Destinations
Struggling for the energy to prepare for your holiday? Bribe yourself to do it
By employing the same method – work towards getting things done and then reward – you’ll be ready in no time. Then, rather than last minute stresses, you can just look forward to the holiday to come.

You know the feeling where you’re on a holiday countdown. Nothing else matters. You’ve got your eyes on the sunbed (or ski slope – depends on where you’re going), the cocktail in hand and the feeling of limitless relaxation. Suddenly, your real life seems boring and mundane.
You know you have to prepare for the holiday. The suitcase sits, waiting for its contents. You’ll pack it tomorrow; you lie to yourself. You’re only doing a capsule wardrobe, so you don’t need to spend hours doing it. Around the same time, you’ll sort that visa out and make sure you know where your passport is. Tomorrow.
So, reality check. At some point, you’re going to have to do the things you’re trying to forget you need. Otherwise, you’re going to end up the night before frantically shoving everything you can find into a suitcase. Or worse yet, showing up at the airport only to realize that “pleading for mercy” is not as efficient a method for passing customs as having a passport is.
But it’s a trade. We’ll give you one thing you have to do, and then suggest some indulgence to take the edge off.
Dull Necessity: Get your documents in order.
- Passport
- Travel insurance and details of any extra health coverage.
- Medications
- Plane and other transport tickets
- Does the country you’re traveling to require additional documentation to permit entry? You need a visa for Canada, the UK and most of mainland Europe. If you’re not sure, you can check with the embassy for the country.
In Exchange For: Checking Instagram is updated; those sunset photos aren’t going to filter themselves are they? Go ahead and publish a picture of your countdown app at the same time, lording over your followers of your upcoming escape from home soil. Feel smug for 10 minutes.
Dull Necessity: Packing
IMAGE SOURCE: PUBLICDOMAINPICTURES
The capsule wardrobe isn’t going to help. Capsule wardrobes are a creation brought forth by fashion editors to make us all feel bad when we’re sitting on a suitcase trying to close it. Instead, pick two outfits for each scenario, such as: sunny, dry, windy, beach day, pool day. Add in extras if you’re a daredevil heading for the ski slopes or hiking. It’s a good idea to weigh your luggage too, so you don’t get any nasty surprises.
In Exchange For: Realizing that there’s one item that would tie every outfit together (there always is). Allow yourself to buy it. You’ve been working hard; you need your retail therapy.
Dull Necessity: An Itinerary
It’s useful to have a single document to hand full of the details of the hotel, flights, and where you’re going to be on specific days. Have a hard copy for your handbag and also keep a copy on your phone.
In Exchange For: If you’re planning your stay, then you might as well ensure you’re not missing out on anything. Allow a long browse online at potential day trips when you’re at your destination. Of course, amend the itinerary if you can’t help yourself and end up booking something.
By employing the same method – work towards getting things done and then reward – you’ll be ready in no time. Then, rather than last minute stresses, you can just look forward to the holiday to come.
Destinations
Looking for good Ilonggo food in Bacoor, Cavite
If you’ve tried batchoy the way many locals in Iloilo prepare it, hahanap-hanapin mo siya. And this is how Old Recipe, this non-pretentious restaurant in Bacoor, Cavite came to our attention.

If you’ve tried batchoy the way many locals in Iloilo prepare it, hahanap-hanapin mo siya. And this is how this non-pretentious restaurant in Bacoor, Cavite came to our attention. Passing by some highway in the middle of the night, we came across Old Recipe, which boasts to sell “original” (open and close quotation) Ilonggo food, including batchoy.
@outragemag The #LGBT search for #Ilonggo ♬ original sound – Outrage Magazine
As FYI: This is supposedly an old resto, opening in 1988, though at first as Ilongga House. The name change happened in 2018, though the resto owned by Rufino Gallo must be doing something right since it now has a handful of branches.
The branch we went to was… nothing grand, even if it can seat around 80 pax. Old tables, old seats, and so on. You get the drift.
The staff was at least friendly; they even provided the info I sought for this quick review.
But the wait time was sobra. And to think we just ordered batchoy (the supreme sells for ₱198, and if you add extras, you pay ₱15 for an egg and ₱18 for chicharon or bawang), as well as pansit molo (₱168 for solo size). They have a sizable menu; this is one of those restos that has too much to choose from.
But to be extremely blunt, the food wasn’t great.
For the batchoy, you don’t get a lot of noodles and sahog. And it was too watery so that the batchoy taste was just not there. The pansit molo, at least, had okay broth; but the pork dumplings tasted like they just came out of the freezer.
This isn’t the Ilonggo resto I – personally – can see myself regularly going to. But I understand if others may like it, whether for after-inuman sabaw, or for those wanting to try Ilonggo offerings particularly if they live nearby. To each his or her own, sabi nga.
So off we go pa rin, as we look for more lafang venues.
OLD RECIPE is located at Greenfields Commercial Bldg., Mambog IV, Bacoor, Cavite.
Destinations
Craving for smoked meat? We checked Jfred’s Smokehouse for you
Are you searching (or craving) for #smokedmeats? We head to #Cavite to see if the noise about Jfred’s Smokehouse is deserved.
You see their ads often… these restaurants that offer smoked meats that are said to melt in your mouth with goodness. Sa visuals, maaakit ka, as they showcase slices of meat that remain juicy after being processed, and so yeah, maglalaway ka sa akala mo ay yummy.
This is how we discovered Jfred’s Smokehouse in Cavite.
After a visit, ano ang masasabi namin?
@outragemag Takam ka sa #smokedmeat? #LGBTQ food trip to Jfred’s Smokehouse @jfreds.smokehouse in #Bacoor, #Cavite ♬ original sound – Outrage Magazine
Una, the place is easy to find naman, as it’s not too far from malls. Note that this is in Bacoor; meaning, you’d need to allocate time to drive to the place, and extra cash for tolls if you take expressways.
Ikalawa, the actual venue is… okay kahit di full-blast ang aircon. Malinis ang lugar. May maayos na furniture. Proper ang cutlery. Di mausok, so you don’t leave smelling like you sat beside the grillery. And so on.
Ikatlo, attentive naman ang staff. Halimbawa, they can explain the items in the menu; and they’re readily available if you need stuff.



