My Top 2018 Whatevers:
Wow Moment: It’s listening to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons concierto by Ryo Goto in Manila Cathedral. For the entire duration of the show, I felt like it was one of my most present state, because it was just…wow. The sound of a live orchestra playing a classical masterpiece inside the cathedral made for an eargasmic experience. Just staring at the details of the structure while overhearing the haunting echoes of strings made me feel like I was experiencing one of the videos of Charlotte Church in real life.
Heart Pumping: That critical moment when we were understaffed in the restaurant and adrenaline is just overcoming the fatigue of doing a 12-hour shift because customers just kept pouring in from opening until closing. That was quite an experience I can say that highlights my 2018.
Unexpected: Without doubt, owning a restaurant.
Most Stressful: The whole month of August was just the most tiring time for me this year. I felt like I was being choked by time pressure every day for the whole month. I was so miserably stressed 80% of the time.
Most Annoying: Dealing with customer queries online really. Some people just don’t read the most obvious of details.
Scariest: At the AirBnb where we stayed in Taipei. The night prior, my friends left me on my own as they flew back to Manila for a 3am flight, so I was alone in the room for one final night at our AirBnb because I’d be transferring to a different place that day…and I swear I woke up to the sound of a voice whispering in my ear something I couldn’t decipher. It sounded like a young teenage girl saying two words in some Chinese language. I was completely alone in the room in a foreign country for the first time, and I just had to experience this paranormal thing. I was more than happy with my decision to transfer to a different place that day.
Worst: Hearing the news of Anthony Bourdain’s death. I was affected more than I thought I should. Also, just having to lose two more of my close relatives this year.
Heartbreaking: That moment as I was staring at the coffin of my aunt and saying my goodbye one last time. That was horrible.
Un-luckiest Moment: One of our bazaars in BGC High Street, it was raining hard that day, and it when it stopped I went out to one corner of the tent, all of a sudden water came gushing down on me soaking me wet from my head down to my torso. Of all the corners and timing, I had to be the one under that spot when what seemed like a pail-full of rainwater that collected on the tent’s edges spilled over. The worst part was that I was in shock that it took me more than a second to move out of the way, receiving about 70% of the water. I was soaking wet and got a lot of pitiful stares. Sad, really.
Stupidest: Eating at that Taiwanese restaurant near my AirBnb at Yongkang area. I wanted to have an authentic meal by trying out a restaurant who didn’t know how to speak English. Bad idea. I mean, I did get to eat a real tasty meal after nodding my head at most of everything the old lady was pointing at thinking that she was pointing at the ingredients of what I ordered, only to realize that by doing so I ended up with three separate dishes that cost me so much for one meal. It was the most expensive meal I spent on the entire trip, costing me almost 700NTD─more expensive than the meal we ate at some fancy hotel! I remember messaging my friends upon receiving the bill, swearing on never to nod whenever I didn’t understand what old ladies were saying. That experience prompted me to cancel one café I was saving up for hoping I could try it on my last day, as well as buying extra pasalubongs on my way back because my cash was drained all of a sudden causing me to be wary of any old lady waiting on tables. Never again!
Regretful: I wish I hugged my cousin Patrick a little bit longer when we said our goodbyes, not knowing that it would be our last hug. I felt that day that while I was saying goodbye to him because I was hoping to see him again for Christmas this year, he knew we might not ever see each other again. It was the longest hug I got from a cousin, and I’m glad that was how we parted ways that day. He died on Good Friday this year.
Most Kilig: For a moment there, I felt like I met my soulmate…just for a moment though.
Coolest: Making it to Jiufen and seeing the lanterns I always dream in photos up close.
Heart Warming: It’s seeing people make an effort to see me. At this age, I’ve come to realize that more than anything, it’s really human relationships that matter.
Proudest Moment: At first I thought it was opening the restaurant, but as it turned out it was actually months after I opened it. My proudest moment was inviting my whole family over, the big clan flew in from all over the country for a cousin’s wedding, and it was a perfect moment to invite them for lunch. That moment when I saw them enter the store feeling proud of me, in turn that was the proudest moment for me; showing them that I have achieved one of my longest and biggest dreams.
Cutest: Cuddling with an akita over at the Airbnb I stayed in Taipei. I someday see myself having an akita for a pet…I just need someone to give me one because they’re too expensive to buy. It’s either an akita or a corgi.
Most Fun: Driving a golf cart around Las Casas de Acuzar. I barely drive because I’m too lazy, but when I do I feel like a kid. It was the first time I got to drive a golf cart.
