Phillipines, Manila, Makati Happenings

[blursam]

Originally Posted by bolsterposter

Food glorious food!

GB3
- lunch time teppanyaki set is always good at Nanbantei of Tokyo
Greenbelt 3, level 3 (same as the cinemas). too bad they closed haiku, their lunch sets were really good too.
- ma maison has good and relatively decently priced tonkatsu set ~ 400 php for a more than decent sized portion meal
- bizu is a good french eatery, nicely priced. for more atas french food go to chateau 1771, it's quite good and still relatively decent priced cf sg's prices
- mesa has good filipino fare, best enjoyed in groups of four and above, avoid weekends dinners though, the queue is horrendous unless you go there really early or really late
- museum cafe (at ayala museum) has an interesting menu with asian + continental fusion fare. their chef is malaysian, so tastes pretty ok

personally i avoid italianni's, can't really stomach (pun fully intended) paying so much for average italian food. but the portions are really huge, so is value for money if you are there with lots of hungry friends.

not to forget - there's also ukokkei ramen, which is IMO the best ramen in makati (stone's throw from gb, along pasay road, opposite fujitsu service center) be warned though that their service attitude is bad. really bad. i often don't tip them, lol... but then again i am sorta a cheap charley

For Italian food in GB, try Marciano's......I find it much better.

[AtlasShrugged]

Originally Posted by blursam

For Italian food in GB, try Marciano's......I find it much better.

Where? Pricing ?

[GrandS]

Originally Posted by bolsterposter

Food glorious food!

GB3
- lunch time teppanyaki set is always good at Nanbantei of Tokyo
Greenbelt 3, level 3 (same as the cinemas). too bad they closed haiku, their lunch sets were really good too.
- ma maison has good and relatively decently priced tonkatsu set ~ 400 php for a more than decent sized portion meal
- bizu is a good french eatery, nicely priced. for more atas french food go to chateau 1771, it's quite good and still relatively decent priced cf sg's prices
- mesa has good filipino fare, best enjoyed in groups of four and above, avoid weekends dinners though, the queue is horrendous unless you go there really early or really late
- museum cafe (at ayala museum) has an interesting menu with asian + continental fusion fare. their chef is malaysian, so tastes pretty ok

personally i avoid italianni's, can't really stomach (pun fully intended) paying so much for average italian food. but the portions are really huge, so is value for money if you are there with lots of hungry friends.

not to forget - there's also ukokkei ramen, which is IMO the best ramen in makati (stone's throw from gb, along pasay road, opposite fujitsu service center) be warned though that their service attitude is bad. really bad. i often don't tip them, lol... but then again i am sorta a cheap charley

Aviod Italianni's at all cost esp if you are a foreigner. I think I post this before.

[AtlasShrugged]

Originally Posted by GrandS

Aviod Italianni's at all cost esp if you are a foreigner. I think I post this before.

Why? Care update again?

[GrandS]

Originally Posted by AtlasShrugged

Why? Care update again?

Too long a list. I used to have their discount card, annual renewal but have since gave up after 2 years. Too many incident. Decide to missed it for good.

[blursam]

Originally Posted by AtlasShrugged

Where? Pricing ?

Marciano's at Greenbelt3, 1 level above Havana, just walk up the stairs. A few stores from Banana-Leaf.....Try their Hudson-Prawns (appetizer)....

Pricing....not expensive.....you can check out their menu from outside before decide to go in.

[blursam]

For those who wants really good fine-dining Japanese food....and can afford it and/or can charge to company/business expense (yes its expensive....)....go to the Japanese resturant at Dusit Thani Hotel Makati.....

[stmapede]

Recently just started reading this thread to get myself ready for 1st trip to Philippines.

Found many valuable information here. Thanks to all.

