Bonding moments while preparing a no-bake-chocolate-cake-with-Cadbury-frosting.
An extra huge greeting card made by Gabby as his school project.
A bouquet of carnations (my mom’s favorite) from relatives in Abu Dhabi (my youngest brother, cousin & cousin-in-law & my niece).
A tub of COKLAT flavored ice cream.
And unconditional LOVE, GRATITUDE and my LOVE for our LOVE-HATE-relationship. 
Thank You, God for creating MOTHERS! 
This blog is taking a short break from Kota Bharu, Kelantan Series to celebrate 2 wonderful events today.
The world is incomplete without mothers. I love my own. and I love the mother of my son. Mabuhay ang mga nanay!
Meanwhile, my universe is incomplete without my blog! It’s the 4th birthday of Beyond Toxicity, a blog that is more than my virtual soul but something that gives reverence to family.food and fun! And to all people all over the globe (naks, global!) who spent/spend time browsing my posts, more importantly, the valued readers who left/leave comments and frequent my humble site, Maraming Salamat po!
As for my little blog contest, we (the 3 judges : doc jane, tina and myself) already came up with a unanimous winner. The name, the entry and how we chose the winner will be included in one of the posts within the week, so stay tuned! Terima Kasih to those who joined! I really appreciate it!
When my 5-year-old son, Gabby asked me a few days back of what to give to his mom, Tina, as our present for Mother’s Day, I never thought of any tangible things in box wrapped with ribbons but our
LOVE and TIME (read : precious and readily available!).
I certainly know my wife appreciates FOOD rather than receiving a bunch of colorful blooms and mushy greeting cards; so there was no doubt that preparing a home-cooked dish for her by the two important men in her life (ehem, that’s me and Gabby) will definitely win her thumbs-up, hugs and kisses. 
Gabby, who dreams of becoming a chef at his early age was so excited to do the part with me. You can just imagine how eager he was when we went to the grocery the first time without his mom, to buy the stuffs that we need. Then when we hit the kitchen while his mom was away, he had his widest smile to assist me in cooking one of our family’s favorites with a twist.
The three of us have been keeping our love affair with tilapia. It’s one of our must-buy food items in our almost weekly supermarket shopping. So when I found out that Yummy magazine May 2010 issue has a tilapia-recipe that isn’t difficult to follow, I and Gabby knew that Tina will really appreciate it.
CRISPY TILAPIA TROPICALE
The ingredients -
For the pineapple sweet-sour sauce :
Procedure -
1. Make the pineapple sweet-sour sauce :
Combine crushed pineapple, water, sugar, banana ketchup, soy sauce, salt and vinegar. Bring to a boil then simmer for 5 to 6 minutes. Add carrots and red bell pepper and cook until slightly soft, about 1 minute. Add dissolved cornstarch and continue to cook until sauce is thick. Set aside.
2. Season tilapia strips with salt and pepper. Deep-fry a few pieces at a time until cripsy and golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
3. Arrange tilapia strips on a serving plate. Pour sauce on top and garnish with sliced leeks.
And voila….
I’m not usually in front of the stove but with this simple but delicous recipe, I wouldn’t mind cooking for my wife and kid on a daily basis! I’ll just keep a Yummy Magazine beside me for no-fuss-tasteful dishes.
Gabby volunteered to combine and stir the ingredients for the pineapple sweet-sour sauce in a bowl and enjoyed coating the fish strips with cornstarch using our small stainless thongs.
I bonded with my kid while cooking this dish and made our weekend dinner extra special for Tina. And did she like it? Absolutely not! –She didn’t like it a bit but LOVE IT ENTIRELY, of course! Without being biased, it was indeed one hearty meal.
According to Yummy magazine, this super-saver recipe serves 3 to 4 people; prep time : 5 minutes; cooking time 15 to 20 minutes; Total cost PhP 111.50 / PhP 28 per serving; based on market prices as of press time.
Thank you, Yummy magazine for that easy-to-follow, delicious recipe!
