Sambo Kojin Yakiniku Smokeless Grill (EDSA Branch)

ABBEY: It is the festive time of the year again as Christmas is fast approaching. And to ride with the mood since its been a long time when we went out with our family, we went to SamboKojin (EDSA) for a buffet. We availed of their promo of 3 plus 1; 1 free for every 3 paying adult. 

The restaurant serves Korean and Japanese cuisine. They have crispy and spicy fried chicken, kimchi, ramen, chicken and pork cutlet, tempura and many more. Slices of meat (beef and pork), seafood and salmon for yakiniku. 

I like the most is the salmon belly; be it skewered or a slice only. It melts in your mouth after its cooked. Also I ate a lot of these for sashimi. It was totally a feast. Match it with bottomless drinks for less than 100 pesos to wash them down and your set. A buffet costs 750 pesos.

WILL: It is a wonderful time to get together with your family and isn't more wonderful to spend time with your cousins, nephews, tita and tito who you never have seen in flesh for years? 

It is a hard thing to organize a 17-adult-4-kid-and-an-infant party for a buffet dinner. Why? First, as usual I want that dinner that will not break my bank. Second, I want a place that is suitable for the kids to roam around and have an array of desserts that they can enjoy. Third, I need to checkout the food for Halal and non-Halal for our Muslim relatives. And the last thing I need to know if the place is chichat-friendly for us to catch-up in our lives. 

We arrived 530pm and the food was served at 6. When they saw our relatives wearing a hijab one of the waiter approached them to let them know what are the food served with pork. 

Faster than lightning, I approached the tempura ebi and seafoods that I do not do normally and I know that you know why readers. Haha! As usual, we always say no to rice for buffets. We always want to indulge on their viands. 

For 3 hours, we eat, talk, eat, drink, sing a happy birthday song, eat and drink again before we headed back home. 

Thanks to Ronnel our nice attendant for the day. We have availed their 3+1 combo, the oldies got their senior citizen discount, 50% off for Tito Bert and 3 free mini cakes for our November celebrators. 

Till we meet again aunt, uncle, couz and nephews. Thank you for sparing time with Mangila family. ;) 

Peach Garden Noodle House at Gardens by the Bay

ABBEY: Dining in Peach Garden is part of the Armas' itirenary for their second Singapore trip. It is located in the heart of Garden by the Bay. Just locate the tallest artificial tree on it and you can see The Chinese-cuisine restaurant on its "roots". 

We went there as a group of 8 including the "neophytes", Eugiene and Kaye. We availed their Claypot Rice Delights  promotion.

I got Stewed Beef Brisket with hot rice. The sauce is thick and flavorful. The meat is tender and it has some fats that I really like. They also offer chicken curry and pork.

WILL: Gardens By The Bay is now one of the landmark of Singapore. So this is one of the a-must-visit place for the tourists and we have Ate Rizbeth and her family to tour the in this wonderful place.

But before roaming around, we decided to dine first and as scheduled we went to Peach Garden Noodle House located just beside the Supertree Grove. 

We were immediately served by the crew and the food was in front of us after a couple of minutes.Their table reminds me of my family's turn table. A setting that encouraged a circle of people that can talk fluently without blocking anyone's sight. Piping hot! After saying thanks and getting some photos we dig in. 

I ordered Soft Pork Bone with Salted Fish in Claypot for only $13.80++ which includes a drink and rice. The sauce is so Chinese style. The pork is tender. A very recommendable place to dine while you indulge at the beauty of nature. 

Our visitors' enjoyed this restaurant as much as we did. 

Zark's Burgers Philippines - "It's Fresh. It's Huge. It's Great."

ABBEY: We didn't succeed dining-in the first time at Zark's Taft, but that doesn't stop Pareng John to treat us into this burger paradise. So we tried Zark's Katipunan on our short stint back in Pinas. 

