What's on the Menu? US tapa salpicao at Chelsea

MANILA, Philippines - Chelsea Market and Café offers Pinoy breakfast fare that includes US tapa salpicado and baked and smoked bangus tinapa. Other breakfast treats include Belgian- style gourmet waffles with chocolate-dipped crispy bacon, caramelized bananas and balsamic caramel sauce; Norwegian eggs with poached salmon, beurre blanc, arugula, red onion slivers, fresh dill, fresh lemon and black caviar on a bagel; and the Chesapeake Bay Crabcake Benedict served with poached egg hollandaise on artisanal English muffins with arugula. For the healthy eaters, indulge in A Healthy Start, homemade granola and blueberry yogurt with seasonal fresh fruits; and the White Eggs on a Bed, egg white omelet and mixed green salad served with spinach and herb-roasted Parmesan tomato and grilled potatoes.

Chelsea Market and Café is at the ground floor, Serenda, Bonifacio Global City, 909-7011; and at the ground floor, The Podium, ADB Ave. in Ortigas Center, 914-0006.

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Take a break: Diamond Hotel offers its “Dream Room Deals.”

Dream room deals at Diamond Hotel

Diamond Hotel offers “Diamond Dream Deals” room package. Stay in one of the hotel’s Superior rooms for only P5,800 per night, which includes buffet breakfast for two persons at Corniche restaurant. When you check-in for two nights or more, get each night for only P5,500. Guests who avail of the “Diamond Dream Deals” get to pick a prize per stay where they instantly get a chance to win gift certificates, discount vouchers and freebies. Prizes include complimentary accommodations in an Executive Suite, complimentary lunch buffet at Corniche for six, teppanyaki buffet for four at Yurakuen, gift certificates from Slimmers World and more. Room promotion is valid until August.  

Diamond Hotel Philippines is at Roxas Blvd. corner Dr. J. Quintos St., Manila.

For information, call 528-3000 or e-mail bizcenter@diamondhotel.com.

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Something new: Mixed vegetables at Crustasia

Mixed vegetables with peanut sauce at Crustasia

Crustasia’s newest offering is mixed vegetables with peanut sauce. Other must-try dishes are bakso, Shanghai fried dumplings, satay meat sampler, grand Javanese sampler, Balinese chili crab, beef semur, and kung pao chicken.

 Crustasia is at The Powerplant Mall, Rockwell, Makati City, 728-5463; and on the 6th level, Shangri-La Plaza Mall, 910-4096.

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At the opening of The CBTL Malate are Paolo del Rosario, VP for marketing and business development, The CBTL Phils.; Cecil Castigador, PR & Communications manager; Dan Matutina, Monica Escalona, business development manager; artists Cesare and Jean Marie Syjuco; and Elaine Dagoy, marketing officer.

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf opens in Malate

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf (CBTL) in Adriatico is the first of its kind to feature a glass house, a round space beside the chain that doubles as a room for casual affairs. At the opening were visual and performance art mavericks Cesare and Jean Marie Syjuco and digital illustration prodigy Dan Matutina. Syjuco siblings Trix and Maxine did poetry readings during the launch.   

“The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf sees how people readily treat coffee houses as extensions of their homes — how people often find refuge in its chilled ambience and relaxing interiors,” says Walden Chu, president of The CBTL Philippines. “With that, and with how the district of Malate is known to be a cultural open ground for artistic expression, we have decided to grant the Bohemian quarter with one of our premium stores.”

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Crab one or more: The sweet crab at Hyatt Hotel and Casino

Mud crab, blue swimmer crab at Hyatt Hotel and Casino

Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila extends its sweet crab offering until the end of August. Chef de cuisine Andy Chan of Li Li Restaurant prepares a variety of delicacies using the Cantonese style of cooking. Choose from mud crab or blue swimmer crab in different ways: steamed and served with smooth egg white and cream, wok-fried with chili, garlic and coconut sauce, deep-fried with scallops, crab roe and shrimp mousse, or braised with vermicelli and satay sauce.

For information, call 247-8666 or 245-1234 ext. 7291 or e-mail cath.mn@hyatt.com.

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Bags of history: Lauro “Larry” Memije and his artwork for Pan de Manila

Traditional Pinoy street scene in bags of Pan de Manila

Pan de Manila offers new packaging by painter Lauro “Larry” Memije. “The painting is very Filipino. It depicts a traditional street scene with adobe-walled buildings, a kalesa trotting along the cobblestone street, and a panaderia,” says Lauro “Larry” Memije.  

Pan de Manila continues its time-honored tradition of featuring the work of Filipino artists, which included painter Dante Hipolito, digital illustrator Joel Chua, and designer Rina Albert-Llamas.

Pan de Manila is open 24/7 all over Metro Manila, North and South Luzon and in Cebu. Newest stores are located at Camp John Hay, Baguio; Guadalupe, Cebu; Lucky China Town, Binondo; 2Ecom, Mall of Asia Complex; SM Sta. Rosa; Robinsons Pangasinan; Starmall EDSA, third floor, MRT Station. It will soon open at Fort Bonifacio, 2nd Ave. St.; and Blue Sapphire Bldg, fourth floor, The Enterprise Center Bldg., Makati. 

For information, call 636-0468 or e-mail pandemanila_jlg@yahoo.com

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Time for pasta: Pasta gamberi at Napa Restaurant and Bar

Pasta gamberi at Napa Restaurant and Bar

Napa Restaurant & Bar offers its newest dish: pasta gamberi with shrimps sautéed gambas-style over spaghetti noodles. Other dishes include grilled Sicilian chicken, Cinco Formaggio Pizza, and many more.

Napa Restaurant & Bar is at 12 Scout Borromeo St., QC.

For information, call 414-8272.

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Just grill: Lamb shoulder at Crowne Plaza

Australian Barbie at Crowne Plaza

Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria offers its Australian barbecue, which features lamb shoulder, marinated salmon fillet, and pork ribs. Other Australian staples include cottage pie, and oyster Outback. The Australian fest is ongoing until July 31.

For information, call 633-7222 or e-mail fandb.reservations@ihg.com.