Category Archives: Hotel/Guesthouse

Breakfast #2 – Boracay Regency

Posted on by
3

Breakfast #2 - Boracay Regency
Ham, grapefruit, beef, skinless longanisa, bacon, chicken nuggets, and garlic rice.
Boracay Regency, Boracay PHILIPPINES

Omg, I ate SO much for breakfast that morning! I really liked the options so I went all out and even had items from the dessert section. I think it’s OK to over-eat when you’re on vacation, hehe.

Breakfast #2 - Boracay Regency
Chow mein, egg omelet, skinless longanisa, potato, French toast, blueberry cream cheese danish, and sweet roll.

Boracay Regency view
Interesting view from the Main Wing of the hotel. The abandoned tower in the middle is actually some person’s hut now.

Breakfast #1 – Boracay Regency

Posted on by
2

Breakfast #1 - Boracay Regency
Pancit, fried egg, ham, chicken sausage, bacon, corned beef, beef cubano, and garlic rice.
Boracay Regency, Boracay PHILIPPINES

Wow, I was impressed at how many different items they had available for the breakfast buffet at the Regency. I only had a sampling each morning but there was a lot to choose from. They also rotated a lot of the items from day to day. The food was kept pretty warm and the service was great. I really enjoyed breakfasts at this hotel!

Congee - Boracay Regency
Congee (rice porridge) topped with hard boiled egg, fried garlic, and green onions.

Stand up paddleboarders
Stand up paddleboarders coming to shore, Station 2.

Breakfast #4 – Best Western Hotel La Corona

Posted on by
4

Breakfast #4 - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Apple glazed pork, sautéed vegetables, garlic rice, scrambled eggs. Complimentary
Best Western Hotel La Corona, Manila PHILIPPINES

I think I got tired of breakfast pretty quickly especially when it seemed like the items were leftovers from the previous night’s dinner service. I mean, apple glazed pork? Hmm… Not impressed.

Lapu-Lapu Monument
Lapu-Lapu Monument (Statue of the Sentinel of Freedom), Rizal Park.

Breakfast #3 – Best Western Hotel La Corona

Posted on by
Reply

Breakfast #3 - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Teriyaki chicken, sautéed vegetables, kielbasa, scramble eggs, and croissant. Complimentary
Best Western Hotel La Corona, Manila PHILIPPINES

Meh, I didn’t really like the selection this morning. I mean, teriyaki chicken, really? It should have at least been chicken adobo. Oh well, you can’t win them all. 😉

Cream of mushroom soup - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Cream of mushroom soup.

Malacanan Palace
Malacanan Palace.

Breakfast #2 – Best Western Hotel La Corona

Posted on by
4

Breakfast #2 - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Pan fried fish with onions, sautéed vegetables, kielbasa, garlic fried rice, scramble eggs with tomato, and berry cheese pastry. Complimentary
Best Western Hotel La Corona, Manila PHILIPPINES

Another random collection of food at the breakfast buffet. I didn’t like the fish very much especially since everything tended to be pretty cold. I love garlic fried rice though! I should have ordered another plate of the bacon but I think I was pacing myself for the day. Hehe!

Complimentary truffles - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Complimentary truffles in our room.

Sunset on Manila Bay
Sunset on Manila Bay.

Fried egg breakfast – Pink Tulip Hotel

Posted on by
2

Fried egg breakfast - Pink Tulip Hotel
Served with bread and Vietnamese coffee with milk. 35,000 VND
Pink Tulip Hotel, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

The sweet hotel server asked if I wanted one side or two sides which I figured was regarding how I wanted my eggs fried. I said two sides. What I didn’t know was that the cook literally just flips the egg before plating so it was WAY over easy (too over easy for my taste). I quickly learned for the next time, hehe!

Party boat on the Saigon River
Party boat on the Saigon River.

