Seven Smiles at Seven Corners

For two days within a span of 3 days, we had lunch at 7 Corners, Crowne Suites' buffet outlet. For someone desperately trying to lose weight, this wasn't a good idea. But how can one POSSIBLY say NO to a tempting buffet lunch featuring Japanese, Chinese, continental, Italian and Indian cuisine plus a salad and dessert smorgasbord?!? Certainly not me!!! So when Dad invited us for lunch on a Friday, and when it was decided that we have lunch there after our photo shoot on that Sunday, who was I to say No, really!?!

Here are my 7 reasons to smile about in 7 Corners:
1. Location and Size - Strategically and conveniently located near our office in Galleria Corporate Center, 7 Corners can easily be reached simply by crossing through GCC to Robinson's Galleria Mall and straight into the entrance of Crowne and Holiday Inn Hotels. It involves just a few minutes' walk indoors, meaning all air-conditioned, from building to the next without going out or crossing streets!
The size of the place is just right; big enough for comfortable movement, small enough to see the whole buffet spread and enjoy it. It isn't a scattered affair where you have to walk around in different areas and look for what else is available. At 7 Corners, it's all in one straight line with just the Italian station a little separated from the rest. At 7 Corners, you just do what you intend to do... and that is to enjoy the buffet! No beating around the bush.

2. The Japanese station - For Boydee, it might be the overflowing uni (sea urchin) available upon request but for me, it is the temaki (hand rolls). All you have to do is ask the chef and he'll prepare one for you right away. The California Temaki was just perfect! Japanese rice cooked just right, not dry nor soggy; mangoes so sweet! Ahh.. I am craving for one now!!! And the best part is you can eat all you want!!! There are other Japanese faves: salmon and tuna sashimi, different makis, miso soup and the chawanmushi (steamed egg custard).

shiny, happy wasabi faces!

3. Rib Eye Steak!!! If ever there was ANYTHING that brought Daddy, Ate Rona and Elizza back, it was the steak! We found ourselves in 7 Corners during the Lenten season when Ate and Lai gave up meat, so they were literally salivating over Daddy's and my slice when we were eating. They swore they'd come back for it after Easter... and we really did!!!

steak, steak and nothing but steak on their plates!

Before the appetizers, or the soup, or the salad, they had S-T-E-A-K! The rib eye was juicy, tender and seasoned just right so as to give you the perfect beef taste. The slab is roasted rare and then you can have it sliced to the thickness you want and grilled to the degree of your liking.

the rib eye is calling you....

Up to now, Daddy still wants to go back for more!

4. Priority Privilege Card - Although it still comes out a little pricey per head (it's P950+++/head for lunch), it helps to have the priority privilege card. If you're two, you'll enjoy a 50% discount. You can not use many cards for one table, so you can ask them to put you in two tables if you're four so you can get 2 free off each time. Also, you can't use the main and supplementary card at the same time.

5. Rock lobster or the 'curacha' - In the cold appetizers station, they usually have bounties from the sea - prawns, curacha (rock lobster), oysters and blue crabs (alimasag or lambay). My hubby usually pounces on the curacha when available and have them grilled at the grilling station. The lobsters weren't available when we had lunch there. Maybe they put them out during the dinner buffet? I'm not sure.

Prawns cocktail!!!

6. Chinese station - I love their noodles. The clear chicken broth isn't too seasoned so that you don't get an overwhelming dose when you sip. (Some may find it bland though.) The ingredients are fresh and there's enough noodle variety. You can opt for noodle soup or sauteed noodles. Aside from that, they have peking duck and suckling pig (although it's more Filipino flavored for me, with Mang Tomas sauce to boot! So maybe it's lechon de leche! haha), hainanese chicken and soya chicken. Their siomai and hakao are not as good as in Xin Tian Di, their Chinese food outlet.

Various Ingredients for your noodles

7. Service and ambience - Ok, so they might not have the fastest service but their staff are quite accommodating. They are well-groomed, courteous and very helpful, from the waiters and waitresses to the 'chefs' in the action stations. So, hurray for that! It makes our dining experience so much more relaxing.

Replenishing the Cold Appetizers Spread

While there are reasons to smile, there are things I'm not too crazy about in 7 corners also. Among these are:
1. Salad Bar - There isn't much variety to the lettuce that they serve. The dressings, although aplenty, didn't taste as good. There were also no labels for the dressings so it was hard to choose which was which. I tried this fruity dressing and their balsamic vinaigrette, both of which didn't really appeal to my taste.

