CandyMag.Com

I’ve been meaning to go back to Cliffhouse Tagaytay ever since I dined at Fire Lake Grill. So when my guy suggested a road trip, I knew right away where I wanted to go.

Actually, I want to try all of the Cliffhouse restos eventually, even the ones that have Manila branches, like FIC and Cafe Breton. I know, I know, one-track mind and all that, but I feel I have this mental foodie checklist that I have to complete, and right now I’m fixating on Cliffhouse.

For this trip, I stepped inside Buon Giorno!, the lovely Italian resto in the corner by the water.

(more…)

I hit the Havaianas event last Friday with 17 editors Cindy, Tata, and Mia F. Man, it was crazy! Every year the event gets bigger—I remember the first one I went to was simply held inside the mall near CMG. This year they tripled the number of workstations, and held it at the Rockwell tent. It was packed with people and there were more waiting in line outside. I had to wait for my pair for hours! Good thing they were giving out iced tea and popcorn.

After choosing my colors, I took forever deciding what pins to put on my pair.

Finally settled on placing my name, Swarovskis, and headphones. The headphones are my favorite!

I hit Greenbelt 5 with the Candy Crew a few weeks ago, and Roch and Angel were pointing out all the cool restos. Among them, it was Damaso that quickly piqued my interest. And that’s where I went one recent Sunday afternoon.

Love:
-The Filipiniana Noli and El Fili theme. The dishes’ names are playful riffs on the novels’ characters, and the decor is a nice mix of Now and Then.
-The pasta. The one I had was quite filling (good serving) and pretty tasty.
-The desserts. I had a hard time choosing just one (I wanted 3!), but I am trying to be more healthy after all, so I settled on the Wicked Simoun. I’ve said this about my dog and I’ll say it about this dessert: Bad boys can be oh-so good!

Delight:
-The toasted ensaimada and hot chocolate. Never has a plain-sounding dish tasted this gooooood. I singed my tongue trying to down the hot choc because I wanted all of it right away. Greedy? Yup. Worth it? Definitely.

Could be better:
-Tubig ni Maria Clara. It was quite refreshing—water with cucumber and ginger—but it had a strange aftertaste I wasn’t too crazy about. But that’s just me.
-The prices. The place is comfy and cozy, but the food’s a bit pricey. Not for pigging out then

Love their hot choco!

(more…)

I was out and about all day yesterday, up early and out of the house before noon, trying to make the most of a sunny Sunday. And I was quite proud of how I seemed to be turning over a new leaf.

3 Signs of a New Mia
1) bought sweat pants for running (I’m raring to pound the pavement and be all fit and strong)
2) skipped dessert, didn’t have chips all day (one healthy-eating day can be the start of many more to come)
3) didn’t even set foot in Fully Booked (no more hoarding unread books!)

Yay me! Plus I actually brought a car without complaining about parking—my least favorite part of driving—when I decided to take my pups out for a night stroll. They didn’t have to thank me for me to know how grateful they were—the happy smiles on their doggie faces and their slobbery kisses said it all! Yay puppies! (more…)

You know what’s better than having a photograph of your self that you love? Having a photo of you that you love—taken by someone you love. You can always tell by looking into the person’s eyes whether her picture was taken by someone she likes or loves. (more…)