Passed by David's...nah! Passed by Chowking....nah!
I finally settled in at Via Mare, Greenbelt 1.
Rap-sa..with hot salabat pa!
I ate here a few times before when I was still a student at AIM...the last one which I remember very well was a treat by Sir B and Ms G coz I think it was somebody's birthday..and Bong was there...*sigh* my happy memories seem to be always connected with food :-)
Via Mare at Greenbelt 1 Cafe & Oyster Bar
Paseo de Roxas Makati City
Tel. No. +63-2 815-1918
Telefax No. +63-2 893-2306
Check it out: http://www.viamare.com.ph
Postscript: 5th of December 2008
btw, it doesn't mean that Via Mare's specialty is congee, its just that this was the first time I had congee at Via Mare...their other dishes are delicious..and I remember their pork binagoongan amongst other dishes..
ReplyDeleteLove congee too, specially now in cold weather Comfort food for winter. Dito sa Vancouver sa Chinese restaurant lang merong congee.
ReplyDeleteSexy naman ng nakahiga diyan sa site mo Cat. Ikaw ba yan? LOL
ReplyDeleteGoto o chicken ba to? I don't like congee, but I like lugaw. I know they are supposed to be the same but they are not. Congee is supposed to be glutinous rice cooked with a lot of water and is tasteless. Yon lang mga sahog ang may lasa and then you mix them in with sliced onion shoots, or century eggs, or whatever. Goto lugaw or arroz caldo (usually chicken) is cooked with the sahog in. Ewan.
ReplyDeleteCat, did it say congee in Via Mare's menu? I suspect this is either goto or arroz caldo. Hehe, pasensiya na at makulit ako, pero iba ang congee ng Intsik sa lugaw ng Pinoy. And Via Mare is a Pinoy resto.
ReplyDeleteThere are subtle differences between lugaw and congee. Basic congee is usually just plain rice gruel, very smooth in texture and almost tasteless. It will owe its taste to whatever you add to it – meats, shallots, garlic, chili oil, salt, soy sauce, whatever. Our basic lugaw is more coarse in texture, the rice grains, although also very soft, are more distinct. And unless lugaw is being served as comfort food to a sick child (hehe, Americans have chicken soup, I had basic lugaw), it would have been already seasoned with salt or patis and some meats cooked in it. The two common variations of lugaw are goto and arroz caldo. Goto has beef tripe in it, while arroz caldo (literally hot rice in Spanish) has chicken in it.
Hugz loves goto, I prefer arroz caldo. But the best for me is just plain lugaw, which means.... I like congee better, hehe. I love the congee with minced pork and century eggs of any Chinese resto! =)
This is so funny. Hugz and I are seated beside each other in the round work table outside our bedroom, quietly looking into Multiply in our own laptops, not talking. And whoa, out pops our respective comments on lugaw and congee! ^_^ Hehe, parallel minds.
ReplyDeletePerfect for a cold, rainy morning. yummmm!
ReplyDeleteMy Mom used to stir the congee for close to an hour while cooking. Sabi niya para pino/smooth daw. I was waiting for it to turn into Gerber--yung baby food ba.
ReplyDeleteThere was a period of time in my corporate life when I'd go to the cafeteria for merienda, setting my mind on something new para maiba naman but then I always ended up ordering chicken arroz caldo which was eternally available. Minsan pag lapit ko sa counter, sabi ng counter crew doon, "Ma'am, arroz caldo po?" Psychic ba siya? hehehe.
I'm not surprised. =)
ReplyDeleteBad trip ka Ms. Cat. Nabasa ko lang ang subject nitong post mo sa inbox ko, nag-crave na ako bigla. Weather din kasi! So I went out of the office for a while to look for a nearby place na may congee. Wala. Yung alam ko for sure na meron, medyo malayong lakad pa. Boooo. Hindi ako matatahimik nito! And it's all your fault! Hahahaha!
ReplyDeleteo sya..I give up *grin*
ReplyDeleteI am going to satisfy my curiousity and visit Via Mare today or tmrw and look at their menu...
