Happy Foodies

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip_k3V7RhuajN2PizGwEJrX6H_e-Yc0KKNLzskQiB0d_gBYeRfVqv1UvRlngkp4N1G-YqaA7xOubWH_rdC82Zyk1_JBo_UDh_d4axBRfBtxm8_JBO6ew29sHxLjipDK5bZ7qOQ6zmwr120mKupxNVWXfM3rmz-3LfYtXJDVQ4jfq7wBZJD7xpB30nnykk/s667/miisty-lodge-cafe.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip_k3V7RhuajN2PizGwEJrX6H_e-Yc0KKNLzskQiB0d_gBYeRfVqv1UvRlngkp4N1G-YqaA7xOubWH_rdC82Zyk1_JBo_UDh_d4axBRfBtxm8_JBO6ew29sHxLjipDK5bZ7qOQ6zmwr120mKupxNVWXfM3rmz-3LfYtXJDVQ4jfq7wBZJD7xpB30nnykk/s16000/miisty-lodge-cafe.jpg"></a></div> The perpetual nip in the air is simply made for good eating. One of the finer pleasures of Sagada is gustatory in nature. Everything -- the weather, the elevation, the views -- seem to inspire indulgence. Dunno but there's something about hieing off to the boondocks that make even the mundane special, like ordinary coffee or instant noodles become a treat especially after a hike. Perhaps, by stroke of serendipity, Happyfoodies found accommodation in the town outskirts some 1.5 kilometers from the sentro. Meaning yes, we're away from where most of the eating places are but by luck, very, very close to Misty Lodge and Cafe. Our host, Derick, of Yabami Lodge recommended it as we were looking for somewhere closer to eat apart from Rock Inn's Bodega Cafe some 350 meters away. Smoked out from the Panag-apoy rites, we decided to drop by at dinner time as the cafe was on our way home anyway. So, did we like the food? Well, we came back a second and third time during our three days in Sagada. It was that good.

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbjYjWRlPi5g7fVu8KrWvpkh2gmfA5QHLEYn2QPFAu6-87_FVPs7g6vlBj-5cf49CTndvdYTtTgGevoJqH8_0B1lKiiuBgOanfwmAUVlpKYtaU1jIojlr3aUrBIxCLAoZgDj2E96Pf_SF8x5EOCeTfYusdJZHrCyfREzd28PepLBuHAnzIrJYk4VtxyLo/s667/bale-dutung.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbjYjWRlPi5g7fVu8KrWvpkh2gmfA5QHLEYn2QPFAu6-87_FVPs7g6vlBj-5cf49CTndvdYTtTgGevoJqH8_0B1lKiiuBgOanfwmAUVlpKYtaU1jIojlr3aUrBIxCLAoZgDj2E96Pf_SF8x5EOCeTfYusdJZHrCyfREzd28PepLBuHAnzIrJYk4VtxyLo/s16000/bale-dutung.jpg"></a></div> Considering the fact that Anthony Bourdain had to travel thousands of miles to feast at Bale Dutung, Happyfoodies' return trip to the wooden house in Angeles City was comparatively, a small sacrifice. Nay, call it miniscule especially considering the gustatory reward which is, following the Kapampangan stereotype, lavish.

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQhmHOZTtAUyM5YSsfU9i0X7W5PymxNYN5MeZpI9PW_3dsQFeiCQPIUA8Q9ctY9RdGp6kiDG14xYBzljjRd8hsxws_nIXyoLbU_V3iRv7BMxOz7nLK5ph7RRepRp9VTmVPaUDFQ74YVj9iG0fCycLB4pT97Ss-DLsWvgrGLF_4GFH1BFhlje3teEcfwj8/s800/boracay-breakfast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="531" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQhmHOZTtAUyM5YSsfU9i0X7W5PymxNYN5MeZpI9PW_3dsQFeiCQPIUA8Q9ctY9RdGp6kiDG14xYBzljjRd8hsxws_nIXyoLbU_V3iRv7BMxOz7nLK5ph7RRepRp9VTmVPaUDFQ74YVj9iG0fCycLB4pT97Ss-DLsWvgrGLF_4GFH1BFhlje3teEcfwj8/s16000/boracay-breakfast.jpg"></a></div> I'm not into the party/gig thing so the times I found myself in Boracay, I'm almost always an early riser. That means I have to have coffee and chow to perk up my morning while looking out to that postcard-pretty beach before launching into work or heading for a swim. Hard to imagine that years back, there's not a lot of good breakfast places to go to along White Beach. Not anymore. Hmmm, maybe not everyone parties all night after all (or maybe, all- nighters head straight to grabbing breakfast before succumbing to sleep). I figure it might be a helpful idea to share nice places to get breakfast in arguably, the Philippines' most popular beach.