Breakfast #1 – Best Western Hotel La Corona

Posted on by
6

Breakfast #1 - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Sweet and sour meatballs, fried rice, ham, kielbasa sausage, scrambled eggs, raspberry cream cheese pastry. Complimentary
Best Western Hotel La Corona, Manila PHILIPPINES

For a complimentary breakfast buffet at a Best Western, I was impressed that they tried to have variety every morning. The food was ok, but they didn’t keep any of it very warm. The bacon was the best part because it’s cooked to order upon request to a waiter.

Bacon - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Bacon.

Crab and corn soup - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Crab and corn soup.

Juice - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Mango juice and orange juice.

Coffee - Best Western Hotel La Corona
Coffee.

National Shrine of Saint Michael and the Archangels
National Shrine of Saint Michael and the Archangels, Malacanan, Manila.

Fresh fruit and Vietnamese coffee – Pink Tulip Hotel

Posted on by
8

Fresh fruit - Pink Tulip Hotel
Dragonfruit, papaya, and watermelon.
Pink Tulip Hotel, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

I’m always wary of eating fresh fruit in foreign countries unless it has a peel and I’m the one who peels it myself. But our morning fruit plates were great and we never got sick from them. Phew!

Vietnamese coffee - Pink Tulip Hotel
Vietnamese coffee with milk. They also provide hot water in case the coffee is too strong for your taste.

Vietnamese coffee - Pink Tulip Hotel
Almost done! I love Vietnamese coffee. I always asked for regular milk instead of the condensed milk.

Pink Tulip Hotel guard dog
The hotel guard dog. 🙂

Fresh fruit - Pink Tulip Hotel
Banana, papaya, and watermelon.

Iced Vietnamese coffee - Pink Tulip Hotel
Iced Vietnamese coffee with milk.

Rooftop cocktails – Rex Hotel

Posted on by
5

Planter's Punch - Rex Hotel
Planter’s Punch: Bacardi light rhum, triple sec, lemon juice, pineapple juice, soda. 220,000 VND
Rex Hotel, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

So this was probably the most we spent for cocktails while in Vietnam. We really wanted to check out the rooftop bar though (and get out of the scorching heat). The Rex hotel is historic and it was quite relaxing up on the roof so I really didn’t mind too much about spending a little more for drinks here. My Planter’s Punch tasted pretty weak and not as sweet and vibrantly colored as those you would find on a Caribbean island.

Gin and tonic - Rex Hotel
Gin and tonic. 240,000 VND

Salted peanuts - Rex Hotel
Salted peanuts.

Table centerpiece - Rex Hotel
Table centerpiece.

Rex Hotel rooftop view
View from the Rex Hotel rooftop.

Omelet with cheese – Pink Tulip Hotel

Posted on by
9

Omelet with cheese - Pink Tulip Hotel
Served with bread. 35,000 VND
Pink Tulip Hotel, Ho Chi Minh City VIETNAM

So this is what Vietnam considers an omelet. OK, I can live with it. The omelet tasted pretty good, but I’m not quite sure what kind of cheese this was. It looked and tasted like Kraft American cheese singles.

Crusty bread - Pink Tulip Hotel
Amazing crusty bread. Ugh, the bread here was SO good. The exterior was flaky and crunchy, and the interior was light and airy. I didn’t want to eat SO many carbs during the trip, but I HAD to eat an entire loaf every morning. 🙂

Butter and jam - Pink Tulip Hotel
Butter and strawberry jam.

Pink Tulip Hotel
Street view from our hotel.

Lame attempt at hospitality – Hilton Garden Inn

Posted on by
7

Snacks - Hilton Garden Inn

We came down to the South Bay to attend a friend’s birthday and stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn because it was conveniently located to the party. OMG, this place was a disaster. The rooms are dull and boring and we were given a room with a view of their cooling system. They put out coffee and snacks in the lobby, but they don’t have any cream for the coffee and their lame oatmeal bars taste like cardboard and were as hard as a rock. I would suggest never staying here.
Hilton Garden Inn, Milpitas CA

Trashy room
Random trim that was left as a little gift on the desk. I guess the hotel is too cheap to hire maintenance people to they expect guests to install their own fixtures. *hand to forehead*