Therese in the Philippines: Uncle Cheffy

I've been in the Philippines on summer vacation for the past month now, and what that means is... Eating and more eating! One of the restaurants I went to is Uncle Cheffy, located in Lucky Chinatown Mall.

Since I was only with my mom that time, we couldn't order a lot of food just for the two of us. We went with their all meat barbecued panizza, for which they are famous for, and their New England pot roast beef paired with a cup of rice.

There were 6 slices of panizza, enough for two people. We really liked it because it was cheesy and crispy. There were also good bits of BBQ although we didn't really like their meat. They also gave us an extra set of fillings for free. If you ask for another set after that, you'd have to pay extra.

After that, the roast beef and the cup of rice arrived. The beef they used was fatty and there weren't a lot of pieces so we were sorta disappointed with that. The sauce and the couple pieces of root vegetables were yummy though!

All Meat Barbecued Panizza | 235 PhP (medium), 450 PhP (family)

New England Pot Roast Beef | 280 PhP

All in all a good meal! Yum!

Have you been there? Any other recommendations? My mom and I are thinking of going back there to try their grilled oysters and other panizza flavors! You can also cross-order food from Kusê, a Filipino restaurant because they have they are in the same location (same owner, perhaps?)

Address: 3rd floor Lucky Chinatown Mall Binondo, Manila
Contact #: (02) 708-9576
You can email them at chefsbinondo@yahoo.com or add them on Facebook!

Papa John's Pizza

Papa John's
by Nicole


Hungry for pizza? Head over to the nearest Papa John's! Hands down, the pizza here is definitely BETTER!

We all know that pizza is junk food but here in Papa John's, their pizzas are certainly not junk (unless of course you eat too much and you don't exercise to turn all the carbs you ate into energy instead of storing them into fat). Papa John's pizzas are first of all not oily (standing ovation y'all :D) and the dough is perfect - chewy, not over or under baked, and not bland. Papa John's boasts of serving only "fresh, never frozen, original dough" which, in my opinion, is evident in the taste and the texture of it.

Every time my folks and I go here, we always have this salad. In my family, we always see to it as much as possible to eat something raw before devouring anything cooked because raw food is great for digestion compared to cooked food for heat destroys the enzymes in the food. Enzymes are necessary for digestion and you get enzymes on raw food. Anyway, going back to the salad, I like this because the veggies are fresh-tasting.

Chef's Salad

For starters, I highly recommend these cheese sticks! They call them cheese sticks but they don't look like sticks, right? Anyhow that is not important because these, THESE ARE DELICIOUS!!! If there's one junk food that I could only eat for the rest of my life, these would be my number one pick. Make sure you don't leave Papa John's without trying these cheese sticks. They are served with two kinds of sauces - one butter and some tomato sauce.

Cheese Sticks
Php 99.00

Before we go the the pizza, let's explore a little bit on Papa John's pastas. First we have the seafood marinara. Just by looking at the photo, you know that it's real seafood. I mean, there are some restaurants where on their menu it says "seafood" but when they serve you the food, you only get two/three pieces of shrimp, a tiny slice of squid and that's it. I'm just happy that this pasta does not disappoint. I like the sauce of this pasta too - just right for my taste.

Seafood Marinara
Php 190.00

This carbonara is my ever-picky sister's favourite. She ate it all! That sister of mine is so picky with food she should be in the Guinness World Book of Records so if she's able to finish a plate of food, then that food sure is good. Trust me on that.

Seafood Carbonara
Php 180.00

Now let's get down to business. Presenting the pizzas! Each pizza comes in different sizes. They have the 6" (4 slices), 9" (6 slices), 12" (8 slices), and 14" (10 slices).

Pepperoni pizza comes first. This never misses our table.

Papa John's Pepperoni
Jr. Papa (Php 160), 9" (Php 315), 12" (Php 450), 14" (Php 555)

I'm not sure if you've already noticed but that day, it was seafood overload for us ha ha! Not complaining though because all of the food was good! I've never eaten a seafood pizza filled with much seafood as this in any other place. Thumbs up to Papa John's!

Papa John's call their seafood pizza "Fisherman's catch." This pizza indeed has plump shrimps and calamari, green peppers, and onions. It is served with garlic sauce too but I wasn't able to try that on this pizza.

