great skin. HAHA. Plus, I simply loved the shrimp paste condiment that comes with it
Sisig - Minced crispy pork (meat and parts of the cheeks) served in hot plate - with chilis (with poured local lime called calamansi)
Grilled Squid - Squid stuffed with tomatoes, ginger, onion - served with leeks and carrot strings
Kinilaw na puso ng saging - Sliced banana flower cooked sauted in garlic, onion and with vinegar
The Food Fanatics
The moment I arrived our Manila office, I was welcomed by my worst nightmare. That's right! A terrifying nightmare! Nono, I wasn't presented with a basket of baluts (the one day chick eggs) nor a heaping bowl of jiggly woodworms....but I was confronted by.....
A MEASURING TAPE!!!
...and a BATHROOM SCALE!!! ARRRRRGGGHHHHHH!!!!!
I was absolutely terrified. I fear them. I tried to avoid them the best I could my whole life..and they were right there in front of me! A colleague held out a list of waist line records, another circled the tape around my ever expanding waist, and then another asked me to step onto the scale. Oh gosh, I was trembling inside, I tried to maintain a nonchalant facade, and I think it was pretty damn convincing. LOL!!!! I've faced my fear, and I realized that I NEED to do something about my weight. Denial is over. So, with a newfound strength, I've decided to eat all I could during my trip, enjoy each and every meal and every pound I gain. HAHA!!!
I think my workmates in Manila has successfully given the term "a warm welcome" a bad name. LOL
A dear friend of mine, Suzette, will be a guest writer for my Manila food posts. She is a food fanatic, just like the rest of us, her knowledge about food is simply unbelievable, and she is a fantastic cook! I was so lucky to have gone around with her and tasted her food. It was one of the best trips in my life, I almost forgot that it was a business trip. ^_*
Rita's Manila Food Diary
(by Suzette Mendoza, Suzette's picture by Peewee & PS. I added my comments in italic)
Day 1 Lunch - Max's Restaurant
Sinigang Prawns - Tamarind based soup with prawns, long beans, okra, sliced raddish
It tastes refreshingly sour, a perfect accompaniment for rich & deep fried dishes
Kare kare - Beef and vegetables in peanut sauce - eaten with shrimp paste (it's creamy because its mixed with either flour or ground rice (powder); a typical filipino viand eaten with rice during family occassions or during festivals
Rich and creamy...the meat is gelatinous and rich in collagen. I might get fat, but I'll have great skin. HAHA. Plus, I simply loved the shrimp paste condiment that comes with it
Crispy Pata - Pig knuckles boiled til tender, then frozen, then deep fried - popping the skin (dipped in vinegar, soy sauce, chilis mix)
Warning: highly addictive! I had to stop after this one though, I couldn't afford to have sore throat on my first day, so much talking awaits ^_^
Screw forks and knives (which I tried to use in the beginning, "pretending" to be polite HAHA)! The best way to eat and clean crispy pata is by getting down and dirty. Use your hands, your teeth, even your face when needed
Peewee, my other partner in food-related crimes, joined the crispy pata fun. She is a fellow food lover who has a penchant for photography. Many of my Manila food adventure pictures were taken by Peewee. Great pictures! Oh, sometimes, this soprano just bursts into songs.
Dinner - North Pier (Manila)
A gorgeous place lit with fairy lights by the sea
My fresh calamansi (local lime) juice. Super refreshing!
Baked Tahong - baked mussels with melted grated cheese and garlic
Warning: highly addictive! I had to stop after this one though, I couldn't afford to have sore throat on my first day, so much talking awaits ^_^
Screw forks and knives (which I tried to use in the beginning, "pretending" to be polite HAHA)! The best way to eat and clean crispy pata is by getting down and dirty. Use your hands, your teeth, even your face when needed
Peewee, my other partner in food-related crimes, joined the crispy pata fun. She is a fellow food lover who has a penchant for photography. Many of my Manila food adventure pictures were taken by Peewee. Great pictures! Oh, sometimes, this soprano just bursts into songs.
Dinner - North Pier (Manila)
A gorgeous place lit with fairy lights by the sea
My fresh calamansi (local lime) juice. Super refreshing!
Baked Tahong - baked mussels with melted grated cheese and garlic
Sisig - Minced crispy pork (meat and parts of the cheeks) served in hot plate - with chilis (with poured local lime called calamansi)
Grilled Squid - Squid stuffed with tomatoes, ginger, onion - served with leeks and carrot strings
Kinilaw na puso ng saging - Sliced banana flower cooked sauted in garlic, onion and with vinegar
The Food Fanatics
Roy, our other food fanatic friend, was amazed by how much we could eat! We thought we ordered too much, but we finished it effortlessly anyway hehe. Thanks for making my trip memorable, guys!
I was really worried about the end of the trip, though...when I'd be faced by another session of waist and weight measuring yet again. Oh Gowd, let the scale be broken...and I will work on hiding the tape myself....
I was really worried about the end of the trip, though...when I'd be faced by another session of waist and weight measuring yet again. Oh Gowd, let the scale be broken...and I will work on hiding the tape myself....
wow!1 so much food! make me drooling too!.don't worried,just eat first,worried later!
ReplyDeleteWow! You've got some of the best Manila can offer! :) You should have invited me, too! :)
ReplyDeleteYou travel again! Lucky gal! Eat first, worry later...I agree with beachlover on that!
ReplyDeleteThat's what overseas trip r for right? to EAT!! That looks like a great trip and a decent spread of food.
ReplyDeleteWow, you in Manila! It sounds like a short trip. You should be out and about in the Philippines for longer. =D
ReplyDeletetalk about some good eats!
ReplyDeletemeanwhile, what a thing to be confronted with--i might've turn and run in the opposite direction. :)
Whhhee fun fun except the measuring tape and scales haha everything looks and sounds tasty but the is my kind of dish ^^!
ReplyDeletesorry for double-posting but haha can't believe i left the keyword out -__- (saw it after I clicked the buttom) I was talking about the Pata!
ReplyDeleteRita... where are you!??
ReplyDeleteYou left me for.. the Philippines?
Have fun there and don't break that scale! :-P
That crispy pata looks sinfully gorgeous... whoa gooooshh. Love your travel food shots. Hey who cares about scales .... hahahaha!
ReplyDeleteaduh.... panganane enak kabeh....
ReplyDeleteaku pengen.................................................................
crispy pata
ReplyDeletecrispy pata
crispy pata
crispy pata
i'm in a crispy pata haze.
I miss the Philippines. Have a few bowls of pancit luglug for me, would you?
ReplyDeletemuhahaha... your friends are so awesome ;p yes ... eat first worry later is my philosophy too ^^
ReplyDeletewhat a great post Rita.. and the food were really fantastic. I was practically salivating as I was scrolling down the page... yum yum. my motto is "Eat First, Regret Tomorrow!"
ReplyDelete