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Breakfast buffet at Belmont Hotel Manila

Back in 2019, I remember having lunch at Cafe Belmont during one of my Manila trips.   It was that serving dish of crabs that had me at first glance and it never faded in my memory.  Now, five years later, it’s the breakfast buffet that would tickle my gastronomic fantasies.  We stayed at Belmont Hotel Manila for my parents 50th anniversary and for  two days we had our fill of delicious breakfast. Check out more photos on Facebook From the staples like bacon, ham and sausages to Pinoy faves like tuyo, dilis and danggit. I just love this kind of spread of which local faves go side by side with contemporary fares.  As the first meal of the day where one stocks up carbo, I’m glad there was plenty. From rice, potatoes and pancit to pancakes, waffles and breads - I love the pudding. There’s an egg station where you can request how you would like your eggs cooked - hardboiled, sunny side up or scrambled You can DIY your omelette with lots of fillings to choose from with the assistance from
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Teren-Teren from Buho Bakery

Named after its resemblance to trains, teren-teren is a popular bakery staple in most Iloilo bakeshops. And this one from the iconic Buho Baker y is no exception when it comes to popularity.   It is how the  individual breads (with sweet stuffing) are connected to look like train "cabooses" that gave its name. The "stuff" is just  like sweetened dough, almost like the ones in hopia but just colored but when its fresh hot off the oven, it is heaven in every bite! Just be careful since the filling is hot! And what can be more iconic than having your teren-teren order, handed down to you via the most popular hole-in-the-wall in Iloilo! 
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Delicious Bot-ong from Brgy. Lanag in Santa Barbara, Iloilo

If a picture is worth a thousand words, there would be thousands of the word namit (delicious) written all over this native delicacy called bot-ong. Bot-ong is made with glutinous rice mixed with gata wrapped in banana leaves in a pointed shape then boiled until cooked. It is like ibos but with different shape and wrapper. Ibos is mostly tubular and wrapped on coconut leaves while bot-ong is pointed at one end and wrapped in banana leaves. Ibos and Bot-ong being wrapped and still uncooked. Photo from Google While the dips could be interchangeable, ibos is usually paired with sugar, bukayo or ripe mango while bot-ong with latik which is  made with gata and sugar boiled until it is syrupy and caramelized. One of my fave bot-ongs now comes from Brgy. Lanag in Santa Barbara, Iloilo from the same makers of  Puto sa Lanag .  I could eat 5 or even more in just one sitting when the bot-ong is warm and drizzled with the latik.  Will give details on how to order these delicious
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Labanos with ground pork

How about some labanos or radish?  Most likely you've encountered labanos in a Sinigang recipe or as an appetizer with vinegar dressing. But on its own, I love its peppery-bitter (or how might you call it) taste. If it's in season or if its really  cheap in the market , we'd have like a "Labanos Festival" at home. And here's one of the simplest recipes using radish. Here's the recipe for Labanos Guisado with Ground Pork .
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Suman Latik ala "Trifle"

Suman Latik is one of my ultimate favorite native delicacies ( check out more ) and most of the time these are sold in the public markets in pairs. It consists of a flattened ibos (or suman as referred up north) topped with bukayo - coconut strips sweetened by muscovado sugar. But most of the time, my appetite hungers for more than a pair of these or the bukayo portion is bitin that I wish there's more. And at times we just make our own at home so that we can enjoy this suman-bukayo combo to our heart's content. But the wrapping of the sticky rice in banana leaves when cooking and unwrapping it for eating, is labor extensive - sort of. So out of the blue, we just thought of making it "Trifle-style". Inspired by the British dessert which Tinapayan at Iloilo Supermart recreates in Ube and Strawberry , our Suman Latik "Trifle" is a native delicacies version made with layers of suman/ibos and bukayo. It's a delectable presentation, easy
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Meryenda with Gardenia : Toast Toppings Challenge

It's meryenda time! And make it even more delicious with Gardenia. Among the most popular and widely available brands in the country, Gardenia is famous for its Classic White Bread, its signature product. GARDENIA Classic White bread is not only known for its freshness, softness and oven-baked aroma but also for its nutritive value. It is made with high-protein flour, is folate-enriched and has vitamins (A, B1, B2, B3 and C) and minerals  (calcium, iron and iodine) It is also cholesterol-free, has zero transfat, zero saturated fat and bromate-free!  And definitely, one loaf is not enough! So always stock up whenever you do your grocery shopping. With a lot Gardenia breads in my midst ( madamo gid nga salamat , Gardenia ), I decided to challenge myself in making some toast toppings with ingredients I could find in the fridge and in the cupboard. And here are some of my favorites which are also very easy to make. HAWAIIAN 🍍 What could be more tropical and distinctly Hawaiian than
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Australia Dairy Company: HongKong’s iconic breakfast place

Finally, after four trips to Hongkong, I found myself at the restaurant I’ve been meaning to visit since my first visit back in 2016. Despite with its “not-so-HK” sounding name, Australia Dairy Company is a culinary institution and has often been described as an iconic Hong Kong restaurant. The company was named by the founder as such because he had worked in an Australian farm in the 1940s and now, his resto is one of the most popular “ chaan tengs ” or HK stye cafe or diners most common as breakfast places. Its sole branch is located in Jordan in Kowloon along Parkes Street. And it has always been plagued with a long queue especially during breakfast as locals and tourists vie for seats to start their day with their specialties. The restaurant is notable for its efficiency as even during the rush breakfast hour when I visited, my orders came out in less than a minute. While it is also infamous for its rude service, I didn’t experience it that time. Maybe they just improved over the y
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Delectable Tales from Hongkong Carinderias

FOOD (well, almost everything) in HongKong 🇭🇰 is EXPENSIVE. A rice topping combo meal with drinks from typical roadside restos is usually around ₱500,  pastries cost almost ₱250/piece as well as bottled soda/juice/etc around ₱90. Char Siu and Soy Chicken Rice Toppings Food at malls and at HK Disneyland (₱1,200 for my Hulk burger combo) will make a dent on your budget… plus many more. Hulk Burger Combo with Large Fries and Drinks  Good thing I found one turo-turo in Tsim Sha Shui called Eat More More that serves affordable food (for HK standards). For only HK$ 33 (roughly ₱250) you get 1 rice and 2 ulam (becomes HK$40 with 3 ulam) Though it is still expensive when converted but it is already cheap when you spend in HK$. They said that these RICE + ULAM shops started during the pandemic when most chefs were out of work and to make ends meet, they made food from their homes and sell - carinderia-style. While most of these turo-turo are TAKE OUT ONLY (like the one in TST), I found anothe
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