MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan

Feeling Like A Kid Again At Movie Stars Cafe

May 3, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 19 Comments

The boys and I have had a really long, super fun week. I realized this morning that we actually kind of started and ended it with Spiderman. Our first Spiderman encounter happened at Movie Stars Care where the boys and I had dinner last Sunday.

The boys already dined here before, but it was lunch time when they went and so they weren’t able to catch any of the shows. It’s definitely a lot more sulit to eat here at dinnertime because of the added value of great entertainment and the opportunity to have your picture taken with your favorite movie icons.

I was really impressed with how nice the costumes and memorabilia in the restaurant were. I honestly wasn’t expecting it to be as nice there as it was. I think that it was a good thing that I had absolutely no expectations because it helped me enjoy the place even more. Really, I felt like a kid all over again.

Here’s what you will see as you enter Movie Stars Cafe

From the moment we arrived, I knew that we were in for one big photo op.

Here’s a tip

If you’re visiting Movie Stars Cafe for dinner, come early. The cosplayers start coming out in their costumes as early as 6pm. You have a better chance of having your photo taken while there aren’t that many people at the restaurant yet. Also, I’ve been told that the place can get really packed especially if you’re coming on a weekend. Yes, there are nights when there is a long queue to be seated, and to think the restaurant can seat 300 persons! So, either come early or make sure to call ahead to reserve a table.

We arrived right before sunset. Apart from not having to deal with icky traffic and being able to choose a table that we liked, we were also treated to an amazing view of the sun sinking into Manila Bay. Told ya, come early!

Little MrC meets Iron Man and a Jawa. Plus, the sunset as seen from the restaurant’s bay side entrance.

I was really hoping to see Batman characters there, but there were only statues, no cosplayers

Buffet or Ala Carte?

At Movie Stars Cafe, you can choose to either order ala carte or go for the Dino Buffet. There are advantages to choosing either one, actually. With ala carte, your food is cooked fresh so everything is nice and hot, pasta is al dente, meats are soft and veggies remain firm. You can also take home the food that you aren’t able to finish. As for the buffet, if you have a huge appetite, you can really eat to your heart’s content, especially if you end up staying for all of the shows. There’s also a good selection of items available, so you will get to try a variety of dishes.

The dinner buffet is open from 6pm to 10pm. Here are the rates:

Adults – P699
Kids 6-12 years old – P499
Kids 3-5 years old – P299
Kids 0-2 years old – FREE

On Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, holidays and days before holidays, buffet prices are more expensive by P100 per head. You can also upgrade to bottomless drinks by adding P99 to the buffet price. This drink-all-you-can option is only available to those eating at the buffet, and not for ala carte diners. Oh, one more thing. There’s a no leftovers policy for the buffet.

I don’t have any photos of the buffet offerings the night we were there. If you wanna see what they have, you can check out the posts of my mommy blogger friends, Janice, Levy and Millie.

We chose to order ala carte because we knew we wouldn’t be able to eat a lot at the buffet anyway. All in all, our bill was about P2,300 for the three of us, and at that rate we ordered quite a lot. The servings are really big, so with just 2 starters, a pasta dish, a dessert and a round of drinks, we were super stuffed. We were even able to take home some food for my brother to try.

Four Cheese, Overload and Strawberry Float

We started with an Overload (P490), which is a platter of blue, yellow and red corn chips topped with chili con carne, bacon, jalapenos, shredded lettuce, olives, cheese and salsa. This was really good.

Little MrC ordered a Four Cheese (P420), lasagna with ricotta, cream cheese, cheddar and mozzarella. I loved how the lasagna noodles were firm and perfectly cooked. Most restaurants here tend to overcook lasagna, ending up with a soggy mess. This one was just right, and piping hot too when it arrived.

So many drinks to choose from! Next time I want to try their cocktails. And their coffee drinks too!

For our drinks, MrC had two rounds of canned soda, the little boy ordered a mango shake, and I chose the Strawberry Float (P195), which our server said was one of their best sellers. It was like a Sprite float and a strawberry milkshake combined. So good. So fattening!

In the middle of our meal, I saw Atom walking outside through the window. The boys immediately got up and ran out for a photo op. Little MrC also stopped to take a picture with Darth Vader.

