Ever since my trip to Tokyo last month, I love all things Japanese. I fell in love with the city…read morealong with its people, culture, things and food! I still have a Japanese hangover until now, evident in my obsession for all things Matcha Green tea. But Royce has been a love of mine even before I turned into a Japanese fanatic. Royce first stormed the malls of Manila years ago. At the time, most people prefer the smooth and rich texture of chocolate from Europe. I for one am guilty of that. Today, Japan argues with Royce that they can definitely come up with the same quality chocolate. Yay for competition! My favorite would have to be their dark chocolate variant and potato chips covered in dark chocolate. Now allow me to wipe of the drool dripping down my face.

For chocolate lovers like me, this place is heaven. Almost all items in the menu are chocolate or…read morehave chocolate in them. There are different chocolate cakes, almost all of which I've tried, and all are winners. There are savory dishes with chocolate like pasta, which unfortunately I haven't tried yet, since my friends and I always come here for dessert and the drinks - yes, they have cocktails. And, the cocktails - oh, the cocktails! Nothing could be more perfect. It's the classic and comforting sweetness of chocolate laced with different kinds of liquor. A favorite among our group is the Inferno, which has just the right mix of chocolate-y sweetness, the bitterness of alcohol, and the kick of chili. I like how they put the alcohol level on the menu for cocktails - you can anticipate just how strong the alcohol is. Personally, I prefer mine not too strong so that the chocolate flavor and the alcohol are more balanced. I don't think I will stop coming here, even if I finally get to try all the items in the menu that I find interesting. There are always favorites that I will keep coming back for.

Maitre Chocolatier Boutique Cafe is chocolate lovers' Disneyland. Most specifically Lindt chocolate…read morelovers. I don't know but they have a hella lot of it in there, more than a year worth's of chocolate. There must have been so many inside that they decided, hey, since we are on it, why not make a pasta with chocolate. Truth be told, I'm not quite fearless yet to taste it but I'll try it in the future. Its so weird and exciting. Their menu's quite extensive. Aside from the aforementioned, there are also cocktails with chocolates, chocolate drinks, fried chocolate, chicken with chocolate, beef medallion with chocolate sauce.. you name it. Chocolate on everything. Are you getting diabetes already? :) And good news, they have fondue! While the fruits keep slipping out of their sticks, the experience turned out to be fun. Because the good thing about it is its for sharing.. and sharing is for friends. And with chocolate, chitchat and fondue, you can never be wrong.

I was once invited to a fancy birthday party and I had no idea what gift I should buy to the…read moreelegant and sophisticated birthday girl. The only thing I knew is that it should be something that I could buy there at Greenbelt. A friend of mine then suggested me ROYCE' Chocolate, a kiosk located in Greenbelt 5. "A box of good chocolates always works" - she said. I trusted her and bought a box of Au Lait Nama Chocolate, their classic one. Of course I've tried lots of different flavours before making my choice. It was a hard decision, come on! It's fine chocolate! :P Oh my God, I ended up buying a box for me also. However, since it's kinda pricey, I've promised to myself that the glorious box should last for a month at least. Of course I broke my promise. Of course I ate all the box. But I was pregnant, craving for good chocolate. So I'm forgiven.

One Christmas, my brother was so excited to give his gift to papa. He then warned me that his gift…read morefor papa was only for him and it wasn't to be shared with other people. He gave papa the gift and it was opened in front of everyone. It was chocolates from Royce. Of course, the little brat in me went ahead and got chocolates without asking and forgetting the fact that I am allergic to chocolate. Oh my. It was heaven in my mouth. A few days after Christmas, I went to the kiosk and ended up buying their Baton Cookies, potato chips and a box of their classic chocolate. Silly me couldn't resist and I gobbled everything up before New Year came. I was sick with asthma. But who cares?! I was eating a piece of heaven.

Metro Manila has a lot of stores that prey on a Filipino's need to munch on something foreign. A…read morelot of them sell their products cause it was made from one of the G7 nations like The US or France or something. It gives the food some sense of sophistication and what not. I'm apprehensive of these things since usually most people can't really tell if its really good since what usually happens is that they say its good for the simple reason that its something from abroad. Such is not the case here with Ville Del Conte. These are basically truffle and chocolates made in Italy. More often than not I hate talking about stuff like this since again, I'm aversive to foreign food, or at least those shipped from foreign lands. To put it simply, they're good. They're wrapped in these simple aluminum wrappers so presentation is a little bit plain. But who cares when their stuff is just really this good? They have different flavors, but my favorite and vote has to go with coffee. Usually I don't go for that flavor since I can simply drink coffee, but this one is good cause it has the right blend of sweetness and coffee to it. Unlike most coffee flavored whatevers, the coffee flavor isn't strong enough to make you forget that you're actually eating something that's only flavored coffee.

Have you ever tasted watermelon flavored chocolates!! Yes you heard me right!! No I am not talking…read moreabout candies. If you want to experience the taste, head straight to Villa Del Conte. The other day I was window shopping at Greenbelt and I saw this place that was offering free samples of chocolates. It was free ;) so I tried one and then went on to have couple more. I ended up buying a piccolo (small in Italian) of watermelon chocolates. If that's not enough, they have orange and strawberry flavored chocolates as well. However, this place specializes in Italian chocolates, and there is wide range of chocolates to choose from. They have dark and white chocolates with hazelnut cream, macadamia filling to name a few. Their chocolates come in Piccolo (small), Medio (Medium), Grande (large) box. Their packing is comes in colorful cute boxes (I reused them as a storage box for my stationeries:D).

My father has several cacao trees in our backyard and I grew up drinking tsokolate from homemade…read moretablea. We had a batirol and my mom used to make really thick and rich chocolate drink a la espresso. But now, I don't go back home to our province very often because of work. So whenever I miss the taste of homemade tsokolate, I visit Tsoko.Nut Batirol. Although they serve Tsokolate Ah or aguada, meaning the chocolate is mixed with water so it's not too thick, I still cherish each sip because I think of home and my parents. Even the ambiance of the place reminds me of my childhood. Aside from chocolate drinks, this shop also serves great tasting meals. Rellenong bangus and dinuguan are my favorites. If I just want something light with my chocolate, I order ensaymada with cheese. I'm not fond of desserts but I think they have an interesting line up of cakes and pastries.

Rocha's puto is really special and delicious. Actually it is one of my favorite places to get puto…read morein the world. The puto is chewy and cheesy. I could probably eat a whole box in one sitting. If you are in Marikina, I highly recommend buying a box or two! Next time I'm in Marikina this is a must visit for me.

First day of school. You will expect the students to talk about academic issues. But, surprise,…read moreRocha's Puto at Kutsinta made its way into the conversation. My classmate asked me where I was from and I answered Marikina. Quickly, she remarked: "I've been there. Dumayo kami to try Rocha's Puto and Kutsinta. You're famous for that, di ba?" And all the while I was thinking Marikina was famous for shoes! But, maybe, the palate makes a greater impact on the memory than the feet. Oh well, this is one time I am happy to be wrong. The puto of Rocha's is really quite good. Flavorful but not overly sweet. Soft and fluffy and never buhaghag. This rice cake from Rocha's is becoming a staple at meals served for family celebrations. So, next time, if you are going to a potluck party, you now have more options than just spaghetti, pancit or pizza. Visit Marikina and buy Rocha's Puto and Kutsinta. Marikina, the puto and kutsinta capital of the Philippines? Not bad.