Affordable. Quick and Easy-to-do. Family-friendly recipes. What more could you ask for? Go grab yourself a copy of Yummy Magazine and unleash the chef and the foodie in you!
Visit their website at www.YUMMY.PH and follow Yummy on twitter at Yummyph and Yummy on facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/yummymagazine
. Thanks!
I am always PUNCTUAL because I VALUE TIME. So it really upsets me when something or someone’s LATE!
After my son Gabby and I gave my wife Tina roses and personally-made greeting card for mother’s day, the three of us went to TriNoma mall to eat lunch. Since we wanted to eat in a restaurant that we haven’t tried before, two food places were considered and both of them were steak houses. To be honest, Tina and I even surfed the www and the blogosphere to read reviews and menus before we finalized everything. And we were so wrong to give benefit of the doubt to those bad reviews and comments about this particular resto. In short, we were misguided by our own insights. Can you blame us? Anyhow, here’s my two cents worth of views and personal opinion. It’s up to you then to believe it or not.
We rode the lift to the fourth level of TriNoma where the upscale restos with al fresco dining (that includes one of our all-time favorite TGI Fridays--and I regret not dining there for a special occasion such as mom’s day) are located but and decided to eat here …
The exteriors of Holy Cow Chophouse was truly inviting. As we saw the place at around half hour past noon, it was so packed with hungry celebrators and their families and friends, we were somehow convinced that it’s OK for us to give it a try and just forget the not-so-good comments in MUNCH PUNCH (the site I frequent for menus and reviews of local restaurants). So while we’re on queue, we forgot the clock was ticking because we’re busy checking their menu and I was taking pictures of my family while they’re seated on a custom-made, what else but cow, in the waiting area, which I found so cute…
As you can see from those photos above, Tina and Gabby had the sincerest smiles, proof that we really gave the restaurant a chance to prove its worth, however these were taken before we knew the truth behind those reviews from other blogs.
I agree with the other commenters on MUNCH PUNCH that the bar at the center of the resto made it too small. The traffic of diners and service crew was going nuts because of that bar! Plus how do these cow heads appeal to you? There were three of its kind on one of the walls of Holy Cow. Do you like seeing them while eating your favorite steak? Just asking.
Since I was busy taking the photos, and we’re still OPTIMISTIC with this place, we disregarded the 25-minutes of waiting on that cute cow couch as we’re ushered to our seats. They were wonderful bulky leather seats, really comfortable.
Still smiling ‘no?
And what killed our time for a while other than capturing the moment, was a lady from TriNoma Ayala Malls who approached every moms per table to give these paper bags of freebies. It has Hersheys Kisses chocolates and a feminine douche POMELO scent! That’s sweetness from Ayala malls management. My wife was delighted!
But DESPITE THE CHARMING EXTERIORS and the freebies from TriNoma /Ayala malls, IT HAS BEEN EXACTLY 45 MINUTES SINCE I TOLD THE WAITER OUR ORDERS and I’m having hyperactive bowel sounds because of hunger! That was few minutes to 2PM. Yes, the single-serving glass of iced tea landed our table at around 20 minutes since we sat there, but the entrees were still out of sight and I was starting to believe the testimonials of the previous diners posted on other blogs. IT FELT LIKE WE HAD THESE FOODS ON OUR TABLE AFTER WAITING FOR A LIFETIME! Tina and I noticed that we were NOT ALONE WAITING TO FOREVER for our plates but most of the diners there experienced the same. One mother who was with her teenage daughter even stood up from her seat to notify the unmindful staff that their food hasn’t been served yet! We heard clamor from other tables of the same complaint.
And to top it all, all the staffs were CHAOTIC in getting orders and serving plates to other tables. All of them WERE NOISY, FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE! How can you enjoy your meal with such inappropriate behavior?
We made a follow up for our food twice, and they were only served nearly an hour after we first sat at those pretty black seats.
Nevertheless, here are the photos of those plates, which seemed to be OK but far from being special.
