Tokyo Cafe, SM Mall Of Asia

     As I was browsing through my files, I saw my compilation of food resto pics that I was supposed to blog months ago. But because of our series of events and my laziness, I wasn't able to do so. "Better late than never" as what they say, so here I am, blogging it. First stop is Tokyo Cafe.

     The pics are still on their raw form, so I could tell the date I took them. This was taken on February 2011.

      So, basically we search the mall to try a new restaurant with a mango crepe, because my bf wanted it but didn't like to eat at our usual French Baker.  When we entered the South wing entrance of SM Mall of Asia main building, I saw Tokyo Cafe. Quite intrigue with the plastic version of their dishes by the window.  We checked their menu at the entrance for a mango crepe.  Good thing they had. We waited a little because they are full. After a while, the waitress ushered us to our table. Though, there are lots of people at that time, the ambiance of the restaurant is still quite cozy. 

     At first, I had the impression that they offer only Japanese cuisine. A modern Japanese cuisine to be exact, because of the name "Tokyo Cafe".  When I scanned through their menu, they have a fusion of American and Japanese cuisine. Check it at their site: http://tokyocafe.com.ph/ .

     Our orders for our afternoon snack:

Creamy Ebiko pasta Php258

Garlic and Shrimp pasta Php245

Manila Mango Php115

      We both love pasta. Mine is Creamy Ebiko pasta. I love the creaminess of it. At a closer range, you could see the karashi ebiko (shrimp eggs) in the cream sauce. The luscious softness of the ebiko (shrimp) is perfect. This dish is like the fusion of carbonara & Pizza Hut's seafood supreme pasta.

      I tasted about 1-2 forkful of my bf's Garlic and Shrimp pasta.  My excuse: "I couldn't give a review of the dish without tasting it." ~hohohoho.  Anyway, this kind of pasta is more of the "pancit" type. Why? Because it's not saucy but very tasty.  Plus, I think it was cooked in olive oil. The shrimp is same with my dish. Delectable. I could also taste the herbs and spices.

     I'm not a fan of cold crepes (I'm more of the hot types ^o^).  But I still eat it once in a while.  Again, I took 2-3 spoonful of this dessert, for the same reason a while ago. He he. I think I prefer French Baker's version.  As you can see, it consist of mango slices, mango ice cream, whipped cream, chocolate syrup and crepe.  Nothing much to say but sweet.  I would have liked it, if they use vanilla ice cream instead of mango flavor.

     If only we didn't had a heavy lunch then I would have ordered another dish or so.  I would like to try their smoogees next time.

TCGB!

NBI Clearance at Robinsons Otis

It was not planned but when we passed by the UN Ave in Manila yesterday, I decided to renew my NBI Clearance at Robinsons Otis. I heard it's easier to get the NBI clearance there compared to the main office & other satellite offices. It's no wonder since the mall is kind of small and secluded. I only saw a few number of people inside the mall. I arrived at 1:10pm.

As a first timer of this mall, I didn't had a hard time finding the NBI clearance processing center.  It is located on the level 2, end of the hallway, passing through Handy Man & CD R King.

There isn't a line when I arrived, people are seating on the waiting area. I approached the friendly guard to ask where should I start and if it's ok that I didn't brought my old NBI clearance. He hand over the application form and told me that all I need is a valid I.D. He also explained the procedures:

Step 1: Payment 

I paid Php115. 100 for the Local employment fee and 15 for the documentary stamp. The payment window is on the right side.  I was already seated, waiting for my turn in encoding when I took that photo.  By the way, I wanted to check how long it will take me for this clearance. I started around 1:30pm. Logged it on my mobile. *snicker*

Step 2: Encoding

Only a row before my turn. Hmm..that's fast. I didn't even had a chance to play Angry Birds at my mobile phone.

Step 3: Digital Fingerprinting & Photo taking

This is when I got to wait longer than during the step 2. When I reached this point, there are no more lines in the payment window and people on the encoding waiting area only occupied 2 rows. This made me wished I should have arrived later. ~hohoho. Oooh, we're really into digital age. It was kind of fun doing the digital fingerprinting. Unlike before, where I had to wash my hands a couple of times to remove ink marks on my fingers. Eeew.

Step 4: Wait for your clearance at the separate waiting area

This is it. The final step. Some people left as soon as they finished the latter step.  I guess they live or work nearby so they'll just return again to claim their clearance. What the heck, it only took me a couple of minutes before I heard my name being called. Viola! I got my NBI clearance. As soon as I get a hold of the paper, I listed down the time. It's 2:51pm. It took me 1 hr and 21 minutes. Not bad.

For those interested, here's the address:

NBI Clearance center-Robinson's Place Otis

Schedule: Mon-Fri 8am-5pm (Saturday is for releasing only)

2nd level Robinson's Place Otis

1536 Paz Mendoza Guanzon st., Paco Manila

If you're commuting, whether you're from North or South, ride LRT-1 then drop off on "United Nations Avenue" station. Ride a tricycle, ask the driver to take you to Robinson's Otis. You'll pass by Manila Police District-Petron-Unilever-NFA-Honda-Isuzu. I included a map here, so just check it out.

View My Saved Places in a larger map

Anyway, after acquiring the clearance, we had a late lunch at Tokyo tokyo:

 

TCGB!