Lunch Buffet at Good Earth Roasts

Good Earth Roasts (GER) is one of those places in Rockwell that sort of stood the test of time perhaps because of its no-frills neighborhood drinking spot atmosphere. You will see regulars both from the Ateneo Professional Schools as well as the yuppies working in the area downing bottles and bottles of ... Red Horse (so shala!) after a long day at work or school.

We, as in my MBA friends and I, were one of those regulars a few semesters ago, thus we were once upon a time called GER GER gang. The name eventually morphed into ranGERs for some unknown reason (my guess is that the former was a bit vulgar hahaha). We would meet (read: get wasted) at GER every Wednesday and poke fun at whatever or more often whoever.

I don't drink... at least not a lot...lately :p but I always get excited going to GER because I love their peking duck! Last Saturday, I was with Lady and Mike for a lunch meeting (for something really really exciting :p). I ordered the usual duck rice, but Lady had the lunch buffet which was I think pretty reasonable at PHP 250. They had soup, fried rice, 1 pork dish, 1 chicken dish, 1 fish dish and 1 vegetable dish. Lady was able to make the trip to the buffet table three times! Super sulit! Hehehe

Buffet Spread

Priceless Menu

Van Gogh Is Bipolar

Is the title
a. fact
b. fiction or
c. a name of a restaurant?

Well, if you have answered a, you are correct. If you have picked c, you are absolutely right too!

Van Gogh is Bipolar is a new place in Sikatuna Village in Quezon City. The place, according to their facebook page is a living art space-cafe. I have finally tried it out a couple of weeks ago and I must say it's a seriously chill place. It's a house converted to a gallery/cafe. Think Fat Michael's only it's newer, cleaner and more spacious :) There are tables outside and inside the place. If you opt to stay inside you need to take off your shoes so do not wear pawis-inducing shoes when you go here if you don't want to be embarrassed.

As you enter, you will see various dining/sala/garden sets from various eras. Interesting trivia, I overheard the owner tell oldies patrons that the cabinet used to belong to the Laurels. There are quite a number of art pieces but the more interesting ones are the nude photos :p

Getting there can be quite a challenge because there is no signage and it's at the interior of some compound so good luck :p

Their menu is a whole new world on its own as well. They named their dishes after personalities known to have the disorder plus they give emphasis on certain brain foods. Unfortunately, we were so full from Snackaroo so we just had their tea (Tamarind Tea to be exact) which was really unique and refreshing. One weird thing that SKP didn't like was having to bus your own stuff. It's just like me not liking hotpots/shabu shabus because I don't like cooking when I know I'm paying. We just had tea anyway so it was no biggie :)

Anyway, I've included menu below chekidawt:

bipolar APPETIZER
1.1 Axl Rose’s Egg ShotSubmerged in hot water for 5 minutes. Served in an egg shell.With honey mustard or black sauce. Egg is an excellent source of protein that gives “that extra kick” you needed especially when eaten soft-boiled.

1.2 Sting’s Hot Cherry Potato* - extra spicy roasted cherry potato with fresh herbs. Potato is a good source for relieving anxiety. (It is highly recommended to always eat it with skin on for added fiber).

1.3 Winston Churchill went Nuts - mixed dried nuts with a whisk of Vodka to be dippedin spicy melted dark chocolate.Nuts are known to help release dopamine in the brain which help you veer away from depression.

1.4 Ozzy Osbourne’s Final Pop - mixture of homemade popcorn,dried fruits and nuts.A pop of popcorn is always a good way to brighten a gloomy mood.

1.5 Ned Beatty’s Take of the day: - bite sized whole wheat breador oat cracker with fresh kitchen ingredientsAdditional spread choices (per serving):Wild HoneyWild honey with raisinsOlive oil and garlicWheat and oats are the best sources of complex carbohydrates. Energize without the downside of carboloading.

1.6 Janice Dickinson’s Luxurious Mouth - bite sized salmon and lamb wrapped in fried eggplant with melted mozzarella cheeseSalmon is considered a happy fish. It contains high omega-3-fat oil which prevents depressionwhile lamb is one of the safest source of protein that provides high energy level. Unlike any other kind of cheese, Mozzarella cheese is known for its friendly “no negative altering mood effect.

