Instagram and Tumblr got Still JavaJiving

Ah, the convenience of advancing technology and the new media. It's awesome on one hand, but on the other - it made posting my coffee pics and short reviews so easy, I just kept pressing the snooze button on this blog till I got such a pile-up of coffee experiences and photos I was planning to share.

I'm going to do a feature on the best ones (promise!), but in the meantime, I'll just let instagram (and tumblr), with my handful of followers, take the rap for my delinquency.

What I can do for now is share some snapshots that I first uploaded via those oh-so-easy sharing apps. Hang on for a bit, because I'll be a better java jiver. I have at least a couple of new coffee places I just can't wait to share with you, plus the rest of the pics that have piled up. Very soon.

Stackers in Eastwood Mall

Gourmet-to-Go inside Rustan's Fresh Supermarkets

Packaging helps a lot. A present from my friend,
from Siem Reap.

French Baker. I love the presentation and the brownie on the side.

RUB Ribs, no other pic, sorry.

Pancake House. Sometimes very strong, sometimes not.

Stacy's in Capitol Golf. Nice country/vintage-y place. 

Their chai tea is fabulous, and so's their coffee. Not bad at all.

Fleur De Lys, Tomas Morato, Q.C. Very strong brew.
You'll need all the powdered creamer that comes with it.

Brewed Coffee from Le Maison, Cebu City, Cebu.
Strong brew, lovely restaurant.

18 Days in Cash & Carry, Manila. More about this stall later.

Solaire Hotel. Hotels should ALWAYS have good coffee.

IHOP's refillable brew. Diner-ish.

Il Padrino in Robinson's Galleria. Very affordable for good coffee.

Good way to end a hearty meal. Batangas Brew
from Corazon, East Wing of Shangri-La Plaza, Mandaluyong.

North Park. Yes, they have coffee. Already with milk,
served with simple syrup on the side.

MoMo, Eastwood Mall. Very strong, full-bodied,
almost cocoa-ish.

Chateau 1771. Sugar and cream needed, added,
and it's still that dark.

Sci-Fi Cafe. The experience of dining in the midst of
all those superheroes was better.

Soy Gingerbread latte, my first Starbucks Holiday2013 coffee.
Nutmeg powder beat the coffee into my mouth. 

Organic Pour-over Coffee at Wild Flour, the Podium Mall

Finally, Wild Flour opened somewhere a bit closer to where I live. It's easy to spot - right next to the ground floor escalators, where Cafe (Deli) France used to be.

A bit small, if you ask me, considering how the Wild Flour restaurant in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, is always packed (each time I pass it).

The good thing is that the place is so fabulously decorated, it doesn't feel cramped. More like cozy. You won't hear what the people next table are saying, and you won't have servers' elbows hitting you as they whizz by. A bottle of cold water gets regularly replaced, so you won't feel like they're rushing you to make room for the next batch of customers. That was great because I was there with a good friend and we had lots of catching up to do.

It was bustling with a quick turnover of customers from 4pm onward. Fortunately, we scored a table for two inside. We shared a grilled gruyere cheese sandwich which came with an arugula salad on the side, and we also each got a glass of merlot. Fab and light and perfect for our overloaded list of topics for the day *happy sigh*

Now for the coffee. My friend, who was coffee'd out for the day, got a decaf, and upon her recommendation, I ordered one of their pour-overs, the Organic brew.

Okay, I don't know if the barista actually poured the hot water over the freshly-ground coffee beans (hence the name, right?), but the coffee was served in a tall stainless steel (or silver?) french press. One order had enough for a refill, which I loved! Just to add a bit of sweetness, my friend and I shared a large chocolate chip cookie.

The coffee was very good: just the right strength and color. I almost always take my coffee with a splash of creamer, milk, or soya, but after a sip, I thought it could do with just a drop for color (to trick my mind, haha). I loved the place, the experience, the food, the wine, and the coffee. Another visit is absolutely called for. Now I have a new favorite place.

All about coffee... and tea ;-) A huge coffee machine sits on a place of honor on the beverage prep bar.

Leading to the stairs. Unfortunately, no 2nd floor
for more diners; just a stock room.