Wildest: Traveling solo in Taipei for a couple of days. I guess that sense of freedom and independence is so liberating that it was amazing to have lived through those days.
Most Challenging: The first two months of running the restaurant.
Magical Moment: Seeing rows of cherry blossoms blooming in Qingjing farm. It was a childhood-dream-come-true. And also having myself card read.
Mesmerizing: Experiencing spring season for the first time. I love flowers and a cool weather, those two mixed together made me happy.
Awe-Inspiring: Conversations with people I met on Couchsurfing.
Best Feeling: The moment inside the Pedro Calungsod Chapel…when I realized that I am happy with my life now, and how things are turning out.
OMG Moment: Realizing that I’m 30…officially above and over the twenty-something years.
Best Discovery: The recipes we use for our chicken flavors. It was a couple of trial-and-error, several modifications until we got it right…especially the satay sauce I formulated.
Favorite 2018 Drink: Matcha infused espresso by Starbucks…the one drink they got right more than CBTL.
Favorite 2018 Food: Beef Pares at Marikina, Spicy tofu and eggplant dish, our chicken wings especially the Classic New York flavor
Best Thing I Ate: Those sugar coated strawberries at Raohe market.
Favorite 2018 Dessert: Tsujiri matcha soft served ice cream, that Taiwanese ice cream popiah I ate in Shifen, M Bakery’s fudge brownie and blueberry jubilee
Favorite 2018 Restaurant: Chicken Studio
Unforgettable Meal: Our lunch at Old English Manor
Favorite 2018 Hang Out: Chicken Studio…there is nothing more fulfilling than to be in a place you own and seeing the place run.
Favorite 2018 Songs: Rewrite The Stars, Never Enough, Getting Over You by Lauv, DARIN MUSIC AREA - 니가 잠든 사이에 나는, Leaves by Ben&Ben, Always by Gavin James, Nandemonaiya of Kimi no Na wa by RADWIMPS and the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra
Favorite 2018 Movies: The Greatest Showman, Black Panther, Kimi no Na wa, Mortal Engines (story sucks, but the cinematography was right on the money)
Favorite 2018 People: People involved in Chicken Studio, my partners, employees and certain customers. Some guests from Couchsurfing who stayed with us. Chris Broad of Abroad in Japan.
Will Be Most Missed in 2018: Anthony Bourdain, and having to scratch out the possibility of ever seeing new episodes of his show or reading any of his new books. My cousin, Patrick. My aunt tita Suzette.
Achievement Unlocked this 2018:
1. Owning a restaurant
2. Getting in the food business
3. Achieving all my 2018 goals!
4. Travelling solo abroad…for the first time
5. Getting to explore parts of Taiwan
6. Renewing my driver’s license and passport
7. Opening another bank and checking account
8. Surviving the food industry
9. Driving a golf cart
2018 Realization:
If anything is good for pounding humility into you permanently, it's the restaurant business. - Anthony Bourdain
I need to rekindle my relationship with my family as they are everything.
Lesson Learned for 2018:
It’s amazing how much kindness and hate you can find in strangers.
Hangry people are the worst.
2019 Bucket List:
1. Do something special for my parents’ birthday.
2. Do more blog posts…like seriously.
3. Improve my fitness level…like even more seriously.
It's my fourth consecutive year of featuring scary stories of personal experiences I have with the paranormal. This year I have one scary experience that shook me out of my head for a few minutes, and the worst part was that it was in the most unpractical of situations considering that it was at a time when I was helplessly alone. The next is more of a story my mom told me about what happened right before the burial of my cousin who died on Good Friday this year. And the last one isn't really a scary experience, it's more of an encounter with a medium who has ESP or extrasensory perception, and we did a card reading and I had a lot of goosebumps moment during our conversation.
Whispers in My Ear...Again...but in Taiwan!
Okay, one of the worst case scenarios often dipicted in the movies is when a person is in their most vulnerable, like being alone and helpless in the middle of nowhere. This happened to be my case when I was alone...in a room...in different country...completely ALONE for the next four days. That was the annoying bit, that it chose to stike me at my weakest. Months ago I've been intently planning to go on my first ever solo adventure, but on training wheels, should I say it metaphorically. The destination was Taiwan, and the plan was that I leave the country with three other friends just so I can assure my parents that I wasn't alone...because you know, even at thirty I still need some sort of permission whenever I'm about to do something crazy beyond their control. So, in my head, my friends will be with me the first four days giving me enough time to get to understand the workings of the city before they all go home ahead, leaving me on my own for the next four days to do my solo trip, and in this process my parents won't have to worry about the thought of me being abandoned to fend myself completely on my own, in a foreign country, without anyone to run to half-way through the trip. BUT! That incident made me realize that I had made a genius decision, because when we were selecting a place to stay, my friends had been incessantly asking me if I'll be booking the same place for the whole trip or not; to which I decided that the night after they leave I'll be transferring to a homestay the next morning in another part of town so that I'll be with other people at least and not be so completely alone inside a unit 1161 kilometers away from home.
