Santis Delicatessen in Timog branch…read more Last month, I had the honor to setup a hors d'oeuvres table for my sister-in-law's intimate 50th wedding anniversary. Went to Santis to get some of the charcuterie goodies and it was a heaven for me!. They have all the coldcuts, processed meat and cheeses that I need and has great variety of selection too! Sausages, milk, yogurt and many more! Expect fairly high prices since mostly are imported goods though. They also have great selection of wines which was located at the back inside a room. I already have crackers, jams, honey, dried fruits already but in case you need them, they have it too! I was so surprised to see that they also sell equipments that you need for fondue, raclette etc. Had a great time shopping here. They have more than a dozen branches so you can find one nearest you. Highly recommended. Great staff as well Will definitely come back

I love Santi's. Like the proverbial kid getting lost in a candy store, visiting Santi's is always…read moresomething I look forward to because of the sheer amount of interesting stuff you get to see that's missing from other stores. Have you ever tried looking for buttermilk or crème fraîche locally? Or even something as simple as chives? Santi's has them. If you're not into cooking, Santi's still has a lot to offer. For your next wine and cheese party, buy some of their truffle noir cheese. It's a bit pricey, but one taste is all it takes and it's sure to be the hot topic of the evening. Want a bit more variety with the cheese? Ask for help from the wonderful staff and have them assist you in making a cheese platter to go. This usually takes quite a while especially if it's near the holiday season, so be prepared to wait for a bit. It'll be worth it, I promise!

Ludo is one of the most popular board game cafes in the metro, and I can totally see why. It has…read moredone so well with always ensuring a delightful time. I love this place to bits, it's almost like a portal to many magical worlds. At Ludo, there's a form of amusement for everyone, whether your gaming style screams Scrabble or Pathfinder. Playing the boardgames are absolutely free, but you DO have to order something from Ludo's menu. While the food isn't so remarkable, Ludo excels in many other aspects. Its board game collection is massive and you are guaranteed to never be bored no matter how many times you visit. The space is comfortable, nice and homey. Enlarged Dixit cards adorn the walls. The place seems to capture the feeling of playing in a gaming room at home. (Also, for some reason I feel like I'm in a foreign country when I'm inside Ludo.) The staff is impressively well trained; all of them are proficient at explaining the rules of the board games available for use, and they're also extremely attentive and friendly. However, I find that Ludo's most excellent offering is its awesome events. It always seems to be churning out different interactive geeky games every month. There are bi-monthly roleplaying murder mysteries which require you to play a character and dress up in costume, a backstabbing Valentines speed-dating dinner where the objective is to build your tablemate up just to bring them down, an audience-driven Choose Your Own Adventure performed by improv actors for which Ludo even developed its own app, and so much more. Join in the endless, delightfully creative, intelligent fun and immerse yourself even deeper into all sorts of worlds over at Ludo.

If you're looking for a place where you can spend hours bonding with your friends while having a…read moredrink or two, instead of hitting the typical bars or clubs, might I suggest you hit a boardgame bar instead? :D Sure, you might think "Boardgames? Like Monopoly, right?" Nope. Ludo's boardgame library holds about 600 games, and there's something for everyone! From newbie gamers to hardcore elitists, anyone can borrow any game in the café! (Just not Monopoly. Come on guys, seriously?) The rental for the games? Free! And in return, you only have to order at least one dish and/or one specialty drink from the menu. Their menu is mostly katsus with some side dishes like gyoza, and chips with dip. The price range is about P150-250 per dish/drink. Any geek would enjoy looking at their drinks list, where every alcoholic drink is inspired by some sci-fi, fantasy or pop culture reference. I've tried their Jack Sparrow, Queen's Gambit, Millenium Falcon, and Coffee of Cthulu (a particularly crazy mix of alcohol and coffee that got me wanting to cartwheel around the place in madness). My personal favorite, however, is their 10th Sonic Screwdriver (oh yes, they did!), with a very appetizing shade of TARDIS blue. (The 11th Sonic Screwdriver isn't bad either!) To play the games, just ask the owners or any member of the staff to assist you; they've been trained well. They also have games for sale, just in case you've had so much fun playing a game the entire day and you simply MUST have it to share it with your friends. Just check with the staff for prices and availability. Ludo also hosts some special geeky events throughout the year, like Murder Mystery parties, gaming marathons, movie/TV screenings, geek holidays (Hobbit Day, Talk Like A Pirate Day) and many more! Definitely a place worth visiting again and again and again and AGAIN! :D

I was not aware that it was possible to have fine wine delivered right at your doorstep until I…read morefound out about Forth and Tay's stall inside Pioneer Street Market a few hours ago. I've been seeing their stall for quite a while now and when I finally saw that there was staff present, I immediately shot her some questions. Forth and Tay only sells and delivers red and white wine, and spirits. And they have quite the extensive collection! They have Paul Mason, Maverick, Arrogant Frog, Gerard Bertrand and Robert Mondavi Private Selection among others. If you swing by their stall in Pioneer Street Market, you can even get some bottles on a huge discount! I'm actually quite interested to purchase a bottle of red for my brother-in-law. I'm not a huge wine drinker but I do indulge occasionally on some glasses of white wine or champagne. I'll be sure to come back one of these days and purchase a bottle or two for some much-needed wine nights!

Great one stop shop! Has everything needed for dinner or a party. One day they might add Gina Mango…read moreJuice in 1 liter cartons!

