Food: Marikina Burrito Brothers and Crepeman

January 19, 2015

When I blogged about eating at Tamagoya's here, Patrick shared it on Facebook and my friend, Lily, saw it.  It was the trigger which caused us to set a date to meet up in Marikina when we come to get Stanley back from his parking in Stevie's house.  Lily mentioned so many food choices through text messages as we were trying to figure out where to meet.  She also told me to Google "Marikina Food Tour/Trip" to get an idea of what I want to eat.  The results were enough to make me drool hahha Finally, we limited our choices to Lilac street since we're already familiar with the location of Tamagoya.  Lilac Street is where you'll end up if you follow the B. Soliven Avenue where Tamagoya is.  Well, the date came and we first met up at Burrito Brothers at #69 Lilac Street, Marikina.   

I didn't know what to expect so I was pleasantly surprised when we got to the location because the place seemed cozy.  Patrick was a bit worried because there was really no parking space in front of the location though.  Anyway, we got inside and saw Mother (we call her that because of a movie producer called Mother Lily) and it was like we just saw each other yesterday and not years ago.  It was a great feeling!!

We moved to a bigger table and we browsed the menu while chatting and catching up.  There were a number of choices of Mexican fare: Steak/Chicken burritos, Chicken Flautas, Tacos and Taco salads, Nachos, Chicken Fajitas, Quesadillas and more.  Patrick, Dana and Mother ordered steak burritos, I ordered the chicken flautas, Dylan had the Quesadillas and we ordered Nachos and Grilled Chicken Fajitas to share.  While we were waiting for our order, Patrick got up, took the poncho and hat from the hanger on the mall and put them on.  It was hilarious.  Since I wasn't sure if it was allowed, we asked the gyuys at the corner if we can fiddle with the costume and they said it was okay. :)  Patrick took the smaller set and put it on Dylan.  What do you think? hahaha

Mother and I have been friends for more than 20+ years and this was such a heartwarming reunion.  It was perfect timing that it was the holiday because of Pope Francis' visit otherwise we probably wouldn't have the time.  We picked a great spot to eat too because the food was great, it was reasonably priced, the place was clean and airy, and at that time there weren't too many people around yet.  

Our next stop was at Crepeman because the kids wanted something sweet for dessert.  Since Mother already told me about it, I said "Why not?" since we're already in the vicinity.  So we drove down to Crepeman which was about 5 minutes away on the left side of Lilac street (if you're coming from Burrito Brothers).  We were the only people at the store probably because it was still off-peak hours.  The kids watched Kuya make and assemble the crepe.  They were quite excited about it.

If I remember correctly, the kids ordered the Ferrero which was crepe with Nutella and Nuts (P90).  Patrick ordered Mango which was crepe with sliced mango, chocolate spread, whipped cream and kisses (P90).  I ordered Peaches which was crepe with peaches, choco spread, whipped cream and kisses (P90).  Lily only had coffee.

Here are the pictures of their menu:

Peaches

I really liked the crepes because they're crispy ! Of course when you have something like peaches or mangoes, they will naturally soften the crepe so you have to eat it fast.  But the texture of the crepe complements well with the sweetness of the chocolate and the tangy taste of the peaches.  It was big enough to satisfy sugar cravings too :)  I liked the setup because it was small but practical and they have a clean bathroom too :)

I don't think this will be the last time we'll visit Marikina for a Marikina Food trip.  I think the trick is to go on the off-hours to appreciate the food without worrying about parking. AND, you have to be hungry when you start out :D

Travel: Tarlac Trip - Day 3, Monasterio de Tarlac

January 18, 2015

The Pool

Today was our last day in Tarlac and we still had a lot of fun even without the pool.  Though we woke up a little late because of our long day yesterday, we still had energy for one more road trip.  It also occurred to us to check how Manila was since Pope Francis was going to pass by our house but there weren't any posts about it on Facebook yet hehe.  So with time to kill, the kids just went around and took pictures. :)

We drove the Mazda 6 that Patrick used in the Canonball 1000 event.  As a passenger, it's such a sweet and comfortable ride.  But I can sense the responsiveness of the machine when Patrick changes lanes or when he has to overtake someone on the expressway.  But it's such a huge car that parking in our garage was cramped that the vehicles needed to touch noses to fit LOL Our garage is "old-school" meaning it's a relic of the past so it's cramped for big modern cars hehehe

"Sharknado"

Uncle Bebot's place had a lot of plants and we loved the flowers.  Some of them were dying from the cold though.

JR was the one who took us on today's road trip/tour since Ate Pinky and Kuya George's family went to Boracay :)  He had heard that we took a scenic drive yesterday and he recommended that we try a different route, this time with the Monasterio De Tarlac as the ultimate goal.  The Monasterio de Tarlac is located in San Jose, Tarlac and is known for having a Relic of the Holy Cross.  It also has a 30-foot statue of the Risen Jesus which is a favorite spot for visitors since it overlooks the whole area.

The drive to Monasterio de Tarlac took around 1 hour from Gerona.  We drove through Tarlac City where we took a right toward Uniwide Mall and then on to Carangian Bridge.  It's pretty much a straight drive.  We went in the direction of the Tarlac Recreation Center and the Tarlac Eco-Tourism Park in Bgy. Lubigan, San Jose, Tarlac.

At the Monasterio de Tarlac, there were a lot of people, primarily because it's Sunday and there were also exhibits of Pope Francis.  We weren't able to go around that much also because it was raining a bit.  We had to park a few ways away at a hill which was precisely why JR drove the Nissan Patrol.

After all that climbing, we headed to the snack shop/resto next to the souvenir shop.  We didn't stay long because there were a lot of people.  We just ate our snacks (siopao, chicharon and C2 iced tea) in the car.

The trip going back seemed to be shorter for some reason.  Still, we were hungry by the time we reached the Urdu restaurant in Tarlac City.  We placed our orders and in a short while we were eating really good and affordable food.  JR said that Urdu is mostly known for its catering services but we were still lucky that they haven't decided to close down their restaurant.

Dylan's order: Hamburger

my order: clubhouse sandwich

Patrick's order:  beef pot roast

This was the end of our road trip and we headed back to the house soon after.  JR had to go by the store while we got ready to go back home.  We did pass by the store to say goodbye to both JR and Tita Auring and to offer our thanks for letting us stay in their home.

On our way back, we stopped at the Shell of Asia and had dinner at Chowking.  We came at the right time since we already had our orders and were eating our hearts out when the people started converging and lining up at the counter.  It was really cold by then since it had been raining steadily since we left Tarlac.

When we were done eating, we walked around the place since it was our first time to stop here.  Patrick naturally went to the Puma Outlet store.  We stayed outside and waited for him to get Sharknado (that's what we named the Mazda 6) so we didn't have to get wet from the rain.

At the toll booth, Patrick decided to let Nodame (the teddy bear) drive LOL  There was a long line you see and he was getting bored LOL

For the trip back, we paid a total of  P380 on toll fees.  P58 for TPLEX, P104 for SCTEX and P218 for NLEX.

This was such a productive Tarlac trip and we're so happy and grateful for the experience.  Dana even commented while at the Monasterio that it was such a cool thing to do before she went back to school.