Of Macarons and Puddings - from Chez Karine

Walking around Bonifacio High Street, Serendra and Market Market, we ended up talking about the new craze for French macarons and ended up in this quaint bakery in Serendra named “Chez Karine” (beside Cupcakes by Sonja and Gelato by Gelatissimo). The interiors were simple yet inviting, not too much decors - only the to-go boxes with different designs and colors that put color in the walls of the bakery.

Chez Karine

bunch of people ordering in the middle of the afternoon

Interiors of the bakery

We ordered 4 macarons; we had 1 salted caramel each and split in half the mint chocolate and earl grey. Each macaron cost Php50.00, which we find affordable compared to other patisseries in the metro.

Clockwise from top right: Salted Caramel x2, Earl Grey and Mint Chocolate

This was my second chance to eat macarons, I never really got the cravings to go looking for it. Anyways, the first bite was weird for me; I was expecting it to be crunchy like a cookie but realized that macaroons aren’t supposed to be like cookies. I love how the taste of the salted caramel blended in my mouth; it reminded me of one of my favorite chocolates, Kirkland Macadamia Clusters Salted Caramel Milk Chocolate. I guess one of their bestseller is the salted caramel since the person before and after me ordered salted caramel as well.

Selection of desserts

The Mint chocolate and earl grey also tasted great. I’m not a fan of mint in food, but I liked how the mint blended with the chocolate flavor, although it reminded me a bit of my after dinner mints. I loved the color of earl grey (biased because it’s my favorite color) and how it did not taste strong like the earl grey tea that made me like it as well.

Lennor and I

I would definitely like to try the rest of their flavors when I get a chance to go back. They also have Pistachio, Dark Chocolate, Strawberry, Lemon, Black Sesame, Coffee, and Christmas Tea. These come in different to-go boxes that vary on the number of pieces ordered (same price of php50/pc). Also available are their assorted gift boxes which comes in box of 14 (Php850) and 21 (Php1,200). (see photos of packaging below)

Assorted flavor of Macarons

Also available in their bakery are puddings. They have 6 kinds of pudding that made it a little hard to select which one to get. They have Earl Grey Milk Tea, Muscovado Royal Pudding, Coco Sugar Pudding (diabetic friendly), Chocolate Royal Pudding, Vanilla Royal Pudding and Horlicks Malt Pudding. They also have Mango and Strawberry Panna Cotta.

Chocolate Royal Pudding and Horlicks Malt Pudding

They are all priced at Php100 that comes in a 5-inch glass bottle. It was presented very nicely. I got the Chocolate Royal Pudding that tasted great. It had the right amount of sweetness in every spoonful bite I take. My Friend, who got the better idea, asked one of the girls (which I think may be the owner), her recommendation for the best pudding to taste. Indeed, her recommendation was the best. She recommended the Horlicks Malt Pudding, which was topped with crushed chocolate sable cookie. The way to eat it was get a little cookie and mix with pudding. She quickly told us not to finish the cookie on its own and eat it with the pudding. It tasted heavenly. I would surely recommend the Horlicks to anyone who would drop by there.

Panna Cotta and Puddings

They also sell Insulated Bags (Php200) for those who want a to-go pudding. It is really best eaten cold.

Menu (some items are not found in the menu)

Assorted Gift Boxes

to-go boxes

to-go boxes

Insulated bag

their adorable plastic bag

till our next food trip =)

Chez Karine can be located at:

1/F Serendra Mall

Bonifacio Global City, Taguig

Sun-Thurs: 11am-10pm

Fri-Sat: 11am-11pm

Email: orders@chezkarine.com

Phone: +63917.323.2845, +632.804.1889

New Buffet in town!

Having early dinner gave us room to explore desserts. It has been known of our family to have sweet tooth but lately, we have been toning it down due to the excessive intake of sweets during the festive season that just ended a week ago.

My dad recalled my brother saying there's a new place in the strip of Banawe that offers a unique type of Eat-All-You-Can, its not the usual buffet that offers different viands, but rather it offers a variety of desserts, so we decided to check it out.


The place's name is "Love Desserts", I guess they coined the name based on true love for desserts. We arrived 7:30ish so there weren't much people yet, people started to come in around 9ish (yes we were there the whole time, eating haha). They offer a number of desserts all for Php199.00, from cakes to crepes, eclairs to empanadas, fresh fruits to flavored ice creams, and cappuccino to milk teas. There are really a lot to choose from that I wasn't able to take a bite from each kind, but I did like the ones I got (see pics below) except for the milk tea (I think I can make a better one :D), but most of all, I enjoyed preparing each dessert. ^_^

Oh, and BTW, they also have rice meals for those who want to eat a meal first.

Here are some pictures I got from the resto.

Drinks Station (Latte, cappuccino, ice tea and milk tea)

Crepe Station (no mango crepe :( )


Ice Cream Station (Unique: Buko Pandan and Avocado)


Halo-halo, Fruits, and Pastry Station


Cute colorful cup, plates, bowls, and utensils (for kids?)


