Stay, Stray, Play and Feast: September 2014

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Krypton Grill: Exotic Dishes in Naga, Anyone? Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 5

Krypton Grill
Exotic Dishes in Naga, Anyone?
(Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 5)

I have learned about Krypton Grill thru Naga City Deck
or (NCD), my favorite Naga based website, operated by
a young lady psychologist, an academician, a co- forumer at
the Camarines Sur/Naga City Skyscraper CityThread,
and Stay, Stray Play and Feast’s blog partner.

We were excited to try the exotic dishes being offered
by the restaurant so we tried dining in their CBD 2 site but

backed out when we discovered that it looked like a seedy

joint, located in a decrepit looking area at the back of the Bicol
Central Station in a rundown building, filled with mostly shady-

looking, beer guzzling costumers listening to a heavily made

(fake) blonde, lady acoustic singer performing before them.

NCD also mentioned in the blog that it is opening

another branch in Mayon Avenue, which I believe

is a more decent address, so we patiently waited until

it opened during the Penafrancia Fiesta season.

Krypton Grill’s Mayon branch opening was a perfect timing

as places like the Naga City Centro, Panganiban Drive and even
Magsaysay Avenue were made off limits to vehicles, and there

was plenty of parking space in this area as it is close to the vast

Naga City Civic Center that served as a huge temporary parking

to the vehicular overflow during the week long Penafrancia fiesta.

Unlike their menacing looking original CBD 2 branch,

Krypton Mayon Avenue, was well lighted with native

Pinoy themed interiors, there was no ‘WOW’ factor but

at least it looked cheery and did not look sleazy at all.

I was intrigued on why they named this restaurant

after the Man of Steel’s mother planet, Krypton,

but I fully understood it when I learned that they

also own the Superman Petshop, located just

beside the original Krypton Grill in CBD 2.

Interestingly, Krypton suited appropriately for the

restaurant as it offers out of this world exotic dishes.

I excitedly browsed the exotic dishes section

of the menu, but it was a brilliant idea that

they used table placemats that had valuable

information about the exotic dishes available,

making it easier for us to decide what to order.

We unanimously chose Wild Pig Adobo.

It was served as ‘adobo natural’ where it was sauteed in onions
and garlic and flavored only with vinegar, without any soy sauce.
The meat was chewy but tender, had a very intense flavor and naturally
sweetish. It isn’t oily as compared to regular adobo and it is devoid
of the unhealthy subcutaneous fat and even more delicious.

We also ordered Silkie Chicken Tinola.

The soup was very delicious, inherently flavored

with the tasty and natural taste of native chicken.

But the Silkie Chicken’s black skin, black flesh

and black bones looked gross. This dish is not

for the faint hearted, but it was actually very

delicious- if one would eat it with his eyes closed.

We also ordered Alligator Tapa.

My family is not new to Alligator’s meat as we have

tried a delicious Alligator Steak in New Orleans and

we all enjoyed it. Krypton served the Alligator Tapa

in a sizzling plate, it was slightly sweetish and slightly

spicy and it actually tasted like a chicken meat.

We also ordered Broccoli with Shirmps

though we found the Broccoli a little soggy

as it was overcooked, it was still very delicious.

What came as a surprise was the Fried Pangasius.

It was served in a humongous platter as the fish was

SOOO BIG that it almost filled up the whole table.

We even thought the gigantic fish was more than

enough for us, but surprisingly, it was so tender,

juicy and very delicious that we consumed every

bit and pieces and every morsel of the delicious

fish until there was nothing left but the bones.

We even consumed all the tomato and onion side dish

except for the disgustingly salty soy sauce as no one in

the family really likes this unpalatable briny concoction.

We concluded our meal with a delicious

Leche Flan and it was a perfect way to end

an exciting and adventurous cuisine and we

look forward dining in Krypton Grill again to try

other exotic dishes like the rabbit and the goat.

Krypton Grill also offers regular fares in their menu

but making these uniquely delicious exotic dishes available-

is a welcome addition to Naga City’s growing gastronomic

milieu and slowly gaining reputation as Bicol’s culinary center.

