Lake Sebu: Land of the T'boli's

I went to Lake Sebu last month for my legal research*.  Heading to the Southern part of Mindanao is always a peaceful experience.  This area of the Philippines has been unexplored and unspoiled.  Home to virgin mountains and unexploited seas, Mindanao is like a haven for those who dare brave the threats of the insurgent groups and bad publicity that it got within the last decade.  Going there alone was as scary as it was exciting.  I have always looked at travel - finding yourself in unfamiliar surroundings - is a liberating experience.  Although a research trip, I didn't fail to enjoy myself. Of course. 


I wouldn't bore everyone with my thesis but here's some bit of excerpt from it to introduce you to the Dreamweavers.


The Dreamweavers are called as such because their designs are more than cultural expressions -- they were woven dreams based on creatures of their everyday lives.  Eagles, ferns, frogs, and hunters come alive through the designs that these women make with their bare hands.  Exactly how the T'nalak is made, read below:

The whole process of producing T'nalak takes about four months with several women, and men helping each other through the whole process. The T'boli people no longer produce their own abaca fibers, unlike their ancestors before, they buy the fibers from other producers in Lake Sebu. One bundle of T'nalak would cost them fifteen pesos, they would normally use 25 bundles to produce 6 meters of T'nalak. After the abaca is purchased, one of the women would then sit and with the help of sunlight streaming into the long house, she would select which ones of the abaca would be used as vertical fibers and which one would go in to make the horizontal ones. After the fibers are selected, each one would be tied with the finest knots to make sure some parts don't get dyed and the design patterned in the weavers head would be translated properly into the weave. 

After the arduous process of tying which usually takes one full day, the abaca fibers are dyed with leaves and barks which grows locally in the area. In order to give the cloth its vibrant color, the fibers have to be boiled for three weeks. Thereafter, the fibers are air dried. Once everything is prepared, the woman then sits in the longhouse and shuttles the thread back and forth pushing the threads to tighten with a flat piece of coco wood. She pushes it with three thuds. It is tight enough if the light does not stream through when the T'nalak is held up. She repeats the process over and over again. It is easy to see how a machine may be used to take over these tasks with each design being programmed into machines that would churn out 6 meters in no time.

The production does not end after the last thread is incorporated, the T'nalak is given a sheen. To do this, the cloth is beaten and the rounded fibers are flattened to catch the light. The cloth is then rubbed with beeswax and burnished with a cowrie shell. These is done by the T'boli men. In the olden times, after this is done, the T'nalak is rolled and wrapped in cloth. It is not displayed or used except on special occasions. The sanctity of the T'nalak before lies in the fact that not only is it prohibited to step on it, but it is likewise prohibited to cut the same. This days, however; the finished work is either shipped, prepared for pickup by the contractor, or stored to be shown to tourists visiting Lake Sebu. Moreover, the T'boli's now put specific demarcation marks on the cloth, usually at 3 meters, where it may be cut.

Upon my arrival at Lake Sebu I couldn't help getting overwhelmed by the site of the Lake.  The incredibly blue skies and heralding clouds completed the warm welcome.

Lunch for me was at Mountain Lodge.  The Mountain Lodge is a project of ICTUS.  Seen on this photo are solar panels which are true to the thrust of ICTUS to provide sustainable tourism.

Lunch was this good for 4 people serving of steamed Tilapia with lemongrass, tomato, and ginger.  With the fresh fat and extraordinarily yummy tilapia at Lake Sebu a simple dish like this is worth at least 3 Michelin stars.

After my catnap, I woke up to see this site behind the Cove I stayed in.  The Lake is amazingly serene and the mountains enveloped with fog.  I was just waiting for Keanu Reeves to show up and I would have already felt like I'm in the Lake House.

The morning I woke up it was with the sun and blue skies reflected on a lake.  Immediately after seeing this site, I knew this day would be perfect.

My first visit for the day would be at the longhouse of Lang Dulay.  She is a 90 year old, or more since she doesn't remember her age, and was awarded the Gawad ng Manlilikha Award. She knows more than 100 patterns of T'nalak

She said this pattern is 'given' to her by a hunter in her dream and hence the sphere patterns.

