Little Mexico

Seems like around-the-corner small businesses are booming in the city! I blogged about a burger stall in Annalyn Subd here.)

Now, let's try another subdivision-located food house: Little Mexico (FB page here)!

The tarp, but due to Glenda, it became a table top

 Located at #17 De Joya Compound, Alangilan, Batangas City, it became a favorite hangout place of BSU Alangilan students (and teachers, too).

Inside the gate

I love these babies

They are known for their Cholo burger (P189), but because it's quite expensive, we (my cousin, my nephew and I) ordered quesadillas (P99) and Mexican pizza (P169).

The menu. For clearer photo, click here.

Because there are many customers and I believe they only have one cook, my nephew and I played first.

The owner noticed that there's a little kid in his food house of spicy things, so he made sure that our food isn't spicy. 
He also promised to give him a chocolate, which he did after we ate! Thoughtful!

With the menu.

 After about 40 minutes, the food was served!

Quesadillas (P99)

It comes with this condiments. I love the green ones! 

 It was the cheapest quesadillas I've tried, but it's the most sulit (worth the cost). I would buy this over the more expensive ones, especially because of its condiments. Plus, the cheesiness is not strong to the taste that I can eat n slices without getting umay (no english term acc. to google).

Mexican Pizza (P169)

Then came the Mexican pizza minutes after. It was overwhelming due to having eaten about 3 slices of quesadillas. Also, I think it would be better if they let the pizza be extra spicy, but then it was our fault, so maybe I should try to go there without a kid next time. :D

Ann's Home of Cakes and Pastries: Choco Caramel Fudge Cake, and more

As promised, visited Ann's Home of Cakes and Pastries again, this time, my sister visited for cakes! (For pastries blog, click here.)

Here's her pasalubong for us:

From left: chocolate caramel fudge cake, red velvet cake and carrot cake

CARROT CAKE

This is one of their well-known cakes. When it's asked where to find the most delicious carrot cake in Batangas, one would point Ann's. 

The walnuts did a wonderful job.

Most of the carrot cakes I tried were too dry and plain, but this one has the right amount of moist (the white creamy top and center filling was perfect), and the walnuts made it interesting. It's truly one of the best carrot cakes I've tasted.

RED VELVET CAKE

I'm not really a fan or red velvets - I just don't get the flavor. Still I tried Ann's version, and I must say I like this better than what I've tried before (a more expensive one in Katipunan).

As always, the nuts (in this case, almonds slivers) are a great touch. As said, though not a fan of the flavor, that didn't stop me from eating it. It's not nakakaumay (I don't know the English term. Help, anyone?) unlike other red velvets that I tried, may it be a cupcake or cake, so I must say it's a must-try for all red velvet lovers. :)

PRICE: PHP 58 per slice.

CHOCOLATE CARAMEL FUDGE CAKE

This is their best tasting cake for me. It was addicting, not too sweet but oh-so-chocolaty, and the moist is perfect! 

The caramel part complemented the chocolate well.

We were so in love with this that my sister bought a whole cake a week after. This I recommend to everyone. I would even recommend Starbucks to let them distribute this over their chocolate cakes so that I can have cheaper cakes there, if only I have the power.

PRICE: PHP 58 per slice.

Over all, I can say that they have the best tasting and cheapest cakes, ever. I hope they could penetrate the Manila market soon. 

Please, Batanguenos, try one of their cakes. Highly recommended. :)

Marina Oyster Seafood Grill - Good for Family Dining

Our family revived one of our past traditions: to dine outside the house once every month. For the month of April, we went to Marina Oyster Seafood Grill! 

The restaurant is located at National Highway, Pallocan West, adjacent to the Holy Trinity Church beside SM City Batangas. It's not really easy to see because from the road, but there's a sign at the entrance. 

It's our first time to dine there, so we took our time to order. 

Meanwhile, here's the complimentary shrimp cracklings

 After placing our orders, it's picture time! 

We didn't have to be shy to take pictures because we're the only ones eating there at that time. :)

 The dining area is spacious and regal-looking, so it would be perfect for business meetings, family gatherings and other formal events. 

Ann's Home of Cakes and Pastries

My brother Sam loves pastries (he loved Dulcissima Bakeshop’s cream puffs). So after his badminton lesson at Batangas Badminton and Fitness Gym Center, I brought him to Ann’s Home of Cakes and Pastries, the nearest pastries shop there. 

The shop’s located at P. Canlapan St., Batangas City. Balagtas jeep passes this street.

Pastries galore!

It was our first visit and we hoped that there would be cream puffs there too. 

Alas, we found none, so be bought blueberry cheesecake for us to share and butterscotch squares for pasalubong.

blueberry cheesecake for 88 pesos 

butterscotch squares for 38 pesos

We weren't disappointed though. :D

Sam loved the cheesecake, especially the cheese part. He suggested that we should buy again tomorrow. I also liked it, especially because the cheese is way thicker than the cake part, which can sometimes be too sweet for me. The only flaw of this sweet thing is that it should always be kept refrigerated or it would melt; the shop does not have dining facilities. It would be best if the shop offers disposable spoon for the cake to be eaten right after it was bought.