Read my other Penafrancia 2014 Series

Pagsungko ki Ina, 2014

Plaza Medica, Naga City

Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 1

Flavors Gastronomica

Penafrancia's Culinary Miracle

Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 2

Translacion 2014

Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 3

Caby's Cabana
Translacion's View Deck

PenafranciaFiesta 2014, Series 4

Krypton Grill

Out of This World Exotic Dishes

PenafranciaFiesta 2014, Series 5

Penafrancia Fluvial Procession

Unconditional Passion, Devotion, Affection for Ina

PenafranciaFiesta 2014, Series 6

Read the links below for related articles:

Penafrancia Fiesta; All Day Home Cooked Feast
Penafrancia Translacion 2013 @ Caby’s Cabana, Naga City
'Pagsungko ki Ina', 2013 Jardin Real de Naga Clubhouse
Pagsungko ki Ina, 2012; the Clubhouse,Jardin Real de Naga
Naga City’s Flores de Mayo at Penafrancia de Mayo

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Caby’s Cabana: A View Deck to Translacion; Penafrancia 2104 Series 4

Caby’s Cabana
A View Deck to Translacion
(Penafrancia 2104 Series 4)

Caby’s Cabana may not be on my must dine
list and I have been a little unkind in my past

blogs on this restaurant (as I have always been

to most true blue, unmodified, too salty, too

sweet, too sour and grease laden Pinoy dishes),

…but my family has been returning to this

restaurant every year as it has been a perfect

view deck for the Penafrancia Translacion.

The restaurant is located right at the city center,

just across the historic Plaza Quince Martirez,

... and a block away from the

ancient San Francisco Church.

We stayed the whole afternoon while

waiting for the Translacion procession at

the Caby’s Cabana, and we had a chance

to dine with their light meals and snacks.

We ordered their very delicious Cassava Cake.

While it maybe true that almost all cassava cakes

taste the same, Caby’s Cabana version was perfectly

chewy, and with the just right degree of sweetness.

It was so delightfully gluey that it sticks in your palate,

making the creamy and heavenly goodness of this

delicious dessert linger much longer in your mouth

We also ordered Turon al Hillo, or banana fritters,
which is a popular Pinoy street snack fare. It is made

ripe bananas was wrapped in thin rice wafers, fried

to crispy perfection and sprinkled with sesame seeds.

The Caby’s Cabana’s banana turon comes with

a generous ripe langka (jack fruit) filling that

the tasty juicy strands oozes out in every bite.

It was so delicious that we decided to order

more and had them wrapped to take home.

I would not recommend the Cheese Burger

as the patty was very thin rubbery and tasteless.

I am a pancit lover and I like

their delicious Pancit Bijon,

…and the Pancit Canton as well.

After the Translacion, we decided to have a light

dinner as we were still full from snacking the

whole afternoon. But we had to eat to energize

as we would again be hiking from the no car zone

centro to Plaza Medica where we parked our car.

They have a lot of choices for their ala carte dining and

we ordered Pork Barbecue. It was served with Java Rice

and we found both the rice and the pork too sweet.

We also ordered Lechon Kawali, we found it a little

salty but it was okay but really nothing to rave about.

It was served with Bicol Express as a side dish.

I liked their Chop Suey, as the veggies were

fresh and crispy and tasted very delicious.

Their Crispy Fried Chicken doesn’t look inviting as it

was served as several pieces of unrecognizable breaded

chicken parts. It was crispy- and that was I all I can say.

The best ala carte dish the Caby’s Cabana could offer
I believe is the Grilled Liempo. It was perfectly grilled,
the pork was tender and succulent and had the right blend
of sweetness and tartness. Just like the other dishes, it was
also served with rice and Bicol Express as side dishes.

Interestingly, none of the dishes tasted as salty like

the last time we dined as a group in Caby’s Cabana.