The thing I really love about Walrus is their atmosphere. Their door is like a portal. Once you…read morestep inside, there is a noticeable change in everything that you see. My take is that all the small changes and minute tweaks they did to the environment contributed to a very unique setting. Walrus feels a bit retro because of their designs and displays. Some might even call it hipster. Walrus is perfect for a couple of beers with friends, right after a test, work, or just for good times. One time, my friends and I tried to visit this place during lunchtime. The atmosphere was still there but it was different because we were the only ones there. There was also a considerable amount of sunlight and the night lights weren't turned on. We tried their strawberry mix that had alcohol in it. I found it very good. It was sweet and lite, perfect for a mid day drink. Walrus' atmosphere is best experienced at night. The people, the bright lights, the drinking vibe is there. They also have snacks that I find unique for drinking places. One I tried were the cheesy fries with beacon. It was quite okay

Right along Katpiunan you'll find Walrus, which is sure to catch your attention, with a barrage of…read moreKatip students sure to be flocking there for a quick drink. It's a cute bar, not too big but also never stuffy. The menu's cute, with a mixture of fonts and what makes it even more attractive are those low prices! At P45 for the standard beers (San Mig, Pale, etc.) you're sure to order bucket after bucket here. The Scooby Snacks (their take on pulutan) are cheap, with prices ranging from P40-P150. Some people have even likened it to being the new Cantina, and with good reason, with its chill ambience, cool wall art, and low hanging lights. The drinks are cold, the food is good, and you're probably bound to bump into someone you know. Walrus is in, and rightly so. Go ahead and sample the Walrus vibe yourself! You're not like to find anywhere else quite like it.

My first taste of independence tasted like bitter herbs and toothpaste. Fancy a guess? If you…read moreguessed Jagermeister, you guessed right. My college days were rife with drinking parties and fun nights with friends. You can argue with me on this, but Benilde kids are such hardy budding little alcoholics that it's never fun without anyone stumbling out of some place on Friday and Saturday nights. We got over the seedy drinking places real quick and discovered the joys of throwing house parties. You can drink to your fill and then pass out without having to worry about how to get home because you're already, well, home. For those nights when we would rather hole up in a friend's garage, or swimming pool, we get our liquor from the wholesale liquor stores along Buendia. This stretch of liquor stores from Taft Ave. to Leveriza has everything that you might want. Haggle and scout around for the best deals. You will also find stores that sell their liquors with fun stuff such as pitchers, free shotglasses, ice buckets or shirts. Bottles of alcohol here are much cheaper, and this is pretty much your one-stop shop for pretty much everything - from spirits to mixers ,from wines to strange brews for when you are feeling rather adventurous. They say it's all fun and games until someone loses a liver, but hey, at least here we get our libations at a fraction of their cost.

Here's what my girl friends and I ordered:…read more We started with the Chorizo and Cheese Platter. I super enjoyed the chorizo's salty goodness that could be toned down with the cheese. This platter also comes with some crackers and sweet grapes. However, the appetizer I enjoyed more is the Jamon Serrano - oh goodness! I wanted to order some rice, but since we still had our mains, I controlled myself. :p I least liked the Pollo Empanadas and Pulpi ala Gallega. The former was dry save for the breading (which tasted good) and accompanying salad, while the latter was too gummy and had a burnt taste. For our mains, we had the Espaguetis con Gambas al ajilio and their paella, which were both delicious! The pasta's garlicky flavor wasn't overpowering and the shrimps were succulent! The paella, on the other hand, was so flavorful that even though we've had our fill of carbs already, we still managed to finish everything - simot! :D For desserts, we tried the Tocino del Cielo, Chocolate soufflé, and Churros con chocolate. I enjoyed the soufflé the most because of its rich flavor and smooth texture. We paired everything with refreshingly goo red wine sangria.

This review of for the Quezon City vertis north. This place almost looks legit from the outside. It…read morereally reminded me of Catalan. However SERVICE is unbelievably poor and slow. A waitress was first taking an order and in the middle of it left without telling us why. Then our order arrived 45 minutes later. The only food I will recommend is the Paella. Then we waited for 1 more order we placed. After 45 minutes of waiting we followed up and our waitress forgot to place the order. I am freaking PISSED. This millennial waiter that was serving us did not apologize and all the time he was serving us he looks like he does not care if he provides a poor service. We asked for bottled water. He said oh our water is not called so I will just give you ice. The ice never came. I HATE THE SERVICE OF THIS PLACE. I don't mind paying for expensive food but service is more important. I will not recommend this restaurant. If management wants to contact me I can tell you the time and date we where there. There were only 4 tables occupied. Those two people should be coached on customer service.

Wine Depot is the purveyor of a wide assortment of quality wines, whether it be old or new world…read more There are bottles for every budget, so you don't have to come here expecting to come out with a hole in your pocket. What I like about their branch in Reposo, however, is that you can buy a bottle and drink it there. We're not talking about putting it inside a brown paper bag and drinking yourself to a drunken stupor while seated on the gutter. You can pick a wine that you fancy or ask for recommendations and get a nice, cozy spot in their spacious dining area while they open the bottle up for you. If you feel it's a bit too early for alcohol (it never is), you can order food, from high tea scones and pastries, to a nice selection of cheeses and cold cuts, all the way to a nice, big, fat steak.

I love my wine and I drink a glass or two everyday. It tastes really good but eventually, the…read morefrequency starts to hurt the pocket. In my hunt for the most delicious vintages at the most budget-friendly prices, I came across Wine Depot. Stocking wine brands from all over the world, with a mix of new and old world wines, there really is something for everyone in Wine Depot. Since I buy bottles by the box, Wine Depot's all-year promo wherein buying 6 bottles of the same kind automatically gets you a discount, is the ultimate draw for me. With bottles ranging from Php 299 to Php 3,000, there's really something that works within all kinds of budgets. The Wine Depot also has a small deli, where they sell different kinds of cheeses and cured meat. They also have Italian coffee beans on retail. If you're really into wine, I suggest to sign up for membership in The Toast Club, which will get you invited to their member's wine tasting parties, exclusive sales and events.