Soup isn't too big here in Manila. Perhaps its our tropical climate. You don't hear people say "I'm…read morecraving for big bowl of hot vegetable soup right now!" too often. But, I love soup! And on this particular day I saw that The Soup Kitchen had a tomato-based veggie soup (I'm vegan), but I was taken aback by the price as it's a bit too spendy--the smallest bowl for already Php 125? Well, I was starving and there wasn't much else appropriate for vegans at Cash and Carry's food kiosks, so might as well give it a shot. The soup was pretty flavorful, and I enjoyed it, though I wouldn't say it was remarkable. But I do know that if this cost me Php 60 I would be delighted. For Php 125, one would expect more, so I did. Oh well?

Every once in a while, you come across a unique little food kiosk that will just reel you in with…read moreits novelty. That's how the siomai thing got started, how takoyaki got started, and so many others. I don't know if there's a lot of this already but I thought it was pretty one of a kind when I saw this soup kiosk, aptly titled The Soup Kitchen. I've always been a soup person, especially since my mom loves to experiment and create different types of soups at home. This food kiosk indulges exactly that kind of curiosity with an attractive display of black commercial soup warmers all arranged in a neat row at the very facade of the kiosk. Just that, nothing else. There's about seven or eight different types of soup and you just pick which one you want and the attendant serves it to you. You can choose among a quarter, half, or full bowl sizes or get one of the meal-type items where the soup comes in a bread bowl and you can have a sandwich on the side. The soup menu changes everyday from their bank of over a hundred soup recipes which they make from the freshest ingredients. It's pretty pricey for a food kiosk type of thing at about Php120 and up, but it can be a decent, healthy meal, and soup is always good!

So happy I could find a yummy Hong Kong noodle place with an affordable price…read more Love that they offer their spicy noodles in different levels. I'm really good with spicy food but I'm even afraid to try their level4 burn but I usually try the 2nd degree burn because of the extreme spiciness :) Their best seller is the schezuan seafood flavor with egg noodles. The bowl is very sizable :) great value for money for something at p200 pesos. Paired this with kutchay dumpling and black vinegar :)

I admit, I'm a noodle nut. Even if I'm served a disgusting bowl of soggy ramen, I'd still eat…read moreit--and enjoy it immensely. My bias aside, Caution Hot serves fantastic noodles. You can expect consistently firm noodles here. While the broth isn't flavorful, there are enough toppings to keep eating interesting. A word of caution: the soup is indeed HOT. They're not kidding around. Level 2 is too spicy for most people; Level 3 was spicy enough to make me pass out.

Every time we come to the Philippines, we always include a trip to MARIO'S. Been coming here ever…read moresince I was little. Our usuals include their Caesar salad, Oysters Rockefeller, and salpicado for me. But our last couple visits, I've been getting the salpicon de mar y tierra which is steak and shrimp. Everything is absolutely delicious. They even start you off with the softest, yummiest dinner rolls and butter. Pair it with their iced tea and you've got yourself a delicious meal. Service is always great and it's never usually too packed when we go. A trip to the Philippines is not complete without a visit to Mario's. Do yourself a favor and check it out for yourself!

Mario's whips up a pretty mean Caesar salad and their Chilean sea bass dish is solid too. But boy…read moredoes their chef need to learn how to properly cook a steak. I ordered the Porterhouse cooked rare, but the cut they served me was well-done. Normally, I'd let things like this go, but not if the darn slab of meat costs ₱1795! I asked them to do it again, and the second time, it came out literally raw. #facepalm

Ingredients are fresh and high-quality. The staff are very friendly and will answer all questions…read more All the dishes are so big that I have to split the salad with a friend. There are a lot of choices which can go both ways for the customers that will come in. It will either excite you or exhaust you. The menu will also inform you if an ingredients is low-fat, spicy or gluten-free. You can make your own salad or choose from the menu, where calories of the serving is indicated.

Just cannot get enough of their oh crab lah and geisha wraps. The serving comes in big portions -…read moreSo yummy but I get so full! Nevertheless I'll keep coming back.

