Never underestimate the power of a good bowl of soup.

"Spoons? Where we're going, we don't need spoons."

I've never been a big fan of ramen. (I can explain! ... Nope, actually, I can't.) I'm in love with spaghetti, but I've never really felt the same way about noodles in soup. That is until I ate at Ramen Bar.

After driving by the place numerous times on my way to work, I finally got the chance to try this little resto that gained itself the title of "the place where you can find the best ramen in the city" (according to numerous food blogs.)

The place was pretty empty since it was a weekday, but I am told that it fills up pretty fast during the weekends.  As you can see, the atmosphere is pretty cozy. Perfect for the comfort food that awaits you. The tables are positioned next to each other, though, so if you're dining as a group of three or fewer, be prepared to do some unintentional eavesdropping.

You can ask for house tea which can either be served hot or cold. We chose to order the cold version since we knew our ramen would arrive piping hot.  While you wait, you can give yourself a quick Japanese lesson by learning the names of the ingredients on the menu. After tasting their ramen, I bet you won't be able to pick a favorite ingredient.  All of them work so perfectly together. Mmmmm. I'm getting ahead of myself here.

R.B.S. #1 - Soy infused Tonkotsu ramen topped with tamago, naruto, nori, negi, chasyu, and kakuni

Now, for the good stuff. After reading numerous blogs about Ramen Bar, I knew that I had to try R.B.S. #1. After hearing all the songs of praise for this bowl, I must say I had pretty high expectations -- and boy, did this meet every single one of them. From the tamago (don't go looking for a yellow bar of egg) to the naruto (don't go looking for... Okay, I won't go there.) to the single piece of nori... Ahhh, it was just bliss. I have to say the tamago was something else. Their version of tamago is soft boiled egg marinated for 48 hours. 48 HOURS. It was worth every second, I tell ya.  The meat (pork, beef, and chicken) was heaven. Tough meat? Non-existent.

Super Chasyu Ramen - Soy infused Tonkotsu ramen topped with overflowing slices of chasyu and tamago

All the blogs that I read said that the chasyu just melts in your mouth. And you know what? IT REALLY DOES. I couldn't believe meat could be that soft. The Tonkotsu (pork bone soup boiled for twenty, yes TWENTY, hours) was so soothing, too. Once you lift that humongous bowl up to your lips, it'll be quite a challenge to put it back down. And have I mentioned their tamago? 48 hours? Oh maaan. This was another bowl of win.

I swear, at the start of our meal, all you could hear was "Oh my God..." "Mmmmm..." "Ahhhh..." and of course, *sluuuurp*... The only coherent statement I could form after about five minutes of non-stop eating was, "I'm happy." This was definitely comfort food at its best.

I wanted to try their one and only dessert on the menu, Tempura Ice Cream, but I was too full. No problem, though, because I'll definitely be going back. Soon, I hope.

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Ramen Bar can be found at the G/F of the Eastwood Mall in Libis, QC. They're open from 11am - 11pm, Mondays to Sundays.

It's an itch we know we ain't gonna scratch.

Click on the picture to see it in its hairy glory... if you dare, that is.

6 years ago, I had a very itchy and scratchy encounter with a higad. (At the risk of sounding conyotic, I just had to use that word. It's just not the same if I say, "caterpillar.")

Despite spending my primary, elementary, and high school years at a school that was very higad-popular, I never had any encounter with the hairy creature. Not once. But one afternoon in 2004, I was quietly minding my own business under the leafy trees (yeah, yeah, I know) at my university when suddenly I saw one crawling on my pant leg. I automatically brushed it off with my left hand. Ooooh, wrong move.

It took only a few minutes for me to feel the effect on my leg and on my hand. "Itchy" is not enough to describe it. It's not enough to describe how annoying, distressing, and painful it was. How can such a small creature cause so much discomfort? Ugh. I made a mental note to be extra careful next time.

Yet here I am, 6 years later, camera in hand, trying to get as close as I can to the little creature that caused me almost excruciating pain -- all in the hopes of getting one good shot of it. Huh.

Oh, did I mention that I like metaphors?

Take a sad song and make it better.

If I had a son, I would name him, "Jude."

Every time someone would see him after a long time, they would go, "Heeyyyy, Jude!" and at the back of their minds, a small voice would always go, "♫ ... don't make it bad... take a sad sooonnngg and make it better. ♫ "

They could always sing it out loud together, too. Kinda like when you're hanging out with someone and you hear a song and hours later, you both blurt out and sing the EXACT SAME PART of that song.

Good times, good times.

On that note...