2. Italian station - I love the concept of making your own pizza, and the approximately 5-inch diameter dough is sized just right! But I wasn't able to finish the 3 cheese pizza I requested because for some odd reason, the cook added pesto before putting the cheese. It had a spicy and unpleasant after taste to it. Rogan ordered much the same thing and he didn't finish his either because of the pesto, which we didn't ask to be included at all!!! This was disappointing!

2. Ice Cream and Dessert Station - Very colorful and appealing, it's visually pleasing but not as palatable as it looks with the exception of the creme brulee, and the chocolate and strawberry home made ice cream (Ate Rona's yummy combination). The rest of the ice cream flavors didn't really register very well with me. Perhaps I'm a Magnolia/Nestle ice cream girl. Nevertheless, their teppanyaki ice cream concept (think cold rock/cold stone) was a hit with the kids!

Colorful goodies for the chocolate fountain!

Overall, 7 Corners makes for a satisfying dining experience. Some might compare the spread with other hotels and consider it 'smaller' but for me, it's a good sized spread with all my favorites being represented. There is still room for improvement but this is a restaurant I can go back to over and over again.


7 Corners
3rd Level
Crowne Plaza Galleria Manila
Ortigas Ave., cor Asian Development Bank Ave. QC
6337222

Buffet Price per head:
Lunch - P1,175.63
Dinner - P1,361.25

In-yo, Amo

The inviting facade of in-yo

Thursday nights are date nights for me and my hubz. We set a rule when we got married to always have a night just to ourselves. That way, we'll always have an "us" time. Last Thursday was no exception. We chose to finally try In-yo, an old house turned restaurant serving fusion cuisine. This place was recommended by Jocelle Pascual, good friend and business partner in PEP. Check out their blog that's managed by hubby Joel.

Since Joel and Jocelle work near In-yo, we invited them to join us. It was an instant double date. While I was busy taking pictures, Joel, Jocelle and Boydee were updating each other about the upcoming Wofex in Visayas focusing on Food Processing and Packaging Technology which will be held in Cebu, my hometown!, on April 18-21, 2007 in the Cebu International Convention Center.

A single water lily centerpiece for every table

There were a lot of things that kept me preoccupied while waiting for our orders to arrive. The green waterlily centerpiece reminded me of Mommy Nonie who loves waterlilies. The table utilized an old sewing machine as its body/legs giving the place a rustic feel.

Singer sewing machine-turned-dining table

Outside, the facade was decorated with what looked to me like the vines coming from an old rubber tree. A koi fish pond is right at the entrance making one feel more relaxed. I climbed the 2nd floor too where they had a table for 12. The small room was adorned with modern paintings while the stair case was accented with 'treasures' of our country's past. The mix of old and new made the place cozy and eclectic. I also read the newspaper write ups that hung on the wall going to their clean rest room. I especially loved the hanging capiz shells 'curtain'.

After roaming around, our orders came little by little. First up was the oyster rockefeller. This seemed like a popular order since the other table had that too. The oysters were kinda small so they added some more pieces into the shell. Flavors were just right. This was good!

Rock, rock, rock, rockefeller!

Next came the pasta alle vongole using linguini pasta and manila clams. On the first bite, it didn't quite register well to the palate. But on the 3rd and 4th slurp, it got better and better. The clams particularly tasted really flavorful without the 'sandy' smell that usually come with the bigger-sized clams.

I had my pumpkin soup brought in. Served in a white coffee cup with two large croutons as toppers, it looked good but wasn't what I expected. The ginger overpowered the taste of the pumpkin. You can hardly taste the pumpkin at all. I yearned for Zhar's pumpkin soup. Hmmm... Next dish please!

Our main courses starting arriving one by one. It was a feast for the eyes. The chef really gave careful attention to the food presentation. Each dish had its own style. They looked like works of art. So did they taste good as well as they looked? It varied per dish.

Chicken on a stick... of lemon grass, that is!

The broiled coconut lime chicken was a cross of Vietnamese (because of the lemongrass) and Singaporean/Malaysian cooking. This to me was the dish which you can eat and not be guilty about in terms of calories gained. It was broiled and used white meat. Not much oil and not much fat and the serving size is just right. The rice I didn't finish. I was too busy with the chicken. Besides for me, it stood well on its own without the rice since the flavors were not too strong. The rice would've just diluted it.

