My friend from the US surprised us three weeks ago as she landed in Manila. She just gotten a new job and she took a few days off before meeting the new boss. Her less than two weeks vacation included meeting and bonding with us, checking the resorts in Tagaytay, flying to Ilocos to check Fort Ilocandia and visiting her relatives in Nueva Ecija. She and her fiance only have less than a year to prepare for a wedding, and they wanted to say their “I do”s here in Manila.

Because of her busy schedule, we only had one day to bond and I promised her that we would have lunch at Sentro 1771. She saw the yummy food pics I posted in Facebook when my sister visited Manila two years ago. We always bring our Balikbayan friends and family members to Sentro 1771 for true Pinoy foodtrip (especially if mom is too busy to cook for the visitors).

So the three lovely ladies (Balikbayan friend, friend who works in hotel and I) went to Sentro 1771 in Greenbelt 3. We were hoping to meet and catch up with a College friend who used to work there, but unfortunately, the dining staff is not familiar with her name. She must have transferred to a new store, or position, or new company. Just the same, we still asked for table for three, carefully chose the food to order, and took some pictures as we eat.

We were still full from the Gapan Spaghetti and Conti’s Mango Bravo cake we had in the hotel, but we ordered:

I am recycling this old picture I took when we dined in Sentro 1771 because we were to excited about the drink, I forgot to take a picture of it!

There goes the Sago’t Gulaman and that nice centerpiece!

Glazed!

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It does look like Balat ng Lechon, yes? Hehe

The other desserts that we didn’t order that day but I do looove –

Coffee Pie

I love coffee and cakes. Put them together, well.. you won’t get a Coffee Pie, but I love it too! Hehe. This one melts in my mouth!

Coffee Sans Rival

We had coffee overload then, but I was not complaining. I am dreaming of it now!

I 

I was not certain how much our total bill was. My Balikbayan friend was too fast in snatching the bill holder. Thank you friend for the treat!

After a heavy lunch, and a quick stroll around Greenbelt, we decided to race in City Kart Racing. I know that in the US, they have alot of racing activity parks like this, but I told them about the whole experience and they were eager to join and try. A different girl-bonding activity!

We came at 3:00 PM and we found out that the hub has just opened. It opens at 3:00 PM, and I thought it follows mall hours because when we had our Bloggers Blaze Race, we were there at 10:00 AM. 

We had so much fun taking pictures, and to dress the part, we borrowed the racing suits! We felt like astronauts with girly sandals! Hehe. 

I forgot to bring my headsock that day, so I had to buy another one (costs Php150) – which made a good souvenir.

We didn’t take the race so seriously, and I didn’t want to test my limit. The last time I raced, my back ached for days, and I didn’t want injury but just pure fun. Lucky that I was, I still landed the first place! Yey!

Here were are on the race track:

After the race, we even headed to Bulacan to visit my friend’s kiddo who is just so smart and adorable!

Fun day indeed, but I still reported to work that night. Thank God that my friend was staying in Richmond, Eastwood (because another friend works there! In the cafe, yes! I heard the service has improved) which is just a few steps away from my office. A quick hot bath, and I faced my computer and client.

Where do you take your Balikbayan friends for food trip and fun bonding?

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