Merci Assorted European Chocolate

Who doesn't love chocolates, really? Maybe there are some who are not fond of it, but they still like it, don't they? Oh well, as for me, I love chocolates! :D

And thanks to the boyfriend for giving me this Merci. I'm so loving it. LOL. But segue first, I'm not really fond of Ferrero Rocher, is it just me or what? LOL. I prefer Samba over that, maybe because I don't really like nuts and such on my chocolate. But I still eat them, you see. :D Hehehe.

First things first, I love the packaging of Merci, it's simple yet elegant, dontcha think?

Moving on, Merci is a European chocolate manufactured by Storck in Germany. A box contains an assortment of 7 luscious chocolate flavors namely: Milk Chocolate, Praline Cream, Dark Mousse, Dark Creme, Hazelnut-Almond, Hazelnut Cream, and Coffee and Cream.

Merci (400g)

It simply has got any chocolate flavor you want! And that's what I like about it. If you want a bitter chocolate, you can always go for Dark Creme and Dark Mousse. On the other hand, if you want something really sweet, there is Milk Chocolate and Praline Creme. If you want nuts on your chocolate, then so be it, get the Hazelnut Almond or Hazelnut Cream. You can also have a taste of coffee with Coffee and Cream. You see, you have a choice with Merci. :D

Another thing, what I like about this is the size of the chocolates. They're bite-size. I feel that I'm not compelled to eat out the whole thing. LOL. I can always finish one and come back later and see the packaging still looking good. Heehee.

I'm not sure where this chocolate was bought from, but I searched the net, and they can be bought through Amazon and Walgreens. This 400-gram Merci containing 32 assorted chocolates costs, according to Amazon, around $25.

Banapple Pies and Cheesecakes

Finally, I've been able to visit Banapple! It's really a good thing that they've opened up a branch in Greenhills.

And actually, before a week during this particular visit, the boyfriend and I were supposed to eat there too, but unfortunately we couldn't find it. We thought it was somewhere in and around the mall. We didn't know it was in Northeast Square along Connecticut St.

Anyway, this time, we came with our friends. :)

Moving on with food, I had Crisp Pork Scallopini with Sour Cream Barbecue Sauce. What I was really shocked about were the huge servings. Yes! They really had huge servings, but it was not a big problem for me since I was a big eater. LOL. I even ordered an extra serving of rice, which in the end, I gave half (or was it more than half) to boyfie. Heehee. Talk about not having breakfast and lunch and it was already past 4PM.

Crisp Pork Scallopini with Sour Cream Barbecue Sauce (P180)

Though they had huge servings, you could still be assured that you would have good food. The pork scallopini were indeed crisp and tender and the sour cream barbecue sauce was mildly sour as it should be. But according to my taste buds, the overall taste was salty. It was not bad salty. Just the right one, I think.

On the other hand, the boyfriend ordered Hickory Smoked Barbecued Country Ribs as suggested by his brother John. The latter told us that it was the specialty of Banapple. I believed him because he was always eating at Banapple with his girlfriend and other friends.

Hickory Smoked Barbecued Country Ribs

I find the dish really great! The ribs are very tender and tastes really nice with the right amount of barbecue sauce. Yeah, the right amount of barbecue sauce because the boyfriend kept complaining about how sweet the dish was. He even told us that he didn't want any desserts because what he was eating was really sweet.

Strawberry Crunch Cheesecake (P100 per slice)

As for me, I'm not really a fan of overly sweet dishes. I always reserve that taste for desserts. And speaking of desserts, after finishing a very hearty meal, I still managed to eat a slice of Strawberry Crunch Cheesecake. And oooh, wasn't it awesome! It has that battling taste of sweetness and saltiness as with cheesecakes. Plus, with the strawberry on top, you could also taste more sourness in it. And oh, did I mention that it was really creamy?

But, the boyfriend was true to his word and didn't order any dessert. KJ noh? It was Banapple's specialty pa naman.

I wasn't really quite knowledgeable about our friends' orders. But I think John ordered the same dish as with the boyfriend and David went for hungarian sausages, not sure though. They got the Blueberry Cheesecake, while David's friend had Banana Starry-Berry Custard Cheesecake.

