celebraTINg exisTENce: September 2017

One Plus Coffee, Circuit, Makati

By Tin Gallemaso - 1:01:00 AM

One (overwhelming) thing about being a food blogger is people asking me for opinions regarding food establishments. I remember I've faced questions regarding co-working spaces here in Quezon City but I don't know of any.

Thanks to One Plus Coffee, it's not anymore "I don't know" but "I know one in Makati."

One Plus Coffee is both a co-working space and a coffee shop in Circuit, Makati. Although it was built with start-ups in mind, it still got a following of friends and families as soon as they introduced their meals.

I love the interior of One Plus Coffee. In today's world, it's very Instagrammable.

They have a fast internet connection, long tables that are convenient for meetings and group studies and hanging wires where you can charge your gadgets such as laptops and cellphones.

With Aldous and Jam, I got to try One Plus Coffee's food selections and here they are below:

Caesar Salad

Russian Salad

Both salads are straightforward, though I prefer the former more than the latter. Not only does it have a lot of bacon on top, haha, I am not usually a fan of olives.

Szechuan Shrimp Balls

This was a new item in their menu. Something that I know I'd love even when chef just introduced this to us. This was sweet and tangy. The coating was crispy but the middle part remained soft and paired very well with its special sauce.

As you've probably know by now (if you read this blog), I don't drink coffee but I still took a sip of both of these drinks.

Dark Devil and Nutella Mocha

I just don't know which is which. Anyway, as per its name, Nutella Mocha is a milder version of a hot coffee latte with a hint of Hazelnut and Chocolate.

Caffeine is strong but Pasta is STRONGER! :)))))

Meaty Baked Lasagna

It's a perfect combination of meat, tomato and white sauce. Heavy enough for a dinner that will fill you up for an all-nighter.

Aglio Olio

I am not into spicy food but I told chef that this has to be my favorite of all.

You can taste the strong garlic flavor in this one though not overpowering and it's quite spicy that it's not "nakakaumay" As soon I told chef, he answered that this is actually their bestseller. Good job, taste buds for knowing which is which. lol.

Yep. These days, offline is the new luxury.

These two drinks above that look similar confused us. One is bitter because it's latte machiatto and the other one is sweet because it's Thai Latte. I loved the latter though plus it has a bonus whipped cream on top.

On the first bite, these wings were just plain sweet but after a while, your tongue would welcome that spiciness that's perfectly paired with their special sauce.

The drinks that were served that night.

Kiwi Lemonade and Sexy Cucumber Lemon are also in the picture. Yoko na lang sabihin kasi buti pa siya sexy... haha

I'm always practicing what I post when it comes to matcha. Adik ako online. Adik pa rin ako offline. :)))

Second to matcha, I loved their Alluring Strawberry Mocha too. Never mind the mocha, the strawberry tasted fresh and sweet.

Their version of Potato Chips are big and thinly sliced potatoes that would make you reach for more even if you've eaten a lot already.

Long tables are perfect for large groups, these round tables are perfect for smaller groups.

I don't demand and just eat what's in front but that night, I had to ask for a matcha drink. Why? Because matcha. You can rarely go wrong with matcha. :))

"Kyah, pembarya."

Charot.

"Kuya, may drawing ba 'yung matcha latte ninyo?"

He looked at me as if he was confused as to what I was saying and then answered, "Pwede naman po."

Only when he left did I realize that I should've said "Latte Art" instead of "drawing"

I like their hot latte more than their cold matcha latte not only because it has latte art and I'm so maarte but because it tastes more matcha. Yah know. Bitter matcha for bitter me. Char.

The place's interior is very conducive and peaceful that it feels like you'll get a lot of good ideas and inspirations.

They have a room that you can rent for meetings as well.

Great Minds

Thank you po for having us!

It was also an intimate food event for us three, Jam and Aldous.

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Blog Event

Gastropark Inifinity, Kapitolyo, Pasig

By Tin Gallemaso - 3:02:00 PM

Gastropark Infinity in Pasig will not only satisfy your hunger pangs but will also be able to provide you with art designs and food that are very "Instagrammable"

Upon entering, you'll see this swing with the Gastropark sign as the backdrop.

Any my dream picture... in Pasig.

Hahaha! I have always been fond of galaxy pictures and they have this painting on their wall.

With slight edit, mine looked like this.

A lot of people asked me what phone/camera I used and where this was because according to them, it looked legit. :))

Well, it is legit tho. Kasi wall painting lang naman 'yan.

Naka food park ka lang pero umabot ng galaxy. hehehe.

I'll start this post with the pictures of the food stalls in Gastropark.

Btw, they now have their promos wherein each food stall has their "unli menu".

Meron silang pagkain na unlimited serving.

Taipei Kita

Taipei Kita, unli tofu bites!

Metromeat's Unli Bacon at P 249.00

Their longganisa burger's a must try, guys!

Tokyo Tempura

Tolyo's

Ball Shack

Mac and Cheese Balls... get some balls! :))

Brick Plate

Sunfries

Chxy Wings

The Masala Bar

Loved their quesadilla!

Akala mo sweet pero... nothing naman pala.

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Mountain Climbing

Mt. Daraitan, Tanay, Rizal Day Hike

By Tin Gallemaso - 2:55:00 PM

It was raining quite hard the day before our scheduled climb to Mt. Daraitan in Tanay, Rizal. Despite knowing that it might rain on the day itself, we still went to Tanay, Rizal.

The tricycle to Mt. Daraitan's jump-off point is an adventure in itself because of the road condition. They might have better roads by now since this has been in my backlogs for a while and by a while, I mean more than six months. hahaha.

It's a standardized fee by now and I can't blame anyone but myself for a blurred picture of the pricelist. Good job, self.

Since it was already drizzling, we've decided to leave some of our stuff at the jumpoff. I left almost everything I brought though. I only took my bottled water, camera, wallet, food with me.

We wore poncho at the beginning only to realize that wearing raincoats on climb feels like climbing wearing a gown. It was uncomfortable so removed it immediately.

Aside from the peak of Mt. Daraitan, one attraction in this area is the Tinipak river but the amount of rain that day made it inaccessible.

The rain made the trail muddy and slippery.

When we climbed this, I've already gone to Tarak Ridge (that I haven't posted yet), but ascending the steep trail of Tarak was still hard. Imagine if I were to climb another mountain today when I haven't climbed in more than 8 months... Haha. Sounds like a death wish. I'm so unfit. Chos.

Thanks to Kuya that my belongings went from 100% to 25% to 0 since he volunteered to carry my backpack for me. Pabebe climber is pabebe. :)))

We soon reached this part of the trail where the grotto is. Those clouds are enough to fuel my then depleting energy.

Our doggy guide whom I wasn't able to bid farewell to. Nawala na lang siya bigla pagbaba namin.

And then we reached the summit.

It was a weekday so there were only two other climbers when we reached this part.

I "feared" Daraitan 'cause people told me that the rocks at the summit is a pain to climb but it wasn't at all. In fact, the view looking at the path of the river was really beautiful.

Look at my shoes and my leggings that loved the mud of the trail. lol

I haven't climbed for eight months. I think I want to climb again.

Pililla windmills are also visible at the summit.

We descent and found this rock with a view of a low lying sea of clouds.

It was quite a challenging and slippery trail but I went home unscathed all thanks to our guide who carried my things for me and helped me during the hard part of the trails.

I forgot the name of this falls but this was on the way to the descent.

After cleaning our shoes at the falls, we were presented with this reality again. hahaha. Useless cleaning of shoes when the rest of the trail is still mud. :))