Hearty eating is compatible with dining with my parents. Three times in a row, we ate at the Golden Fortune Seafood Restaurant that has been around for quite a long time at the first floor of Peace Hotel in Binondo. I was there before, and yet the experience felt new once again. Having eaten at nearly all the restaurants in Binondo, I can sufficiently rate the quality of food from this Chinese restaurant.

Take, for instance, their hakaw. You have to wait a bit ‘coz they have to steam them fresh to avoid that dried out texture. Theirs pass my test.

I love(!) it when they try to meet special requests, like I asked for fresh mustard leaves in a soup, but with something else other than in the menu. The out of the box mustard and lapu-lapu combination turned out first-rate. Mom’s stuffed tofu was so appetizing. We all loved the seafood canton, which we ordered in place of rice every time.

Golden Fortune was always packed. Obviously a favorite for dim sum and hot pot. Prices are commensurate to quality, still within reach.

Golden Fortune Seafood Restaurant Ground Floor Peace Hotel 1283 Soler St. Binondo, Manila

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2014

Pasta and cake seem a better match lately. Did you notice, there’s a whole new slew of restaurants with bakery, or vice versa? Is the bakery-café just a trend? Or it must be the Filipino culture and tradition of eating big, like Max’s realized later. We see Conti’s Bakery and Restaurant and Café Mary Grace grow bigger everyday.

Diversity, quality and pleasurable ambiance are major factors that elevate these hybrids to cult status. We’ve seen Wildflour’s rise to fame. Hatch 22 continues to serve all-day breakfast. We’re hearing more of upscale Shine Bakery and Cafe. And there’s also the friendly neighborhood kind of bakery-cafés cropping up. Because of its convenient location, I like going to Dolcelatte, what about you?

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2014

I have a new super easy and fun recipe perfect for you. Not only kids love cheesy quesadillas. With added creativity, you can transform basic quesadillas into holiday pica pica.

Make our own tortillas with these simple steps.

Flour Tortilla Ingredients
1/2 kilo flour
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1 whole egg
butter, softened

Making the Tortillas
Whisk all ingredients until they cling together. Texture should be tight enough to hold into a dough. Form a ball and roll in a lightly floured surface, then knead the ball flat into half cm thickness. Your raw tortilla should be about 8-10 inches in diameter. Repeat steps until you are ready to heat tortillas on a non-stick pan. Brush pan with butter. Cook each side for about 30 seconds or when air pockets have decompressed.

Making Quesadillas
For the cheese filling, you will be needing a combination of cheeses, preferably Monterey Jack and cheddar. Follow photo instructional. Brush pan with butter. Cooking time of quesadillas will depend on crunchiness desired.

Serve with salsa. To add a festive touch, dish up with avocado wedges and sour cream. You can also create unique fillings when you are able to perfect your tortillas. Enjoy!

Photos by BlauEarth. Background courtesy of Lucy Nieto on Flickr
© Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2014

K’s Bakeshop and Delicacies, originally from Tuguegarao City, arrives in Laoag, offering fresh ways to love bread. Karen Bayog’s twist to the buko pie, a bread roll filled with glazed young coconut meat, is attracting even rich kids I know who eat more sosyal pastries. I tried it myself and found it unique. It’s almost like fresh from the oven pan de coco, but with more bite and oomph. The healthier lechon (hahah, budget lechon), is sweet bread formed in the shape of a pig. A tad sweeter that panaderia monay, says Louie, the manager I suppose.

Their cookies are supersized. Custard cake comes also in mamon size. They accept orders for customized rolls and cakes. Though located west of the business district of Laoag, it is close to the bus terminals, particularly RCJ, Fariñas Trans and Maria de Leon and government offices. They are open 24 hours a day, so K’s Bakeshop is a welcome relief to many.

I saw my favorite moon cookies, you know those plain, crumbly old-fashioned cookies.

I ate the missing buko roll:)

K’s Bakeshop and Delicacies Don. S Hernando Ave., Laoag City. (Located near RCJ Terminal.)

