Resto Bites: Kasbah

For my birthday, I treated my office friends Mariela and Ten to lunch at Kasbah, The Fort. I got a good deal from Groupon, which included a set lunch for four, for only P1600. It was our first time to eat there, and we weren't disappointed.

Kasbah is located at The Fort Strip, near Bonifacio High Street Central. It's the same building where Fitness First, Keg, and URBN are. The huge wooden doors open up to a loft-type space, with high ceilings and natural light coming in from the huge windows. The restaurant, which can probably accommodate up to 50 people,  also has a bar inside and outside seating where the shishas are smoked.

Just a disclaimer for all my restaurant "reviews": As a diner, I am pretty easy to please. I'm not a picky eater who would dissect each and every ingredient. I can be very particular about the service and the cleanliness, but I can eat at a carinderia or at a 5-star hotel restaurant. So when I say the food is bad, it must be really bad.

But no such thing at Kasbah, because we had flavorful Moroccan dishes. The set lunch was for four but since there were only the three of us, we were stuffed!

First we were served the Hummus Harisa, described on the menu as chickpea with tahini puree. The brown stripes you see on the photo are probably paprika, which added a kick to the appetizer. It came with warm sliced pita. The thing with Morrocan dishes is that they are really filling. You can order this and one kebab and you'll be good.

Also part of the set meal was the Tabbouleh salad. This is one of my favorite dishes! Whenever I eat at a restaurant that has it on the menu, I always order it. It's a simple dish of parsley, tomatoes and mint with a lemon dressing. It's so light and refreshing, I can eat this all day! Kasbah serves their Tabbouleh with couscous, which like I said, makes this dish filling. If you're on a diet, this can be your lunch.

Our meal also came with four glasses of iced tea. Kasbah's iced tea isn't your run-of-the-mill variety. It has a nice flavor that can be a tad sweet. But I'd rather have that than the watered-down kind.

Our main course was a platter of chicken, fish and eggplant topped with a mustard sauce. The chicken was stuffed with prunes, but the spices didn't make the dish taste too sweet. Everything was well-seasoned, and the portions were good for four diners.

We were planning to order Lamb Tagine which is one of their specialties, but we were so full from our lunch there was no more space in our tummies (we had too leave room for dessert though)! Service is also efficient and the waiting time between dishes was just right to allow conversations among our group.

On my next visit, maybe I'd get to try their tagine and their kebabs too!

Kasbah is definitely worth coming back to!

Kasbah, The Fort Strip
7th Avenue Corner Katipunan Circle
Fort Global City
Taguig City, Metro Manila
+6325534499
+639172058802

Health Bits: Going Back to Yoga

I told you about the Urban Ashram Deal Grocer Coupon I bought last January, and now here's how my sessions went. 

I knew I had my work cut out for me because I haven't had proper exercise in years. Sure, I join fun runs, but I do it to be with friends and for the meal we share after the event. The last serious class I joined was Pilates with my former office maters. That was three years ago. I also did yoga when I was with the UP Pep Squad, but I wouldn't call myself a yogini. I just knew the basics. 

The hardest part for me was waking up before the sunrise. The comfort of my bed and the cool weather we had were real temptations to just skip the class. But I forced myself and thought that just showing up for the first day of class was already a big accomplishment. I warmed up by walking the two blocks from my building to the yoga studio. 

Entering the Urban Ashram studio, you'd know that they're one of the legit ones, and not one of those just riding on the hype. They have ample-sized rooms depending on the number of students, and they provide yoga mats, blocks, straps, and other materials which are sanitized after every class. The Kenneth Cobonpue-designed lobby is just a bonus.

The reception area at Urban Ashram Manila Brixton Branch

They offer different classes depending on your level/skill. I chose the Flexibility Not Required classes, which are great for beginners. But don't think that the class is easy. There are different teachers for each day of the week, but all of them are observant of the students' pace, and they make sure the beginners modify their poses to avoid injuries. They also encourage you to move at your own pace, and improve your poses to make you stronger. But they are also there to push you when they know you can still give more (especially when they see you resting during poses!). 

