Snacks at Army Navy, Trinoma

We were at Trinoma last weekend for a quick buy. Apparently, it was not as quick as we perceived it to be and since we had an unsatisfying lunch, we decided to grab some fixins. As we were deciding where to eat, we passed by the Food Choices (Trinoma’s glorified term for foodcourt at the second floor. hehe). The 1st thing we saw was Army Navy. We thought this is the moment! 

He ordered Double Burger (P210), it has 2 pieces of quarter-pounder beef patty with lettuce, sliced tomatoes and onion tucked in a bun with black and white sesame seeds. I on the other hand had the Classic Burger (P165) which is basically the same, only I had single quarter-pounder beef patty. 

Double Burger

Classic Burger

We also had Crunchy Tacos Double (P160) - hard shell tacos filled with meat, tomatoes, onions, lettuce and cheese.

For our drinks, he had Minute Made (P50), while I had Vanilla Milkshake (P99). 

My take: Looking at their menu board, Army Navy was more of a Mexican food joint to me because of the of presence of Mexican foods like burittos, tortilla, tacos and quesadilla. The only American (origin) food I saw were fries, milkshake and burger - which we personally loved. The burger may not be as huge as the other fancy burger joints offers but it was oh, so juicy and tasty. It was grilled to perfection. You may have noticed that their burger do not have any sauce, it’s because its patty was already flavorful and blends perfectly with the bun. I also liked how it stayed warm until my last bite, it must be because it was wrapped in a foil. 

Tacos and milkshake were of different story. The taco for me was way too bland. It was a challenge adding lasa to fit my liking. It was disappointing enough to see my milkshake in a disposable plastic cup but I let it pass since we were in the foodcourt, worst their vanilla milkshake was nothing far from a tunaw na sundae. 

Tip: Save the best for last. When I saw that Mr. M. was not satisfied with his taco, I put down my burger for a while and finished my taco immediately. So the last thing on my mind was how good my burger was. 

The verdict: It was the burger we’re after, after all, so we’ll definitely go back. But we’ll make sure next time, we’ll dine in a detached chain in order for us to experience the most of what Army Navy has to offer.

Dinner Buffet at Kowloon House, West Avenue

Don’t you like it when you happened to be in the right place at the right time? I do. We went to the in-law’s house for the obligatory sleep-over and as soon as we arrived, FIL announced we will dine-out. Since traffic on the left side of the road (mall’s direction) was bad that night, they decided to settle to the nearest (as in, stone throw away) restaurant which is Kowloon House and availed their dinner buffet. Since Kowloon House is so near the house, I didn’t bother to bring my bag (all expenses paid remember). I was finished with my 1st plate when I remembered I’m a food blogger now and as a food blogger it is my duty to take food photos, unfortunate enough that my cellphone was inside my bag. Sorry L, next time I know better. 

Anyway, Kowloon House, is known for their dimsum, Mr. M just love their Jumbo Pao. Their West Avenue Branch is actually divided into 3 segments, all with different entrance passages: First: The take-out counters (with drive-thru) where you can buy all variants of Siopao, on-the-go. Attached to it is a casual non-air-conditioned dining area, known for its affordable beers. Second: The function hall, where private functions are usually held, set-menu is usually served. Third: Airconditioned Dining Room, where we dined. 

Their eat-all-you-can cost P299 per person, this comes with bottomless iced tea. Kowloon’s entrée is complete from 

Dimsums: Baby Pao, Siomai and Dumpling 
Rice: Yang Chow Fried Rice* and Plain Rice 
Soup: Make your own noodle soup* and Samsee Soup* 
Appetizer: Century Egg*, Seaweed, Pechay Kangkong and Special Stirred Fried Noodles 
Main course: Fragrant Chicken, Logon Vegetable, Beef Tenderloin, Pork Spareribs, Patatim, Sweet Sour Pork, Shrimp Bacon Roll*, Lumpiang Shanghai*, Fried Chicken*, Crab Foo Yong*, Fish Fillet, Pangasus Light Soy*, Stirred Fried Beancurd* 
Dessert: Butchi*, Brownies*, Almond Jelly* and Gelatin* 
* - was in my plate 

My Take: Chinese food never lets us down. I had no complain with my food selections aside from the Pangasus which was a little too fishy for my liking. We unanimously chose Beancurd as our favorite dish. The banquet head sees to it that the empty serving trays are replenished soon enough and the wait staffs provides good assistance to the diners. Although the tables don’t have fancy set-up, the place is clean, well lit and well ventilated. Considering the buffet price, you have no right to expect too much but then again I can say they delivered fairly. 

Tips: Never take advantage of the drink-all-you can part of the meal, it will not help you sample all the food. Never go to buffets when in a diet, it will make you curse the food while munching. Right Mr. M? If you’re a food blogger come equipped with camera when dining (talking to myself here). 

The verdict: Chinese food never lets us down (I’ve said that I know). So we ordered for take-out.