Picture, picture with Darth Vader and Atom

While the boys were off taking photos, I decided to order a Jackson Five (P465), which was a chicken appetizer platter. It had chicken lollipops, buffalo wings, almond chicken tenders, and chicken sate, served with honey mustard sauce, buffalo sauce, bleu cheese dip and thousand island dressing. So, so, so good. I really loved this one.

Jackson Five, Wonder Woman and Princess Leia, I think

I remembered to save room for dessert this time, so we ordered some before we left. We had the Memory Lane (P240), a layered cheesecake – vanilla on top, Toblerone at the bottom – served with strawberry syrup. The menu says that it’s supposed to have cream aglaise too, but ours didn’t have any. Oh well, it was still really yummy. The boys and I love cheesecake. This one was crumbly but soft and fluffy, just the way I like it.

Cheesecake! It’s so crumbly that a piece fell off before I got to take a photo

Sights, Sounds and Shows

Don’t forget to charge your camera before coming to Movie Stars Cafe. Trust me. I thought that my camera was fully charged, but I WAS WRONG! It conked out before the night ended. Huhuhu. And I was really having fun taking pictures. Oh well, lesson learned.

It isn’t hard to go crazy taking pictures, after all there are musical performances each and every night! Shows begin at 7pm, Mondays to Saturdays. On Sundays, the first show is at 6:30. Every half hour, there’s a performance, and each number lasts for about 15 minutes. Fun!

Watch your favorite characters dance, or join them onstage for a number

In between performances, we walked around and took more photos with the statues on display all over the restaurant. There were no dull moments for us the whole night, and it wasn’t hard keeping the little boy occupied. This is really a great place for families.

Oh look, Little MrC fits right in with his stormtrooper shirt

Each night, there are featured performances. When we were there, the main show was Beauty and the Beast. Other highlights were Spiderman and Iron Man. We caught the Beauty and the Beast and Spiderman shows, but by the time Spidey took the stage, my battery was already long gone. Thank goodness MrC was also taking pictures with his phone.

I love how they were able to compress the entire Beauty and the Beast movie into 15 minutes. This is one of my Disney faves, and back when we were in college, I remember MrC took me to see Beauty and the Beast on Ice in Araneta. That was so much fun! I was really glad that this was the featured show when we were at Movie Stars Cafe. I was so giddy that I actually went onstage for a photo with Mrs. Pots and Cogsworth after their performance.

And no, we didn’t leave the little boy alone at our table while MrC and I went to take that photo onstage. We actually found the perfect guy to watch him for a few minutes.

We didn’t get to see the Iron Man show coz it was scheduled pretty late and there was work the next day. But we really hope to catch it the next time we come back.

One of the highlights of the night for me was meeting the other mommy bloggers who were there, too. I rarely get to attend these events, and whenever I do, it excites me that I get to finally see these online friends in person.

The boys and I cannot wait to go back to Movie Stars Cafe. I also hope that you guys get to experience the fun there, too. So, as a super special treat, I am giving all of you a special 10% discount whenever you dine at Movie Stars Cafe. Really, really. All you have to do is use this promo code when you ask for your bill!

Thank you, Movie Stars Cafe and Mommy Bloggers Philippines for this amazing experience! The boys and I super appreciate it. 🙂

And thank you, MrC’s iPhone for this photo!

MOVIE STARS CAFE
By The Bay, Seaside Blvd.
SM Mall of Asia, Pasay City
reservation@moviestarscafe.com
+632 550 1234
#/MovieStarsCafe
#/MovieStarsCafe

“Getting To Know WordPress” Goes South!

May 1, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 13 Comments

Do any of these describe you?

I am a blogger and I blog on Blogspot
I am a blogger and I blog on WordPress.COM
I am a blogger and I blog on WordPress.org BUT I don’t know what to do with all of these plugins
I am an online entrepreneur and my store is on Facebook
I am a stay-at-home mom or dad who wants to transition into becoming a work-at-home mom or dad
I am a work-at-home mom or dad and I want to learn about web administration so I can start offering that as a service

If you feel that you are one or more of the guys I mentioned up there, then this workshop is for you. VA Support Pro’s WordPress 101 Workshop is up for another run on May 10, and this time it’s gonna be in the south! Yay!

Join my amazing friends The Happy WAHM and The Techie Mom at Le Petit Cheri, Molito Alabang, and get to know more about WordPress. This is a great opportunity for you guys to ask the questions you’ve always wanted to ask about this platform. Trust me, these two are good. They’ve been helping me manage my site for almost 2 years now, and while I still feel clueless at times, it helps to know that there is always someone I can call who can help me out.

