Ramen Ron

I finally got to try Ramen Ron in Rockwell. In fact, I got to try it twice.

Ramen Ron in Rockwell, Makati

Ramen Ron made waves recently after being included in the Michelin Selected list among restaurants in the Philippines. If I understand correctly, Ramen Ron used to be Ukokkei Ramen, which I had tried once before, in the early 2010s. While many people told me back then that the ramen there was really good, I thought it was just okay. But when the opportunity to dine at Ramen Ron presented itself, I gave it a go. I ordered the Ukokkei Shoyu Chashu Ramen, with a side of gyoza. While I thought it was good, I felt that Mendokoro's shoyu ramen was much better.

Ukokkei Shoyu Chashu Ramen

However, shortly after that, some of my friends said they wanted to try Ramen Ron so it gave me a chance to try something else on the menu. I remembered one thing I heard from my friends a long time ago about Ukokkeoi, that their best ramen is actually the Tantanmen. So on this subsequent visit to Ramen Ron and I ordered their Tantanmen. Thankfully, I did, because it was really good! While it has a spicy soup base, it isn't too hot. This, for me, is up there in terms of my favorite ramen dishes in Metro Manila. It made me understand why and how Ramen Ron could be classified as Michelin Selected.

Tantanmen

I now look forward to revisiting Ramen Ron and enjoying their Tantanmen again. It really is very highly recommended.

Ramen Ron
https://www.facebook.com/ramenron.ph/
https://www.instagram.com/ramenron.ph/
Address: Rockwell Center, Ground Floor, Edades Tower, Amorsolo Dr, Makati City, Metro Manila
Phone: 0917 628 7245

An Amazing Australian Open

Carlos Alcaraz just made history by winning the Australian Open. He defeated Novak Djokovic 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 in the finals. He had already previously won each of the other major titles so winning the Australian Open completes his set. He achieved this at the age of 22 years and 272 days, making him the youngest person to achieve the career Grand Slam.

History 🏆

Career slam complete, take a bow @carlosalcaraz 🇪🇸@wwos • @espn • @tntsports • @wowowtennis • #AO26 pic.twitter.com/pd7ye35TTq

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) February 1, 2026

This is also the first time in his massively illustrious career that Novak Djokovic lost an Australian Open final. In fact, before this year, he had not lost a single semifinal or final that he played. That record was under threat in the semifinal when he faced Jannik Sinner but he managed to overcome a 2 sets to 1 deficit to snap a 5-game losing streak to the Italian. His triumph prevented a fourth consecutive Alcaraz-Sinner major final. It's amazing to think that even at 38 years old, Djokovic is still better than almost everyone else on the ATP tour.

Since we are talking about records and history, I thought I'd share these bits of trivia. I would like to add that while Carlos Alcaraz eclipsed the record previously held by Don Budge, Don actually won the Grand Slam in 1938, winning all majors in the same year. He was the first person, male or female to do so. Rod Laver was 24 years old when he achieved the career Grand Slam but he did it all in the same year as well - 1962 - making him the second man to win the Grand Slam. In fact, Rod Laver remains to be the only player to have won two Grand Slams, first in 1962 and then again in 1969. Many women also achieved their career grand slams at a younger age, including Maureen Connolly and Steffi Graf, both of whom won the Grand Slam at ages 18 and 19 respectively.

On the women's side, Elena Rybakina defeated Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 to win her first Australian Open title. This also marks her second major title, adding to her Wimbledon trophy back in 2022. Elena seemed to be struggling for the most part of 2025 but she found her form close to the end of the year, winning the WTA finals. She managed to remain at that level in Melbourne, where she only dropped one set in the entire tournament (and only to Sabalenka in the final). Hopefully, this second Grand Slam title gives her greater confidence and a stronger championship mettle to help her win more majors.

Exceptional. Elite. Elena 👑

Elena Rybakina is the 2026 Australian Open CHAMPION 🏆 pic.twitter.com/bHuSk06dop

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 31, 2026

Congratulations, Carlos and Elena!

My New Yeye Calderon Painting

My art journey continues with my new painting entitled Glum City, created by Wilfredo "Yeye" Calderon.

Glum City by Yeye Calderon

I actually got it before 2025 ended but it is only now that I got to write about it. It all started last September. I was in Megamall one day and I decided to pass by the galleries on the 4th floor to take a look at the art on display. One of the galleries, Artasia, had an exhibit featuring watercolor paintings from Yeye Calderon. Many of his pieces had bright, bold colors so even from afar, it caught my attention so I went in for a closer look. Interestingly enough, while the works with vibrant hues are what drew me in, it was his Glum City painting that truly captivated me.