I had eaten here kc last October or November and I could not remember anything except that I was feeling out of sorts and wanted something hot and comforting...
am not sure if lugaw, congee, arroz caldo, pospas or ano kaya nakain ko?
LOL!
LOL!
ReplyDeletethat is funny nga...its similar almost to 2 friends seated beside each other, tapos they are texting each other pala at the same time *grin*
abah, may craving ka Dyaneenski?
ReplyDeletehimala..di ka mahilig kumain!
mwahaha! *wink, wink*
*yawn*
ReplyDeleteI got sleepy last night as I was looking thru themes..so I didn't change it anymore..basta red and green muna...I am gonna change this a couple of times more...
ok, I went to Via Mare this afternoon..and ayon, naka-kain ako ng di oras..another post on that :-)
ReplyDeletebut I have confirmed it..and am adding to this blog later a picture of the menu...
what I had ordered was LUGAW TOPPINGS.
mea culpa..sa isip ko kc lugaw and congee parehas..basta rice porridge tapos naay sagol..este kasama...whether its cooked at the same time or differently, didn't make a difference to me at that time..but ngayon I can trot that piece of info out..hehehe..as if expert ako sa all things rice porridge...
re-reading what Ms G said about congee and lugaw
ReplyDeletee pano to? magulo kc parang feel ko congee pa rin yong nakain ko kc may century eggs. tofu pa at kung ano-ano..
let me get the list of the ingredients..parang congee-lugaw yata to HLH!
LUGAW TOPPINGS description:
ReplyDeleteRice porridge topped with adobo flakes, salted duck egg, crisp tofu, pork kilawin, fried wonton, garlic flakes and spring onions.
if toppings, so it wasn't cooked altogether? does that mean parang congee to? or congee to mistaken identity?
ewan...let's just enjoy it! yum! (eeek, its hot! paso dila)
You can't go wrong with chicken arroz caldo.
ReplyDeleteWhat's in a name? Congee or lugaw, main ingredient rice kaya pareho na rin yan, both masarap. Congee is Chinese and lugaw is Pinoy. Yung in-order mo dapat yata ang tawag nila "Lugaw with toppings."
ReplyDeletecorrect BNK, Lugaw with toppings is how its called in the menu...
ReplyDeleteand, I suddenly remembered na sometimes I would ask my mom to make "tinughong" which is rice porridge din..pero sweet sya...
iba rin yung feel ko mag champorado...nilalagyan ng tablea and brown suger
I remember champorado is best paired with tuyo or dilis. Ay sarap na merienda, nakaka-miss.
ReplyDeleteiba rin yon sa amin, when you would make it so fine na parang "lanot" yata tawg sa amin...but still very good coz when I got sick..that was it, just plain rice porridge na pino then paired with some salted black beans..it sure could open up one's appetite...
ReplyDeletethe black beans would be those found in small plastic cups with lids...chinese style...later on, when I got older, my current bf at that time (during times of fever or sickness or *gasp* loss of appetite*) would bring to pair with the lugaw a jar of parang salted fine tofu na red ang color..hmmm....
Kat, you awakened my memories of my childhood comfort food! Yesss, I remember the black beans and the salted soy bean paste that was like a tiny cake with red icing (albeit veeerrry salty). Waaah, now I am the one craving for lugaw or congee...whatever you call it! LOL!
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen it in the groceries though..but could be a good thing to eat after simbang gabi...
ReplyDeleteI wish my mom was here now to make me some lugaw (lanot)
anyways..I cooked oatmeal this breakfast..and found tucked in the corner of my fridge (thank you Mommy!) a package of ba-hu (shredded meat...powdery chicken this time)
wow, yummiest looking congee i've ever laid eyes on..
ReplyDeleteI wonder if may congee diet...magiging slim kaya ang taong mag-gaganon?
ReplyDeletekung wala yang mga toppings na yan, plain congee lang, for sure you will be slim...pero yuck. he he.
ReplyDelete