Weekend Footnotes: Duck & Buvette

Buvettes are French neighborhood eateries where people meet for casual food and drink any time of day. This is the inspiration for D&B Duck and Buvette, the newly opened French-inspired eatery located where the old Cafe Provencal used to be. The owners remain the same, and just decided to breathe new life into the old place.

Weekend Footnotes

I look forward to posting my Weekend Footnotes because it is almost always full of food photos!  And this weekend is no different.

The mommy of one of B's good friends texted me last week if we wanted some fresh ramen noodles. Who says no to that, right?  So of course, I quickly told her that C and the kids are ramen fanatics!  She sent over a bagful of noodles.  She has been busy perfecting her fresh ramen noodles recipe because she has plans of supplying to the local ramen restaurants.

I immediately searched online for ramen broth recipe, and I found out that I do not have the pateince and the inclination to make the tonkotsu broth because it is so time-consuming.  I would just rather order this when we eat out.  I just settled for something that is easy to do, so miso ramen broth it is!

J helped me make the marinated soft boiled eggs, which you can see in the upper right in the photo below.

Lock & Lock at the East Wing of Shangri-La Mall

Last December, Lock & Lock, invited the SoMoms to the their newest flagship store at the 6/F East Wing of the Shangri-la Mall.  Lock & Lock is my go-to brand for quality favorite food storage container so I immediately said yes to their invitation.

The owners were on hand to welcome us to the spacious and beautiful new store.  They also also introduced to us their newest cookware line, Speed Cook, which claims to cut cooking time in half! What a time-saver for busy moms like me. Aside from being able to cook in half the time, the silicone covered handle is an efficient addition which I love.

After the presentation and lunch, the Lock & Lock team prepared a fun event for the SoMoms.  Tin Dychiao of Manila Fashion Observer and yours truly volunteered to do the cooking showdown! The person with the most pancakes cooked within the set time wins!

We both made the same number of pancakes, but 3 of mine were still in the pan when the buzzer rang.  Tin is the declared winner of the cook-off!

Congratulations to Tin for winning the grand prize of a SpeedCook grill pan!  But, I also took home a prize!!! Lock & Lock made me choose a prize of my choice from the e-Cook line of cookware.

After all that, we headed back to the store to do what we all really love to do - shopping!  I stocked up on my favorite Lock & Lock Boroseal air-tight containers.  These are really used a lot in my kitchen.  I don't quite like storing cooked food in plastic containers.  So these are perfect for me.  They go from the freezer or ref straight to the oven for reheating.  I like to make a big batch of baked lasagna or baked macaroni, and then I keep them in portions that is good for one meal (merienda, actually) for my family. That way, I always have food in the ref/freezer whenever my kids are hungry - and they are ALWAYS hungry.

These ceramic pans are a nice addition to your kitchen arsenal, and the colorful base means you can match it to your kitchen's color, too.

They also sell silicone kitchen tools in different attractive colors.

Water bottle containers in all sizes.

Thank you to Lock & Lock Philippines for having the SoMoms.

left to right:  Rafael and Annie of Lock & Lock PH, Jane of Philippine Beat, Michelle of My Mom-Firday, ME, Eliza of The Painter's Wife, Cai of Apples & Dumplings, Patty of Non-Stop Babble.

Lock & Lock Philippines is on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/LocknLockPhilippines

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Weekend Footnotes

It's back to the daily grind for me and the rest of the moms with school-aged kids. It seems like the holiday break just flew by... Bitin! How did you spend the last few days of the Christmas break?

We were invited last Saturday to the first birthday party of the youngest sister of one J's good friends. It was an Alice-in-Wonderland themed party held at the Isla Ballroom of the EDSA Shangri-la Hotel.  There were a lot of activities for the kids - cupcake decorating booth, face-painting, glitter tattoo, a booth for decorating a mad-hatters hat (for the boys) and a booth for designing fascinators (for the girls).

Since J was seated with her friends, B and I made the most of our being early by having fun. We tried on fascinators and took selfies.:)

Spatzle Euro Market Cafe

The East Wing of Shangri-la Mall has been getting busier in the last few weeks, with more dining and shopping options opening up. One of the recent additions to this wing, is the Spatzle Euro Market Cafe.

Spätzle (pronounced: shpet-sluh) is the German's version of the Italian pasta. Spätzle are a traditional German dumpling or noodle that is first boiled in water or broth then pan fried in butter and served as a side dish.

It is obvious from the restaurant's interiors, logo, and even the condiments holder that a lot of thought have been put into the design process.  The restaurant is located in a corner spot on the 5th level,  where the new east wing and the old wing meet. 

 I love the look of this table, where all the cutlery and other table essentials are kept.

Even the cutlery stand blends in with the design concept.

 

 A thoughtful addition of hand saniter spray for every table.

We were served a small bowl of chips while waiting for our orders to arrive.

We decided to order the Tarte Flambe Provence (P295) for appetizer.  It is  a thin dough topped with mixed salad greens, roasted mushrooms, cucumbers, feta cheese and cherry tomatoes.  I personally did not find it impressive, and not even the feta cheese could save it.

C ordered the Potato and Mushroom Chowder (P220). It is a chunky soup that blended small babay potatoes with seasonal mushrooms resulting in a bowl that is full of earthy flavors.

The Spatz House Salad (P180) combines mixed greens with cheese spatzle, green apples and grilled sausages in honey-orange dressing.

Pork Schnitzel on Spatzle(P330), crisp, punded pork loin on a bed of spatzle served with sauerkraut.

Spatz Fried Chicken with Paprika Gravy (P315) is breaded chicken served on top of a bed fries. I thought the breading was too thick, but my kids loved it.

Spatzle Gnocchi Vongole wasn't on the standard menu, but was highlighted on their special menu board. Vongole has that special place in my tummy, so I decided to give it a try.  While not bad, it definitely could improve some more.

Grilled Sausage Roesti is served with Sunny Side Eggs (P320) Roesti is a traditional Swiss dish of fried grated potatoes, a little like a hash browns.  This is the li'l man's order, which he didn't finish.  I thought he just didn't like the roesti, but turns out he didn't like the sausage, as well (which is saying a lot because this guy lives for sausages!).  

Homemade Italian Meatballs (P298) served on top of roesti with marinara sauce.  This is the Phenomenal Papa's order, and he said it was good.  The meatballs are huge and tasty.

They also have a kiddie menu, but my kids don't have kiddie appetites anymore.:)

We also tried their flavored water, which was nicely presented in a mason jar.  It had hints of dalandan, cucumber and mint.  I regularly serve flavored water at home, and you can view my DIY post on how to make your own flavored water here.

Spatzle just opened, and the kitchen is clearly overwhelmed with the number of diners. Although we were not impressed with the food during our visit, we are still willing come back at a later date to see if the kitchen is able to transition and adjust.

Spätzle Euro Market Café
5th floor, East Wing
Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Mandaluyong City.

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