Foodie Find: McDonald's Spicy Chicken Rice

I accidentally found out about this new rice meal when we drove thru McDonald's Bacoor for some heavy midnight snacks Friday of last week. I thought it was just their P50 chicken fillet value meal I was getting, but after looking at the receipt, I was surprised to see it was a different product priced at P80 (without drinks). And what a pleasant surprise it was!



I liked McDonald's Spicy Chicken Rice a lot. It's basically spicy boneless chicken with rice and gravy. During my first try, I got a thigh fillet which had a good fat to lean meat ratio. As for the flavor, it's actually the same spicy chicken they put in their McSpicy burger.

When I bought it for the second time last Wednesday night, I got a breast fillet which had less fat than the thigh one. It was good but I liked the thigh fillet better. I also asked for a different sauce which was sweet and sour (it's an option, and a good one at that).



Have you tried this new rice meal at McDonald's? If yes, did you like it? :)


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Food Trip at Midnight Mercato

If there’s Mercato Centrale weekend market, there’s also Midnight Mercato that opens from 10:00 am to 3:00 am every Friday and Saturday at The Fort. No confusion, though, because they’re from the same organizer and operate at the same venue. While Mercato Centrale boasts mainly of its organic and healthy offerings, Midnight Mercato serves the city dwellers with its plethora of food items that you can eat right there and then. Or to go.



Last Saturday was Midnight Mercato night for us. We found the venue at the corner of 9th Street and 30th Avenue at Bonifacio Global City in Taguig.





With no unoccupied tables on sight, we had no choice but to take our freshly-bought food home. It turned out to be a blessing because we were able to share our food with more people.

Below are the Midnight Mercato food items we partook of that night (errr, early morning pala):

Manang’s Chicken

The blogs I read about Midnight Mercato prior to our food trip weren’t lying. Manang’s Chicken was really delicious! Basically, it’s double deep-fried chicken coated with Manang’s secret soy sauce (with original, mild spicy or spicy variants) and sprinkled with fresh sesame seed.





The fiancée even commented it tasted better than Bonchon’s. No wonder they had one of the longest customer queues at Midnight Mercato. If you’re visiting Midnight Mercato anytime soon, never leave without trying this chicken!



Sumoyaki Takoyaki

I’m not so sure of the name, but it’s everyone’s favorite takoyaki they’re selling. These takoyaki balls were sold at P70 per four pieces. Unlike the authentic takoyaki in Japan, it had no real octopus inside but crabstick. Still, it was yummy and we liked it.



Bibimbap Rice

We bought this from the stall that sold various Spanish paella rice dishes. The Bibimbap rice looked like it didn’t belong to the group but we tried it anyway because we missed the awesome Bibimbap at Kaya Restaurant. We were disappointed! The Bibimbap rice we got tasted awful. The rice grains were also undercooked and the entire rice mixture was watery (must be due to the cucumber and other veggie bits!). Its only saving grace was the sunny side-up egg on top. But anybody can never go wrong with eggs, right? At P75 per serving, I think it’s a waste of money.




this paella rice tasted way batter than the Bibimbap!

Token Cakes

We got four different cakes: carrot, mango, chocolate and cookies and cream. They were sold for P100 per two cakes. Cheap, isn’t it? I had low expectations with the cakes. Suprisingly, they were good! I particularly liked the carrot cake because it had complete ingredients (walnuts, dried fruits, etc.), the right sweetness and the cream frosting was light but yummy.





Merry Moo Special Ice Cream (Food for the Gods flavor)

I really enjoyed my Food for the Gods ice cream. This butterscotch-flavored ice cream was light, sweet and creamy, just like how ice cream should be. I asked the seller if I could taste their bestsellers (Early Grey Tea and Salt Caramel flavors) but I liked my first choice better so that’s what I bought.







Our food trip at Midnight Mercato was a success. It made me forget I was on a diet, but I’m not complaining. Everything we took home was delicious, save for the terrible Bibimbap rice.

Here are more Midnight Mercato photos:







If you’re bringing a car, parking is P30. While entering the premises, we saw several people eating inside or on the back of their cars. Some were even munching on their snacks while sitting on the sidewalk. Midnight Mercato seems to be a hit. I hope it remains so for a long time.


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Late Night Buffet at Corniche, Diamond Hotel

Thanks to groupon sites, one by one my foodie dreams are coming true. By offering great deals on restaurants, I am able to gain pleasurable dining experiences at half the price. One best example of this is our recent trip to Diamond Hotel to enjoy the Late Night Buffet at Corniche. We were five and I got all our vouchers from Ensogo Philippines for just P344 (originally priced at P688) each.

As usual, we arrived tad early for the late night culinary feast. We were asked by one of the receptionists to sit at the waiting area first and so sit we did. Soon after, we got ushered to our table at the elevated area of the restaurant. Our spot gave us a good view of the buffet and the dining areas.



Housed in a five star hotel, Corniche has a sophisticated ambience with its opulent interiors. During our visit, I couldn't help but stare at this beautiful chandelier:



Our table that night was big and I liked it. I was able to eat comfortably without worrying that I might hit the elbows of my companions.





I don't recall how many times I went to the buffet area; all I know is I had a great time and the P344 I paid for my meal was so sulit. While I didn't like all of the dishes I sampled, the wide food selection simply made up for it. They had everything you'd possibly crave for for midnight snacking: dimsum, pizza, pasta, bread, gourmet sandwiches and quiches, salad, ramen noodles, veggie tempura and desserts. They even had Singaporean fried rice for those who couldn't resist having rice as part of their meal.

I only took photos of my plates. What you'll see below are dishes I consumed that night (I shared the two plates of desserts with my mom and my sister, though):


Round 1


Round 2 (I couldn't get enough of the vinegar-soaked quail eggs at the salad station so I also put some into my ramen bowl. Haha.)


Round 3


Round 4


Round 5



Round 6


Round 7

I remember liking the potato salad. It's light, refreshing and had just the right creaminess. I also enjoyed their desserts, but only the chocolate-y ones, the Tikoy Tagalog and the Sapin-Sapin. The others, the ones that were more nicely-presented, were just so-so for me. I was looking for the creme brulee and the yema (the Corniche late night buffet posts I've read online were raving about them) but they were very elusive that time. While I saw the yemas already on the table of another group, I didn't see any creme brulee around.

I also loved their gourmet sandwiches and dimsum offerings. I tried hakao, two kinds of dumplings and two more which I didn't know the name. I wanted to get more hakao but the chef at the dimsum station said they had already run out of it.I couldn't believe it as it was just 11:30 p.m. then. I pitied those who came late because they didn't get the chance to taste it.

In general, I think the late night buffet offered by Corniche is tummy-filling and reasonably priced (even for the original price of P688). It's a good answer to your late night food cravings especially if you just came from some exhausting event or just wanna relax in a posh place after your mall trip and just before going home.



It was my sister N's first time to experience buffet in a hotel and I'd like to think she enjoyed it a lot. We were all girls, the five of us. Here is she with my mom and yours truly posing by the lobby:



Corniche
Hotel Lobby, Diamond Hotel
Roxas Boulevard cor. Dr. J. Quintos St.
Ermita, Manila

(+632)528-3000


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