Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts

March 28, 2025

Day 5: Traveling from Da Nang Vietnam to Manila Philippines

Day 5 and our last day in Da Nang, Vietnam. It would be a long trip because of the layover. We woke up early because our call time for our airport ride was 5AM. We missed the buffet breakfast because of the early flight, so we requested for packed meal. 


What is inside our packed meal? We have bottled water, hot beverage, fruits, and bread. We ate our breakfast at the airport while waiting for our flight. 




We arrived so early, and the staff informed us that we could ride the first flight because there were still available seats, but we declined since we are traveling as a group. 



Da Nang International Airport is not that big, so there are only a few choices if you want to eat, drink, or buy souvenirs. I bought some pasalubong pero hindi namin type yung nabili ko. 


Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City via Vietnam Airlines - 1hr and 20mins 
Layover 4hrs and 10mins  
Ho Chi Minh City via Philippine Airlines - 3hrs  


Our flight was a little bit delayed, but we were not in a hurry because we had more than 4 hours' layover in Ho Chi Minh City. 

During our flight, we had wet wipes, bottled water, and in-flight streaming services, but I did not watch any movies or shows because our flight was only 1 hour and 20 minutes. Mabibitin lang ako sa panonood.




When we arrived at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, we rode the bus from the airplane. The boarding was still closed and late din nag-open. Ang tagal namin naghintay kaya late na rin kami nakapaglunch. My son and I chose Burger King meals while my husband ate Pho. 



We also bought some pasalubong here because we still have Vietnamese Dong left. Baka mahirapan na rin kami ipalit pa so gastusin na lang. 

Ho Chi Minh City via Philippine Airlines 

Travel time from Ho Chi Minh City to Manila Philippines is 3 hours and this was our meal. Umalis ng madaling araw and nakauwi ng gabi na. 




January 23, 2025

Lunch Buffet at NIU by Vikings SM Aura

We’ve been to different travel expos already but this was our first “Great BDO Travel Sale” experience. Actually, I had no plans of going to this event because I knew that I can book online pero nagpasama si hubby and since wala naman ako gagawin, sinamahan ko na. 

While we were waiting for our number to be called, we were busy checking flyers and watching ads on the screen. Then we saw the “30% Off Dining Feast Promo” of BDO. My husband told me na kakain daw kami sa NIU after magpabook. 

"From January 9-12, 2025, 30% off to CIBO, Greyhound Cafe, NIU by Vikings, Paper Moon Cafe, and The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. Minimum purchase requirements, maximum discount, and qualified cards vary per restaurant."


Funny story, sa bahay pa lang sinasabi na niya sa akin, samahan mo na ko tapos date tayo sa NIU and I told him “Diet nga ko tapos buffet na naman”. Pero after namin magpabook, nagutom talaga ko sa pila so nagbuffet talaga kami kasi sayang ang 30% off. #marupok Hehehe! 

My husband knew na matagal ko ng gustong kumain dito kaso ang layo naman kasi and bihira kami sa SM Aura. Imagine, NIU by Vikings has been around since October 2014 so more than a decade di ba, bago ako nakakain. Well, my husband tried this restaurant for the nth time because of company events or celebrations and always positive ang reviews niya dito.

Anyway, based on my research, I found out that NIU means nine in Old Norse or Old Icelandic Word. NIU has nine different stations serving a variety of dishes that range from Chinese, French, Italian, Japanese, and Mediterranean cuisines. NIU by Viking is located on the highest floor of SM Aura so you feel like you are on a cloud nine. Oh di ba, puro may nine talaga. 

Lunch at NIU by Vikings 

We did not stay long at “The Great BDO Travel Sale” event because we were already hungry so after we booked my husband’s plane ticket, we went straight to NIU by Vikings restaurant. Since I’ve been to other buffet restaurants already, iba nga yung feeling sa NIU by Vikings, parang hotel yung setting.



In less than 5 minutes, the staff put a wristband on our wrists and ushered us to our table. No table number and the staff just wrote our table number on the placemat just in case we wanted to order something. 

When I saw the buffet spread, I felt overwhelmed, ang daming choices and hindi ko nga alam kung saan ako mag-uumpisa. Parang mas marami pa buffet spread nila kaysa sa Seasonal Tastes. Although, mas marami tao sa NIU, so depende sa inyo kung more food or less crowd. 










Overall, sulit ang pagbuffet ko. Naenjoy ko yung tempura station, meat station, and dessert station. Good food and good service. I hope magkapromo ulit para makabalik. 




Check below some of the Viking Group Restaurants that we tried in the past. 


NIU by Vikings Promo 

Celebrants Eat for Free 

Bring 1 full-paying adult on the day of your birthday. Bring 4 full-paying adults on any day within your birthday month. 

Celebrate Big! Up to 30% off. 

Discounts will depend on the day and number of guests. Available Weekday Lunch only. Not valid on Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day, or holidays. 

