This tea experience trumps all others. For the first time, I got a taste of how aristocrats lounge…read morearound and drink tea. There was one historical movie I watched where tea was poured into a bud and it quickly bloomed into a flower. I tried it once on my own when I bought a bud meant to bloom and be drank as tea, but it didn't really bloom when I poured water on it. I was mesmerized by TWG's tea list that seemed to go on forever, but of course I was drawn most to the flower teas. My friends and I chose a non-caffeine one the waiter recommended. Though I did not see it bloom as the teapot already had water, it was gratifying to see a big flower in the glass teapot. And, its flavor is quite intense - we had the pot refilled with water three times and I can still taste the distinct flavor even on the last refill. We paired the tea with macarons and scones, and I felt like I briefly got a taste of the England I read about in books. Of course the sweets were scrumptious. The place is quite pricey but the experience is definitely worth it if you want to drink tea taken to another level.

DISAPPOINTING. The…read moretea was satisfactory at best considering it came out lukewarm, not even hot, I would have been surprised if they had steeped the tea for longer than 30 seconds. The service was OK at best, where the waiters seemed more interested in getting us to leave the café so they could go home. The crépes were quite nice, although a bit rich with a creamy sauce, but that is up to personal taste. DO NOT get the chocolate fondant, whilst it may be advertised as warm it comes out stone cold, and the ice cream is nothing to write about either, it has far too many ice flakes in it, a symptom of being in a freezer for far too long. The decor is fantastic though, and the chairs are comfy. For a place that prides itself on its tea, I found it lacking and left sorely disappointed (especially with their English Breakfast)

I love tea and this place will have a special place when I come to the Philippines. It's hidden in…read morethe corner, but once you see it then you'll never forget. They have over 95 teas from around the world and each one has its own story to tell. They even have a book that accompanies the table to give a description of each tea. The is definitely intimidating for any first time tea taster, but if you are a fan of high tea then you'll be right at home here. $595pesos for three tea sandwiches, 2 scones, and a pot of tea. Delicious! Enjoy!

I only learned about this place just this weekend when a former colleague-turned-friend asked to…read morehang out here. I've always liked Maginhawa but it's just really complicated to go to for someone who doesn't own a car so admittedly, I wasn't too thrilled about the idea. I still agreed to go, though since it has been a while since we last saw each other. Since I wasn't familiar with Maginhawa, I decided to take a cab and Waze it. YAY, WAZE! It was situated right in front of the famous Artsy Cafe. WUMS (When Uan Met Sally) Cafe had a conjoined store of all things kitschy! They have bracelets, necklaces, boho-inspired garments, boho bags and a ton more! If Phoebe Buffay swung by this place, she'd probably live here. Too bad though, most of the items are pretty expensive. Think a bracelet for 1,000 bucks or more. On to the cafe part. Okay, first off, I love Mumford and Sons, and I feel like if they ever made a Mumford and Sons-esque cafe, it would be similar to WUMS. It just had that very down-to-earth, hippie vibe that I love! Just walking into their small cafe and seeing the interiors, I knew I was going to love this place. I got to try their French Onion Soup and to be honest, there wasn't anything special about it. I'd still prefer Friday's French Onion Soup any day. Their Margherita Panini, however, was pretty good. I also loved their frozen house blend iced tea. Overall, this place is a delight to have been discovered. If only it weren't too far from me, I'd probably visit this place more than a few times in a month.

I just love this place…read more I live about a block away from this place and I would pass by it ever since it was still being constructed. I watched it evolve from an empty garage to a construction site, and now, a really hip and cool place to eat, to shop and to hang out with a couple friends over good food and wine. I love the artistic vibe and the very artsy inspirations that went into the design and the concept of the store. It combines a lot of intricate Byzantine frescoes and paintings with distressed furniture, lots of bronze and wrought iron, and lots of soft textures from the silks and the clothes that are being sold. They have antiques and flea market finds from all over the world that you can buy and add to your collection of curios at home. This antique shop/vintage store/gift shop/knick knacks paradise/cafe/restaurant (whew lots of slashes there) is a fun and quirky neighborhood joint that will have you coming back for more. I am a big fan of the squash and sweet potato soup, which is just the right consistency and creaminess. Squash soup is simply my favorite, and I love how they do a good job with that here. The service is top-notch and the ambiance is just lovely. I would recommend it for a date with a special someone, or if you want a cute space for a meeting with a client. I will surely come back for more!