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2014

A little north of Laoag is the balikbayan town of Bacarra. It is also the home of the Leaning Bell Tower, the Museo de Bacarra, the crispiest empanada, Petrina’s Pastries and Delicacies, popular for cassava cake topped with dulce de leche and cheese, and the endearing distinctively big Ilocano accent.

Visited the newly redesigned plaza. Plazas in Ilocos, both in Norte and Sur, are getting updated, one after the other. Elements such as fountains are cool additions, especially that the climate in this side of the country is dry most of the year. Lighting has become also very important, and residents are liking the idea of promenading nowadays. I myself have discovered a newfound respect for my own city’s Aurora Park. If I’m not mistaken, young Bacarreño architect, Jeff Acob, has contributed to the new design of the plaza.

The centuries-old Bacarra Bell Tower (on the right) would have looked like the mini bell tower inside the plaza if it were not badly damaged by natural disasters.

If you are an Ilocos empanada lover, Bacarra’s crispy empanada is one of the best empanadas I’ve ever had in Ilocos. There are only two makers in Bacarra. Both of them have makeshift stalls in their homes along Rizal Ave. Alicia’s Empanada, in particular, the first one if you’re going in from the east, is different because the shell is paper thin, yet so crispy and able to hold the filling. We tried the one with papaya and malasado (half-done) egg, because they ran out of longaniza and we liked it so much that I ordered one more without egg. Surprisingly, the papaya has that sauerkraut crunch sameness that makes it stand on its own, I came to note. I heard about this place from locals.

Petrina’s dulce de leche-filled ensaymadas are good when you crave for ensaymadas here in Ilocos.

I’m excited about the coming year, what about you?

Photographed by Reny and Blauearth
© Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2014

Ever wondered what the heck has a political party of the old society got to do with an Ilocano meal? KBL is short for kamatis, lasona and bugguong (the Ilocano fish sauce that’s similar to bagoong Balayan from Batangas, and is commonly fermented monamon (dilis), taburkik and also padas fish). KBL is an omnipresent part of the Ilocano food culture. Best with chicharon (bagnet to others), grilled fish, Ilocos longaniza, lechon or fried dishes like pork chop, but a lot like myself eat it with simple fried rice or plain rice. So there goes the kuri tag.

Young lasona is definitely the best, but since native onions have a long shelf life, like garlic, mature ones occupy a space in our kitchens.

Others preserve onions in vinegar, like Vigan consumes more onions than the Northern Ilocos province. Their empanada and okoy are served with a bowl of sukang Iloco and lasona.

Native onions make dinakdakan (pork face salad) and poqui-poqui or eggplant salad and Ilocano ginisa dishes more fragrantly appetizing.

Took these photos at a stall standing along the National Highway in Pinili.

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

To match the thrills at epic Laoag Sand Dunes, we proceeded to Tayamen’s Place for what else but the cult isaw. We also had fishball and kikiam. Trust me.

Written on the sands of Laoag — Ilocos Sand Boarding by LEAD. We turned 5 last year. Thank you so much for your support.

Tony Daniel, a West Point graduate and a snowboarder says — the sand adventure is one of the best 10 things he’s done in his life.

Photographed by Rommel Felipe and Blauearth. Tayamen’s Place pano, by Samantha Jackson
© Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

I knew more or less what Tita Sarah’s Fine Foods would be serving at my balikbayan cousin Samantha’s birthday lunch. After all, Tita Sarah (a bilas, our husbands are brothers) inherited most of my husband’s mom and dad’s specialties, and put her own touch. So what else to bring than Lynne’s (my talented cook’s) sushi and sashimi platter? She’s so creative that she rolled some in black and white lenga (local sesame seeds) instead of say roe.

Sam’s relatives in Ilocos like the Lazos, Fabicos and Enriques were there.