Lang Dulay puts her name in every T'nalak she designed.  She no longer weaves, this one is being  woven by one of her 20 students.  A six meter T'nalak would have two ends both bearing her 'signature', once it has Lang's name it would sell for Php1000 per meter as opposed to the rate of Php350-500 rate for other weavers.

Abaca -- the raw material for T'nalak

Lunch was at Punta Isla where we have the Lake Sebu version of Sutukil.
I liked their kinilaw more than Cebu, actually.

After lunch we went to the NCIP (Nat'l Center for Indigenous People) to interview. Unfortunately, the members were in Gensan for some event. I got to interview them just before I left the day after but for now I just took some pictures from the City Hall's view deck.

Next morning is a trip on a skylab (a motorbike), going to the seven falls where I had a ta-dan zipline!

The first of the seven falls.  The current is too strong it's hard to go near let alone swim.  

The current is too strong it creates a mist on the rocks nearby

Picturesque hike up the second falls, on the way to the zip line.

Look Ma, I can fly! :) The view from the zipline is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G

I took this photo while suspended in the middle of the 2nd leg of the zipline.

Before I left the morning after, I took a photo of this lotus pond behind the cottage.

I have mixed feelings of sharing 'how to get there', since I wanted this to be my 'secret hideaway', but the thought of more tourists coming to Lake Sebu and providing much needed income to the dream weavers got the better of me and here you go:


    From Manila you can take a plane to Gen San (the easiest route) and from Gensan go to the Yellow Bus station, just ask the cab from the airport, going to Marbel, Koronadal.  From Marbel you can take another bus to Surallah and from Surallah you can take a van to Lake Sebu.


One of the nicer resorts in Lake Sebu is Punta Isla.  I don't regret not going there, however; in favor of the cheaper Balben Cove where no other tourist can disturb me while I write my paper.  This Nov 6-9 will be the fiesta of Lake Sebu (called Helobung), and I hope I can be back then.  Meanwhile, I hope to finish my paper asap. 


*Dreams for Sale. Intellectual Property of the Dreamweavers. Still on it's working draft.

Toki Japanese Fusion Updated

Because Ayala Avenue is close last night we had to scrap our plans of dining at CiÇou and opted for a dining place at Fort Instead.  Since we had quite a heavy glutinous dinner the night before at Cav we figure to eat something lighter and hopefully healthier.  Hence, the choice for tonight is japanese.

There are a few japanese places at Fort but our favorite hands-down is Toki. As can be seen from my previous post we really enjoyed our set lunch before, but now we ordered ala carte.  Though i still prefer the set lunch - to manage your budget and all - I must say their ala carte orders are not only good but has perfect sharing portions. I won't talk much anymore and just let the photos do the talking. Bon Appetit, or probably I should say tabetai! :)

japanese pickles moriawase (6 types) Php240
One thing I will never tire of is pickles and this Japanese pickles strengthened that resolve. 

Onigiri (grilled salmon in japanese rice) @ Php160
I forgot what it's called but this one is yum-yum for sure!

Toki Style 3 Kinds Sashimi Carpaccio Style (Php380)
This dish was devoured in seconds. Toki menu labels it recommended, and I absolutely concur!

Takoyaki Roll (Php240)
Very nice, though the consistency of the octopus is on the rocky side, i have a chewy one and others got some soft ones

Unagi Bou Sushi (Php750)
One of the best thing in the Toki Menu is eel.  Whether topped on rice of sushi-fied, Toki eel never disappoints.

Nigiri Mori (9 Kinds) Php550
I didn't get to try everything but I didn't hear any whining, just nomnomnom. But then if it looks this good how can it be bad eh?

Spicy Lapu-Lapu (Php 370)
I like lapu-lapu and I like it spicy. This dish didn't seal it for me though, I blame the flour-y breading.

Japanese Cheesecake (Php170)
After all the binging a good diner knows to leave some space for dessert.  Ordering dessert is easy we just pointed to the most yummy-looking photo on their menu. I'm not really a big fan of japanese cheesecakes, always preferred the non-spongy ones. 

Macha Roll (Php195)
This feels like eating green tea ice cream -- indulgent but the same time giving you that 'healthy' feeling. Or maybe its just me who associates green tea with healthy.  Nonetheless, still a must try dessert!

