La Maison Revisited

Cristina and I recently visited La Maison at Greenbelt 5, as we were invited by Mr. Robi Caguiat to check out the new stuff on their menu. He said that he had been trying to get in touch with us since the owners were able to read my review, and that he had hoped to have me around when they had the guys from Yehey.com around, right after the Bloggers’ Food Tour last January.

But it was rather opportune that he had called me up- I just came out of another meeting at Greenbelt 2. So I was pretty much already in the area. So we had dinner not just with the owners and the management of the restaurant (which was a favorite among the bloggers who attended TriNoma’s Food Tour two months ago), but also with Irene and Ricci of ClickTheCity.com.

Incidentally, Irene was also frontwoman for local indie-rock band Chubibo, and Ricci is best known for his involvement with Hungry Young Poets and Mojofly.

It was actually pretty funny- since Irene was covering the whole affair for ClickTheCity.com, and I was taking down notes for my own blogs- we were taking shots of all the food being set down before us, right before anyone digs in.

We did have lots of fun that night, and unlike the hurried pace of the TriNoma Bloggers’ Food Tour, this was a lot more relaxed- which means we were able to take our sweet time enjoying whatever La Maison asked us to try (not that we needed that much persuasion, really).

Of course, the owners would ask us what we think of how a certain sauce or dip is paired up with a particular dish, or what we thought of pricing and presentation- it’s all pretty much expected, I suppose. But we were also able to ask about stories from their end- whether it’s about the food, the customers, or about La Maison itself.

While you can read up on my visit on my other blog, “Renzie’s Rants and Raves”, allow me to fill you in on why I dig La Maison so much.

Low Carb Options at La Maison

La Maison is great for anyone who’s into the whole low-carb lifestyle: you can have Wagyu Beef Steaks or Sandwiches, salads (like the Mango Salmon Salad), a wide assortment of fish dishes (like the Dover Sole Fish Fillet)- but for me, the best deal is the signature La Maison Barkada Ribs.

You get this monster plate right here that can easily feeds 3 or maybe even 4. It comes with 2 kinds of sauces- and goes great with lots of rice (La Maison has an option for all-you-can-eat rice), or eaten on its own. Alternately, you can try the Mashed Potatoes (which come in 3 scoops per order) or the special La Maison Rice.

The beef is so tender that it slides off the bones- I kid you not. The first time we tried this was at the aforementioned Bloggers’ Food Tour, and we’ve had this at least one other time since then. Though it looks a lot more impressive this way, with a full rack laid out before us.

The Beef Quesadillas

I also love their Beef Quesadillas- it was the first time I’ve tasted it. While La Maison suggests French or European cuisine, their menu has expanded to cover pretty much a more international range of food.

Quesadillas make use of flour tortillas, with a generous layer of beef and cheese, making for a thin, but very tasty sandwich to start your meals with. A platter of Beef Quesadillas makes for a great snack or appetizer for 2-3 people. The salsa that comes with it makes the experience so much better, but even on its own, the Quesadillas are already great-tasting.

The Desserts

La Maison has a number of desserts you’d like to check out. Hands down for me, the New York Cheesecake was definitely the best of the lot. It was creamy enough, with just the right amount of sweetness, and the strawberry drizzle on top made for a good touch.

Cristina loved the Mango Crepes- something I probably have to try on my next visit. And Irene was just loving the Creme Brulee- which we probably had a couple of visits back together with a slice of the flourless Choco Lovers’ Cake.

Their desserts are absolutely heavenly- we were already full by the time these were served, but hey, there’s always room for great cheesecake, right? Screw the diet! We capped off our evening with cups of freshly brewed coffee to go with our desserts of choice.

The brewed coffee is also definitely worth mentioning- it was fresh as it could possibly be. I think they used a Lavazza press on this one. In any case, it’s good to know that there’s a place you can go to other than the usual coffee places for a good cup of brew.

Oh, and they also have wi-fi, by the way- which means La Maison is also a great place for meetings- and a meeting is always a great excuse to have dessert and coffee…

The Final Word

La Maison is great whether you’re on a low-carb diet (like Atkins or South Beach) or on a meat-free diet (if you’re vegetarian, or when it’s Lenten Season, for example). Here’s a restaurant that pretty much has it covered no matter what nutritional program you’re on.

La Maison dishes are meant for sharing, which means the more you are eating at any given time, the more you get in terms of value-for-money. Most of the regular servings are already good for two or three, and you can easily order servings of rice, mashed potatoes or veggies when you feel you need to. So it’s very friendly for large groups of friends or family.

Lastly, the desserts are to die for. Remember to leave some space for it, and you can always order different desserts so you can all taste what everyone else is having.

La Maison is located at the third level of Greenbelt 5 (that’s the new Greenbelt right next to the very first Greenbelt, along Legaspi Street). They also have a restaurant at TriNoma and another one at The Podium soon to open.

So surprise your family or your friends by taking them to La Maison- take time to try out all the great stuff they have. And tell me about your visit the next time!

Cheers, everyone!

260 Pounds?!

Well, it really shouldn’t come as a surprise.  I weighed myself at the gym today- and the counter-weights settled uncomfortably at a troubling two-hundred sixty.

I’ve only hit that kind of weight once- no, hang on… nope, this is probably the heaviest I’ve factored in.  No point blaming anything other than my sedentary lifestyle, my carb-heavy food cravings and a metabolism slower than a 3-toed sloth.

But just like any real trooper, I power through the workout session- my first foray into strenuous aerobic activity since August, I think.  I was relatively lighter then- about 25 pounds less.  Now my legs feel like jelly, and my belly feels like someone’s used it for a punching bag.

That’s good ol’ muscular fatigue for you.  And we renew the effort to fight of the extra weight one pound at a time.

