Tikim70: Morihachi Yakiniku (Causeway Bay, Hong Kong)

I love everything about yakiniku! In fact, I always order Yakiniku beef sets at Japanese restaurants so when my friend from Hong Kong brought me to Morihachi Yakiniku place as a welcome dinner; I was delighted! I had an early dinner with my mom and this was my 2nd dinner. I actually planned on eating little but ended up a lot more than I planned because it was that good!  In all fairness, nothing in Manila tasted the same with Morihachi Yakiniku.

A hidden gem, Morihachi Yakiniku! 

The ambiance also is really nice. Very earthy with lots of wooden interiors to set a zen mood. Oh insider tip: when you eat before 6:30 and after 9:30 you get 20% tota food discount! But if you are eating dinner at the usual time, better make reservations!

Earthy Ambiance

Wood and Simple

Excited to show you what we ordered:

This is the house specialty, Wagyu beef that's so marble-y and tasty! The restaurant didnt put any marinate aside from salt and it's just heaven to taste! If you want to add more flavor, you just dip it with the sauces provided (I like to middle one!); any of the sauce provided does enhance flavor, the mildest flavor is the rocksalt water dip while the strongest one is the barbecue sauce on the left.

Blackmore Premium Australian Wagyu beef selection HKD188.00

Amin, cooked for the girls!

Bbq sauce, Lemon Sauce, and Rocksalt Water Dip

Also ordered other meat like pork and chicken! The marinates are really different. The fresh taste of the marinate gives a contrast with the heavy taste of barbecue.

Pork belly In salty lime sauce HKD63.00

The chicken with fresh basil sauce is my next favorite to the Blackmore Wagyu beef because again, marinate was so unique! ended up eating half of this and dipped it in the lime sauce in the middle.

Chicken with Fresh Italian basil sauce HKD59.00

For rice, my friend Rain, ordered Wagyu fried rice because it reminds me of the fried rice I ordered for her when she visited me back in March 2012.

Premium Wagyu fried rice HKD73.00

For our drinks, me and Rain ordered healthy Valois plus drinks. I am not sure what this is but it tasted like juice + soda water.

Peach Plus HKD35.00

Kyoto Grape Plus HKD35.00

I forgot to take down the name of this drink but it's a cocktail, and I remember a hint of alcohol taste in it (soju).

Cocktail

 Happy friends!

I am really thankful for this welcome dinner, the food isn't cheap but it surely is special and again, unique and yummy! I super love it! A first time for me to give a perfect grade for a foreign restaurant outside Philippines!

Taste: 5/5

Quality: 5/5

Ambiance: 5/5

Morihachi Yakiniku

Address: 3/F Ying Kong Mansion, 2-6 Yee Wo Street, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Contact: 852-31060183

Tikim69: Watami is here in Manila!!! (Mall of Asia, Pasay)

I got an email from the Bistro Group Card that they're opening a new restaurant called "Watami" in Mall of Asia and the next day I immediately went to MOA to try Watami Philippines! :D I got super excited because I am a fan of Watami Hong Kong and it was my first article  here in Mytastybuds!

First branch of Watami Philippines

Watami is a Japanese casual restaurant that feels like an upgraded fast-food. From how I see it, they have a distinct interior that feels expensive and cozy at the same time. Their dark red/wooden modern oriental looks actually reminds me of how Watami Hong Kong looks like.

Watami Bar

I love their couches

Watami

With no further adue, this is what I ordered during my first visit in Watami Philippines.

Pepper beef rice in stone pot P190.00

I ordered their pepper beef rice when I was in Hong Kong, so I got curious if they have the same serving size and quality. The stone pot rice actually reminds me of Pepper Rice but without the sauce.

Self grilled short ribs P295.00

Self grilled short ribs P295.00

Obviously I am a meat eater, I then ordered short ribs just because there's the fancy of cooking your own food on your table! You'll definitely eat it while it's hot!

Tonpeiyaki (pork cheese cabbage and egg) P275.00

I don't remember much about this but it's not on my top list in Watami.

Pizza topped Wyre teriyaki chicken P275.00

Their pizza was unique; it has a crust much like of Pita bread. I like the sauce and the mayo combination but I find the chicken serving to be too little.

Mango yakult P150.00 Kiwi Tea with Agar P145.00

When I was in HK, I also ordered their Yakult drink. I love their Yakult drinks but Evan's order of Kiwi Tea with Agar was better because it has a refreshing taste with Nata Jelly on it!