No queue, as it is November 1 (All Saints' Day). I got Jawbreaker; a triple patty-burger with crispy bacon, fries and drinks for less than 300Php. Finish it within five minutes and it is free. I didn't give in. I want to indulge and savor the giant burger in front of me. Sorry but I had the patties to be well done. 

I hope next time I'll be able to try the Tombstone (death by a 2-pound burger).

WILL: If you are not big, unique and affordable the Philippine market will not give you any chance to succeed. Zark’s Burgers is one of the pioneer of big burgers in Manila and they emerged gracefully. Talk of the town. That is why our friends brought us at their Katipunan Branch

1^st of November, holiday, most of the stores were close and so lucky they were open to serve that day. We were ushered to their third floor and straight away asked for our orders. I went for Zark’s Ultimate Burger (Php150.00 with fries and iced tea).

Quarter Pounder is a lot but I almost ate it all. Haha! Their beef patty has a Filipino touch. It reminds me of the patties I am eating during our lunch break way back in my grade school days.

Thanks Denise and John. Till our next food trips! :)

Icon Hotel North Edsa Manila

ABBEY: Since we visit Philippine as fast as the blink of an eye, we need to maximize our time there. So it means we're either in our friends' house, cafe, or restaurant. Going back home is not an option for us due to security reasons. We always plan to crash at a hotel to spend the night. And then we came to know of Icon Hotel North (near North EDSA MRT). 

In their name itself, the hotel is all about worldwide icons like Steve Jobs, Cleopatra and Marilyn Monroe. They named each room with an icon and treated their guests as star. As promotion, a 12-hour stay costs approximately 1300 pesos. This includes buffet breakfast for two, wifi, and a premium room. They accept cash and credit cards for payments. 

WILL:  After working for almost 5 years in Singapore we don’t have a home that we can call our own. When we go back to Philippines, we always stayed at our parents’ home. And every time we’ll hang out late, we always decide to go in a hotel to check-in rather than bothering our parents. We are so lucky to go to Icon Hotel in EDSA. Thank you Denise for the recommendation. Why we are lucky? We got a decent room in a very affordable price.

The lobby is wonderful. The room is neat. The sheets were clean. Oh they have quilt, awesome! We only paid Php1,299.00 for 12hour stay with breakfast buffet. Although they offer only 5 main courses it is still better than nothing. This is a family hotel, a budget hotel that you can spend time with your whole family. You can totally relax as you cannot hear the honking of buses and revving of the vehicles. They also housed a pool and a mini theatre at the lobby. Almost perfect until I got to touch their faucet. Please scrub it before the bacteria will build up on that small portion of your room.

Concierge is always smiling and ready to accommodate all your needs. Salute to this brand new hotel. Already recommended to my family and friends. Please do check them out.

Monster Curry Singapore at 313@Somerset

ABBEY: This place reminds me of a sad moment as my then girlfriend will leave Singapore after a month of visit. But the good thing is, we had good food at Monster Curry at 313@Somerset (Food Republic). 

So we visited it again. At less than 15sgd,  I got a large portion of chicken with matching dark Japanese curry sauce. Combining each bite with white rice and my hunger is solved. The curry sauce's spiciness is just the right amount; not too salty nor bland. 

WILL: January 2010, it was the end of my 2-month vacation here in Singapore. We spend our afternoon on a movie date and I craved for Japanese food back then and we found this great place in 313@Somerset. That was the 2nd saddest parting we have. That spot. It was all clear. The teary eyes and emotional voice.

After 4 years, we re-visited the place, now with a full smile. We see things brighter. We just reminisce the past and now putting an end of that sad part and replacing it with a great happiness. We well appreciate now the view of passing pedestrians and vehicles from level 5 of this building. We are so happy.

I ordered pork katsu. I love the taste but it would be lovelier if they have a wasabi. The serving is too big, I ate the ¾ and the rest was covered by husband.

