Category: Lifestyle

The # 1 brand of frozen yogurt in Southern California finally lands in Ayala Triangle Gardens.  This was the last stop of my food trip last weekend.  It was definitely icing on the cake .  I fully enjoyed the restaurant hop.  And ending on this note was really a great treat.

Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt was branded as the ice cream lover’s yogurt.  As someone who doesn’t like yogurt, I definitely was changing my mind especially since there are several yogurt flavors available (5o to be exact).  They feature 6 different flavors in a day.  That time, the ones available were old fashioned vanilla, peanut butter cup, simply tart, belgian choco, pom & blueberry and cake batter.  Now, those are some unique and truly delicious flavors!

Aside from offering lots of yogurt flavors, they also have a decent amount of toppings to choose from.  Almonds, corn flakes, butterfingers, choco crunch, granola, marshmallows are among them.  In fact, I can’t stress enough how important I think the toppings are because it makes it even easier for us to customize just how we would like our frozen yogurt.

They also have cold toppings available: chocolate chip cookie dough, mochi rice cake, mixed berries and blackberries.  Wow!  You totally have the freedom to choose what you eat.

I think also that having the wide variety of toppings makes it easy for Golden Spoon to cater to a wider customer base. As you can see, sometimes frozen yogurt may be a drawback for people who really just want an all out sinful desert.  This way, I think you can range for super healthy and delicious frozen yogurt to some of the most sinfully delicious deserts out there complete with multiple toppings like cookie dough, butterfinger, marshmallows, etc.

Also on display are different sizes of the cups plus their choices of cones, the waffle cone and the regular one.

So, the way we order is this:

1. choose your yogurt flavor.
2. choose where you want your yogurt to be in: cone or cup?  regular cone cost Php 125 while waffe cone cost Php 175.  The cups on the other hand have 4 sizes: kiddie (Php 85), small (Php 155), large (Php 220) and quart (Php 499).
3. If you want toppings, each variant cost Php 20.
4. enjoy your serving of Golden Spoon Yogurt

I think most of us are getting more health conscious nowadays, which is why I am really glad that Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt has put out the nutritional information for their customers.   Sometimes, if we’re really counting calories, desert is just out of the questions because of the unknowns when it comes to calories.  This way, Golden Spoon has made it easier for all of us to decide.  And actually, I think it’s also a good way to draw in customers since the proof is right there in black and white.  See just how little the calorie count is for their frozen yogurt!

What did we have?

• my mom had the old fashioned vanilla in a regular cone.  We were too full but still game for yogurt!

• this one is old-fashioned vanilla yogurt with mixed berries.  I think it really is so delicious, that sometimes you just want it as simple as possible to really get a taste of just how good their frozen yogurt is!  And I’ve been really trying to get more healthy, with fruits and frozen yogurt, it’s just a healthier way of treating yourself to desert!

• this one is pom and blueberry with chocolate sprinkles.  The combination definitely is my favorite.  Try this when you go to Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt.

I definitely find it cute that the servers were ready to strike a pose when cameras started flashing at them!  Such a delight that they were willing to be endorsers of the product without any talent fee! LOLz!

Have you tried Golden Spoon?  Why not head on over to Ayala Triangle Gardens and order one of their products?  This is the most variety that I have seen in the longest while.  Imagine having the opportunity to choose from 50 different flavors of frozen yogurt and tons of toppings.  You can literally make hundreds of different frozen yogurt combination, which is why I believe with Golden Spoon there truly is something for everyone to enjoy!

I enjoyed my first time visit so much that I just had to document it and have my picture taken!  See me posing at the Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt wall.

——————–
Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt
Restaurants at the Ayala Triangle Gardens
Ayala Triangle Gardens, Makati City

The branch at Ayala Triangle Gardens is the 1st full-service restaurant of Amici.  It is the biggest too featuring 2 big brands: Amici & Cara Mia.

As most of you know, Amici is known to be a self-service restaurant.  I’m glad that they finally ventured into a full-service restaurant.  Especially for someone like me who wants to just sit and enjoy my meal, the change is definitely welcome.

It was such a delight looking at Amici’s menu.  I love how they incorporated the history of Amici mentioning the priest from Dos Bosco who started it.  Sentimental owners, aren’t they?  We loved it!  I enjoyed flipping through the pages reading and looking at the photos.  But in all honesty, what really got me excited was looking at the actual menu items, because I knew we would be trying those delicious dishes at Amici & the sinfully wonderful deserts at Cara Mia.

While looking at the menu I noticed that Amici actually uses a wooden brick oven.  They say that using it will bring out the flavors of the food.  That explains why Amici’s pizzas are so good.  On the picture below, just jook at the chef checking on the pizza that he was cooking.  It’s just so old world Italy almost when you look at the setup that they have.  You can even see all the wood at the bottom there.  Now that’s authentic style pizza if I ever saw one!

Let me share the menu items that we tried out.  The flavors in each dish were distinctly different.  This was the 2nd restaurant we visited at Ayala Triangle Gardens.  I was actually starting to get full hahaha!

