This year, we celebrated the 14th Ultimate Taste Test. I am glad to be invited again as a food critic to this event. The entries were all very impressive. I appreciate everyone's creativity with the new dishes they came up with, their passion for coming up with their products, and their exemplary skills in making artisanal food.

Do you want to have a taste of Korea? Then have you tried hotteok (호떡)? These are sweet and savory Korean pancakes with filling and it's one of the most popular street food in South Korea. I recently discovered where to find authentic hotteok in Metro Manila.

Merry Moo finally has its soft-served ice cream and it's here at The Corner Market. Aside from the three flavors that they serve daily, you can choose from a variety of flavored cones (or have it served on a cup) and toppings. 

Another part of our Tagaytay road trip with foodie friends was to try out this new food park called The Barracks. (See related: Tabby Town Cat Cafe).

Good food is just around the corner! The Corner Market has finally opened at The Podium in Ortigas.

Tried out Hole in the Wall's new stall, Any Any, with my blogger friends. Sharing about the good treats they have to offer.

Discovered another student hangout spot in Taft, Cuaderno. Sharing about their awesome and student-allowance friendly Fil-Mex dishes. 

 This is another go-to at Grub Hub if you plan to pig-out at this food park. Don't get fooled by the name. This snack shack serves other meat aside from pork.

Looking for coffee frappe or pasta? Then go to Cafe Fratello at Grub Hub.

If you're looking for a complete meal at Grub Hub then try Joey's Charcoal Grill. Rice meals with a selection of grilled meat--from steaks, to seafood, pork, and poultry. They also serve side dishes that would go well with their grilled meat such as mashed potato and buttered corn kernels. 

If you're looking for flavored wings at Grub Hub, then St. Mick's Wing Bar is the place to go. Their must-try is The Naked Chicken: No rubs, no sauce, seasoned and deep fried into perfection. A new favorite, however, is their Salted Egg Wings: Salted egg with curry leaves, Singapore style. Yum!

Beef and cheese galore in this Mexican food stall, Noble Comida. Barkada favorites are their nachos and quesadilla. My personal favorite is their Pimientos Rellenos: crunchy bell pepper stuffed with meat, spices, and lots of cheese. 

It wasn't my first time to try Brook's. I first tried it at another food park in Maginhawa and I liked it. Serving size is good to share with friends.

Grub Hub isn't complete without dessert stalls. Big Tummiez offers dessert favorites that will complete your food park experience. 

Tried their Dark Chocolate and New York Cheesecake Gelato.Both tastes great and are equally indulging. 

Rolls, rolls, and rolls. Mrs. Lumpia is not only about the Lumpia that we know, but this includes other savory favorites rolled up into a hearty meal.  

 What I find really interesting in Aji Sushi is their Cheetos Roll. That's one innovative maki. 

Wicked Kitchen serves sinfully good food; and by sinfully, even their menu is based on the capital sins. 

What I love about Yzzy Eats is their BFLC. That's Bacon Fried Like Chicken. Slices of fresh, uncured bacon seasoned with their special mix of herbs and spices, dredged, then deep fried just like chicken. It's crispy bacon with a good amount of saltiness and chicken breading. 

What I love about Papa Beer is the crispiness of their snacks. The good sauce is a bonus. 

I was invited along with other foodies during the media launch of Grub Hub. It was cool that we were able to try the majority of the stalls that day.

We received an invite from Zomato to try out some participating stalls in Mercato Centrale for a food tasting. Sharing about the Mercato experience:

Located at 25th Street corner 7th Avenue, and open on Fridays and Saturdays (6pm-3am), Mercato Centrale is an open space dining spot with a variety of food stalls to choose from. When I arrived there one Friday evening at around 8pm, the place was already jam-packed with foodies. Good thing that we had seats reserved for us. 

Graco Farms and Leisure

I tried their Sugarcane Juice. I was amazed on how they extract it directly from sugarcane. It was sweet and refreshing, with certain health benefits. Though I had to admit that this drink made me feel very guilty--considering that I'm drinking a huge amount of calories/glucose. It is best to finish this drink within 15 minutes. After which, it will start to change, becoming more sweet and more sugary. 

If you aren't into sugarcane juice, there is a healthier alternative; they have buko juice. They also sell fresh and organic products from their farm such as greens, eggs, and even milk. 

The Hairstylist's Menu

Parlade is owned by a Spanish couple where the husband is a trained chef from Paris. After trying different crepes offered in the Philippines, they found it quite different from authentic French crepes and thus considered to put up their own crepe business which follows the recipe of an authentic French crepe. They offer both sweet and savory crepes. We were able to try four crepes: (1) Ham, cheese and egg--Canadian ham with salt, sating dish; (2) Peanut butter and jam--The jam was strawberry and it goes well with the peanut butter; (3) Chocolate and mango--they used preserved mango then mashed onto the crepe; (4) Nutella and banana--one of their best sellers. Parlade also allows you to customize your own ingredients for your crepe. 

Auntie May's