The atmosphere of quiet lushness from the mountain made our stay a whole new experience in getting closer to nature.
Monster Village during the day
Traveling through this side of Taiwan on our second day, makes you appreciate the beauty of the countryside. In this installment, I will take you to Nantou County, where you can take a glimpse of magnificent views of the outdoors and cold weather at Monster Village and Sun-Link-Sea Forest and Nature Resort.
Photo-op of the group at Monster Village.
Monster Village is one of the most popular attractions in Nantou County. You will like it here because of its captivating scenery and cold weather, which is comparable to our very own Tagaytay City. The place is situated 1,100 meters above sea level – the reason for its cool climate – and you can almost see the mountains and the clouds covering the mountain top. There are all kinds of strange monster statues and the villagers are dressed in Japanese style.
It’s not just a tourist attraction, but a one-stop shop for the guests. Whenever you get hungry, you can choose from one of the restaurants here which served best-selling Taiwan and Chinese dishes.
Interestingly, there’s a particular bread that caught our attention during our visit – the Stinging Nettle bread also known as “Biting Cat” in Chinese. The itchy part is the leaf and locals made it into bread but the inside is very savory and soft, it contains some cheese or some kind of meat as filling. But the highlight of the bread is the stinging nettle leaf on top of the bread.
Our group indulged in the set menu for lunch at Monster Village Theme restaurant. The food arrived in big servings. It was truly a mouthful of dishes served before our very eyes. We enjoyed the food, the company, and the ambiance.
A feast for the eyes and stomach
A feast for the eyes and stomach
A feast for the eyes and stomach @ Monster-themed restaurant
You can also find some souvenir shops for your trip mementos. and a hotel within the village for long-staying guests.
The writer at the Flower Center
We also visited Sun-Link-Sea Forest and Nature Resort. The place has an annual average temperature of about 20 degrees Celcius and is 1600 meters above sea level. The climate is perfect like Baguio City. Here, you can enjoy a different side of Taiwan, far from the city.
You won’t feel perspired and get tired while walking; most of all, you get to enjoy being surrounded by nature. You will enjoy the atmosphere near the waterfalls, the environment surrounded by trees, and a Flower Center, which exhibited some 30 flower species, such as peony, color cabbage, hydrangea, tulip, and Taiwan cherry, fuchsia, etc.
Our accommodation at Sun-Link-Sea Hotel, an elegant building characterized by modern and neo-classical architecture, provided a total relaxation. The atmosphere of quiet lushness from the mountain made our stay a whole new experience in getting closer to nature.
The locally-owned 5-star hotel – The Bellevue Manila continues on its mission to cater to a wide variety of palates, now with the welcoming of the beloved Hanakazu Japanese Restaurant as its new home.
Hanakazu first made its name in 2005 as an intimate restaurant located at the heart of BF Homes, Parañaque. Chef Hiroaki Otsuka and his wife Lorna launched Hanakazu intending to give customers a fresh take on Japanese cuisine while maintaining its authenticity.
“We are excited to dive into this new chapter for Hanakazu with The Bellevue Manila,” says Hanakazu Owner, Lorna Otsuka. “We hope to present dishes that are familiar to Filipino tastes, but distinctly in the Hanakazu way.”
Hanakazu gets its name from the name of Chef Otsuka’s daughters Hana and Kazu, reflecting the motivation for the passion, perfection, and customer satisfaction the Otsukas uphold.
“It is an honor for The Bellevue Manila to welcome Hanakazu to its doors. Chef Otsuka’s unique approach to Japanese cuisine is sure to be a favorite among our guests,” shares Patrick Chan, Managing Director of The Bellevue Manila, of the partnership with Hanakazu.
Guests are also invited to visit The Bellevue’s other food and beverage concepts: Phoenix Court for authentic Chinese cuisine; Cafe D’ Asie for a buffet of international spread, Pastry Corner for specialty bread, cakes, and other pastries and goodies; and Vue Bar for drinks and live music.
Featured photo from left to right: Mr. Patrick Chan, The Bellevue Manila Managing Director, Mr. Johnny Chan, The Bellevue Hotels & Resorts Chairman, Ms. Lorna Otsuka, and Mr. Sachio Otsuka, Hanakazu Owners
A place where you can go to relax, recharge, and enjoy organic farm-made meals, and more.
Nourish your appetite with heart-warming, healthy food and your soul with the captivating environment — a sure way to get over the work-week stress.
