Fiesta Bicolandia Boodle Fight at Blackbeard's Seafood Island, Market! Market!

Having not to eat any meal in the last 36 hours, oh my just thinking it out again just make me feel like im passing out. I didnt pass-out just to settle things out clearly, but remembering what I just did for the weekend - slept, and played racing, and then slept again, and no eating-in-between, it was just unbelievably me.

So there goes my boodle fight, or 'should-have-been-a-boodle-feast' lunch. After the mind-boggling waiting for something to digest, we hopped to Blackbeard's Seafood Island and checked their menu. The 'pirate' said the serving should be available for 10-20 minutes. Ow god 20 minutes? But what is 20 minutes compared to the last 36 hours I waited for a food? But that is just another tedious 20 minutes, I thought.

But instead of trying out the buffet-style next to Blackbeard's we decided to check-in their boodle fight, and get one of its fiesta bundle offers, 'Fiesta Bicolandia.' It got some grilled white shrimps, grilled pork bbq, crab cooked in curry style, some shells inside a cold coconut, grilled fish, then the vegetable, the bicol express to complete the bicolandia experience, and the always-present rice.

So 20 minutes, fine. Let's check out the place then while waiting. We seated in a two-seater table near the resto door, and from there you will see the wall that looks like a treasure map. The ship, the pirates, the chairs, the ropes, the aquarium in the outside area where you'll see live fishes and shrimps, they make the by-the-sea-side ambiance real.

Then our food arrived, carried by a pirate in a huge wood that covered the table - inviting, and shouting that we grab them in 3,2, 1, but because we remembered that we are in Manila, and a few minutes away from our domiciles, we'll eat with plates, and fork, and spoon, instead of bare hands - the boodle fight way that it was supposed to be. 

The food was okay. Had the iced-teas refills been more automatic the experience could have been really perfect. But of course the way the pirates communicate with their visitors, they were very well, it was just not the 'snap snap' automatic way you'll see in fine dining restos. There was one instance that my teas glass was filled without me asking, but there were times that their attentions have to be called first before giving you what you've paid for.

The casualty? 

1 Fiesta Bicolandia 3-4 persons, 675, 2 bottomless iced tea - 190, 10% service charge - 77.23, total of a Php 942.23.

Ambiance was almost perfect, a/c can be improved, we dont want our customers sweating while eating 8.

Customer service was almost perfect too, initiative needs to be consistent from the crew pirates. 9.

Food, was sea-side style, grilled, and cooked nicely, 9.

Over-all experience, 8.5.

So over-all i'm recommending this place with an 8.5/10 rating.

archie's at tiendesitas - special bbq and ribs

Trying to remember the isawan in Kalay and Malcolm in my great old alma mater, we decided to do some ihaw food tripping. Final destination was at tiendesitas, since its near my place, plus lots of food choices. Just like what we did in dampa macapagal, we passed by several stalls and food places until we decided to stay in Archie's.

Archie's isaw baboy costs P27, isaw manok costs P25. The BBQs are at P45, while the ribs, there seem none available when we were there.

Here are some photos you might want to look at. Just to reference if you were really at the place I am referring. Enjoy your BBQs!

 

And here's how the BBQs are cooked. Of course you know how the grilling works.

It might be worth-mentioning that the persons there were very nice, and very courteous. Though we understand that the culture there is "self-serve," they extended their efforts and had the courtesy of giving us suka refils [vinegar sauce refills which are sour and sweet at the same time], and even delivered our drinks at our table.

The BBQs seem to be processed really well, and cleanly. I asked a few more sticks for take-out, and they had them even covered with an alum foil.

Customer experience: 9/10.

Food taste: 9/10.

Ambiance: 9/10.

Great work!

igmaan sa dampa macapagal

We were supposed to visit MOA to use our gold tickets for the pyromusical. But just after buendia, all the cars seem not to move. Tik, tok, tik, tok.We've been inside the cab for an hour now. So instead of having a bad hair *night*, we decided to just give up the traffic jam, forget the pyro-show, and off the seafood tripping at seaside macapagal.

walk here, walk there, cant decide which resto to go. are we eating for less? or spending for some real food-tripping?

viola, we decided the later. we came here to eat a lot, and pay for it. 

So as the calm night passed by, we decided to sit on one of the paluto restos along the dampa creek. we weren't really particular with the discounts the ates and kuyas were offering, but we went on  our search for the place that is not so palengke-like, and has a good ambiance.

And we decided to sit on this resto, with a white flower on each of the tables. The flower on the table's the one on the photo on top. Igmaan. We were really not familiar with the word. But the framed photos on the wall, they seem to be of Ilonggo origin.

After looking at the menu, where it lists just the price of the paluto charge, we decided to take on some shrimps, and prawns, and crabs, plus a piece of tilapia. 

tik tok, tik tok. tik tok. my belly's almost shouting for food, so i decided to ask how soon do we have to wait.

5 minutes. and true enough, after five minutes, our crab, the buttered shrimp with garlic, the  lovely tempura, and the stuffed tilapia, all jumped to the table.

the food is very tender, very sweet, and very hot.

Seeing the photos above is just mouth-watering. Reminds me of these I consumed. Had this been not in Pasay, I would have to visit the place more often than my neighbor tiendesitas.

The price for this meal? Approx 1,600.00 for 1/2 tempura, 1/2 buttered shrimp, 1/2 crab, 1 piece of stuffed tilapia, 1.5 liter of soft drink, and a serving or rice for a group. For 2 persons, you would have no choice but to take out almost half.

rating: 9/10.

food: 10

customer service: 9

timeliness: 8

ambiance: 8