If you fell in love with the old ‘Smokin’ Hot BarBQ‘ restaurant in Greenbelt 3, then you would too with the new ‘Siklab‘. Bistro Group led ‘Siklab‘ Pinoy Favorites basically just had a name change to better reflect the Filipino cuisine they serve. The menu and location of the new restaurant remains the same.

Basil Lemondae

Upon Siklab’s invitation, we got to try some Filipino favorites off their menu last week, including familiar desserts with a twist. 😛

Starters

For starters, we had the Crispy Bacon Belly (P255) and the Kuhol sa Gata (P225). The former is a sumptuous set of bacon-cut pork belly fried to a crisp with atsara on the side. Although it’s a bit pricey, it was a sumptuous crispy treat true to its name.

The latter was even better with golden snails simmered in coconut milk with green curry, chopped chillies, and lemongrass.

Crispy Bacon Belly (P255)

Kuhol sa Gata (P225)

Main Dishes

With starters setting the bar high, the main menu was at par.

Surprisingly, one of my favorites that night was the usual 2pc. BarBQ Chicken (P235) leg and thigh parts which were 6-hours marinated in their BarBQ sauce fhouse blend producing a sweet-tangy taste. Other sets of 4pcs costs P 455 ; 6pcs – P680; 8pcs – P895.

Another top favorite that night was the Pork BarBQ skeweres (top photo). These are pork bbq skewers marinated in their house BarBBQ sauce and grilled (about P120+ per skewer).

This was followed by the Binagoongang Liempo (P325) which was a chunkier version of the Crispy Bacon Belly above. The Binagoongang Liempo (crispy pork belly) rests on a bed of eggplant sauteed in homemade shrimp paste.

2pc. BarBQ Chicken (P235)

Binagoongang Liempo (P325)

Although I’m cutting down on rice-intake recently, who can resist the Sisig Rice (P245) which came albeit belatedly. It’s a  stir-fry of pork sisig and rice topped with scrambled egg and pork cracklings.

For the veggie-lovers, the Pinakbet (P175) is a must try combining squash, eggplant, string beans, and bittermelon sauteed in shrimp paste with some  pork skin crackling.

Pinakbet (P175)

Veggie Fruit Blast (P110)

Siklab Beverage

It’s worth noting how much I loved the Veggie Fruit Blast (P110) beverage I had. It’s a combination of celery, watermelon, apple, and orange. Classified under the ‘healthy drinks‘ category in the menu, this comes highly recommended by NomNom.

The Cucumber Breeze is also good which is a combination of  pineapple, cucumber and orange. The Basil Lemonade was ordinary though.

Filipino Desserts

Filipinos are known for their delightfully sweet desserts, almost deadly for the diabetic actually. Anyhow, we had the Biko and Turon 2.0; no it’s not Android’s latest OS.

The ‘Biko‘ (P155) is a chunk of visually appealing sticky rice served with chocolate soil and white latik on the side. it is meant to be poured on top and spread.

Biko (P155)

Turon 2.0 (P 235)

The Turon 2.0 looks like pinoy sorbetes on cone. Actually, underneath the ube ice cream is a surprise of Filipino flavors from the combination of banana, langka, and macapuno held together by caramelized cones. A serving consists of 5 cones. It’s a bit expensive at P 235 but worth a try before it becomes Turon 3.0 in the next incarnation.

I’ll surely be back in Siklab wanting to try more Filipino dishes such as Aligue Rice tossed with crab fat, Ginataang Kalabasa at Sitaw, Pinaputok na Tilapia, Pork Belly Adobo, Stuffed Laing with taro leaves stuffed with ground pork and dried alamang. For dessert, the Buco Lychee Sherbet shall not escape.

It was a great Filipino dinner at Siklab in Greenbelt. If you’re craving for some Filipino dishes in Makati, Siklab Pinoy Favorties will not disappoint you.

J.CO Philippines Twitter

If you frequent Greenbelt in Makati, specially the one near the the Cinemas in Greenbelt 3, then you surely have seen the markers “J.CO Greenbelt Opening Soon!” It came true yesterday as J.Co Donuts and Coffee Philippines–Greenbelt  opened with more than 500 free donuts for its customers ‘shared the JCO way.’

J.Co Greenbelt Grand Opening

The grand opening started with a blessing of the branch followed by the traditional throwing of coins. Four members of the improv group ‘SPIT‘ (Silly People’s Improv Theater) were also there to jumpstart the crowd. Celebrities Karylle and Anton Del Rosario of the Azkals were some of the celebrities who dropped by to get some J.Co dounts and coffee.

Celebrities Karylle and Anton Del Rosario of Azkals Dropped by J.CO

Did you know that Karylle’s favorite is the J.Co Green Tease?

