IHOP, The Perfect Pint, and the rare chance I get a vacation from work

I went to IHOP in Araneta to have dinner with office friends then went to The Perfect Pint in BGC to have a round of drinks with more office friends. Traveled from Cubao to Taguig during the Thursday night rush hour and I did not mind it at all!

Why do I have the feeling we have the same things on our plates?

Why did I start it all off with dinner at IHOP Araneta, you ask? I work there. I spent half a day working before kicking off my weekend vacation. Don't call me a workaholic as my officemates will tell you that I absolutely am not. Leaves are just scarce at work nowadays.

We love pancakes and I also love IHOP's hash brown (or at least did) so it was a consensus from the group that we eat here. The almost utmost similarity among the orders was not. 

The sausages tasted like something you can buy from the grocery, same goes for the small piece of ham, and the hash brown I had so loved just a month ago has changed. It was not the generous amount of julienned potatoes cooked with a copious amount of butter. It was not very thin pieces of potatoes that tasted like they were not cleaned well before cooking. They also tasted pretty bland. But I didn't particularly mind as I was having a good, lighthearted moment with my peers.

Not a food stylist and that's why.

At least the buttermilk pancakes still tasted the same. I started off dousing it with the strawberry syrup then worked all the other three (blueberry, butter pecan, and old fashioned) into the mix. I got a very sweet treat but it all just looked weird. 

And so then (a few hours later) I found myself in a cab, semi-stuck in EDSA traffic. Needless to say I was the last to arrive in Perfect Pint and my companions have already sent a couple of messages asking me where I was.

They already started once I finally got here

The Perfect Pint shows the spotlight on the products of local craft beer brewers along with the culinary chops of an all-Filipino kitchen staff. The place has all the makings of a sports bar, including TV screens showing Basketball stuff, but the ladies still like having their nights in here. On our table alone I was with two professional women who relented to my request that we all have a break from our normal lives. 

Started my night off with this Joe's Brew Fish Rider Pale Ale

And ended it with this Pivo Praha Weizen

It was exhilarating being able to talk light topics with people you're used to talk to everyday about work-related stuff everyday. It's a way to remember that you're just normal everyday people who just want to have fun, eat good food, and drink awesome beer.

The Freshly Baked Caramel Brownie Smores with Rhum Raisin Ice Cream would like to wish you a good day.

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Sandpoint Idaho Burgers and are Potato Buns actually worth all that money?

Gone are the days where you just put any slab of meat, mediocre even, in between slices of bread and peddle it to the masses at exorbitant prices. No. Nowadays your burger need to be a certain degree of special for people to be willing to fork over their hard-earned money to buy them. I don't believe that is the case for Sandpoint Idaho Burgers. 

I was on my way home, very late in the evening mind you, when I passed by Sandpoint Idaho Burgers in the Greenfield district. I have seen this spot several times in the past but never walked the few feet from the taxi stand to this place. This particular evening was different because I was really famished and was sick of the fastfood fares in the same area.

With all the other fastfood stalls open that night packed of BPO workers on their break, it was surreal to see that Sandpoint Idaho Burgers was absolutely devoid of any patrons. It was empty! The two staff were seated behind the counter and only noticed that I was there when I said "Hello", almost five minutes after I've perused the menu board.

Whenever I hear the "ding" of the microwave in a restaurant, I get this sinking feeling that I'm not in for anything really good. Hearing it thrice, when you're the only one in the store who ordered food, is absolutely absurd. To be fair some of these could have been the toaster for the potato bun. 

Not surprisingly - the meat was dry, exactly what you get when it is reheated in a microwave. I picked the Arco burger because it had pineapples in it. I suggest you read my article The Aloha Pizza Cheese Burger to understand why I would go for this. Well the pineapple tidbits from a can seemed like they weren't there at all. The yolk on the egg was so overcooked that it was like the yolk you get from a hard boiled egg. The potato bun tasted a little different but also somewhat familiar. But it was so dry!

The side of fries were definitely not Idaho potato fries. I've had those from Five Guys when I was in New York. Why name yourself from the state famous for their potatoes but don't actually import the damn potatoes for the damn fries? The house iced tea (if it actually is house iced tea) was the only bright spot during this meal. It tasted refreshingly like peaches and honey. all served in a small carafe which I thought was an awesome idea. 

