Matthew 11:28

Lately, I've been waking up with a happy feeling armed with a plan to go visit my dad at his house. I play around with the thought for a few minutes, half-asleep in bed, before reality starts to sink in. It's when the general feeling of helplessness begins and I force myself to get up and deal with another day of "moving on."

I lost my dad a couple of weeks ago. Granted, I was never close to him in a way that most daughters are with their dads. I was never a daddy's girl, mainly because I never had the chance. Growing up with just my mom, my dad made occasional cameos in our lives. Me and my sister would have lunches with him, always on an erratic schedule. Some months would pass and we'd never see him, and there are months when we'd see him every weekend. I only know that every time we would see him, I was always happy. You always want what you can't have, they say. 

It's hard to accept the reality of death when someone leaves you and this world behind so willingly. It's even harder to accept it when you've just started to let that person become a part of your life again. I've been gripped with regret and what-if scenarios every waking moment since that day. It gets harder when I realize he won't be around to watch me grow up and start a life of my own.

I miss my dad. I hope he's happy up there.

The best red velvet at Cupcake Lab

I'm a big cupcake fan. Just browse through my mobile and Instagram uploads and you'll see countless cupcake shots from Sonja's. Recently, Jake and I tried Cupcake Lab at Podium when friends gushed about the red velvet cupcake. Since Sonja makes a crappy red velvet, we decided to give it a try.

Of course WE LOVED IT. It was the best red velvet cupcake I've tried so far. What makes it perfect is the moistness where you can taste the cocoa blending nicely with the sour cream and the not-too-sweet frosting. We also ordered the chocolate chip cupcake (they ran out of the Fererro!) and also loved it. 

In fact, we loved the red velvet cupcake so much that we decided to surprise my mom with a red velvet cake from Cupcake Lab for her birthday. I found out through their Facebook page that they also accept cake orders. Nothing says happy birthday better than a huge cake of red velvety goodness!

We ordered the 8-inch round cake for Php 1200. You have to order a day before and can arrange to pick the cake up at Podium. In our case, they delivered it to Jake's house for free since we needed to pick it up at Podium at 3pm and they can only deliver at 5pm.

I'm already craving red velvet cupcakes! Price-wise, it's worth the 70 bucks for the regular cupcake. I think it's better to order the mini cupcakes at Php 25 each since some people might find it nakaka-umay to eat one whole cupcake. Me, I'd prefer the whole cake! I think we finally found a dessert alternative to Sebastian's when at Podium!

Cupcake Lab

2nd level, Podium

For orders:

+632-4002296

09184451749

Yakiniku experience at Urameshi-ya!

Jake and I are avid fans of the authentic Japanese restaurants in Little Tokyo. Kikufuji is a particular favorite for the crunchy tuna rolls and Seryna has the best beef teppanyaki around. Thing is, we always eat there at lunch time and have always missed the opening hours of Urameshi-ya.

We finally got to eat there last February for a pre-Valentine's dinner. I've always wanted to try the "real" yakiniku experience where you can grill your food with proper charcoal and none of that smokeless grill crap. I liked the dark and dingy ambiance where you get to take off your shoes and sit in your private nook surrounded by sake bottles, appliances, and Japanese manga.

Since we're not meat connoisseurs, we chose to get the Tarafuku set (Php 2100) which has five kinds of meat with rice, soup, and salad.

It was quite overwhelming when they served all the meat at once. I was still in the process of enjoying my cabbage vinaigrette salad. The waitress was kind enough to demonstrate how to properly grill the meat and how to tell if it's already cooked.

Jake and I took turns at grilling. The meat was fresh and well-marinated. We particularly liked the bacon-ish buta bara meat. I grilled it to crispy perfection.

I panicked when we tried to grill the harumon or intestines. Due to the fatty content, the flame went up and when you're sitting in an enclosed space it can get scary (well, for me). Being the perpetually clueless cook that I am, I called the waitress and she proceeded to put some ice on the grill and offered to grill the rest of the harumon outside. 

On the table: these are the tansio and karubi meat. Tansio is beef tongue marinated in onion, soy sauce, lemon juice, and salt. It was moist and juicy. On the other hand, karubi is short ribs usually served without the bones.

The meat on the white place is the dreaded harumon or offal. We hated it. Techincally, harumon comprises of the parts of the intestines that would be usually thrown out. We did not like the taste nor the texture.

The Rosu on the left side had excellent thinly sliced rib-eye cuts. Our favorite was the buta bara or pork belly. The perks of grilling over charcoal is that you get an amazing smoky flavor which brings out all the meaty goodness.

Overall, we enjoyed our yakiniku experience. It was fun and made us realize that we need to learn how to cook properly. I personally did not feel that full after the meal, as I usually get when I have to prepare or dissect my own food (when shelling crabs or shrimps). The Php 2100 set price was reasonable for quality meat but I'd rather splurge that much on Kikufuji or Seryna.

Urameshi-ya Yakiniku Restaurant
Little Tokyo
Pasong Tamo (beside Makati Cinema Square)
+6328132210 (call for reservations)