A lot of wall art on coffee even if they have
quite a selection of wines lining up the walls, too.

I asked the barista what coffee he used.
He presented me with this pack to photograph.

Grande Reserve Malongo Coffee at Borough

Borough is a restaurant we've always planned on trying out. I believe it's been around for a couple of years, tucked into a corner of the Podium Mall's ground floor. You'd have to seek it out. In the evenings, though, its side door invites late night urban crawlers (or call center peeps, which I guess the side door, open long after the mall closes, was designed for) to unwind or have a one-for-the-road drink if not something warm to prepare for a long drive home. We haven't been going to that particular mall a lot the past months, so we just never got around to doing it.

So I had this opportunity to check it out when an assigned interview was held there the last weekend before Christmas. Since we were set-up in the closed-off 2nd level section of the restaurant (off-peak afternoon hours), I just had to content myself with enjoying the warm interiors, especially the dark green walls filled with framed pictures of anything and everything (I didn't have time to figure out if there was a theme, if it was all about NYC, since it was called Borough, something I associate with the state), and..

... a cup of coffee, and thought to myself that I would try out the food if I was still there close to dinner.

Loved the coffee selection and the coffee did not disappoint. I've heard good and bad reviews of this place, but based on the coffee, which was true to what was promised in the menu, I'm excited to go back and try out their food and more of the coffees in their menu. 

I needed to get out of Ortigas Center before the Holiday rush traffic got really bad, so the food taste test will happen on my next visit, which is all set for the 2nd week of January. Looking forward!

Regular Coffee at Katsu Cafe

The Loyola Heights area was unusually quiet the past evenings, the typical groups from the residential and academic communities absent. It was close to New Year's Eve, so of course there was none of the activity and noise generated from several schools that line the area, no students milling in favorite hangouts and restaurants, and very minimal panic and/or last-minute buying by residents at the supermarkets and drugstores. This is how it is during Holiday breaks in an area that's mostly filled with learning institutions and young family residences, more than offices. 

It would normally be a challenge to decide where to eat since many of the small restaurants around would be filled, so it was also strange that with the choices of near-empty ones, it still was a challenge.

Katsu Cafe was convenient and inviting, so we decided to have our dinner there. An added treat was not needing to go around the long stretch of Katipunan Rd. just to get to the supermarket (our real destination), which was just a few tens of meters on foot.

The place is cozy, food's very good - Katsu, Donburi, Curried sets that came with soup, some greens, unlimited rice (a must if a dining business operates around the school areas), beers, cold teas, and the deliciously comforting house hot tea - and the staff minimal but efficient AND friendly.  The real bonus for me that night was the very good coffee.

It says Cafe, so they had to have coffee... right?

Designed and supplied by Boyd Coffee, Philippines, and made in an impressive coffee maker, they couldn't and shouldn't go wrong. Nothing better than a restaurant that has good coffee.

Regular Coffee, P60.00!

Katsu Cafe is located a few steps away from Xocolat on B. Gonzales St. near the corner of Katipunan Rd where Bo's Coffee stands.

Brewed Coffee w/ Breakfast at Palay, Asya Premier Suites, Boracay

Finally, a vacation without the kids for the hubby and myself; the first since our honeymoon! We didn't want to waste any time so we caught the earliest flight out and was in the beach resort Asya Premier Suites before 9am. We were still in time for their buffet breakfast at their Palay restaurant. Asya has very good coffee, designed and delivered fresh periodically by Boyd Coffee Philippines, so that was first on my list.

My first vacay coffee w/ buffet spread choices of frittata, toasted cheese bread, and fruit

...then a refill with my main breakfast, Eggs Benedict.

and yet another one at the beach front, while waiting to be checked into our casita. Coffee, my vacation read, the sun, the sand....

For our second day, we knew we just had to have breakfast at the same place.

The view from our casita. Palay is somewhere past the pool area (Adlaw  lounge/bar and the beach)

 Coffee #1 bright and early. This time, I was having an American Breakfast after my buffet treat.

our view from Palay

Coffee #2 and #3

By then, after updating our kids online, we were ready for our second day of enjoy the white sand and clear waters, and exploring the shores and restaurants of Boracay.

illy brew at Chelsea Market and Cafe , Serendra, the Fort

I mentioned in my last entry that there were several restaurants that carry and serve illy coffee, and I've never been disappointed. Especially right after I found the esspressamente illy outlet in Power Plant Mall, I assumed illy can't be bad anywhere. So I chose to meet a friend over coffee at this restaurant in Serendra, the Fort (Global City), Taguig called, Chelsea, where they also serve... yes, illy.

