Mezza Norte at Quezon City

Weekend food markets have been sprouting in metro for the past few years, not to mention the "dampa" style food market.

Due to its success, the organizer of Mercato Centrale at Bonifacio Global City, Soderno in Alabang and Distrito Makati has decided that it is about time to bring this weekend food market to northern part of Manila.

They found a perfect place at UP AyalaLand Technohub along Commonwealth Avenue near Philcoa area, Quezon City. Perfect due to after-office call-centers workers, UP crowds (including my daughter who enticed us to visit this place), nearby villages and foodie like us. We are from San Mateo area, around 10 km away via Batasan road.

Last July, they opened Mezza Norte. It is open from Thursday to Saturday from 6 pm to 3 am. The place is WIFI hotspot and with live acoustic entertainment.

The idea behind this weekend food market was to give opportunity to new food entrepreneurs by offering reasonable overhead cost which reflect on the price of the food being offered at Mezza Norte . In fact, I was surprised to note that you won't find these food concessionaires in any malls, except Manang's Fried Chicken, though I can bet that they can give those established brands a run for their money.

can you beat this price and serving?

My wife bought her all time favorite Pancit Canton while my kids chose Fried and Barbeque Chicken. The serving was quite big and the price was reasonable as well.

I tried Big Bob charcoal burger for 150 pesos. The burger is flavorful and big serving.

Wife and kids bought pizza with filling and cakes for midnight snacks while I bought 2 sticks of chicken isaw for 30 pesos per stick as partner for my midnight drink, lol. Great partner for Vodka.

We arrived at almost 6 pm at Mezza Norte after fetching our daughter from UP. Fortunately, we found a vacant pay parking space nearby. To add, regardless whether you park inside a barricaded parking space or along the open roads you would be charged 25 pesos.

Try to be there at least 5:30 pm due to limited tables, chairs and parking space. I dropped my wife and daughter before I searched for parking space thus we were able to find a vacant table.

There was a drizzle after one hour thus diners started crowding under the limited tents. Otherwise diners can use the concrete bench under the trees.

Trust me, come early if you want to have the best seat in the house and of course parking space.

For private vehicles, if you are coming from Fairview area, right after crossing Tandang Sora flyover proceed to outer/Bus lane until you reach the main gate of AyalaLand. In case, you'll be coming from EDSA area just travel up to Quezon Circle then turn right to Commonwealth Avenue and make a U-turn under Tandang Sora flyover, near Iglesia ni Cristo Central.

In addition, around the tent you'll also find several fast food outlets but I am sure you won't come here for them.

Dadi's Berd

Tacos

We'll try these on our next visit. Bon Appetit!

You may check their FB account: MezzaNorte for more details.

Mezza Part Two

We returned back to Mezza Norte today and continued our food tripping. However, it continued to rain for several hours thus it was difficult to drive home. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the food and even brought some for our midnight snack.

Additional shots:

55 pesos cheesy potato from "Mad About Spuds"

This one is really cheesy. Even my chicken fanatic youngest kid learned to love this.

100 pesos Nachos Grande from "Mexikanto"

Nothing special about this. Just an over-the-counter Nachos with assorted and spicy toppings.

110 pesos spicy Big Berd from "Dadi's Berd"

This can easily give Mang Inasal a fair competition. The tasty and boneless chicken is quite superb.

We spotted Glenda Garcia at Mezza Norte. She's at Happy Chef. I believe this is her personal business. 

We truly enjoyed Mezza Norte. For a cost of around 1000 pesos, five of us were satisfied. The price was competitive because it includes the main course, drinks, appetizers and desserts. I am looking forward for another family Mezza trip on my next vacation.

Revised on 15 Sept 2012

Happy Stripes - Full Blast!

UP Anime Manga Enthusiast (AME) presents PH-KEI / Japanese Street Fashion in the Philippines

There would be an Alternative Class Learning Experience at Palma Hall Rm 213-215, 1-4pm with invited experts from different Japanese Fashion genres:

Justine Chantelle - https://www.facebook.com/doroteesweetlips

China Mungcal - https://www.facebook.com/chinamungcal

A lucky winner will be picked at the end of the event winning a surprise gift item from Happy Stripes; the main sponsor of this event - https://www.facebook.com/HappyStripesss 

To add color to this event, Happy Stripes has released its 3rd collection with matching promo for its online clients; free item to the first buyer who has confirmed order. The winner will be announced in few days.

MORE ON HAPPY STRIPES!