Ambiance - Japanese hot pot style restaurant. Clean and well lit…read more Service - very good. Friendly. Food - We had the angus beef set for two, karaage, shrimp tempura and corn. The set included a bowl of rice for each person, a tray of veges consisting of Napa cabbage, enoki mushrooms, bokchoy, squash, corn and carrots. There are several choices of broth. We selected the spicy miso and seaweed broth. We were also served a tray of thinly sliced beef, a soy sauce based dip with which to dip the beef and a peanut based dip. I had a cold and this food was so comforting and soothing. The miso broth was spicy and flavorful. The shrimp tempura was so tender and crispy at the same time. The chicken karaage was also crispy and yummy. Will definitely be back.

Poorly explained for a first visit and service was not great. Very noisy and lots of flies. It was…read morenot for me, but you may enjoy it

I thought it was very good though the amount of actual beef in the pho was small. Good flavor! The…read moreSummer rolls were very good too! I ate at a second store and it was just as good! I'd recommend them!

Been eating Phat Pho forever at the Serendra (and even Cebu) branch and it's brought the same…read moreconsistent, flavourful, and ultimately satisfying dishes to Rockwell. The place is a bit small, so it can be hard to get a table, but drop by anyway because y'all NEED to try that angus beef satay and com chien combo.

As a commissary of sorts, this branch of the Soup Kitchen may be out of the way or nowhere near…read morewhere you'd find yourself on a regular day (unless you work in the Chino Roces area or in La Fuerza itself), but for us who call this huge industrial compound with art galleries and an ad agency inside home, this place is a lifesaver. They've got tomato soup and clam chowder, but where The Soup Kitchen really shines is its chili. Get a half order for P120, or a full order for P150. Actually, get a half order; they use the same container as the full one and fill it up ¾ of the way. This place is perfect for when you're hungry but don't wanna step out of the compound. Actually, when you're walking in and they happen to be cooking, you're gonna end up hungry no matter how hard you fight it.

Nothing hits the spot quite like a steaming bowl of Chilli, even on a particularly hot day. Team…read morethat up with yummy brown bread slathered with butter and you're good to go for the rest of the day. Fortunately, while I work at the outskirts of the cbd, there is a branch of The Soup Kitchen that's just a few minutes away from us. The Soup Kitchen inside the La Fuerza compound is small-ish and look more like a commissary than their mall-based ones, but it has everything you look for when you're craving. A full bowl costs P150 -- about the same as a half bowl plus the bread and butter. They charge an extra 5 bucks for extra butter, but I've been in there so many times they've given me a few freebies a couple of times. Yes, they know i love my butter. :p Anyway, the soup is consistently out-of-this-world good, so yes I make the short trek to La Fuerza whenever I want. Wondering why I'm not giving this branch 5 stars after all that raving? They run out so fast! And when they do, that's it na for the day, you'll have to choose from the rest of their soup offerings. But don't fret -- their other concoctions are good, too. I'm just a hard core chilli fan.

Sometimes, it's good for a food place to know what they do well and just concentrate on that…read moreinstead of constantly adding new items. Elsie's, found on the ground floor of Market! Market! (near the Merrell store), is one such place. They only serve dinuguan, arrozcaldo, pancit molo, and ginataan (all under P70), and bread. That's it! Still, I find myself coming back for more, even when "more" is something I've had before. Their soup and stew-based dishes are always waiting to warm you up. It's like coming home and thinking "Oh I know I'll have mom getting some (insert favorite dish by mom here) ready for me." You know what to expect, and that's all you want.

Can you imagine a convenience store like MiniStop or 7-Eleven with a clean interior design where…read moreyou find only fresh healthy food? This place exists and it's located right in the busy Valero Street. It's a great option for those who work around in the Central Business District (CBD). I highly recommend it if you intend to have a quick meal, but don't even want to consider Burger King or any other fast food. Yup, Sprout is fast food too. But healthy fast food! They offer lots of to-go meals, like salads and wraps. I like the miso salmon wrap and the kale and roasted vegetables sandwiches. Regarding the salads, my fave is the greek one. I saw they also have the "soup of the day", but I didn't try it yet. TIP: You MUST TRY one of their popsicles! I loved the fact that the brand is called "picolé", which is the same word in Portuguese to call a popsicle! :) That was funny! Ok, take the Macapuno Picolé if you want to try local flavors. It's certainly my favourite. If you want a classic, then choose the Belgian Chocolate or Strawberry.