I love green tea, matcha (the bolder the better--authentic, ideally). Whoa, wish granted! I'm…read moreglad to find an authentic matcha source like Tsujiri in some random space in the S Maison mall attached to the Conrad Manila. Loved the experience ALOT. From the website: http://tsujiri-global.com/ "The time was end of ancient Edo period, and in 1860, the brand Tsujiri was first established by Riemon Tsuji in Uji of Kyoto, Japan. The founder Riemon tapped his own wealth to improve the tea industry, advancing and innovating the method to enhance the flavours and sweetness of the tea to accomplish in making the highest quality Gyokuro tea leaves. He also devised the tea cabinet to keep the tea leaves fresh longer, thereby enabled to revive the popularity and marketing of the Uji tea. His effort was well recognized by many and to attest to that, his statue was built in Byodoin, the Kyoto's world heritage temple" I've had two things here: the ceremonial matcha tea (eye-opening, heavenly) and the Shiratama sundae (green tea matcha softserve with mochi, adzuki, black sugar, which was memorable). Really glad to experience this authentic product outside of Japan and appreciate the flavors I've experienced here. Would love to sample again when I return to MNL. Visits: 3

The best Japanese tea ceremony for 1st timers... You would love the vibe it brings …read more.. I really enjoyed the taste of real ground matcha green tea leaves.

AMBIENCE Parking is available for this shop plus the New…read moreHatchin Grocery just nearby. If you love grocery shopping for Japanese items, I strongly recommend giving this grocery a visit. Parking slots are limited but we haven't had a hard time just yet. Location is walking distance from National Shrine of the Sacred Heart and YMCA of Makati. FOOD We were supposed to try Zomato Gold to buy some pastries but they weren't included (including the Strawberry Short Cake), so we ended up purchasing their Soft Serve for the meantime. I must say, it was really good and pretty close to the soft serves at Japan. Quality of their vanilla was perfect and the cone was the most impressive part. If you're familiar with Filipino butter cookies called Lengua de gato, that's what it tasted like but this cone was a tad softer. It's a bit pricey but I got more than what I paid for thanks to that cone. I would still consider buying this again and to emphasize that point, I ordered it twice already. SERVICE Typical. We just ordered a Soft Serve. :p

I bought a strawberry shortcake from this store thru Grab. The best I ever had here in the…read morePhilippines. It had the same texture, flavor, and aesthetic as the ones being sold in Japan. After I finished up my piece, all I wanted to do next is to travel back to Japan. I'll definitely purchase here again if there's a special occasion. It is quite pricey for my regular cake intake.

I had mistakenly believed that Tea Farm right beside Eton's in front of Paranaque Doctors' Hospital…read morehad the same owner. I was wrong. It turns out that Tea Farm sort of competes with Eton's which serves brewed coffee. Sort of because as its name suggests, Tea Farm serves all sorts of tea, with its specialties being an assortment of milk teas. I know, I know. This place must have lost some of its clientele when there was a milk tea scare not too long ago. That was when the owner and a guest at a milk tea place were poisoned to death. Not good, huh? But the police have solved that case. There was nothing wrong with the milk tea per se. It seems that someone had placed a sugar-like poison in one of the containers. Fortunately, Tea Farm and all the other milk tea places have recovered. Since I spent two years in Dubai some years ago, our all-around office boy always prepared milk tea for me when I arrived at the office for the day's grind. So I was a fan of milk tea long before it became the rage in Metro Manila. I would rate the ice cold milk teas served at Tea Farm with a four out of five stars. It's not bad at all. And at the height of summer, it's a great way to cool off. Tea Farm is located along Dona Soledad Avenue, Paranaque not too far from the corner of Russia.

I've always been a fan of TWG but for some reason my visit to Shangri-La branch was just a 'meh'…read more I went there on a holiday and it was not packed. However it took time to get the attention of wait staff. The tea was awesome, as usual. I had the Sweet France tea for the first time and it smelled so good too. I had scones with my tea. Their scones were dry - tasteless. The tea jelly that they served was very watery that I had it replaced. This used to be my go to place for scones, but I was disappointed and I don't think I'd go back.

Still our favourite place to get our macaron fix…read more HALIBUT MILLEFEUILLI (720 PHP) Halibut pan-seared with a crisp ravioli millefeuille accompanied by sautéed artichokes, carrots and a beurre blanc sauce infused with Ocean Voyage Tea. Ocean fresh taste and creamy smooth texture. MACARONS (50 PHP) Singapore surprise macaron (50 PHP) with its surprisingly creamy filling and tea infused flavour makes for an interesting bite. HOT TEA (190 PHP) We had the "Singapore Breakfast Tea" our favourite among the dozen we tried so far. A light refreshing tea with a surprising sweet taste at the tip of the aroma. The place isn't fully enclosed space like their BGC, Greenbelt , and Resorts World branch, but it's big enough to make it feel like one.