Fisherman's Catch
9" (Php 315), 12" (Php 450), 14" (Php 555)

This is the most unforgettable pizza I've eaten from Papa John's so far. They call this "Super Papa" and their menu says this is the ultimate combination of tasty toppings - pepperoni, Italian sausage, ham, mushrooms, onions, green peppers, and black olives. Pepperoni is my number 1 favourite pizza but this Super Papa, super beats pepperoni! Super Papa is super GOOD. I love the taste - the flavours go so well together, it has a hint of sweetness in it because of the onions, then a strong flavour from the Italian sausage and olives, the cheese and the tomato sauce are wow and the dough is perfect!

Papa John's Super Papa
9" (Php 340), 12" (Php 475), 14" (Php 580)

With all that I ate that day, I told myself I'd never eat pizza ever again but then again, I already said that a couple of times before. Hence, I guess I'll never give up on you, pizza! By the way, if you can't get enough of Papa John's pizza, you may want to take advantage of their UNLI PIZZA every Tuesdays, from 6PM to 9PM for only Php 199! Promo runs until 24 July 2012.  Go, go, go! Careful with the carbs though.

Papa John's Philippines:

1. Robinsons Galleria Veranda (631 8689/ 736 0570)

2. University Mall Taft Ave (536 5434 / 536 4612)
3. Greenhills (721 9676 / 722 2612)
4. SM Megamall (634 0966 / 637 5299)
5. Brick Road, Sta Lucia (645 7272 / 681 4147)
6. Tomas Morato (921 7272 / 921 7590)
7. BF Homes, Pque (519 7272 / 478 1171)
8. SM Fairview (921 7764 / 921 8423)
9. SM North EDSA (921 8263 / 921 8321)
10. Arnaiz Ave (887 7272 / 822 5272)
11. Greenbelt 3 (919 4925 / 919 4926)
12. Jupiter, Makati (890 7272 / 836 2096)
13. Waltermart Sucat (801 7272 / 801 6615)

Tiffy: Revisiting Pizza Hut

Revisiting Pizza Hut
January 1, 2012
by Tiffy

I don't know about you but Pizza Hut was the place that my family and I go to every Sunday when we go out. I have fond memories of the place.

Really looking forward to getting some pizza! 

Aglio Olio | Php 109 | USD 3.49

3-Cheese Bacon & Spinach | Php 329 | USD 7.51

If you're looking for some greasy loving, you know where to go. 

Herschel: A Night at Uno Pizzeria

I was enthusiastic to take on the challenge of covering my first ManilaFoodistas event last Friday night (did I hear a song?!) – solo at that, and while the gang wasn’t around to supervise, I came to enjoy the experience, with food as the star of the show.

Organized by the people behind OpenRice Philippines as a “mini-eyeball”, several site members and an assortment of guest bloggers and friends were invited to Uno Pizzeria to mingle, sample and most of all, have fun!

Uno Pizzeria Ristorante Bar, an Italian-American-Asian fusion-themed joint, is located at Pasay’s San Miguel by the Bay (behind the MOA complex, and near the MOA Eye that Nicole blogged about last week), among the offshoot of restaurants that lined the strip. The façade of the resto was painted in red and black, quite like a playing card suit, while the interiors were austere white (even for the chairs and tables).

The rest of the room is spacious. Neon blue lights accented the dining area, while fiery red donned the mini-bar. Mini-bar, you say? If neon lights, mirrorballs and DJs were any indication, let me clue you in later…

Pride of place: the bestseller, Four Seasons Pizza

We started the night with a hefty Four Seasons Pizza (that consisted of West Side Shrimp Pesto, Tandoori Chicken Mango, Uno’s White Pizza, and Ruby Ribs, if I wasn’t mistaken). Among the three out of four variants I tried out the shrimp pizza won me over, as I am perpetually in love with shrimps slathered with white cheese. Good thing they came out with a similar pie, the Uno's Seafood Pizza, entirely indulgent with calamari and more shrimp. The Tandoori Chicken Mango wasn’t bad either, if you’re into a more savory, Asian bite.