• Spaghetti ai Tesori del Mare (Php 264)

This was basically a seafood pasta dish that has scallops, clams, mussels with chili oil and fresh tomatoes.  I didn’t like the scallops but the pasta tasted great!   Seafood pasta is usually a great order especially at an Italian or Mediterranean restaurant since their seafood dishes usually are very delicious.  I must admit that the pasta was really done to perfection, cooked al dente, and that the chili oil provided that wonderful essence of deep and spicy flavors, and yet it was so very subtle too.  It was a simple dish with garlic and tomato and that chili oil and seafood incorporated into it.  The problem was that the scallops wasn’t really all that good, and I’ve had some of the best scallops at other restaurants, and this just didn’t make the grade.

• Tutta Carne (Php 298)

I’m a meat lover so out of the 2 pizzas served to us.  I immediately tried Tutta Carne.  This pizza has Italian sausage, ham and pepperoni with the usual cheese and dough.  With the brick oven, I wasn’t surprised really just how tasty the crust turned out to be.  I love how everything about this dish felt so authentic.  And did I mention that each bite that I took also seemed to have so much flavor, from the seasoning to the sauce, all the way to the dough.

• Quattro Stagioni (Php 298)

Cheese lovers rejoice for your pizza is here!  It seemed that everyone wanted to try this out as soon as it was served to us.   And I wasn’t surprised because it really did look so delicious with all the four cheeses being incorporated into that pizza like that.  I even heard one of the bloggers say that it was better than what Yellow Cab pizza serves.  Again, all that flavor not only comes from the seasoning and the sauce, but that wooden brick oven really has to have so much part into creating their pizzas.  That wooden brick oven must really be their secret to success!  And lastly, I’m really glad that the dough wasn’t too thick which can sometimes be the case with other types of pizza out there.  The dough is soggy and sometimes not cooked all the way through.  Just because it’s not thin crust pizza doesn’t mean that the dough has to be anything other than just how Amici served their pizza..

• Fetuccine at Tartufo Classico (Php 244)

basically a mushroom pasta with button and shitake mushrooms.  This was definitely tastier and yummier than the seafood pasta.  I really loved the simplicity of this dish.  Because I honestly believe when it comes to pasta, the important parts of cooking it is having the pasta still firm but not too well cooked.   Then seasoning the sauce to perfection, and adding ingredients that compliment the pasta very well.  With Amici, I think they did a tremendous job in providing that delicious simplicity with this dish.

What I also liked most is that the Fetuccine at Tartufo Classico is one of the chosen products by Amici where each order of this menu item will have Php10 donated to Tuloy Foundation (a charity group for street children).  It was definitely nice of Amici to think of this.  Not to mention, their dishes are actually cheap and very affordable!

Now, as much as I love Amici’s pizzas and pasta, their desserts are just the winner for me.  Last year, they actually formalized it and created a brand for their desserts.  It’s now called Cara Mia.

Cara mia serves gelato, gelato cakes, usual refrigerated cakes and pastries.  I’m sorry but my eyes were just fixed on their gelato which had been my favorite ever since it was served at Amici.  See my happy face beside the gelato selections.  I was trying to hide my excitement! hahaha!

I was also pleasantly surprised that they serve gelato cakes!  I was like wow, that’s new!  It’s basically like an ice-cream cake but Cara Mia’s version is different.

So we asked, what’s the difference between a gelato and an ice cream?  And they shared with us that the only actual difference is the type of dairy product they put into each one.  Gelato is made from fresh milk while Ice cream is made from cream, it was that simple.  I learned something new that day.  Well that definitely explained why gelato has smoother texture and taste better.  Now we know 😉

• Peach Walnut Passion (Php 95)

This is bascially peach gelato with walnuts!  Oh my golly!  heavenly!  I noticed that it was not really pure gelato cake but it was a combination of the traditional cake but it has more gelato.  Awesome creation.  Amici really does know that we always come back for their gelato! 😀  I mean, who wouldn’t?  Their gelato is truly something that you have to try out for yourself to really get the idea of why it is so popular!

• Mango Symphony (Php 95)

Mango gelato with mango chunks plus graham crackers.  If 1 slice isn’t enough for you, you can order the whole cake which is priced at Php 690.  I’m also glad that I was able to try this out.  Again, it may seem like the ordinary mango refrigerator cake, but what always separates high end restaurants and desert places is how they take it one step further.  First they use premium mango gelato, add those chunks of mango, the little crumbs of graham crackers too.  And that mango sauce on the side, it’s simple, but it’s that added simplicity that really make Cara Mia stand out.  And don’t forget the taste, in all honesty, this was one of the best mango refrigerator cakes that I’ve tasted.

• Pistachio Gelati (Php 70)

Everybody just couldn’t wait to sample the gelati/gelato.  I didn’t have enough time to take picture in whole as they took quite a few scoops of it already hahaha!  Well, it’s fine.  You get the point right?  It was that delicious!  This green gelato was pistachio.  Yummeh!

