Sunday Lunch at Patio Vera

A few Sundays ago, I found myself somewhere in the heart of residential Marikina to have lunch with the  hubby's mom and sis.   

The Patio Vera entrance viewed from inside

The place is dog-friendly but dogs are allowed only in the outdoor dining areas.

Hachiko: Human food!

There are three outdoor areas, one is a covered wooden patio that bears the memorabilia of the shoemaker who built this house. I find it homey except that the old doll in the corner gives me the creeps!

Then there is the cabana that could fit about a dozen  diners.

Then there's the uncovered garden area which I think would be a good spot for couples on clear, cool nights.

We started out with the Chorizo Salad made with Romaine lettuce, walnuts, Edam cheese shavings and chorizo bits. The well seasoned and creamy Ceasar dressing put everything together.

The Kapampangan Mixed Seafood Suam na Mais was also interesting with the layer of seafood  added to the corn in the broth. It reminds me of the instant corn and crab soup I usually look for when I have the colds, except you know this one was made with real corn.

For our main entrees we had the very cheesy Callos A La Vera, Pork Spare Ribs and Menudo de Meya. Was told though that their specialty is the Paella de Mariscos.

The tripe of the callos was tender and not chewy but the cheese toppings made it so salty, we didn't get to finish all of it.

The Pork Spareribs was plated really well, making dish more appetizing.  The chunky pork was tender topped with extra barbecue sauce and fat drippings, which to me makes all the difference. Who can resist  that with their rice?

The potatoes and carrots of the Menudo de Meya were cooked separately. This made stew lack that sweet-starchy body you usually enjoy with this tomato-based dish.

 We didn't have time for dessert but would definitely come back here, if only for the ambience...

... and the shoes where they serve your bill.

Patio Vera is located at 70 Gen. F. Santos St., Calumpang, Marikina City.
Tel: 239-06-15

KITCHEN QUICKIE- CRISPY MOLO WRAPPERS WITH PARMESAN

Found myself cooking Pancit Molo last weekend. After wrapping all the shrimp and pork molo meatballs, I still had half a pack of molo wrappers left. Thought of fried dimsum and decided to make a nice snack out of the leftovers.

INGREDIENTS:
Molo wrappers
Cooking oil
Grated Parmesan

PROCEDURE:
Heat the oil.
Cut the molo wrappers into 1- inch strips. Separate.
Dip the strips into the hot oil. Remove when they turn golden brown.
Place the fried strips on top of table napkins (to absorb the excess oil).
Plate the strips and generously top with grated parmesan.

The World is an Apple and the Lady is a Pineapple

I know the title doesn't make any sense but it will if you read through this  really interesting post on  "Arts at Michigan," a site dedicated to integrate "the visual, performing, and literary arts into the undergraduate experience at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor campus."

Click on the pic and you'll get linked 

Is Taste Different from Flavor?

That is a question I do not ask myself everyday. But somebody did.

I found a short video that made  sense of the question.

Click on the pic to get linked to the video

Now you know...  sweets= energy.
If I eat it, I should use it.

THE GREAT CHOCOLATE SHORTAGE... A Lesson in Sustainability and Economic Piracy

THE WORLD WILL END IN 2020, at least for chocoholics like myself.

News about the impending chocolate shortage in 6 years time is killing me but instead of taking it lying down, wallowing in misery, I called to my inner Willie Wonka and began tap, tapping away at my  keyboards. Here is what I discovered:

The first warnings of a chocolate shortage as heard from Mars, not the planet but the makers of the chewy chocolate-covered nougat bar, as reported by confectionerynews.com in June 2011.

Recently, more alarming news has been surging online like a river of hot molten cocoa.

Click on the photo to get linked to the full article.

Click on the photo to get linked to the full article.

People are horrified! The hysteria's been overwhelming, even Stephen Colbert dipped into the issue.

Click on the photo to get linked to the full article.

But before you jump into conclusion that this is like a nightmare where a horde of Dementors from the Harry Potter series come knocking at your door, here's more information that will increase your serotonin levels.

Did you know that most of the cocoa used for your chocolate does not come from the Mayan jungles but from Africa? Most (70%) comes from the Ivory Coast, a former French colony of 24 Million people? I honestly did not.

Source: http://worldcocoafoundation.org

The same report says  that, "unlike large industrial crops, 80% -90% of cocoa comes from small, family-run farms." Out of the 6 billion possible consumers of chocolate around the world, there are only five to six million cocoa farmers. Cocoa trees grow only in tropical environment and its harvest is easily affected by changing weather.

So is climate change mainly to blame?

Not so, says Tim Worstall, a contributor at Forbes magazine.

He says politics and price fixing is also a major factor. "The raw material, cocoa, is not responding to market prices because the government in the largest producer of the stuff is deliberately stopping market forces from working."

And at snopes.com is saying that alarmists have blown the first reports way out of proportion. "Articles circulating on social media cite 2013 chocolate market trend reports; but in those, much of the focus was on increased consumption in regions like China and their impact on the global chocolate supply."

Yes, supply will be shorter and it will be more expensive but there will still be chocolate.

The farmers who produce it will not get any richer, the governments and middlemen richer and the public will be left craving for more.

The question on my mind right now is, "can we produce our own cacao?"

FOUND: CANE ICE CREAM

Jippongi Korean Cane Ice Cream looks cute and, with the cane, very in season. 

The cane cone tastes like unseasoned corn puffs, though and a bit hard to bite.

The ice cream, which comes in 2 flavors- chocolate and vanilla, tastes like any soft ice cream. Nothing special.

Tasty Wake-Me Upper: Edible Coffee Cup

Just saw this article online about the Alfred Cone, a waffle cone coffee dipped in chocolate that's used to serve coffee. Delicious idea.

Source: http://instagram.com/alfredcoffee

The cups are served with wax paper holders.

If you think this is interesting, here's what;s been written about it (just click on the picture and you should be redirected to the sites) :

 

MAMON SERVED WITH A SIDE OF GRAMMAR

This blog entry was written sometime in  2013 when I was attempting  to go back to food blogging.


 My hubby, the real grammar Nazi, was first to spot this ad with a problematic Filipino grammar.

Here's  a concise version of the rule on the right usage of the unlapi (prefix).

Source: http://tl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unlapi

 Yeah, it might be from Wikipedia but it's still right.

I wouldn't have minded it if it weren't plastered on a billboard across EDSA and if the advertiser hadn't used it nationally televised commercials. I made a short rant post on my FB page about it because it really bothered me that the company and the agency would be so careless in its copy. 

I guess it wasn't just me who noticed the mistake because soon after, the billboards were changed.

I don't know if they changed the  TV commercial, too. I'm just glad that whoever gave the go signal to spend a bit more to correct a mistake did so. Salamat.