Saint's Alp Teahouse

It was my first time to try Saint's Alp Teahouse. I brought my family to Saint's Alp Katipunan, located right above the Fullybooked branch along Katipunan Avenue, in front of Ateneo. I have been really curious about this place, as I have tried other milk tea and tea stores which have taken Manila by storm, and sprouted like mushrooms everywhere you look. Lucky for tea lovers like myself, we have a lot of options to choose from.



Saint's Alp Teahouse has a nicely decorated interior, which provides comfy seats and great ambiance. It isn't just a tea shop, because it also offers a variety of food and beverage items for customers to choose from (which is also good, come to think of it).




And since I had Php 1000 gift certificate to use that night, I browsed through a very long menu, and decided to order these for the family to try:



We ordered the 2 Taiwanese Breaded Chops (Chicken and Pork) with Marinated Minced Pork add ons (Php 195 + Php 60 = Php 255): Quite honestly, I like the chicken better than the pork. The chicken chops were okay, but with the minced pork combined, it was good and filling. We also got a Large Chicken Breast (Php 110) to add on to the chops.



An all time Filipino breakfast favorite, the Beef Tapa w/ Garlic Rice & Egg (Php 195), I think, was the better choice. The tapa was soft, tasty, and flavorful.



For cheese lovers, you might want to try their Cheesy Tempura Balls (Php 90), which is a good appetizer. Watch out for the oozing hot cheese, if you don't want to scald your tongue. It's fried cheese in light tempura batter.



A must try off their menu is the Matcha (half-and-half) Peanut Butter Toast with Tea (Php 90). Matcha flavor and peanut butter with honey green tea equals perfect combination. The toast is a perfect snack, combined with a perfect hot tea, which is flavorful.




The drinks reminded me why the place is called a teahouse. Surely, I can say that the beverage is good. As for drinks, we got the Almond Milk Tea (Php 115) and Blueberry Double Chocolate Sorbies (Php 130). The almond milk tea is a refreshing taste, something different from what I have tasted so far. I think it's good for almond lovers, or those who want the tea taste hidden. The Blueberry Double Chocolate Sorbies is one of the best iced blended drinks you should try in Saint's Alp. Who would have imagined blueberry and chocolate (double) actually works. It's a little sweet for my taste though, other than that it's a perfect cooler!



Last, but definitely not the least. This is the star of the night. The best drink I have tasted in Saint's Alp Teahouse. It's actually not a tea-based drink, but it's great for coffee lovers, like myself. Sumiyaki Coffee with Coffeeagar (Php 150). Really good strong coffee with coffee jelly on ice. Yummy! :)



Saint's Alp Teahouse
2/F Regis Center, 327 Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City
G/F Forbeswood Parklane, Rizal Drive, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
Tel#: 990-2194 (Katipunan), 478-7135 (Fort Branch)
http://www.saintsalp.com.hk/

Danne: Midnight Mercato

Last Saturday, I had a chance to revisit Midnight Mercato and check out the food stalls they had that night.

The website says it opens at 10PM, but we arrived at the place at around 9:40PM and the tables and chairs were already almost fully-occupied then. The trick is actually to arrive there before 9:30PM so that you'd end up eating sitting down rather than standing up.

They had unique food finds and prices were reasonable. You could get a full meal at around PhP 200-PhP 250. Most were cooked upon order, so there was an appetizing aroma all around.

I haven’t had the chance to eat from all stalls but here were some of the interesting finds:

Johnny Steams (Steamed burger)

Taclings (Bite-sized tacos in egg cartons)

PhP 60/carton or PhP 100 for 2 cartons

I got the chance to try these and they were delicious. The rule is to eat one whole piece in one bite. It's not date food since you'd have a difficult time stuffing this all in, but the better part comes once you chew on them.

There was also a stall that had Krispy Kreme-burger patty-Krispy Kreme. Isn't that sinful?

And then there were spuds. Remember me telling you how much I love potatoes in any size, shape or color?

One order of Cheesy Potatoes costs PhP 50. They were soaked in cheese and really tasted good.

Manang's Chicken (Double deep-fried crispy chicken goodness)

This stall that sold this chicken had one of the longest lines that night.

I wish they had more chairs, or even just standing tables to accommodate people. The crowd began to thicken at around 10:30, so it’s a lot better to arrive earlier or a lot later.

You can always check out the layouts of the food stalls (just in case you want to rush in once you arrive) at their official website.

Mercato has recently moved to its new location (but still inside The Fort) at 34th Street and 8th Avenue (across MC Home Depot), Bonifacio Global City. Food bazaar starts at 10PM and ends at 3AM.

The next time your tummy begins to grumble on a Friday or Saturday night, you know where to head to!

Danne