Left to right: Tita Sylvia, Tita Josie Carlson, Tita Sipin Fabico, Samantha, Tita Aunong Enrique and my Ninang Leoncia Cu.There’s my mother-in-law’s fresh lumpia, which is also now one of Lynne’s specialties. Besides Asian-influenced Filipino food, Tita Sarah prepared Ilocano dishes such as imbaliktad (half-cooked beef and offal with papaitan) and there was also crispy pata. May and I went to the Holy Spirit Academy of Laoag, but she migrated to the States when we were just starting elementary school.

Photographed by Samantha Jackson and Blauearth.
© Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

Ilocos is also known for that roasted sticky rice cake called tupig, wrapped in I-need-someone-to-unwrap-it-for-me banana leaves. My favorite tupig are the ones with black lenga (sesame seeds) like this one, or the buttery kind like the ones from Irene’s in Currimao in this post. But there’s also this other tupig that has won a provincewide cook-off last year. I’ve tried it and excited to share it with you soon.

So, the photos will show you how the traditional tupig is made. Irene’s Native Delicacies is so conveniently located along the National Highway in Pias Norte. These ones are definitely special.

Here’s a tupig recipe if you are dying to have one and can’t travel to Ilocos. Maybe you can bake them instead.

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

A crocodile hotdog from the Hero hotdog stand at a Wilcon and your Louis Vuitton crocodile skin bag might come from the same crocodile from a crocodile farm somewhere in the Philippines. I’m not joking.

What do you think I got? I’m not that daring like you think I am. I got Swiss shublig. For 120, I think I got my money’s worth. It was huge, the bread was nice and hot, and pickle relish and mustard were gushy. I don’t think they even have mustard at places like your favorite fast food.

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

Thank you to Jana Siratranont, former Tourism Officer of Ilocos Sur, for leading me to the Kannawidan food and product fair featuring the indigenous products of the different municipalities of Southern Ilocos. After a scrumptious merienda of dinoydoy pasta and a rich slice of my fave sans rival at Bigaa Gastropub, btw, Joey Generoso and the entire Side A band were also drunching, I proceeded to the stadium and had fun exploring.

Omg, such beautiful discoveries like Bungo ice cream, which I had been chasing in the last few years. The most recent, I went to Brgy. Bungro, San Ildefonso, with my cousins, but community folks were having a day-off from all the holiday madness. I thought the flavors would be so strange to appreciate, but it turns out they are quite contemporary, not to mention the green branding. Malunggay was lovely, it’s their best seller, but bell pepper tasted so much like cheese pimiento, say? I give them two thumbs up!

Isn’t the oversized durian bag from San Juan so chic and perfect for summer? You can get one through special order at Gab’s Buricraft, located in front of the San Juan Public Market (09153729960 / 09434166978).

Thanks also go to Peng, Melchor and Jerson Paz, who took the photo of Jana and me at Bigaa.

Dinoydoy is a traditional mashed squash dish. With bagnet and pasta, it came out appetizingly fab!
Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

Northwestern University President Ferdinand Nicolas, wife Mich and Isaiah.

As guaranteed, I reached the occasion to remark about the food at Parklane’s Cafe Bonita. Firstly, the morph-ication of that tired length along Bacarra Rd. (now Gen Segundo Ave.) is the real deal. The food should match, and indeed Chef Alvin Lao, who I heard is leaving town soon to broaden his horizon in America, is doing a great job of sharing his culinary skills and knowledge. I was a fan of his carbonara with white truffle oil, his Caesar’s salad and steaks, and so on.

The dinner last night was thought-provoking. It’s a recurrent, hahah, spasmodic blogger or foodie thing. Studying oeuvres like crispy succulent bagnet on a bed of peeled pomelo speckled with recognizable Asian flavors or the Ilocanonized version of the Peking duck skin wrap, which was clever with chilied hoisin sauce, was like being absorbed in an art museum. A food experience can range from hostile to orgasmic. I like eating more than looking, but sorry to take your time if you are eating with me. Hah, the hyperphotoactivity disorder of the new millennium.

I give this a very high rating.

