I Hate This Vietnamese Kitchen

I hate you Phat Pho, you give me fat face! And a thin wallet. Can't it be the other way around: thin face and fat wallet? But really, I hate you so much that I love you.

Of the handful of Vietnamese restaurants I have tried hoping to bring back memories of the flavors of Vietnam, it was you, and only you, who came closest. Pho sho.

 

Phat Pho

Crossroads, Banilad, Cebu City

(032) 416 2442

Sunday to Thursday 1130AM to 230PM / 5PM to 10PM

Friday and Saturday 1130AM to 230PM / 5PM to 11PM

Sorry, Phat Pho does not take reservations.

Don't ask me about the food. I shall not sing praises for, one, I cannot sing; and, two, even if you make me, I will surely switch to a dreamy look, clam up, and salivate all at the same time. So instead, I shall give you a brief, no–feelings–attached description:

♦ Chilled shrimp goi cuon – vermicelli, mushrooms, carrots, white radish, peanuts, herbs, and shrimps wrapped in rice paper
♦ Pho bo – rice noodle soup with beef
♦ Banh xeo – seafood pancake with bean sprouts
♦ Pho xao – stir fried noodles with chicken, prawns, egg, herbs, and oyster sauce

It is up to you to imagine how it tastes like. OR...get up and go get a fat face yourself.



How Phat Pho gave me (and my friends) a fat face and a thin wallet:
Chilled shrimp goi cuon Php 195
Pho bo Php 370
Banh xeo Php 195
Pho xao Php 350

Check out their other phat dishes (click to enlarge menu):

Favorite Sweet Little Things

Many cupcake shops have popped up in Cebu, but I have only one favorite: Sweet Little Things.  Sure, their cupcakes are pricey (Php 68 apiece / Php 158 for a box of 3 / Php 298 for a box of 5), but I wouldn't mind spending more than necessary once every few months.

The way I see it, Sweet Little Things gives their cupcakes extra love: they don't scrimp on icing; they put real bits of fruit in their fruit cupcakes; they add a bit of surprise, such as a crisp top (which I have not seen from other cupcakeries) on their Mud Pie. I would like to think that each of their cupcakes is made with care.

There are 11 sweet little flavors. In the photo (clockwise from top left) are Monkey Business, Cappuccino, Strawberries and Cream, Truffle Chocolate, Dark Chocolate Mud Pie, and Lemon Poppyseed. Other flavors are Cinful Apple, Blueberry Crumble, Red Velvet, Triple Chocolate, and Cookies and Cream.

My top three? Lemon Poppyseed, Strawberries and Cream, and Dark Chocolate Mud Pie. Sweeet!

Sweet Little Things
Facebook page: www.facebook.com/SLTCakes
J Block, Apitong Street, Cebu City
0922 517 4626

Other branch:
2nd Floor, Northwing, SM City Cebu
0923 869 0609

Wisdom from the Road #13

On ignorance

Sometimes ignorance is bliss.

Had I known about the bus that plunged in the deep ravines of the mountains of Surigao del Sur a day before we traveled the same road (this piece of news from the owner of Spacebar Beach Resort, and according to him, there have been a number of accidents in the past, too), I would have taken the long way round: Surigao City–Butuan–Bislig–Cagwait. I am a scaredy cat like that. But because I did not know about it, I took the road from Surigao City down to Surigao del Sur on the dusty roads through mountains, and I got to my destination faster and, luckily, in one piece (thank you God and thank you Mr Driver sir). Sometimes ignorance is bliss.


For more lessons from the road, please visit Go Learn.