Grabbed some ensaymadas to-go from this famous spot. Got both a cheddar and a quezo de bola. Both…read morewere super delicious - cheesy and sweet, with the pastry itself being very light and fluffy. I preferred the quezo de bola more than the cheddar but both were delicious. Would def come back!

i swear hizon's mocha cake is basically a manila time machine. my lola used to bring one to…read morebirthdays and the rule was always "don't smash the box on the jeep ride home" . it's that super light chiffon + buttercream combo that doesn't feel heavy even after a big meal. also the ensaymada + hot tsokolate there on a rainy afternoon? undefeated. legit old-school manila vibes.

Chocolate Crinkles. Brownies. Devil's Cake with succulent marshmallow frosting. These are enough to…read moretransform me into a melted puddle of drool. I grew up a few kms from this Becky's, and went to high school nearby. We sometimes would beg and plead with our bus driver (who shuttled kids to and from school like a regular dude) to stop by here before our trip home so we can buy some snacks. I'd like to think he did at one point but I don't think he ever did. haha. We did come by with my folks and ended up with some of their goodies. My mom likes anything with nuts (walnuts, pecans) , and naturally, I hated them. But anything Becky's Kitchen makes is rather sumptuous and I, uhh, pretty much devoured them all. I haven't been back to this location since coming back to the country, but I went to the Pasig one. I also have a birthday coming up, and I'm seriously thinking of a food trip pilgrimage which includes going to this bakery. See you soon Beckys!

Becky's at P.Ocampo Manila has always been my top go to place for delish and affordable grab and go…read morecakes (and pastries) . This is a piece of heaven for a sweet monster like me. If you live or study within the area, you know where I am coming from. I mean how would anyone miss this unassuming happy place, there's no ads just word of mouth from their tons of clients in all walks of life. They are known for their brownies, Swiss Chocolate cake, chocolate mousse and cheese roll but for me by far they have the best Prune and chocolate cup cake ( I am not a fan of prunes but their cupcake is so awesome), Coffee cake ( which I always order) -- not too sweet, chocolate crinkles which we can devour in 1 sitting (100 pcs of them for a group of 10) and most recently their Brazo de Mercedes aka Victoria Secret. Be prepare to queue and it gets super long on a holiday but this shop does not fall short on your cake expectations ( it has been consistent over the years) Everytime I visit Philippines, I make sure to drop by Becky's because of so much joy (and happy tummy plus sugar rush) it gives me.

When you feel like a sweet tooth is coming, what do you do? To be honest, this is what I usually…read moredo: 1. Walk over to my kitchen 2. Open the fridge 3. Get Hershey's Chocolate Syrup 4. Get a spoon 5. Go back to the fridge and close it (because mom would flip out) 6. Pour Hershey's syrup into spoon 7. Lick the spoon clean 8. Repeat 6 and 7 9. Get fat 10. Hate myself Yep, that's me. But when I do want to splurge a little, milkshake is my number one choice. That's why I was so excited when I found out that Starr's opened up a branch in Taft Avenue! The Sherwood branch of this famous milkshake place is admittedly very tiny and reminds me a lot of Army Navy (I think these guys have the same interior designer). The milkshakes, you ask? They are still the creamiest, thickest, and most flavorful! A little heads up if you're not from Taft: Sherwood Place is a party haven so might be good to schedule your milkshake run before it gets dark

My friend kept telling us that we have to try this Korean shaved ice, I'd never had it before and…read moreit wasn't on my list of must tries but finally we went along and I'm glad we did, first of all the regular size could be shared with multiple people so I would say try that size first and see what you think, we were a group of 4 adults and a child and we split 4 of them, it's a small store but there was enough space since it wasn't crowded at the time, the prices are inexpensive but that's in my opinion with my USD, the flavors we tried were mango, choc/matcha, Ube and strawberry, I can't compare to other shaved ice since it was the first time I had it but I enjoyed it, the fruits were fresh and flavors good, it's something I would go back and try again especially because it's not really dairy based besides the ice cream on some of them, I'm here for another week and I'm sure I'll have it again before leaving

Ambiance - very classy decor, beautiful cafe. Service - very…read moreattentive, excellent Food - we only ordered their hot chocolate and napoleon. My hot chocolate was rich and silky. I loved that it was not too sweet. Same with the napoleon - not too sweet but good.