The invigorating and lush surroundings of Sentro Botanikos.
It was one weekend when my family was introduced to this fledgling eco-farm and café in Alfonso, Cavite. It’s near to my in-law’s ArtFarm property also located in Alfonso.
The urged to eat good food for dinner had led us to Sentro Botanikos. It was getting dark and we didn’t find it right away the location. The signage was unnoticeable and we almost missed the gate leading to the homey restaurant. We even thought that the restaurant was closed. Just the same, we proceeded. As we alighted from the car, we were greeted with a tender breeze from the cold night air that filled the entire farm.
With my family and in-laws.
As my eyes wander, I found the facilities austere yet very relaxing, it makes you breathe with its wide-open spaces and surrounded by nature. The surprise is in the food they offer – only farm-based meals and farm-made products. Its principles are centered around community, sustainability, vegetarian and environmentally-friendly choices. They also started to produce farm-made food items for everyone to enjoy.
Appetizing Adobo ni Lola.Delicious Palabok with seaweeds on top.
Our food choices for dinner included palabok, adobo ni lola, sisig, bulalo, and turon ala mode. All the dishes were delicious! But we were greatly surprised with bulalo, on how they made it so flavorful! Bulalo is normally made with beef shanks, and gives you a heavy feeling after a meal. I really did not know that a vegetarian bulalo can be so tasting and healthy! Most times, they said, they use a wheat/soy fillet as a replacement to “meat.”
And they also shared some farm-made products that make their dishes appetizing, like the vegan seasoning. I bought one bottle which will last for a month and plant-based M’chon sauce similar to an all-around sauce under the Solera Botanikos label.
Delectable Turon Ala Mode.
With its plant-based meals, Sentro Botanikos has been added to our list of go-to-restaurants when in Alfonso, Cavite. We are delighted to have discovered this new place, most especially beneficial to my hubby, who is a vegetarian for 10 years now. We are always on the lookout for similar establishments offering fresh, healthy, delicious, and vegan meals.
I am not a hardcore vegan, but because of my hubby’s influence, my daughter and I have learned to embrace a vegetarian lifestyle on a 50-50 ratio (meaning: we are semi-vegetarian and forgo pork, but still consuming chicken, beef, fish, and egg). When at home, we only cooked plant-based meals, and when we eat outside, that’s the only time that my daughter and I eat meat dishes.
It has been said that following a plant-based diet is healthy for our bodies and the environment. A vegan diet can be one of the healthiest ways to live. Plant-based diets should contain plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans, legumes, nuts, and seeds. Because vegan diets often rely heavily on these healthy staples, they tend to be higher in vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and fiber. Healthy vegan diets are abundant with vitamins B1, C, and E, folic acid, magnesium, and iron while also being low in cholesterol and saturated fats.
Homey-feel inside the restaurant cafe.
No wonder, every year more and more people are making the decision to go vegan, and for good reason! A big lifestyle change is easier to sustain if you wholeheartedly believe in your decision.
Good thing, more and more vegan restaurants are opening and catering to the growing health-conscious Filipinos.
Sentro Botanikos is located at 217 Buck Estate Road, Brgy. Buck Estate Alfonso, Cavite 4123. It is open from 12:00 noon until 9:00 p.m.
Here are our food discoveries on this popular dish here and abroad.
In terms of chicken dishes, one of the most widely known is Hainanese chicken rice. What makes this dish so special is its delectable taste – the poached chicken meat and seasoned rice. No wonder travelers from around the world have all the rage for this iconic dish.
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice
If you’re planning a trip to Singapore, post-pandemic world, make it part of your itinerary to experience Singaporean cuisine. This small, but progressive and important island nation located just south of Malaysia not only offers modern tourist attractions, and impressive skyscrapers, but is also famous for Hainanese chicken rice, one of the national dishes of Singapore. It is being widely available in most food courts and hawker centers around the country.
“Variants of the dish are also seen throughout Southeast Asia, particularly in Malaysia, where it remains a culinary staple,” according to an online source.
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice stall. Personal photo during our previous trip to Singapore.
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice is probably Singapore’s most famous chicken rice stall located at Maxwell Food Centre. As seen from our last visit in past years, it had more tourists than locals queuing up for a plate of this popular dish. You just need to be patient, and in no time, it will be your turn to order.
It was worth the visit because the dish was really delicious – both the chicken meat and the rice were cooked to perfection. Per order of the dish was like Php250.00 – Ph350.00 in our local currency.
