AVENIDA got all my faves!

Talk about getting lucky.. My girlfriend who runs this blog was able to snag two spots in the 8th leg of the Davao Food Trip series organized by Blogie Robillo before registration was closed. The 8th food trip was in AVENIDA, a restaurant in the ground floor of Lispher Inn in Juna Subdivision, Matina, Davao City. We haven't heard of it yet so we were quite excited to try their food. And I grew more excited when my gf mentioned Avenida will serve their famous Beef Misono. And I must say I LOVE BEEF in all forms!

The presentation of their Beef Misono was simple (just served in a bowl like a rice topping; see photo below) but it was delicious! The beef was very tender and flavorful, and I was able to demolish my share in about 5 minutes. Hehe! There was no hint of a distinct Japanese taste though. Avenida's version must have been "filipinized" for the Pinoy taste buds..

Beef is my #1 favorite food, and bangus belly is a close second. And who would have thought that Avenida will serve that too?? As I said, I got lucky! Hehe! The bangus recipe was just plainly named Bangus Belly. The belly wasn't visible as it was topped with sauteed (??) kangkong leaves. The rest of the dish was composed of cucumber, tomatoes and onions. Given its plain name, I didn't thought it will have an Italian taste. Surprise suprise! I think the (fresh, sundried or marinated?) tomatoes had a lot to do with the Italian taste. Needless to say, I ate lots of belly, and never minded the bangus meat which was boneless (I think).

The last dish Avenida served was Sizzling Squid. And yes, squid is another favorite. Hehe! How lucky can I get?? My first food trip and I'm eating all my faves =) Unfortunately, my gf wasn't able to take a picture of the squid dish on the sizzling plate since steam is coming off it (it's a sizzling dish after all!) and keeps messing up the camera lens. Tsk! Anyway, the squid meat was diced and mixed with the usual trio of vegetables (carrot, peas, corn). The sauce was yellow but there was nothing distinct in its smell or taste (no saffron) so I don't know why it's yellow.. Still, it was yummy and was perfect with the tender diced squid meat. Below is a picture of the Sizzling Squid on the plate of my gf. The reddish-blaskish blob on the background is a piece of Bangus Belly. Looks all yummy to me!

ALL photos in this blog post were taken by Melissa Solito (my gf who runs this food blog) and I used them with permission -- of course! Hehe! ALL are unedited that's why there's no watermark of her name (she's procrastinating in editing, arghh) so if you use it, kindly link back or give her credit. Her "food review" on Avenida will be on this blog: Issa's Dollar Earners. Go check it out!

For those with short-term memory, AVENIDA is located in the ground floor of Lispher Inn in Juna Subdivision, Matina, Davao City. Contact number: (6382) 299-1610. You can also check them out at www.lispher.ph

OKONOMIYAKI

Who loves takoyaki guys? I do! My labsie does, my brothers, my parents, everybody in my world does! =) Now, what does takoyaki have to do with okonomiyaki? If you love the taste of the former, triple it in size + more flavors = okonomiyaki! According to the resto where we first had this dish, it's the japanese version of a pizza. However, I later learned that it's more of a pancake, i.e. what you cook is batter (pancake) and not dough (pizza). If you want more info about this yummy food and how to cook it, check the following sites:
http://markun.cs.shinshu-u.ac.jp/hobby/okonomi/index-e.html
http://visualrecipes.com/recipe-details/recipe_id/120/Okonomiyaki-aka-Japanese-Pizza/
http://greggman.com/japan/okonomiyaki/okonomiyaki.htm

Okonomiyaki means "whatever you like/favorites, grilled in Japanese". After making the basic batter, you put all your favorite foods on top and cook it. Me, I imagine squid rings, shrimps, some fish flakes and japanese mayo. Simply superb! =) We first encountered this delish food last November 2006 in Gaisano Mall. But owing to my super-busy medical life, it is only now that I am able to blog about it, teehee!

Labsie and I were looking for a new place to eat and there it was -- Effort Junko's Japanese Curry with baduy heart-shaped pink and blue neon lights inviting curious us to view their menu. There was, of course, the japanese curry and the typical katsudon and gyudon meals. And by the corner, we see something round named okonomiyaki. We asked the waiter what it was and he said it is japanese pizza, and we would certainly like it. So we ordered it plus our usual rice meals. When it finally came, we were like "Is this it??" coz it's really not much to look at (as you can see in the pix below with 1/4 already eaten, lol). Plus it took sooo long for the order to arrive! We were nearly halfway our rice meals before it came. BUT, when we took our first bite of the okonomiyaki -- heaven!! It was definitely worth the wait =) The different flavors just meshed and the "crust", oohhh, very flavorful! And the price? About P75 which is good for two so very cheap for snacking! So if you're in GMall and is in a patient mood, look for this crazy-named store in the food section of Gmall's 3rd floor (I think.. haven't been to Gmall or any malls for that matter recently, hehe). By the way, Effort Junko also sells 2nd-hand laptops from Japan so check that out too. All in all, the resto is a good place to eat if you're not in a hoity-toity sosyalera mood. Good food, good price and with good company = good time! =)