1.7 Mel Gibson’s Darkest Sin - a shot of Vodka with melted dark chocolate,dried walnut and almonds with wild honey.Dark chocolate (high cacao content. The bitter, the better). is excellent for boosting brain function and eliminating depression while walnut is one of the richest food source to uplift your mood. Good for people experiencing depression.WARNING: too much alcohol can be a source of hormonal imbalance.bipolar SALAD

2.1 Virginia Woolf Dip Salad Feast* - freshly harvest organic fresh greens, with banana chips. Dipped in virgin olive oil, wild honey with Ilocandia balsamic vinegar sauce.(Depends on availability)

Full menu here

Some photos from my visit:

Menu board, mood board and what nots


My favorite corner. Red walls with lopsided frame and an arresting photo of an old man in g string


Our tamarind tea. The small goblets contained honey and muscovado sugar


Sari saring anu ano. From chocnut to rattan rattan fruit

Choose your own teapot corner

Main dining area

Mini nude photos in a huge frame


Mirror in the restroom

Artful clutter. This is actually their washroom :)

Rose Petals and Chocolate

A nice surprise as I entered the car after SKP picked me up from school last night... sigh :)

So when he got out for a while to pee :P I retorted with a sweeter and edible surprise :P

YoSwirls by BTC

We were originally planning to spend our Sunday afternoon at the Megamall but the exaggerated long parking lines made us head to the Shangri-la Mall instead. Shangri-la is my second favorite mall next to the Powerplanet because I will never worry about being crushed by throngs of mallgoers unlike in the other malls.

We were debating on where to have our iftar and the choices were Cyma, Pepper Lunch and Cibo. SKP has been raring to go to Cibo for the longest time so I thought okay fine, for as long as I decide where we would have our dessert :P

We finished the squid pasta, lamb pita and potata chips in Cibo so our heads were starting to feel heavy from the oil I think. As we were walking at the 5th Floor, we found a new frozen yogurt kiosk. It's called YoSwirls and it is by BTC (Better than Ice Cream). BTC has been serving yogurt long before Froyos became the rage. I've been seeing this along Katipunan when I was still in college which was lightyears away :P

They have different variations of the base yogurt, Chocolate, Vanilla, Tarty and Natural (not sure what they called it) which is PHP 75 and they have about 20 or so topping ranging nuts, to cereals, fruits and candies priced at PHP 25 to PHP 35.

We got the tarty one with Blackberries. I must say, it was really really tarty! Perfect to wash away all that oil from our dinner :) YoSwirls can actually be a nice alternative to Red Mango :)

Rodics

So the Police report was not released until after lunch of the following day. After getting the Police Report, I picked up SKP in Manila (his car window needs to get fixed) and then we proceeded to Eastwood so I can file the incident report to the office Security group. I forgot that they also will be needing an Affidavit of Loss and the nearest Notary in Eastwood is at UP Law Center. It was already late, around 4-ish so we decided to just go and have iftar at UP.

I was still depressed about the whole robbery thing so SKP called up his friend M and told him to make me laugh :p We picked up M, who is working at UP something Women's Center near the CHK building and proceeded to UP Shopping Center.

The natural dinner place was of course, Rodic's! We all love the place except M, who has been dining here often because of his work so he wasn't too thrilled :) We all had tapsilog which was great, it made me forget about my laptop for a while. We then went outside for more kalye foods. I had mangga with bagoong, it was heavenly and SKP had banana q.

Rodic's and UP Shopping Center bring back happy college memories. Life was a lot simpler then, no basag kotse gang, only pill box throwing if there were frat wars hahaha just kidding :)

Sorry I'm still depressed. sigh :(

090909 - Unforgettable Dinner at Som's

We have been dining at Som's for quite sometime now because it's one of those reasonably-priced joints that is 1: very near Rockwell without having to go through the horrendous Makati Ave traffic and 2: still open after class.

Som's is supposedly an authentic Thai, alfresco type of place with a turu turo atmosphere. Monobloc tables and chairs with market style colorful umbrellas are neatly arranged on the street gutter. The view is the fence and flaura that line Rockwell and on the opposite end are the giant cribs in Bel-Air.