I think it is because it feels very mysterious. It makes me wonder what the story behind it is. It is mostly dark but at the lower right corner, there's a couple standing underneath a red umbrella. What was that about? Was it meant to convey hope, that even in the bleakest environment can come a little light? Or was it meant to convey love, that two people in love will always shine brightly no matter where they are? Furthermore, the dark colors and the gorgeous brush strokes of this piece really spoke to me.

The thing  is, I saw this painting before I took my family to Taiwan so I didn't get it immediately since I was saving up for that trip. I thought to myself that maybe I can get it later on. I visited Megamall two more times after that first visit and each time, I passed by Artasia to look at that painting again. Each time I did, it reinforced my belief that I really wanted to acquire it. On my fourth visit in December, the gallery consultant, who at that point already recognized me and knew which piece I was interested, told me that I had looked at that painting so many times already so I should get it. And he was right. I knew that if someone else ends up buying that piece before I did, I would deeply regret it. So I am now the proud owner of Glum City from Yeye Calderon and I'm very happy about it.

Post-Christmas Catch-ups

For the second year in a row, my family and I had Sunday brunch at the Peninsula Manila. We do this for a several reasons. First, I have Manila Pen membership and one of my vouchers gives me 50% off on Sunday brunch at Escolta. Second, it's nice to get the family out once in a while and enjoy a lavish spread of delicious food in a lovely setting. Third, celebrating like this towards the end of the holiday season feels like the best time to do it. We get to avoid the craziness of Yuletide rush but it still feels very festive. In fact, the Manila Pen lobby was still beautifully decorated with Christmas decor. And finally, my nephew's birthday is also around this time so we get to have two celebrations in one.

Peninsula Manila lobby

As always, the food at the buffet was grand. Also, the dessert spread still had a holiday vibe. There were gingerbread houses with Santa and Christmas trees. There was panetonne, which is bread from Italy that is traditionally enjoyed during Christmas and New Year. And there was trifle, a traditional holiday dessert from the UK. I really loved the trifle. Actually, I loved our entire meal. We were all stuffed by the end of our Sunday brunch and it was great to be able to start 2026 with a bountiful feast.

Dessert spread at the Sunday brunch buffet at Escolta

I also got to catch up with my friends. For the first time in a while, I had dinner at Florabel in Estancia for post-Christmas dinner. My friend Pia always goes home to the province during the holiday season so we don't often get to see her during the Christmas get-together of our set of friends. As such, we normally meet up in January when she's back in Manila. It was also a pleasant surprise that our friend Celle joined us that evening. It's been years since I last hung out with Celle so it was great to catch up with her too.

Dinner at Florabel in Estancai

I then met up with my ex-teammates over dinner at Lugang Cafe. I randomly saw an ad on social media that said that elite BDO card holders can get 50% off at Lugang Cafe. Michelle had one, so we agreed to have dinner there before the promo ended. I actually also hadn't been to Lugang Cafe in ages but I have always loved the food here so I should try to eat here more often. I should definitely keep an eye out on their annual feast-all-you-can promo.

Finally, I got to have a couple of board game nights. I have two regular groups but there are five people that are in both of them, including Jovan who celebrated her birthday this month. For our first board game night of the year, we asked her what cake she wanted and she said she wanted Avocado Cheesecake from Lia's Cakes in Season. Unfortunately, we made a bit of a mistake in that we incorrectly ordered the Avocado Cake instead. We kinda felt bad that Jovan didn't get exactly what she wanted but since she would also be in that second board game night of the month, we got her an Avocado Cheesecake then. This also served as our post-Christmas get-together because this second board game group didn't get to meet up in December due to badly conflicting schedules. It really was great that we got to have a double celebration and enjoy a great cake along with it.

Loss

My Uncle Cesar passed away. (He's actually the brother of my grandfather but we call him uncle.) It happened right before 2025 ended. I actually saw him earlier last year, when his wife Auntie Lily was about to celebrate her 99th birthday. Since my mom and I couldn't attend the party which was scheduled over lunch on a weekday, we decided to visit them at home and spend some time with them to catch up. Uncle Cesar didn't seem sick at the time. In fact, he was quite energetic and he talked to us about all the work he was still planning to do. It was very impressive that his mind was still very sharp and that he was still doing consulting work at his age. It is quite sorrowful that we lost him shortly before the New Year but it is also great that he lived up to the incredible age of 98. My family and I went to the wake right after Christmas. It was such a shame that I got to see many of my relatives under such unfortunate circumstances during the Christmas season but I guess that's how life goes.