SOY HONEY GLAZED MAHI MAHI, PhP 280 . GIANT PORK CHOP, 12oz, PhP 420.
The fish and its side dishes were just typical. The pork chops were not tender! And the price was as if we bought 2 kilos of swine meat! I don’t know how much longer (than 45 min) it should have stayed in the grillery for it to be perfectly bite-worthy. The mashed potato, according to Tina, wasn’t tasty either. It lacked the buttery creamy taste of its kind. Why Holy Cow? Why ? Haven’t you heard the cliche, “First impressions last”?
It was good thing though, that we ordered Gabby his own meal. It came LATE with a toy in a box that would remind us of our first dining experience with them, lol.
CORNFLAKE CHICKEN TOTS, served with kid’s iced tea and a scoop of vanilla ice cream plus the toy-mascot, PhP 350.
ALL OF OUR PLATES WERE SERVED LATE! THEY WERE NEVER WARM OR HOT FROM THE GRILL! FAR FROM BEING TENDER. What almost saved their day was the chicken fingers and fries which were a little bit nice.
I also wanted to note that COURTESY BEFORE and AFTER receiving guest/diners WASN’T OBSERVED! NOBODY GREETED US “Good Afternoon” or said “Welcome” or whatever… and as we walked out of the place SILENTLY AS IF EVERYTHING WENT FINE, NO ONE BID US “Goodbye” or “See us again..” ”Thank you for coming..” -NOTHING !!!
I guess the ENTIRE STAFF and CREW of Holy Cow TriNoma WERE NOT TRAINED to WORK UNDER PRESSURE. The mere fact that there was an occasion – Mother’s day, they should have done EXTRA MILE on THEIR SERVICE to make each diner’s experience SPECIAL!
I’m so proud I am learning to control my temper now.
All I remember was the bill when asked from the staff was IMMEDIATELY, PROMPTLY, URGENTLY handed into my table for me to settle. Need I say more ?
——————-
The Chophouse Holy Cow Bar and Cafe
Level 4 TriNoma Mall EDSA cor North Avenue, PAG-ASA,
Quezon City. Tel # (63-2) 919 – 6299.
*All prices noted are subject to changes and VAT plus SERVICE CHARGE !
A day before Mom’s day, I and my 4-y/o son Gabby collaborated to do a personally-made card for my wife, Tina. For the plan to be a little secret, we did everything while she was sleeping. I copy-paste pictures of her with our son Gabby since she delivered to present and had it printed on a photo-paper in A4 size. Then at its back, I glued a paper with Gabby’s message for his mom which he wrote in crayons guided by, ehem, me ofcourse.
Then to further the sweetness, I made an effort to wake up this morning at 4:20AM, headed straight to Dangwa in Manila where fresh cut flowers are delivered from various farms and bought bouquet of red roses. Few minutes after I came home, Gabby surprised his mom with our simple presents to her.
Tina was teary-eyed when she woke up with this sight. Then our kisses made it all complete!
We went to a mall to have lunch which I’ll post soon.
Happy mother’s day to my wife and to all moms in the world wide web whole world!
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It’s that time of the year again that we honor MOMS. And admittedly, I haven’t been a good son to my own, I do have my shortcomings, but nevertheless, I am and will be forever grateful to her and will continue to try my very best to live up to her expectations. Ofcourse, all moms know best. I digress - with regards to the mother of my only son, a.k.a. my one and only wife, lol, this one’s for you.
I hope she reads this (because she has interests other than the blogosphere).
Let me show you the proofs of the TWO BEST GIFTS my wife has given me to date :
Apparently, my lovely wife gave me two important gifts so far, her “I DO” when we got married and ofcourse, when she had our son for 39 weeks and a day in her uterus. And as you know, her being my son’s mom doesn’t stop there, for being a mother is a life-long job that she and any other moms are committed 24/7, forever and ever, amen!