Occassionally, a giant rodent shows up and entertains patrons by jumping up and down to get to the other side of the fence (I kid you not!). Failing to see that spectacle, a flying roach or roaches would sometimes hover above your head if you're lucky. Don't get the wrong ideas though. Diners here are not your usual tsinelas crowd...more like flip flops siguro :p

So we went there last Wednesday (9-9-9 or September 9, 2009), hungry and tired. We didn't order the usual because we wanted rice, lots and lots of rice. I got the spicy chicken and basil, SKP got boiled chicken or something like that (which looked really boring to me I didn't bother taking a pic), then we got tofu in tamarind sauce and kangkong.

Here are some food shots that I took:

Kangkong

Tofu in Tamarind Sauce

Spicy Chicken with Basil

It was one of the best meals we've had at Som's by far and we got ourselves really really stuffed. So stuffed in fact that we were literally dragging each other back to the car. And this is where the fun part begins...

As SKP was closing his door, we hear a funny clanking sound. He opens his door again, closes it again, and we hear the same funny sound. And then I saw something sparkling, like diamonds at the backseat. I told SKP to turn on the light and I saw glass splinters!

It took me a very long while to process it... in fact I did not.. it was SKP who realized that WE WERE ROBBED! Yes, we are now officially one of the thousands of victims of the Basag-Kotse gang. Turns out, while we were enjoying our Som's fare, someone else was having his own grand time ransacking SKP's car. The thief got SKP's bag (a Jack Spade which is his favorite) with passport, documents and 3 cellphones and he also got my x60 laptop :(

Me with my beloved x60 huhuhu

Barangay people from Bel-air came to scour the place and filed a blotter and they accompanied us to Precinct 9 for the Police Report.

It was all pretty depressing. So if you want to eat at Som's be sure you park your car where you can actually reach for the door otherwise, I'm not sure if it's worth the hassle or the depression :(

Passion Fruit with Mangosteen Concentrate from Kablon Farms

SKP came from Gensan last week for the Tuna Festival. I envy him. The last time I went there was with a friend. We stayed at the Changco's, I forgot where it was exactly, I remember the vast yet simple property with turkeys and peacocks roaming the area. Before I left the place, I was asked to sign a guestbook and guess whose name was signed before mine...Cory Aquino! Yep, that's about my closest encounter with the late President :)

We used to spend our December breaks in Gensan in early 2000 when my Dad decided to build a house near the Gensan Airport. We were all over the place then, I'm based in Manila, my sister in Cotabato, my brother in Davao and my Dad's office was in Midsayap so no one was actually looking after the contruction and the furnishing of the house. So my Dad, asked his friend, (I think he is the owner of the famous lechon baka place in Gensan :p) to furnish the house. My Dad's line was: O, Pare ikaw na bahala sa kama ng mga bata. This friend never met us, he thought we were gradeschoolers so he bought really really small single beds hahaha!

Anyway, back to SKP. He brought me an inneresting looking juice concentrate which says Passion Fruit with Mangosteen. I didn't even know passion fruit is available in Gensan! Maybe it's time for another visit. The juice is from Kablon Farms which is located in Tupi, South Cotabato. They specialize in organically grown fruits and veggies.

Truth be told, I'm not a fan of juices but I'm gonna try the passion fruit + mangosteen soon only because passion fruits are supposed to be good for people with sleeping disorders :) Zzzz

Saturday Mall Dash - Powerplant and Market Market

I was in Makati yesterday to get SKP's birthday presents: Costa Brava chocolate cake (because he loves chocolates) from the Baker's Fair at Powerplant, Sanso: Art Quest between Two Worlds at Fully Booked (because he is Sanso's number 1 fan), San Pellegrino Aranciata at Santi's Deli Rockwell and three roses (with a cheeseball letter hahaha) from Market! Market!

I know Muslims are not allowed to celebrate birthdays but when I did my research, if one thanks Allah and shows gratitude for being blessed with one more year of his life then according to the Darul Ifta there is nothing wrong with that :)

Anyway, here are some inneresting pics I took while dashing to get my presents:

Saturday Group, a respected group of artists mentored by Malang and Bencab at a live painting

session in Powerplant as part of Manila Mirrors

The iconic Manila jeep by Francisco Motors dressed up by Team Manila and a model glammed up by Mac as the subject of the live painting session

Painter in action

Flower Market at Market! Market!

I got three roses (white, yellow and red) for a hundred bucks. Parang mahal?!? hehehe