Feel at Home at Mom & Tina's Bakery Cafe

It was a year and a half ago when I first got to eat at Mom & Tina's Bakery Cafe. We were newbies here at Solar Entertainment and our officemates decided to go eat at their Legaspi Village branch as a group to welcome us. We ate there again for a despedida dinner for one of us who was about leave for film school.

So I had a good idea on how good the food was here, that's why I wanted to bring my Mom there for a good dinner. After weeks and even months of planning, we finally got to go last night after Mass. Good thing they have a branch in Pasig, along C5 so we don't have to travel all the way to Makati for it.

The Pasig branch is exactly like the Makati one - HOMEY! It's really a good place for families, and since it was a Sunday night, families filled the place up. Although I have to say the wallpapers are a bit excessive, no offense!


Besides the bright and floral wallpapers, the other thing that welcomes you are these huge chillers with everything sweet, creamy, rich, and sinful.



Had had a sample of their cupcakes before, and I must say they're really super good! They're really creamy and not too sweet. Perfect for dessert with a good cup of coffee.

So here's what we ordered:

Caesar Salad - whole. We asked them to split them to two already.

What we loved with this salad is that their veggies are super fresh. The lettuce was green and crunchy. They also had very generous servings of bacon bits, croutons, and dressing. Really good way to start our meal.

For our main course, Mom ordered her favorite Callos.

Although it has to be said that OUR home-made callos is waaaaaay better than this. But suffice to say it's also waaaaaaay better than what Mom had in Dulcinea which was a total flop. In all fairness, this Callos had tender meat and good portions of twalya or tripe. It was only later that Mom noticed that it didn't have pimientos.

As for me, I've been really wanting to have this all for myself: the famed Shepherd's Pie.

The first time I tried this, I was SOLD! On top is like half an index finger full of mashed potatoes. But what's underneath that, that makes this a real winner. MEAT! Ground meat! It's just so tasty, and their sauce HEAVENLY! I especially love it when it's a bit cooler cos the mashed potatoes harden a bit and it mixes with the meat. I This was so good I had to recommend it to my good friend Mariko when they ate there. And like me, she absolutely fell in love with this.

For drinks, we had the Carousel. It's basically just an entire round of their iced teas - blue, red, green, and lemon. Mom and I only had 2 out of the 4. Their iced teas are a bit on the sweet side, it's best that you let the ice melt a little, but that's just me hehe.



We were stuffed. But more because of the iced teas. We planned on having coffee, but we just didn't have space in our tummies. But not giving in just yet, I bought a tub of Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.


Had a piece at home with coffee. You get to taste butter the moment you bite into it. Not too sweet. But I don't like the kind of raisins they used. It just gave the cookie an entirely different taste. So kinda disappointed with it.

But hey, if you want something homey to eat in, I totally recommend Mom & Tina's Bakery Cafe. Nice also to bring home cupcakes for both the kids and the adults. They still have other stuff there worth trying. But I will forever swear on the Shepherd's Pie. Consistency is key...and what's good about Mom & Tina's is that no matter what branch you eat in, the Shepherd's Pie has the same quality, taste, and everything that goes into that makes it SUPERB! MUST TRY!! :))

Mom & Tina's Bakery Cafe
106 E. Rodriguez Jr. Ave.
Brgy. Ugong, Pasig City
Tel. No. 914-0833

Bloggers United: Shopping with a Cause

High school buddy and fashion blogger, Ana Gonzales of The Fashion Commuter, asked for writers on her Facebook page to write short feature articles on their co-presenters for this their event happening really SOON! Missin' my writing days, I couldn't resist the urge to volunteer, and to help out a high school bud! :)

So now let me, in turn, help her and her friends, Melai Entuna and Aisa Ipac, promote BLOGGERS UNITED. If we foodies have our restaurants and our weekend markets like Midnight Mercato, fashionistas have Bloggers United. It's going to be a place where both ladies and gentlemen could share tips in fashion and get updated on the latest trends. It's going to be the first bloggers bazaar, so I'm sure it's going to be EXCITING!

Also, the hottest names in the fashion blogosphere would also be selling their much-loved shoes, tops, and accessories. So if you want to dress ala-Joanna Ladrido, you should not dare miss this event. I'm 100% sure their clothes are going to sell like hotcakes, so come early and get the good deals! I'm also sure you wouldn't want to miss the chance to meet your fashion idols, Camille Co, Tricia Gosingtian, and Kryz Uy.