Delicious tea with a large variety to choose from, delectable macarons & pastries, friendly &…read moreknowledgeable staff, a royal yet comfortable & inviting atmosphere -- TWG is my newfound favorite spot and for someone who has always fantasized about having a fancy tea party since I was a little girl... I was able to achieve that here. It was my first time here and it definitely won't be my last. TRY the WHITE HOUSE TEA. It's a white tea with fruits, fragrant roses, and berries -- it was highly recommended by the staff and I was amazed at how fragrant & delicious it was. I can taste each element from the roses to the berries and it married well together. They gave me a choice to have it hot or iced but the drawback with having it iced was that it would only come in one cup so I had it hot and it came in a pretty little tea pot enough to make 3-4 cups and I enjoyed every drop up until the last. Angel, who was my waiter, was extremely friendly and gave great recommendations to a newbie like me. He also recommended I try the scones. I'm not much of a scone-lover but I'm so glad I took his recommendation. The scones were nice & warm and was served on a pretty tiered tray with cream & apple jelly -- awesome & delicious pairing with my tea... it wasn't too sweet and was perfectly flaky. I was able to purchase the White House Tea, which they prepare by shoveling the loose leaf into 50 or 100g bags. You can also purchase tins that will extend the tea's shelf life which I did since I won't be coming back to the Philippines for a while. I just wish I bought more because I made some tea for my parents which they loved but I've already gone through half of my leaves. I ended up spending quite a bit as I bought some bags of tea leaves as gifts for friends and I was surprised that they gave me half a dozen of macarons (my choice) as a gift. BTW THEY WERE ALL DELICIOUS. Especially their signature flavor, Napoleon Tea w/ Caramel. The royal atmosphere is both comfortable and relaxing. It's a great place to wind down or catch up with friends. If I were to choose between a coffee shop or TWG, it'd definitely be the latter. I'll be back SOON (I hope)

I always come here whenever I'm in the area. The service is above and beyond and the tea selection…read moreis in abundance that you can spend hours just to select one to take home. I always end up getting a new canister with a new type of tea. It's a bit pricey but it's a laid-back way to spend a couple of hours.

Zaan Japanese Teahouse is located along Mo. Ignacia near Roces Ave. (towards the direction of Sct…read more Chuatoco). From the outside, it doesn't seem like a restaurant, because of the building façade, but you'll notice the Japanese word flags you see on Japanese restaurant. When we entered the restaurant, there is a small receiving area that divides the dining area with a Japanese paper door. From the menu that shows curiosity due to unfamiliar menu items with photos, we ordered alot. Hiya Tofu. It is basically a small block of silken tofu with fermented soy sauce and some grated ginger. The simple flavors of the tofu is enhanced by the ginger and soy. Crispy Tofu. It is like a deconstructed agedashi tofu. Sweet soy sauce was served on the side. The light, crisp tofu plus the rich umami flavor of the sauce just gives the tofu life (flavor). Razu Bonito Cheese. It is a rice sandwich wrapped in nori seaweed. Similar to an onigiri, but this is shaped into a square envelope. Brown rice was filled with cheese and hydrated bonito fish flakes. The flavors was intense! Sweet, briny umami flavor from the fish was balanced by the cheese and rice. It reminded me of my first breakfast in Tokyo, Onigiri with salmon. Sukiyaki Udon. It is a dried sukiyaki noodle soup. The ingredients was cooked/simmered in the soup broth that absorbed all the rich umami flavor. Slices of beef, Chinese dried shiitake, gari, and some aromatics was the whole topping for the udon. It was good and tasty, similar to our instant pansit canton minus the oil, with a flavor of sukiyaki soup. For dessert, Shiratama Kinako. It is sticky rice balls with muscovado sugar syrup and soy bean flour. Its like 'bilo-bilo' plus arnibal, and nutty, dry flour that incorporates all flavor. The rice ball was soft and not chewy. It was really good. I remembered eating one this in Japan. It was molded in a popsicle stick, like sapin sapin on a stick. Zaan just reminds me of my trip to Japan. The simple but bold flavors of Japan just express itself in a subtle way from all the dishes I've tried here. Praise to Zaan for bringing Japanese tea time here in Manila. *They are also offering Japanese tea ceremony classes for P700 for 3 pax and P230 additional per head. P.S. look for the 'hidden' menu near the back of the album. #TheFoodCrawlers #OngsFoodprints

Most Japanese restaurants I know offer almost the same thing: ramen, gyouza, katsudon, sushi... the…read moreusual staples. They're also almost too big, too crowded and too noisy. Zaan is none of these things. It has a small menu of only a select number of dishes for a rather cheap 150php to 200php price range and don't seem to carry most of the usual heavy staples you usually find. But don't let that fool you. Zaan is the Osaka calm to most other places' Tokyo bustle. There is a certain tranquility about its location, the taste of its food and the ambiance. The food is light yet leaves you full but not so full that you feel bloated. Non Iwamoto, the owner, is welcoming and very warm toward her guests. It's a great place for a light lunch and for (in my opinion) some of the best matcha I've ever had. If you're looking for a great Japanese experience in the middle of Quezon City, Zaan is the place to go. Also, for the curious: if you've ever wanted to try an authentic Japanese tea ceremony, I recommend calling ahead to reserve a slot for you and three of your friends.