The Gourmet Chocolate Dessert of Café Ilang-Ilang, Manila Hotel

"A balanced diet is chocolate in both hands"

Chocolate is every woman's first love! They are your best friend whenever you feel down and whenever its that time of the month. 

A few weeks ago I had the most amazing discovery! I found the best home made chocolate dessert right in the heart of Manila! They come in assortments of praline, hazelnut, white chocolate, milk chocolate, toffee, caramel, chocolate-cruch, chocnut and many more. The texture also varied from nutty, crunchy to oozing with chocolate filling from the inside. 

My personal favorite was the white chocolate (with the pink sakura design printed on top) and praline ganache oozing from the inside. 

The chocolates are part of the buffet at Café Ilang-Ilang where they have an excellent selection of food and cuisine. Dinner rates start at 2,450Php per person on weekdays and 2,950Php per person on weekends. 

You may also purchase the chocolates separately at their lobby lounge. They have boxes of 10 and 20 assorted chocolates being sold starting at around 900Php. 

Below are the chocolate fountain and home made gelato also included in the dinner buffet of Café Ilang-Ilang. 

Reservations for the lunch and dinner buffet can be made at Cafe Ilang-Ilang, Manila Hotel

Opening hours

Breakfast
Daily 6:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Lunch
Daily 11:00 AM to 2:30 PM
Dinner
Daily 6:00 PM to 10:30 PM

Email: restaurantrsvn@manila-hotel.com.ph
Contact number: 632 527 0011
Address: Manila Hotel, One Rizal Park, 0913, Manila, Philippines

The 5 Star Japanese Dish: Mastusaka Beef of Matsusakagyu Yakiniku

The Japanese is known all over the world for their excellent taste and finesse in food, from their sushi/sashimi, to their shrimp tempura and miso ramen. So when we heard of this restaurant that served the BEST beef in Osaka (according to one of our executives at the office), and Osaka being the food capital of Japan, we just had to find our way to Matsusakagyu Yakiniku.

The restaurant has over 6 branches across Osaka, but the most visited one is located in Namba, just a few blocks away from the famous Dotonbori canal and Shinsaibashi shopping arcade. In order to get a reservation, you must call atleast 2 days ahead, especially on weekends. The seating is limited and your reservation is timed. 

Getting to the restaurant is a bit confusing especially if you're not familiar with the streets of Osaka. It is along a small alley a few blocks from the crowded tourist area. We had to call the restaurant again to get proper directions. It was a great relief that the restaurant actually sends over a guide to meet you at the front of shinsaibashi and walks you to the restaurant! Talk about hospitality!

You have to take a lift to the 2nd floor of the building to get to the restaurant. The venue is dimmed with warm lighting, and the walkways are very tight. I believe there were only a total of 6 to 8 rooms for table seating. Per room can accommodate 4-8 pax.

Were getting to the best part of the post.. The Matsusaka Beeef!

Not known to majority of the tourists, but Matsusaka beef is considered by many Japanese as superior quality compared to its rival Kobe beef. This is thought to be because of how the beef was raised; from specially pampered Japanese Black virgin heifers. The beef is described as soft-melts-in-your-mouth texture, rich, and evenly marbled.

We ordered 3 different parts of Matsusaka beef, but since we did not know which part was the best we requested to serve the recommended cuts

We were advised to cook the meat as medium rare (the more rare, the more it melts in your mouth)

The meat was so juicy, rich and oh so tender! Definitely a 5 out of 5 experience! I wish I could have ordered another platter all to myself (if only I had the extra 3k yen). All in all, another dining experience to remember! Kampai!

For reservations you can contact Matsusakagyu Yakiniku M

Below is the contact details and location of the branch we ate at

TEL +81-6-6211-2917

1-1-19 Namba, Chuo-ku,
Osaka-city, 542-0076

HOURS 17:00-24:00 (L.O.23:00)
(Open 7 days a week)

Munchies: Ice Cream, Gelato & Sorbet

Ice Cream. One of the most beautiful man made creations on earth! The cold creamy-like texture that will make any kid and adult alike feel giddy inside. I personally dont know anyone who doesn't like ice cream. If not ice cream, then gelato or even sorbet! Whatever floats your boat. Basically the main difference between the three is:

• Ice cream has a base of cream, milk, sugar and egg yolk, giving it a smooth, light-textured and creamy finish. 

• Gelato starts out with a similar ice cream custard base, but it's churned slower and frozen at a slightly warmer temperature. The slow churning incorporates less air, so the gelato is more dense. The higher freezing temperature means that the gelato stays silkier and softer.

• Sorbet on the other hand is dairy-free and is made out of fruit juice or flavored water. They have a soft snowy texture and is typically the most refreshing out of the three.

My personal favorite gelato hot spot can be found right in Burgos Circle, The Fort.

Bardolci offers an assortment of cool and creative flavors just like Chocolate Hazelnut Ferrero, French Vanilla, Honey Praline, Mango Mumbai, Raspberry Black Tea Sorbet etc! For a full view of their menu you can visit http://www.bardolci.com/ where they also serve savories and short orders of bruschettas, scones and beignets.

While just recently at one of our video shoots for work, I got a chance to meet Xandra Rocha, the creator of Pinkerton Ice Cream.

After a hard days work at the shoot, she kindly gave the crew a mini taste test of her available Pinkerton flavors on hand! Guava Basil Sorbet (Very refreshing! Just appropriate after a big meal to take away any lingering after taste) and Banana Nutella Ice Cream (Just to DIE for).

Banana Nutella Ice Cream

Guava Basil Sorbet and Mango Basil Sorbet

She served them in these cute miniature shot glass-like mugs! It just completed the whole presentation!

She currently supplies her Ice Cream to a couple of restaurants around the metro, and she handles orders as well. To know more about Pinkerton Ice Cream and their complete ice cream list, you can visit their facebook page http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pinkerton-Ice-Cream/212148148824895