Even on my first day, I already noticed a difference. Sure, my body was sore, but my breathing improved and I became aware of my posture. I also made sure to drink more water throughout the day. 

I attended nine classes for the duration of my 15-day unlimited pass. I'd say it was a great deal. They only offer it to first time attendees though. After that, you have the option to get flexi pass cards which are good for 12 classes a month, or the monthly unlimited passes. You can also go big and get the annual pass which comes with additional perks. 

Budget permitting, I would've gotten the unlimited pass, because I know it would be good for me. But as much as I want to be fit for this year, one of my 2013 goals is to also manage my finances and curb my spending. And even if Urban Ashram offers great deals and quality experience, the amount is still way over my budget. If you have the budget and live near Kapitolyo or the Bonifacio Global City area, go visit their site and see the best option for you. 

 As if knowing my dilemma, Deal Grocer has another great offer from Urban Ashram! This time, it's a 40-Day Unlimited Pass for all their Daytime Classes (from 6:30-4:40pm). From it's original price of P5000, it's now P2500. What's great is this deal is applicable to first-time and previous practitioners of the Ashram. I'm still on the fence whether I'd get this deal or not. But like I said, if you have the budget, then grab this deal now!

Urban Ashram Manila

High Street Branch
Bonifacio Global City
3rd Floor, Active Fun Building
9th corner 28th Avenue
Bonifacio Global City
(02) 869 YOGA (9642)
(02) 856 0130

Brixton Branch
Suite 302, 3 Brixton Street,
Kapitolyo, Pasig City
(02) 661 YOGA (9642)
(02) 377 YOGA (9642)
0917 881 YOGA (9642)

P.S. Have you noticed the different fonts in my blog entries? Yeah I'm trying to figure it out. Blogger is kind of weird. What appears on my dashboard isn't the same as the one that's being published. If you know what I should do, please hit up the comments. Thanks!

Health Bits: Getting Fit

Every new year, most of us are excited with the prospect of a clean slate, a new start. Some people like making new year's resolutions. And almost always, one of the items on their list is to exercise/lose weight/go to the gym. So the fitness centers see an increase in enrollments. Gyms are packed during the first two weeks of the new year. But how many of these people actually follow through with their resolution?

I never make new year's resolutions. I believe that if you want to change something, you can do it anytime, not just at the start of the year. But I admit, I am also excited with the possibilities and changes a new year promises. So instead of NYR's, I make a list of goals. Things I want to accomplish, versus things I want to change.

And Top 2 on my 2013 list is to find an exercise regimen that works for me. I have gained a lot of weight and haven't had exercise in years. I noticed that I get exhausted easily, and I have to catch my breath after just climbing a flight of stairs. So I knew I really needed to do something about it. 

I was choosing between two options: Zumba and Yoga. I used to be a member of the UP Pep Squad, so it goes without saying that I love to dance. :) We also had yoga classes as part of our training then. 

There's a dance studio a couple of blocks from my place and late last year, they finally offered Zumba classes. I also found out that there's a yoga studio on the same street: Urban Ashram Manila. 

One of the studios at Urban Ashram Manila (Brixton Branch)

What sealed the deal for me was the promo I saw on Deal Grocer last January. They offered a 15-Day Unlimited Pass to their studios in Pasig and Bonifacio High Street, for only P1000.00! That is a steal, because their regular rate for the 15-Day Unli Pass is P1500, and that is only exclusive for one branch. Walk-in classes are P600. The catch is you have to use the pass in a span of 15 consecutive days. And the classes convenient for me were all early in the mornings. As in 6:30am early. Talk about commitment!

I decided to go for it, and bought the coupon. I'll tell you all about my yoga homecoming in one of my next entries! :)

Do you have a goal for 2013? How are you doing so far? :)