My friend and I decided to share a (huge) slice of their banana cream pie or cake, and order our own favorite styles of brew. She got hers first, and after adding her cream/milk and having a sip, kept adding more milk. She thought it was quite strong, but only perhaps because she was not a coffee lover. So I tried my brewed coffee. Yes, it was strong. Very bitter and kind of thick, even after adding milk AND a bit of water. See below.

My forlorn cup of coffee. So strong, yet looking so defeated :(

So was it the coffee variant used, the manner by which it was prepared, or just their own style that made the coffee so unenjoyable? I don't know for sure. I may have to try it again some other time, but for now, I'm not looking forward to doing it quite yet. The food may be very good at this restaurant, and they do have quite a wine selection, and it's not easy to get a table for dinner and after on most nights. For coffee, though, if it's always the way it was that afternoon, I just think it was too expensive to try again soon just to find out for sure.

Cafe Americano at French cafe Alexandre

I've been meaning to visit this Parisienne cafe-lounge-patisserie since receiving posts about it via Facebook. I was so excited that I was finally able to do just that yesterday. What drove me? The promos they send VIP members via email. With the print out of the email notification (requirement to redeem the promo item for the month) tucked in my book, I headed out to their Mega Mall branch yesterday, ready to just take a peek, try their coffee, and go on from there, should the coffee be as good as they say it is.

I hesitated before going into the shop because it was empty. It was not exactly a lunch or dinner place, so there shouldn't have been a lull. Fortunately, the menu board with a list of items interspersed with photos of food items that looked very inviting was enough to get us through the door, because from then on, I was not disappointed. At all.

The decor was so loung-y, mostly black and white, with a near ceiling-height version of the Eiffel Tower greeting patrons by the entrance, black lucite sconces and lamps, a panoramic black and white shot of Paris (I think) behind the counter. The music matched of course.

I ordered a cafe Americano. It was smelled good, was served steaming, had the right consistency, and tasted very good. It came in a mug, so I had enough to last me though the delectable food we chose for our snack.

Our choices: Pizza Margherita, Croissant aux Amandes et Chocolat (Almond & Chocolate Croissant), and a slice of their Alexandre Signature Tarte Tatin (Thin crusted apple pie, served with vanilla ice cream on top and a dollop of whipped cream on the side).

The pizza was thin-crust and served on a chopping board. It was sooo light and delicious, we wolfed it down after our first enjoyable slow bites to savor the flavor.

my daughter ordered the pizza and had to share it.

The Almond and Chocolate croissant was so delightful. We had two, and we just had to, haha. The taste was enough, but what added to the experience of savoring each bite was the light, crunchy, chewy, moist mix in every bite. I am still experiencing a hangover of that sensory overload.

The Tarte Tatin was my husband's choice. He just has to have an apple pie (or whatever the version would be) in every cafe. It was different, but had that same light, rich, chewy-crunchy characteristic -- worth the price.

Before leaving, the very accommodating and charming manager Harrison (don't be fooled by his name because he is French) gave us a complimentary pair of what he called Cannele, small tubular pastries with a soft and tender custard center and a dark, thick caramelized crust. These were just like the others we  had - delicious, moist, with a very good caramelized bottom.

photo from www.alexandre.ph

After giving the French names of the pastry we ordered a shot with the help of Harrison, he happily announced that they plan to hold French lessons at the cafe soon --  Coffee, French food, with a little lesson of conversational French on the side.

Now that I know what a fabulous treat it is in this hip cafe Alexandre, I will make sure I visit their flagship cafe at the Fort very soon. Check out the lovely story behind the cafe, the warmth that goes into every recipe, and the branches at www.alexandre.ph.

P.S. So sad to find out that this cafe, after closing down its Mega Mall branch, decided to fold up altogether. I mourn the loss :-(