Happy Stripes - A Concept Born During My Wandering

LEGO City Adventure at SM Mall of Asia

For all pinoy LEGO fanboys this is your chance to view an entire LEGO City Adventure exhibit at Mall of Asia from 18th of August to 1st of September. Bring your camera "kids" because the exhibit is truly a work of wonder. Pardon my analogy because this is the first time I have seen a LEGO exhibit. I was aghast at extensive collections built by lucky individuals. I remember my dream of having a LEGO set during my younger years.

I have been informed that SM MOA started holding this exhibit last year. They had a Philippine adventure theme last year.

SOME SHOTS:

LEGO Park

LEGO Townhouse

LEGO Hospital

LEGO Firestation

LEGO Space Shuttle

They're launching a LEGO rocket

Aside from the city exhibit, they also have Photobooth and Play Area. This is the best time to buy discounted LEGO sets. Guys, you have few days remaining to visit the LEGO City Adventure.

Philippine International Motor Show 2012

Due to long weekend, we raced to World Trade Center last Sunday to have a view of upcoming and upgraded models of cars being sold in the Philippines by CAMPI members. It was our second PIMS, the first time was in 2008.

The PIMS 2012 was held from 16 to 19 of August at World Trade Center. The entrance fee is 100 pesos for adult and 50 pesos for student with ID while parking fee is 35 pesos at the backside of WTC.

The first car we examined was the Nissan Grand Livina Highway Star. It's the upgraded version of our Nissan Grand Livina. I hope I can find that chrome grill from after market.

Next on my list is the Nissan Juke (concept car)

Nissan X Trail Highway Star

Yes, heard it through the grapevine that Nissan will eventually sell this concept car in the Philippines. Way to go Nissan. Hey, I am not a Nissan fanboy but I am planning to replace our Nissan Grand Livina with the new Nissan X Trail CVT in coming months.







Given a chance, I would purchase this amphibian (upgraded Mitsubishi Strada) or the best selling SUV in Philippines, the Montero Sports. I wish they would sell this color as well. These two; in their upgraded version, will definitely perform well in our flood prone roads in Manila.

There are several great cars from Kia as well. I love the Euro design of the Sportage and the seven seater Sorento. Never mind the boxy Soul. However, wife is not yet prepared to embrace Korean brand.

The Honda exhibit seems dull with its expensive Honda CRV which was built completely in Japan. Their line-up, aside from the boring (?) City and Civic were too pricey compared with their competitors. Including the new Odyssey.

This Toyota Fortuner 2012 is really a truck in disguise. I tried seating in the cockpit, trust me, the interior was huge. I need a driver in case I would buy this truck since it would be very difficult for me to maneuver this truck in some of Manila's narrow roads. Due to its sheer size, its passengers will surely love the space and luxurious interior. Actually, I am considering this truck before but after measuring my garage I have decided to forget it.

We didn't bother exploring the upscale brands such as MB and Lexus, we focused mainly on  mainstream cars. Further, we enjoyed sitting on different cockpits and passengers seats of our prospective SUV/CUV. I learned that most of the upscale variants have an adjustable driver seat which is very useful in case you have height limitation.

Some of the great cars in PIMS

 

Happy Stripes with her "crush." She asked me if I can buy this "tiny" car for her. It's worth a little over half-million pesos. Fortunately, I was able to activate my "deaf" mode thus our conversation ended abruptly, LOL.

The experience was great and exciting. Kids enjoyed the cars while wife was able to compare several SUV. We are planning to replace our family 4year old MPV with a sporty and flood resistant vehicle. We ended-up choosing the X Trail. Unfortunately, AVID members were not included in this exhibit thus we were not able to see the Subarus, Hyundais, Chevrolets and other great cars from CATS.

Finally, after spending on entrance and parking fee, we brought home several giveaways items such as (printed) tote bags, pens calendars and fan. My wife was elated since she needs these bags due to eventual banning of plastic bags in SM. I was excited too since there were many gorgeous ladies around but I knew my wife eyes were stuck on my back. LOL.

Thailand - J-Trends in Town Celebration at MBK Mall

Last December, while roaming around Bangkok, I was surprised to see many youngsters at MBK Center dressed in Anime. Wow! They have their own style of cosplay here; I told myself. I am familiar with our own cosplay event at SM Megamall because my daughter and her friends participated once.

In Bangkok, it is called J-Trends in Town by MBK & Mainichi. It started in year 2006 and they do this almost every month during first Saturday and having different theme or concept. The event is sponsored by MBK Center in coordination with Japan's Mainichi Academic Group thus the name J-Trends or Japanese Trends. Recently, K-Pop has been seamlessly incorporated to the event as well.

As luck would have it, I was strolling at MBK during J-Trends 6th year celebration on December 2011. The theme for that month was "J-Trends Celebration."

