Michi Photostory: June 2014

June 29, 2014

Dinner at La Fiesta: A Taste of Filipino

The Philippines is known for Fiesta; we celebrate Fiesta in different provinces and cities. There are provinces that are really famous for their festival, such as Cebu, Quezon, Bacolod, and many more. Filipinos love Fiesta, and even I, who am not a Catholic I love Fiesta because Fiesta = Tons of food. I always look forward to attending Fiesta because I can taste a lot of dishes for free. Oh yes, an eat all you can event.

Update 2018: Lunch at La Fiesta

Who doesn’t love eating all you can eat or buffet? I personally love buffet, it is something I look forward to every time we have a hotel staycation. Buffet restaurant is also my choice if we have a celebration and get together. You can see here and here the hotel and restaurant buffet that we have tried.

Buffet = No Leftover and No Diet

Do you know that there’s a new buffet restaurant in SM by the Bay Mall of Asia? La Fiesta Restaurant is the "Largest Filipino Buffet" with over 200 dishes, and as of this writing, they are now open for their second week. From its name, expect that they serve Filipino dishes originating from different Fiestas all over the country.

I received an invitation to try La Fiesta last week. If you’ve been reading this blog for quite some time now, you know that I don’t usually attend blog events because of my location, and most events fall on weekdays, but when I’ve read that I can visit on my preferred date and time, I gladly accepted it.

Yesterday, we drove all the way to the Mall of Asia. You won’t get lost because the La Fiesta restaurant is just beside the MOA Eye. We were there past 5PM and I asked the staff if my son was still free or not. We went inside the restaurant to check my son’s height, and I was glad because he is still free. The children's rate is based on height.

At 5:30, they opened the restaurant and started calling the names on the reservation list. The place is huge, measuring 1200sqm with 150 tables and 500 seats, so they can really accommodate a good number of guests.

We did not waste time anymore, and we started checking the food station. I guess they have 7 to 8 stations of food. They served grilled seafood, street foods, noodles, pizza, various types of barbeque, sisig, soup, fruits, desserts, and many more Filipino dishes.

Let the photos do the talking.

Our favorites are lechon de leche and papaitan.

Funny story. I was falling in line for ice cream, nung turn ko na I asked the server if there was mocha, and he said “wala po ma’m.” I pointed at the white ice cream and asked kung vanilla yu,n and he said yes. I went to the table and started eating my ice cream, and waah! It is not vanilla ice cream; it is durian ice cream. Nalito na yata ang server, and why I was looking for vanilla and mocha ice cream, Filipino, and Fiesta nga ang theme. Anyway, my husband enjoyed the durian ice cream. Hahaha!

Likes

1. The waiting area is spacious enough, you can stay in a bahay kubo or in these comfortable sofas.

2. I love the interiors. The place doesn’t look crowded, even though guests have started to arrive, because there is enough room for you to move.

3. I like the idea of serving different Filipino dishes, especially those foods that you don’t normally cook or eat at home, like Papaitan, Sisig, and Dinuguan.

4. Plus points because the buffet rate includes unlimited drinks, I guess over 20 types of drinks, such as soda, juice, and even beer, are unlimited.

5. The service is good from the waiting area up to your table. There are staff everywhere who gladly assist you with all your needs. You can see the smile on their faces, you can hear welcoming remarks, and you can really feel their energy. I hope this kind of service will remain.

6. They offer acoustic bands, local folk dances, and harana while eating every day. There is a live cultural show every Friday, Saturday (dinner), and Sunday (lunch and dinner), but we missed it because we left early.

7. I could say that the buffet rate is worth it because of the all-you-can-eat food + unlimited drinks.

Dislikes

1. One thing that I dislike in the buffet restaurant is the children's rate. I was happy because they did not charge my son yet. Imagine if I were to pay P380 and my son only ate one cone of dirty ice cream and 1 pc of yema. #lugi.

