Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Footzone Day Spa in Greenhills

At the back of Virra Mall in Greenhills lies a street full of day spa as well as beauty centers. I think I counted over 10 but the one that stood out for me was Footzone Day Spa. Perhaps it is because of the lights that showed it off, the spacious lobby, or maybe, the fact that it has been in existence for 15 years and is always swamped over the weekend. Whatever the reason was, I found myself drawn to the place. The weekend that passed was a crazy one and I was in need of a massage. I heard nice things about this place and since a friend whom I haven’t seen for so long lived nearby, I thought, why not kill two birds with one stone.


Monday, February 22, 2016

Mian at the Grand Ballroom of Marriott Manila

Yesterday when I had coffee at Crema, I passed by Mian at the Grand Ballroom of Marriott Manila and I was intrigued. The exterior looked enticing and its situated directly across the main entrance of the Grand Ballroom. I remembered thinking to myself that I would never guess there was a restaurant inside the Grand Ballroom. Boy was I wrong.


This place is VERY spacious, well lighted, and it's just really, really nice. I was actually in awe because it wasn't one of those intimidating restaurants where you become too careful with your movements. This was one of those places where you do your OOTD, where you hang out with your family, bring a client, a date, or hold a party. MIAN was that kind of place.






Mian is the Chinese word for noodles but do no fret. They serve not just noodles but also rice, desserts, and even the Ilocos empanada. It's pretty diverse for a small menu but I gotta say this and I gotta say this with feelings.

I AM SO IMPRESSED WITH MIAN. FOOD, AMBIANCE, and SERVICE! 
We had two appetizers to start our lunch; the Pork Jiaozi which is chinese chorizo wrapped in flour dipped in soy calamansi and lime dip and the Sausage Empanada which is local sausage and egg in vinegar dip.  I loved the empanada though the dimsum was also pretty good. Its just that the empanada blew my mind away. I sort of wished that the empanada was all mine and that I didn't have to share it with anyone else.




For the main course, we had the following: Chef's Beef Noodles (Php395), Pork Miso Ramen (Php295), Beef Caldereta (Php395), Stir Fried Clams (Php395) and Braised Pork Belly (Php375.)


The Chef's Beef Noodles was very tasty and the beef was really soft. It was crazy soft. Okay, it was unbelievably soft. The flat noodles made me feel like I was in a little kiosk in Thailand sipping noodles while people watching.


The Pork Miso Ramen was pretty okay but nothing outstanding.


The Beef Caldereta on the other hand was impressive. The beef here was the same as the noodle when it comes to softness of the meat and the taste was spot on.


STIR FRIED CLAMS. I don't even know where to begin with this one. The egg noodle, the sprouts, the clam ... everything was just so delicious. It really was. We all wanted to put aside our orders and just gorge on this. It was so good. I don't even know how to tell you how good it was except to tell you, IT IS SO GOOD.


The Braised Pork Belly was another great dish. The noodles reminded me of lomi but with the braised pork belly sauce, it took an entirely different personality. I liked it. It was interesting and I think it's something I can do at home.


The Halo-Halo they serve costs Php220 and it is HUGE. Actually all of the servings were pretty big which was impressive.


I have to say that MIAN was one of the best places I have eaten at in a long time. Service of the staff, quality of food, price, and the place was all very impressive. Hats off Mian! HATS OFF!



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Starbucks Macchiato Promos and new Merchandise

Starbucks lovers and fans, great news! New things, new drinks, new promos, new cakes, and new cards are about to be released.


1. From February 23 to March 4,2016, Starbucks Philippines will run an online poll to ask fans which of the two (2) featured Macchiato beverages is their favorite. Fans can vote on what team they’re on: Team Roasted Caramel or Team Chocolate Hazelnut. Voting will be per region (Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao).

2. Voting will be done through www.starbuckspromotions.ph and fans will be required to register through their e-mail address or through their Facebook account. 3. The winning Macchiato beverage per region (Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao) will be celebrated with a special “Buy One, Get One” offer on March 7, 2016 in all Starbucks stores nationwide. 4. The Macchiato Buy One, Get One event is valid only for the winning Macchiato beverage (hot and iced, of any size) for each region. 5. Promotion will run in all Starbucks stores nationwide.  

SPRING STAR DASH  

TERMS AND CONDITIONS: 

1. The Spring 2016 Star Dash Promo will run from February 23 to 29, 2016. Starbucks Cardholders will earn double Stars when they purchase any handcrafted beverage, 250g bag of whole bean coffee or 12-pack Starbucks VIA® Ready Brew or 4-pack Starbucks VIA® Latte using their Starbucks Card.      

2. The additional Star(s) will be loaded on the same Starbucks Card upon purchase.  This promotion applies to both new and existing Starbucks Cards.  There is no limit to the number of handcrafted beverage, 250g bag of whole bean coffee or 12pack Starbucks VIA® Ready Brew or 4-pack Starbucks VIA® Latte that a customer can purchase to earn double Stars during the promotional period. This promotion is only valid for all Starbucks Cards issued in the Philippines.

Great news to all Starbucks fans is the release of the new card, food, and drinks. 

