Disclaimer

This blog is intended only to inform, warn or otherwise to recommend vacationists, tourists, locals, students and professionals who would want an honest review of places and spots in the Philippines particularly in Cebu.

All of what appears here is self motivated. I do not work for a rival company of the companies being criticized here. This is purely based on personal experience and not from other persons' that I would want to share, not to destroy other people's reputation, but to give them idea that they can improve better. And also to let people know what place to avoid and what place is recommended.

May you have an enjoyable experience while you're staying here!

Experience in Casa Verde In Ayala: The Terraces

Ayala: The Terraces

Have you been to Ayala: The Terraces in Cebu Business Park, Cebu City? If so, then you might have happened to come by Casa Verde restaurant on the 3rd floor level of Terraces side of the mall. They serve grilled foods as well as some desserts.

Yeah, because of some recommendation that the food they serve was good, we went there, on one very special occasion. We chose the place for that special occasion. What we got in return was very noteworthy. They served us a rotten dish.

Are you familiar with Carbonara? It is also available in KFC, it tastes good. Although it does not smell really appealing, it is delicious.

Casa Verde has some variation to Carbonara. It is flavored with sea-food, specifically octopus or squid. It served as a side dish to the main course which is the back ribs.

The moment it was served, you can literally smell that it is rotten. At first, I suspected it was the back ribs meal but it wasn't. It was the Carbonara. But as it is a new variation to us, we thought it is its natural smell since Carbonara is reputed as not good smelling, so we dismissed it as normal, but we did not ate it! It's too much to handle. We just thought that sea-food carbonara is not for us.

We ate the main course, along with some other dessert, but not the carbonara. We are full, so we decided to have the carbonara packed for take out. If you're the waiter packing the carbonara you're so used to serving, you can immediately notice when something's wrong. But later, the waiter came to hand to us the packed carbonara, so we thought it's fine, it is its normal smell. Conscious of looking ignorant, we did not ask about it and we left.

When we got home, we showed the packed carbonara to my girl friend's sister who frequented to Casa Verde and have known its Carbonara dish long before us and to her disgust, confirmed that it was rotten!


Ayala: The Terraces "Casa Verde's" Carbonara Served To Us Rotten and Stinking

Too late for us to complain for a refund, or a compensation, and you may think it is common sense to detect a rotten food, it is not usually the case. Who would have thought that they would want to piss off their customers? Who would have thought that their staff are into something? I'd say its intentional, they have been given the chance to check it out when we handed it for packing, but they did not seem to care.

To the manager of Casa Verde, if you're internet savvy enough that you may reach this post, and that you care for the future of that STINKING restaurant you're managing, know that your staff served us a ROTTEN CARBONARA, a stinking rotten one, last June 9, 2009. So if I were you, you have to retrain them, or give them seminar how to maintain quality in the food they serve before it will cost you your business.

To customers, I do not say that Casa Verde as a restaurant is not recommended. Yes, they serve good dish, but their staff, is what you will have to worry about, they WILL serve you ROTTEN FOOD. So, you know what you will have to do, avoid them.

But let's hope, that maybe someday, they will change, or improve in a good way, so that their reputation will be redeemed. Their food tastes good after all, it's only in the service that we have a problem.

Ok, we hope they did not do it on purpose. No one in their sane mind will. Let us just give them another chance. It's just that, we are disappointed.

--Ayala Photo by sinjin.ph

Our Not So Good Experience in Wowowee

For those who does not know what Wowowee is, it is a program hosted by Mr Willie Revillame inside the ABS-CBN compound in Mother Ignacio St., Quezon City, Philippines.

This program is a game show intended to 'help' our poor countrymen by giving out cash, vehicles, and other goodies as prizes through their numerous games. The funds that constitute the prizes in turn comes from advertisements made inside the game show as well as contributions or donations from our more privileged countrymen especially OFWs and subscribers of TFC(The Filipino Channel).

Helping other people in need is a really good way that you care for them. But I'm not sure if this thinking is what motivates Mr. Revillame into doing this, because the other reason would be his daily salary of at least 500k PHP. Now, who would think twice of hosting Wowowee? Whatever the case, I do not fully agree with the way they help people. They give people fish, not teaching them how to fish. On a more elaborate discussion regarding the way they help people, visit this page by fir3st0rm.

About the main topic here today, it is about our experience when we last went to Wowowee last April as part of our educational tour 2009 as incoming graduates of Computer Engineering of University of San Carlos. Of course, when we went there, we are accompanied by a tour guide of ABS CBN, because each of us "paid".

First Issue

The first disturbing thing now is this, they did not let us all inside Wowowee. They limit us to 80 persons, when we are about 85 all in all. It would not hurt for them to include the other 5 in, but they did not, even though they also paid. The entrance fee to Wowowee is free for those who wait in line. Those who wants sure seats will pay, but as already said, 5 of us were not let in.

Second Issue

Many of their staffs have bad attitude towards us. What you see on live TV is not what it seems. Off cam, they are different. They treat every visitor as if the visitor is stupid enough. The marshall for instance, the female guard who is assigned in the back portion of the upper stage where we are seated, she keeps on scolding us as if we are little kids. She is hostile towards visitors, why is she still there?

Third Issue

As I've said, what you see on live TV is different off cam. When the camera is not on the roll, they, most of the staffs, and "almost" all of the actors and actresses are cold. My classmate who is a contestant had a chance to get near Willie in the backstage during a commercial break. He described Mr Revillame as an arrogant person who dictates like he is commanding slaves. I don't know if that was true, but it's what he said.

Fourth Issue

They are fond of humiliating a person on camera and off camera. I do not know if it's for entertainment purposes or whatever, they just do. Do not say I did not warn you.


And now, the timer counts down, we prepare ourselves to clap, as the camera rolled, the lights turned on again, then a "FAKED" 'lively', 'enjoyable' and 'sincere' is once again restored for all the world to see. Try for yourself, watch Wowowee in person! It's a good experience anyway.