For some reason, I thought this dining place will cost me an arm and a leg. What a pleasant surprise to find a well-curated menu with such affordable prices! Must be the location (where the former Embassy Bar was), as well as the simple yet elegant ambience pervading in this resto.

Chef Fernando knows what hits the spot just browsing through the menu. We promptly ordered 3 appetizers while deciding on our main dish.

We've tried Cibo's Spinach Dip but Aracama's Malunggay & Mozzarella Dip is even better. As for the Lumpia Sisig and Salpicao, they're so good I wanted to pair them with garlic rice!

For our main dish, we had Kare Kare where the pechay leaves were served like rolls with stringbeans and banana buds stuffed inside. Clever! And the sigarilyas cooked in coconut milk was spiced just right.

Of course, we likewise ordered dessert. Forgot what it's called but they look like bread balls that come with a can of condensada much like what grannies snacked on!

So, don't wait. Go and grab a table in Aracama now and savor home-cooked Pinoy/Ilonggo cuisine. Your balikbayans would love it here. Find it at 26th Street corner Fifth Avenue at The Fort, Taguig.

Jharokha is the informal dining outlet in the posh, centuries-old Taj Lake Palace in Udaipur, India. Open 24 hours a day, it's where we had our breakfast and multi-cuisine dinners.

I would have loved to try at least one authentic and high-end Rajasthani dinner in the hotel's other dining outlet, but a Neel Kamal dinner wasn't in the stars 😔

Jharokha caters to different tastes. Indian, Mediterranean, even Chinese! 😒 Their breakfasts are superb but the fine-dining menu I found rather run-of-the-mill. Not bad, but not outstanding.

I love their coffee. French-pressed, mountain blend. The morning buffets compete with the view just outside, the Lotus Pond more commonly called "Octopussy" pond after the famous hit movie was filmed there. If you're early, you have the option to sit outside to savour the silence while sipping your fav brew.

But sitting inside isn't bad, either. There are nooks under scalloped arches with Lake Pichola and the City Palace framed perfectly. Such nooks and breakfasts by the pond are truly places to linger, and just sit still. Yeah, breakfasts can be had anywhere but the view..... the view is a must-experience!

My second time here. And I made sure I tried the other dishes on the "cardboard" menu. Last time was prawns and lamb shanks. This time, let's start with some appetizers.

Scallops were few but good, chicharon had a "twist". Served with roe to add to the saltiness. Thought it too fancy for my taste, but not bad. Guess I just wanted the traditional chicharon in all its crunchiness dipped in spicy vinegar.

The lamb adobo with crispy garlic didn't disappoint. Nor the duck rice with egg. Both can be shared. Even our growing boy with a hearty appetite failed to leave a clean plate. I'd say these 2 dishes can be shared by 3.

Then there's the Muscovado Beef Belly. A real thick slab with all the fatty goodness that's guaranteed to send your cholesterol level soaring. This meat dish is served with pasta dumplings which I mistook for long-grain rice. Again, it's good for sharing but we never listen, do we? 😄

The hamburger sandwich looked boring to me but my friend says it's good. I should have tried it but there was simply too much meat on mah' plate! The fresh dalandan (local orange) juice should help me digest this meaty lunch.

All told, it's another Margarita Fores creation. The dishes are good and the portions are filling. I just have to remember to order less next time. Or to invite more to share the sumptuous lunch. 😄

Grace Park is in One Rockwell just beside Power Plant Mall in Makati City.

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Native chicken at Tatoy's is in every visitor's must-eat list. But there's more. I had my eyes fixed on oysters the minute we booked this trip. At P40 (less than US $1) per bowl filled with more than a dozen oysters, how can you go wrong?

These seafood meals I take seriously. I don't eat oysters in Manila unless they're harvested and flown in from these islands. Plus I don't intend to miss out on the local Managat fish here -- sinigang (in sour broth), tinapa (smoked) or grilled.

Aaaah..... This is what I love best. Beats eating oysters at $1 a piece elsewhere! Or fresh plump shrimps. And steamed is best for these two. I love the taste of the sea with every shell. Frankly, I can devour 2 dozens oysters in one sitting.

Next time you're in Iloilo, hail a cab (or take a jeepney ride) to go to Tatoy's. Should cost you only about P150 (under US$4) for a delicious seafood meal.

I love soup. I love noodles. I love chicharon 😀 La Paz Batchoy is a must-eat in this part of town. And no, you don't have to be in La Paz, Iloilo unless you want to try the original place where they first served this noodle soup.

Ted's can be found almost anywhere around Iloilo. We tried the one in Jaro near the Cathedral. Served piping hot, this soupy dish comes with thin noodles, pork innards, crushed chicharon or pork cracklings as toppings along with fried garlic and scallions. Yum!

Half the time here in Iloilo was spent visiting heritage churches and heirloom houses. The other half was spent seriously searching for good eats.

Imbao is a shellfish that looks like an ordinary clam but with a meaty flesh that's both gooey and chewy. We ordered ours baked and steamed. Pretty good, though I still lean towards my favorite oysters.

It could have been a healthy lunch but we couldn't resist the lechon (roast pig) with its glistening crispy, crackling skin. I only wish the liver sauce tasted better and the steamed rice was of a better variety!

And yes, we have NOT grown tired of the Managat fish (red snapper or mangrove jack) which we had as fish head soup as well as grilled. No luck with Diwal, a kind of clam that's long-ish in shape.

We did find some lobsters but we're not really big fans of it. We tried their lumpia ubod instead. With the sea breeze mushing our hair, we ate exactly how I remembered my last meal here. Shellfish galore.... and tons of rice 😘 Carb overload.

You don't go to Guimaras without trying their mangoes. The Guimaras folks take pride in their mangoes from low fruit-bearing mango trees which yield those sweet fruits only after 5 years.

Tried the fresh fruits from tiny stalls lining the coastal roads of the island, as well as the dried mangoes, mango ketchup, mango sauce and mango piayaya.

The mango ketchup and sauce taste good enough as both dip and salad dressing. McNesters has a kitchen run by an ex-OFW who came up with this "hit"!

Oh well, off to the next shopping pitstop. Life is a celebration!

There's a burger craze? Who are we kidding? These kids have been hooked on burgers, hotdogs and fries since they learned how to talk. Is it junk food? Not in my book. Burgers make for good, filling meals but of late, I've grown a tad snobbish over run-of-the-mill burgers. If I'd have one, it'd better be a good one.

I was getting ready to watch a movie in Greenbelt 3 when I spotted the ad for Teddy's Aloha burgers. There was just a good crowd size, no queues and I was hungry. So I got in and promptly placed my order.

Heinz Tomato ketchup for mah' burger and fries. As usual, I was picky with the pickles. But this one I like. Bread was good and the serving size could be shared. Or maybe not? (I didn't finish mine, so I felt cheated for the price I paid for it)

I just wish there were more greens. Smaller sizes like sliders would have been good too. I won't rave about it. Burgers are burgers. But I was satisfied with my meal😊