Tiramisu (Php 190)
One of the best ones! I'm torn between these and the Macha cake.

3 Kinds Crepe (Php260)
I love love crepe and this one tastes like ice cream.  I can't figure out what the 3 kinds of whatever good stuff is inside it but it tastes like Ice cream and I love it!

We ordered other stuff as well and Asahi beer (Php200) too!  Toki is good but I kinda prefer doing it for lunch.

TOKI's full menu is found on this link.  You can also order online through their website.

Address: 2nd floor - 32nd and 5th Building corner 32nd St. and 5th Avenue Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, Philippines

Review: Toki Japanese Fusion and Fine Dining

Last Saturday, we felt like eating something light but healthy and one which wouldn't make us hungry in 2 hours.  With such qualifications, we decided to do Japanese.  With all the Japanese restos sprouting around like mushrooms -- from fine dining to your tokidoki foodcart -- it's not so easy to find a good one.  When we read the review on Anton's blog recommending it, then we know where to go.

Located at 32nd and 5th Building beside Aubergine, Toki has a very nondescript entrance.  The moment you stepped in, however; the relaxed atmosphere, occasionally broken by the sound of pans, immediately preps you for a good meal.

entrance to Toki

going to the restaurant itself

photos of their celebrity guests lines up one side of their 'lobby' entrance

 After getting ourselves comfortable in their red cushioned seats, we proceeded to order.

the Super Bento Set (Php700)-- Includes Tempura (ho-hum), Sashimi (super good), Soy Chicken (tender and succulent), and Pork which is as soft as butter.

closer look

while i went for variety, Ferdi ordered the Unagi Set (Php620) with Soba Noodles

We paired these meals with Black Iced Tea (for me) and cold Oolong tea for Ferdi.  A good brunch and just filling enough to get us through Wall Street 2 without feeling the munches. :)

The Not A Burger Persons Best Burger List

The title says it all, I am not a burger person.  I have always associated burger with fast food and not being a fast food person either I can count the number of times, using both hands, I have eaten a burger at McDonalds (be it big Mac, the 49 pesos one or the quarter pounder), Burger King, Jollibee, or Wendys.  So when I finally got to overcome my fear of fastfood burgers, I got to appreciate this slab of meat wedged between two buns - before it starts to sound like food porn - topped with whatever you want.

The first time I tried an upscalish, you may refer to it as gourmet compared to McDonalds, burger was in Hotshots near ABS-CBN. That was college. At least 6 years ago.  Now more pounds and as much burgers as I can count I think I can now confidently come up with my five must try burger places.

The Top Choice: Malcolm's Place Wagyu Burger
Tucked between the road from Forbes to Global City is little gem of wagyu fiefdom.  If you think all beef burger is a-ma-zing wait till you try an all beef wagyu burger.  Succulent, fatty without the greasy feel, and satisfying.  Slightly toasted on the outside and pinkish on the inside.  You can opt to add mushroom, caramelized onions, blue cheese (my favorite!), or just plain ketchup and mustard sauce.  You'll never go wrong.  The price is a bit hefty but for all the goodness you're gonna get, it's definitely worth a try.

A wagyu burger costs Php400 ala carte. However, they also have set meals at Php499 which includes a nice pumpkin soup and ended with a scoop of ice cream and vittoria coffee.  I would recommend going for the set meal. More value for money.

wagyu burger
from www.monstercomments.com

.
1st Runner Up: Murray and D'Vine's Big Ass One-Pound Burger
This burger is colossal! It is not for the faint hearted and definitely not for first date moments.  Eating the huge-ass serving - in Murray's signature heart shaped patty - would surely get your hands dirty.  Murray uses very good beef and you have a choice whether you want your patty cooked medium, rare, or well done.  We always go for medium.  Even though it was cooked medium, however; the thickness of the patty made it almost slightly rare.  We're not complaining though as all the juicy goodness that the beef has to offer is locked in -- within that (did I say this before) 1 pound of pure lovin goodness.  It may seem heavy on the wallet at Php550 but once you see and finish the whole burger, you can definitely say it is well worth it.