Wish me luck :)  Cheers!

Fixing and Re-positioning This Blog.

To be completely honest, I may have neglected this blog a bit- it’s been weeks since I last posted anything here. Mainly because I’ve been working on a few other projects these past couple of months.

The good thing is that is has given me a sort of clarity- an understanding of what this blog is supposed to be in the grand order of things.

I was just reading Aaron Wall’s SEO Book the other day (which is a highly recommended read, if you haven’t checked it out yet), and it sorta gave me an idea of how to go about fixing up my site.

Simply put, I have to consider three very basic things:

1. Who’s my target audience? Or more like, who would I want my blog to appeal to?

2. What do I plan to offer? Exactly what kind of content do I plan to put in “The Life and Times of The Renzie Man?”

3. What makes this blog different from all the millions of other blogs out there?

Those things considered, lemme go ahead and figure out what this blog really is all about. Here we go…

My Intended Target Market.

Who do I want to talk to? I want to reach out to an online audience who’d like to know how it is to live in the Philippines, from the point of a 30-something dude. That means reaching out to all kinds of travellers, locals interested in the bachelor lifestyle, my fellow Filipinos abroad who’d like to have a glimpse of home, and pretty much anyone genuinely interested in me- though I can’t imagine who, and exactly what kind of people those would be :).

What Kind of Content Would Be in this Blog?

This blog is a personal blog masquerading as a lifestyle-oriented piece of work. So while it is definitely something for shameless self-promotion, it aims to share useful tips, articles and opinions along the lines of…

• Bachelor Living in Metro Manila.
• Living Life Easier - Work-life Balance Tips and other useful bits of info to get the most out of our 24 hours a day.
• Workplace Woes and Worries- Don’t quit your day job- but don’t let your life revolve around work either.
• A Healthier Lifestyle- my attempt at losing the extra weight at least.
• Fun in Metro Manila- where to dine out, great spas to visit, local destinations, etc.
• My current projects
• Making money online- a little extra cash is always good, wouldn’t you agree?
• What I’m into- again, it’s all about me.

My Unique Selling Proposition.

The truth is, the blog is all about me, and therefore, I am selling me. This blog represents one of my first efforts in blogging. It is a true online journal of me and my little misadventures, not some blog meant positioned towards a particular niche. Of course I will come up with a concept blog from time to time, or pursue some online project- yeah, I’ll be linking it up here, so anyone who’s also interested can also check it out.

Now that I’ve pretty much figured it out, let’s get back to blogging now, shall we?

Left Hand Ouchie.

Today I type with just one hand.

Not that it’s something I have a habit of doing; it’s just that the base of my left thumb is painfully swollen, and it’s such a bitch to move that hand around.

So I have my left hand down on the table, with this small icebag perched on top of the swollen area for some much needed pain relief.  Feels so much better, really.

I remember something like this happened several months ago, after a few days of heavy gaming on my XBox.  It was when I picked up Marvel Ultimate Alliance (it was a great game, incidentally).

I remember it so well because I recall waking up one morning with this swollen CMC joint, but still defied the gods of arthritis by picking up the black Xbox controller and fired up the console.  Looking back now, I realize- wow, I really liked that game!

Yeah I kept on playing even if pressing certain buttons made me wince in pain- but I thought I’d really rather entertain myself with my all-chick team of Marvel Girl, Spider-woman, Elektra and Sue Richards beat the crap out of a horde of Marvel villains.

Anyway, I couldn’t think of anything that would make this go swollen now- if it was a manifestation of high uric acid levels, I imagine my right toe would be the first to swell up (like it usually did in the past).

I’ll probably be typing like this for a couple more days- the swelling usually goes down by then.  But for now, I probably need another icepack.

On Atkins Once Again.

I’ve always been a huge fan of the Atkins Diet. I suppose it’s because it allows you to eat as much as you want- provided it’s the foods you’re allowed to eat.

Being the low-carb diet that it is, Atkins basically says that, totally going carb-free for the first 14 days taps into your fat reserves, so that eventually you’re burning your body fat for your day-to-day fuel needs.

It’s worked for me before, and I know it can work for me again.

At this point, I’m already on Day 10.  Yeah, I can feel my clothes fit a little less snugly, I feel a little more spry, and more interestingly, I can actually eat the foods that I usually can’t because of my high uric acid levels.

That’s right- I’ve been snacking on Lapid’s Chicharon (pork rinds), cashew nuts and peanut butter.

Plus a variety of sugar-free sweets. So yeah, I suppose I’ll be alright for now.

As long as I stick to my steaks and salads, I’ll be just fine.

But I do miss potato chips though…

Damn.

Yes I’m on Atkins.

The Atkins Diet (or more officially, The Atkins Nutritional Approach) does have a particular appeal to me. It doesn’t work for everybody, definitely. And there are other diets out there (South Beach is another good one) or other ways to lose the poundage. But more importantly, Atkins is something I’m just absolutely comfortable with.

It’s the meat. All the meat you can eat. I’m a dude, and dudes eat meat. Yeah I’m cool with the occasional salad, bowl of yogurt or tuna casserole, but seriously, nothing is as satisfying as a large slab of steak and a side of veggies.

For the uninitiated and the uninformed, Atkins can be quite the challenge- you have to get rid of virtually ALL carbohydrates in your regular diet (at least for the first 14 days). For Filipinos and Asians, that’s a LOT of food. Kiss your bowls of rice goodbye, your plates of pancit and mami (noodle dishes) goodbye, nor can you have desserts, or even fruits! Your usual snacking options are now thrown out the window- no chips, no soda, no iced tea, no coffee, no candies or chocolates, absolutely none of those.

You can have a sandwich if you want, but don’t eat the bread