Uno's Seafood Pizza

Tender and delicious: Ruby Ribs

The main entrée came shortly, and it was a revelation. Behold the Ruby Ribs, said to be Uno’s specialty – it was a juicy piece of bones and meat, tender to the bite and the sauce seasoned just right. Our platter was served with ‘Tato Wedges, although the menu says entrees are to be served with buttered vegetables with your choice of mashed potatoes or rice, or pasta with soup.

(from left, clockwise: Pesto Chicken Parmigiana, Grilled Chicken Salad Wraps, Jumpin' Jambalaya, Chicken Barbeque Quesadillas)

And with that the night just got started. We had appetizers of Buffalo Wings (not spicy or crunchy as I assumed) and Grilled Chicken Salad Wraps (light and filling). The only thin crust pizza came, called Buddha’s Feast, as it was strewn with lettuce and tomatoes. Two kinds of pasta were served: the Pesto Chicken Parmigiana and the Jumpin’ Jambalaya (pomodoro-style, smattered with ham, sausage, shrimp and chicken). While being a noodle head, the accompanying sauces were quite an overwhelming combination – mildly sour (in the case of parmigiana), and not the usual savory tomato (with the Jambalaya). I felt that the flavors could have been improved, as the servings were good (for 4, at least) and the toppings adequate.

I was appeased by the next entrée, a juicy, smoked chicken chop with mild-tasting sauce. We also had Chicken Barbeque Quesadillas (tasty, filled with cheese and smothered by toasted but soft tortilla wraps). And in case you wondered, we gulped the bulk (there were so many!) down with iced tea and a couple of mixed-drink towers (Margarita and Weng Weng).

For the encore, it was apt to have a meaty deep dish pizza. Being an inveterate bread eater, I had no qualms with the quality of the pies. The baked dough was soft in texture, whether thin or regular or deep dish. As mentioned earlier, I preferred cheese-overloaded and seafood-strewn pizzas, although Uno’s other variations suited my tastes too.

Our party was rather small, but the beauty of holding an early dinner was that as the night wore on, the vibe of the place evolved. Featuring an in-house DJ, R&B grooves as musical ambiance played as we ate. Around eight, when we were just about full, some guests were pouring in looking for a quick drink (hence the mini-bar). And up until the crack of nine, the aural pace slowly crept with dance tunes and current pop ditties! The pizzeria was converted to a lounge by the sweep of an hour! As we left the room with a crowd assembled near the entrance, I had to say that under the spot’s initially relaxed demeanor lives a frenetic spirit. HT for MF

---

Uno Pizzeria Ristorante Bar
Bldg G, Units 9-14 San Miguel by the Bay MOA Complex
Pasay City, Metro Manila 1300
Contact Number: 555-1174

Special thanks to Uno Pizzeria’s proprietor Alvin Ong and manager Girlie Herrera, and to the eager team behind OpenRice.com (Khaezel, Cecille, Dani & Raissa) for the evening.

(Disclaimer: The views expressed on this entry are those solely of the poster/diner. The opinions do not represent the consensus of MF, the featured dining spot, and/or third parties.)

Tokyo Café Revisited

Tokyo Café Revisited
A review by Nicole

Hello everyone! :)

For my first review here in MF, I wanted and was supposed to introduce you guys to my favourite café somewhere in Mother Ignacia avenue but because I'm a nocturnal ergo I sleep during daytime and was such a slowpoke today, I was not able to catch it open (they close at 7:00PM on Sundays). So. . . I ended up in a different place. Here:

@Level 3 SM Megamall

The huge menu outside

I promised my sisters at home that I'd buy them pizza (was thinking of buying them a Margherita at an Italian restaurant). But on my way there, I saw this huge menu of Tokyo Café and saw that they have pizza as well so I decided to order here instead (just to try something new). I really appreciate those huge menu outside restaurants because they give you ideas beforehand. It's so helpful particularly when you can't decide where to eat. 

The moment I sat down at my table, the staff right away served me a glass of water. I was so pleased because in my past dining experiences, most often times it took a while before I got served with a glass of water.

