Up The Mountains I Go

Amidst the horse back riding, the photo ops with dozens of St. Bernard, countless vendors of strawberry taho and vendors grilling either corn on the cob or sun-dried squid, Baguio is probably one of my favorite cities to visit.
 

The whiff of a distinct pine smell which is present in most parts of the city, plus the sensation of breathing in the crisp Baguio air just brings back good memories of trips made with either friends or family.

I skipped the usual tourist stops and other alatski stuff first-timers do and opted for a quick, but extremely satisfying Baguio food trip instead. 

I needed inspiration for a menu that I am creating and I know that Baguio is starting to become a haven for chefs and foodies alike, why not hit two birds with one stone?

Since I only had a day to experience what Baguio has to offer, I messaged some of my good friends who are certified foodies. Some even lived in Baguio for a while, so I was positive that they know where the good spots are. Hi Mij! Hehehehe

Fresh, organic, fresh, local, fresh and foodgasmic. These are the elements of the food I'm expecting to devour in the next few hours. 

FT BROOOOOOOOO

I decided to start my journey (journey siya eh) at Session Road. 

As I was walking along the busy street of Session, I went to the Swiss bakery that had some great reviews. I went there around 10AM, but still, the smell of freshly baked bread comes at you the moment you walk in. Since my stomach's starting to growl, I asked the cashier for a piece of strawberry Danish (35php). I left the bakery and started descending the busy street going to Burnham Park. 

I was thinking of looking for a good spot at the park and eat the Danish, but I gave in to temptation and took a bite of what's supposed to be flaky, buttery, aromatic piece of heaven with a pastry cream and strawberry compote in the middle and maaaaaaaan was I disappointed. It was like biting a piece from your ex's heart after your break up. 


Cold. Hard. Hollow.


DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM SOOOOOOOON


So being bummed out by my first stop, I crossed that out from my list. Still being hopeful that one magical meal will turn my day around, I have a feeling that it's just coming real real real soon. I, then, headed to my next destination.

The Ketchup Food Community

        

 


It took me around 20 minutes to arrive from Session to Ketchup Food Community by cab, which is near Wright Park (most of the cab drivers are already familiar with the place. If not, tell them it's near Wright Park).

Basically the compound consists of 5 different establishments:

• Rancho Norte offers both traditional and exotic Filipino food (packed).

• Green Pepper offers gourmet Mediterranean  food (super packed).

• Happy Tummy offers Filipino-Thai favorites (medj packed).

• Canto offers American comfort food (closed).

The fifth restaurant is Rumah Sate which offers Indonesian and Malaysian food. I asked the waiter for their best sellers and he told me that Sate Ponorogo (around 150 php) is a must-try so I ordered that and a glass of milk tea (90 php).

Three skewers of perfectly grilled chicken thigh fillet basted with a sweet soy base sauce served with pickled finger chili and candied dilis. This meal definitely made up for my first purchase. 

The pickled chilies were addictive. I actually had it refilled twice! They were on an unending battle whether they'd be sweet or sour, none of them were backing down. A hint of heat compliments the sweetness of the sauce that was smothered all over the chicken. 

Don't worry if you're not gastronomically adventurous (maarte), this dish is definitely Filipino palate friendly plus the serving is ginormous! If only I had someone to share the meal with....AY PUUUUU

After having that heavenly meal, I was up for a sugar rush so next stop for me was 

Cafe By The Ruins 

 

Upon entering the establishment, you will surely be mesmerized by its interiors which are mostly made of wood and skillfully crafted iron works.

I decided to get a table on the second floor. I know I won't be able to work on the menu because I will be too distracted by the bakers shaping the pandesal on one side and the open kitchen on the other. Since I was too full to even try their mouthwatering pain au chocolat or their irresistible croissant and ensaymada, I ordered the Rizal's tsokolate-e instead.

After having a sip of this cup of happiness, a sudden spread of warmth filled my body; thick and rich concoction of fresh carabao's milk and Davao tablea is perfect for beating Baguio's chill.

Eh kung may kayakap ba naman ako, edi sana goods na.

After downing my cup of hot chocolate, I decided to hit the market and look for the stores where they sell coffee beans.

Being oddly familiar with Baguio's market, I didn't find it hard to locate said stores. 

I bought both a quarter of a kilo of Benguet blend (around 240/kl) and Sagada blend (around 365/kl). You can either buy them as is or have them ground for your convenience. I stayed here for a while since I find the smell of coffee soothing and calming.

                                 

It was starting to get dark and my sweet tooth's already acting up, so off to Hill Station I go.

