Bloomsbury's cupcakes - a decadent dessert place for every fair lady

One of my fondest memories of girl bonding was lazy weekend afternoons with my sister or girl friends, chatting at cafes, sampling cakes and desserts and having coffee or some tea to wash it down.  Only girls understand the importance of slowing it down in the afternoon, having delightful conversations with friends over something sweet and something hot.

When I moved to the UAE, I was in pursuit of nice cafes with good desserts or even bakeshops with great tasting cakes.  Unfortunately, there weren't a lot of them.  I really couldn't find a place where I can kick back my heels (or ballet flats) and enjoy sumptuous cakes or pastries.  So I settled for ice cream instead (luckily, there are a lot of yummy places to choose from when it comes to this).  But eating ice cream is not the same as eating cakes, because ice cream melts before conversation does, and there's something about eating cakes (especially cupcakes) that makes me feel like a lady.

So when I heard about a new cupcake place opening in Al Wahda mall, I knew I had to check it out.  Bloomsbury's Cupcake wasn't hard to find; it was situated at the heart of the shopping mall, near the stadium entrance.  From afar, it looks like a big black box but if you come closer and notice the understated damask print all over the place and beautifully frosted cupcakes lined up at the window displays, you'll get the feeling that you're about to enter something indulgent.  Stepping into the posh cafe, I saw women sitting on the exquisite chairs and glass tables and at the counter, a glorious display of mouth-watering cupcakes in towering trays.  I felt like a present-day Marie Antoinette.

The cupcakes were very daintily made, staring at them made me feel like a seven-year old girl admiring something very pretty.  The only thing better than looking at the cupcakes was actually eating them; there was a wide selection of cupcakes which were classified into two: the gourmet collection (12 dhs), and the luxury collection (16 dhs).  On the menu, I also saw an assortment of teas and freshly-brewed coffee, I wanted to try the teas, but I had to run and do some grocery-shopping so I chose one cupcake from each collection to-go.  They were placed in an elegant damask print box.

The gourmet cupcake I selected, the red velvet was just a handful of delectable goodness.  The moist chocolate vanilla sponge was just right, not too sweet, and the light cream cheese frosting made the perfect topping.  I'm a fan of carrot cake so for the luxury variety, I chose the Diabetic's Dream, which is made of dark carrot cake with cream cheese topping.  The taste was exactly what the name implies, the carrot cake was sumptuous, with slivers of fruits and nuts coming with every bite.  The cream cheese icing on top completed the exhilarating experience and diabetics would surely be grateful for this masterpiece.  Just one cupcake is filling enough that I had to finish them in two sittings.

Being a lady is being able delight in life's little pleasures such as a cupcake and a tea room with a chic ambiance.  I would surely come back to Bloomsbury's soon for an indulgent me-time and an afternoon tea.

Porto Bello: romantic retreat with gastronomic delights

My husband and I are simple when it comes to dining out.  However, we have several guidelines for restaurants to ensure our return visit: good food, great value for money, a place quiet enough to have an intimate conversation and excellent service with a smile.  But on our first anniversary, we decided to go the extra mile and have a fancy dinner date experience, and we were pleased to have gotten all four things when we dined at Porto Bello, the new Italian Restaurant at the Grand Millennium Al Wahda Hotel.

We arrived at the restaurant a few minutes early for our reservation, but the hostess readily welcomed us and ushered us to our table.   The hostess explained that she chose that particular spot for us so that we could see the violinist and pianist as they perform.   The waiter assigned to us was courteous and polite as he explained the menu and took our orders.  We were hungry so we went straight to the main course, which were the Costolette and the Parpadelle Porto Bello.

The restaurant had the makings of a perfect dinner date setting; the soft lighting, the plush neutral and burgundy chairs, beautiful table set-up and live music displayed understated elegance.  It was like a scene taken out of a romantic movie.  The violinist even came near our table as she played a love song and congratulated us on our milestone.

First, we were served a basket of warm bread and sundried tomatoes dip, which were already filling enough to satisfy our hunger.  We were then treated to a little sample of gnocchi, compliments of the chef and although spinach was the only ingredient we can make of it (we are not sophisticated eaters), it was indeed appetizing.  Our main course and drinks arrived after a few minutes.  Hubby’s Costolette (lamb chops) was perfect; there was none of the lamb’s distinctive odor that some people couldn’t stand, and it was beautifully plated with asparagus tips, mushrooms and caper sauce.   I had the Parpadelle Porto Bello, which was good except that the rocket sauce was a little bitter for my taste (I didn’t know it had vegetables, my bad).  Nevertheless, the pasta was cooked exactly how I wanted it to be - al dente.  The scallops were tasty and the sauce has a lemon, garlic taste that I liked.

The dinner was almost perfect, except that the waiter forgot to serve the lemonade that my husband ordered and the cake that was supposed to be served after dinner as a surprise to my hubby.   But we were already full anyway, so I didn’t bother to ask the staff about it and just skipped dessert.