Caramel Macchiato Frappuccino 

Chocolate Hazelnut Macchiato

Roasted Caramel Macchiato 

They also have new CARDS coming out. I personally love the Siren and the purple egg. These are available starting February 23. Purchase limits are being implemented. One egg design per customer per day and 5 Siren cards per customer per day. The egg requires an initial load of Php500 and the Siren only Php300 but note that the siren is a special edition card. 






Isn't the Siren just overwhelmingly pretty? I seriously love this card. Now there are new food choices as well because Starbucks love their customers and want to provide new options all the time.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cookie Php60

Belgian Chocolate Chip Cookie Php130/slice

Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookie Php50
And the most amazing part of all, new coffee. Eeekkk! 

Starbucks Ethiopia Reserve Drink 

Starbucks Tribute Blend Php425

Starbucks 3 Region Blend Php375
I can say that I look forward to trying out these new drinks and buying that super pretty mug paired with the the 3 region blend. My Mom would flip. 

These will all be out by February 23, 2016. 


Saturday, February 20, 2016

CREMA at the Grand Ballroom of Marriott Hotel

I've heard so much about this place that when I finally booked another staycation at Marriott Hotel, I knew that I had to try out Crema which was located the Grand Ballroom of Marriott Hotel and the delicious pastries they have. After all, a cup of hot coffee and a couple of dishes of sweets should do the trick in relaxing myself after a crazy, stressful but very wonderful day yesterday.

When I got to Crema, I fell in love with the feel of the place. It was classy and cozy. It felt like a place I could spend an entire afternoon on and not be bored. There were high seats and couches. There were areas for families, friends, couples, and even those just getting to know each other.


As you can see from the photo, the place is very spacious for a cafe. They serve coffee, cakes, and pastries. They have a pretty big selection but nothing overwhelming. I liked it. Sometimes, you just want to have options but not have too many options if you get what I mean.


I really liked this wall writing because it was so colorful and would definitely attract attention.



My son saw that there was a yogurt station and immediately asked if he could have one. I had to say yes because how can you say no to that smile right? Besides, it was yogurt and its healthy so it's all good.



I had a couple of pastries and I'm not kidding when I say that almost everything tasted good. The Cream Cheese Danish was really tasty especially when paired with Hot White Chocolate Mocha which I had.

The ensaymada was a real treat for me. The cheese on top was overflowing and when you bite into it, it had ube inside which just made the taste so much better.


The Mushroom Mozarella Sandwich was also another treat. I loved that when I opened the sandwich to have a look, I wasn't disappointed with the layers of melted mozarella inside. The tomato complimented everything.


Now for the cakes ... ooohhh the cakes! They were such a sight for sore eyes. This strawberry piece was good because all the strawberries were sweet. I'm one of those weird persons who like strawberry flavored stuff but is not a real fan of the actual fruit. However, this one passed the test.


The pistachio sansrival was also another classic that people need to order in here. It was very tasty and definitely not lacking in the much needed ingredients. I don't know about you but I have had sansrival before where it just felt dry or like they scrimped on the things that was needed to make it sansrival.


The chocolate cake though was the real winner of the night. It was just heaven on earth. For chocolate lovers like myself, this was the real deal. They definitely delivered on this and for this little round thing alone, I would definitely recommend Crema.


The pastries here are not over the top expensive. Truth be told, the price is just the same as in other fancier coffee shops since it ranges from 160 to 280. The location, the grandeur, and the taste of Crema makes the price justifiable.


They also serve tablea or tsokolate de batirol which is not common in a lot of coffee shops. This is a definite plus since my Mom loves it. I get my coffee, she gets her Philippine Hot Chocolate.


When they say they are the cream of the crop of all coffee shops, I guarantee you that they really are. Crema is located at the Grand Ballroom of Marriott Hotel. Definitely, this is a place worth visiting. For those interested in going here, they open at 8am and close by 6pm.

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

thoughts of a first time iron curling hair user ...



I received this as a token months ago but never got around to using it. I never saw myself as the type to curl my hair just to go somewhere. However, I have become bored lately with how I look so I decided to test it out.


Initial thoughts: What the heck am I doing? Am I doing this right? Oh no, was I supposed to let that blue light thing go steady for. Oh, I better read the manual.

So there. Ladies, read the manual first. Don't assume that you can just work on these things because when you go wrong with it, you really go wrong with it. Trust me, you don't wanna go wrong with this I've read horror stories of hair just falling off because apparently, the person managed to burn her hair off her head. YIKES!

Thankfully, this did not happen to me though there was a moment where I smelled a little burnt hair but nothing damaging. So this was me on my 3rd attempt at curling my hair on my own. I did not dare to take photos the 1st and 2nd time because I was too scared that I would burn my hair off. On the 3rd time though, I felt pretty confident about using the product because it was actually fairly easy to use.


It was actually at this point that I decided to write about this because I wanted to share with you guys how easy it is to use. Mind you, this is not a product review or a paid review. I was just really happy about the compliments I would get whenever I used this thing.

So this is how it all turned out. My 3 attempts on 3 different occasions of using the Remington Spiral Curl Iron.




I think I'm getting pretty good at it now. Earlier this morning, I was actually able to do my hair in less than 10 minutes. Yey me. So for those who may be like me and don't want to use those curling things because you worry that it may be too complicated. this one isn't. It really isn't I promise. :)

Final thoughts: Why did I only learn to do this just now?!?!?!