Aysee

Each area in Metro Manila has its own default hole-in-the-wall restaurant for quick and fuss-free hundred-Peso eats, cheap rice refills for post-exercise carbo-loads and after-after-parties to wash down insane amounts of alcohol consumed. There's Sinangag Express in the south, Mr. Kabab in QC and Good Earth Roasts in Rockwell. And for us Valle Verde kids, we have Aysee. We've never tried authentic sisig in Pampanga, and our primary basis for comparison would have to be Dencio’s and Gerry's, but in our humble opinion, Aysee's is the best sisig this side of Luzon.

Charlie's Grind & Grill

After much prodding from friends, relatives and colleagues to check out Charlie’s, we finally decided to head out to Kapitolyo, Pasig to give the burger joint a try. And given the volume of recommendations we’ve received, expectations were set remarkably high.

Upon pulling up to Charlie’s, we notice the obvious disconnect between the establishment and its location. Imagine a gourmet burger joint serving Stella Artois nestled within a car wash place (we kid you not, inside!), inside an un-gated middle-crust residential community. We reckon that Charlie’s target audience is composed of either Kapitolyo-based pedestrians or chauffeur-driven diners; because parking here is not just a challenge, it’s a reason to grab a Quarter Pounder instead. Upping the risk factor is the fact that these parts are notorious for petty thieves who break into cars in search of laptops, cameras and other gadgets. So, unless your vehicle is one that thieves would not take an interest in, we suggest that you have your car washed instead of parking along the street.