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipx0b2JtO7ugIZYB0tZr3uYRok5mNr3z9PqAhyphenhyphenLoYcwQ2tH80xRKktwy7Frz0CtG_cK62VJKdJo39vLV6QhN9IIicsaUsSF2C-PYrnRHDRPPXXyduDLVBhSMbgAaEeo85n0S3e0siF3AFNyeIuHp-07ZJSWPkNqh6IbmVhvzfZ2m2fMAzBLXVA9hVRF1Y/s667/uncle-keong-delicacies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipx0b2JtO7ugIZYB0tZr3uYRok5mNr3z9PqAhyphenhyphenLoYcwQ2tH80xRKktwy7Frz0CtG_cK62VJKdJo39vLV6QhN9IIicsaUsSF2C-PYrnRHDRPPXXyduDLVBhSMbgAaEeo85n0S3e0siF3AFNyeIuHp-07ZJSWPkNqh6IbmVhvzfZ2m2fMAzBLXVA9hVRF1Y/s16000/uncle-keong-delicacies.jpg"></a></div> It was a clear and sunny day in Melaka. Walking along the narrow alleys of the historical heritage town at midday, we could feel the sun bearing down on our backs on our way to our first eating stop for the Date with Bloggers event in Melaka. And as few beads of sweat rolled from our foreheads, we were filled with delight seeing the refreshing sight of Uncle Keong's Delicacies.

<figure class="wp-block-image alignnone"><img alt="Bonchon Spicy Glaze Chicken" src="https://live.staticflickr.com/8014/7676206078_88e90581b6_o.jpg"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Bonchon Spicy Glaze Chicken</figcaption></figure> I always pass by Bonchon at SM Megamall but never had the chance to try it before. One reason why? It's always full and I somehow lack the patience to wait especially when I'm really hungry. Good thing your Happyfoodies were invited for a taste test at one of their newer branches at Bonifacio High Street. This time I got the chance to get to know what makes people go crazy about this Korean Chicken. As it turned out, Happyfoodies will discover there's more to Bonchon than its popular crunchy chicken.

<figure class="wp-block-image alignnone"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/oggie/7152464713/"><img alt="Yu Fu In's 25 spices Kimchi" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7063/7152464713_aef3b1e56f_b.jpg"></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Yu Fu In's 25 spices Kimchi</figcaption></figure> A Koreantown in Angeles City? We're probably too used to the concept of Chinatown that this idea seemed like a novel concept. Driving along the stretch of Friendship Highway, we passed a strip of establishments sporting signages in Korean with no English translations. Which ones are restaurants, it's hard to tell. But for a taste of kimchi (the best one here for miles, so says our guide-friend, Tin, from the Angeles City tourism office), we bypassed Koreantown and headed to Balibago for Yu Fu In. The restaurant is located in a sizable structure located across the town park. We later learned that it is in fact, the largest freestanding Japanese restaurant in the Philippines with a dining area spread across three stories -- the main dining area on the ground floor, a Yakiniku area complete with the requisite stove and exhaust fan on every table on the second, and an open-air area on the third. It's a strange curiosity to find kimchi in a Japanese restaurant but as we taste the food, we find there's more to like there.

<figure class="wp-block-image alignnone"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/ironwulf/7340139506/"><img alt="Julie's variety of biscuits" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7211/7340139506_e093664bbb_c.jpg"></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Julie's variety of biscuits</figcaption></figure> Who doesn't like biscuits? For me they are the ultimate travel snacks keeping the hunger pangs at bay when the journey seems long and the next eatery is kilometers away. I make sure to always have them with me. So when Happyfoodies, get a chance to visit the factory of Julie's Biscuits (not to be confused with Julie's Bakeshop in the Philippines), Malaysia's most popular biscuit brand in (Melaka) Malacca, I felt like a kid sent off to a field trip. I was also excited to know what made Julie's the queen of biscuits in this country.