The Way We Ate- Hatch 22 Cafe & Bakery

Hooray! Our first restaurant for 2014! We were on our way home from a sleepover at my lola's place where we spent New Year's Eve, and knowing that there wouldn't be any food in the house and we were too tired to even think of preparing dinner, we decided to try out Hatch 22 in Power Plant Mall, Rockwell. This restaurant has been on my list ever since it opened in November 2013 because of all the drool-worthy food photos that have been posted on the blogs I follow.

Here's what we had for our early dinner on January 1, 2014. Wishing all of you lots of wonderful eats with lots of laughter with people you love.

McHatch- Breakfast sausage patties, fried egg, strawberry jam, cheddar cheese, rustic muffins, potato hash. Served with hot chocolate.

 Crispy Corned Beef- Spiced up crispy Delimondo corned beef with extreme garlic rice, crunchy egg, seared tomatoes.

Grilled Lemonade

 Tapsi 2.0- Marinated beef sirloin, garlic tapa rice, crunchy egg, seared tomatoes, pickled vegetables.

Bread Basket- Pandesal Epi, Pan de month, Spanish Bread, Chicken Empanada, Ensaymada, Queso de Bola Butter, Hot Tsokolate Dip.

Hatch 22 Cafe & Bakery
Power Plant Mall
Rockwell, Makati City
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Celebrate 2014

by She Said, she said

Happy 2014 everyone and welcome to our new site! We're sorry to have been so quiet these past weeks. December passed by like a blur for both of us, but everything is slowly settling down and we promise to make it up to all of you!

Today, we celebrate a special milestone- our blog's First Anniversary. And as we look back on our first post and the year that was, our hearts are filled with so much gratitude and joy.

Our 2013 Thanksgiving Jar filled with memories of all we are thankful for.

We had lots of laughs and a few tears as we read through each of our jars contents. It was fulfilling to know that joy and gratitude really comes from the simplest of things. We are definitely doing this again this year.

The year 2013 was filled with new friendships, unexpected blessings, valuable life lessons and great opportunities. It has definitely been one awesome, wonderful ride. We couldn't have asked for more.

We can't wait to see what's in store for us this new year and we are looking forward to God's bountiful blessings for our family and loved ones.

Our lovely new logo was specially designed for us by talented graphic artist, Nikki Valenzuela who we'll be writing about in another post soon.

We will be putting the final touches on the blog's design in the coming days and weeks and we'd really appreciate if you could drop us a line to let us know how we're doing. 

We hope you all join us again for another beautiful journey. We'd love to get to know all of you better this time around. Sending you all warm hugs and prayers for a blessed year ahead.

Be Happy

By She Said

Sometimes, we go to great lengths just to find happiness. But all it takes to be happy is gratitude.

New Adventures

By She Said, she said

We're so thrilled to share with all of you, the exciting things happening on She Said, she said! We are celebrating our blog's first year this January 2014 and we decided it was the perfect time to spruce things up on the site.

We've been having so much fun on this online journal of ours. It's such a wonderful, creative outlet and it has truly served its purpose as a gratitude journal as well as a happiness project for both of us this 2013. We have discovered that there's just so much we can do as long as we put our hearts to it.

We have no one else to thank but, you, our loving community of readers and followers who continue to encourage us by all your lovely comments, your support, and by just simply dropping by and reading our posts. We love each and every one of you!

In our commitment to make this blog better this coming new year, we've enlisted the help of some very talented individuals who we are blessed to have met this year!

 Meeting up with Martine De Luna of martinedeluna.com to discuss our blog's branding and purpose. She has taught us valuable lessons on how to keep our blog on the right track by having an editorial plan, and so much more. Thanks, Martine!

 We're giving the blog a make-over! Had so much fun creating this Brand Board to guide us with the new design and look we are going for.

Nikki Valenzuela is a freelance visual artist and illustrator. We love the logo she is creating for us and we are super excited for our upcoming creative collaborations with her. Check out her artwork here.

Watch out for the big reveal. Coming soon!

Holiday Table Settings

By She Said

I love pretty table settings and I'm excited to dress up our table at home in time for all the festivities this Christmas.

Early attempts at table setting for my sister's birthday dinner. I love using fresh flowers, fruits and sprigs. It makes everything look fresh and inviting.

There's a wealth of inspiration available online and I always take note if I come across something I like. Here are some of my favorites.

 Christmas settings don't always have to be predominantly red. The splash of blue on the set up (left photo) makes it light and fresh. I'm loving those salt & pepper servers too!

Simple wreath place setting using whatever plants you have in your garden and some floral wire.

Pretty in pink holiday setting.

A well thought of table setting makes guests feel special, puts everyone in a festive mood, and makes the food taste better!

Hope you are all enjoying the holidays with your family and loved ones. Just 14 more days and it's Christmas!

Favorite Christmas Treat

By She Said

One of things we look forward to during Christmas is having our fill of Elisen Gingerbread from Santis Delicatessen. It's available only during the holidays, so we make sure to buy some as soon as it's available beginning the middle of November. 

These traditional German gingerbread treats made with candied orange peel, coriander, allspice, cloves, cardamom, honey and almonds are spicy-sweet and delicious, perfect with tea.

There are many kinds of food that we associate with Christmas and these cake like cookies are one of our favorites. My late mom, Bianca's grandma, was the one who introduced us to these treats and it's become a tradition for us to make this part of our holiday eating. It's our way of holding on to memories of holidays spent with her. 

Every year, we buy ourselves a small pack thinking that would be enough to satisfy us because of all the other sweets we manage to stuff ourselves with during the season. But, we always find our way back to Santis a week or two after to buy more. We never learn : )

What have you all been eating this December? We'd love for you to share your stories with us!

Nurnberger Mini Elisen
available at Santis Delicatessen

Gifts Ideas For Book Lovers & Creatives

By She Said

My friend, Lyn, shared this link with me from I Love Gifting- a great site where you can find creative gift ideas as well as gifting tips which we can all use this Christmas season.

Here are some of my favorite gift ideas from the several gift guides on the site. Just click on the title image to view the complete list.

For your book worm friends.

  

Fairy Tale Bookends

Oscar Wilde Pocket Mirror

Gift ideas for your friends who are crafters, artists, photographers, and even bakers!

DIY Screen Printing Kit

Personalized Rubber Stamps

 Cake Decorating Machine

Letter Pressed Cookie Cutters

I'm sure all of us, if not many, have at some point received a gift that we cannot use or don't like. Here are some tips and things to consider on when and why it's okay to regift.

 Holiday Regifting: What's the Ethical Thing To Do?

I always have a fun time shopping for gifts for loved ones because I get an excuse to shop for myself too! Happy Holiday Shopping to all of you!