Some of the desserts I had

My smiling cappuccino for ahia :)

Try it out at:

Love Desserts
915 Banawe St., Quezon City
Opened December 21, 2011
Operating Hours: (I forgot to ask :P)

Ecko Red Chalsie Jitterbug Sneakers

Hooray for the markdown madness sale here at The Enterprise Center who provided me with my latest buy, an Ecko Red Chalsie Jitterbug sneakers!

Ecko Red Chalsie Jitterbug (Now: P995, Before: 2,590)

I actually didn't know there was a sale held here at The Enterprise (to think it was super close to me) but thanks to my friend (shout out: Hi!!! you know who you are :P) who told me of such.

May 2, 2011 - First day of Markdown madness. We visited it at 12th floor of TEC, tower 1 during lunch time (bad timing! super crowded). Already spotted the chalsie jitterbug but I walked away.

May 4, 2011 - 3rd day of Markdown madness. I returned around 3pm hoping it to be less crowded. Plan failed! still crowded. Spotted chalsie jitterbug again and decided to try it on. Thanks to Dex for being so accommodating. I decided to reserve the pair so I have something to return to if I decide to buy.

Trying on chalsie.

May 6, 2011 - Last day of Markdown madness. I returned around 4pm not minding the crowd anymore, hopeless to expect it not to be crowded (I was right!). I didn't bother looking at other shoes (as I did the other days) and went straight to look for Dex. Opps, he was on lunch break (wow, lunch at 4pm, it must have been crazy up there) so I asked another girl to find my reserved pair. Dex showed up carrying my reserved pair of Ecko Red Chalsie Jitterbug. boy oh boy, was I glad to see him and try the shoes on once again with my socks on.

I was actually torn between 2 pairs. I saw another shoe, same design, but leather material instead of cloth (not sure about this comparison).

similar to this pair but with design the same as above picture
(Now:P1,200, Before: i didn't look :P).
the sole is pink, which is really really cute ^_^

I was thinking of getting this one since I don't have a pair of shoe like this one, but my brother liked the other one better.



So I finally fitted the sneakers. Dex was really very accommodating (or was that his job? still, Thanks Dex!).

Dex tying my shoelaces.

Here it is! cute isn't it?


I really LOVE my new shoes. I can't stop telling people about it. I even told my seatmates the purchase I made and how I just Love Love Love it!



This is why I love working in Makati, even though its traffic and a bit expensive at times, it has easy access to malls and office buildings here that have sale from time to time.

My Ecko Red Chalsie Jitterbug, at 61.58% off

Happy Easter 2011

Easter is almost here (tomorrow to be exact). which only means vacation's almost over. (*sad*)

I've talked about Easter Eggs in my previous blog, and now I'm back to talk about the Easter Egg's partner in crime

Spending this year's Holy Week was something new. Not because I don't have work this year (yes, I was in the office during Holy Week last year, though not the entire week), but rather I have something new to spend Holy Week with, my pet bunnies. and just in time to celebrate Easter Sunday.


Easter bunny has its origin in pre-Christian fertility lore. The bunnies were the most fertile animal known and they served as a symbol of the new life during the spring season. They have been around since 1500's in the writings of Germans and was said to lay colorful eggs in the nest that children made out of bonnets.


Earlier I was watching a movie fit for Easter, HOP. It was about a rabbit,EB, who couldn't wait to follow his father's footsteps and become the Easter Bunny. Twenty years and a drum set later he realizes that he doesn't want to join the family business, he rather be a musician, a drummer to be exact. With the pressure his dad is giving him, he hopped in the rabbit hole and left Easter Island to go to Hollywood. Meanwhile, an evil chick name Carlos, who is the right-hand-chick of EB's dad, is planning to take over the business no matter what it takes and takes advantage of the time where EB ran away. The story goes on and in the end, EB realizes his destiny and became the Easter Bunny.

It actually teaches its viewers one important life lesson: Responsibility. I don't want to spoil anything so just watch and tell me what you think are other lessons to be found.

BTW, are you fond of eating jelly beans? watch HOP and you might think twice before you eat one again. :)

Happy watching!

Happy Easter!

An Easter Egg you can't miss

'Holy week has officially started. Last Sunday was Palm Sunday which marks the beginning of holy week, the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. But Easter Sunday is not included in the Holy Week as Easter Sunday is the first day of the new season of The Great Fifty Days (Pentecost). Easter Sunday is the great feast day and culmination of not only Holy Week, but the whole year. The Resurrection of Jesus is celebrated on this day and is considered the most important day in church year, as it is the day on which Jesus rose from the dead.But I'm not here to talk about Easter Sunday. I'm here to talk about the Easter Egg.

Eggs are widely used as a symbol of the start of new life, just as new life emerges from an egg when the chick hatches out. This was adopted by early Christians as a symbol of the resurrection of Jesus.