2. The children's rate is based on height so lugi rin if your children are tall.

3. I was looking for shrimps because that’s my favorite, but I did not see at their grilled station. #nagkataonlangba

La Fiesta Buffet Rate

Mon-Sat Lunch P550
Mon-Sat Dinner P750
Sunday and Holiday P750

Children Rate
Height 3.5" ft below (FREE)
4.5" ft below (P380)
4.5: ft above (Adult rate)

Lunch Time - 11:00 - 2:00pm
Dinner Time - 5:30 - onwards

Leftover price P950

Overall, I do recommend La Fiesta if you are into a buffet and if you want a place for get-togethers, reunions, or celebrations. You can bring your friends or family who are balikbayans and foreigners so they can experience our traditional foods.

La Fiesta “Largest Filipino Buffet”
Bldg 1 SM by the Bay, Seaside Blvd
Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City
5561111/5561222/5561333

June 27, 2014

Philippine Airlines Experience

Like I always say, our family always travels on a shoestring so Philippine Airlines is not always our option. I always book our flights on low-cost carriers especially if there is a seat sale. I booked our Manila to Kuala Lumpur and Kuala Lumpur to Singapore flight last August and I was waiting for the promo fare for our Singapore to Manila flight.

I could not wait any longer for a seat sale so last December, I was checking and comparing the fare on different airlines. We chose Philippine Airlines because the difference is less than 2k from low-cost carriers. We all know that we have free meals and free baggage allowance already in PAL.

I tried Philippine Airlines when we went to Cagayan de Oro for our Camiguin trip. But the food is nothing special, just biscuits and coffee. Hehehe!

But international flight is different, there is a small pillow that you can use, and a headset if you want to watch movie or sound trip. You have a full meal, there are appetizers, main course, and dessert.

Now I know and experience the difference so if ever I have extra budget, I will choose PAL but if the budget is limited, low-cost carrier is still fine with me, especially for short time travel.

June 24, 2014

Glimpse of Changi Airport

When my husband’s officemate learned that we're going to KL and Singapore, he offered us a free pass to Singapore Zoo, but unfortunately, the only schedule available is our last day in Singapore so we did not accept it, sayang! We need to check out at 12 noon so mabibitin lang kami sa Singapore Zoo. I think I need one whole day to enjoy Singapore Zoo, Night Safari, and River Safari, maybe next time.

Read: 5 Days in Singapore with Kid

So we stayed in our hotel till check-out and went straight to Changi Airport. I returned our Singapore Pass in Bugis Station to claim the SGD10 deposit and bought a one-way ticket to the airport.

Changi Airport is huge, so you will not get bored, but our feet were already tired from our six-day trip so we just relaxed and enjoyed the free wifi.

After check-in, we ate at Paradise Inn Restaurant, I forgot the name of the meal that we ordered, but it all tasted good.

Then we walked towards to boarding gate, stayed for several minutes in Social Tree. It is a new attraction that allows travelers to instantly share photos in social networking profiles. Took some photos and waited for our departure.

June 19, 2014

Singapore Flyer and more

Our six-day trip to KL and Singapore are still not enough, I still have long list of places that I wanted to visit or revisit. I mentioned in my Legoland Malaysia post that we went to Singapore Flyer to avail the coach transfer of WTS travel agency.

Since we’re still early for our bus schedule we have time to stroll. We’ve seen Marina Bay Sands and Gardens by the Bay from afar. I’ve reading a lot of good reviews about the garden.

We checked the Singapore Flyer and praying that someday I can conquer my fear of heights so I can ride this.

We’re supposed to go to River Safari on our sixth day but we decided to stay in the hotel until check out and kill our time in the airport. #tired Well, I hope there will be next time to visit the place that we missed.

Read: River Safari

June 06, 2014

Dinner at D’ Banquet

I was clearing my photo folder and I saw our photos when we dined at D’ Banquet. I discovered this place when we were looking for Amira’s Buco Tart.

Last Mother’s Day we went to Tagaytay to have our dinner and decided to try the D’Banquet. According to the menu, “It is a fine dining, pasalubong center and events venue in the heart of Tagaytay.” We ordered the P99 steak, Sinampalukan na Native Chicken P150 and Ube Halaya P140.

The steak was ok for its price, my husband and son enjoyed the sinigang while the ube halaya is just ok, we still prefer the Good Shepherd Ube. If you are looking for affordable meals in Tagaytay, I do recommend this because the price is inexpensive. #sulitmeals