Create Memories at Precious Moments Restaurant & Gift Shop!

I've been eyeing this place for a long time already. The name itself always make me wonder what surprises are waiting inside everytime the bus on the way to the office pass by it. Then, living in Makati during weekdays brought me closer to this place until finally! I was able to try having dinner here with my dormates. There are so many things to commend in this place, first, its irresistable cuteness and adorable displays! They change their decorations after several months that's why,expect to have different ambiance every visit. Secondly,the service. So far based from our visit, the staff are very nice, attentive and accomodating. The place feels very home-like and kinda have that antique and dainty feel. And of course, the food, they are nice just like the place. So here goes a detailed review:

We ordered hot tea in a pot, because we want something light for dinner. The tea was nice and refreshing, if I can remember correcty, it was Orange-citrus or Orange-lemon tea, something like that.

Hot Tea in Pot Php 60.00

Then, for our first meal, the huge Samburger, which they are also known for. This is an 8-inch burger that can be shared by 4 people. It is accompanied by potato chips and is very cheap! I mean, for a huge burger, it really is cheap! It has good amount of patty , veggies and sauce. It's delicious, considering the price but a bit watery that the bread somehow turned soggy in the end, maybe because of the veggies. You must try this or else your visit won't be complete.

Samburger w/chips Php 137.00

We also ordered their Classic Carbonara which is not that classic. For me, classic is having that usual cheesy, creamy and miky carbonara taste but this one has more unique and distinct flavor than the usual Carbonara. You can really taste the herbs and olives exploding in your mouth which minimizes that creamy and heavy taste of the pasta. The serving was good for 3-4 people.

Classic Carbonara Php 260.00

For desserts, we also had their very special cupcakes. It is very affordable and delicious. For a Php 50.00 cupcake, it is absolutely worth it! 

Various cupcakes at Php 50.00 each

My favorite is this orange cupcake. I fell inlove with just one bite! The zest really kicks in as soon as you bite it, the frosting was light and refreshing, then a delightful jelly-like orange filling awaits at the center of the cake. I really recommend this cupcake!

My second favorite is this banana and carrot cupcake. This is also good because you can really taste the flavors. Though I find the texture of the cake kind of rough, maybe its because of the carrots. The frosting looks cute.

I'm responsible for picking the next cupcake. It reminded me of the delicious Alcapone donut of J.Co that's why I chose it and it didn't disappoint. If you love nuts, you'll like this cupcake.

Lastly is this dark coffee cupcake. If you love chocolate and coffee,then this is for you. The cake is moist, a perfect match for the thickness of the chocolate frosting, then inside you'll find dark chocolate to tone down the sweetness of the frosting and cake plus a coffee bean on top.

That endedour meal. There are still so many food on their menu that we wanted to try but we were already full by then. Below is their menu for reference.

They also have a private room called "Pineapple Room" good for about 12 people perfect for intimate gatherings, the room rate is Php 5,000, which is consumable plus no time limit, pretty cool huh? Asides fom this, they have packages for parties, catering, etc. 

This place is not only a restaurant but also a gift shop! They offer wide variety of Precious Moments items, perfect for souveniers, gifts or simply as collection! Your eyes will enjoy every side and corner of this place. More photo below.

 We will definitely go back to this place! Moments are Precious in Precious Moments Restaurant & Gift Shop!

Food trip at Dinersoft Restaurant

Dinersoft is a small restaurant located in Imus Cavite near Our Lady of Pilar Hospital. We happened to stop by the place on our way to a different sisig food place that my friend wanted to try because the Dinersoft's exterior caught our eyes. The place was pretty crowded from the outside but they have lots of seats inside.

The place was small but neat and accomodating. Despite the number of people that time, the ambience was relaxing and doesn't have that "hurry-up-order-eat-and-go" feeling. From the looks of it, I thought their food would be expensive but it is very affordable.

They offer grilled food, soup, pasta, sandwiches,rice meals, viands, sizzling plate, "silog" meals, and also coffee, frappe and for the desserts, you have to ask the waiter because it is not written on the menu.

For the appetizer, we ordered tacos. It was really cheap and can be shared by 2 people already.We love the dressing and fillings inside, there were generous amount of cheese, veggies, meat and everything else.  

Tacos (P85.00)

We devoured the tacos!

One of my friend ordered "Imus Longganisa Pasta". We were so excited about this one because its the first time for us to encounter this dish. By the way, this is also one of their best sellers. We were not disappointed. Their serving is good for one only but the three of us tried it anyway. It was plated nicely. The flavor of the pasta is different than usual, not too creamy, not too oily and not too dry. There were plenty of crispy longganisa, I mean, we ordered Imus Longganisa Pasta and truly, that's what we get, lots of longganisa. Together, the flavors blend perfectly.

Imus Longganisa Pasta (P135.00) 

My other friend ordered another best seller on the menu, baby back ribs. This one is also of good value and oh-so-soft and delicious. The sauce was nice and the ribs was super soft and chewy. We cannot stop saying "wow, sarap, hmm, okay to, good." while eating because it was sooo savory good. The serving was also generous for one, I wonder how delicious their whole baby back ribs would be.