One of my closest friends, the beautiful Marla Luis. I mean close as in we tell each other what’s wrong with us and kiss.

Bagnet (Ilocano crispy pork belly) wraps could have been perfect if the wraps had more body like less tightness in texture. The siling labuyo lent more oomph.

The prawns and mussels with lavish herbed curry sauce was provocative. I took out rice from my diet, nonetheless the potential perfect ulam was not overwhelming.

Hmnnn, the panna cotta, with flambeed pineapples (I’m not sure), was a nice finis with a tropical touch to the Asian fusion medley.

Mara Manuel, the make-up artist of the smart set in Ilocos Norte, and in-demand wedding and glamour photographer Marianne Pasion.

More here. Check out Marianne’s Cafe Bonita post also.

Cafe Bonita is opening its doors on February 14, Valentine’s Day.

As always, Dr. Pia Luis looked pulled-together. She was happy receiving her Pia shopper tote from MODi.

Last photo by Reny Tan
Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

My week-long sojourn with Chef Sandy Daza and FoodPrints in Iloilo, an enigmatic destination in Western Visayas, was fruitful, as proven true that culture is the widening of the mind and the spirit. Iloilo, a part of Panay Islands, at first glance, is quaint and quiet. The more time you spend time tracing its local food culture, the more you will appreciate what an elegant past it had.

In between takes in Jaro, I escaped to take photos of historical places such as the Jaro Cathedral, where the Nuestra Señora de Candelaria curiously stands outside and not inside the church, also Casa Mariquit (just one of the many ancestral houses in Iloilo and only a few meters away from the Graciano Lopez Jaena Plaza), where the late former Illonggo VP Fernando Lopez spent part of his life. Lopez is etched in my memory because he was part of Ilocano former President Marcos’ administration.

Jaro, according to Ian Jorda, our very knowledgeable local guide connected with Panay Tours, was the old past’s affluent district. Family names in Jaro commonly had the ‘Ja’ as the initial syllable, like Javellana, Jalandoni, etc. We visited an eponymous garden restaurant, owned by awesome chef, Rafael “Tibong” Jardeleza II. He prepared a traditional tabuan spread, inspired by the bounties of Iloilo. (Check back a specific post soon.)

Breads and pastries in Jaro, made from heirloom recipes, also speak much about Iloilo’s impressive history. Molo, another district, has its own stories to tell as well.

Iloilo, as it turned out, is one pleasurable destination south of Manila. The province is so rich in character and soul.

The particular butterscotch is in a popular ice cream.
Thanks to Iggy Bilbao for FoodPrints team photos and Melanie de Leon for photos with Chef Tibong Jardeleza and Panaderia ni Pa-a box.
Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

Bucolic and bounteous, Guimaras, 15 km off the Iloilo Ferry Terminal, is a must-visit when vacationing in Iloilo.

The island province’s famous sweet mangoes are being exported to countries such as America. Other than the mango growing industry, community-based rural tourism supports livelihood. FoodPrints did a mini day tour, covering a mango plantation, mango pasalubong stands and the Trappist Monastery. Chicos grown there are also nice and sweet. We rested a bit at a resort in Alubihod, where the white sand beach looked warm and inviting. Went back to the mango stalls and filled in boxes to bring home.

The McNester Mango Ketchup tastes like ketchup and yet the mango flavors still pop.

Jump photo by Poks Madrid
Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

Approximately 4.5 km of pinakbet, igado and rice laid on banana leaf-lined tables for everyone to partake at major streets in Sunshine City Laoag was the highpoint of the month-long Pamulinawen Festival celebration. It was a good fight, a major boodle fight aimed to break records.

There’s a secret to eating kamayan style — get with your left and eat with your right. The event was a success if no status barrier is taken into account. Everyone seemed to have enjoyed selfieing, eating, selfieng. Even Marc Logan came!

Congrats, Laoag!