I asked the waitress for their best seller and she pointed me two of their wide array of pastries and cakes. One is the chocolate lemon tart and the other one which happened to be her go-to dessert also is the Death by Chocolate (around 120 php).

           

The warm half-baked brownie-like pastry topped with a smooth and creamy vanilla ice cream. Every bite gives you pure bliss. Only people who already had this can understand. One bite of the warm, gooey and fudgey chocolate, together with the ice cream will send you to ecstasy.

I was full and somewhat satisfied from my pig out day, so I was thinking of ways on how to spend my last night in the city of pines. Why not have a pint of artisan beer?

Baguio Craft Brewery offers a wide array, and when I say wide array, I mean a lot of different brews to tickle your tastebuds. Since there were too many to choose from, I had a hard time choosing what to order. Good thing the bartenders let you have a taste of the different varieties they have in store.

                      

I ordered a pint of Pugaw (170 php) after tasting almost all of the beer they have (I only missed 2 out of the 14). Yup, you can do that so before my order I was a bit buzzed already. 

The brew that I got, reminds me a little bit of both Stella Artois and Hoegaarden. Crisp, straight forward, not too bitter and a hint of sweetness. Now that's one hell of a beer.

A pub where the bartenders know their beer and knows how to interact with their costumers. A place where you can either drink in peace or meet a new buddy or two! Over all a cozy and warm (not literally, I was freezing) place to end your day on a high note.

12 hours. 5 establishments. 1 happy belly.

My day didn't start off as smoothly as I wanted it to be but a lot of food I had made up for it. So it was still a good day for me and my palate.

For me, Baguio will never lose its charm. I may not visit the Baguio staples where the swarm of tourists flock for a picture with at least a dozen photo bombers. I may not enjoy riding a horse around a poop yard. I may not enjoy riding a bike nor go boating in the middle of a park, with people awkwardly watching you paddle your awfully colored boat, but I'd like to think that it's part of the package.

For once I saw Baguio, the way I wanted it to, and I was not disappointed. Thanks, Baguio. See you soon.

              

                 CHEERS!!!

*I still didn't find my "Tadhana" though, damn it!




Ketchup Food Community
Romulo Dr, Baguio, 2600 Benguet, Philippines

Cafe By The Ruins
25 Shuntug Rd, Baguio, 2600 Benguet, Philippine

Garcia's Pure Coffee 

Hangar Market, 10 A Chucheria Section, Baguio,

Benguet, Philippines

Hill Station

Casa Vallejo, Upper Session Road, Session Road 

Baguio Craft Brewery 
Ben Palispis Hwy, Baguio

 

You Win Some, You Booze Some

For all you guys who makes drinking a part of your lifestyle, you'll surely find this post of mine super handy! I'm gonna write about the things my buddies and I usually do if we really really want to drink but our budget's too freaking tight. I think I'll give out 8 ideas today that are definitely tried and tested, I'll even do the costing for these mofos! I've searched the prices of the items over the internet, so it will definitely vary depending on your location or where you buy the booze and shit. 

Again, I am not saying that I'm a hardcore drinker, I wrote this post out of boredom and because I'm awesome! Oh yeah, no freaking judging on what you're about to read. I am not a bar tender, so I am not familiar with their proper names, all that you're about to read are based purely on my experiences and observations. I'm gonna even tell you guys where I first tasted these awesome awesome mixes!

1.Gin + any kind of powdered juice

Viewpoint, Antonio St., Dapitan!!!

+            

I think this one's gotta be the cheapest, sure na sure! If you're thinking that I'm skwating for making this kind of drink, then screw you! I kidd, I kidd! I think the first time that I drank this mix was in 2008. I was a freshman in college, and there's an alley in Dapitan called Antonio which is like the smokers' spot in Dapitan (the street beside C&E Bookstore, not sure if its still a bookstore though). There's this secret drinking place in that smoking alley which is really popular to those students who just want to have a drink in between classes, its called Viewpoint. You can mix it with pineapple, orange, mango, pomelo and four seasons. 

Mix the powdered juice with water, pour as you will the booze, and serve it with ice!

A bottle of gin bilog is around 30 pesos plus 10 pesos for the powdered juice, let's say 3 pesos for ice, voila! 43 pesos for a pitcher of Gin mix! Pineapple, Orange, and Mango are some of my barkada's favorites.

2.Red Horse + ExtraJoss

Papu's, Xavierville Ave

This is a must-try! If you're not that much of a beer fan, this will surely make you

drink a mug or so! For those of you are not familiar with ExtraJoss, its like a powdered energy drink that you dilute in water and voila, instant sub for redbull! I dunno about the health blaaah of this drink, but what I'm sure is its good good good! The bitterness of the beer will magically disappear after you mix it with extrajoss. It'll become a bit sweeter, more like the drink Cali that most of us used to drink when we we're too young and too cool to drink the real stuff!

