*****
Went out with Liza last Friday night. We ate at Di Mark's in Greenbelt where I had the carbonara and she had Minestrone soup. The carbonara was downright YUCKY I don't even want to talk about it. Liza's Minestrone soup was too salty. Tsk tsk... I have heard good things about Di Marks, which was why I was not expecting their food to be so ugh. Maybe their pizzas are good. But heck, I ain't going back there.
Dinner was supposed to be a Christmas reunion for the four of us -- Sharon, Liza, Mary Grace and moi. But of course, only us singletons made it. Sharon couldn't make it because of a derma appointment. Mary Grace couldn't make it because... er.. I forgot. Basta another appointment. Oh well. Married life really changes one's lifestyle, I guess.
Saw Bridget Jones after dinner. It has been years since I last read the book, so I really can't remember the storyline anymore. But I do not remember any Thailand assignments for Bridget. (Rory, Val, meron ba?) But I liked the movie. It was a welcome change after a harrowing seminar the night before. I laughed so hard especially in the jail scene, with the women singing their own version of "Like A Virgin." The actress who played Rebecca was so pretty. Her name is Jacinda Barrett, and I cannot imagine her as a lesbian.
*****
Saturday morning, we had brunch with our Dutch supplier at the Heritage Hotel. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT, ever make the mistake of having your meal there. Because:
-- Pancakes served with berries and warm maple syrup = pancakes served with Comstock's blueberry pie filling and watermelon chunks and Lady's Choice syrup. And no butter. You have to ask for it. Berries = watermelons? If they do not have fresh berries all year round, then they should have written preserved fruits on their menu instead!
-- Orange juice= a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice costs a freakin' P255.00!! That's per glass! Okay, okay! I know hotels overcharge for their beverages. P150 per glass is still acceptable. But P255?!?!
-- Service was bad. We were the only ones seated in the area, and there were two attendants nearby. But we felt invisible as we waved our hands to ask for a glass of water.
-- Buffet was bad. 'Nuff said.
*****
We initially planned to celebrate my mom's birthday at the Westin Plaza's longest buffet (yum!), but since I wanted to pay for the dinner, I asked Audrey to suggest something more within my budget. She came up with zhongnanhai, a new Chinese restaurant operated by Max Brenner. According to Auds, the resto is famous for their tea, imported all the way from China.
Good thing Audrey made reservations, because when we arrived, the restaurant was already full. We were lead to the second floor, where the first thing I noticed were the low ceilings. Now, most of the Chinese restos I have been to (except Mann Hann) have that typical Chinese look -- bright lights and red tablecloth. But zhongnanhai deviated from the traditional by going for dark colors and dim lights. For that night, we ordered:
Shao Long Pao -- arrived towards the end of dinner, was given free because of the long wait and because they wanted us to taste the house specialty. It was okay, nothing extraordinary.
Pork with jellyfish --
Hot and Sour soup --
Wintermelon soup --
Yangchow fried rice -- SARAP!!
Fried rice with diced chicken and salted fish -- SARAP!!
Deep fried spare ribs -- I liked this the most. The ribs were tender and served with a lot of fried garlic, which made the whole dish even better.
Pan fried beef tenderloin -- Another good dish!
Sweet and sour fish fillet -- The fish is so tender that it almost melts in your mouth.. well, almost.
Steamed garoupa and minced beans -- My mom considers herself an expert on tao so hi, and she liked this dish.
Braised prawns with pumpkin sauce and steamed buns -- A new food concept for me, so there is no basis for comparison. But I liked it just the same.
Braised black mushrooms with vegetables --
Prices per dish ranged from P250 - P350. Servings are small, so it's kinda expensive when you really think about it. And the restaurant was obviously new, what with the delayed orders and all. But the waiters more than made up for the delay by being so nice to us. Even going to the extent of giving us free shao long paos. I will definitely go back to zhongnanhai. =)
*****
Sunday morning was spent combing the streets of Divisoria with Mike to look for stuff I can sell in Filinvest's bazaar. I sooooo want to back out of this, so if there's anyone interested, please leave a comment in my blog.
I love going to Divisoria to shop. After the Divisoria shopping experience, I feel that all the stuff they're selling in the malls are overpriced. Dollhouses for P150! Cute watches for P100!! I bought 10 sheets of pretty matte gold wrapping paper for Liza -- all for P32!! Mura no?
Anyway, after the Divisoria experience, which left us feeling yucky and dirty, we headed straight to Glorietta to watch National Treasure. I have read good reviews about the movie and I was not disappointed. Have some questions though:
1. Why did Ian Howe not take special precautions when they were trying to break into the church towards the last part of the movie?
2. How did they solve the clue where they had to refer to Silence's letters to the editor? Diba Benjamin's father donated the letters already?
3. Why did Dr. Chase cut a deal with Ian Howe? Yes, helping a fugitive escape is a federal offense, but why Ian? What did he offer Dr. Chase and Riley in exchange? Safety for Gates? Sorry, I was not paying attention during this part of the movie. And obviously, Mike was not paying any attention too because he couldn't answer me. =)
Overall, the movie was entertaining. Kept my eyes glued to the screen for all 131 minutes.
Oh! Oh! Star sighting! Saw Marc Nelson in Glorietta yesterday. Hihihihihihi!
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