Doesn't the cute sunny side up look sooo appealing?

The beef salpicao I didn't get to taste. I was too embarrassed to ask Joel. Hehe... But I do love the quail egg (or was that just a really, really small egg?) they put on top of the rice! Judging from the clean plate after, I guess it must have been good, too.

Grilled US Top Blade

My husband got two dishes. The grilled US top blade and the duck leg confit. The steak was tender enough but not beefy enough, meaning the taste of beef wasn't too distinct. Maybe it was the cut, or the seasoning, I don't know. The black mushroom, and the cucumber-eggplant-tomato 'pile' was grilled and seasoned with what tasted like balsamic vinegar reduction. Again, on its own, the sidings were delish but mixed with the steak, didn't produce a very good combination since the sauce got sipped in to the steak. Perhaps a milder and simpler siding would have worked.

Top view of the duck confit

As for the duck confit, well, I prefer my duck confit more 'preserved', drier (including the fat), crispier and saltier. The duck confit here tasted more like roasted duck. Its fat was just oozing with oil. It should be okay as a duck dish; but as a duck confit dish, well, it doesn't quite hit the spot.

Trio of creme brulee

We capped the meal with trio of creme brulee and strawberry surprise. The latter I didn't get to taste since I was already reserving my taste buds for the creme brulee. The creme brulee came in three flavors-classic, coffee and chocolate. The first two I loved; the chocolate was so so. The texture of all three custards was wet and soggy, not jelly like. I wished they were slightly firmer.

In-yo is a cozy and a novel place to entertain friends and acquaintances. The food presentation is exceptional and even if there were some dishes that weren't quite what I expected (perhaps my expectations were high because they just looked too darn good!), it is still a place I'd bring my Mommy to when she comes to visit me from Cebu. For the ambience, the quality of the food, its serving size and for the whole dining experience, the prices are fairly reasonable.

Inyo is fine-dining fusion cuisine minus the snobbish and intimidating factor so identified with that genre. It is inviting and appealing. It is a restaurant that is inyo (yours in Cebuano) which we'd gladly call amo (ours in Cebuano).

in-yo fusion cuisine
66 Esteban Abada Street
Loyola Heights, QC
#s: 9286459; 0927-8742611
in_yo06@yahoo.com

Total bill: P3,330.60 with VAT and SC
Head Count: 4 adults

Triple Treat

Last Tuesday, after I watched the concert of Hail Mary the Queen Children's Choir in the Trinity College Chapel, I went to meet up with Elizza and Zhar in Silk, a Thai restaurant in Serendra, in the Fort. Our respective partners were attending the GMM of Manila Jaycees. So that left us girls free for the night. Missing were Japa and Ate who that day gobbled up buckets of popcorn while watching three movies in La Vista in celebration of Raegan's (their sweet eldest daughter) 9th birthday, so had to pass.

I ate the left overs of Lai and Zhar. That meant 3 spoonfuls of Pad Thai, perhaps half a cup of minced chicken and, although there was perhaps worth a bowl and a half of Tom Yam soup, I just took in a sip and 2 shrimps of it because it was too spicy for me. It was quite a sampler. Based on what I've tasted, it deserves a second visit; and a more thorough one, meaning let's try more dishes please! Hehehe... Well, that's what I get for being late. Besides, I had already eaten spaghetti at home. Thanks Lai for my second dinner. :)

After Silk, we scouted for a dessert place in that area since their two boylets were about to join us. My Boydee had to stay a while longer in the GMM since he was seated at the presidential table and couldn't escape just yet. Sigh, the price of seniority! When Rondic and Rod had arrived, the girls proceeded to give and hug their respective loves, while I had to content myself with blowing kisses in the air and hugging an imaginary person. Anyway, we settled for Miss Dessert, this pink girly-girl looking dessert place still within the confines of Serendra specializing in cheesecakes.

We found ourselves a table for 5 in the air-conditioned area and ordered Earthquake, a gooey chocolate layered cake, according to the waiter, and Fantasia, choco cheesecake with toffee flavor and nuts. Both were good although not something I'd daydream about.