My husband and I noticed that the place wasn’t very busy on a Saturday night, with only two batches of guests arriving after us.  We wondered why, considering that the food was delicious and the prices were surprisingly cheap.  We paid less than 300 dirhams for our food, including the service and tourism fee.

We left the restaurant very satisfied and with the staff not forgetting to greet us a happy anniversary.  That sealed the deal for us; we would definitely come back.  And although we couldn’t remember the exact words and pronunciation of what we ate, only one word captures the whole experience of dining at Porto Bello: è bellissimo!

Freestyling Mode - Celebrate

Instead of worrying about the bad things, celebrate what's already good in your life.

Easier said than done.  Especially for me who worries too much.  I've already spent half my day looking for a job online, wondering what is wrong with my resume, if I'm ever gonna be qualified enough for the companies that I like.  For the nth time I contemplate if I should lower my standards and go for the jobs that are just way out of my league (not in a good way) and apply for jobs in the neighboring city.  I'm still embarrassed that I gave my husband a home video on our first wedding anniversary while he treated me to a movie date, shopping spree and fancy dinner.  And I can't get over the fact that I'm on my fifth month here in Abu Dhabi and I still haven't figured out a way to contribute to our expenses and my husband is the sole breadwinner in our little family of two.  My excitement for our family trip gets a buzzkill when I am reminded that I still don't have shopping money saved up and haven't started on buying presents when I am reunited with my parents and siblings.  Yes, that's a lot of worrying and pride for one person, and for half a day.  Me and my stubborn ego.

But because it made better sense to be thankful than to be ungrateful, I shall stop thinking about what is lacking or faultfinding today, and appreciate what is already great in my life.  I shall write some of them here. I am thankful that...

• I have a husband who loves me, makes me laugh every single day, takes care of all my needs and embraces me every night to make sure I sleep well.
• I am here in Abu Dhabi living with my husband, eating three times a day, most of the time even more than that.
• that we are strong and healthy and capable of enjoying each other.  
• that we still go on dates and have our little cheap thrills like being able to eat in fastfood joints whenever we want and some occasional splurges.
• that we experienced a grownup fancy dinner on our first wedding anniversary, with sumptuous food, first-class service, and a talented violinist playing for us while we enjoy our meal.  She was playing In the Name of Love, so I felt like Angel Locsin and hubby felt like Aga Muhlach (or Jake Cuenca, whoever he prefers).
• that our marriage is going strong despite of our little differences.
• that our families in the Philippines are safe and healthy and we still get to communicate with them (including Ate Ann in Singapore) often.
• that I have an awesome family who loves me back home and I know that I am being greatly missed every day.
• that our fridge is never empty, meaning the Lord never forsakes us and he provides for (more than just) our needs.
• that I had a good education which is an advantage for me (not all Pinoys here are that fortunate) in looking for a job.
• that I consider myself a good writer and communicator and that sort of gives me an edge from the other unemployed people here in Abu Dhabi.
• that I have new friends here who are my support group and are praying for me.
• that I have great friends in Manila who are awaiting my return.
• that I have faith that enables me to hold on and keep believing, and that this faith only gets stronger through time.
• that I am enjoying my time as a housewife, taking care of my husband's needs.  I never thought that I would be capable of washing his clothes and cooking for him, but here I am, doing it every single day.
• that I have the time to explore my culinary abilities with a willing subject who would eat whatever it is that I would cook. 
• that I have the opportunity to live in a peaceful and prosperous country that encourages me to keep dreaming, not only for myself and my loved ones, but for my country too, that someday this orderliness and prosperity can also be attained in the Philippines.
• that I can already walk to the next block and go to several places on my own, without worrying about getting lost.
• that there are buses and taxi cabs that makes commuting so easy and secure for me.
• that I will see my family again in three months.  Hello Singapore!:)

There are just too many blessings that I can't write all of them down.  My life is already so great.  I knew that a long, long time ago.  My problems and insecurities are so minuscule compared to others (and don't even get me started on the talk about people dying of hunger everyday), no matter how I try to magnify it.  I've always prided myself of being one of God's favorite daughters, I guess I just forget that sometimes.  I have become a spoiled daughter instead, wishing for things that I do not have, wanting other people's lives and possessions when I have been extremely blessed and most loved from the moment He placed me in my mother's womb.  

If you know me and would look at my life, you can say, who am I to complain.  But don't.  Instead, look at your own lives and recall the blessings that you have received and say the same thing. "Who am I to complain?"  And rather than thinking about the wrongs, the things you have to fix and what you lack, think of the things that was given freely and unconditionally.  Those little details that make your life a perfect fit.  

My life is already so good.  I can't help but repeat it.  And it will be even greater with the blessings that will come in.  It's not my job to know when, my only job is to enjoy it.  So worry less, and believe that God is already at work with whatever dream, whatever prayer that you have.