The Easter custom was probably first introduced to America in the early 1800s by German immigrants, who brought their old traditions of the Oschter Haws. Oschter Haws, which are the easter bunny, would arrive on Easter morning, delighting kids by laying colored eggs in nests.

I really miss my childhood days when we were at the rooftop of our church hunting colored chicks all around. So, I've decided to do my own Easter Egg hunt this year. Law and behold, I found what I was looking for. An Easter egg surely no one would miss. It stands about 3 or 4 feet tall (based on my estimates).

Easter Egg from Makati Shangri-La

This giant egg is made purely from chocolate with 1/3 of its size from bottom up made from solid chocolate while the other 2/3 are hallow inside. The height nor the massive block of chocolate isn't as surprising as what I found out. This huge delectable piece of chocolate Easter Egg cost P19,999.00 and made available at Makati Shangri-La Hotel. Yes, this egg is indeed for sale.

So if you're looking for a unique Easter egg to find this year, maybe the hunt won't be as hard as those colorful eggs hidden behind bushes. Maybe this year, we can settle for a monochromatic Easter egg and let the satisfaction of our sweet tooth compensate for it.

Chocolate Easter Egg party anyone? Dig in!

Happy Easter!

Chocolate Soufflé Cake || CPK

As a fan of Italian food, I visited CPK yesterday for lunch. BUT! I forgot that I had a very heavy breakfast (1 whole very thin crust all meat pizza!!! about 10 or 12 inches i think. Talk about being hungry!) and I wasn't feeling as hungry as I thought. So I decided to just eat dessert instead while the others indulge in their yummy pasta.

Looking at their dessert menu, I had a hard time deciding what to choose, but I already had in mind what type it would be. I was craving for a lava cake type of dessert, this has been stuck in my cravings list for a while now and I never really decided to satisfy it, until now. yey!

I read everything in the dessert menu and still couldn't decide on what to munch on. So I was flipping through the pages back and forth until the back cover page made me stop, I starred at it for a while and then said to myself "Aha! this is it!"

Since I didn't know what dessert that was, I asked the waitress and viola! I ordered CPK's Chocolate Soufflé Cake.

A Belgian chocolate soufflé cake served warm with CPK's triple-thick hot fudge,
on vanilla bean sauce priced at P255. I got mine A la mode (P295)

It took a while for them to bring out my order, or did they just wait for all the orders to be completed before serving it to our table? hmmm I guess the 2nd choice is more appropriate. Anyways, this is what my order looks like

Enticing isn't it? It looks and is actually bigger than what I expected! Should have realized this when I read in the menu that "Our Desserts are meant for sharing".

If i had a meal together with this, I might not have finished this dessert. But then again, with its soft,moist, rich and warm chocolate together with the vanilla bean sauce topped with vanilla ice cream, you can't help but savor the taste with every bite and not notice that you finished it all up already. And as proof, tadaah! Here's another shot of my dessert, all gone! BTW, I was even trying to scoop the vanilla bean sauce that's left on the plate (see the scoop marks on the plate? haha). Kinda hard so i stopped trying =P

With the end of my CPK Chocolate Soufflé Cake experience, I went back to the office happy and satisfied that I found a cure for my lava cake type cravings. =)


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2nd Philippine International Pyromusical Competition || 03.12.2011

The pyromusical have been a most awaited event for many, especially the avid fans of fireworks and photographers who wishes to experience and capture the colorful lights of the fireworks.

Scheduled every Saturdays starting February 12, it finally ended yesterday, March 12, 2011 with a jam-packed full MOA. Even the streets are filled with viewers waiting for the strike of the final competitor, Australia, as well as the finale performance of the Philippines.

Before anything else, I'd like to congratulate China for wining the 2nd Philippine international pyromusical competition with a score of 97.3, followed by United Kingdom with a score of 96.5, and Japan with a score of 92.something (sorry, didn't quite hear this part).
(Trivia: Last Years Grand Champion was UK.)

Philippines Finale (Video Screen Shot)

Last night's finale was truly awesome. Using the musical scores of Shakira (Waka waka), Bruno Mars (just the way you are), Katy Perry (firework) and Rihanna (love the way you lie pt. 2) the audience were WOWed. With special attention to the song of Katy where the fireworks show was rightfully fitting her song.

I also feel that the song is a perfect fit especially with what is happening in our country. I hope people see this as an inspiration.

"do you know that there's still a chance for you, cause there's a spark in you, you just got to ignite the light, and let it shine..... Cause (baby) you're a firework, come and show 'em what your worth..."

I'll soon post the videos i've captured. I can't seem to transfer my videos to my computer, maybe you guys know how. please share. Thanks!

For now, I'll post a few pictures I've taken. Frustrated as i am, these are the only good shots i got. =( others were blurry or ugly in composition. hay... maybe you can help me improve? Leave a comment. =)

Enjoy!





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