Wangfu Chinese Bistro (Tomas Morato)

Beloved and I had dinner at Wangfu Chinese Bistro weeks ago. This Chinese restaurant replaced (thankfully) Teriyaki Boy at the second floor of the building across McDonald's Tomas Morato. This is actually the second branch in the same street, the first being in Il Terazzo. Beloved had a chance to visit that place, and wasn't that pleased with the serving size considering the price. So I had a pretty good image that this place isn't your budget friendly Chinese place.

The menu isn't a purely Chinese list. Some of their items have obvious influence from other cultures. Also, I confirmed that this was indeed one of the pricier Chinese places we've visited. I guess the direct competition would be a place like Lugang Cafe. We ordered their Hongkong Beef Curry (368 Php), Chicken and Mushroom Clear Soup (228 Php), Hakaw (98 Php), and Seafood with Dried Scallop Fried Rice (248 Php). For our drinks, Beloved ordered their Teh Tarik (78 Php) and I ordered Calamansi Juice (78 Php).

Afters (Tomas Morato)

After trying out Manang's Chicken, Beloved and I found ourselves at the coffee shop right next to it called Afters. Beloved claims she's been wanting to go to this place but never had the chance to. I, on the other hand, have never heard of this place until last Saturday. Since I wasn't really filled and didn't want to fill the rest of my belly space with sweet potato chips, and since Beloved wanted her vice drinks, we decided to pass by.

We were somewhat lucky that they offer a promo that day on this month since it was their anniversary. Every weekends, they offered a free scoop of gelato, one of their specialties aside from coffee, which is a ~90 Php value for every 200 Php purchase. Since the drinks cost almost as much as the usual coffee shop prices for their larger offerings, the goal was simple to reach. Beloved ordered their Iced Cafe Mocha (145 Php) and made me order their Green Tea Latte (119 Php). For the freebie, we chose a flavor we both like, Vanilla Gelato.

Lugang Cafe (SM North EDSA)

Beloved and I had dinner at Lugang Cafe last night. This internationally-famous Taiwanese restaurant-slash-cafe is among our more pricier ventures, but Beloved mostly heard positive feedback here from her friends. I personally haven't heard of it until recently, when they opened doors to a new branch at an accessible (to us) SM North EDSA, probably because of it being pricy. Of course, we've had other pricy ventures before, and it mostly turned out well, so we gave this a shot.

The place was packed full. Luckily, they were able to accommodate us immediately. Unluckily for those who went after us, they had to wait a while. This further raised my expectations of this cafe, especially after they handed out the menu. Their dim sum, which I already raise my eyebrows when they pass the 100 Php mark, cost no less than twice of that. However, we already know that their xiao long bao is the must-order in this place. With a few to choose from, we settled for the Steamed Angled Loofah with Shrimps Xiao Long Bao (228 Php). We had a hard time deciding what else to order, since we were hoping not to break the 1000 Php mark. We settled for two noodle dishes: their Spicy Beef and Tendon Noodles Soup (250 Php) and Minced Pork in Bean Sauce over Noodles (230 Php); and their Spring Onion Pancake (160 Php) house specialty. Since this was a cafe, they had an entire menu filled with drinks and cafe-style desserts. Sadly, they didn't have what Beloved originally wanted: milk tea and a different flavored smoothie. She settled for their Peanut Smoothie (200 Php).

Gayuma ni Maria (V. Luna Extension, near Maginhawa Street)

Beloved and I had dinner at Gayuma ni Maria last night. We've known this place, which is located at the Savemore end of Maginhawa Street, where it meets Anonas and becomes V. Luna, for a while but never had a chance nor reason to visit it. Beloved got to try out one of their cakes called "Better Than Sex" during one of the food fairs we attended. Aside from the name, she didn't really found it special. After looking at the menu through the web, Beloved finally found a reason to go.

The reason for going was basically the names of their dishes. Beloved was giggling hysterically as she read through the online menu. When we got there, through a porch that you occasionally see during Halloween, we found ourselves in a similarly themed dining area. The online menu was a bit outdated, especially when it came to price, but the reason, the silly naming, was still there. Beloved planned to order their version of tom yung goon called "Unrequited Love", but settled for their French Kiss (295 Php), which was a beef tongue dish with mushroom-sauce. I was going to order their "Holding Hands While Walking Pa-Swing Swing Pa" or "H.H.W.W.P.S.S.P." for short, solely because of the name. However, I was recommended to order their I Love You, Cross My Heart (215 Php), instead, and I chose to do so since it looked a bit more satisfying, despite being both chicken dishes. We also ordered their Peek A Boo (145 Php), a pumpkin soup, because all the other appetizers we wanted to try weren't available.

Fancy Crepes (Matalino Street, near Kalayaan)

Today, me and my blockmates Hannah and Ivy decided to hang out for a bit after our review class. We were supposed to go Cha Dao at Matalino street to get our milktea fix but after seeing that the said tea place is full, we decided to hang out at Fancy Crepes instead which is just a few blocks away. From its name, we thought the interiors were "fancy" but actually it has a sort of eclectic x country style x garden-inspired feel to it. We love it! So for this entry I decided to include pictures of the interiors as requested by my lovely and pretty friends.

As for the menu, they only have crepes, cakes and drinks but they serve pasta on Sundays. I ordered an Iced White Mocha (90php) and the I love NY crepe (105php). Hannah ordered their Bananutella crepe (175php). Ivy got their Sweethearts crepe (105php). They will also ask for your names because they will write it on your crepe. I asked the cashier to write Hannah's nickname on hers. As for Ivy's, she rejected my suggestion of using her new nickname.