Some of my shots:

Aside from countless youngsters wearing anime costume, a musical event was also in-progress while I was there. Though I didn't understand the songs I can feel the lively beat and rhythm of the songs.

sing and dance by lovely teens

boy band? nah! it's akatsuki!

The Audience

The audience themselves were quite lively. This is what I call inter-active audience, lol. But frankly, I was very happy to witness this kind of celebration in Bangkok. My daughter would be envious of me once she learns about this event.

If you'll be in Bangkok at first Saturday of the month, try to drop by at MBK Center. Who knows maybe you will be fortunate enough to participate in monthly J-Trends in Town. I heard they are preparing for Halloween theme.

During the event, I have seen many tourists around and it seems J-Trends could easily become a part of Bangkok tourist attractions.

OTHER THAILAND ATTRACTIONS:

Platinum mall, Bangkok
Pratunam market, Bangkok
Roaming Around Bangkok - part 1 (Pratunam area)
Roaming Around Bangkok - part 2 (Khao San area)
Pantip Plaza, Bangkok
CentralWorld mall
Chatuchak Weekend Market
Khao San Road
Wat Pho (The Reclining Buddha)
Wat Saket (Temple of Golden Mount)
The Grand Palace - Bangkok City

Singapore - Mount Faber

On my last visit to Singapore, I trekked to Mount Faber peak to locate my 5^th Merlion. I started my grueling trip from HarbourFront.

By the way, if you have been to Sentosa Island, I am sure you have seen those cable cars crossing the waterway between the island and Singapore mainland. Those cable cars are passing through HarbourFront before reaching The Jewel Box at Mount Faber peak. It was pretty convenient to use the cable car from HarbourFront to Mount Faber but the thrill of exploring an unknown hill kept me from using it. Thus, after a sumptuous lunch at The Food Republic in Vivo city, I started my journey to Mount Faber.

main road

road before the peak

It never occurred to me that there are dedicated pedestrians pathways and stairs in going up to Mount Faber peak. I thought I simply need to follow the narrow winding and sloping road until I reach its peak. It is worth to mention that it is not advisable to explore this hill using the asphalt road since it is obvious that the road has been designed for vehicle traffic only due to unavailability of sidewalks; it is dangerous due to many blind curves. I was fortunate that there were less traffic when I started hiking through the main road.

Half-way, I saw Henderson waves. Out of curiosity, I explored that place. I was alone during that time and I can say that there was a slight fear inside me due to thick vegetation around, wild monkeys and the height of Henderson bridge. The bridge’s wooden floors seemed rickety and the strong wind generated a feeling of being thrown overboard. Because of this, I didn’t dare to cross its entire length. I opted to continue my journey to Mount Faber Peak since it was my primary objective in visiting this place.

After more than an hour of walking along the main road, I came to an intersection or summit before Mount Faber peak. I was stuck for another hour here due to incessant rain. Luckily, there are several shades located strategically along the road thus saving my DSLR from getting wet or damaged.

going to Manila?

Mount Faber Park

After the rain has ceased, I continued my approach to the peak. This time there is a small sidewalk for hikers in one side. Upon reaching the peak, I stopped myself from jumping due to sheer joy of seeing my last and 5^th Merlion. During my previous trips to Singapore, I got lost several times while searching for this Merlion thus I can’t contain my excitement upon seeing it at Mount Faber Park. Further, Mount Faber Park was a small and well manicured park and the view from here was stunning. There were locator arrows which point to different cities around Singapore. If I were Superman, I won’t get lost in coming back to Manila, I would simply follow this arrow, LOL. In addition, at the lower structure below the Merlion are walls with copper murals depicting several scenes of Singapore’s history.

the fish pond

the cable cars

After savoring my success, I started to explore the surrounding area. I paid a visit to The Jewel Box cable cars station. This place hosts several restaurants including fine dining and al fresco. There is also a bar with a small fish pond outside. I can assume that an evening here would be great due to panoramic view of the harbor and picturesque Singapore’s landscape. However, I have noticed that not many tourists are visiting this place hence it is one of the off-beaten paths in Singapore, if I may say so. You can't even catch a taxi from the peak. I saw two big buses of tourist aside from occasional private vehicles.

There is not much to see here aside from the Mount Faber Park where my 5^th Merlion is located and The Jewel Box.

I used the same road in going down. After several hundred meters, I saw an old lady traversing on some zig zag stairways and access paths downward. I followed her and reached the high way in no time. I remember reading about this access part on the net but it was confusing for new comers to locate these pedestrian paths anyway. Given these circumstances, I can say that I enjoyed trekking up to Mount Faber Park and visiting nearby places. Not to mention the calories I have burned.