• Sans Rival Gelati (Php 70)

Sans Rival gelato is definitely new and I was pleasantly surprised as to how delicious it is.  It will now be one of my favorite gelato flavors in Cara Mia.  You must try this if you haven’t done so.  I just can’t believe how great they were at this, imagine taking delicious sans rival and making it into gelato form!  Brilliant!  I’m now interested as to what other flavors they will be able to come up with next!  And yes, they took a few scoops of it too before I was able to take a picture.  Must not let people wait for Cara Mia’s gelati!

I really enjoyed my time there at Amici/Cara Mia considering I was with my mom and ninang!  They met for the 1st time!  My mom was my official photographer hahaha while ninang Noemi is a fellow blogger.

I’m definitely glad that Amici has become a full-service restaurant.  I will definitely be back as Ayala Triangle Gardens is just near my work place.  Cara Mia Gelato, I will be back for you!

——————–
Amici & Caramia
Restaurants at the Ayala Triangle Gardens
Ayala Triangle Gardens, Makati City

I had been wanting to try out Bon Chon Chicken for the longest time, and I’m glad that I was finally able to go last Saturday.  It always seemed to me that they would have very excellent and delicious chicken considering the amount of positive feedback that I’ve always heard from those who have already tried Bon Chon.   From what I’ve gathered, Bon Chon truly is a must try when it comes to chicken.

Bon Chon Chicken is becoming popular considering that more and more people are going there, I do have to let you know that long lines need not be a problem as long as you know when to go.  As some word of advice to all of you, my readers, go to their Ayala Triangle Gardens branch on weekends!  The lines didn’t seem to be as long as the weekdays usually are.

The branch at Ayala Triangle Gardens was their 1st and they actually opened their 2nd branch at Greenbelt 2 last December 18.  Their next branch will be at Libis, Quezon City and they plan to open more next year.  Hey, if you have something as delicious as their chicken why wouldn’t you try to expand right?

Bon Chon Chicken started year 2002 at South Korea but became popular when it finally opened a location in New York USA.  According to Bon Chon Chicken’s marketing manager in Manila, Bon Chon Chicken in New York was voted best chicken in the USA award last year!  So, not only was it the best chicken in some certain states, but to be the best chicken in the entire USA, that’s something that most restaurants rarely ever achieve!  It can only mean one thing.  Wonderful and delicious chicken!!

Here are some of the best sellers in Bon Chon:

• Soy Garlic Chicken Wings (Php 185)

Bon Chon prides itself for having less fat and less greasy chicken.  It’s the way they cook their chicken, twice-cooked to ensure that all those fats do not stay in the chicken.  The 1st run on high-heat while 2nd one on low heat.

When I tasted the soy garlic chicken wings, I was delighted as to how crispy and tasty it was.  I asked how they did it and was told that after they cooked the chicken, they put their special secret sauce into it.  It was ready made and shipped from South Korea!  Now, that’s what we call authentic!

Actually this style of cooking is very much familiar to me since many Chinese restaurants also cook their sweet and sour chicken, and other types of chicken this way.  Having that crispy coating and then covered in their secret sauces, it’s a classic style of cooking that really brings out the wonderful taste of the sauce with that added texture and crispiness that we all love when it comes to chicken.

• Hot & Spicy Chicken Wings (Php 185)

If you’re fond of spicy food or would want a better tasting Bon Chon Chicken then hot & spicy variant is for you!  My mom and I prefer this over the soy garlic one.  Be warned though that it’s really hot and spicy as the name implied.

It does look exactly the same as soy chicken garlic wings.  To differentiate it, the staff put a red toothpick to flag it.  Definitely good!  I’ll go back to Bon Chon chicken for this!

• Bulgogi Wrap (Php 125)

Oh, how I loved this.  I was in love right at my 1st bite of Bon Chon’s bulgogi wrap!  It was yummy!  Their bulgogi wrap consists of sirloin beef and Korean coleslaw.  You know what differentiate Korean coleslaw from our normal coleslaw?  They have Kimchi!  Didn’t know that it works really well!  You must try this!

I just love the Korean beef that is served with this.  In many instances, the cooking that Koreans utilize is also quite similar with Filipinos too.  The sauce that comes with most bulgogi is a type of barbecue sauce that incorporates sweet flavors, something that is definitely very suitable for the Filipino taste.

What a great way to start my Ayala Triangle Gardens food trip!  Bon Chon Chicken has other products too like drum sticks, chicken combo and chicken chops.  They also have meals, side dishes and beverages.  I feel the prices are a bit too steep but maybe because of how they prepared their dishes that justify its high price.

See my happy face?  2 reasons: I finally tried out Bon Chon Chicken and most importantly, I was pleasantly surprised with how good it was.  My mom even blurted out that she liked it better than KFC!

——————–
Bon Chon Chicken
Restaurants at the Ayala Triangle Gardens
Ayala Triangle Gardens, Makati City