When this place opened right in the middle of Salcedo Village, I think I was one of the most…read moreecstatic people in the neighborhood. I'm a bit of a health nut and have always craved for a place that made my lifestyle easier to follow. Packed salds, a selection of cold-pressed juices, an array of healthy to-go meals and amply-stocked Kale chips (my obsession) make this place an instant favorite for me. And yes, while I enjoy preparing and experimenting and diligently concocting "healthy" munchies like the ones available in this store, I am just human. A very lazy human being at that. One who'd sometimes rather walk (and get soooome exercise) than chop, peel and boil. And thank God, Sprout gets this truth. Just a downside: a tad too pricey for the serving sizes. Kind of annoying but isn't really that surprising. Good stuff can't come at junk prices. Definitely hope this place sprouts up all over the city SOON. My kind of Ministop!

For me, a salad shines with a good dressing. That's why it's called dressing: it shouldn't be…read moremasked with artificial flavors, and neither should you eat it undressed. The salad, not you. And in all its simplicity, Go! Salads's lemon basil vinaigrette made my salad sing. I detected lemon basil, a bit of honey, a squirt of lemon juice, salt, and olive oil, just enough to bring out each salad component's flavors. I inhaled the full serving in 5 minutes. Aside from the Peachy Traveller salad, I was also impressed with their Balsamic Mushroom Chickpea sandwich, a thick, six-inch long ciabatta loaf stuffed with this huge slab of sweet-tangy and juicy mock meat, topped with fresh cucumber slices. Incredulous, I had to verify with the server if this was indeed the chickpea filling, not tofu. Affirmative. Their pita bread with garlic hummus was nothing out of the ordinary. But for one slice of pita, there was plenty of hummus left over to dip my sandwich in. Their Eastwood branch is cozy, with a private nook for more intimate dates. Intimacy aside, I like my privacy even in public, so this tiny quiet spot away from prying eyes is a plus for me. HOWEVER: For a salad joint, Go! Salads does not serve plenty of vegan-friendly options. All of their salads either have meat or animal by-products like cheese and honey. You'll have to ask the server to omit these, or you can gun for their green smoothies, and some of their sandwiches and soups. Their specialty teas are a bit watery and bland; the cupcakes, flavorful as they are, tend to be dry.The tea could swap some of its moisture for the cupcakes' sweetness, and life would be perfect. At the time of my visit, the staff blasted OPM rock music on the radio, which didn't fit the store's peaceful ambience and ethos. The other patron, a girl in her twenties, was deeply immersed in a book, so I'm sure that the loud, blaring tunes were an unwelcome distraction as well. This is a place to detox, and that includes clearing your mind of noise, not adding to it. The staff obviously was playing loud music for themselves, not for the clientele. STILL: I plan to return, this time for the smoothies.

Tuwing mabigat na ang katawan ko at medyo kinukulang na sa ehersisyo, naalerto at nagsisimula na…read moreakong mag diyeta. Para sa katulad ko na laging nasa labas at hindi naman nakakapirme ng bahay para makapamalengke at makapagluto ng gulay, o makagawa man lang isang magaan sa tiyan na snack, nagiging convient ang Go Salads! para sa akin. Naka lagay na kasi sa plastic container ang mga healthy salads at snacks na mabibili dito kaya hindi ko na kailangan pang isipin kung paano ko ito ibabaon. Oorder lang ako dito ng dalawang gourmet salad (P100.00/each), isang green smoothie (P100.00) at dalawang pita with hummus or sun dried tomato snack (P50.00/each) at buhay na ako mula brunch hanggang hapunan. Kahit na puro healthy snacks ang pinanda nila, masarap ang timpla nito kaya talagang puntahan ng mga nagdidiyeta na gusto ng magaan pero masarap na pagkain.