So...their flight back to Manila was at 3am on the 11th of April, and they had to leave the AirBnb at 11pm on the 10th...which meant that I'd be alone on the night that I'll be sleeping on April 10. That night, after I walked them to the train station and got back in the room, I have never felt more independent and empowered. Finally, after years of curiosity and weeks of crammed up planning, this was what it felt like to travel solo. The adventurer in me awakened. Everything felt normal and was in place the moment I returned from a night stroll. I was even brave enough to sleep with most of the lights off because we've been staying in the unit for three consecutive nights with nothing weird going on, well...except that the unit's bathroom has this huge window that can easily be opened from the outside and expose you while you were showering.
I slept soundly that night...but that was until about 7am when I woke up to the sound of a voice whispering in my ear something I couldn’t decipher. It sounded like a young teenage girl saying two words in some Chinese language. Just two quick words before fading out, and I found myself slowly opening my eyes to see that (THANK GOD!) it was already bright and early. I sat there silent and in contemplation as to what might have happened. I scanned the room with one brisk turn of my neck and found it completely empty. I didn't freak out as the voice I heard wasn't menacing, and I didn't really know the translation of her words, whether it was "Wake Up" or "Excuse Me" or "Get Out", but that incident resembled so much what I had experienced years ago, and it kinda unnerved me knowing that I had no one to run to. One thing that I was just so thankful for was my decision to move out of that studio unit that very morning because I had made a reservation at a different place. This kinda made me think as to whether travelling solo and staying in a hotel room or AirBnb alone would be something I wouldn't regret doing someday soon. I've stayed in creepier rooms, but there's a big difference when you know you're on your own.
Seeing the Severed Leg of My Cousin in Photos
As a brief back story, my late cousin Patrick was in a really bad state, he was on the last stage of his diabetes. He had lost his eyesight from complications, was in need of a dialysis three times a week, and had his right leg amputated due to a wound infection that wasn't healing for more than a year. Being a jokester, he had been telling everyone that he and his severed leg will reunite in heaven one day as his leg decided to go ahead a little earlier than him. He was well aware of how seriously close he was to his mortality, in fact when I bid farewell to him last January, he gave me a hug so long and tight, a knowing hug that it could be the last time we say goodbye...and thus it was. On March 30 of this year, after finishing his dialysis and before heading home from the hospital, he insisted to his wife that they take a detour to go to a chuch so that he could go and pay his respects to the lying statue of the dead Christ as what we Filipinos traditionally call as du-aw. A big deviation from his normal self as ha barely goes to church. There, as his wife had told, he wept and wailed with repentant tears as his kissed the foot of the santo entierro for a good long time, not minding the people who were giving him mournful and uncomfortable stares. After what seemed like a really long passing of time, his sobbing slowly went silent, turning to his wife he said, "Okay na, let's go home." His wife discribed his face as he said those words were peaceful, as if he had been comforted and the world was lifted off his shoulders. It was on their ride home, just minutes after the visitation incident, that his wife saw him gradually fall his head down on the car seat and realized that he had ultimately made his way home. He died right in the car.
And thus, on the day of his burial my mom was taking photos of his coffin using her iPad, and she said in one of the shots she noticed a white mass in what seemed like a leg just standing right beside the coffin my cousin. Being a trickster that he is in real life, he made sure he was able so scare my mom bad even in the afterlife. What happened was that my mom didn't even notice that she had taken a paranormal photo until another person pointed at her saying that what had appeared in the frame was that of a severed right leg similar to that of the deceased person. And when she captured that photo and she was asking around to confirm what she was seeing her iPad suddenly hanged and she couldn't close the image or delete it. She kept complaining that for the entire day, her iPad wouldn't budge that she had to turn it off, but every time she turned it back on the same image would pop up on her screen. She said in a desperate attempt, because she couldn't stare nor use her device for two days, she called out to the spirit of Patrick to quit his antics because my mom is a real scaredy-cat when it comes to anything paranormal. After several attempts and pleading, the image suddenly just disappeared, and mom said that she could no longer find the image in her photos, and she was able to use her iPad normally agian. Too bad, I really wanted a copy.