My nephew Reygiel, on the other hand, loved the butterscotch squares. 

He didn’t let go of them, not until he finished them all up. Fortunately I got one after he made me open the container LOL. What I like about this butterscotch is it’s not too oily nor too sweet (hindi nakakaumay).

All things considered, we loved their pastries! Can’t wait to try their round cakes, oatmeal cookies and revel bars. We’ll definitely be back tomorrow. :)
What should we buy for our next visit? Tell us in the comments section below. :D

Kamote sa Lawas

Kung may dahilan man para balik-balikan ko ang Lawas, ito iyon:

Wala na atang tatalo sa sarap at kamurahan ng kamote fries na ito.

Mas gusto ko ang kapal nito kaysa sa nasa may Mabini plaza. Isa pa, naglalagay ng hiling ang nagtitinda lalo na kung marami kang bibilhin. :)

Nakakatakam tuloy. :3

New Tea Place: Tea Leaves in Batangas City

Tired of your usual mall cafes? Looking for a new place to chill and/or hangout with friends? There's a [relatively] new place in town: Tea Leaves.
It's located at P. Burgos St. opposite BDO.

Map from foursquare here.

I went there with my girlfriends Sani and Girlie because we just don;t want to stay in our houses. :)
If you've ever been at Infinitea, they almost look the same, from menu to the ambiance. (I don't know if they are partners.) And having that ambiance, it's definitely worth the visit.

I ordered watermelon fruit tea with the P15 upgrade (slush, I think.) 

Fruit tea slush for P75.

I'm a tea place goer in Diliman (read: free wifi) so I kind of have a  set of standards for an iced tea. I'm happy that this fruit tea is not as sweet and syrupy as Happy Leaf's (I'm not a fan, sorry), so I guess this could compete with Zentea of Nuciti. (Ochado's teas are good but more expensive than Zentea's or Tea Leaves' so...not for me). I just regretted that I added the slush+ because I don't like the aftertaste.

We stayed there even after we finished our teas, and we had fun with the leafy post its. :)))

Posting...

Girlie's artsy leaves and Sani's Nihongo leaf.

My Alibata leaf.

And we had more fun reading the posts from other customers. :D

Don't know if compliment of insult. XD

Summary: I would love to visit it again. :) For the leafy posts. XD 
Service: ★★★★★
Price: ★★★★☆
Taste: ★★★☆☆
Ambiance: ★★★★★

Dulcissima Bakeshop

There's a relatively new pastries shop in Batangas City opposite BDO in P. Burgos Street. 
It's Dulcissima Bakeshop! 

See the map clearly at http://wikimapia.org/#lat=13.756358&lon=121.0579877&z=19&l=0&m=b

It was my brother Sam's birthday (October 27) when I first bought something from them. I really thought that their packaging was beautiful enough to be a gift; it looks elegant and expensive.

It has a striped texture, and along with the choiced design (perfect fonts and bake-girl "mascot") and color, it really looks elegant.

Sam receiving the pastries. :) He loved the cream puffs~!

I bought cream puffs, cupcakes and cream puffs with choco on top (I really don't know what it's called). 

 ₱15

 ₱ 18

 ₱ 20

My brother REALLY loved the cream puffs that I have to buy again because five pieces were too insufficient. 

Sam enjoying the cream puffs.

As for me, it's my favorite among the three too because the not-too-sweet filling and the caramel compliment each other.

As of now, the store already has a table for people who would like to eat there, but the single table and their space strongly suggests that their products are for take-out.

Summary:
Service - ★★★★☆
Taste - ★★★★☆
Cleanliness - ★★★★★
Price - ★★★☆☆

Brother and Sister's Korean Restaurant at Libjo, Batangas City

Since most of the industries here in Batangas City have Koreans as bosses and employees, it's just fitting to have a Korean Restaurant here. It was opened in May 2011 but because of its distance to other establishments, I have only eaten there twice. It is located in BSC Building opposite Camacho Trading  in Libjo, Batangas City.

To get there, my friends and I rode a tricycle (P10 per person) from SM City Batangas.

And, here we are! 

 We were the only customers when we got there so basically we hoarded the place. >:) The restaurant staff was friendly in assisting us to our tables and in getting our orders. Most of us were first timers: we weren't familiar with the Korean food names. Good thing the staff was very accommodating to our questions and he explained the menu to us.

In the ordered bulgogi, japche, gimbap and topokki.

But first, the sidings!

...Until the last piece!

I loved the nori and the peanuts. The kimchi and the other 2 sidings prepared us for Korean spice. After some minutes, our orders arrived!

Topokki

Gimbap

Japche: what do you call the white strips there? I love it!

I did not have the time to take a picture of bulgogi because of hunger but it was beef with noodles and soup. It's my favorite dish so far. (I generally love beef dishes.:D) We really enjoyed the food especially the gimbap - it only took seconds for us to consume it. I also enjoyed the Korean taste of topokki, though my friends didn't because of its spiciness.

Summary:
Service - ★★★☆☆
Taste - ★★★★☆
Ambiance - ★★★★☆
Cleanliness - ★★★★★
Price - ★★★☆☆

I'll definitely visit again, but with someone who will pay for me, hopefully! :P