Fierce Blogs _ Enjoyed his breakfast at Whistlestop, Jupiter Makati

I have always known that the Whistlestop branch along Jupiter, Makati already closed ages ago. But no! They re-opened!

This morning I was soo hungry to the point of imagining of eating my sofa already. Good thing my "usual hungry" friend, Sukey (like me) IM-ed me.. It was salvation time, I knew!

We decided to meet up and have breakfast. But if it's 7:30 am and you are in Makati area, finding a nice breakfast is as hard as looking for a straight guys in tinseltown Where to eat? Google to our rescue!

***

We decided to go to Whistlestop but not without a bit of sweat looking for their new location. Although they are still along Jupiter, the new location is a bit secluded from the center where the food haven really happens. But nevermind the location, we have bigger problem to conquer - HUNGER!

After 10minutes... Alas! We found it!

Facade of Whistlestop

Look at Sukey's smile! She can now eat!

And here's the food we had this morning.

Beef Salpicao with Garlic Rice - P230.00


Sate Babi (Pork) - P170.00


All Tokwa - P70.00 (My Fave)


Hainanese Chicken Rice


Menu

More than anything in this world, they offer Wi-Fi.

Downside - It is hard to call the attention of the waiters if you prefer to stay outside. I guess they should get one of those push button when guests dining outside need assistance.

By they way, thank you Abbie (the food attendant) for finding time to give back the DVD I left at your resto.

Contacts:

Adress - 116 Jupiter St Bel- Air Makati
Tel No - (632) 8904728

Lunch Disaster – Sizzling Pepper Steak

Over lunch yesterday, we tried this restaurant we always pass by in Glorietta 5. This is the restaurant right across Sbarro Pizza, 3rd floor level. It looks beguiling from a far, thus, we scheduled a day to dine in - not knowing that this would be the day we would surely regret.

The restaurant is called Sizzling Pepper Steak.

Along with friends, we dined and checked the menu. We all thought it looks good so we agreed to take different orders. I settled for Saikoro Pepper Rice while the rest got Pork Pepper, Beef Pepper and Chicken Pepper Rice. We were the only guest during that time. Probably because it was already late for lunch - that’s why most Makati workforce are back to work already.

So we thought…

Our food arrived sizzling (of course, Duh!) in less than 10 minutes. Impressive, I thought. The moment my food was placed on the table, they turn on a fierce blower atop of me that blew all the sizzling oil on my wrist and chin. In fact, I think the blower is too strong it is capable of blowing a wig away from someone’s head! I was then instructed to grill the beef myself since they are raw. Great! Don’t get me wrong. I love to cook; but not when you are wearing white linen polo shirt and would have to return to the office after 20 minutes. When the waiter saw my irritated look, he tried to cover my sizzling plate with a very soft paper - just for the paper to be blown away. Of course, with the blower?!

My order - Saikoro Pepper Rice

My friend, Roxy, being assisted to grill her food

At last my food is ready to eat. It’s about time! One small bite and then my blood pressure shoot up – about to give me a heart attack anytime! While my cubed beef got cooked, my fried rice got charred! This prompted me to call the waiter and asked, “Is there an option to have our order served cooked already?”

The waiter answered with a big smile, “Yes, sir”.

Isn't that amazing?!

After a few chewing, I stopped eating my food. Totally! Instead, I turned to divert my attention to my ever reliable Coke Zero. While I pour my Coke to a glass full of ice, the waiter asked if he can take the soda can already. I gave him “the stare”. But, really, I wanted to shout NO at him!
The rest of my company that afternoon likewise despised ever stepping in the restaurant. We left the place still hungry and walking away with a BIG lesson learned written on our forehead, “we are never going back!” While I understand that the grill-it-yourself is the theme of Sizzling Pepper Steak, the idea is not fierce for me (neither to my friends). If I want to cook or grill for that matter, I would do it at home where the convenience of wearing comfortable clothes is possible. And besides, I am not paying them Php185.oo for a meal to get all my hands greased up and burnt.

We emptied one plate and this is how much oil underneath

If you want a free blower and smell like used kitchen oil, be my guest.

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Chef Mau Mobile Fastfood - Liliw Laguna

Nowadays finding a fierce restaurant with a reasonable price tab is as tricky as a single person looking for decent date. It would seem easy at first; but as you partake in the whole experience, it all ends up on a sour note. That’s why instead of playing the field, my friends and I opt to go out of town.

Traveling to nearby provinces is something my friends and I would fancy during weekends. No occasion and not much convincing required. We can endure all weather just to drive outside the chaotic scenes of tinsel town. One place we regularly visit is Laguna. Why? Our friend Gerry has a rest house there and travel time is not that bad. Remember, free accommodation is the key to a cheap out-of-towers.

We discovered Chef Mau through our friend, She. Her family is from Laguna and she knows what’s fierce and what’s not.

Chef Mau would appear like a typical Filipino restaurant operating in the suburb where food is drowning in oil. This is how I felt when I entered the place. As we further went inside, we were welcomed by a friendly waiter as if her smile will tear off her head into two. For real! But of course, customer service efforts count, always. So she gets a merit for that.

A quick glance at the menu and it looks promising. It’s like sizing up somebody and that person gets a check mark on most boxes? That’s what I am trying to say.

We ordered Fillet Mignon, Tofu Steak, Chicken Cordon Bleu and Laing. Not to mention a hefty amount of rice and Coke Zero. All of these food for roughly 700 Philippines peso; to be shared by 5 people – just do that math. But I guarantee that the quality of food is good for its caliber. After my Chef Mau experience, all my presumptions with the place vanished. It was a good experience all together. We were told that the Owner and chef used to work for Le Souffle. I guess that’s the tried and tested formula. Get as much kitchen experience with prime restaurants in Manila and operate you own away from it - where ingredients are cheaper and maintaining people under your payroll is easier to manage.

Here are some pictures of the food we tried at Chef Mau. Too bad the favorite of Oui is not here – Laing.

Fillet Mignon

Tofu Steak

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Coming from Makati, take Laguna exit from SLEX, turn right after Pagsanjan Market and go straight ahead. This is approximately less than 3-hour drive from Makati. If you are surrounded by crazy people during the drive, you can probably get there in 2 hours or probably not at all.

If you want to get in touch with them, here are the details:

Chef Mau Mobile Fastfood
Barangay Bungkol, Liliw Laguna
Mobile: 0915-9267824/0917-5071798/0921-4948826

Tel #: (049) 573-6290

note - photo courtesy of Gerry M.

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