NIU by Vikings - SM Aura Buffet Rates 

Weekday Lunch 

PHP1,138 - Adult 
PHP438 - Kids 3-4ft/4-7 years old 
PHP748 - Kids 4’1 - 4’6 ft/ 8-10 years old 

Weekday Dinner/Weekend Holidays 

PHP1658 - Adult 
PHP538 - Kids 3-4ft/4-7 years old 
PHP848 - Kids 4’1 - 4’6 ft/ 8-10 years old 

NIU By Vikings 
6/F SM Aura Premier, 
26th Street corner McKinley Parkway, 
Bonifacio Global City 
Contact: 478-3888, 0917-586-6888, 0919-999-6888 

Open Daily 

11AM to 2:30PM 
5:30PM to 10:30PM

January 22, 2025

Lunch Buffet at Guevarra’s by Chef Laudico

 A few months ago, my friend invited me for a lunch get-together and told me na ako na bahala sa venue kasi for sure daw pupunta na ako. Hehehe! It’s been a long time since I attended our org-get-together. Since we did not have any travel plans last Christmas Break, I said yes. 

Eight years ago, I suggested Hogs and Cattle Steakhouse and for our recent get-together, I suggested Guevarra’s by Chef Laudico so we could stay for 3 hours. This buffet restaurant started in 2013 pa, ganun na siya katagal but as usual, kapag nasa probinsiya, hindi natatry agad. Actually, I forgot about this restaurant, naalala ko na lang siya nung nagyaya yung college friend ko nung last get-together. namin.

Since we are a group of 16 people, we needed to make a reservation. I checked their calendar on their website pero walang weekend. Magchange na sana kami ng venue, good thing my friend called the restaurant and was able to reserve. To confirm the reservation, a 50% downpayment is required via instapay or bank deposit. 



Fast forward to our get-together, we left early para iwas traffic but surprisingly, walang traffic so ang aga tuloy namin. Quarter to 11AM, the staff announced na pwede na daw pumasok yung mga may reservation and they opened the buffet table 5 minutes before 11AM. For our group, two separate tables kami. Okay sana kung nasa isang room. 



Anyway, you need to wear a face mask before going to the buffet table and this is a managed buffet pala so kailangan ko pa sabihan na konti lang ang ilagay. Take note of the “Clean Plate Policy” - PHP100 for every 100-gram leftover. 


Late ako sa pagpila so hindi ko nakunan ng maayos yung buffet. My personal favorites sa buffet spread are kare-kare, lechon belly, shrimp, honey glazed ham, and yung dessert station.








My friend paid for our get-together meals but looking at the buffet rate, I can say that it is budget-friendly compared to other buffet restaurants so it is not surprising na marami talaga kumakain. 

Guevarra’s by Chef Laudico 
87 P. Guevarra Street cor Argonne St. 
1500 San Juan, Philippines 
0998 881 3200 
guevarrassales@gmail.com 

Business Hours and Buffet Rate: (Daily) 

Lunch 11AM to 2PM = P879 
Maagang Salu-Salo 5PM to 7PM = P799 
Dinner 7:30PM to 10:30PM = P879 
Weekend Late Lunch 2:30PM to 4:30PM = P799 
Weekend Breakfast 7:30AM to 10AM = P599 

Delivery (Daily) 
9:00am - 6:00pm

January 17, 2025

Christmas Breakfast Buffet at Goji Kitchen + Bar

We usually go to Tagaytay for our Christmas Breakfast but for a change, we had a Christmas Staycation at Clark Marriott Hotel. We only used our Marriott Bonvoy points for our accommodation so breakfast is not included. 

Upon check-in, the staff informed us that we could avail of the Breakfast Buffet at PHP1200/per person, kasi kapag sa restaurant PHP2,100 daw ang rate. At that time, I had no idea about their rates but as of this writing, I checked their page and saw their lunch and dinner buffet rate so okay na naman pala yung rate ng breakfast for check-in guests. 

Buffet Lunch: ₱3,295 
Dinner Buffet: ₱3,595 



Goji Kitchen + Bar is an all-day buffet at Clark Marriott Hotel. The buffet restaurant has a live kitchen so you can see how they prepare the dishes. We went to the restaurant around 7AM and I thought mga tulog pa yung mga guest pero marami na pala nagbrebreakfast. Hehehe! I gave our Breakfast Vouchers and the staff assisted us to our table.



I browsed each station and marami rin naman choices like bread, soup, noodles, dim sum, rice meal, salad, fruits etc. 







May Filipino Station din. 


For drinks, I ordered Hot Chocolate kaso hindi ko type yung chocolate nila. Buti na lang marami pa options like juices and shakes. 


Nagserve din ng turon yung staff and masarap ito. Hindi ko lang alam kung saan station oorder kasi wala ako nung binigay sa table, kulang tuloy ng isa. Buti na lang hindi mahilig anak ko sa turon kaya ako kumain. Hehehe!


Same with Wu Xing Chinese Restaurant, okay ang service ng mga staff dito. Nakapagpaslice pa nga kami ng mango. May naexperience kami sa ibang hotel na yung foreigner binigyan ng platter of mango pero nung kami humingi, for display lang daw. Waah! 


Anyway, we were done eating in less than an hour so we went back to our room na. 

Goji Kitchen + Bar 

Open Daily 
6:00 AM-10:30 AM 
12:00 PM-2:30 PM 
5:30 PM-10:30 PM 

Lobby Level of Clark Marriott Hotel 5398 
Manuel A. Roxas Highway Clark Freeport Zone, 
Mabalacat, Pampanga, 2023, Philippines
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