Watami is one of my favorite casual dining places in HK. They have new menu from time to time and I do hope Watami Philippines will come up with new dishes from time to time just like in Hong Kong. I also hope they offer some cheese dishes that Watami Hong Kong have so that their restaurant would be more differentiated amongst Japanese restaurants in the Metro. One thing is for sure, I'll order their Shorts Ribs and Kiwi Tea with Agar on my next visit!

Quality: 4/5

Taste: 4/5

Ambiance:5/5

Watami Philippines
Address: 2nd Level, SM Mall of Asia (Entertainment Mall), 
               Pacific and Ocean Drive, Mall of Asia Complex,
               Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines
Contact: 836-7141

Tikim 64:Back to back with Toribox and Eat My GF (Little Baguio, San Juan)

I feel like celebrating today because my internship hours is finished and I can finally process my diploma! For this occasion, I ate 2 things that I really like: Katsu and Potatoes! If you know where Serenitea in Greenhills area is, you'll notice that the street has been offering more hole-in-the-wall choices than before! One of the newest addition is Toribox Cafe!

Toribox Cafe

Toribox cafe has really nice interiors and it gives some sort of Japanese vibe with its comfortable seating and wall decors. This is actually a good date place because its quaint and "hidden"! You'll have a chance to have a great talk over katsu and coffee!

Comfortable seating

Wall furnishing

They have a nice menu where it has pictures for easier ordering! I immediately ordered their frozen ice-tea 'coz I was so thirsty when I got there. Oh! I can't help but feature their condiments organizer...I really like the garden feel of it! I hope they put on a katsu sauce bottle in there and Japanese chili powder so it would complete the idea of a Japanese Katsu cafe.

Their menu

Frozen brewed Iced tea P65.00

Toribox's condiment organizer

For the main course, I ended up ordering a cheese chicken katsu! Katsu sauce is served on the side and I suggest you try eating it with the sauce! The dish is okay, just need more cheese to it or even better have some actual cheese sauce because this is just a fried chicken fillet with Quickmelt on top of it.

Cheese chicken Katsu P195.00

Up close

My date, Evan, got a Mapo Katsu! It has spicy tofu (tokwa) with minced pork. Reminds me of curry! Evan, a tofu lover noticed that their tofu isn't soft like the white ones in Miso soups. I suggest they use the Japanese tofu not tokwa to again be authentic in their Japanese cuisine.

Mapo Katsu chicken P195.00

After dinner, I was craving for some french fries and what a great way to end the night than eat garlic fries! hahaha Just need to eat a strong mint to remove garlic breath! (LoL). Walk a few steps from Toribox, and you'll see Eat my GF!

Eat my GF!

The theme inside the restaurant is very sporty with orange dominating the furniture color. I think it'll be a nice hang-out place for guys!

Baseball sporty feel

Choose from their burgers to hotdogs to their various take on garlic fries! I always order a large virgin chips for P195.00 when I pass by the area, unfortunately I was very excited to eat the chips that I forgot to take a picture! Well, it's for you to find out!

Menu

The celebration night was a success! I get happy when I eat my favorites :) If you are a kastu fan, head over to Toribox! You'll be carried away with their nice ambiance that's friendly to the wallet; a suggested date place for me!  And for french fries lovers, I am happy to give a shout out to Eat my GF!

Toribox
Quality: 3.5/5
Taste: 3.5/5
Ambiance: 5/5

Eat my GF

Quality: 3.5/5
Taste: 3.5/5
Ambiance: 3.5/5

Tori box  and Eat my GF

403 F.Calderob St; Corner J.Abad St; little Baguio San Juan

Tikim 59:Spaghetti + Chopsticks in Yomenya Goemon

I am a big fan of Japanese food and for some reason Japanese style pasta are always delicious. It must be their spaghetti sauce --- not too sweet and strong tasting! Check out this new Jap Pasta restaurant, Yomenya Goemon, and you'll eat spaghetti with chopsticks!

Yomenya Goemon

When I arrived at Yomenya Goemon, it was full so I had to wait about 20 minutes before I got seated. As I waited, I started to pick out what to order. Their menu was very helpful because you get to see a pictures of their offerings so it made life easier in choosing what's for dinner. They have 2 main categories for their food, it's pizza and pasta and since I want to try both, I ended up ordering a dish from each category.

I ordered one of the legend favorite/house specialty, Carbonara meat sauce with onsen egg, which comes with a teacup of wafu soup. The serving is good for one person only. I wish they had a sharing size for couples and families. Taste wise, the sauce was subtle and nice, the mushrooms added texture, and the noodles was smooth and tasty! I just wish it had more ham/meat in it.

