Café Lidia

Nestled in the Philippines' shoe capital, lies a humble and quaint restaurant named Cafe Lidia. It serves family style food at affordable prices. The resto is well hidden in the Calumpang, Marikina area but once spotted, gives you an inviting nudge.

Mixed Seafood Marinara Php 160

The Mixed Seafood Marinara is composed of clams, shrimps, squid and fish. The serving of the shrimp itself was small as compared to the clams which was a disappointment, because we love shrimps. It was cooked al dente, and had the distinct taste of white wine combined in the pasta's tomato sauce. The hint of spice was just right which made this dish a real treat!

Buffalo Wings Php160

The buffalo wings' taste was a perfect balance between sweet and spicy. It was not nakakaumay, to the point that we couldn't help ourselves from having another piece! As compared to other buffalo wings that is overpowered with too much flavor, the flavors were well balanced. The skin of the buffalo wings was extremely crispy which made eating it a real treat. In the menu, though, it stated that it would come with the vegetables crudite, but, to our dismay, actually had none. 

House Special Pizza Php 230

The house special pizza is reminiscent of Shakey's Manager's Choice. The thin crust was crunchy which made the pizza so good! It even had nice plating and was accompanied by a wooden pizza pan.

They also serve desserts, which we weren't able to try because we were so full by the end of our meal! We suggest that you come as a group or barkada to be able to try the different dishes from their menu. Leave some space for dessert too because they all look so delectable!

The atmosphere of the place was very casual. It's a restaurant that one can dine with family and friends. The interior design of the place was beautifully decorated and is well-lit. We give the resto plus points for offering free wi-fi! Even the waiters and waitresses were accommodating! Cafe Lidia is relatively easy to find, and even offers sufficient amount of parking spaces.

The Hunger Games Series

Suzanne Collins

Admit it, ever since the worldwide success of the Harry Potter series, readers from across the globe have been on the search for the next best novel to beat it. Sadly, the Hunger Games series just doesn't come close. The Hunger Games centers on the challenging journey of Katniss Everdeen, who lives in a city called Panem, in overthrowing a totalitarian government called the Capitol. The Hunger Games, as portrayed in the book, is an event held by the Capitol every year for each district to present 12 young kids to battle it out to the brink of death, just to remind the citizens of Panem that they can never oppose the government. The novel gets very addicting, and her adventures are so intense that you will find yourself having a hard time letting go of the book. 


Praises aside for such a genius story, I personally saw the weaknesses of how it was written. Time and again, Suzanne Collins has threatened how convincing the story is by the way she writes. She forgets trivial and little details that have great implications to how believable the story actually is. There were times I'd ask myself, "How can that have happened?!" with no answers from the book. It is an enjoyable read, but one far from the masterpiece of J.K. Rowling. If the Hunger Games series were as well written, I'm sure it would be an even greater hit. The most disappointing part is that the second and third books, Catching Fire and Mockingjay, failed to be better than the first book, which should always be the case in book series. I found the ending to be anti-climactic and unbelievably disappointing that when I was finished reading, I felt a sense of annoyance towards Collins. 


Maybe this is the type of story one should watch in the movies, instead, but if you want to know what actually happens, do delight yourself with the copy of the book!

An Education

Sometimes it’s better to be street smart than book smart, we’re often told by adults. An Education is a coming of age film which was based on the autobiography of British journalist, Lynn Barber. Set in the 1960’s period of London, Jenny Mellor a 16-year-old brilliant girl is in high school and is finally making her way into her dream school, Oxford University. She has stellar records, incredible potentials, high grades, and competitive extra-curricular activities until one day she meets David Goldman. David is may seem like a sweet talker until she learns he is actually a conman.. He mesmerizes her by charming her parents, and her friends into gaining a liking towards him. He brings her out to places she has never seen before. David enchants her with trips to Paris, Oxford University, the local nightclubs, and fancy restaurants that she could never even fathom. The once reserved, conservative girl suddenly saw her education as conformist and eventually, useless. Once David proposes to her, she leaves her education behind to willingly spend the rest of her life with him. Yet, not all good things could be said of this conman, because he kept a secret that he hid so well. What do you think David hid? And did Jenny make the right decision to leave school to be with this man? Watch An Education to find out.

Valentine treat from Cupcakes & Friends

L-R Chef Edenliza Co, Chef Chris Tejada, Chef Silvester Muldong, Chef Ross Joseph Bernabe

*not in photo: Chef Joyce Calayag 

Photo Credit: RPA Style (www.rpastyle.com)

Cupcakes and Friends is a business venture by 5 former culinary students from Center for Culinary Arts. They wanted to establish a simple pastry business that would become a big hit. The name "Cupcake & Friends" came from their concept of going against the stereotype that you should never engage in a business with your friends. It shows that pleasure and business can actually co-exist, as they establish their passion for pastries while having the best company in the process. These pastries are so special that you can actually ask them to customize any design you wish. They also offer perplexed cupcakes that will arouse curiosity for those who are daring to be more adventurous! These flavors are Chocolate & Chili Bacon, Chocolate & Tomato, and Orange & Clove cupcakes!

We ordered the Personalized Lemon Fudge Cupcakes & Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes with edible letters and hearts. The frosting was average, and the amount was too generous that it tasted sweeter than how we wanted it to be. The cupcake itself, on the other hand, was extremely moist and soft, just the way we like it! We're looking forward to trying their macaron de paris, and featuring them here in our blog.

If you're curious to try out new flavors, reach them in Facebook in this link and let us know what you think! :)

iWish

A bucket list is what most of us dream and achieve to do before time runs out, but what if time runs out earlier than you had expected? What if you had the chance to make somebody's bucket list come to reality? Make A Wish Foundation Philippines is a non-profit organization that aims to make the wishes of kids who have life-threatening sickness, come true. Being in a course that grants me the opportunity to work with NGOs, has really become such a blessing in disguise. For one of our elective classes, Events Management, we were tasked to spearhead a big event as the basis for our finals. I worked with an amazing team that composed of the batch's most brilliant minds, and we were all able to help one another in making a bingo event for Make A Wish Foundation. After all the countless revisions, meetings, and last-minute change of plans, we were able to pull off one of the greatest undertakings I've ever done for school. I never thought it was possible to organize an event as large as this, and to have it come out successfully! The creative team behind this made all the difference and we are happy to help Make A Wish look for potential sponsors. Here's a video of how our event went:

SHOT BY: AYNI NUYDA, LA AGUINALDO

EDITED BY: LA AGUINALDO

Music: Hall & Oates - You Make My Dreams (1981)
RCA Records
NO COPYRIGHT Infringement intended.

MUSIC USED IN THE VIDEO BELONGS TO THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS.

So, if you think that your bucket list is worth dreaming for, how about for the kids? Be part of Make A Wish Foundation's list of sponsors and help a kid's wish come true!

Ninyo Fusion Cuisine

100 Years of Happiness

For Coca-Cola's 100 years, they have decided to go all out and embark in an intricate production for a commercial. I have to say, props to McCann Erickson Philippines for such a heart warming commercial. The concept of Lolo Mario highlights the greatest treasure every Filipino has, and that's family. The commercial was so well made that by the end of watching it, you'll actually feel the happiness of the fictional Lolo Mario as he saw his granddaughter. He states that life is too short, that we must not waste it on nonsense, and superficial things that don't matter.

Coca-Cola has revealed their secret to happiness, now what's yours? :)