So, again, May 10, 2014, 10am-4pm at Le Petit Cheri, Molito Alabang. Click here to register.

Westgate Easter EGGventure

April 29, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 39 Comments

Like I said in yesterday’s post, the boys and I went to two Easter events this year. I really made an effort to make it to Westgate’s Easter celebration because I know that Little MrC enjoys attending events there. We’ve been to several of Westgate’s Easter and Halloween events from the time that I was working for Filinvest, and even afterwards.

Bonus: These events give me an opportunity to hang out with my former workmates.

Extra Bonus: These events also give me an excuse to invite the boys for dinner at Whistlestop, something that has become a post-event tradition for us from my mall events days.

We arrived just after 5pm, which really is the best time to come to Westgate because it isn’t too hot anymore. At the registration area, we were given a map for the stations that we needed to visit. There, we had to answer a question. The first letter of each correct answer would spell out the “secret word”, which participants needed to claim their prizes. Right off the bat, this guy knew which prize he wanted. Can you guess which one it is?

Armed with his party hat and map (and still wearing his bunny ears from Greenbelt)

The stations were spread out all across Westgate. In each one, there was a giant Easter egg, made by the very talented creatives people of Westgate and Festival Supermall. I’ve worked with these guys, and really, they are amazeballs.

After our really hot afternoon in Makati, the Alabang breeze was such a welcome relief. One of the best things about Westgate on a good weather day is that you can really dine alfresco without having to worry about melting from the heat. It’s especially lovely there at Christmas time.

I actually enjoyed answering the questions at all of the stops. The promo girls couldn’t help but laugh at all the answers that the boys and I threw around. One of the skills that I’ve had to master as a writer is how to say things in a different way, and this often involves the use of synonyms. So, yes, I could think of more than one way to answer the clues given. Good thing MrC was also there to choose the most logical and sound answer haha.

Station 4 and 5, and the creepy fake Komodo dragon outside Caviar restaurant

Caviar is one of the newer restaurants in Westgate that I really hope to try soon. I hear good things about it from my friend, Joei. Just thought I’d share that.

So anyway, after going around all of the stops, we guessed the secret word and Little MrC was rewarded with his prize of choice – an even bigger Finn the Human stuffed toy. He now has a big one and a small one who sleep on his bed and keep him safe at night.

Thanks very much to the Marketing team of Westgate for having us for yet another fun Easter celebration. We’re already excited for Halloween! 🙂

Greenbelt Easter Party

April 28, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 46 Comments

We missed out on all the Easter fun last year because the little boy was sick and in the hospital. This year, we decided we would make up for it by attending not just one, but two Easter events.

Our afternoon was spent on a really fun (despite it being really hot) Golden Egg Hunt all over Greenbelt with the boys, and some of my best WAHM friends and their families. I received an email invitation from the mall’s marketing people, and I love that they allowed me to bring three more families with me. Thank you, Greenbelt! This is why I really LOVE the Ayala Malls.

We arrived at the venue early, just as the exhibitors were finishing their booth setups. The first thing that I noticed was that the place was absolutely beautiful! This is exactly how I would imagine my baby shower would look if I ever have a baby girl. Husband, friends, family and suppliers, please take note.

I love the pink and white, and the wood and pastel design combos!

We registered and were each given a postcard, which our kids used to redeem freebies and activities, a map for the Golden Egg hunt, a wrist tag to identify the participating kids, and a cute tin bucket for the goodies that the kids would collect. Of course, we chose a green bucket – green for La Salle. I definitely passed some of my school spirit on to this little guy.

Our green bucket, postcard for freebies and Golden Egg Hunt map

We had five small boys with us, ranging from 8 to 3 years old, and I was a bit worried about how we would keep track of them. Obviously, I’m not used to having lots of kids in tow since I only have one child. But thanks to the bunny ears that were being given out at the activity area, our boys became pretty easy to spot.

We literally went from Greenbelt 1 to 5, visiting stores and stalls that were marked on our map. It was quite the sweaty workout, but we all stuck it out because we could clearly see that the kids were having a lot of fun. Most of the stores gave chocolates and candies. The best was Gelatissimo, who gave free mini ice cream cones to the kids. That was a great heat-beating snack break.