[skuo]

Stuck in Makati on next trip with little time to travel. Any good fish bowl massage places in Makati to try? Thanks in advance

[haha_123]

Originally Posted by manilaboy2007

If you take the yellow airport taxi it is about 200-250 peso I think. If you energetic enough to walk outside the airport to take the white normal taxi it is 150+ I think

When I mean white, it is not the white limo van / SUV taxi which is a fixed price and cost lie 500+ I think.

Last Sat I arrived at T1 airport at 6am. I took the yellow taxi to Riviera Mansion hotel. The taxi fare was 178 peso. I passed 200 peso to the driver who told me that he got no change.

Then on my return to T1 airport 2 days later, I took the white taxi which costs roughly the same, less than 170 peso.

By the way, samsters please remember to standby 550 peso or USD 13 to pay to the custom officer before embarking on the return trip to Singapore.

[AtlasShrugged]

Originally Posted by skuo

Stuck in Makati on next trip with little time to travel. Any good fish bowl massage places in Makati to try? Thanks in advance

Try http://airforceone.thegentlemansclub.com.ph/168/

Or

Originally Posted by AtlasShrugged

Kemosabe Spa

LOCATION:
Unit 2&3 V&O Bldg., Makati Executive Suites Don Bosco St., Makati City

TEL NO.:
519-33-11
393-72-57
0910.4624040

Bring your 4 friends and the 5th will get a FREE MASSAGE!

For the group of 4 everyone will get a FREE STEAM BATH (worth 150.00)!

Plus enjoy our other promos:

The Full Body Massage (1 hour & 20 mins.) 550.00 only

Full Body Massage with Body Wash or Steam Bath is 700.00 only.

Full Body Massage with Foot Massage or Foot Spa is 750.00 only.

Twin massage is 800.00 only.

Body Scrub (Including 40 mins. Full Body Massage) is 1,000.00 only.

Body Scrub with Foot Spa is 1,100.00 only.

KEMOSABE EXPERIENCE 1,500.00
(Body Scrub, 40 mins. Fullbody Massage, Foot Spa or Foot Masage,
Body Wash and Steam Bath)

AVAIL 2 MASSAGES WITHIN 7 DAYS AND GET A 50% DISCOUNT ON YOUR 3rd VISIT.

This promo is valid for the whole month of August only!

ES- Hj Only (No Bj, NO atw)

TIP= 500.00

Got this info from another forum recommended by Reoxy.

Never tried before. Information only. Hope it helps.

[AtlasShrugged]

Originally Posted by haha_123

Last Sat I arrived at T1 airport at 6am. I took the yellow taxi to Riviera Mansion hotel. The taxi fare was 178 peso. I passed 200 peso to the driver who told me that he got no change.

Then on my return to T1 airport 2 days later, I took the white taxi which costs roughly the same, less than 170 peso.

By the way, samsters please remember to standby 550 peso or USD 13 to pay to the custom officer before embarking on the return trip to Singapore.

They accept USD?? Thought only Peso

[bolsterposter]

Yea they do accept USD for the airport charge. But pay php if you can since it's cheaper.

@haha123 Not bad, you managed to get a good yellow cab, probably little or no "trapik" . the white taxi was expensive though 170, usually makati -> airport is about 150.

@blursam Marciano's not bad too, the menu is actually more cosmo? they have all kinds of food from american - italian fare. not bad for the price.


anyway for those who want some really good food, head over to powerplant mall (hidden gem!) at rockwell. Mamou has good (but pricey) steak and their lorenzo truffle cream pasta is da bomb.

Catinetta has pretty good mains and pizzas too

Crab house, serves pretty decent chili crab (almost up to sg standard)

And especially for etsys, they have a banana leaf resto too!

plus bonus! boon tong kee is there (not open yet though) so i would almost call it a foodie haven already. too bad the jap food there isn't great.

it's a nice mall, not too huge, open skylight so lots of natural lighting. can see some movie stars celebs (or at least they are according to the girls i bring there) sometimes on weekend or week day nights. saw christine reyes? there once , apparently was watching her own movie, lol...

