Heart's Day in December -- Our Christmas Dinner at Aubergine, the Fort

This is our second Christmas spent together and it's getting better and better every year.  

The thing I love the most about Rommel is how he serenades me with unending goodness -- good food, good pictures and good memories! Last Monday, we called Aubergine to reserve dinner seats for two for Dec.25 and were lucky to get the last two seats available for that night. 

 

He knows I love steaks and so for each and every special occasion that we Celebrate together (Anniversaries, Birthdays and Holidays), he feeds me with steak and Christmas 2009 was no exception. 

So far, I've had steak at the country's finest restaurants like Antonio's in Tagaytay, Elbert's Steak House, Gulliver's of San Fransisco.... you name it, I've tried it so I was very excited to try Aubergine out because I've been hearing many good things about this restaurant.

For our appetizers on the house, they served Portabello mushrooms, and Feta cheese.

We also ordered the Chef's specialty appetizer for the night.

It was a good start. Perfect to tingle the taste buds.

Aubergine surf and turf 
Grilled lobster tail and roasted Australian Mulwarra beef tenderloin with sautéed mushrooms and seared duck foie gras, Béarnaise sauce and Madeira jus, rosemary – potato gratin and assorted vegetables

The dish was very well prepared. Medium rare as how he likes it. 
The meat was so tender most specially the foie gras! I could not even count in my fingers the numbers of times he said this. We even noticed how perfect the cut was for each and every vegetable on the plate. "Mismo!" is the best way he could describe it.

US Angus beef rib – eye steak
(330 grams)

Sauces: Port wine jus, Madagascar green peppercorn sauce, mushroom sauce, Béarnaise sauce, parsley-cilantro chimi churri sauce, Café de Paris butter Additional side orders:

Starches: Mashed potato, potato gratin, baked potato, French fries, pasta, rice pilaf, vegetable potato cassoulette

My steak was the bomb! It was so delicious I was simply blown away!

The ambiance at Aubergine could be a lot of things... Fun and happy for families who dine there; Formal for those who spend their meetings there; and last but not least, Romantic for two people.. just like how it was for Rommel and me.  The food was to die for, I was simply blown away!

The manager of Aubergine was nice enough to accompany me inside the kitchen were the chef were at work. It was being in another place! 

Thank you all for the great food!

After last night's date, I can't wait for 2010's Christmas dinner! 



Merry Christmas!!! Try it out, you won't regret it.

Aubergine's Restaurants and Patisserie, Fort Bonifacio

32nd & 5th Bldg, 32nd cor. 5th St., Fort Bonifacio

Taguig City, Metro Manila

(02) 856-9888

www.aubergine.ph

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Behind Closed Doors @ Enchanted Kingdom

Last night was unbelievably unexpected................

I knew that papa was gonna play at Enchanted but what I didn't know was that they were gonna launch the newly renovated Space Shuttle MAX. 

So what comes along with being his daughter? .. Free Entrance, Unlimited Rides, AND being a pilot rider of the most awaited ride at Enchanted Kingdom! (thanks dad, you're the best!) 

Moving on to the band, last night was spectacular!!!

The music was heart raising and the crowd danced like crazy!

The band played old songs like "You'll Never Find", "September", "Rock with You" which made a lot of people dance to it's beat but the best part for me, (and I guess for the rest of the audience too), was when they played songs like "Closer", "Insomnia" and "Nobody But You". Everyone jumped around and danced. The crowd piled up in front of the stage and started screaming I could not believe my eyes.  

I was also lucky to have seen and met the owner of Enchanted Kingdom. That's her, by the way, the girl in white pants singing with the band and having a lot of fun.

I've heard these songs a lot of times but will never get tired of listening and watching how this band makes a lot of people forget their problems even for just a little while.

Drummer or no drummer, you have my 100% support in everything, dad! I love you!

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Behind Closed Doors, Manila's Finest Retro Band

One of the most sought out band here in Metro Manila and abroad is Behind Closed Doors. They play retro and ballroom songs that would  make you go gaga! They play every night on different hotel bars and was recently sent to Vietnam to play.  

Rommel and I got the chance to do a little photo shoot with the band after their first set at Lancaster hotel last Wednesday. The goal was to take pictures of the band to be placed in a tarp for Dusit Hotel where the band will be playing too. 

After a lot of fun shots, we came out with these:
(papa is one of the guys here. no need to point him out coz i think you'll find the resemblance)

For inquiries on their gigs, leave me a message. =)

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Christmas Party '09 @ the Blue Leaf

It was a night of games, good food and new acquaintances. The best part for me was that we had to dress up Mafia-style ---- men in their almost formal wear and women in their sexy clothes.


I didn't bring Sebastian, my camera, that night coz other than the reason that I wanted to be in the pictures, bringing along a big camera wasn't part of my outfit. 


Good thing Marc brought his. The Blue Leaf had a very unique ambiance and one couldn't help but take a shot at it. 

This is Marc and his newly discovered drink.

...this is Marc again after a few bottles? =)

I love to dress up. Come to think of it, don't we all wear our own little costumes everyday?

My teammates were game in dressing up that night. I'm so lucky that they're as vain as me because it didn't take long until everybody posed right in front of where I was standing. It was the waterfall-effect that made me fall in love with this spot and I was very much pleased with the output.

Thank you, teammates. Cheers to more pictorials together. =)

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Under the Umbrella Tree @ Santa Fe Beach Resort, Cebu City

photos were taken under the umbrella tree at the Santa Fe Beach Resort in Cebu City.

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A Peek inside Ogtong Cave, Cebu

Rommel and I did a prenup shoot for Jeff and Conie in Cebu.

Thanks to the soon-to-be-couple, we discovered the breathtaking Ogtong Cave!

The cave and the water had a lot of things in common: cold, clean and mysterious.

The water was so clear I saw a couple of fishes swimming around even without my goggles on. Stepping from one rock to another could be quite tricky too. The rocks are of different heights you'd really need to watch your step.

I honestly couldn't find an adjective that would justify how beautiful this cave is. Access to the cave is free if you're checked-in Santa Fe Beach Resort and a very small entrance fee will be paid by for those who are visiting from outside the resort.

Kudos to the resort owners for maintaining the cave in it's perfect state.

I will be back soon and will bring along as much people as I could so they could also see how magical this place is.

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Climbing down the Fire Exit

Was I up for another high? I SURE WAS!

This was me, climbing down like a firefighter.

Disclaimer: it may seem like it was close to the ground but it gave me goosebumps looking down from where I was standing.  Took a while for me to let go and hang myself on the pole and just let myself slide.

And as expected, it felt good completing the "challenge" ;)

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*A Date in Paradise* Sugar Beach, Cebu City

It was a day spent in Paradise. 

Any other word would be an understatement. 

Unlike Boracay, Cebu's Sugar beach has a wider beachfront that would give you enough time to appreciate the fine white sand before dipping into the clear water.

And because there weren't much people there, for a moment, it felt like we had the beach to ourselves.

The water was as clear as crystal I could still see my knees at 4 feet deep.

We saw this jellyfish swimming alone while we were heading back to the shore.

T'was another nice moment to add to our life journal. *A date in Paradise*
Besides, it's not everyday we get to date in a place as beautiful as this!

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