Now… let’s talk about the food.
- The Smoked Angus Beef (₱900) was noteworthy for being soft, yes. You won’t even need a knife na when you eat because this is what “melts in your mouth” is like for real. However, this tasted quite bland. So when chewing, you – instead – taste the not necessarily desirable meat fat. Also, for ₱900, you get a small serving.
- The Beef Ragu (₱380) was malaman, and was cheesy. But it was also quite sweet. And yes, maliit ang serving.
- The Caesar Salad (₱250) was sariwa, and was cheesy. But for ₱250, the serving was quite small din.
- The French Fries (₱150) was served warm. But eat fast because mabilis kumunat.




Jfred’s Smokehouse is not a bad place. So if looking for smoked meat while in the area, yep… add this to your list of venues.
And yet this place made us realize that smoked meat is an acquired taste. Hindi lahat makaka-appreciate nito. And so yeah, revisiting isn’t in our calendar pa. So we just search for more lafang venues.

Jfred’s Smokehouse is located at 4930 Molino Blvd., Niog III, Bacoor City, Province of Cavite. Contact them at 0999 929 7624.
Dining Out
Heading to Cavite to try Som Thai Silang Bypass
We go to Silang to check Som Thai Silang Bypass.
There’s this venue in Silang in Cavite that started referring to itself as “Little Bangkok”. And why not, when – in a compound – there are various Thai-related offerings, helmed by a Thai resto called Som Thai Silang Bypass.
We checked it, and… how was it for us?
@outragemag Looking for #LGBTQ #thai #cheapeats in #Cavite? We checked Som Thai Silang Bypass to see if it's worth visiting
Una, this place is closer to Tagaytay than it is to Manila. So magbaon ng pasensiya at pera sa biyahe… considering that, yes, you have to allocate more time and monetary allocation for the gas and tolls just to check this place.
Ikalawa, the actual resto isn’t grand; it almost looks like a karinderya in the province. But then again, it reminds me of the micro and small entrepreneurs in rural parts of Thailand, where locals convert their houses into mini-restos for lunch and for dinner. Just don’t expect much when here.
Ikatlo, the service people were nice (e.g. they’d ask you if things are okay), but they were… slow (e.g. I had to approach the teller to pay the bill).








And lastly… the food; how was it for us?
- The Som Tam (papaya salad, ₱120 for the solo serving) was – in a word – malansa (fishy). There are different ways to prepare this, with some adding shrimp paste (bagoóng alamáng) or dried shrimps (hibi). But the version of Som Thai Silang Bypass tasted like it used fermented fish (bagoóng isdâ) from Pampanga. Now… if you’re familiar with Pampanga’s bagoong, you’d know what I mean when I say malansa.
- The Tom Yum seafood (₱291 for the solo serving) was, at least, malasa (tasty) and contained lots of seafood.
- The Pad Thai chicken (₱249 for the solo serving) was… tasteless. This is sorta disappointing because when a Thai resto can’t make a proper Pad Thai, you start to have doubts re authenticity.
- The Mango Duo (two pieces of half-cut fresh spring rolls + mango sticky rice + garlic mayo and peanut sauce, ₱265) is a cheaper way to get spring rolls and dessert. Nothing special here, but the mango slices used were really sweet.
- The Chicken Satay ((with peanut sauce and vinegar, ₱210) was bland. We were anticipating red curry (or massaman curry) or at least peanutty taste, but neither was noted. Even the peanut sauce did not taste peanutty.
- Be warned that the servings here are small – i.e. when they say “solo”, they’re serious in limiting you from sharing.
- Be warned, too, that some Thai condiments – e.g. tamarind paste – aren’t available. “Ubos na,” we were told.
If there aren’t other Thai restos in the area, Som Thai Silang Bypass should suffice. But this is Silang, a municipality in the Province of Cavite that has too many restos to count. So yeah… you can try if you want, and considering its limitations. Otherwise, let’s just discover more lafang venues.

Som Thai Silang Bypass is located along Bypass Road, Aguinaldo Highway, Silang, Cavite.
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