To my wife, Cristina, I thank you for these reasons :
for mothering our four-year-old son Gabby, setting a good example to him as a God-fearing person.
for enjoying the life of a parent with me while raising Gabby.
for having a mind of her own. She may not know this but I’m so proud of her for being who she is, and her simple accomplishments as an Operating Room nurse, as a silent educator producing globally competitive Pinoy nurses. As she already completed her requirement as a US-RN, we’re just presently praying for VISA-blessings!
for being my BFF best friend for life, my partner through thick and thin literally and figuratively.
for dreaming the same dreams with me. we both hope to work abroad, earn and save more and travel the globe!
for sharing good laughs and few cries.
for bearing with my erratic mood swings (she and few of my friends and family are the only people who know how to tolerate me).
for being my personal nurse in sickness and in health.
for entrusting me our domestic budget and for allowing me to handle our finances (yes folks, it’s uncommon I know, but she prefers it that way and i love it, lol).
for being my best critic at all times.
for understanding that I, too, am not perfect and neither omnipotent. I may have so many flaws as a son, as the eldest sibling to my 3 brothers, as a husband to her, but the good Lord knows that I am trying to be the best dad and provider to our son Gabby.
for being with me during good times and bad.
for accepting my apologies everytime we have lovers’ quarrel LQs.
I just want you to know that you’re so blessed to have me as your hubby am so blessed to have you as my wife! Happy Moms’ Day! I and GABBY LOVE YOU SO MUCH ‘NEY!
To all moms reading this post, and frequenting this blog, THANK YOU and CARRY ON!
Cheers to you! I just wish I can sing this to you, but I can’t, lol.
You taught me everything
And everything youve given me
I always keep it inside
Youre the driving force in my life, yeah
There isnt anything
Or anyone I can be
And it just wouldnt feel right
If I didnt have you by my side
You were there for me to love and care for me
When skies were grey
Whenever I was down
You were always there to comfort me
And no one else can be what you have been to me
Youll always be you always will be the girl
In my life for all times
Chorus:
Mama, mama you know I love you
Oh you know I love you
Mama, mama youre the queen of my heart
Your love is like
Tears from the stars
Mama, I just want you to know
Lovin you is like food to my soul
Youre always down for me
Have always been around for me even when I was bad
You showed me right from my wrong
Yes you did
And you took up for me
When everyone was downin me
You always did understand
You gave me strength to go on
There was so many times
Looking back when I was so afraid
And then you come to me
And say to me I can face anything
And no one else can do
What you have done for me
Youll always be
You will always be the girl in my life
- BOYZ II MEN, A SONG FOR MAMA.
10 May 2008, Saturday, EVE of Mother’s day
I, my wife and our son Gabby attended the party for the CHRISTening of a baby of a family-friend who are also doctors in Marikina City. We went with my mom to the gathering and so we had the opportunity to give our little presents to her. We bought her a huge bar of toblerone chocolate which packaging says : THANKS, MOM with red tulips as prints and we gave her PINK PILLOW from Humor Post that says WORLD’S GREATEST MOM. More than those gifts, we went to hear anticipated mass across the venue of that party where Our Lady of the Abandoned church is located. Inspite of the heavy rains that night, we all went home with smiles & blessings from the Lord .
Morning after….
11 May 2008, Sunday, MOTHER’S DAY
I went to Dangwa in Sampaloc Manila at 4:30 AM to buy my wife bouquet of flowers. Among the vast choices there, I avoided roses for no particular reasons but opted to buy a huge nosegay of 2 dozens of baby pink and dark purple carnations instead.
I myself chose 2 bunches of those flowers and asked the male florist to arranged it for me. Then I hurried home, rode a cab from Manila to QC, just in time before Gabby and Ite woke up, the bouquet was already on the bed. It was amazing to see my wife and my son waking up with smiles on their faces.
The main celebration for my son’s mom didn’t end there. We went to our favorite place in Glorietta, Makati (wherelse but the Ultimate buffet of Dad’s Saisaki Kamayan) and ate our lunch there for hours. Yummy… what a way to enjoy life’s simple pleasures…
OPINION COUNTS…