Verdict:

If you're really hungry and want value for money, go for Banapple. It serves yummy dishes in huge servings. But more importantly, if you want to have a fix for your sweet tooth cravings, you have to taste their cheesecakes! Plus, the atmosphere in the restaurant is really friendly. It's a good hang-out place with friends. :)

For their branches, menu and price lists, please visit www.banapplekitchen.com.

Chocolat Deep Dark Chocolate Cakes

Hi all, it has been a while since I've gone missing in action. I was busy with the Feasib and Thesis. Anyway, here's a quick post (quick coz it's from my other blog). I'm still working on my new colored hair post. Hehe.

So, here it goes. :D

Although we were celebrating our second year that day, it was still a humble and ordinary day.

I went to school to take up summer classes. After that, I met up with the boyfriend, ate at the carinderia near our school like we always do. What made it rather 'un'-ordinary were the cakes.

Yes, the cakes! We agreed to eat at Chocolat. I was actually waiting for ages to try it out. And finally, the day came. Haha.

Chocolat has four branches--SM MoA, Xavierville Ave. QC, Sgt. Esguerra Ave. QC, and San Juan.

Since San Juan was near our school, we went there. Chocolat San Juan was just in Additionhills.

Chocolat, San Juan Branch

I went for their specialty cake--Death by Tablea. It was really nice--fluffy, tasty and moist. It was everything that you would like in a chocolate cake. But be ready, it was too sweet unlike some cakes. And guess what? It only cost Php80 per slice. It was cheaper by around Php20-100 compared to other desserts from restaurants.

What I notice was that the presentation was rather simple. But who cares anyway, it' was delicious and your sweet tooth cravings would be satisfied.

Death by Tablea, P80 per slice

The boyfriend ate the Chocolate Hazelnut. He also ordered Frozen Hot Choco which was surprisingly nice. I didn't go for this FHC because I thought that the cake was already sweet. And so I settled for a bottle of water.

Everything has met my expectations and probably even surpassed it. What's more, the Chocolate Hazelnut cake only costs Php75 per slice and his Frozen Hot Choco costs Php115. Yeah, I know. It's more expensive than the cake. Haha.

Choco Hazelnut (P75 per slice), Frozen Hot Choco (P115)

I'll be going back to Chocolat to try other cakes. I heard that Deep Dark Classic was also a must-try!


P.S. I know there are no watermarks on these pictures, but please, don't steal them. Ask for permission first! :D

Ms. Polly's Specialty Cakes and Desserts

I read about several positive reviews for the cakes at Ms. Polly's (it has been awarded as one out of the twenty-four best desserts by Philippine Daily Inquirer anyway), so when Groupon Philippines featured this specialty cakes and desserts restaurant, I just have to grab one and try it out--for less! :)

And one day in May or early June, I had my chance to convince the boyfriend to go there after a not-so-homey meal at Good Earth Tea Room in Greenbelt 3 (I'll review this later, when I have the time, I guess!).

But no, we didn't go to Ms. Polly's in Greenbelt because there was no Ms. Polly's there. From Greenbelt, we went to Robinson's Galleria where the flagship store was located.

The deal from Groupon was for one slice of cake with a large drink. I chose the Cookie Dough Cheesecake and an Iced Latte.

Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Oh, isn't the cake an eyecandy? And it doesn't just stop there. I can say that the taste is not-your-average-type-of-cake.

It's sweet, but not too sweet as with the case that all you can taste is sugar. I'm a fan of sweets, but I don't like overly sweet stuff. Hehe. :) In addition, the cake is really moist. And that's what I like best. I really don't like cakes that are dry (you'll surely know one when it's dry) like the Oreo Cheesecake from Seattle's Best Coffee. LOL.

As for the Iced Latte, I actually forgot what flavor I ordered. They have plain Iced Latte if I remember correctly and other variations. But anyway, it still tastes like coffee. And I'm not a coffee fan. :D

The Boyfriend (with his statement shirt. LOL)

I actually have more food reviews to make, but it seems like I have no time to spare (or probably I'm just lazy) with the feasibility, case study and all. Whew. So, till next time. :)

P.S. The boyfriend brought his camera that day, so yey! for pictures. Hehe :D