The indefatigable Laoag mayor, Chevylle Fariñas and her daughter Mikee, the young Laoag ABC President, in photo below. Hahah, Marc Logan in Laoag!
Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

Chef Sandy Daza’s Foodprints is now on its third season. He drove to Baguio with daughter Ali just like any cool and loving dad would want to do for a daughter on a school break. Among Sandy’s children, it is Ali who takes after her father in her love for food and the kitchen. They go around the mountain city in search for the best eats. And beer.

The Baguio episodes with old time favorites and new multicultural influences will be aired  March 29  and April 5,  8pm. Save the dates.

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

The first time I visited Abra was to check the free-range chicken and French pates of the Pamora Farms (here). Then I went back to check the famous antique binakol weaves (here), and bought preserved kamias from Valera Enterprises. In those two times I went up to Abra, no one ever suggested I should try the delicacies at Princess Restaurant. When I woke up, I saw two boxes on the dining table, opened one and tried to figure out what were inside. They looked like puto, but I wasn’t really sure ‘coz even without tasting you could tell that they were soft like marshmallows. Before I ruin the dainty arrangement, I took photos just in case they are worth sharing. A friend gave them as pasalubong for my husband. I had to double check with the giver if they were indeed puto.

Puto is a Filipino rice cake and traditionally steamed. It can take the place of bread, like eat it with butter, or cream cheese (for the more sosyal), or pair it with another dish. Dinuguan tastes so much better when eaten with puto. And it’s only lately that I discovered in Iloilo that banana leaf-wrapped puto is ubiquitous in all the batchoy (local noodle soup) places. The classic texture of puto is spongy, with a tiny  bit of roughness for some bite (the way I like my rice puto).

Going back to the modern puto, topped with grated cheese, from Bangued, Abra, the texture is somewhere in between a marshmallow cake (if you’ve tried those coconut mallow desserts) and an angel food cake. So it must be made from a special flour, but not even sure ‘coz the pillowy soft thing is white, and not even quite like mamon. It is not too rich, nor sweet, just heavenly. Maybe, if you are around Bangued, you can drop by Princess Restaurant and Groceries, where these puto are made. A box contains 25 pieces. I was too embarrassed to ask the giver about the price, so maybe you can ring them up to inquire. They also make other cakes, which makes me want to visit them soon.

Princess Restaurant and Groceries Taft, Bangued, Abra, Philippines Tel. No.: +63 74 752 8465

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

Ali, Jeng and I almost missed our flight to Iloilo because of this Kopi Roti breakfast at Kopi Roti at the NAIA Terminal 3. And as usual, I am to blame because I had a difficult time choosing which bread to have with my iced kopi. And then I have to take photos of everything that passes down my maw.

I’m not too familiar with Singaporean cuisine. I’ve tried Martine’s Kaya spread (in a bottle), a coconut jam famous in Singapore and Malaysia, before, but it was nothing spectacular at first try. The experience of bringing together a kaya toast, dripping in condensed milk, and perfectly soft boiled eggs, with what looked like chocolate, but is actually soya sauce and white pepper is something I’m craving about every morning. I’ve never had soft boiled eggs so good! The kopi bun, their signature bread, looked appetizing too. It’s meant to be dipped in the egg-soya sauce mixture. The coffee was surprisingly better than your average caffeine fix.

It was worth running about 50 ft to board the shuttle to the plane.

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

The Filipino food culture is so diverse, with a very colorful history indeed, that there’s more than meets the eye.

Next to Baguio, Chef Sandy Daza’s adventure in Iloilo and Guimaras unearths the islands’ best kept secrets. The Ilonggo cooking lexicon teems with age-old words. We will get to feast our eyes on a traditional tabuan fare, prepared by Chef Tibong Jardeleza, and get to know what KBL means to Ilonggos.

On the other side of centuries-old recipes that give prominence and so much character to Ilonggo food, individual creative ingenuity lends additional life to the local food scene. Take the case of batchoy, no two names are the same.

FoodPrints Iloilo and Gumaras will surely excite the foodie in you. April 19 and 26 (Sundays) at 8 PM on the Lifestyle Network.