Then shortly after New Year, the fathers of two of my dear college friends passed away. My friend Val lives abroad but she came home recently because her dad was in critical condition. Unfortunately, he didn't make it. His wake was held a few days after his passing at della Strada Parish. Then a few day later, more bad news: my friend Letlet also lost her dad. His wake was held at Mt. Carmel. Both wakes overlapped and I ended up going to both wakes on the same night. I was told it was bad luck to do this but I don't really believe in that and I felt it was more important for me to show support to my friends Val and Letlet. Their husbands, Louie and Alan, are actually also part of our college group of friends, so I was there to support them both as well.

May Uncle Cesar, Tito Red, and Tito Gaudencio all rest in peace.

Celebration at Chef Jessie

What a wonderful way to spend the weekend. I joined my friend Jenny at Chef Jessie in Rockwell as she celebrated her milestone birthday. 

Dinner at Chef Jessie for Jenny's milestone birthday

Guests were asked to be there by 6pm so that everyone would have time to settle down because the party would start promptly at 630pm. And indeed it did! My friend Anna and I got there at about 630pm and as we arrived, the opening prayer had started. We made our way to our table - we were seated with many of our other high school batchmates - just as dinner was about to be served. Chef Jessie is known for great food so we really enjoyed our dinner. And because I shared a table with high school friends, many of whom I don't get to talk to very frequently anymore, the night felt like a bit of a reunion.

After dinner, the program started. There were speeches from several people from all parts of Jenny's life: family, high school and college friends, colleagues, and choir mates. Everyone shared such awesome and amazing stories of Jenny, which wasn't a surprise because I know how great a person she is. Then we got to the musical portion of the evening. Jenny is an incredible singer; she was part of a well-renowned choir in college and is now part of another topnotch choir. Interestingly enough, her son also sings. He entertained the guests by singing while playing the guitar. He then had a very lovely duet his mom. Then Jenny, who is a classically trained singer, regaled us with several songs that were all quite difficult to sing and require a high degree of vocal proficiency. Her solos were very impressive. Finally, she joined her choir as they closed out the night with fine music and incredible voices. It's not every night you get to attend a milestone birthday celebration that turns into a veritable concert.

Beautiful music from an amazing choir

It truly was a beautiful evening, filled with great food and wine, exceptional musical performances, and great conversations with friends that continued even after the program ended. Definitely one for the books. It really was an honor to have been part of this very special and memorable evening. Happy birthday, Jenny!

New Stuff, New Experiences

I have new plates. Swanky Plates. Last year, my family had dinner at La Latina and our dinner was served over these really cool plates that had very interesting animal designs on them. I decided to get my mom a couple of these plates for Christmas. I then also decided that, even if I didn't need them, I could get one for myself haha. As luck would have it, there was a bit of a problem with the availability and the shipment schedule of my order. I shared my concerns to Swanky Plates that this delay would mean that I wouldn't be able to give them as a gift to my mom in time for Christmas. They managed to send me the plates right before the 25th but because the delay meant that I couldn't properly prepare the plates as a Christmas present, they sent me a couple of extra plates as an apology. I decided to give one of the extra plates to my mom and keep one for myself. As such, I now have two Swanky Plates: the Matador Bull (which I ordered)...

Matador Bull Swanky plate

...and the Lioness Rockstar which they gave to me for free. Cool! (You also know you are old - or well, older - when new plates make you excited hahaha.) There are 16 different designs so if you are interested, you can order them from this link: https://swankyplates.pickup.ph/.

Lioness Rockstar Swanky plate

I also got to try a new place: Ossam at Food Choices in Glorietta 4. Apparently, the main branch is in BGC. I ordered their Yangneom chicken set with teokbokki and kimchi and while I knew this set would already be quite heavy, I also really wanted to try their cheese ramyeon so I ended up ordering both. Needless to say, I was really full after dinner haha. The food was pretty good too.

Ossam in Glorietta Food Choices

Finally, a first for me: I won Terraforming Mars! I've played this game so many times in the past, both physically and online (via the virtual Steam version) but I had never won it before. We actually hadn't played it in a long while - I'm guessing the last time we did was before the pandemic - but my board game group felt that it should hit the table again. And for the first time in my life, I won it! Cool.

My first ever win at Terraforming Mars