“WINTERMELON IS COMING” – Something I came across this morning, from last month’s #PinoyGameOfThrones tags on the Twitter. LOL.

Game of Thrones is awesome. Moonleaf Tea Shop is da bomb. My fave is their Wintermelon flavor. I can’t be bothered to make a customized GoT + Wintermelon mashup image at the moment, but I’m sure you get the idea.

Me nem nesa. It is known.

Photo taken 2011-Oct-13.

2011-Oct-20 1814. Oktoberfest-ish thanksgiving dinner prepared by the lovely wife as all went well during another of my dad’s BCG treatments in Doha. CANCER STAY GONE!

Out of lettuce? Lettuce go to the store and get some!

Brain farts:

A sammich is a type of sandwich. However, it is not just any kind of sandwich. Any old schmuck can throw lunchmeat between two slices of bread and have a sandwich.

But no. A sammich is not just a sandwich, it is not just a meal. Sammich is a term reserved for only the holiest and mightiest of all sandwiches. A sammich is a true work of culinary art; a feast on a bun, if you will. A sammich is not made of the best ingredients; it is made of the *right* ingredients. It needs the right meats, and the right cheese(s), the right sauce, the right veggies, and the right kind of bread.

Taking footlong sub bread and throwing every kind of meat and cheese and everything else under the sun or in your kitchen pantry on it does not a sammich make. It is akin to an incohesive mishmosh of colors on an artist’s easel.

Sandwiches make a good snack, but sammiches are forever.

Is everyone in this future fucking retarded?

Detroit Grand Pubahs – Sandwiches

Scotty: Are you from the future?
James T. Kirk: Yeah, he is. I’m not.
Scotty: Well, that’s brilliant. Do they still have sandwiches there?
- Star Trek (2009 film)

Wintermelon grass jelly from Serenitea tastes just like gulaman at sago! O.O Yummy tho.

2011-Oct-11 2023. Solenad 2, Nuvali, Sta. Rosa, Laguna.

(Almost) Too pretty to eat, but so delicious and healthy:

Jardenero’s Gourmet Plate: a harvest from the backyard garden; consists of various greens and petals – nutritious & medicinal – such as pako (fern), pansit-pansitan, bougainvillea, cosmos, malunggay blossoms tossed in maple-red wine vinegar dressing.

Definitely coming back, when possible. Our waiter said they are open daily from 10 A.M. to 10 P.M. (possibly later on Fridays and Saturdays, when they have live music played onstage).

saw that the CAPITULO restaurant in Victoria, Laguna had great aircon, AN AMAZING Bar (great selection of scotch), and a lot of Rizaliana books to read. Their Sago’t Gulaman was exceptional. As were their red egg and ampalaya salad. – Carlos Celdran

Other blogger’s posts about Capitulo:

• Capitulo etc.: More Surprises Beyond The 7 Lakes of Laguna
• capitulo iii in victoria, laguna
• Capitulo

With a label like this, how can one not be curious?

Methinks this is the kind of stuff that the Kung Fu “drunken master(s)” I used to watch on T.V. in the ’80s were chugging.

Says a cached copy of a page from what looks like the distillery’s dot com:

HERBAL WINE

PRODUCT NAME: Vino de Chino / Vino de Kung Fu

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: See Hok Tong, the original and pioneer brand of Chinese herbal wines was first produced by Destileria Limtuaco over a hundred and fifty years ago. Being first in the market, it soon became the generic name for the product and evolved in to what is now commonly called “Sioktong”.

Today, DLCI continues to manufacture quality herbal wines but under the current brand names of Vinous De Chino & Vino Kung Fu. For five generations now, Destileria Limtuaco still uses the same secret family recipe of ingredients derived from a variety of chinese herbs.

SELLING PROPOSITIONS:

• This medicinal wine is perfect for people who want to revitalize their vigor and vitality. Taken daily, it increases energy and power.
• Distilled from over 15 Chinese herbs with cold and hot properties, it promotes the balance of “yin and yang,” the key to good health.
• Women particularly take it because it contains blood tonics and blood regulators that is good for reproductive health.

Available in:

• 350ml bottle / 24 bottles per case
• 50 Proof / 25% alc. by vol.

LOL. Someone even made a Vino de Kung Fu / Vino de Chino (Sioktong) Facebook Page for it and used this clearer photo below:

I even found a made-up origin of the mysterious liquid, at a blog named Uhaw Pa Sa Camel:

Vino Kung-fu

In 1852, a young chinese kung-fu master brought to Manila the secrets of making medicinal wine using secret herbs. Thus, Vino Kung-fu was born. Energy giving Siok Tong that tastes good. Highly recommended for good health. Drink Vino Kung-fu for V-igor and V-itality.

Says The Amats Project:

Hihindi ka ba sa alak na ganyan yung picture?

Labeled as “Original Sioktong” and “Medicinal Wine,” we still have no idea why this drink exists. Judging by the muscle man on the bottle, we’re guessing this P35 bottle of cane alcohol is supposed to make men more virile or something. Or turn you in into the Chinese version of The Hulk. In either case, such an intriguing bottle couldn’t be left untasted.

Vino de Chino actually tastes like a watered-down Jagermeister. It has that herb-y, medicinal flavor to it that kind of stings. It’s not delicious, but for 35 bucks and the promise of the Chinese muscle man, it’s worth a try.

2011-Jun-20 0106. Food trip! Stopped at Hungree Burgers on Bautista St., Makati, on the way to Shawarma Snack Center on R. Salas St. in Ermita.

Related post:

• Hungree Burgers: The Super Hungree

Here’s some more lovin’ written on our kitchen white board.

Photo taken on March 22, 2011.

‘Nuff said.

Photo taken on February 21, 2011.

A good burger (pun intended; we get those, too!) won’t last very long in this house. We highly suspect that Crave Burger might be putting a little Shabu (meth) in their thick, all-beef patties because they are so addicting.

“Endangered” was written by yours truly.

“Extinct” was courtesy of my youngest sister.

This reminds me of the time in 1996 when Miel (again/always the victim) yelled from the kitchen,

“Somebody ate my chocolates!!”

From one part of the house came a swift reply,

“I didn’t eat your Mars bar!”

Without missing a beat came another retort, from a different part of the house,

“I didn’t eat your Snickers!”

We brought fresh, hot pandesal (salt bread rolls).