Carbonara meat sauce with onsen egg (beef&pork) P325.00

Up close, spaghetti sauce looks awesome

Literally, a teacup of wafu soup

The restaurant has around 8 pizza flavors, I ended up ordering their smoked chicken with 4 cheese because it is also a legend favorite and if you know me well, I'd choose chicken over red meat/seafood. Their 10" pizza dough was soft and baked fresh, it was served hot and you will end up eating all parts of the pizza (even the crust!) because the dough is soft and hot!

Smoked chicken with four cheeses P350.00

For drinks, I got curious with how their milk tea tasted, 2 comments: it was bland and the glass is so small for its worth. Next time, I'll just buy from Serenitea/Gongcha/Happy Lemon instead.

Iced Royal Milk Tea P80.00

Great pasta and pizza but I find serving small, you might want to order double if you are really hungry!

Taste: 3.5/5
Quality: 4/5
Ambiance: 3.5/5

Yomenya Goemon
Address: 2nd floor, Greenbelt 3, 1228, Makati City
Contact: +632-7290586
Website: https://www.facebook.com/YomenyaGoemonPhilippines

Tikim 54: Choose Healthy at Agico Vegetarian Cafe (Araullo Street, San Juan)

Not a big fan of vegetables? Are you the type of person who removes your peas in your fried rice and pizza? Do you associate greens with a negative taste? Fear those things NOT! Not all heathy things tastes as bad as you think they are! Head for Agico and discover why!

Agico Vegetarian Cafe

You see, my meals consists of about 60% meat/seafood and 40% vegetables. I like the taste of chicken, steak, and shrimp and when I saw a friend's photo of a veggy sushi from Agico, I got surprised that it isn't green and really looks like your normal sushi! At that point, I told myself that I want to try out this newly opened vegetarian cafe.

Cute wall murals will lighten up the mood if you are anxious about eating vegetables! 

Because of this curiosity, me and my friends decided to give Agico a visit during it's soft opening. We met Andrew Co, one of the owners of Agico, and I got to ask questions about this veggy cuisine and his recommendations for a frist time all-veggy meal! Ü

Andrew Co at the leftmost

Choose from their vast menu of a Japanese themed Veggy Cafe. They have sushi, yakitori's, ricebowls, ramen, and guilt-meat-free BURGERS! If you are a practicing vegetarian, this is your chance to eat on some "burgers".  Andrew's mom is the head chef and she invited these recipes!

Food menu

A cafe isn't complete with unique drink concoctions

For starters, the group ordered some sushi! We ordered a lot since this really intrigued everyone!

Kani Kama (2pcs) P126.00

Ebi sushi (2pcs) P98.00

This Aburi Salmon sushi is one of the cafe's specialty sushi. It's torched on your table and best eaten when hot!

Aburi salmon sushi (2pcs) P126.00

Butayaki Maki (6 pcs) P248.00

Mix mushroom sushi (3pcs) P156.00

For the group's main meal, these are what we ordered. You'll see later that we ordered from different sections of Agico's menu to showcase a piece from each section.

Hanna went for a plateful of Yakiudon. Even the yakiudon has "fake meat" in it so you wont miss meat  much! You can add some Japanese chili flakes/chili oil to add up some heat if you like it spicy!

Yakiudon P248.00

Lance went for the barbeque sticks!

Pork BBQ (3 sticks) P128.00

These is my favorite! A must try!!!

Enoki bacon (3 sticks) P188.00

Evan went for the ramen. It's spicy hot and I love it! The kaarage reminds of chicken nuggets. They might need to have spice-levels cause some might want their ramen mild, spicy, or hot!

Spicy karaage ramen P258.00

I ordered beef yakiniku since this is my usual order in Japanese restaurants. I got curious how it will look like and how it will taste like.

Beef yakiniku Rice bowl P268.00

A cafe isn't complete without a bar of hot and cold drinks. The boys ordered some flavored latte's!

Raspbery & Hazelnut Flavored Latte P120.00 each

Do check this cafe out for an experience! Add some vegetables in your diet and discover the world of meat-looking veggies! 

Taste: 4/5

Quality: 4/5

Ambiance: 4/5

Agico Vegatarian Cafe
Address: #83 Araullo Street, San Juan
Contact Number: 7051997
Website: https://www.facebook.com/AgicoVegetarianCafe