2nd Ladurée to visit! First NYC, now Philippines! I should go visit LA's location. Absolutely…read moregorgeous inside. I was thrilled to even find this place! It's inside a tall building housing Balenciaga, two other couture retailers, a small art gallery, and event space with escalators ... anywho, when inside Rockwell's Uptown Mall, go left toward Zara on the first floor and exit the mall. Walk across the street into an expensive looking tall building and ask the guard for directions. It's a bit confusing but plan ahead while in AC. I was skipping like a kid in front of a candy store. I suppose the pastel macaron shells will have to do. Of course we took photos in front of the glass entrance. The employees probably had a good laugh at us tourists. This is the most posh Ladurée location I've ever been to, high decorated ceiling with macarons all around, shades of pink, blue, lavender, and yellow permeating the space. They even sell perfume, or at least the bottles here! Filipinos definitely love to smell good, I noticed perfume at H&M as well. I was thinking to get a 3 macaron stack keychain but figured I'd get one in Paris one day. They go for about ~$35 but the rhinestone studded Eiffel Tower one I had my eye on was $100! Eh, that's ok. I'll stick to the baked goods. My mom & sis were skeptical prior to visiting, wondering if they'd be as good as NYC's. I had my doubts, but one bite into that chocolate Earl Grey and I knew it was exactly the same. Delicate shell making way for a chewy ganache center. Ahhh perfection in a tiny bite. TBH who couldn't gobble these up in 2-3 bites? At PHP 150 ($3) a piece, or $4 if it's in a fancy box, we've got to savor the moment and take at least 4 bites. 12 flavors available each day. I planned to buy a 6 piece Arabesque box ($24, cute oblong box with gold leaf design, almost looks like an eyeglass case) but got the 8 piece ornament box instead. My sis & cousin got the Arabesque. I was able to try pistachio, brown cheese, chocolate Earl Grey, vanilla, coffee, raspberry rice pudding, chocolate, and salted caramel. Brown cheese was definitely a stand out. I couldn't really place the raspberry rice pudding, just happy it was ganache and not jelly. Coffee wasn't as strong as I remember. Employees were nice, polite, and bagged up our purchases separately in those cute green paper bags. They'll also accommodate requests for wax paper bagged individual macarons. Boxes themselves cost ~$4-6. Would I come back? It's Ladurée! Can't wait to visit more locations.

I always get very excited whenever a new coffee shop opens in Maginhawa. My neighborhood has plenty…read moreof good restaurants where you can eat your fill, but sadly, there are only a handful of places where you can relax and sit down with a book while enjoying your coffee. Some of the places are always full, and some close rather early. I really loved it when Magpie opened in StrEAT, not only because they are very close to my house, but also, because they offer really good coffee and real espresso, which is always a plus. I am a big espresso machiatto person, and when a shop makes good espresso with a hearty layer of crema, I'm sold. Magpie is in the hopping and popping Maginhawa StrEAT Food Park, and when all of the other stalls are chaotic, loud and always filled with the hungry hordes, Magpie seems like an oasis of calm and relaxation. The air-conditioned premises are a far cry from the hot and humid outside seating areas. The glass walls create a sound barrier that isolates the coffee shop from the commotion of the food park. Here, you can pick a table and zone out. The smell of coffee fills the air, and the casual yet reserved coffee shop din is comforting, not distracting and overwhelming. Russel, the owner is always fun and quirky, and her baristas are friendly, knowledgeable and skilled at making the beverages. They told me that the source their coffees from the North, bringing to their store the best of Kalinga, Benguet and Sagada blends. What I also love about Magpie is its Korean pastries and ice desserts. The green tea bing soo is a refreshing treat when you want to stave off the summer heat. Local coffee and Korean desserts? A perfect marriage, if you'll ask me.

Magpie Cafe is one of the food trucks/food stalls found in Maginhawa strEAT Food Park Area…read more Definitely a coffee lover haven, they not only serve coffees and frappes, but they serve desserts as well. Mango madness had me crazy!! It's an ice shavings dessert with whipped cream, graham, chocolate drizzle and mangoes on top. Definitely a must-try! Affordable price, too!