When your challenge wall only has two pictures and one postcard, you know you're doing something wrong

Sandpoint Idaho Burgers. If you're going to be charging more than 200 Php (it seems they all start at that price) for your burgers just because of the Potato Bun but not give quality fore every sandwich, then I'm not surprised why patrons are not flocking to your store. Who then would also like to try the Colossus challenge when they know it will be a losing effort trying to wolf down dry meat and bread for that short amount of time? 

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Pares Retiro in Cubao

Metro Manileños, except probably the really affluent, have eaten in a Pares House at least once in their lifetime. That is a really made-up statistic by the way. Be it an after-party snack, a night shift worker's full mid-day meal, or just to satiate the late night munchies, 24 hour joints like these dot the entire Metro Manila. America has diners, we have Pares Houses!

This not-so-little-place along P. Tuazon in Cubao looks like a very popular dive where locals flock to. It doesn't appear to be open 24 hours but it does close way into dawn. 

It's a pretty big operation: A fair number of servers that were very easy to call the attentions of; A security guard that also serves as parking attendant; And it has it's own jingle. I kid you not, they have a jingle that gets played after about two songs from their audio setup.

There is no AC in the place but it does have several electric fans and an industrial size blower. There is an air conditioned room at the back that ominously has heavily tinted windows. We went here at about 12 midnight but there was still a smattering of diners. There were a couple of SUVs parked out front and there was one foreigner dining at the counter near us. 

The Pares was full of actual meat with some tendons and ligaments added in for flavor. It was slightly sweet, the right hint of Star Anise (not overpowering), and just the right saltiness. Bottomline it was not super special but it was pretty good. The garlic rice had that good toasted garlic flavor but the bits added on top is kind of overkill. 

You can get any of the "Baby" orders where the beef pares is partnered with anything from an egg to chop suey. The egg was overcooked but the chop suey was very good. The vegetables were crisp and the sauce was savory. They also have several "silog" meals and the tapa tasted really hearty. Siomai, however, was forgettable.

Cubao, even with the revamp of the Araneta Center, is still lagging behind with the other celebrated business districts but it is definitely not rife of the holes in the wall. Maybe that's exactly what will make it stand out? 

17th Ave, P. Tuazon Street Cubao, Quezon City.

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Alan's Grill at the Cubao Expo

Where is the best place to eat and drink in Cubao? I don't know. But a good idea will be Alan's Grill in Cubao Expo. No, it's not a knock-off of the big chain of bars Gerry's Grill.

Offering some decent Filipino treats to go along with buckets of beer, this place seems always full of people during the peak night time hours. The crowd is mostly made up of college to young office workers just out to have a good time. Probably also because they don't have very high budgets as well.

If you thought that shot of the outside looked like crap then how about this side?

Am I in somebody's home?

The food is actually good but very simple for their more than 100 Php price tags. The Daing na Bangus Binalot sa Dahon (wrapped in banana leaves) was nothing special. It was straight up fillet of milk fish and cooked like how most Filipino households do. Hell I think my mom's is even better! The Liempo tasted very nice but also a bit dry. The seasoning was spot on but I would like some type of sauce. While we're on the subject, these dishes are supposed to come with steamed rice, salted egg, fresh tomatoes, and bulalo (beef shank soup). We didn't get the bulalo.

Masabi lang na binalot

The Pancit Malabon was a heaping bunch for only 215 Php. At first bite you get hit with a ton of good flavor. But as you keep on eating you quickly realize that you're just getting a lot of chicharon (pork rinds) that have been dusted on everything. You only get a hint of shrimp flavor in the sauce and I feel cheated. Rounding it all off with the Special Halo Halo made the meal feel all so stereotypically Filipino.

Couldn't even scoop the ice cream in

Is it good? You definitely need to set your expectations. But I now understand why college kids would like to drink here. It's simple, straight-forward food served with affordable beer. It's not full of snooty people and you can just enjoy the company you are with and just be young. It reminds me a lot of the places I hanged out in while studying in Manila.

Have you tried Alan's Grill? How did you like it? Let me know on the comments or send an email to FiredSalt@gmail.com and you can also follow @FiredSalt on instagram and twitter!