Tarot Reading Experience
I'm not new to having my fortune read with a tarot card, I've had mine years ago from an old lady who regularly visited my aunt because she was a fan of the cards; I also had another reading in high school by one of my classmates who had interest in practicing his paranormal skills...all of which I had forgotten what was said about my fortune. In any case, last February we had a bazaar at BGC High Street, and one of their programs featured a booth for a free tarot card reading session. Of course I had to, because it's been years since my last, and it was at a time when I was about to leap for a major life decision; i.e. Chicken Studio...and most of all it was free.
The tarot reader was a guy looking like he was in his late thirties to early forties. He asked me to shuffle the cards three times. In the reading, I got three random cards from the deck for a general reading of my Past, Present, and Future...all of which I got suit of Pentacles. What are pentacle cards? They relate more on the manifestation and aboundance of material things, money, and whatnots. Which meant that I'm on the right track when it comes to the direction of my future plans. He also asked me to draw two extra cards from the deck for two bonus questions, one I asked about business...of course I got another pentacle sort of giving me a go signal to push with opening the restaurant as I was told that my luck, when it comes to starting something that related to money, was really really good. Aaaaand then came the second question about the "lovelife" part...well before even drawing a card I knew a possible good news was bleak, and unsurprisingly when the tarot reader turned the card and sort-of winced at the sight of seeing a bleeding swan being pierced by a sword right in the heart in reverse, I just had to roll my eyes. Oh well, there goes my love life. But one thing that struck me about what he said was that it's there, just lurking around my presence...but I shouldn't expect it to happen until after three to five years. Sounds about right.
Then, months after having my fortune read by some random stranger using old magical cards, I met another medium in a form of a woman who I had a common friend with. This time she brought out six decks of tarot for me to choose from...because she said that when she was selecting which tarot deck she'll be using for my reading they were screaming at her that they wanted to volunteer to come and see me for the tarot session. Because the tarot cards speaks to her she says as being a person with ESP. Unlike my other experiences who asked me to chose a card where I feel a heat signature coming from the most, and the other asking me to pick as randomly as I could, this time she asked me to hold each of the deck, observe, feel them and listen to my subconscious as which of the six connects with me the most. And so I did, I each bonded with the deck making sure we have our quality time before rejecting the five and going with the one that resonated with me the most...well...it actually came down to the pretty drawing that I liked the most, more of like my style of drawing is this children's book-fantasy-art nouveau style kinda art.
Before we started our session, she made a comment that sort-of caught me off guard, totally shaking me off my senses. She squinted her eyes and said, "Is your third eye open?"
"No" I quickly answered.
"But you can feel them?"
"I don't know...but I have a sensitive intuition." I admitted as I almost always have been on point with my intuitions.
She peered deeper into my eyes and implied, "You have heightened senses...you're about to be Awakened."
Now, having a slight idea what being awakened means as described by a friend who had experienced it last year, I had to ask, "Does that mean my third eye will open?"
To which she frankly and plainly replied, "Yes" like it was no big deal.
In my head, all I could think of at that moment was, "Oh shit."
And then we started our tarot session. Her technique was quite different from the others that I've tried. I had to hold and shuffle the cards as I thought up of a question I wanted answered. As long as I couldn't come up with a question I had to keep on shuffling the deck. The question that she required me to ask shouldn't be passive in a sense that the answer will also be passive. She said she hates hearing the most repeated question, "How will I find my soulmate?" because that is passive as there is no specific way of finding one's soul-mate, thus there is no specific answer to that question she explained. I looked to side...well...there goes one of my questions. So, there I was just shuffling the cards and the first question I just had to ask was about life directions.
"Am I in the right path of where I should be?" I asked.
She accepted that question, analyzed it and instructed me to take out three cards from the deck as means to answer the question. When I flipped the cards over I was astonished to see that what I got were two pentacle cards and a swords. And from thereon I got goosebumps as to how similar her reading was from my previous tarot reading just five months prior. To the questions that succeeded, how she placed her words as she told me, some of them she hears as whispers at each flip of the card was kinda eerie. Although some thoughts were either general declarations or open-ended statements, there were also specifics that triggered my hair strands to raise. It was nothing short of extraordinary. Our conversation reached to an end when I ran out of questions to ask. I basically only asked four questions I think...mostly pertaining to business and family.