While strolling inside the mall, I got easily distracted with those mysterious colorful balls lined…read moreup inside a big chiller. I immediately asked the seller what are those balls and assumed that these are Japanese ice cream because of the hiragana translation beside every flavor that they have. For a small ice cream, 75Php is kinda pricey for me but it doesn't matter anymore because I really enjoy these babies and I can't get enough of them. My personal favorites are green tea, black sesame, oreos and milk. I always get their box with 6 pcs of mochi ice cream because lucky Chinatown mall is out of my way. :(

Every time I have a meal at Bonifacio Stopover, I MUST have dessert here. From the moment I tried…read moretheir Bingsu, I knew I was hooked! It's definitely the place for me to go to for my Bingsu Fix. The place is quite spacious and I love staying by the window side of the cafe. It overlooks BGC; nice and bright in the afternoon. If it's your first time to try Bingsu, go for the fruity options: Strawberry or Mango Cheese. For me, I always get a regular size of the Injeolmi Bingsu and Mango. For the Injeolmi, you'll be surprised with the amount of rice cake cubes in it! Each spoonful you'll scoop up a good portion of finely shaved milk ice + rice cake + soy bean powder. I always love the bite and the chewiness. On my last visit, they now have a new flavor: Match Bingsu! Definitely a must try! If you want something different, try the sweet potato bread with injeolmi. It's not too sweet but quite filling. Very tasty and worth a try. Right now, you can get condensed milk for free at the side! Don't put too much though. The Bingsus are sweet enough! :P

I don't think I was ever a fan of halo halo, so I was surprised that I really enjoyed my Korean…read moreshaved ice. Especially this Korean shaved ice. Must be the record-breaking heat we've been having. Or maybe they're just really good. Located at the 3rd floor of Bonifacio Stopover, Hobing is a little hidden - the establishments beside it are salons, nail spas, a gym. It's a great location though for a dessert place to move to after having lunch - considering the 1st and 2nd floors of Bonifacio Stopover are full of places to eat! The shaved ice itself is really smooth and soft, and comes with its own flavor to match whatever toppings are on the shaved ice. And what makes it even better - they don't skimp on the toppings. If you order the strawberry bingsu, you'll find a lot of strawberries on top and inside the ice as well. They also offer toast and other snacks, but people come mostly for the shaved ice. I'm not surprised but when there are a lot of people, it could take some time for your order to come. And this place also gets full during weekends. I also wish they had wifi. Or maybe it's better that they didn't so people would leave quicker and give others a chance at shaved ice goodness. I love this place and will come back! With this heat, I hope they make a serving that I can dip my whole body into so I can roll around in snowy soft shaved ice.

After taking a long walk at nearby 168 Mall, my Malaysian friends and I decided to just rest and…read morerelax before heading home. The shear thought of something cold was a good idea as it slowly wiped our sweat away. We checked out Zomato and we're in luck when we saw Hobing. I haven't tried it here but a shaved ice dessert sounded pretty good. To be honest, we had a hard time looking for this place because it is not located in the original Lucky Chinatown Mall, but near a passageway to its Annex Building. The place was "cool" and had a cafe-like interiors. Chairs are comfortable and if you needed someone to hug and sit beside with, there are giant fluffy teddy bears that you can transfer beside you. The shop does not only sell hobing (shaved ice), but also some toasts and coffee. We asked for their best-seller, and tried it. It was Mango Banana Hobing. We loved how fine the shaved ice were, as if we were eating snow. The fruits are naturally sweet and the graham powder added an interesting texture and flavor to the dessert. Water is free and self-service. The strange thing about this place is that it has a toilet, but only for women.

Newly opened here at lucky Chinatown mall, we waited for 30-40 minutes last night as their ice…read moremachine broke down, lots of customers waiting, it was worth the wait , the choco cookie bingsu- finely shaved ice dessert with chocolate oreo and fudge was flavorful, the ice shavings were brown and not the usual ice shaving And not too sweet .We also had the milk red bean ibingsu - not bad, the mango cheese bingsu is also good, get the regular size as serving is quite big and good to share for two , we tried the garlic cheese toast - Monroe bread with cheese - yummy. My wife tried the food item - tteokbokki Spicy pechay , real spicy hot.

Mochi is probably the closest thing we have of eating raw dough, and nope, cookie dough ice cream…read moredoesn't count! This ball of semi-hardened dough with a center filling is actually a nice little treat for those who crave for something cold and sweet, but want to experience something different from ice cream. At Mochicream Cafè, I ordered myself a Cappuccino Marshmallow Mochi. I'm a coffee person, so I skipped all the matcha menu items which were a lot. It tasted really good, and the marshmallow center just did it for me. The place looked comfy and chic, but I had to hold back laughter cause they were playing a Parokya ni Edgar playlist on their speakers. I'm definitely coming back to try the other interesting mochi variants. I wonder what the Sakura Mochi tastes like!