Plus you also get to help their chosen charity, K.I.D.S. Foundation. So you don't only get to shop for yourself, you also get to help out. I suddenly remembered this quote from a girl interviewed in one of our events covered by the ETC team, "Fashion can be charitable and charity can be fashionable". We thought it funny and a bit pilit at that time, but suffice to say, that quote can sum up this interactive fashion bazaar.

So what are you waiting for? Come to Bloggers United happening on May 27, 2011 at the 32nd to 33rd floor of the Malayan Plaza Hotel in Pasig City. It's going to be a bloggers event with a whole lot of flair and a whole lot of heart! :)

For more information you may also visit these websites:
Bloggers United - Blogspot
Blogges United - Facebook page
Bloggers United - Official Website

Love-Hate Relationship with The Medical City

Last Tuesday (September 28) I get a call from my Mom telling me she wasn't able to go to her lunch meeting at the Manila Peninsula because she wasn't feeling well. Apparently her blood pressure reached 180/90, and my cousin who is a cardiologist instructed her to go to the nearest emergency room because the rise in her BP was just too sudden and besides the measurement, she was asymptomatic. Since we've already moved to the province of Rizal, the nearest hospital was the Manila East Medical Center, but since I told her I was leaving the office already I'd just bring her to The Medical City in Pasig City.

You see, I really hated The Medical City. When I was still a medical writer for a publishing company, we interviewed a lot of doctors from different fields and different hospitals. But we always had a bitch of a time at The Medical City. They're just so iffy with photographers and media people in general. I don't know what they're hiding, but they reject media people and reject them in really disrespectful manners. I won't elaborate anymore, it'll probably take up most of the blog entry, and besides it's not my story to tell. It's just really annoying that a reputable hospital such as The Medical City could have really disrespectful employees!

So there we were at the Emergency Room, Mom was immediately tended to by a nurse who checked her BP, and when they saw that it was high she was immediately wheeled to a bed.

Then came the super busy bee nurses who asked Mom about her medical history. In fairness the nurses are really efficient, they kept coming back to check on Mom every 2 minutes or so! It was also in the ER that Mom had her Electrocardiogram (ECG).

Their ER was also huge and really clean! Although I noticed that as the night wore on a lot more people started coming in! The hallway was soon filled with patients in wheelchairs, wheezing, puking, hacking, it was creepy!



Since Mom's BP was still high after taking 3 blood pressure lowering meds, I knew I had to have her confined. Since we live far off, and I wasn't sure if her condition would improve at all, I asked my cardiologist cousin if it was okay to have her confined. He said to have Mom undergo a complete blood work and 2D Echo, something I also had early this year. He referred me to his junior resident, Dr. Eric Pascual. Just a bit of an offset, this doctor is TOTALLY CUTE!! :D

Once Dr. Pascual gave us the go signal, I was off to the Admitting Department, and was amazed by their system. They give you a number, and while waiting you just have to fill up a record. Since it was late, I only waited a couple of minutes before I got entertained by this super efficient and friendly girl named Rose Ann. Sorry for the ninja pics, I was wary of TMC's policies on photo taking!



The admitting process was just really fast! And I noticed how their record keeping was high-tech with the use of bar codes and all that! Rose Ann also explained to me the house rules and even gave me a booklet on TMC's guidelines. I was thinking I'd have a bitch of a time getting Mom admitted since we weren't used to The Medical City. Ever since we've gone to the Makati Medical Center, and we always have it easy there because my Mom's cousin is head of Pathology. So getting a room and getting tended to wasn't hard! And I didn't expect getting an easy time in TMC, but boy did I have an easy time! I felt so mature and all-grown-up checking my mother in a hospital!

After almost 5 hours in the ER, we were finally taken to our room! I'd like to thank the cool nurse whose name I forgot, for being such a clown!


We were taken to Room 1423, a Standard A room. Mom's health plan allows us to stay in a Large Private Room, but when I was at Admitting, I was told that the De Luxe and Superior rooms were full.

Our room was small but cozy. It had all the essentials - private T&B, cable TV, and a small ref - but what sucked was the "bed" for the yaya. It was painfully small, even for me, although it took some getting used to.




I am totally thankful to the wonderful nurses of 14A, they really took care of Mom almost to the point of smothering her. I've never had a hospital experience where nurses kept coming in and out of our room every 5 minutes or so just to ask her how she is. It was annoying but it was completely cool! We stayed there for 2 nights, and Mom was really comfortable.

I'm still loyal to Makati Med and I have not forgotten about the disrespectful guards, but the experience in The Medical City is worth writing about. Not bad for our first time in that hospital. I'm 100% sure Mom and I will be back there. :p

The Medical City
Ortigas Avenue, Pasig City
Tel Nos. 635-6789; 631-8626