A bottle of Red Horse beer (1L) is around 56, I think (not sure), and a pack of Extrajoss is around 6 pesos! 62 bucks is all you need ofr this energy giving beer drink! AWESOOOOOME!

3. Tanduay + Coke
Somewhere in South Forbes

                    Damn this one's gotta be the most practical for me, being a huge Bacardi fan! Unless you're willing to spend a good 700 bucks for a bottle of 151, try mixing coke with Tanduay. Most of the bars who serves Rum coke serve this, so this one's probably a familiar taste for most of you guys who usually go out and party.


A bottle of Tanduay is around 90 pesos I think, that's the biggest one not 100% about this though. A bottle of a 1.5L Coke is around 40 pesos, again not sure about the prices. So for 130 pesos you can have the drink that you pay for 200 bucks in a bar and have it for only 8 pesos or so per glass! AWESOME.




4. Shembot
Cottonwoods, Antipolo

This one's probably the weirdest thing you'll ever hear when you ask what's in the drink. The drink's made of water, powdered melon juice, 3in1 coffee, and gin, and I am dead serious about this mix. :)) This is worth a try!!!! I really can't explain the taste but its good good good! Oh yeah, no idea where they got the name.

A bottle of gin bilog is 30 pesos, powdered melon juice 10 pesos, 3in1 coffee is 6 pesos. 46 pesos for this coffee and melon flavored cocktail.







5. Empi Light and Iced Tea
     No idea

Dunno, why this become a staple to most of the drinking sessions that I've been to. Emperador has been on the market for quite sometime, but didn't really catch the eye of the younger crowd, so they made a genius move by creating a light version of their drink. Come to think of it, there's not much of a difference between the two, maybe the word "light" is just a psychological shit that's being used by the company. Nevertheless this awesome brandy and iced tea combination's definitely taken the Philippines by storm! Even when I was in Coron, they were asking for this drink whenever we have a night out or just having a drinking session outside the staff houses.

A liter of empi light will cost you around 95 pesos plus the iced tea chaser, you'll probably need 2 packets of the powdered iced tea which costs 10 bucks a piece.

 GAWIN NIYONG LIGHT MGA PAPING!

6. Mojitos and calamansi
My tita's place in Marikina

The cheaper version of Cuervo and lime! I don't like Mojitos that much cause it gives me one hell of a hangover the day after. If you're a huge tequila fan and you're running low on moolah, this one's definitely a life saver for you bro! Again, this one's a bitch so if you have an important appointment the day after, I don't think this one's the right booze for you.

A bottle of Mojito's around 200+ and I don't any idea how much a kilo of calamansi cost. -____-





7. The Bar Apple + Orange Juice + Blue Curacao
Cottonwoods, Antipolo

I know most of you guys don't like The Bar, but this is mix will definitely get you begging for more. The blue curacao's optional, the bar apple and orange's okay by itself. I know a lot people who gets the bar as gifts during their birthdays, well there you go, problem solved! This is a traitor drink, so mga papi if you're planning to get a girl drunk this mix will ought to do the trick. (I kidd, I kidd)

A bottle of the bar apple is around 90 pesos plus 10 pesos for the powdered orange juice. The blue curacao's optional so if you're budget's really tight you can just forget about it! A hundred bucks for an awesome cocktail, not bad eh?




8. Cossack and Fruit Soda
       no idea

 
The cheaper version of Vodka 7
,which usually is a mix of Absolut and 7up! Absolut will cost you around 600 bucks and 40 bucks for the 7up, which is only okay for most of us if there's a special occasion, like maybe if Dora's finally dead or something. I think Cossack's the one that most of the club use during open bars and I think most of the mobile bars too.

A bottle will cost you around 90 pesos and 30 pesos for the Soda! Serve this with ice for maximum vodka-fruit soda experience!





These are some of the things my friends and I usually drink whenever we're bored and there's really no occasion! Cheers if you're short on cash but you want to have to good freaking night! In my opinion, whether you're drinking a bottle of dom perignon or effin' gin bilog, at the end of the day they're just drinks that you're gonna pee in a couple of hours. 

 HAPPY DRINKING BOYS AND GIRLS!