You can't just eat one bite of Sonja's Cupcakes

Not content with the dessert fare, Rod offered to buy us Sonja's Cupcakes next door. He got Berries something and Red Velvet Vixen. I loved the Red Vixen. Lai preferred the berries cupcake (name totally escapes me). I really wasn't expecting much since I thought they were pretty expensive for just a mere cupcake. But when I took a bite, I couldn't stop myself from getting another... and another... until I finished the red vixen. You can feel its sweetness in your mouth and your nose. Yup, it smelled good and it looked good!!! Now, I understood what all the fuss about Sonja's cupcakes was all about. I should schedule another exploration here!

My hubby had arrived when we attacked the cupcakes. He ordered the Macadamia cheesecake from Ms. Dessert. This one was better than the first two orders we placed. I cut a small piece and put it in my mouth. No need to bite; this one I can squish with my tongue and relish its rich, creamy macadamia flavor!

In between sips of chamomile tea, Zhar and Rod stepped out to greet a friend. When they came back, she brought this brown and orange paper cup - Xocolat, it says. It was bitter sweet cold chocolate balls. She took bites and bites of those balls. I tried half a ball. It wasn't great, but I am not really a fan of chocolate that's too strong and frozen. I have to say the packaging is attractive though!

Xocolat's Elixir gamely endorsed by Zhar and Lai

So there we were, three couples enjoying dessert from three different places. It was a calm, relaxing Tuesday evening of sweets and sweetness. Til the next food trip guys!!! Hopefully, next time, Ate Rona and Japa, Randy and Stella can join in the fun!

Ms. Dessert
Sonja's Cupcakes
Xocolat
All at Serendra
The Fort, Taguig, Metro Manila
Will research on their numbers

Total Bill: Don't know... didn't pay for it and forgot to take a peek at the bill
Head count: 3 couples so that makes 6

The Good Good Earth

I'm not quite sure if this restaurant was named after Pearl S. Buck's classic; nevertheless, just like the novel, The Good Earth doesn't fail to leave a lasting impression.

Last Monday, after staying home the whole day, my hubby, Boydee, and I, together with BIL Rod and girlfriend Zhar, decided to eat out for dinner. We originally planned to try out this new restaurant in Katipunan named Inyo, but when we had the driver make reservations, we found out it was closed for the holiday (Araw Ng Kagitingan). So, we had to choose another resto. By that time, Boydee had already extended the invitation to the whole family. Daddy and Rondic's family accepted while Ate Rona declined saying Shirley had already cooked dinner for them. Lola Nene decided to stay home. Missing in action were Mommy, BIL Randy and his fiancee, Stella who were all in the States.

The Monday Night Diners

After much deliberation, we settled for The Good Earth in Metrowalk since it was nearer than the one in The Fort. So, on three cars, we conglomerated in the area. All eleven of us.

It was a quiet night for the Good Earth, so we had a ready table. Rondic and I did the ordering. After a few minutes, our orders came out and it was chow time! Hurray!!!

Mother Lily of the Pond

First came the Lily of the Pond, shrimp sandwiched with slices of eggplants. It doesn't sound very appetizing but this is definitely a must try!!! Even Boydee who's not a fan of veggies loved it. Bite into it and savour the soft sensation on your tongue, then slowly feel it melt in your mouth. The flavor is simply perfect!

Mini Ducky Siopao

One of my favorites is the duck siopao. The dough is soft and the duck doesn't give off that pungent ducky scent. I can probably finish one order (3 pieces) all to myself; but, of course, I stopped myself. Hehe...

Chunky Chicken Chow Mein

Boydee's favorite dish, the chicken chow mein, can be a complete meal. You have pasta and protein and vegetables. This is yummy but that night, I found it too salty. My hubby still devoured it.

An overexposed shot of the Shantung Chicken

Other dishes we had were duckquitoes (slices of roasted duck and cucumber served inside a mini taco shell), lobster balls (a glamorized lobster ball enclosed in a crispy, fried thin wrapper), wanton noodle soup (this one was so so but the chicken broth was good), Popoy's Delight (steamed fish fillet with slices of ham, one of their best sellers), Good earth rice, yang chow fried rice and the shantung spicy chicken (aromatic deep fried chicken pieces with semi sweet and sour sauce) which we asked to be made just slightly spicy, kangkong with shrimp paste and Black Mushrooms with beancurd casserole (for the health conscious).