[manilaboy2007]

Originally Posted by bolsterposter

Yea they do accept USD for the airport charge. But pay php if you can since it's cheaper.

@haha123 Not bad, you managed to get a good yellow cab, probably little or no "trapik" . the white taxi was expensive though 170, usually makati -> airport is about 150.

@blursam Marciano's not bad too, the menu is actually more cosmo? they have all kinds of food from american - italian fare. not bad for the price.


anyway for those who want some really good food, head over to powerplant mall (hidden gem!) at rockwell. Mamou has good (but pricey) steak and their lorenzo truffle cream pasta is da bomb.

Catinetta has pretty good mains and pizzas too

Crab house, serves pretty decent chili crab (almost up to sg standard)

And especially for etsys, they have a banana leaf resto too!

plus bonus! boon tong kee is there (not open yet though) so i would almost call it a foodie haven already. too bad the jap food there isn't great.

it's a nice mall, not too huge, open skylight so lots of natural lighting. can see some movie stars celebs (or at least they are according to the girls i bring there) sometimes on weekend or week day nights. saw christine reyes? there once , apparently was watching her own movie, lol...

Christian Reyes!! Wow I love her.........boobs =p
I normally go Bonifacio High street walk walk with my gf and we occasionally see CBS or GMA drama starlets drinking high class kopi there. I will check out powerplant mall next time when I stay in Makati.

My next trip is in Nov but I be hanging around Malate. hehe

[haha_123]

Originally Posted by etsys

I stay cheaper place in Malate, Rivera Mansion .. at Mabini Street -

2,400 per night, or 1,800 if booked through my contact ..

Last week I booked Riviera Mansion hotel for 2 nights, through agoda.com at SGD 72 per night, including breakfast. It was a good recommendation from you as the hotel offers security and excellent value for money.

The breakfast is typical American with toast, scrambled eggs or sunny side-up and sausage, bacon or ham. My girl was able to order her Filipino breakfast consisting of rice with beef tapa. The free coffee and orange juice helped kick-start the day.

By the way, I was able to watch the LIVE BPL matches on the tv inside the hotel. Through the ESPN channel, I was able to watch Man U vs Liverpool, as well as Arsenal vs Man City. I was also able to catch abit of F1 racing through the StarSports Channel. On the negative side, my girl had to pay 100 P for 1hr of wifi as wifi is not free.

Location-wise, Riviera Mansion hotel is in an excellent location as it is just opposite to Hyatt casion. It is only 15mins walk to Robinson's Mall where we spent most of our time shopping for gifts for my girl's mom, sister, nieces and other family members. I was also able to get my cough syrup from the Mercury Drug store at Robinson's Mall. The mall also has Banana-Leaf, Ya-Kun, Toast-Box, Jollie-Bee, Chow-King and my favourite Shakey's Pizza. It even had a cinema where I was able to watch the fantastic Resident Evil.

Just around the corner from our hotel, there was a very good Hup-Chan Chinese restaurant. The roast chicken with keropok, beef kway-teow were even better than what I had in Singapore. They also serve congee, siow-pao and siew-mai. I think they have another branch in Makati too.

Further up along A. Mabini St is a place called Cowboy-Grill. It has 2 floors with Live Band. They serve typical American food like fries, steak, etc. There was a crowd when we got there, but we managed to find space on the upper floor. The band was very good and some Ang-Mo couples even took to the dance-floor. But the music was not too loud and me and my girl were able to enjoy the very cold San Miguel Light.

By the way, me and my girl also took a 15 mins taxi-ride to the nearby Manila Ocean Park. There, we were able to enjoy the Sea Lion show. The oceanarium contains the sharks, stingrays, turtles, eels. The jelly-fish exhibits were most exciting amid the background music and ever-changing lights. It was a good way to spend 3 hours, for only 650 P per person.

Overall, I think Riviera Mansion hotel is located in a very central location in Malate. Just that samsters need to pay attention to their belongings and wallet at all times, as there are beggars and gays aplenty in this area.