The Brave And The Beautiful

Indeed, technology has brought the world closer. I've been friends with these women and men for more than a decade already, but two years ago, after forming a Blackberry Messenger chat group called Harrots, we became family. The very exclusive group consists of the most talented actresses, the wittiest directors, geniuses Deo Endrinal and Biboy Arboleda, Olive Isidro, Joel Mercado, Juan Sarte and Liz Uy. Lino Cayetano is an honorary member. We wake up knowing what Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo is cooking for breakfast. The latest news is broadcast a week before it becomes tv news headline. We virtually group hug when one is having love problems. We turn into prayer warriors when one has a sick sibling or parent.
For our second Christmas, we dined in Zuchinni's. It was non-stop banter from the soup to the glorious mud pie. To cap our dinner, Biboy asked each of us to say what we are thankful for in 2011 and what we are wishing for in 2012. We were all smiling, not few teary-eyed, thankful for the gift of each other's friendship.

Beautiful and brave, clockwise; Bing, Amy, Agot, Mylene and Jodi

Agot's now famous peanuts!

Olives by Ira, Tomas, Lucas and Mylene

Worth the calories, Chocolate Mud Pie by Gay Vasquez

Harrots 2011

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The House Of Dr. Luis Santos

Our tour of Malolos continues, from the Cojuangco ancestral house http://myrefrigeratordoor.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-cojuangco-ancestral-house.html , our gracious host Melecio Cojuangco brought us to the house of Dr. Luis Santos. Mel arranged the visit with one of the heirs of Dr. Santos, George Imperial . From the outside, one would already be in awe of the sheer size of the house. The house was built in 1933, according to the marker by the gate. Upon entering, you will marvel at the grand staircase, the expansive receiving room and the foyer filled with hard bound medical books and mementos of Dr. Santos' career as a well loved doctor in this town. The second floor was something else, as our group slowly ascended the magnificent staircase, my heart literally skipped a beat at the sight of the ceiling mural and Art Deco details. We found out later that the mural was painted by the great Fernando Amorsolo himself. There was a private chapel in honour of Our Lady of Lourdes

Bespoke Dining At Denlim's Kitchen

I first heard of Denlim's Kitchen from my friend Boboy Consunji . Boboy posted photos of the Denlim's pugon liempo (pork belly roasted in a brick stove) on Facebook, and it caused me a couple of sleepless nights. Dennis Lim , the chef and owner serves only one group a night, and dinner is booked nine months in advance. One day, I got a call from Boboy, there was a booking cancelation and he was lucky to get the slot. Excited for the big feast, I walked Mega Mall from end to end, and ate in small portions three days before our appointed day. Denlim's is in San Fernando, Pampanga, a two hour drive from the metro. Boboy, a Kapampangan was our living Waze and historian, we didn't have trouble looking for the place. Free of corkage, we each brought a bottle of red wine, my good friend James Reyes , and Noel Orosa . We were a happy group of twelve, Boboy's friends. Each dish personally served by Dennis were wiped out in minutes. I especially loved the bread ser

The Cojuangco Ancestral House

Our next journey takes us to a historic town in Bulacan, thirty minutes north of Manila. My road trip buddies, my college friends who all share with me the same fascination for heritage houses were privileged by an invitation from Melecio Cojuangco to visit their ancestral house in Malolos. Mel, his cousin in law Marissa Lopa, Rima Datuin and Evelyn Bautista and I discovered each other's funny bone because of our love for the ice cream served in a huge bowl at Peninsula Manila's lobby. One evening, to justify our appetite, we pretended it was my birthday and we had the string quartet play happy birthday for me, from then on, we became good friends. Mel's grandfather, Jose Cojuangco was born at the Malolos house, very near the Barasoain Church. Jose's mother traded rice from Nueva Ecija, sacks transported by boat via the river at the back of the kamalig to Binondo, Manila. Like most turn of the century houses, the Cojuangco house uses piedra china stones f

My Refrigerator Door

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