Only in the Philippines: Manong Fishball

The most famous of all Filipino street food--> Fishballs. This dude pimped out his cart with a message...so come on, don't be shy!

Fish balls, Squid balls, Kikiam and Red hotdog found outside The Collective, Malugay Street, San Antonio Village, Makati

Traveling Tummy: A Lebanese Chicken Blind Taste Test

Whether I am in Sydney or Manila, I go on and on about my favorite chicken in the world- El Jannah. A little hole in the wall joint in the predominantly Lebanese suburb of Granville. I first tried it at a party, and it has since then been a staple in our home and has become my traditional first meal every time I land in Sydney.

My friends were convinced that I would never be able to tell the difference in a blind taste test, mostly due to the fact that my friend Pete brought Lebanese Chicken to our cupcake party and no one was wise to his little Awafi-El Jannah switcheroo. To be completely honest, I couldn't tell too much with the chicken that it wasn't El Jannah, but I knew something was different about the garlic sauce.

On my last night at Sydney, I was put to a test.

I couldn't tell which was El Jannah and which was Awafi by sight alone. Habib's looked completely different.

Habib's had less of a charcoal taste. I feel like it wasn't grilled enough, or at least not to my liking. The chicken itself was tender and good but for me it's all about the garlic sauce, and Habib's left me hanging in that department. The garlic sauce just wasn't garlicky enough and the over all too mild flavor of everything made me rank it 3rd place.(According to Lisette, the Lebanese prefer this, but I'm not Lebanese, so I disagree. haha)

Awafi? or El Jannah? I can't tell by looking at it but let's just say it's Awafi for now. Awafi had good chicken. They also had good sauce. It is actually very similar to El Jannah and I think they reason for this is that apparently the owners of both establishments are cousins (Can someone confirm this?) They ARE down the street from each other so I wouldn't be surprised. Anyway, Awafi has little bits of El Jannah elements in it, but the difference is in the sauce. Awafi's garlic sauce is more canola oil tasting while El Jannah's has a stronger garlic taste. I would go to Awafi if El Jannah was closed and I really wanted Lebanese chicken. Otherwise, El Jannah still gets my vote.

Lastly, El Jannah. No complaints. I've said it a million times and I will say it one last time (Until I eat it again) It IS the best! ;p

And guess what, I got it right! i am the queen of Lebanese Chicken.

And El Jannah should start giving me free chicken for life with all this free advertising they are getting from me. (In case you guys read this, I'm only half joking)

Traveling Tummy: Grill'd

Grill'd in Darling Harbour (They also have other branches)

Ala's cheeseburger with bacon in a traditional bun

My burger- exactly like Ala's but in a different bun

Hand Cut Chips tossed in salt, pepper and oregano I think. So good!

The words "Healthy" and "Burger" are never to be spoken in the same breath, and those that do are probably lying. Seriously, how can a quarter pound of ground beef, gooey cheese, bacon and condiments be healthy? No matter though, because for people like me, it's all about the flavor and general satisfaction food gives me. At my age, I should probably be more conscious of the health benefits I get (or don't get) from the food I eat, but before you crazy fitness freaks start preaching--I DO have my share of salad and fish marinated in nothing but lemon, pepper and garlic, but WHY would I write about boring things like that?

Anyway, this burger joint Grill'd in Sydney claims to have healthy burgers. Whether or not this is true really doesn't matter to me. They have yummy burgers in creative flavors like "Kung Fu Fighter" (with shredded carrot, satay sauce, herb mayo and coriander) and "Hot Mama" (with roasted peppers, tzatziki, cheese, salad and harissa paste) as well as a wide selection of Lamb, Chicken and Veggie burgers. You can even choose between a panini or traditional wholemeal bun and please don't miss out on their hand cut chips- they are awesome with the herbed mayo dip.

More on Grill'd here---http://www.grilld.com.au/

PS. To be fair, both my sister and I agreed that the burgers didn't give us that sick feeling after we ate it and it wasn't oily...I still don't know about "healthy" but I would go back :)

Foodventures: The Hong Kong Files Part 2

What else do I love about Chinese food?

The Roasts.

OMG.

First meal in Hong Kong was Roast Goose in some hole in the wall spot with no name. There was a line filled with locals so i felt it was a safe choice.

The second day, for dinner I had the exact same thing in the exact same place.

There is a certain part of the cut they give that explodes with fat when you bite it. It's both delightful and disgusting at the same time, if you know what I mean. I know some people don't like the taste of goose (or duck) but I think it is one of the best, albeit most sinful things one can eat. I rarely eat Chinese in Manila, but when in Rome... or in this case, Hong Kong.

On day 3, I was wandering around Causeway Bay by myself trying not to shop when I got really hungry. I realized it was 3 pm and I hadn't eaten at all that day so I popped into the first spot I saw. No noodle soup in sight, which was what i really wanted, so I ordered...ha, no not goose but close. I had soya chicken and I thought I asked for brisket (w/c I know to be beef) and got this roasted pork instead. My boyfriend is Muslim and I don't eat pork around him, but even if we weren't together, pork was never my first option. I didn't want to argue with the grouchy looking lady so I just ate it.

it was the most beautiful mistake ever.


Nice pink meat, very thin layers of fat and really crispy skin. It was so good! I'm not even a fan of lechon!

I will continue my Hong Kong foodventures tomorrow! From street food to pricey resto Zuma!