11 THINGS You MUST Not Do In a Club

This is just a very very random post that I thought of, if ever you find this post offensive then you're probably doing these no nos. No, this post does not make me the person who tells the universe what's cool and what's not, these are just some things that I've observed during my night outs. So here are some of the things that made my list of "WHAT NOT TO DO IN A CLUB"











1. Don't force yourself to speak in a language you're not comfortable with.

I think number one's pretty obvious. Come on, you don't have to speak in English just for you to approach a girl, sometimes the ladies might even find it more attractive if you have the confidence to speak in your native tongue, rather than forcing yourself to speak in a fucking alien language. "Hi miss, pwedeng makipagkilala?" is better than "Hi miss, can I meet you?" which will be an instant entry on your list of most embarrassing moment. 

Well if you're comfortable in speaking let's say in English and the girl you want to approach is Marian Rivera-like then don't be a douche and stop speaking in fucking English. Well my main point is, if you are one confident enough lad, you can reel in a chick in whatever language you're using. Unless of course she's like Norwegian or Zimbabwean or she's a narwhal.

  


2. Don't wear a floral shirt (random)

If you want to be the laughing stock of the whole room, well be my freaking guest. If you want the people to be screaming "Mabuhay ang Maynila" then feel free to walk in a bar in that awesome awesome awesoooome shirt. Of course there's an exception like Luau or Hawaiian themed parties, but if you think that you're gonna go party hard and get laid wearing that shirt HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

But of course there are exceptions! If they are worn by these people

Derek Ramsay

Val Sotto

Babalu

AND THE AWESOME KUYA GERMS! 

3. Do not blackout

Unless you want your friends to curse your future wife and kids, don't be a hard core "party animal", I'm not saying don't get drunk, be the life of the party drunk, the fun drunk, don't be the douchebag who pukes on your buddy's nice clothes and creates this fucking mayhem inside the club drunk. Control your alcohol intake, son. You might even puke on a girl you're trying to hit on, instant rejection coming right up!


4. Do not wear white shoes

This is a brother's advice, if you're planning to wear a pair of brand new white shoes, you gotta think it over man. Unless of course you're filthy rich and you only wear a pair once then you can fucking wear white kicks bro! Your shoes might end up like this

Think of all the people who's gonna step on your new shoes, and besides its fucking dark in there man, people will hardly notice your new babies in a jam packed club.

5. Don't get your designated driver drunk

This one's a no brainer, unless you wanna gamble with death or you wanna have a sleep over on the VIP couches, always have someone be sober enough to drive you guys home. 

Note: If you happen to be a kangaroo, then you're perfectly safe to drive people home.

6. MDAS's just lame nowadays

If you don't have any idea what MDAS stands for, its multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction, and believe it or not, they are fucking dance moves! Don't get me wrong, I'm no dancer, but if nobody's laughing at what you're doing, might as well cut it off and stick with the fist pump like everybody else, but if you know how to fucking levitate, do that!!!! Yes, you will scare the shit out of everyone but you'll be be the center of attention for a good couple of seconds!

LIKE DHALSIM! FYEAH!

7. Don't be a munchie

People nowadays call them "kung fu" or "kung fumulutan". You guys order food to accompany the drinks not to have it as dinner, so before going to the club make sure to fill up your tummy with food, but not that much or you won't be able to drink that much, you don't want to be puking after your 5 bottles of beer don't you? Pig out as much as you want if you're a Snorlax, but you're not one are you?

8. Party with no moolah

Even though its a birthday party, even though your friends are telling you that its on them, bring cash. You'll never know when you might need to buy something important, like 

a pack of cigs

carrots

a donkey

a pirate

, or cab fare because your friend blacked out or something, so bring cash!

9. Don't be a sourpuss!

You and your friends went out to have a blast. If you're asking people to go home at 1 fucking a.m, then might as well go home by yourself. Why agree on a nightout if you're gonna leave after 30 minutes. Unless you wanna ruin your friends' night and you wanna piss them off so bad, then don't be like this. You're gonna be "hassle sa muscle" sure na sure!

10. Screaming out "I'm fucking drunk" is not cool

Especially when everybody's aware that you had one bottle of beer or one shot of vodka, you are not drunk man! Maybe you just watch to much American Pie movies or have a life long dream to be branded as a cool guy for admitting to every single soul in that room that you're wasted. Instead for screaming this very very cool beans statement, if you're really really bummed out already, tell one of your friends and stop drinking immediately, if you think you've sobered up and you can take it booze again, then go on and get fucking wasted young lad!

11. Never leave your i.d

Everything's all set, and this rectangular piece of plastic can ruin your night of booze and boobies. So never leave your i.ds at home, unless you wanna line up for an hour or two and pay like 500 bucks.

So there you go, things you must not do in a club. Unless you want to commit social suicide. Again, I am not saying that I am cool or I'm the epitome of a hardcore party boy, I am just a mere observant in world that comes alive when the clock strikes 12.