Baby Back Ribs w/ Rice(P125.00)

And for my meal, I chose the all time and all day breakfast favorite, tapsilog. I wasn't expecting much because its just a typical tapsilog. The plating was nothing special, just the usual tapsi meal look but what I like about this one comes with the softness of the tapa. That is one factor that sets it apart from the other tapsi meals. The flavors was nice, not too strong but not too bland and boy it was chewy.My friends were joking if there is also something different with the egg, haha.  I'm very happy with my simple choice.

Tapsilog (P85.00)

We were already so full that's why we didn't order any drinks or desserts but for sure, we will come back to this place again to try out their other dishes! Our curiousity was fully  satisfied, nice ambience combined with yummy foods resulted to a quality time and meaningful girl talk. 

Happy Tummies!

Happy Girls!

Get High in Makiling Highlands Resort!

My friend and I wanted to have a short break from work this summer, I mean who doesn't want to have a vacation getaway in this hot season right? After a series of planning and searching for a good place to go to we ended up choosing Makiling Highlands Resorts. Makiling Highlands Resort is located in Captain Mamon Road, Pansol, Calamba, Laguna. (You can check their website for the map: http://www.montevista.com.ph/highlands_index.html) 

I purchased a ticket in agoda.com, we booked an overnight stay for 2 with complimentary breakfast for a total of P1,995.00. It says in agoda.com that the rate I purchased was a promo stating that the original price of that room was around Php 3,000.00 but apparently when we arrived, what we booked was the actual rate already, anyway, no regrets for that. We went there via my friend's car without knowing how to go there! Thank goodness for the car's gps, after many twists and turns, we finally found our destination. 

Check in starts at 2:00 pm, we arrived at around 3:30 pm. Honestly, we weren't expecting much but when we arrived, the service and place was way better than we expected. The reception is already at the entrance gate of the resort. Upon showing our voucher, they immediately handed me the forms for my signature, gave our voucher for the food and let us in. 

The place was bigger than what we have in mind since it is located at the foot of Mt. Makiling and the resort itself is several miles away from the main entrance. We were welcomed by their staff who immidiately guided us to the parking lot, helped us with ur stuff and led us to our room. From that point only, I knew we were up for a nice and relaxing overnight stay. They really have good and fast service considering the size and distance of one place to another. 

The ambience of the resort was very peaceful. Even though there's a karaoke playing simultaneously, it doesn't have that "place filled with noisy people" feel. I don't know why, but you can really feel like you're already separated from the outside world. They have 3 separated swimming pools and slides. Unfortunately, the slides were closed during that time. The pool for adult is not too deep, so it's not advisable for diving. They have lots of tables and cottages for rent if you won't avail a room and many grilling areas are scattered all over the place, some tables have their own faucet and sink. In terms of convenience in utilities, this place is passed the test.

Their rooms was placed nicely in an elevated area that makes it look very unique and nice. Our room was small, its like a box, but clean and very comfortable. It just lack a little closet or storage for stuff. The rest room also was clean,only thing, there was no hot option in the shower.  All in all we like it. We also have a great view in the window oveer looking the resort. 

 

We totally messed up the clean room. Haha!

We didn't had dinner because we brought so many snacks which is better because they don't have a cafeteria or place where you can eat dinner, only a small store that offers chips, souvenir items and toiletries.  But they do have food delivery from Max's Monte Vista.  They have billiards that you can rent for Php 100 an hour and table tennis. We played then went swimming for a short time,too bad that the other pool was closed for cleaning so we were only able to swim in the adult pool (that is not deep at all).

The following day,our free breakfast was delivered to our room. It came from Max's Monte Vista. They have few breakfast to choose from but it was good to begin your day with. I chose tocilog and my friend had bangsilog. The inclusive drink was tetrapack juice, that's the downfall. haha

Ah! That awesome feeling to have breakfast in bed! :)

 We didn't do much the following day because our check out time was at noon. So we just walked around the place and saw how big it was. They offer several services, such as educational tour, seminar, events, parties, they also have lots of private pools with rooms that is perfect for big groups and can be rented in an affordable rate, around P5,000-P6,000. The resort is also perfect for team buildings because they have a very nice team bulding facility and facilitator, they can customize the package depending on your group size and needs. It is also nice forphotoshoots, they have a nice mini hanging bridge, a tree house and lots of green areas.

Team building facility

Upon check out, we didn't noticed that we extended an hour from our 11 pm check out time written on the deposit slip. But it was really an accident because the check out time written on our voucher was 12 pm, considering this, the receptionist was kind enough to wave the P500.00 that we were supposed to pay as extension fee, that made us a happy customer. 

All in all , we had a great time. So glad that we chose this place. In the future, I would love to bring my family there and suggest the venue for team buidling activities. Sometimes, Makiling Highlands Resorts have promos in group buying sites such as Metrodeal.

This place is of good value for what it's worth, the entrance fee to the pool alone isalso very cheap. Just check out their website and facebook account for more details. 

Makiling Highlands Resort Facebook Page