I ordered the Tokyo white pizza for take out and while waiting, I was munching  on their Tokyo Caesar Salad. Tokyo Café boasts of offering western dishes with "distinct Japanese touch" but I got disappointed because I didn't see nor taste any Japanese factor in their Caesar Salad. I expected that it would be a somehow different kind of salad but it was just an okay salad.  When I got home, my sisters and I all shared the Tokyo White Pizza and it was good. The Tabasco sauce goes really well with it.

Tokyo Caesar Salad (Php 151, US$ 3.15)
Their menu says:  Classic light  mayonnaise piquant dressing over romaine with a Tokyo twist, served with crisp bacon bits, croutons, and parmesan


Tokyo White Pizza (Php 208, US$ 4.83)
Creamy white sauce and mozzarella




I can't really comment much on Tokyo Café's food in general because I have only tried two of their dishes. Now one thing that I really like about this restaurant is their service! Their staff is fast, friendly and attentive. I like the ambiance too - it's not loud and the seats are comfortable. I guess I'd be stopping by again when I've got some paper work to do (I'd like to try their cheesecakes!). And oh, they offer free wi-fi too.

P.S. Just in case you're wondering why I entitled this post as such, it's because MF hasposted a review of Tokyo Café last 2008.

Address and Phone Number

SM Megamall
SM Megamall Bldg. A, ESDA cor Julia Vargas Ave
Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila
SM The Block
2nd floor, The Block
SM North Edsa 216A-216B
(02) 441 0346
SM Mall of Asia
Ground Floor, South Wing
Main Mall Bldg.,
(02) 556 0517

Xtreme Cheese Pizzas for MEN

Greenwich recently launched their Xtreme Cheese Pizzas for MEN - the Philly Cheese Steak Overload, with half-pound of roast beef, double layer of mozzarella and cream cheeses, and the Monster Cheese & Pepperoni Overload, with 100% more pepperoni and double layer of mozzarella cheese.


These new additions are priced the same as their Overloaded Xtreme Cheese Pizzas (Extreme Cheese & Sausage Overload, Cheese Blockbuster Overload, and 5 Cheeses & Garlic Overload) which start at Php 307 for the Rolled-Edge Thick Crust Double and Php 263 for the Thin & Crispy Crust Double, and increase accordingly as per size of pizza (Family, 18" Blowout/Party Square)



I love the mix of the Philly Cheese Steak, a cheesier pizza with roast beef, fresh crunchy green bell-pepper, and of course, the star, the cheeses. It's quite interesting to note though that they have been advertising this on print and on the television as pizzas "for MEN". It might not exclude women from buying and trying their pizzas, but it's quite discriminating and exclusivist in my opinion.

Photos taken by Bong's Sony Ericsson W760i

Bloggers' Event | California Pizza Kitchen's Make Your Own Pizza

Make Your Own Pizza Adventure
Bong at California Pizza Kitchen
Glorietta, Makati City

Nothing beats a freshly made thin crust pizza that came straight from the oven. Weeks ago, California Pizza Kitchen invited bloggers and media friends to embark on a culinary adventure by recreating the bestselling pizzas of CPK.

Each guest was able to make his own pizza from the dozens of recipes that were featured - Thai Chicken, Jamaican Jerk Chicken, Greek, BBQ Chicken, and a whole lot more.

"Our California-style pizzas are famous for their use of fresh ingredients sourced locally and around the world," said Archie Rodriguez, President of Global Restaurant Concepts, Inc., the Philippine franchise owner of California Pizza Kitchen. Wth the pizza I did, the Tricolore Salad Pizza, I can say that indeed their toppings are fresh.

You'll be amazed and think that you're pizza's just simple because of the ingredients (corn syrup and Parmesan) you have added to the dough before it went in the oven. But lo and behold, this was what my pizza looked like after it came out from the oven and garnished with the fresh healthy ingredients. I can eat this everyday. The mix of the salad and the cheese based pizza dough really complements each other. And since I am a salad person, this pizza's just perfect for me.

Tricolore Salad Pizza
1 TBL Corn Syrup
3 TBL parmesan

Pizza Garnish
6 cups tricolore salad mix
3/4 cup diced tomato
2 oz Dijon balsamic vinegar
1 oz shaved parmesan
Optional: 1 portion grilled shrimp

Reviewed by Bong.
Photography by Eric of Byahilo.