Orders are served family style and are meant to be shared by 2-3 persons depending on how much your companions eat and how hungry you are. Although I find the pricing slightly stiff considering the serving size, it is still highly recommendable. Special mention goes to their green iced tea, really colored green, and refillable. Its flavor is different from the usual nestea iced tea being served in most restaurants.

Green, green, my world is green!

We skipped dessert because we were quite filled to the brim. Leftovers were doggy bagged. After the binge and paying the bill, we left with our heavy tummies.

The Good Earth offers an interesting mix of original Chinese fusion recipes and traditional Chinese food favorites with a twist. So if you're in the mood for Chinese and are willing to try something different, the Good Earth is the way to go!

The Good Earth
Metrowalk Commercial Complex
Ground Floor
Meralco Avenue, Ugong, Pasig City
Tel: 6872881

The Bill: P6,208 inclusive of service charge (10%) and EVAT (12%)
Headcount: 8 Adults and 3 kids (with one kid who eats like an adult! hehe)

Welcome, Welcome!

Welcome to my new food blog, The Accidental Gourmand. This is a revival of my old newspaper column in Sunstar Daily Cebu many, many, many years ago. The idea of writing a blog about food, restaurants, dining out experiences and topics being talked about during meal times was a most natural thought process, being in a family of "gourmands", who make mealtimes a major activity in our household.

Both my families in Cebu and Manila love to eat out, love to try new restaurants, love good food, and simply love to eat. My days' schedules are divided into meal times - breakfast (although sometimes skippable), lunch (has to be between 12 noon to 1pm the latest) and dinner (anywhere between 6 to 8 o'clock). When the kids sleep over, there is a midnight snack of Pizza Hut's Cheese Pizza or Mcdonald's Chicken McNuggets and Quarter Pounder.

There is a buffet spread almost every weekend here in the La Vista kitchen, a smorgasbord of Melinda's cooking with occasional guest chefs like Rondic, when he's in the mood or Zhar and Rod when they have a recipe they want to share. Sometimes, we don't wait for weekends or occasions to gather together and eat, or experiment on new dishes. When the mood strikes, the Dizon family is only too willing to partake of the 'feast'. We are firm believers of the saying: The family who eats together, stays together. :)

So, imagine what sacrifice some members of the family endured during the Holy Week as we gave up food stuff we really loved. Mommy Shalene gave up rice, meat, and her favorite desserts and chocolates, Ate Rona, Japa, Elizza, Rod and Zhar gave up beef, pork and chicken, Japa gave up caffeine and rice, in addition to those, Boydee gave up his favorite breakfast staple of fried or scrambled eggs, Rondic let go of his softdrinks urges and I gave up my favorite part of the meal - dessert! Zhar and Rod joined in on the last two weeks of lent with Rod suffering from withdrawal symptoms - he got the flu after giving up sweets! Even the kids weren't exempted! Reese gave up spam and sausage and Raegan gave up gravy which she literally drinks on normal days. This sacrifice was for a total of more than 40 days. I am guessing while of course, we did it in the season of lent, some of us also had ulterior motives of losing our unwanted pounds . What better motivation was there than to sacrifice for the Lord! That's hitting two birds with one stone! (Although I didn't lose weight at all! Boohoo!)

With the coming of Easter, the countdown began! The pangs of desire started to hit most of us when Holy Week came. So, finally, when Black Saturday came to an end, the brood gathered together in the Dizon headquarters to celebrate the end of the sacrifice, each with his/her own food craving in tow.


The Gavinos brought a bucket of KFC original fried chicken and cups and cups of gravy!



Rod and Zhar brought Haagen Dazs Macadamia-flavored ice cream cake. Melinda prepared kielbasa, spam, beef tapa and rice. My dear husband ordered Melinda to cook fried egg to pair with his rice, and a scrambled egg sandwich! At the strike of 12 on Easter midnight, we celebrated!

We were so full, Boydee and I, that we slept at 3:30 am already. But all the family members never forgot the true essence of the celebration! Christ was risen; He has resurrected! So most of us went to church in time for the 10 o'clock mass in St. Pio Chapel. We thanked the Lord for having died for us, and rising from the dead to save us from our sins and to give us a shot at eternal life. We thanked Him for all the blessings He has showered upon our families. Of course, that includes the blessing of nourishment; the blessing to be able to enjoy and to afford food, glorious, glorious food! (This is, after all, a food blog! hehee....)

Happy Easter everyone!!!