Karyll’s Favorite J.Co Donut is the Green Tease

Located just beside Figaro Greenbelt, enroute the entrance of Greenbelt 3 Cinemas, the 3rd branch of J.Co Donuts and Coffee in the Philippines is now giving you another foodie option to take with in the cinemas or simply something to munch on while hanging-out with your friends in the posh gimmick spot.

J.CO Orange Yogurt Frappe

They are specifically located at

J.Co Donuts and Coffee
3/F Greenbelt 3, Makati City

J.Coffee

When you do visit, NomNom recommends his favorite J.Coffee Cappuccino Avocado at Php 120/135 (12oz/16oz). I tried their new citrus-y Orange Yogurt Frappe and Mix Berries Frappe (Php 130/150 [12oz/16oz]) yesterday and it was a refreshing treat. I recommend you get the Mix Berries Frappe.

J.CO Mix Berries Frappe (foreground) Orange Yogurt (background), Tiramisu (donut)

J.Cool

You may also try their J.Cool fat-free frozen yogurt. I got the ‘single’ serve (Php 95) but the best worth-for-money to order is either the ‘couple‘ (Php 140) or the ‘sharing‘ (Php 190) which comes with 3 and 4 toppings, respectively.  I’m not much into the J.Cool Twist, however.

J.Cool Yogurt

J.Co Donuts Recommendations

For the filling doughnuts, get J.Co Philippines‘ signature J.Club Cheezy Rich at Php 45/piece. Pair it up with coffee of the day for Php 110, a cappuccion for Php 135, or an iced chocolate for Php 140.

And of course my favorites almond-topped ‘Alcapone‘ and Avocado Dicaprio (pair this with my favorite J.Coffee Favorite Cappuccino Avocado) should be in your list too.

J.CO Alcapone (left); Tiramisu Donut (right)

J.Co Greenbelt 3

But since yesterday, I got 2 new variants which I just added in my list of favorites- the Tiramisu and Choconuttzy. The latter is ultra yummy!

J.CO Choconuttzy

More J.CO Donuts

J.CO is a popular lifestyle café chain in Indonesia and some parts of Southeast Asia. It first opened in Jakarta, Indonesia in 2005 with the thrust to fuse the popular donuts of the West with … touches of the East. Other countries in the Asian region soon got into the J.CO craze, including Malaysia, Singapore and, more recently, Shanghai in China.

JCO Donuts & SPIT

J.CO Greenbelt 3 Grand Opening

J.CO Donuts & Coffee

For J.Co Donuts Philippines, they also have branches in SM Megamall and SM Mall of Asia. See you more often at J.Co Donuts Greenbelt! 🙂

Ok, actually, it was an afternoon snack with some friends. But I really do hope it was breakfast then at Kopi Roti because French toasts are so my morning favorite. 🙂

Kopi Bun with Kaya Spread Filling

At the Greenbelt 3 branch, we tried their Hainanese style ‘Kopi‘ (coffee) with sweet milk at P50 and signature Kopi Bun (P40) which is a soft bread with coffee flavored crust and sweet buttery filling.

Kaya Toast

We also had 2 “Roti” French toast (P55), “Roti” Kaya toast (P45), some Kaya puffs, soft boiled eggs (P30), and a Milo Dinosaur beverage. The first two were served with the ‘secret‘ Kaya spread and butter while the third is filled with the former.

For that day however, my kaya toast was so ordinary, and I don’t know why; so I’m raving only about the roti French toasts and my Milo Dinosaur.

As long as it’s slightly toasted and fresh hot, my French toasts never fail me. It’s one of those soft-and-chewy inside but slightly-toasty on the outside comfort food. Just remember to consume them immediately upon serving so it’s still fresh hot.

Kopi Roti French Toast with Kaya spread and butter

Milo Dinosaur

The Milo Dinosaur is a cold concoction with the Milo branded chocolate malt powdered drink. If you love Milo from your childhood years, you’ll be getting flashbacks with its large serving. 🙂

Soft Boiled Eggs

From the menu board, I recommend Set A which is composed of 2 “Roti” French toast (for your egg and carbohydrates), soft boiled eggs (for your protein needs), and Kopi for your caffeine kick (almost perfect if it could be changed to a Milo Dinosaur). It’s a complete breakfast at P125 which saves you P10 from ordering them separately.

Kaya Puffs with Special Kaya Spread Filling

Non-incidentally, today is also Kopi Roti’s 5th year anniversary in the Philippines! Being a Singaporean franchise, the raw ingredients supplying their 18 branches here are sourced directly from Singapore.

In light of this, avail of their special treat from Aug 4-8, 2010 : Kopi Roti offers you the “5 + 1 anniversary promo“. …Buy 5 Kopi Roti products, Get 1, free.*

Congratulations Kopi Roti! More Kopi Buns and French toasts for breakfast! Woot! 🙂