One of the stops was the Greenbelt chapel where they gave the kids nice scapulars with the image of the Sto Niño. We also stopped at a new chocolate stall in Greenbelt 1 near Watson’s, called Frey Chocolates. Oh my gosh so good. I tried their white, milk and dark chocolate variants, and I can’t decide which one I like best. They have little nougat bits in them, too, like the ones at the bottom of Toblerone triangles. Yum. Sorry, I don’t have any photos. We ate them all before I realized we never took a photo of the kiddo’s Easter loot.

Egg-hunters stopping by the chapel and one of the restaurants

After we finished visiting all of the stores, the little guy asked to get a cup of juice from the drinks booth. He was really thirsty from the heat, despite occasionally sipping water from his tumbler while we were walking. I actually asked MrC to get some water from the nearby restaurants for me. He also bought me a bottle of pink lemonade Snapple, one of my favorites, and still I chose to drink water over that. The sugary sweetness did nothing to quench my thirst. It was THAT hot.

Apparently, the cup of juice wasn’t enough to cool this guy down either. He went straight for his free cup of ice cream after finishing his drink. Oh my gosh, was I excited to see Baskin Robbins at the event! My childhood favorite is coming back to Manila real soon! I totally regret not getting a cup for myself during the event. The little boy enjoyed his scoop, though, down to the last lick.

Sweet treats, colorful crafts and my babies 🙂

After he got his ice cream fix,Little MrC decided to try the arts and crafts activities that were available for the kids. First, he visited the washi egg decorating booth, where you had to decorate a paper egg with washi tape. It was quite similar to the Easter egg banner activity we did at home. The pretty washi tapes were provided by Hey Kessy.

While the kiddo was busy doing crafts, someone decided to try on his bunny ears

After the washi activity, the little guy made a polymer clay bunny keychain at the Hobbes and Landes booth. Then, he also had a cute felt puppet made at the Plush Bunny Station by Ant’s Pocket. I love the crafty activities available to the kids at the event while we all waited for the awarding program to start. It was a great way to keep the kids entertained and occupied.

The cutest felt bunny puppet ever! It even has a tail.

The joy and excitement in all of our kids’ faces can definitely be seen in our photos from that day, and I’m really just so happy that our four families were able to celebrate Easter together. It just made the whole day a lot more fun for everyone.

Super duper thank you to the wonderful Marketing team of Greenbelt for the invite, and for assisting us during registration at the event. And congratulations on a super successful Greenbelt Easter Party! Even though we didn’t win at any of the activities, the whole experience and the smiles that it brought our kiddos was more than worth it.

Bloggy WAHMs and our little boys, and the lovely Ate Jersey

And of course, kailangan may wacky shot. — And of course, *kailangan may* wacky shot.

Mmm-Maple

April 22, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 24 Comments

The boys and I finally got to dine at Maple when my sister requested for it as her birthday dinner venue. Yes, I know, that was a month ago. I actually forgot to write about it, and that’s why this post is delayed. And I have to stop saying better late than never. I can think of about three posts off the top of my head where I said those words.

So anyway, we had dinner at Maple last March, one of the newer restaurants in the newly opened second half of CommerCenter. This is the exact same place where Kessaku is located, but Maple wasn’t open yet when we went for our Japanese dinner late last year. What I like best about CommerCenter is that there are a lot of parking spaces available in it’s basement lot. I suppose though that parking may start becoming more difficult once all of the establishments in the building are open.

They have a bar menu and serve cocktails after 5. And for Valentine’s day, Maple had… Lovester. Azar.

We had to wait at an outside (within the mall, outside the restaurant) table for a bit because, apparently, Maple’s dining area is quite small and there were no tables inside when we arrived. We took that time to browse their menu and start ordering ahead. It took me a while to decide what to eat because I was still pretty full from our late lunch that day. and because I wanted to try both the breakfast and lunch/dinner menu offerings!

Once we were seated, everyone basically started doing their own thing

Our orders started arriving one by one, starting with the drinks. The kiddo, of course, opted for a Chocolate Milkshake. I super enjoyed my Country Iced Tea, which had lots of oranges and lemons floating in it.

The kid and I also decided to share a Stuffed French Toast, and that came way ahead of all the other dishes. Since it was getting late, we decided to go right ahead and start eating.