This place is recommendable for a great food, great view and affordable price.

Underwater World Singapore and Dolphin Lagoon - Sentosa

ABBEY: I wasn't aware that there are two marine life attractions in Sentosa until last week. One is the SEA Aquarium near Waterfront Station. This is considered as the biggest aquarium in Asia. And the other is at Siloso point, the Underwater World. We went to Underwater World upon my sister's visit. 

At 4PM, the show started for pink dolphins in the Dolphin Lagoon. They are wonderful creatures, very graceful and intelligent. They showed how they can sing, wave, pass through a hoop and give their signature jumps. Fur seals also joined them in exhibiting their tricks like how fast they can swim and catching rings. 

I hope Sentosa management takes good care of them. Not much difference between SEA Aquarium and Underwater World, both have clear tunnels filled with fish, rays and sharks. The walkalator in Underwater World is a plus though.

WILL: As we need to be more picky on the activities we should do on Abbey’s sister second visit, we chose to go to Underwater World of Sentosa instead Jurong Bird Park. Why? We need to give Ate Rizbeth non-tiring tour. All we need to do is to sit and watch the dolphin show and explore the aquarium which is all air-conditioned. So less sweat, less stress for the family of three.

We arrived 30 minutes before the show at Dolphin Lagoon. We picked the best spot which is not so close to the pool and yet there is blower to puff away the heat of the 25^th day of October.

The show started and the arena was filled by spectators. The dolphin is really an adorable creature. So Cute! So when the host asked for a volunteer that will interact with them I never falter to raise my hand and shout “me-me-me!” And yes she picked me! I am so excited to be in a photo with a dolphin for second time. Yes! Second time. The first when I was only a grade school student. I paid Php150.00 to be kissed by a dolphin. Now it is free! A long interaction and got a chance to touch their fins and head, command them to clap and sing. A great experience. Please do visit them. Pink dolphins really made my day.

After the exhilarating event we went back to the Underwater World. The spider crab is really fascinating. Their room is quite congested because it is Saturday. All tourist congesting the island of Sentosa, haha! Anyways. I enjoyed their magnified aquarium.

Thanks Dolphin Lagoon crew. Abbey’s nephew cannot get over of the show. He is still teling “Ninang? Bopin?” (means Godmother? Dolphin?)  

Marina Bay Sands Hospitality Suite

ABBEY: This is my second stay in Marina Bay Sands. And I cannot ask for more as we're given a suite with balcony. Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Ruaro. They are apologising as the suite is only on the second floor, but hey, this is still a suite. We'll just go up on 57th floor for the view. 

The room includes a queen-size bed, a sofa bed, two television, make-up room and toilet and bathtub. The bar has a Nespresso machine :) So we had a coffee session with our friends after dinner. 

Our stay here with my sister's family is a good one. I can see them get relaxed and refreshed. They went for a dip in the infinity pool and finished the stay with sumptuous breakfast on Sky on 57.

WILL: Wohooo! Marina Bay Sands Suite! Free! And again thanks to our sponsors, Daddy Edward and Mommy Lovelee.

Second time to check-in at MBS Hotel but this is new experience for us. Aside from being housed at their lovely suite we invited some guests to sip some Nespresso coffee after our lovely dinner at Peach Garden. Non-stop stories and questions about Singapore since they only arrived here about a week ago and will start their official job as nurse in a day or two.

When we bid goodbye, we indulge at a very spacious room of this suite. We arranged the sofa bed for me and Abbey to take rest, and our guests, Ate Rizbeth’s family occupied the queen-size bed.

Before we head to our slumber, Abbey and I dip first to the bathtub. Hours of throwing an opinion to each other, making plans and listen to each other's words. We also pictured out our future room in our future home. A very relaxing time for me and my husband.

When I lay down at sofa bed and slept soundly. I woke up and took a shower and head to office.

I hope our visitors enjoy this hotel stay.

Till next time MBS!