If you don't feel much like committing, with flair and fervor, gluttony though you can also opt for their other burgers.  The regular beef burger, the ostrich, and turkey burgers are also must tries.  Their burgers also come in minis called sliders, in case you want to maintain more grace while eating burgers.  Another must-try is their Mojitos, they're the best ones I've tried in Manila.

the murray facade
will update when I get a photo

2nd Runner Up: Monster Burger at Salcedo and Legaspi Market
The good thing about this burgers is that it's half a pound of good beef.  The better thing is that it is only Php130 pesos!  Unfortunately, this is only sold at Salcedo and Legaspi weekend markets.  Nonetheless, if you're in the area and is heading for a hodgepodge of gustatory adventure this Monster Burger is not one to miss.

Half Pound Patty
from www.bacontunamelt.com

3rd Runner Up: Chelsea Market Cafe Burger
Burger at Chelsea?! Seriously? Yes! Although Chelsea is probably more popular for their pizza and pasta their burger is also well worth a try.  Since their menu didn't explicitly say how big their patty is I'm guessing it is a little over 1/2 pound since it seems more filling than Murray.  I still prefer the slightly crispy on the outside way that Murray cooks their burgers.  Nonetheless, Chelsea's 100% angus burger suffices to satisfy that huge burger craving.  Surely, choosing Chelsea for 3rd runner up sure is a hard decision.

Since Chelsea and Murray is located very near each other at the Serendra piazza, if you have burger on the menu alone I suggest you head to Murray instead especially since their burger, at Php595 is more expensive than the big-ass burger.

Chelsea @ Serendra
photo from Anton of Our Awesome Planer (AOP)

Fourth Runner Up: Hotshots
Hotshots was the restaurant that launch the tipping point to my burger cravings.  The primary reason I chose hotshot over Brother's Burger though is their twister fries! I know it is not burger related but well, the best thing to have with burger is french fries...for that american greasy food coma in all it's finest.  It's been ages since I've had hotshots but their prices range about Php150.00 before.

from shootfirsteatlater.com

Other places I wanna try would be theburgerproject at Maginhawa St. in UP Village, and the burgers at Banchetto.

People's Palace Prawn Pomelo Salad

I got into the People's Palace cult the first time I had a bite of their prawn pomelo salad...more than five years ago.  Countless prawn pomelo salads and finally one photo after, I am ready to blog about it.

Prawn + Pomelo + Chicken + Cilantro + toasted peanuts + Coconut Milk + people's palace's miracle dressing equals the perfect example of the gestalt principle applied to food -- where the whole (concoction) is better than the sum of its parts.

prawn pomelo salad

The second our order of prawn pomelo salad lands on the table, my excitement level immediately goes up.  The anticipation of biting into the succulent sweet davao pomelo chunks which got a little drizzling of that magical people's palace dressing.  A bite of pomelo, and you realize it couldn't get better then you get a stray toasted peanut right with a piece of sautéed chicken and you think this is a good day.  The second bite was met with as much anticipation as the first, but just when you though it is a really good day your fork encounters one of the two (or three if you're lucky) prawns and you realize what could possibly wrong.  You eat it with cilantro for that burst of herb taste and you arrive at a state of mind called nirvana.

a fiery painting that was the sky of 9/12

Just when we were about to finish our food, we looked up and saw the fierce fiery painting that was the sky.  Fantastic! This is Sunday.

Chicken Breast with Parma Ham

When a fellow blogger cooked this, I had the best fried chicken ever! Not that I wanted to replicate it, i'm scared of fying, just wanted to post here in case people want to try it.

Bon Appetit.

Chicken with Parma Ham
Ingriedients:
Chicken Breast, as much as you want
enough Parma Ham
Thyme
A few shaves of Pecorino cheese, parmesan or any hard cheese may work too
olive oil
chili, we used labuyo
pepper
herbed salt from Santi's

To Cook:
This recipe is so easy yet it would sure put your fried chicken one notch up. For the chicken and parma ham, remove the chicken skin and just replace it with parma ham.  This would be a 1:1 ratio i.e. with one chicken breast being covered top half (see photo) with Parma Ham.  Wedged between the parma ham is a sprig of thyme leaves - for that fragrant smell - and a few shaving of Pecorino cheese. Once the chicken with parma ham is prepared, heat the oil for frying.  Once hot, add the chilies before frying the chicken and fry as you would fry any other fried chicken.