My iced tea and our Stuffed French Toast

Of course, no matter how full I was, I just had to taste all the other food that was served. We chose two pasta dishes, Pasta Leggero, which was farfalle pasta topped with sundried tomato pesto, cherry tomatoes and asparargus, and the Black Truffle Pasta, which was linguine with a black truffle cream sauce, pancetta, prosciutto and a drizzle of black truffle oil. I absolutely loved the truffle pasta. I would go back just for that.

Mom chose the 48 Hour Short Ribs, which had a nice, somewhat spicy sauce, but was a little too soft for my taste. You literally didn’t need teeth to eat it, and I know that some people like meat that is that tender. It’s just not really my thing. MrC ordered the Chili Burger, and I really liked that, too. The fries that came with it were super yummy.

My dad and brother both tried the Big Maple Breakfast with Belgian Waffles, bacon, breakfast sausages, country fries and two eggs. So much food! I tried a bit of the waffle, and came to the conclusion that I prefer the lunch/dinner meals at Maple over their breakfast dishes.

As they were laying down our food, I discretely whispered to the server that it was my sister’s birthday. I love that they made an effort to present her with a bowl of ice cream with a birthday candle to greet her Happy Birthday.

Overall, I liked Maple, and I look forward to going back. Next time, though, I will make sure to go on an empty stomach.

Maple
GF Commercenter Alabang
Commerce Ave, Filinvest Corporate City
Alabang, Muntinlupa City
478-9148 / 477-8388
Facebook.com/MapleRestaurantPH
Twitter.com/MaplePH
Instagram.com/Maple_PH

Reset (Plus, the Winner of My Mind Museum Giveaway)

April 21, 2014 by MrsC | Patricia Cuyugan 3 Comments

After unknowingly (again!), and unintentionally overloading myself to the point of not functioning properly, I am officially declaring this first day after Easter my RESET day. I went on an unplanned vacation from blogging over holy week because my hosting provider has some Heartbleed issues, and the server was shut down for a bit. I also chose not to work from Good Friday onward, and instead hung out with the boys, crocheted a bit, did some fun Easter crafts and, basically, enjoyed myself. Sure, I now have a bit of catching up to do, but I also am more focused, organized and motivated to work. And that, my friends, is why taking a break and hitting the reset button is a must, every once in a while.

We spent the no-work days at home, playing cards and board games

My friend, Martine, recently published a similar post, sharing about how she is learning to make time for nothing, over at Make It Blissful. It’s a really great read, and something that I actually learned a lot from. One of the changes that I am making after this reset, as I’ve learned from Martine’s post, is to incorporate blank spaces in my schedule. No more overloading my days. I am definitely gonna start making time for nothing. I need those blank hours so that I can do the things that I like. Generally, I work better when I’m happy, and so I need to figure out how to stay happy. Makes sense, right?

Me time = happiness. MrsC me time means reading, crochet and felt crafts!

Over my two years of WAHM-ing, I’ve started to realize my daily work limit, and I think that it’s time for me to apply this. I also need to remember to make time for chores and errands, not exactly my favorite things in the world to do, but important stuff nonetheless. And, most importantly, I need to solidify my daily time with the boys. With MrC, this is usually TV time in the evening, after the kiddo goes to bed. The kiddo and I, on the other hand, have the luxury of doing whatever we can and want to do together during the day, the absolute perks of being a WAHM!

This Easter banner was something that our whole family was able to work on together

So today, Reset Day 1, has been well-spent so far. I got a good night’s sleep, got to see MrC off to work this morning, prepared a nice big breakfast for myself and the little boy, and I’ve already submitted one of my two articles due today. This blog post is another thing I can cross off my list already, and it isn’t even noon yet. Oh, and I also allowed myself to watch The World’s Cutest Cats on TV with the little boy earlier. Yup, this is definitely a great day already.

Easter Sunday was a great day, too, spent with the boys, my best WAHM friends and their families. Blogging about this soon!

I hope that you’re all having a great day, too. I wish I could help make today amazeballs for all of you, but right now I only have to power to do this for one – the winner of my Mind Museum giveaway. Congratulations Astra C. Alegre! Please send your full name, contact number and complete mailing address to mrspcuyugan at gmail dot com.

What, for you, makes a great day? A little gratitude goes a long way, and I’d also like to know what you’re thankful for today. 😀