At one point, while I was shuffling the cards and thinking of something to inquire, "Don't you wanna ask about your lovelife?" she kidded in a teasing tone.
"No thanks," I retorted with a quick flat smile. I wasn't about to have my hopes get stabbed again. Besides, we had common friends...the card reader who I want to ask about my bleak romantic fortune has to be a total total total of the totalest stranger. But now that I think of it, I may have a specific question I want answered..and that, might as well be the scary part.
I have been wanting to write a blog entry on my recent trip to Taiwan last April, but I haven't really come into terms as to how I can incorporate the places I've been to and the food I ate without being distracted with talking too much about the food part. This was my solution, creating a post fully dedicated to the food I ate the entire trip...most of it at least. These are the kaleidoscopic flavors of Taiwan through my phone lens. This is just a documentation of my meals during that trip really. I just want to share my experience, of indulging in the tastes and variety of choices you can have when you go there.
From years down to days, it has come to this...hours passing and minutes ticking...I have reached the end of my twenties. It's only a matter of time when my book for this decade closes and the years to my 30's begin.
As a child I imagined that I'd have my life all figured out by now because the age 3-0 seemed so oooold twenty-so years ago. I imagined living the typical life expected of a traditional Filipino woman, aspired by the community for every breathing individual: a successful career and my own family. I once thought that by the time I reached 30 I'd be an executive of some fancy company, driving my own car, residing in a happy two storey house with two kids (a girl and a boy) and some Adonis top manager/lawyer/doctor/haciendero for a husband. I was stupid as a kid. How much of a fool was I?
My reality turned out much different from the norm...no...different from what I had innocently imagined back then. I would define my twenties as the entire process of a quarter-life-crisis. From pre-recognition, to gradual realization, to being overwhelmed and basking in the feeling of succumbing to its pains, to acceptance, to learning to deal with it, slowly overcoming my demons, until finally reaching a point of easing down into self-healing. I suppose, this is why I am yet to write a proper article regarding quarter life crisis despite claiming this blog as dedicated to living through quarter life. I only did snippets of it because I haven't totally embodied it, not until I was able to go through the entire thing that I can self-validate, describing the horrors and conquest of going through a quarter life crisis.
My teen years was the age of self identity and rebelliousness, and upon reaching my twenties I started a more mature quest of figuring out my life path and purpose. It was the decade of accepting my fate of becoming an adult, thus becoming a more responsible human being. The first three years of my twenties I would say was when I truly felt my youth and freedom as I just graduated and had all the energy in the world to conquer it. My mid-twenties was when it went downhill...my energy level, my finances, my satisfaction level, and my overall happiness level. Why? I was so discontented with my reality and cannot help but willow in the pains of frustration, self-pity and self-inflicted misery. It was the peak my quarter-life-crisis. My turning point was when I was able to identify the cause of my anxiety and got slapped with a dose of reality-check from the person I needed to hear it the most. My mom said, "Change your mindset and get over yourself." A perfect way to show tough love as typical of my mom, but those were the words that slapped me back to consciousness and got me out of the cycle of substantiating my bitterness with all pseudo realities that dwelt more on negativity than gratitude. I resigned from my job to chase after my dream of starting a business. I found hope by clinging onto faith and restitching my relationship with God. I took it one day at a time, breathed in, and constantly just hung onto the possibility of reaching that day wherein I can say, "This is it."
And just a few days prior, a timely event transpired, while meditating in the chapel of St. Pedro Calungsod, I stared at the face on the cross and out of the blue a thought came to me, "Oh my God, I'm happy and content." As it crossed my mind, I couldn't help but be emotional. It was a prayer that took years to be answered. That to me is the greatest gift I can get on my 30th year. A kind of actuality that I didn't come to realize and feel for quite some time now. I mean yeah, there's still a lot of ambitious dreams left to chase, but overall I am feeling good with who I am at this point. It took a lot and a long time to get to this state of consciousness, and by no means was it smooth sailing, but the journey was certainly more pleasant than turbulent. I remember writing a post at the end of 2017 that one of my 2018 goals is: "Be awesome by the time I turn 30." And I think reaching several of my life goals before turning thirty makes it quite an awesome feat. For our generation, reaching a state of happiness and contentment is improbable around this age with so much dissatisfaction...and it is exactly that, the realization that I have turned things around right at the end of my 29th year, is what makes it special. To think that just a few years ago I was miserable and downtrodden by my own doing. It was the peak of my quarter-life-crisis; I was in a state of disillusionment and uncertainty.
