Joei & Me

If you're looking for a good Japanese restaurant that's not too hard on the wallet, pay a visit to Saibachi in Metro Gaisano Alabang.

One day, T and I went to Greenbelt looking for a place to eat. We initially went to Fish & Co but when the server handed us a second menu from Siklab Filipino Favorites, I asked T if he wanted to try this fairly new restaurant from the Bistro Group of Companies.

 

It's time for the yummiest event in the metro again, UP EcoSoc's Foodgasm!  This is the third year UP EcoSoc invited me as a food blogger-judge.  Thanks guys!

T feels the same way about Valentines because in his mind, we don't need a holiday to celebrate. It can be done any day, every day, and we actually do that! As you can see from my blog entries, we dine in special places, whether or not T and I have something to celebrate.

But our office had a pre-Valentines celebration; everyone was wearing red, we had a small salo-salo complete with chocolate fondue and heart marshmallows, and that set the mood for this year's Valentines for me. T told me he has something planned on Valentine's Day itself, around lunch time, so coming home from work on February 13, I didn't expect anything. I was even making him kulit to hurry up so we could go to Bugsy's Alabang and eat dinner.

Then he appeared on my doorstep with long-stemmed Ecuadorian white roses!

We left my house to go to Westgate for a Bugsy's steak dinner when T suggested that we pass by Caviar, a fairly new fine dining restaurant and champagne bar in Alabang.

Two reasons why I love the Moleskine Passion Restaurant Journal:

REASON #1 - I'm an avid fan of Moleskine.  I've tried all kinds; monthly, weekly, daily, blank notebooks, limited editions. I sometimes even keep two at a time, one as a planner and one as a journal or a scrapbook.  It was only this year that I didn't buy a Moleskine.  I figured I already have my cat portfolio as my work and personal planner and my Jane a Day journal as my diary, then I have a Starbucks planner as a doodle notebook.  So for the first time in 7 years, I did not buy a Moleskine.

REASON  #2 - T and I dine out so often that I have a lot of dining experiences in restaurants I want to share here in my blog.  But because I don't get to write every day, I forget about the restaurant or even if I do remember, I have difficulty recalling what we ate and what we thought about it.

So when T told me about the Moleskine journal made specifically for dining out experiences, I wanted one!  Unfortunately, it was gone when we went to Fully Booked Alabang, where he saw it.  But the accommodating staff called other branches, found a piece, and had it reserved under my name.  Yipee!

After a few days, I got my Moleskine Passion Restaurant Journal from Fully Booked Alabang and I'm having a blast using it.  I get to write our thoughts on the spot which serves both as a reminder for future blog entries and as a diary of our dining experiences.  It also has a "Wishlist" section where I can write the restaurants I want to try.  Neat!

But you know what the best part for me is?  Not breaking my tradition of having Moleskine notebooks or planners every year (same for Starbucks which I purposely don't collect but sayang naman if I don't redeem since I'm a Starbucks coffee addict) #OCproblems

How about you?  What planner are you using this year?

In the spirit of Valentine's, I've been posting mostly about sweet and love-related things. So I think this is the best time to post about the wedding of our friends, Nikolo Juban and Nicola Espina. Yes, Nikolo and Nicola! Cute huh? :)

Here's another gift idea for Valentine's Day. Check out BENCH's Premium Gold Collection, the classic yet modern design of gold watches, crafted especially for couples.

It's Valentine's week! So I'll be posting sweet stuff all throughout the week ;)

After having a late lunch in Food on Four (read my blog post on Yakitori One and Four Seasons Chinese Cuisine), I craved for something sweet and saw Mochi Sweets on the same floor as the food court.

PANDORA designs, manufactures and markets hand-finished and modern jewelry made from genuine materials at affordable prices. PANDORA jewelry is sold in more than 70 countries all over the world.  I was first introduced to PANDORA through my boss who gave me a purple bracelet with a personal charm. I wear it almost every day and is a constant part of my arm candy.

Now that Valentine's Day is coming, a Pandora jewelry set would be a perfect gift for your mom, wife, girlfriend, or even for yourself!  Check out PANDORA's Valentine's Collection.

Are you from the South and getting married soon?  Well, you're in luck because the Love Expressions Wedding Fair on February 13 to 15 will be at the Ground Level Activity Center of SM Southmall in Las Pinas.

To register, go to http://www.weddingfairphilippines.com/weddingfairregistration/.

Like I always say, T and I rarely go beyond Manila or Makati even if there's a restaurant we both want to try.  But this time, we reached Capital Commons in Kapitolyo to support our friends who are part owners of Tipsy Pig Gastropub.

Global warming, climate change, or whatever it is, I find myself rummaging through my closet for jackets and thick outerwear far too often lately.  I like the cold but I find it weird getting to use those set of clothes here in the tropics.

Last week, I was feeling under the weather but T and I were scheduled to meet his college  classmates in Tipsy Pig (read my blog entry about this soon!).  To keep me from dying of hypothermia, I decided that the wise thing to do was to wear layers.   I ended up with a Matty M olive green long sleeved shirt (from Nordstrom!) and a knitted vest on top of it to keep my neck warm.  To balance my Ken Samudio necklace, I toned down my arm candy to only a bronze Rastaclat (my new obsession & a gift from T!), an evil eye bracelet from Turkey, and a Marc Jacobs bangle.  I also wore my brown leather BCBG ankle booties, which I declare to be one of the most comfortable boots for women despite its killer heels.

When I heard that they were opening PAUL in the Philippines, I wanted to pay a visit on the first day. But I knew the waiting time was going to be long for this well-known French bakery so I decided to wait until the hype died down a bit.

Calling all football fans!

On Monday (February 3), Bugsy's Alabang will be showing the NFL Super Bowl XLVIII starting at 7:30 in the morning.