Read my other Penafrancia 2014 Series

Pagsungko ki Ina, 2014

Plaza Medica, Naga City

Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 1

Flavors Gastronomica

Penafrancia's Culinary Miracle

Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 2

Translacion 2014

Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 3

Caby's Cabana
Translacion's View Deck

PenafranciaFiesta 2014, Series 4

Krypton Restaurant
Out of This World Exotic Dishes

Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 5

Penafrancia Fluvial Procession

Unconditional Passion, Devotion, Affection for Ina

PenafranciaFiesta 2014, Series 6

Read the links below for related articles:

Caby’s Cabana; Tasty or Salty? That is the Question.

Penafrancia Fiesta; All Day Home Cooked Feast
Penafrancia Translacion 2013 @ Caby’s Cabana, Naga City
'Pagsungko ki Ina', 2013 Jardin Real de Naga Clubhouse
Pagsungko ki Ina, 2012; the Clubhouse,Jardin Real de Naga
Naga City’s Flores de Mayo at Penafrancia de Mayo

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Translacion 2014: Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 3

Translacion 2014
Penafrancia Fiesta 2014, Series 3

Translacion marks the beginning of the week
long Penafrancia Fiesta in Naga City, known
to be the biggest Marian devotion in Asia.

It is a centuries old tradition where the image of
the Lady of Penafrancia is being transferred to the
bigger Naga Cathedral, that had a huge churchyard
and have enough room for the millions of devotees
that flock the ancient Penafrancia Shrine that was
too small to accommodate the surge of pilgrims.

In the 80’s, the original image of the Lady of Penafrancia
was permanently enshired in Basilica Minore de Penfrancia,
the had a much bigger church yard, enough to accommodate
the millions and millions of devotees, but the traditional
Translacion Procession did not stop and remained as one of
the major events that heralds the beginning of the festivity.

This time, the translacion starts with a dawn procession
where both the images of Divino Rostro and the Lady
of Penafrancia are brought to the Penafrancia Shrine,

…where it would later be transferred to the
Naga Cathederal at about noon after a holy mass
and this is where me and family joined.

We left shortly after lunch, parked our car at Plaza Medica, as
the whole Naga City Centro was already off limits to vehicles,

....and took trike to Avenue Square in Magsaysay Avenue,

…where we walked to the Penafrancia Shrine
where the Translacion Procession would begin.

The procession route was well secured,

…and we positioned ourselves trailing

the Sienna College of Tigaon students,

…and ahead of La Consolacion College of Daet.

The weather was perfect.

It was sunny but wasn’t very hot, there was a little
cloudy overcast due to the oncoming storm heading
north, but it wasn’t raining and very ideal for walking.

We passed by Penafrancia Avenue, and theere
were a lot of spectators by the roadside,

...and there were people watching by the windows,
and I was amused by the number of well preserved
ancestral houses lining the Penafrancia Avenue.

There were spectators even on the roof tops.

The procession route is dotted with elevated makeshift
platforms, with altars of various Marian images
manned by a priests and devotees praying the rosary,

…with bands playing religious hymns.

The procession arrived in the city center and we caught the
sight of the beautiful and and historic San Francisco Church,

...then had a U- turn when we reached the
Plaza Quince Martirez at the city center,

…and slowly headed to Naga Cathedral,
which is our final destination.

The road to Naga Cathedral is filled with
the sights, sounds and colors of the festivity,

…food are sold in abundance on the streets,

…and religious symbols and images
are displayed and sold on the streets.

We arrived at the Naga Cathedral
and passed by the Porta Maraie,

…and the cathedral’s church yard
was starting to fill up with people.

We arrived much earlier and ahead of the crowd
so it wasn’t crowded at the Naga Cathedral yet.

There was a mass going on inside the church,

…and a priest was leading the
Rosary on the outdoor kiosk.

Later we walked back to Caby’s Cabana and
changed roles from being an active procession
participant to being a passive expectator.

Caby’s Cabana is very ideal place to watch
the Translacion and we have been watching
the procession here for the past 5 years.

It is located within the city centro, just

in front of Plaza Quince Martirez,

…and a block away from the
historic San Francisco Church.

One could watch the procession on a safe
distance in an air- conditioned comfort,

…while taking yummy snacks and refreshing
drinks which I would blog in a separate post.

We were also able to rest and recharge
while watching the translacion procession,
and waiting for the Divino Rostro and
the Lady of Penafrancia images to arrive.