Even the late Anthony Bourdain said that the chicken rice was so fragrant and delicious that it could be eaten on its own.
Homeboy Hainanese
The pandemic may have restricted our movement, and planning a trip to Singapore may not be ideal at the moment. But this won’t stop us from tasting this dish in Manila, and at the comforts of our home.
An interesting discovery is Homeboy Hainanese, which offers and delivers Hainanese chicken rice. Though, still new in the food business, it’s getting a significant following for its quality and healthier take on the famous dish.
The sauces are made from scratch and are very flavorful – soy sauce, ginger, and chili. Courtesy: Homeboy Hainanese
It was a delight to have discovered it through a lady client. The delivery came just in time for lunch and was freshly packed. The food pack consisted of chicken fillet which was very tender; rice (an Oh Crop Adlai rice best for dieters as well); and the sauces are made from scratch and are very flavorful – soy sauce, ginger, and chili.
To fully enjoy the dish, I dabbed all three sauces in one bite of chicken meat and rice. I was very satisfied with how the dish was cooked. Indeed, it was a tummy-filling Hainanese experience! You need not go to Singapore to try it. If you want your order to be consumed later, you can store it in the refrigerator, then, reheat it in the microwave at 600w for 30 seconds.
For travel to be delightful, one must have a good place to stay time and again. Whenever I feel like going out of town, my favorite staycation would always be at the Harvest Hotel, the only modern 4-star hotel located in the center of Cabanatuan City.
Whether you’re going away on a family vacation, a short getaway, or a business trip, you can definitely have a pleasant stay here for many good reasons. Recent reviews from guests and visitors support this encouraging feedback. Harvest has now become the hotel of choice in Cabanatuan City for business and leisure travelers, as well as, for the local residents who prefer to hold their social events and business functions here.
Harvest GM Lou Bermejo Gorospe (Photo from the FB Page of Ms. Gorospe)
Harvest Hotel General Manager, Lou Bermejo Gorospe feels thankful and inspired to hear positive reviews from hotel guests. “The reviews range from being satisfied on how the hotel staff attended to them, having comfortable rooms, beds, pillows, room interior; bathroom fixtures, and personal care sets; to good food and value for money. Guests remarked that Harvest is stunning for the price,” Gorospe happily shares. “Guests are immediately impressed with just about everything!”
GM Gorospe (center) with her entire team.
Part of the entire delightful experience is the people who make up the Harvest Hotel team. “We make sure we carry out our Corporate Core Values in our daily work,” says the lady General Manager.
They uphold such values on Innovation, Integrity, Service, Passion, and Teamwork that make them a cut above the rest of the hotels in Cabanatuan City. “Our hotel standard is no less than to provide our valued guests with exceptional care and top-notch products and facilities.”
Superb accommodation
One thing that you will definitely appreciate while on a staycation at Harvest Hotel is its cozy, clean and comfortable air-conditioned rooms – totaling 81 well-appointed rooms. Each room feature beds that are composed of good quality mattresses and beddings for a restful sleep, an LCD cable television, a bathroom with a hot and cold shower, a medium-sized working desk with a telephone, a minibar, an electronic safe, a coffee and tea making facility, iron and ironing board and fast broadband internet connection – everything that will make your stay truly delightful.
Guests can choose from room categories such as Standard Twins, Standard Queens, Executive Suites, Loft 1 and 2. The Standard Twin Room is the basic room category and it comprises the majority of the total room inventory of the Hotel. This 29-square meter room comes with two (2) single beds, a bathroom with shower, a working table, LCD cable TV, a coffee/tea making facility, an in-room safe, and a mini-bar.
The Standard Queen room is also a 29-sqm room with one queen bed, a bathroom with a shower, a working table, an LCD cable TV, a coffee/tea making facility, an in-room safe, and a mini-bar.
Next to the Standard Room is the Suite Room which boasts of a 38-square meter space that comes with one queen bed, a bathroom with a shower, a working table, an LCD cable TV, a coffee/tea making facility, an in-room safe, and a mini-bar.
The best room of Harvest Hotel is the Loft located on the topmost floor. This 67-square meter consists of two floors with a separate living area, dining space, and a king-sized bed, and a bathroom. These are best for honeymooners, couples, and family guests.
For an uninterrupted workout, you can still sweat it out at the fitness gym located on the third floor. It offers the latest and complete gym equipment.