You will come across pastries with names like hojaldres, kinamonsil, rosquetes, biscocho principe, bañadas, biscocho de caña, everlasting, etc..

Photographed by Blauearth © Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015

Opposite poles attract, I hit it off right away with Edmar Guquib, the blogger from Vigan, Ilocos Sur. We had the honor to tape (guest) for FoodPrints with Chef Sandy Daza in Ilocos Sur (still to be aired this May on the Lifestyle Network). Of course, an Ilocos Sur experience is not the same without the Vigan empanada, just like Ilocos Norte is not complete without the Batac, or Laoag, empanada. According to Bigueños, the yellow Vigan empanada traces its roots to tacos, introduced by the Mexicans during the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade, while the Batac empanada, according to Nana Glory Cocson of Glory’s Empanada, her very own empanada creation inspired all the other orange empanandas in Ilocos Norte. Edmar and I both agree, each empanada is different from the other.

BlauEarth deconstructs Edmar Guquib aka Edmaration.

What is Edmaration all about?
Edmaration is a fusion for Edmar and admiration, a name coined by an old friend of mine when I was in college. I thought the name is cool and unique, so I used it to watermark my then photos uploaded on the now defunct social networking site Friendster. College friends started to call me Edmaration. I also used it to name my first ever blog, Edmaration. No longer about my college life, the name Edmaration is all about my blog now. Everytime people call me Edmaration, they are referring to the blogger in me and the blog they read. Edmaration is a travel blog I created to pen down my first motorbike adventures with my brother. However, I discovered later on that travel is a very broad realm, so it was hard to ignore the other wonderful experiences traveling could give like culture, heritage, food and people to name a few. Through Edmaration, I am able to share my stories, insights and my take on anything related to traveling.

What do you do apart from blogging?
I am a full-time nurse assigned to the Emergency Room and Outpatient Department. I also work in the Operating Room though it is not a part of my official designation. If I’m not in the hospital, you’ll see me singing videoke, traveling leisurely or eating empanada in Plaza Burgos.

I’m also a nurse. You’re The Town Explorer, how many miles have you traveled on your bike?
I measure qualitatively how far I’ve traveled. The travel memorabilia and souvenir shirts in my closet, as well as the scars, sun burn and skin abrasions I’ve earned show how far I’ve traveled in the name of adventure. The countless memories and thousands of photographs I’ve taken remind me that I’ve walked, trekked, ran, hiked, flew, sailed and road-tripped far and beyond.

How often do you post?
I don’t maintain a regular set of posts within a time period. There were months that I can publish 13-16 entries in 4 weeks time. Sometimes I don’t write at all. October 2014 to February 2015 was a major blogging hiatus of mine when I didn’t publish new articles due to personal reasons. However, I’m more than happy that I’m back in the blogosphere and I am aiming to post a minimum of two articles weekly. So help me God.

Travel or food?
I consider travel to be very broad, so it can be narrowed down to subcategories. I don’t find traveling complete without trying and discovering the local food. It can represent a culture, a group of people or the destination itself.

Describe your hometown of Vigan
My hometown is indescribable. Though not perfect, it is a place that nurtures its citizens through culture and heritage, both the seen and the unseen. We Bigueños take pride in our culture and heritage. It is also culture and heritage that binds as together. While trying to preserve our heritage, the city, in return, has given us the opportunity to live, grow and succeed in a peaceful, culturally-rich community that stays strong and intact. The well-preserved ancestral houses are living testimonies that the citizens of Vigan care so much of the wisdom of our ancestors and the good values they wanted us and the next generations to have.

What to you is the best part of blogging?
The best part of blogging is when one day you wake up and your family, friends and your community are already very proud of you, regardless of your social status, and they realize you are a kickass blogger using your influence to spread hope, inspiration and… wait, uhm, world peace!

FoodPrints BTS photos by Edmar Guquib, Alina Co-Calleja, Melanie de Leon and BlauEarth
© Blauearth™ All Rights Reserved 2009-2015