The rainy season is fast approaching, so before summer ends, here's our last 'hirit' to beat the heat!

Had a sinful yet heavenly lunch with my family yesterday, again courtesy of the best chef in town, my dad. :D

First on the menu was the Tuna Meatballs. With just a can of Tuna soaked in water, eggs, minced onions, tomatoes, and salt and pepper, rolled into bread crumbs, this delectable dish sure is a perfect treat for health buffs out there. Just be sure to use olive oil or vegetable oil in frying for a more guilt-free treat. :p

Another healthy treat was the Buttered Veggies. Slices of potatoes, carrots, sayote, Baguio beans, and button mushrooms sautéed in butter never really fail to satisfy my palates, especially when the veggies are cooked just right.

The meatballs and veggies were perfectly delicious, but for an added twist, my dad also made these:

You may enjoy eating the meatballs and veggies plain, or have it with gravy for a more delectable treat!

We also had Century Eggs, which is Gia's favorite. :)

Another tasty treat was the Papaitan. This is one of my dad's specialties. It was so good that my mom wasn't able to resist eating it even if she was advised by her doctor to avoid food with high uric acid content. :p

And last but not the least, was our all-time favorite, Cripy Pata! Just look at the picture...need I say more? *drools*

After out mouth-watering lunch, we had a refreshing dip! Summer time will surely become more fun and enjoyable when spent with the whole family!


Hope to have more and more family fun next summer! :D

The show ended past 2pm and Mark and I both were hungry that time. After the show we went straight to the Araneta Center to have our lunch/merienda. :)

Since we usually dine at the Gateway mall, Mark suggested that we try out other restaurants in the Araneta Center. After walking around the place, we saw Butter Diner. I've read a lot of good reviews about this restaurant so we both decided to try it out.

The restaurant's interior will surely catch your eye. Upon entry, you will notice the wall with a huge colorful comic strip which features the Butter Diner story...

...and vintage posters that hang on the mirror wall on the other side,

with vintage items situated on a ledge at the bottom of the mirror wall. Each table also has either a vintage transistor radio or vintage toaster as side accent.

Though the service is not really slow, I'm sure you will enjoy while waiting for your orders because of the restaurant's playful interior. You will also get hooked into reading the Butter Diner story in the paper placemats on the table.

Aside from the admirable interior, Mark and I also loved Butter Diner's food. Mark wanted something hot so he ordered the Cream of Mushroom soup. I love the generous amount of minced onions and mushroom slices in the soup.  It was served really hot and comes with butter toasts.

The Sausages & Cheese Omelette was next on our list. Its huge serving comes with butter toasts. Mark and I enjoyed this dish. It was overflowing with sautéed sausage strips, onions, and cheese! Yummy!

A must-try at Butter Diner, the Western Burger was served next. The grilled quarter pound beef burger patty smothered with rich barbecue sauce and topped with bacon was a sure hit for both Mark and I. The patty which was tender and juicy and the crispy bacon strips really appealed to our palates. Though the burger was not big enough, it comes with a generous serving of fries.

Another must-try is the Lasagna A SURE FAVORITE!. Mark and I was surprised at how big the serving was. The lasagna was oozing with lots and lots of cheese! The cheddar cheese topping, cream cheese, and mozzarella cheese and ground beef layered in al dente pasta sheets were a heaven for me. This dish sure did live up to its name! :)

For the drinks, I had their Iced Tea while Mark opted for the Mug root beer.

We also had the Double Hot Fudge Brownie Sundae for dessert. The vanilla ice cream topped with chocolate brownie, rich hot chocolate fudge syrup, nuts, cherry were gone in no time!

It was our first time at Butter Diner, but we sure loved and enjoyed our dining experience here. We'll definitely come back to try out their other specialties especially their flavored butter. :)

BUTTER DINER
Shopwise Arcade, Araneta Center
Cubao, Quezon City

Last Tuesday, May 25, marked the start of Mark's stardom. Haha! He was one of the contestants of Eat Bulaga's Sa Pula Sa Puti Kontrapelo game.

It was my mom who actually informed me about the game. She sent me a message last Monday afternoon insisting that I let Mark join the auditions for the said show. The show needed bodybuilders for their segment and Mark was the first person that came into my mom's mind when she heard of the advertisement.

I relayed the message to Mark and I was able to convince him, and before we knew it, he was already there, right at the Broadway Centrum, auditioning for game. :)

It was around 9 in the evening when I got a message from Mark saying that we need to be at the Broadway Centrum the next day at 8:30am. Yes! Mark passed the audition and was chosen as one of the contestants! :D

Tuesday came and we were at the Broadway Centrum just in time. We entered the studio at around 10am. After a few briefing and rehearsals, the show finally began.

Mark's team won over the lady bodybuilders in the elimination round.

Unfortunately, they didn't get the jackpot prize.

After the game, we stayed to finish the show. Here's Mark's photo with Joey De Leon. Good thing we were able to catch him after the game. :)

We really didn't get to have our photos taken with the hosts because they immediately go to the backstage after each segment. Here are some photos of the Eat Bulaga Dabarkads. :)

Mark's competition started past 8pm and ended around 11pm, and we were so hungry! And so after Mark's victory, we finally had our dinner! Yipee! Haha!

It was already late and all the restaurants in the city were already closed. Good thing the tricycle drivers were nice enough to drive for us to a nearby town. We had our dinner at Merge Point in Bantay, Ilocos Sur, which is roughly a minute drive from Vigan City.

We were just supposed to have a trip to Baguio from May 8-10. The Vigan trip (May 6-8) has not been finalized yet because we were still not sure if my dad will be permitted to leave from work for a long period. But I guess Mark was lucky enough, the Vigan trip came to happen, we arrived hours earlier for the competition proper, and Mark was able to join the competition.

After our merienda at Plaza Burgos, we went back to Vigan gym for Mark's competition, which is the very reason why we went to Vigan haha!

My family was in full support for Mark. :) And as always, I was Mark's personal assistant, I was the one who made gave him his tan.

After the motorcade and a few hours of waiting, the competition finally began.

It's Sunday again and the family's all complete! We had a mouth-watering lunch courtesy of the best chef in town, my dad. :D

He cooked these for lunch: Pork Adobo, chinese style :P

Pink Salmon Sinigang,

and Jaoey's all-time favorite, Bagnet or what we all know as Lechon Kawali.

We also had ice cream for dessert. *drools*

We were supposed to have lunch at the backyard, but the sun was scorching so we decided to move it to dinner.

After dinner, we then plunged into the waters!

And had some fun fun fun!!!

What a great way to beat the heat!