It is in my 20's when I experienced a lot of firsts, either by choice or by fortunate to foolish turn of events. The best part of the whole experience is building memories and creating friendships that went beyond cordial. I experienced the peak of my youth in my twenties, and beneath this calm disposition is a bigger thirst for life. Though currently I could feel my energy level far less than my early twenties, I get to wake up and still be enamoured by the little things. A far cry from my mid-twenties.
At this point, I see friends my age chasing dreams, getting married, starting a family (some have three kids even), those migrating to more progressive countries, some deciding to go back home to be with their loved ones...but there are also those who are still in the process of figuring things out, still within the loop of finding themselves. Me? I've come into terms with who I am, and just ever so carefully making means to turn into the person I want to become. I left my job, one stable and another high paying one, to chase dreams that I know one day will be more purposeful than what I do for corporations. I've made it this far. I've started taking the high road, and I cannot look back.
I want my thirties to be a decade of pursuing bigger life goals as well as doing more purposeful acts of contributing to society. The end goal is home...and a childhood dream realized. Indeed, with the way things are taking a turn, 30 will suit me just fine...probably more than 20, or 29 even. Thirty it is.
Amazingly, this gem in the heart of Makati was introduced to us by a couchsurfer. Unknown to a lot of locals, this showroom/restaurant/cafe quietly sits on the second floor of an artsy building made with concrete and rust-treated steel. It didn't take long before my brother decided to celebrate his 35th birthday here. Without much planned for the day, we ended up staying here from lunch down to their closing just so we can accommodate guests who couldn't make it for lunch, as a result we ended up tasting almost the entire menu. The place was so cozy that while I decided to leave after our lunch, some of our friends chose to stay in for the entire eight-hour duration of the party. The place is so low-key that we had the place to ourselves practically the whole day, save for dinner when a couple came in to dine.
The place if full of artsy vibes done about by their custom furniture and specially crafted tableware. Their restaurant is apparently also their showroom as they have industrial designers who can custom-make seats and tables for you. All are locally made and is predominantly made out of wood. Their colors are neutrals and kinda reminds me of Scandinavian designs with a pinoy twist.
Chicken Studio is the result of frantic cramming between friends. What seemed like a nice idea at first suddenly became a rushed-up reality when a very fortunate and timely offer fell on our laps. The heart of Chicken Studio is the chicken (obviously), and the spirit is the studio as it is currently invisible...but maybe in time, there will be one. We honestly don't know when though. In the words of my friend as a retort to one of the complainants about us not serving dessert, "Wag na sila mag tanong kung ba't walang dessert yung Chicken Studio; wala ngang studio yung Chicken Studio, dessert pa!" Initially we had plans of turning the second floor into a photography studio and creative space, but judging by the influx of people plus the work that needs to be done, the project has been delayed.
Slowly though, we are making changes to make things better for the restaurant, our staff, and of course the customer. And for the record, my partners and I have zero experience in the food industry nor had any previous food-related jobs...and this makes everything so much harder. We are doing our best to address the successive problems that arise since we opened our doors...but we're just clueless at times. To better explain our inexperience, we are a combination of an architect, a photographer, a videographer, a graphic artist and an accountant. For the love of food and sharing it, we ventured into the restaurant business. This is the reason why we appreciate insightful inputs to help us grow, not plain hatred from hangry people...which I suppose is unavoidable at times.
Taken last week, March 19, 2018 in our condo for the product shoot of the food that we'll be selling at our restaurant next month.
The very reason why this blog went on hiatus is because of this new business venture I am pursuing with my brother and three other friends. Years back, when I started this blog I mentioned about pursuing a dream of opening a coffee shop, and it was only late last year when I started preconditioning the universe and my mindset that 2018 is the year I jump from being an artist to being a cook. I'm 29, and Peter Dinklage was 29 when he made that leap of faith of risking a stable job to fulfill an ambition. This is mine. This is step one. It's not a coffee shop by the looks and the name...we won't even sell coffee just yet...but I will be learning how to do things and go about with the food business industry, and this is making everything seem so much closer and real now.
We will be serving fried chicken wings with a variety of flavors that a friend and I developed for the past months. We will also be serving hamburgers and nachos...which I will also post about after I get hold of the images because we are yet to do another shoot by the end of the week.
For now, this is what's been keeping me busy for the first quarter of my 2018. A good start to everything I had hoped, planned, and worked for.
Please like our Facebook page for updates: CHICKEN STUDIO
56-D, Lilac Street
Marikina City 1800