Happy Friday, everyone!

Do one thing everyday that scares you.

This is the reason why one sunny weekday afternoon, as I was listening to the radio while driving to work, I started bawling my eyes out for 5 minutes straight.

I first heard this "song" when I was about 15 years old.  I remember thinking how "cool" it was, how profound it was.  I even remember thinking how much I thought I could relate to it. Boy, was I wrong.  I didn't realize then how much lay ahead of me.

Cut to 12 years later, to that weekday afternoon, when I realized how much has happened in those 12 years. See, when I was 15, almost everything in the song was just a concept to me... but they were concepts that I believed in.  Some were just common sense.  That's why I thought I could "relate" to it.  When I heard this song again that sunny weekday afternoon, it amazed me how many times I found myself nodding along, not (just) because the beat was catchy, but because I agreed (somewhat strongly) with most of what was being said. I agreed not anymore because they were just concepts, but most of them were already realities I had experienced.  I nodded with such enthusiasm as a series of flashbacks and realizations played in my mind with every piece of advice that struck a chord. A lot of them were painful, some made me want to give myself a pat on the back, and most were just bittersweet. Hence, the 5-minute waterfall.

Everyone goes through a confusing, hair-pulling, deep-sigh-inducing phase. Call it Quarter Life Crisis. Call it Saturn Return. Call it whatever you want. It's just one hell of a big confusing question mark missing puzzle piece. (Yes, it's that confusing.)  This song somehow helps you get through it. Well maybe not get through it, but it does help give you some peace of mind. And believe me, "some" is more than enough.

It just takes 5 minutes to listen to this... Trust me, it's worth it.

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I suggest listening to this without reading the lyrics first. Just let it sink in, one piece of advice at a time. If you do decide to listen and read along, don't try to read ahead.  You can find the lyrics here.

Sweet dreams are made of these. Who am I to disagree?

Can you guess the ice cream flavor?  I'll give you a clue: Lacto-bacillus Shirota Strain.


If a certain 6-note jingle just played in your mind, you probably know what flavor this is.  Yep, it's our childhood favorite, Yakult! To be more specific, it's Frozen Yakult, or Fro-Ya, by Sebastian's.

Sebastian's Fro-Ya at P95 per scoop

After seeing the advertisement for this product online, I couldn't wait to get my hands (and tastebuds) on this delightful dessert.  When I finally got my own cone of Fro-Ya, I had very high expectations. The first lick immediately sent me right down memory lane.  (I don't know why, since I still drink Yakult quite often.) Maybe it was the combination of two childhood favorites. The first few licks made me feel all giddy.

My only problem was... well, you know how Yakult comes in small bottles, right? In one sitting, I usually drink 2 or 3 bottles at most -- all of which I can down in 1 or 2 minutes.  Ice cream takes much longer than that to eat.  Now imagine drinking Yakult for about 5 to 7 minutes (which is how long it took for me to finish my Fro-Ya.) It can be a bit hard on the throat. But that's just me.  If you like downing a whole pack of Yakult in one sitting, then you should be fine.

There's no other way to describe this. It's Yakult that's frozen. But as simple as that sounds, it was still a delight to eat.  It's very hard not to smile after the first lick (or bite, if that's the way you like it.)  

Sebastian's scooping stations are located at The Block,
SM North Edsa, SM Mall of Asia, Trinoma Mall,
Podium Mall, and Alabang Town Center.

Third time's the charm.

Hello hello hello.

The name's Jennie Jo, and I officially welcome you to my blog.  I initially wanted this to be a food blog, but I couldn't think of a name. Then, I wanted this to be a food AND music blog... but I couldn't think of a name. THEN, I realized I didn't want this to be restricted to any particular topic. So with my third brainstormed idea in mind (where else?) I finally found myself at this place, at this very moment, writing this entry.

Why "rule of thirds?" Well, I'd always been fascinated by this rule in photography.  It's not even a rule, really. It's more of a guideline. I'd always been fascinated by how such a simple rule could change the outcome of an image dramatically. Just one shift in composition, in your viewpoint, and the whole image changes just like that. I also like metaphors. *wink wink nudge nudge*

Plus...

Third attempts at something always seem to work for me. Or waiting three days before making a decision. Or trying (and failing at) something three times before confirming that it's not for me. (This is my third attempt at a blog, by the way. Let's see if I'm on to something.)

So, it's not just any rule of thirds. It's MY rule of thirds.

Welcome, welcome to my blog. Here's a chair for you to prop your feet up. Some oreos and milk? How about some Ruffles and french onion dip? Have an M&M or three. :-)