For guests looking for a venue for their events and meetings can consider the hotel Ballroom that is convertible into two function rooms. Ballroom A can occupy 130 persons, while Ballroom B, 70 persons. The whole Ballroom can accommodate 200 person sit-down, 300 cocktail, and 350 theatre types.
Satisfying Dining Experience
Aside from the comfortable rooms, one can always look forward to the delicious food being served at Café Ecija Restaurant and Bar, located in the lobby. It is ready to serve a sumptuous buffet for breakfast and an all-day a la carte menu every day featuring Filipino and international dishes. It has a 76-seating capacity and is open to in-house guests and walk-in diners daily from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. An outdoor swimming pool is just right outside Café Ecija.
Chef Lester Bergado
During our visit, Chef Lester Bergado, the affable in-house chef of Harvest Hotel happily served to us the dishes he prepared for our photoshoot. He shared that they have added more Pinoy comfort food to the menu. Aside from the regular Salmon Head Sa Miso and Hipon sa Kamatis, additional dishes are the all-time favorites, such as Kare-Kare, Caldereta, Pininyahang Manok, Pork Lechon and Harvest Sinigang Beef Buko.
The Experience team was also lucky to have tasted the Friday Feast of the World Buffet with choices ranging from salad, cold and hot appetizer, soup, grilled, hot dishes, and dessert. For the salad, they served Mixed Green Salad with Croutons, Parmesan, corn kernels, tomato, Onion, Cucumber, Capsicum, and Bacon. For the dressing, choices were Caesar, Thousand Island, and Italian Dressing.
Harvest Sinigang Beef Buko
Adobong Pusit
Kare-Kare
Cold and hot appetizers were Assorted Maki Rolls and Mixed Cold Cuts; Crispy Pork Belly infused in Chili jam and Eggplant Parmigiana with Cheese Sauce. For the soup, it felt calming to have tried Seafood Shabu-Shabu and Tuscan Tomato Soup. From the carving station, we surely tried the Slow Roasted Beef Short Plate with Wild Mushroom Sauce; and the grilled Beef, Pork, Chicken, Fish, and Sausage. Happy tummy, indeed!
For hot dishes, they served Asian Beef Kofta in Sour Cream Sauce, Hainanese Chicken, my favorite Phad Thai, and Shanghai Fried Rice. For the Western offering, they prepared Pork Escalope with Peppercorn Sauce, Seafood Gnocchi, Vegetable Polonaise, and Mushroom Risotto Rice.
Choices for dessert vary from Crème Brule Shots, Panacotta Shots, Chocolate Bar. There were also Marshmallows, Breadsticks and Wafer stick at the Chocolate Fountain Station.
Our gastronomic experience didn’t end at the buffet station. There were also additional plated dishes served for our feature and consumption. We tried BBQ Baby Back Ribs, a Texas-style smoked BBQ baby back ribs served with buttered corn, coleslaw, and French fries. Followed by Beef Kare-Kare, slow-cooked ox tripe, beef chunks, and tropical vegetables simmered in Filipino-style peanut sauce served with famous bagoong. For the beverage, they offered us to try the Harvest Potion and Winty Citrus Dew.
Harvest Potion and Winty Citrus Dew
I had a fill of Adobong Pusit, a Classic Filipino Adobo dish where sliced squid is cooked in vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, onion, and tomatoes. I must say this was my favorite from among the dishes served to us. I always crave Adobong Pusit since this is seldom prepared at home.
The writer in one of the cozy rooms at Harvest
The Seafood and Aubergine Salad in Turmeric and Cider Reduction, was by far, what Chef Lester has recommended. Seeing the assorted fresh lettuce, grilled seafood, and aubergine with reduction of turmeric and cider vinegar in an ensemble made it an irresistible dish to try.
As a finale, one not to miss the appetizing desserts – a choice of Choco Cream Cake, a Black Forest cake filled with chocolate ganache; and Sans rival, a layered meringue cake with buttercream and chopped cashew nuts.
All in all, it was a satisfying hotel experience made truly special by meeting the hotel owners themselves while enjoying the night away with friends. The team even had a jamming session with Leo Pisces Duo’s band playing that night.
(For more information about Harvest Hotel, please contact: T:(044) 9508888 M: (+63) 917-539-6125 or E: info@theharvesthotel.com. Please visit its website at: www.theharvesthotel.com and Like them on Facebook)
Reposted from Experience Travel and Living magazine. Photos By Renjie Tolentino