Chicken with Parma Ham

  We paired this with pesto pasta that we made from scratch. Will post recipe of that soon.

Oh My Gaudi (OMG)

Verdict: No redeeming factor. Must NOT try.

!Bienvenidos!

Welcome to a complete culinary 

experience from fascinating Spain --

a country that considers dining one of life's 

greatest pleasures.

So began the menu of Gaudi tapas bar and restaurant at the Piazza in Serendra.  Named after Antoni Gaudi of Spain, at least my guess is, the restaurant purports to be authentic Spain.  Since I haven't been to Spain I really couldn't tell whether or not it really is authentic, I just have to rely on Ferdi's comments on whether it really is true Spanish cuisine.  Authentic or not authentic, however; one thing is for sure -- the food is BAD.

the gaudi menu

To start of the evening we had three sets of appetizers first: Boquerones en Vinagre (Php290) which is marinated fresh anchovies, Surtido de 8 Pinxos Frios (Php250) a selection of cold tapas, and Croquetas Mixtas (Php 200) mixed chicken, serrano ham, and bacalao croquettes.

Nothing of the above is good.  We didn't finish half of the croquetas.  After finishing one, I couldn't eat any croquetas anymore.  The Serrano ham and chicken croquetas might be slightly better, but unluckily for me I tasted the bacalao one first.  It was the fishiest most nauseating croquetas I've had.  I love fish, and I eat bagoong but nothing comes close to how fishy this one taste.  Recalling it as I write now even makes me slightly puke a bit.  To add insult to injury it was also so heavily breaded and the oil they used is also not nice.  All in all, if you'll ask me to choose between UP fishball and this, I would choose the former.

deep-fried croquetas

Hoping the second of the appetizers will be better, which is not a hard feat considering how bad the croquetas were, we were only to glad when the mix cold tapas were served.  Unfortunately, this restaurant is just astonishingly consistent -- consistently bad, that is.  The selection of mixed tapas is just too oily and had too much mayonnaise! Ugh.  To make matters worse, some of it is served on toasts which are too soft and not crusty enough getting the poor toast so soaked up in alcohol and too soggy from the mayonnaise.  Same as the other one, we didn't get to finish it at all.  The mixed cold tapas is composed of some olives and baby onions on a stick, sliced parma ham (i think) which is the one on 5 o'clock, the one on 3 o'clock is anchovy and bleue cheese two of the things I love but hate when served together, and some egg salad with lots of mayo, and shrimp with quail egg, again smothered with mayo.

The mixed cold tapas

The third one is not as bad as the former two.  The boquerones has good fresh anchovies, a good smothering of olive oil with a lemon wedge on the middle that we squeezed for added taste.  The only disappointing thing about this is that they had to put grated cheese on top of the fresh anchovies.  Seriously, CHEESE!?  And no, it's not like it's hard cheese like pecorino or parmesan that would be forgivable with the anchovies but they had to grade soft cheese which looks like eden cheese to me.  I tasted it, and true enough it is tasteless!  We made sure to remove all the cheese on top of the anchovies before we ate it.  Not as bad as the former two but if it weren't for the cheese, this dish could have been the restaurant's saving grace. 

It's sobrang cheesy!

We chose not to order two main dishes and opted to just share.  We ordered Lamb cooked the Andalusian way.  After our dish was served though, that's when we realized that the Gaudi Andalusian way is pretty much just like how we cook our caldereta, at least the not good caldereta.  The smell of lamb was a bit too strong than normal and the sauce was too oily.  What makes it worse was that the potato was also fried and already a bit too soft for the dish.  Overall, it was bland and didn't have any 'identity' nor distinctiveness to it.  Of course, did I mention it was also oily?!

Lamb - Andalusian

At this point we're already too disappointed with the food and opted to just go.  We paired all the above food with Marques de Caceres wine which is not all too bad.  But this is not enough to make us go try Gaudi ever again.

Postcript: the food was that oily Ferdi had stomach pains the morning after.

A full menu of Gaudi is found here, courtesy of munchpunch.